I Will Defend You

After the dust from the collapse of the Blackshade Syndicate had settled a bit, Morgan and Wilhelmina took the time to have a small wedding. Most of those in attendance were dust raiders, but the reception was a delightfully raucous party that lasted nearly two full days. Once the celebrations were over, the two went right back to the piratical life of a dust raider.

While it took some getting used to for Wilhelmina, she was now accustomed to the quick skirmishes and speedy getaways her life had become. For several years now they roamed the sands, attacking vulnerable merchant ships and caravans. Because of Morgan's experience, things usually went smoothly, but today was not one of those days.

The plan had been to ambush a merchant caravan leaving Espum, using a small abandoned village as cover. It had gone well until a pair of Espum Guard patrol vessels turned up. Morgan, Mina and their fellow raiders had been forced to take shelter in one of the empty buildings, taking potshots at the officers when they could. One of the men had radioed for reinforcements from other, nearby raiders, but it could be hours before they arrived, if they did at all.

'A breeze, he said,' Wilhelmina muttered as she emptied the spent shells from her pistol. 'It'll be easy, he said.' Her eyes lifted to look at Morgan, a wry smile on her face.

'And a breeze it would have been, if those patrolmen hadn't shown up,' he answered. The opposing gunfire ceased for a few seconds and Morgan risked taking a peek at the patrol officers. He was rewarded with bullets pinging off the bricks beside him, spraying him with grit as he swore and ducked back down.

'There's too many of them,' Wilhelmina said as she moved just enough to look around her corner. 'We can't even get a shot off.' It was true. For the past ten minutes, the guards had kept them so well covered that the raiders were unable to take aim for long enough to hit anything.

'Hey, Mitchell!' Morgan called. 'You got any more of those grenades?'

'Just the one,' the raider called back. 'Still got a few of those smoke bombs, though. Not sure if they're still good, they're pretty old.'

'Hmm, maybe. We'll hold onto them in case they rush the building. Toss me that grenade, unless you think you have a better shot at our friends out there.' Mitchell tossed the metal ball over for Morgan to throw. 'Cover me,' he said to Wilhelmina.

She nodded and waited for his signal before stepping out and shooting at anything that moved in the adjacent building the guards were in. Most of them ducked, giving Morgan a chance to pull the pin and hurl the grenade through the window where he had seen the most men. Surprised and alarmed shouts could be heard in the few seconds before the explosion.

The raiders took advantage of the momentary confusion to eliminate a couple of the patrolmen, but it was not long before the officers had them ducking for cover again. Morgan whipped around at a yell behind him. Panic rolled over him like a sandstorm as his eyes took in the form of his beloved lying on the roof of the building. 'Mina!' He made a crouched run to her side, ignoring the chips of mortar shooting up around him.

Her eyes were closed, but they were squeezed tight and her lips were moving as she uttered a string of curses he knew she had learned from the other raiders. One of her hands was pressed firmly against the front of her left shoulder, around which blood was welling. 'Oh, Mina,' he whispered as he kissed her forehead. 'I'm so sorry, Love.' He pulled her up until she was propped against the wall but still out of view of the patrol officers.

'They're charging the building!' A raider warned. Shots rang in the air as the sand pirates tried to deter the enemy with what few bullets they had left. It was little help when they were outnumbered and forced to stay behind cover, lest a bullet find them.

'Morgan,' Wilhelmina whispered. 'I can't feel my arm.'

He already had a knife out and was ripping away the bottom edge of her skirt with it. 'Hush, Love. You'll be fine, but we've got to stop this bleeding.' Another strip was torn off, and he used that to hold the other piece, now wadded into a ball, into place over Wilhelmina's wound.

'Captain! They're almost in down here!' A shout came up from the stairs.

Wilhelmina looked at Morgan, eyes glassy as she spoke slowly. 'I think it's time to-'

'Hush, Love. Don't talk like that,' he interrupted. 'I will defend you to my dying breath, but don't you dare die on me. Don't you dare.'

She frowned at him. 'I meant time to quit this raiding business. There's too many patrol guards nowadays.'

'Ah, right. Of course.' Morgan flushed lightly as he kissed the top of her head. She was too preoccupied to noticed his slight coloration. 'Stay here and don't move. I'll be back.' He waited until she nodded weakly before rushing downstairs to join the others, praying that they could hold out long enough for reinforcements to arrive.