The Adventures of 
the Red Shadow
South of the Sahara
Continued........

CHAPTER 2. THE FLIGHT


 
6. The sailors on the boats are chugging flat out to get back to the docks, the only place the gunboat can safely alight. The smaller tugs slow down and consider alighting their marines on the banks nearby. The Ghosts who had successfully ambushed the Tirailleurs turned their attention to the marines and poured fire into them. Two marines were incapacitated and another killed before the gunboat's canister shot caused enough casualties to kill the enemy unit's leader – not before causing some friendly fire on the retreating Tirailleurs behind them though. 
Perturbed by their leader's demise, the ambush unit fled from the thicket and routed westward. Their flight brought them into the fire arc of the train's gun whose canister hastened their departure. The Tirailleurs take this opportunity to drag their wounded into the area between the station and coal bunker and temporary respite from the hail of lead.
7. Back at the aerodrome, the engineers have started the plane, but not before loosing one of their comrades to the charging fire of the horsemen. They manage to drop some of the chargers before running back to the shelter of the redoubt while they still have time. This leaves Bigglau and Perdu sitting in an open cockpit, with a cold engine facing a charge of firing cavalry. Not having experienced the noise and smell of the aero machine before, the Ghosts horses shy away from the roaring engine and their charge fails to close. With little choice but to risk a seized engine, Bigglau opens up the throttle and the cavalry attempt to charge home on the aero machine. The horse fall back from the machine as it roars down the cleared runway. Luck is with him and the engine remains operational. The retreating cavalry take potshots at the passing machine but cause no damage.
8. The train, having now built up enough steam, starts moving forward continuing to fire on the other charging horse, but realizing that its forward movement is taking its gun out of arc of the cavalry, the engineer brings the engine to a stop and backs up down the tracks. The horse unit in front of the train is now suffering serious casualties and the remaining few veer back 
across the track and head to the redoubt.
9. After leaving Segu in the morning and getting a few miles out of town, the Shadows scout heard what he thought was gunfire back at Segu. They paused for a while, but when the cannons roared, they knew there was trouble back at the fort.  The arrived back from the east. 
The eastern most hidden unit of the Tukulor Ghosts had left their hiding spots and was advancing towards the dock. This became an obvious target for the Shadow who appraised accurately exactly what was happening. The Chasseurs immediately approached the unit advancing on the dock and killed its leader with gunfire.
However, they were surprised by a troop of Tuareg Meharistas who had thrown in their lot with Ahmadou and fell on the Chasseurs’ rear. The Shadow's unit responded in time and was able to counter charge and enter into melee with the Cameleers. However, in doing this they presented their right to the unit whose leader they had just killed. 
That unit, extremely angered by the death of their hero went into a blind fury, through down their guns, drew their swords and fell on the flank of the “pretty horsemen”. 

The combined attacks inflict heavy losses on the Chasseurs who retreat with 5 dead and the Shadow severely wounded, but not before they has killed five of the Ghosts.