Seeing the German agent slump back down the stairs, Robert knows that the man is unlikely to present a threat.  He turns to the woman and shakes his head.  "Harriet, let me help you.  Tell me what happened while I get you stabilized."  He sets the safety on the pistol and stuffs it in his waistband.  Then he kneels and scoops her up and carries her back into the apartment.  Setting her down on the couch he quickly cuts strips from the table cloth and sets about cleaning and binding her wounds.  "What happened to Louis and Penny and how did you get involved?"  He knew that the constabulary would be up here soon and wanted to get what information he could before officaldom became involved.

Harriet writhes in agony as Robert lifts her. "No time," she whispers, looking up at him from the couch. "Louis. Needs you. In danger. Germans. Haberdasher. near barracks." She lays her head back on the couch's arm and closes her eyes. After a moment, she takes a deep breath, then her mouth falls open, and her body goes limp.

The sound of doors and loud voices comes from outside the door. A woman's scream echoes through the stairwell, and a man's voice calls out. "Call the constable! A man's been shot!"

Robert knows that this situation with a dead or dying German on the stairs and Harriet dead on his couch would lead to incredible complications.  He could stay and sort things out or he could take immediate action.  Without hesitation, Robert closed Harriet's eyes and then dashed down the out the door and down the stairs.  He pocketed the Webley not wanting to draw attention to himself and closed and locked his door.  Once on the stairs he called out.  "It's a German fellow, shouting something about the Queen.  I'll go down and get help!"

Unless bodily stopped he takes the stairs two at a time as he heads to the street level.  While running Robert thinks of what establishments he might recall near the barracks that Louis might have frequented.

The neighbors are out in force by the time Robert takes the stairs. Doctor McGee, the retired physician who lives across the stairway from Robert, is kneeling by the German. By the look on the doctor's face, there is little doubt the man is dead.

A few polite smiles and a statement or two about getting help brings Robert to the street. There, he finds another group gathered around the prostrate form of the doorman. From the snippets of conversation, and the pool of blood around the body, he has apparently been shot, as well.

The Old Barracks is in a part of town that Robert has only seen once. Where Louis' investigative duties may have taken her was another matter. She spoke little of her work, preferring to simply take leave of it while she was at home. After a moment, Robert does recall the likely location of the haberdasher's shop from a visit he made to the Old Barracks a few months back. It is about twenty blocks, or close to one and a third miles, and involves crossing the Haar Canal at the Imperial Way bridge.

Robert shakes his head at the sight of the dead doorman.  At least he'd avenged the deaths with his action on the stairwell but the ruthlessness of the attack, her in the town itself spoke of great danger.  He worried about Louis but could only set that aside as he moved to save her.  Walking briskly around the corner, out of side of the crowd gathered in front of the building, Robert hailed a hansom for the trip to the Old Barracks.  He offered double the fare if the driver would hurry.

The cabbie, a weatherbeaten man with a scar running from his chin to his right ear, nodded as he accepted the double fare. "Ye be askin' for trouble in that part of town," he says. "I can drop ye off, but I canna be waitin' for ye, even with this." He pats the shotgun sitting beside him in a scabbard.

The cab ride is a quick one; the horse's shod hooves pound the pavement in a canter. True to his word, the cabbie sees Robert off with a rather hasty farewell, turns the cab about, and urges the horse out as quickly as they came.

This street - Two Moons, from the sign at the corner - is relatively well lit with gaslights at each corner. Darkness has fallen, and there is no one in sight. The haberdasher's shop is ahead on Robert's left, about halfway down the block. The buildings here are mostly Martian construction, most being about six stories tall. There are a few lights showing in windows, but none of those are at street level. The one exception is what appears to be a tavern two blocks down on the right. A light breeze flows down the street, carrying the night chill and the smell of Martian sand.

