Robert will have to consider the ramifications of such an action, especially during a war. The first question is, who will he turn the prisoners over to, and on what grounds?

My concern was more that we aren't at war yet.

The offense would be smuggling the weapons.  I'd think that would be fairly clear.  Of course his actions might just kick the war off!!!!

One man's smuggling is another man's legitimate commerce. The act of the Martians in purchasing, possessing, and transporting the rifles isn't illegal under the colonial laws. They are simply delivering them to rebels, which Robert can't really prove, except to say that the Martian leader is a warlord, and lives in an area that's - almost - in open rebellion.

On the other hand, the Martians can't do much if the weapons are confiscated, since the British don't want them to have them, and they are in British territory at the moment. Also, if they allow the humanitarian supplies to go through, then the rebels can't say that the British are cutting their supply lines entirely.

Of course, none of this stops Robert from hauling them in and turning them over to his commander for that worthy soul to worry over. :-) In Robert's experience, field commanders in Her Majesty's Armed Forces have a good deal of latitude, proportionate to the communications distance from their commanding officers. I suppose that's a backwards way of saying he won't catch too many javelins, whatever he decides.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:55, Tue 14 July 2020.

I'll go with my gut then.  It tells me that we don't want a warlord running free with a war about to break out.

So, we're wrapping up what I've called the Gunrunning Caper.

Never fear, though, more intrigue is lurking in the background...

:-)

Always trouble on Mars!

Robert and Louis have some time to themselves until Meghan returns in a week. The base commander meets with Robert about the prisoners, and is happy with his decision to bring them in. He is even happier to have the weapons in custody.

So, if you'd like to write up something about the week, please do so. I'll be ready to start by next week (real time).

Sounds fair.  Have we cleared Robert and Louis of the murder charges?

I forgot about that!

The British attache explained a great many things to the German attache. According to the rumors, the conversation was epic ;-)

Afterwards, the charges were summarily dropped. Gelber was sacked and put on a ship back to Earth, claiming diplomatic immunity, in trade for dropping the charges against the Darlingtons.

Ahhh... that helps!  No prison time :)

Well, Robert is serving a life sentence. Poor guy just doesn't know it yet...

I think Jonathan/Tiglath will be joining us, but you can go ahead and post something for Robert right up to where you arrive for dinner with Meghan.

Ahh... but the sweetest bonds... :)

Oh, dear...

:-)

More to come...

Yea... marriage and family!

Is Louis a Wilder?  I forget her maiden name...

Her maiden name was Wetzel.

I didn't correct it then, but earlier in the narrative you said Robert's name was Pemberton. It's Darlington ;-)

Yea, I got Darlington wrong earlier, it jumped out at me!

I Louis' last name started with a 'W'...

My Spanish-speaking in-laws mix languages all the time, so I'm trying to capture this habit in Lucinda's speech ;-)

I love it!  Very accurate.

34 years' experience ;-)

LOL!!!

I might have said this before, but I named Louis after a real-life man from the Ohio Valley in what is now West Virginia. His name was Lewis Wetzel, and the natives of the area called him "Deathwind". If you remember the author Zane Grey, his ancestor was a contemporary, and Grey wrote several books recounting their lives back in the early 1800s.

Wetzel's biggest claim to fame was his incredible marksmanship and overall ability as a woodsman and a hunter of men. And, all of this is absolutely true.

In reply to JR (msg # 529):

I don't recall the background for Louis but that is cool.  I'll have to look up those Zane Grey books.  Do you know the titles?

Here's the Wikipedia entry: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Spirit_of_the_Border

This says it was a novel, but, if it was, it was based largely on historical events, and on real people. Lew Wetzel's family was murdered by one of the tribes in the area, so that's why he hunted them with such ferocity. It was a tough time, with enough tragedy to go around.