OOG: Starting the next thread :-)

Wednesday, June 20th, 1889 1:00 PM

Forty minutes later by Robert's watch, the caravan arrived at the meeting area. The men greeted each other, laid out rugs, and sat down to share a meal. Food and drink were brought out, and the leaders began to eat.

"We should have time for the authorities to arrive," Louis observes.
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:05, Tue 14 Apr 2020.

Robert observes for a while as well sharing the telescope with Louis.  "I can move further down the ridge line and set off the rocket from there.  If the fuse is long enough I can get back away and we can avoid being chased down."

Upon examination, the signal rocket has a rather ingenious ignition device that gives up to a ten-minute delay before it launches.

"We should move away from here first," Louis says. "While I hate to be predictable, perhaps we should go back the way we came, since we now know the lay of the land."

Robert finishes setting up the rocket and then nods.  "Definitely darling.  Let's trot though to make what distance we can." He sets the fuse and then heads back in their previous tracks through as much cover as possible.

The pair sets off back the way they came. Ten minutes later, to the tick on Robert's watch, the signal rocket launches high into the atmosphere, deploys a small parachute, and, drifting gently on the wind, burns with an intense red light.

"I do hope the Navy is watching," Louis says dryly.

Robert settled behind a low rise next to Louis.  He pulled his pocket watch out, a battered but serviceable and expensive piece that had served him well in the navy.  When the rocket fired he watched it for a moment before turning the telescope on the caravan.  "Well, if they see it there is nowhere to run for the caravan."

After a few minutes, Robert sees that the rebels have elected to quickly withdraw instead of tarrying to find out who launched the rocket. They hastily transfer several wooden boxes matching the descriptions he's seen earlier in the investigation, and get underway back to the west.

The caravan drivers are seemingly nonplussed, and they continue to eat lunch - after an obvious confrontation. The leaders on both sides sit and gesture expansively, and Robert can see that they are yelling even though his glass. After a couple of minutes, the rebel leader passes over four hand-sized bags to the caravan leader. They all stand, exchange Martian handshakes and goodbye greetings, and part ways.

"I really hope it's that easy," Louis murmurs.

Robert watches, sharing the telescope with Louis.  "Well, maybe but it never is that way.  They may have airships of their own to complicate matters.  We know that this caravan deals with the smuggling and we know where the smugglers are headed.  That's a tremendous advance so far." He swept the horizon looking for their airship.

Thirty minutes later, the caravan packs up and starts moving westward. There is no sign of an airship, friendly or otherwise.

Robert shook his head.  "Let's follow the smugglers then.  We can leave a message at the site of the rocket shot." He walked back to the scorched earth where the rock was launched and wrote a quick note outlining the situation and the direction in which they were heading before placing it under a small cairn of rocks.  "Can I borrow a bright scarf or such to add to the cairn darling."

"Certainly, Darling." Louis reaches for her bag - and then she grabs Robert and shoves him next to a small outcropping. "Down!"

The flat "WHAP" and crack of a bullet passes just over Robert's head, followed two seconds later by the boom of a rifle somewhere to the west.

"Ooof..." Robert grunts as he slams up against the rock.  With a quick glance at Louis he scrambles behind the outcropping and grabs for his own rifle.  "Thank you Love.  What did you see?  Less than half a mile by the sound."

Louis presses against both Robert and the rock. "I saw the glint from a glass, and then a puff of dust as he fired." She looks around them. "The cover here is scant, but his range is long, too."

The land here is relatively level, with the next outcroppings, barely head high, thirty yards or so to either side of them. The land is rougher to the south, but they'd have to cross two open areas about ten yards each across to reach better cover.

Robert considers the options. "I'll fire at him to keep his head down if you can run to the cover.  Let me take a couple of shots first and draw his attention."

Louis looks to their left, and then she nods. "I will need to drop my pack, though."

Robert nodded.  "You can cover me and I'll scoop it up.  Take your weapons and water just in case."

Louis leaves her canteen slung across her chest, and checks her rifle and pistol. "Ready."

Robert rustled around in his pack and pulled out a half full bread sack.  He tossed the bread back in the pack, filled the sack with rocks and readied his rifle. "I'll toss the bag to the opposite side you are going, lean out and start firing and then you run."

"Understood," Louis says.

When Robert tosses the bag, another shot rings out, and the round impacts the ground two yards further away from where the bag lands.

Robert leans out, catches sight of another glint in the distance, and fires a round. At the same instant, Louis rushes to the next rock. She arrives there without incident, and she smiles across the gap at Robert. Lifting her rifle, the American peeps around the rock, and then settles back. "Nothing," she calls across to Robert.

Robert watches carefully but the glint does not reappear.  He sighs in relief as Louis makes the run across the open.  "Keep them covered while I get ready," he calls out softly.  Robert gathers up his own as well as Louis' gear.  "Fire a couple of rounds to keep their heads down.  I'm coming across."  Once she fired Robert sprinted, zig zagging to the cover.

When Robert moves, Louis levels her rifle and fires twice, the gunshots reverberating off the rocky terrain around them. This time, there is no incoming fire.

Louis looks southward. "Once more, and we can reach that low area." She points at a place where the ground drops off into a wide trench. There's about fifteen yards of open ground to cross to get there.