Robert nods to the man.  "I can handle myself over there.  Just drop me off and be back to the safe parts of town."  As he rode in the back of the hurtling cab Robert thought back to whatever Louis could have been involved with or perhaps her cousin might have dragged her into.  Although knowing his wife it was just as likely that she'd pulled her cousin into whatever it was they were doing.  That the Germans were involved and to the point where they would kill and that openly in the town spoke of real danger.

When he disembarks from the cab Robert paid the man and started walking down the street.  He strolled past the store front, glancing casually toward what he could see. Then as he approached the inn he slipped back into the shadows and attempted to double around to a rear entrance to the store.  All the while he listened for noises from any part of the building in question.

The alleys of Syrtis Major always struck Robert as being pristine beside the ones back home. There was little of the loose trash, and none of the piles of debris common to Earth's cities. Fire escapes lined the walls on both sides of the alley, and dustbins sat at the half dozen or so doorways.  A single gaslamp hung over a door at the far end of the alley, where it turned to the right around the corner of the building. It is quiet here, save for the muttering of distant voices from the tavern.

Robert goes to the rear door of the establishment and listens.

What the alley lacks in trash, it apparently makes up for in thuggery. Robert hears faint voices from inside, and then something makes him turn around. He finds himself facing a group of Martians, three from deeper in the alley, and two more from the street side. They are all armed; two pistols, three wickedly long knives, and a shotgun are in view.

One of them steps forward. "You are very brave, human, coming here alone. Brave, and very foolish." The nearest attacker is twenty feet away, and the furthest is forty feet away.

Robert sizes up the opposition and settles on the shotgun as the most deadly of their weapons.  He readies himself for instant violence but speaks for the time being.  "Brave and foolish perhaps but I seek my wife in a matter of personal honor.  Let me deal with these human foes without troubling you."  He turns slightly to the side into the shadow to mask the pocket with the gun.

The leader smiles broadly, showing his canines. "Always polite, you British humans. We will attend to your wife after we finish with you." He lifts his knife and takes another step forward, covering a quarter of the distance to Robert. The other two knife wielders close the distance, forming a semicircle around Robert. Another step, and the knife carriers will mask their companions' line of fire.

Robert shakes his head; "Polite yes, but I wanted to give you chaps a sporting chance to escape while you still had time."  He waved his left hand broadly, attempting to draw attention to it.  "I really don't bear you any ill will yet."

As he finishes talking, Robert steps forward to mask the lines of sight of those with the guns, draws his pistol and fires at the leader.

Syrtis Major Harbor District (May 23, 1899, 6:45pm)

Robert squeezes the trigger on the Webley, belatedly recalling that he had not reloaded since firing at the German in the stairwell...

<<CRACK-BOOM>>

The shotgun wielding Martian's head explodes in a spray of blood and flesh, and the thunderous report freezes the combatants in place.

<<CRACK-BOOM>>

Another thug meets the same fate, crumpling to the ground in a shower of gore from his shattered skull. This time, Robert's eye catches a muzzle flash from the fire escape across the alley.

<<CRACK-BOOM>>

A third Martian falls, and the two still on their feet turn to flee for their miserable lives. The leader is on his knees before Robert, clutching his torso.

"I do hope you brought help," a voice calls from the fire escape. It takes his addled senses a few seconds to catch up, and a figure descends to the alley by sliding down the ladder. When the person turns, the gaslight falls on them...

Louis!!
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:10, Wed 09 Sept 2015.

Robert coolly fired one after another at the Martians, bringing down the armed foes and breaking their morale.  The added firepower from across the alley is a welcome surprise.   He looks up more carefully as the voice sounds across the alleyway and hope starts to spring in his heart.  He smiles and for a moment almost runs across the dirty stones as Louis steps out of the shadows.  Instead, controlling his emotions or at least his actions Robert cocks the big Webley and puts it against the head of the Martian leader grovelling at his feet.  Certainly the Martian wouldn't know he was out of ammunition and Robert wasn't about to say anything.

