"Alright, then, it's agreed -- we drop this scum over the side..." Dash said jovially, rubbing his hands together and making as if to kick the thug, "Heh-heh, I mean we drop him off at Graustark, into the hands of the British Consul."

Dash suddenly sobers, as an idea occurs, "Say, Grimsby, we at Hawkesbury Trading have a kind of business code, that we use when we want to telegraph sensitive business information. I don't suppose you Foreign Office chappies have anything similar, do you? Maybe we could stop along the way and telegraph ahead to the British Consul in Graustark, letting him know what we need, and they could then be waiting at the aerodrome...?"

In reply to Denholm Hawkesbury (msg # 98):

Grimsby responded, "Yes, as a matter of fact, the Foreign Office has a code --more than one, in fact, and although I am officially under the Colonial Office, I have had occasion to use the Foreign Office codes. As you say, if we stop somewhere I could well send a message so the consulate would be ready for us --have a suitably anonymous coach waiting at the airship field or the like --that would speed the transfer, and then we could be on our way in pursuit of more Vril."

OOC: Oops! I goofed ^_^

Remi pulls out a map and examines it before he says anything.

"We can head down the coast and stop in Pescara. They are the most likely town to have a telegraph up the coast to Venice, and from there across the ground into the Balkans. Keep in mind that the Ottomans were forced to withdraw from the region because of their lack of modernization. Lack of rails and telegraphs had a tendency to keep them in the dark in battles."

"And Pescara is more or less on our way. It's only about a hundred miles away now, and it might even have a direct cable over the mountains to Rome. If that's any better. Might be able to relay a message through the Heliograph."

Grimsby says, "Thank you, captain.  If the party decides on a short stop at Pescara, I will see if I can send a telegram in the Foreign Office code to the British consulate in Edelweiss. Given what happened the last time we landed, I would suggest that I do not go off the ship alone."

In reply to Grimsby Baskerville (msg # 102):

"I'd go with you Grimsby, old legume..." Dash gestures at the new injury to his arm, "But between this and the burns on my back, I think I should rest-up for the remainder of the journey; so I'll be ready when we get to Graustark."

"How about the Irishman?" Dash nods towards Connor, "I think there's a very good chance they don't know about him being with us, yet, so travelling with him could throw them off the trail." Dash turns to Connor, "Parli Italiano, signor Connor?"

"Or maybe Miss Mulberry?" Dash added, turning back to Grimsby, "You know, truth be told, I honestly think it was her accompanying me that kept those Vril brigands off our track -- they weren't looking for a man and a woman."

"I should be pleased to accompany you, Mr Baskerville, if you wish," says Stella with a smile, "Really, Dash, don't you think our Irish friend might be a bit too conspicuous? In a place as small as Pescara, the authorities might even lock him up until they are certain he poses no danger."

She turns to Connor, "I mean no offense, Mr Holmes, but I imagine you attract an inordinate amount of attention and comment. We are, after all, trying to be a bit surreptitious in our activities, you see."
This message was last edited by the player at 16:42, Tue 26 Aug 2014.

"I am happy to do act as escort as well, though I do not speak Italian.", offers Bellgrove.

Grimsby smiles warmly and replies, "I am very gratified that Miss Mulberry and Mr. Wander are willing to accompany me.  I quite understand that Mr. Hawkesbury needs more time recover, and I am afraid Miss Mulberry has a point regarding the likely reaction to Mr. Holmes in a small Italian town, though no one would question his
usefulness in a fight."

In reply to Grimsby Baskerville (msg # 106):

"Well, then, I believe it's settled." Dash acknowledges, "Cap'n Remi, make for Pescara, if you please. Grimsby, Stella, and Bellgrove will go into town to send a message ahead to Graustark, while the rest of us wait here, aboard the blimp. With, maybe, a quick trip to the backery for fresh bread, we should be able to get in and out in just a couple of hours, yes? And then straight sailing to Graustark!"

" Sì, signore Hawkesbury, io sono fluente in tutte le lingue umane, (Yes, Mr. Hawkesbury, I am fluent in all human languages)," Connor replied in perfect Italian from his place by the window, switching back to English as he added to Stella, "No offense taken, madam, but I have ways of making myself inconspicuous to humans, so I'm not hanging around here if I can be of use elsewhere."

The felinoid's ears lay back as he gave a slight chuff of indignance at the thought of being left on the sidelines over the as-yet unfounded notion that everyone wanted to either assault or arrest him on site just because he wasn't human, but even so Connor knew how to make himself almost invisible when things got unfriendly and he needed to move around in the open.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 00:32, Fri 29 Aug 2014.

In reply to Connor Holmes (msg # 108):

Dash shrugs -- then winces at the slight discomfort it causes.

