Help Unwanted

A Mistake

Dea grabbed her pistol and fired a warning shot in the direction of their oncoming enemies. This surprised them, as a couple men momentarily lost their footing. The unaffected one charged forward and launched an axe at Deacon’s head. He dodged it and the weapon lodged in the wall behind them. He aimed the barrel of his gun straight at the unarmed man’s forehead, who stepped back cautiously. 

“You are harboring a criminal of the Armada,” He spoke, eyes flickering among the three that stood before him and Dea. “Surrender him now , or you all will be arrested.”

“Like Hell we’ll let you take him!” The archer spat. He straightened his back and tightened his grip on the bow.

“Drop your weapons.” Dea added threateningly, adjusting her aim at him. His gaze turned as he slowly loaded his bow, unphased by her warning. 

“ Stai fermo! ” The spymaster snapped, taking a bold step forward. “We will not hesitate to kill you.” 

Grins spread on their faces. They accepted the challenge. “Likewise.” 

The gunman in the back raised his weapon. Deacon only had a second to push him and Dea down to the floor, avoiding the spray of oncoming bullets and arrows. Once they paused to reload, he climbed to his knees and fired in their direction, successfully shooting one of them in the shoulder. They wasted no time jumping from their position - attacking whoever was closest. Deacon pistol-whipped the axeman, incapacitating him, while Dea wrestled with the archer. 

The man was bigger than her, successfully pinning her to the ground with his bow pressed against her throat. Her eyes bulged as they moved to Deacon, but he wasn’t there anymore. She looked around as much as she could in her state, and spotted the end of his cape retreating into the house. The gunman was bleeding out a few feet away from them, clutching his chest and wheezing heavily. 

“ Deacon! ” She cried.

She attempted to kick her foe, but to no avail. He was choking her painfully . She was losing more oxygen as the seconds passed by. A rush of adrenaline overcame Dea as she kneed him roughly in the chest. It knocked the air out of him. She fired a bullet into one of his legs, making him scream and fall to his knees. 

She ran to the house, wasting no time. Just as she reached the doorway, a large woman pushed past her, wailing as she fled. Dea rushed inside. She found Deacon restraining a small, balding man in handcuffs. He was shaking in his grasp - several tears streaming down his face as he was forcefully brought to his feet. He tugged him forward and spared his partner a quick glance as they walked by.

“We need to go.” Was all he said. He walked off before she could say anything back.

She chased after him, clenching the handle of her gun tightly. She felt furious ! “That’s all you have to say to me!?” 

“Our witness ran before I could stop her,” He paused to scoff at their prisoner fighting against his grip. He pulled on the cuffs with no effort. “We have to leave before she alarms anyone of what we’ve done.” 

“I - I can’t believe you! Did you even see me getting choked back there?" 

She was having trouble breathing right. Her chest felt tight and her throat was still aching. Her gloved hand reached upwards and clutched it without second thought. 

"I assumed you could handle it."

They started on a secret path leading to the docks. They needed to avoid detection. He lied about their reasoning for being here. Officially chasing after his guilty party would've only required more paperwork, and he didn’t have the time for it. So being caught with this convict would bring trouble he wanted to avoid. Dea apparently didn't care, as she continued to scream at him while they went.