Martin leaped to the fore as the crab came charging forward. “Hurry, get down to the sands,” he shouted urgently. “I’ll try to hold this thing off. Go on, get going!”

The three travelers would not run and desert their friend. They backed away slowly to the edge of the rocks, while Martin, facing the crab as a rearguard, followed them.

The crab would make a scurrying attack then back off, suddenly changing tack to shuffle in sideways. Not having time to use his sling, Martin hurled several well-placed stones at the maddened creature. They made a hollow clunking noise as they bounced off the tough crab-shell. Each time it was hit, the crab would halt, pulling its eyes in on their long stalks. Holding one claw high and the other out level toward them, it advanced – for all the world like a fencer minus his sword. The huge claws opened and shut, clacking viciously.

From the top of the rocky outcrop where they stood to the sand below was a forbiddingly long drop. Log-a-Log teetered on the brink, shutting his eyes tight at the dizzy height. Without a second thought, Gonff grabbed the shrew’s scrubby coat with one paw, held tight to Dinny’s digging claw with the other, and jumped.

As Dinny felt himself being pulled from the smooth rock surface, he seized Martin’s tail with his free digging claw.

The crab dashed forward, only to find its pincers nipping nothing. Clutching paw to fur to claw to tail, the travelers sailed out into midair and plummeted downward, narrowly missing the jutting rocks that projected from the main mass.

Bump!

They landed flat upon the beach sand with a dull thud that knocked the breath from their bodies.

Martin was first to recover. He sat up, rubbing his back, feeling as if his tail had been dragged out by the roots. Dinny lay face down. He lifted his head, snorted sand, and looked up at the rock face.

“Hoo arr. Lookout, ’ee commen doawn!” he warned.

Sure enough, the crab was scrambling and scuttling sideways down the rocks toward them with surprising agility.

Ignoring his injuries, Martin ran to face the armored menace as his friends recovered from the fall. Grabbing a stave, he hit out strongly at the creature.

With a loud clack, the crustacean caught the flailing stave between both its claws, immediately locking tight onto it, wrenching the weapon from the warrior’s grasp.

Martin felt totally helpless as he readied himself for the crab’s next move.

Whirling and prancing about on the sand with its slitlike mouth gaping and frothing, the crab clutched madly at the stave. Martin could only stare in amazement at the dancing monster as it jigged about, holding the stave high in its murderous claws.

Log-a-Log tugged at the warrior’s paw. “Come on, Martin. Let’s get going while we can. That crab doesn’t seem to want to let go of the stave!”