"I brought the Webley.  Henrietta died passing on her message to me and I came in a hurry.  The German pursing her is dead much as these riff raff." Louis could tell his voice though tightly controlled was bursting with relief.  "We'll need to sort this out the old way," by which he referred to their adventures together as a pair.

Looking down, Robert exerted every bit of discipline to keep from rushing to take Louis in his arms. "Now you miscreant, who are you working for and what is the meaning of all this lot?"

The other two thugs stagger as the heavy slugs tear through them, but they keep moving, and disappear around the corner to the street. The leader crumples to the alley floor, curling into a fetal ball. He is bleeding quite badly and his face is twisted in a rictus of agony.

Loud voices sound from the street, and Louis turns in alarm. "Come, my dear, we must be away from here. The damned Germans're close, and the shootin' will bring them a runnin'."

Robert considers pausing to reload but the approaching voices change his mind.  He steps around the cringing Martian leader and scoops up the shot gun.  "Let's go then.  I'll reload when we have a chance, in the meantime the shotgun will have to do." He takes motions with his head down the alley and then takes off in the opposite direction from the sound of foe approaching.

"What happened Louis," he asked as they headed toward safety or at least away from danger.

"They ambushed us," Louis says as they round the corner into the back alley. Upon reaching the next fire escape, she grasps the ladder. "There is no one above the second floor in this building. I found a good place to watch the street from the fourth floor." The fire escape extends to the third floor of the approximately eight floor building. More voices come from behind you, around the corner...

Robert knows that there is more to the story but time is pressing.  He steps up near the fire escape and readies the shotgun.  "Get on up, I'll distract them and lead them away."

Louis frowns, but she swarms up the ladder and reaches for the door. It opens easily, and she steps back to the railing. "Please, come up with me," she says in a low voice. "There's no one here."

Robert notices that the shotgun he picked up is a Winchester lever action. The barrel gleams dully in the gaslight, and the stock is pristine. He catches the faint odor of petroleum preservative from the weapon. A quick check reveals that the magazine is full, and there is a round in the chamber. The hammer is down, so he will have to cock it to fire.

As Louis heads up, Robert makes a quick judgement on the approaching voices and follows her.  He moves even more quickly up the ladder as years of time spent in the rigging of ships aid his ascent.  When he reaches the landing he grips her shoulder for a moment and heads inside, motioning for her to follow.  "Do you have a good overlook?  I'd like to see who is following us."

Louis practically drags Robert through the door, and closes it behind them. Robert finds himself standing in what appears to be the intersection of two hallways. He doesn't have time to look around, for in the next moment, Louis is in his arms. She kisses him fiercely, her eyes shining with tears in the dim light of a wall lamp. "I was so afraid that I'd never see you again," she says as she buries her face in his shoulder. "I'm sorry, but Penny is dead. I couldn't save her."

Satisfied that they are safe for a moment, Robert turns as well and crushes Louis to him.  He kisses her long and passionately to the exclusion of all else.  He strokes her hair as she buries her face in his chest.  "I was frantic with worry for you when I heard the message and then the German came blazing away.  I could not have lived another day without you Louis."

Louis clings to her husband for a few moments longer, and then takes a breath. She kisses him again, softly this time. "I love you, Robert. It was ill done of me to leave you without telling you what had happened." She takes a step back, grasping his free hand in hers. "There is a stairway to the fourth floor where no one will see or hear us." She tosses her head, indicating the hallway to Robert's left.

Robert releases Louis reluctantly but with determination for they had work to accomplish.  He leaned in a kissed her cheek as she made her confession in a way to forgive.  "All is well Louis, all is well.  We are both too impetuous at times." Robert held up a hand.  "Let me reload the pistol first.  I'd rather be fully armed if more trouble hits us."  He took a bit to reload and then shoved the pistol into his pocket.

Glancing over at the stairs Robert cocked the shotgun. "Let me lead with the shotgun.  If anything is lurking it will be best in close quarters."  With that he led the way carefully up the stairs to the next floor.