"Your call, Connor. At least you speak Italian. Buona fortuna."

"Parlo anche un po 'italiano," says Stella modestly.

Bellgrove grins, "Ich noch sprechen kein Italienisch, aber ich bin erleichtert, dass jemand tut!"

Grimsby says, "Well, if Mr. Holmes chooses to go, I grant he will be very helpful, between his Italian and his fighting qualities."

"Dein Deutsch ist sehr gut für eine amerikanische, Herr Wander, obwohl Sie wollen auf Ihrem Akzent ein bisschen mehr arbeiten könnten. (Your German is quite good for an American, Mister Bellgrove, although you might want to work on your accent a bit more), Connor replied to Bellgrove in kind in the German tongue as he got up from his seat for another cup of tea, as well as find more appropriate garbs for going icognito, again switching back to his slightly Irish-accented English as he added, "Right, I'm going to get together what I need for going icognitio, and maybe a spot to eat."

Two hours later, the ship is approaching the village of Pescara. An airship is rather hard to hide, so it was pointless to make any kind of 'stealthy' approach. The dissemination of newspapers, magazines and books has pretty much made the existence of airships common knowledge, even if few people have actually seen one for real.

So it isn't surprising that a large group of people come out to greet the ship as it lands. For security, Remi chooses not to bring it all the way down to the ground, so anyone disembarking has to climg down the rope ladder.

Grimsby, having made sure he has both his large revolver and his derringer ready and loaded, but neither openly visible, prepares to climb down the ladder. He says,
"Well, here we go.  This is a bit more obvious than I'd like, but it can't be helped. If we spot a policeman in the crowd, perhaps Miss Mayberry  can ask the way to the telegraph office -- if the tales of Italians are true, she might get the most friendly response. If not, Mr. Holmes could explain more fluently --or more forcefully." 

Soon enough, Connor came into the room from his cabin and got ready to go down the ladder himself, having changed his clothing to better hide his inhuman appearance and hopefully keep any unfortunate incidents from happening because of his looks.

The tiger felinoid's brown suit and trousers were gone, having been replaced by a set of jet-black robes (think Assassin's Creed for the style) with a large hood to hide his face in shadow, the robes themselves doing a good job of hiding his tail and his pawlike feet since they were synched up tight with a brown leather belt with a brass buckle, and he also wore brown leather gauntlet-gloves to hide his hands. Underneath, he had a toolbelt wrapped around one shoulder like a bandolier, and he wore a white shirt and dark grey pants. As before, Connor carried no weapons per se, just his usual walking stick, but he could certainly use that to great effect as he had proven back in Marseilles.

The overall effect was somewhat menacing, like a cross between some sort of warrior monk and maybe a pirate of old, but in general Connor found this getup to be useful when he had to go about certain areas of human society that weren't too friendly to his kind.

"Well," he said as he made to follow Grimsby down the ladder, "The Italians are a pretty nice people, generally, fond of their vino and a good bite to eat, but it would still be wise to stay on our guard. We'll find the telegraph office, but I don't think force will be a wise option if we wish to keep a low profile.."

Bellgrove is also prepared (that is armed under his suit) when he joins Grimsby, Conner and Stella. "And I shall smile warmly or scowl fiercely as the moment requires," he responds to the British agent as they all prepare to descend.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 18:16, Mon 01 Sept 2014.

In reply to Bellgrove G. B. Wander (msg # 117):

Dash walked across the deck to where everyone was descending. He was dressed in boots, denim slacks and a gray turtleneck pullover with his shoulder holster and broomhandled Mauser worn openly.

"Good luck, folks." Dash said with a smile, "We'll do our best to still be here, when you get back. Say! If the opportunity comes up -- and I'm not asking you to go out of your way -- but if you could, would you get a couple pounds of coffe? I really like Italian coffee."

"Would you like us to bring back a pizza too?" Connor quipped with a murring chuckle, not being able to resist a little humor, "In all seriousness though, the do have good food and drink in this part of the world, I could go for Italian any day. I'll see about getting you your coffee if any is about, Mr. Hawkesbury, no promises but I will try."

Not relishing another climb down (and back up) the rope ladder, Stella decides that, as Mr Holmes can clearly provide language assistance superior to hers, she will remain on board.

Grimsby says, "Well, perhaps I was unwise to suggest that Italians would respond warmly to Miss Mayberry.  As it is, I shall rely on you, Mr. Holmes."  He heads on
down the ladder.

Bellgrove is also surprised by Stella's decision, but he understands that women are want to change their minds. Still, it does seem as if having a woman along in Italy would make things easier. After all, he has read things about the Romantic Italians...

Nevertheless, he says nothing and with a nod he follows Grimsby down the ladder.