survival

lost

Then, "Charleston! You come out right this minute!" I shook my head, not liking the sound of this white man. "Charleston! Charleston! God damnit, you're a bystander in this! That crazy half-breed took you prisoner- I vouch for that! Now, you come on out now!"

Declan armed himself decently well, hiding knives and axes in many places. "You go."

"No. No." Charleston refused, making me perk up some. He was choosing his own freedom.

"Congratulations. You've got about two minutes to enjoy it before we all die in fucking hellfire."

"I take it you weren't the one who would give the motivational speeches before any fight, right McTaggart?" I asked, perking a brow and standing beside my man. The Scot shot me a look before rolling his eyes and nodding.

"Nah, we'll fight," Declan decided.

"Well, I've got buckets of powder but only one musket. Let's just charge at the bastard, hard and loud!"

"This is your last warning!" Came from outside. "I would prefer to take you alive, Mr. Harp, but we will end this one way or another!"

"Englishmen still don't know how to hold their tongues, eh?" I rolled my eyes.

"Oh, I really like this one," McTaggart laughed.

"This'll get bloody," Declan warned. He held a knife for Charleston. "You in....or are you out?"

I smiled when he accepted the knife and seemingly made his decision. "Great. Where's a decent vantage point? I can shoot em down from above."

"Upstairs, first door to your left. Open the window niiiiiice and slow, they shouldn't even notice."

I nodded. "Good luck you lot. Don't die and don't get too bloodied up. I've only enough patience to nurse people from the brink of death so many times." The guys smiled briefly. I turned to Declan. "You especially."

"I won't let you down," he chuckled, kissing me before nudging me to the stairs. I took them quickly, hearing a company man speak again but ignoring the words as I set up on the window sill. I opened the window slowly like McTaggart said and he was right, none noticed the movement. And I was directly above them now.

I saw Charleston approaching with his hands raised in surrender, knowing they must have came up with some plan. "I surrender.... I don't want trouble."

"Oh, there you are, you stubborn beast," the white man spoke. "And what the hell are you doing wearing my God damn coat, no less? You get over here."

"Wait, wait," a Brit stopped him. "Search this man."

"That's not necessary," Charleston spoke. "I don't mean any harm."

"Coat off. Now."

I watched with baited breath as the knife was wrangled from his belt. I notched an arrow silently, waiting. "And just what were your plans with this? Come on." The white man seethed, taking Charleston by the lapel of his tunic and urging his forward.

I flinched some when there came a gunshot and then an explosion. Inside the coat were bags of gunpowder and one of the guys must have shot it to cause a distraction. I watched as McTaggart and Declan moved in, immediately slicing, stabbing, and impaling men left and right.

I loosened a few arrows, them all zooming forward and hitting their marks. I gasped as a man held a rifle to Declan's back, my arrow finding his eye and skull quickly as Declan turned. He saw the arrow and turned to look at me briefly before reengaging the remaining soldiers. I shot another man down that was threatening McTaggart as well, eyes shifting over the darkness to make sense of everything that just occurred.