Brie, also, was fascinated by the constantly changing view as the world below her got smaller and smaller. She'd known the Earth was round, of course, and that there were other planets, but to have it so emphatically presented to her in this fashion was mind-boggling, to say the least!

"I'm used to the cold a bit more, I guess," she said to Catherine as she retreated inside, "but it won't be long before I join you."

"Perhaps Petras has thoughtfully stocked some winter clothing, though I wonder if he anticipated having three women on the ship in his first voyage! The perception is always that it's a man's game."

Grimsby commented, "If you ladies do not have warm clothing with you, I suspect you will want to purchase some once we reach Mars. The nights, in particular, are apt to be quite cold. In the meantime, I have a coat or so I could lend Catherine, and maybe Miss O'Malley -- they would not fit very exactly. but they would be warm. However, I doubt any of us will be wanting to stay on deck much longer, so warm clothing can wait until we ae on Mars, or at least well into its atmosphere."

In reply to Grimsby H. Baskerville (msg # 118):

OOC: Grimsby's right.  I recall Petras saying he had a "Radium Engine" powering the ship--I'm guessing that means a glowing block of refined Radium is generating enough heat to boil water into steam, which then turns an electric dynamo.  But, no matter how it's probably working, that radium reactor will be generating some heat, and once we button the ship up air-tight, we'll be comfortably warm, until we pop the hatches on Mars...

"Oh, it was just a joke, dear cousin" Catherine admits. "I'm sure I will be all right. I'm terribly excited for the journey"

The ship continues to rise into the sky while the Earth below gets farther away and grows smaller and smaller. It's a fascinating image of the planet. And still the ship continues to rise, although at some point it stops being 'rise' and simply moves away.

The ship's speed increases dramatically once you've left the atmosphere of Earth, but it's not really noticeable inside the ship.

When the Earth appears to be the size of a fist, you begin hearing faint taps that seem to be coming from the hull.


So now is when the words "MARS... 4 weeks later" appear on the screen to let you know that time has passed with nothing interesting having happened during that time.

If anyone has any idea for how to pass the time, feel free to post it in as much or as little detail as  you want. Alas, I still don't have enough brain power to come up with something on my own.

During the time in between, Catherine eagerly bombards her guardian with questions on Mars, everything she can think of. If he's willing, she tries to learn one of the Martian languages, although she makes a bit of a mess of it.
Catherine spends some time trying to entertain the others, singing and playing games. She tries her hand at cooking, too.

In reply to Catherine Harston (msg # 122):

OOC: Joseph will jump on the Martian Language hay wagon, too!  He speaks a "smattering" of the Canal Martian "Trade Tongue"--though taught to him by a German Soldier who thought it was humorous to teach him badly...
     Maybe Grimsby can help Joseph to "speak better".

Double-Secret-OOC: Hey, Brie--I assume your facility with languages is because you are using your...abilities...to kinda-sorta "borrow" the skill from those nearby who already speak the language, da?  If so, perhaps you might assist Grimsby?  Maybe with two of you providing instrucion, we might stand a chance of actually learning something ^_^

Of course, it's been almost 15 years since Joseph's been taught anything by a Nanny...but I think he can deal with it ^_^

OH YEAH!!!!
     Joseph doesn't know much about Mars--but he knows enough to tell Cap'n Petra he should plan on landing at Thymiamata!!  Of course!  ^_^

Grimsby patiently carries on teaching Catherine Martian -- specifically Canal Martian as being the most useful form, in the trade dialect common in Syrtis Major, the chief British colonial settlement.
 He also offers some polite corrections to what Joseph had learned from the German. In particular, the German apparently had thought it was funny to teach Joseph to use low expressions not generally acceptable in polite Martian society. Grimsby also had to advise Joseph on pronunciation, though it was not clear whether that was also a German joke or just the effect of Martian in a strong German accent.

"Why Thymiamata?" Petras asks Joseph. "Admittedly, what I know about Mars is only what I read in the newspapers. I've yet to read any fiction about the planet that purports to be set in modern times."

"What are our chances of being attacked while we're flying around?"

While not a high priority, it finally sinks in that she might be at a serious disadvantage on Mars if she can't speak the language, so she tries to get in on Grimsby's language lessons.

"If things go smoothly, I should never need to speak Martian, but as we all know, things seldom go smoothly, especially where others are concerned."

"It does seem a bit peculiar to me that Joseph and I might know a bit about Indian fighting and nothing about fighting Martians, while Grimsby probably knows more about fighting Martians than he does Indians."

"Now, besides going to Mars because we can, what other reason do we have for this Grand Adventure?"

In reply to Felicity Van Horn (msg # 126):
Grimsby comments, "I've never fought a Red Indian, but from the tales I've heard, I should think fighting them would be very like fighting Martians, aside from the Queln, who ride flying beasts, and the High Martians, who can fly themselves --both very unpleasant characters to deal with."

     OOC: Pinochle!  4 Weeks of Pinochle! ^_^
     Or...Whist...if you damn Brits insist...
     Pressure Suit Badminton, out on the Lido Deck?


     "Why Thymiamata?  Well...just...because!" Joseph responds,

     "I mean, from what I've read in the newspapers, myself, that city seems to be friendly towards Americans..."

     Joseph stops talking as he notices the looks he's getting from his mostly European companions.  Joseph gives a resigned shrug, as he turns to Petra,

     "On second thought, Captain, perhaps setting down in Syrtis Major would be the more sensible option."


     "Well...since we are going to Syrtis Major--which is under British administration--we should ask Grimsby!  I say, Grimsby...haven't I read in the papers that Syrtis Major and the other British protectorates in the region were at War with some kind of alliance of cities from the south, or some-such?  What are the chances we could be attacked?"

     Joseph gives Grimsby a smug grin.

Grimsby answered, a little testily, "Yes, it is true that Britain finds herself at war with what is called the Oenotrian Empire, though only because we were decent enough to rescue a pair of your Americans from a High Martian tyrant called Hattabranx. This led the Oenotrians to fear that Britain meant to seize control of the tyrant's liftwood supply --which we had no intention of doing -- so the Oenotrians went to war with  us. However, I can say that we British have roundly defeated their aggressions, and though the war lingers on, so long as our little party stays safely within range of Syrtis Major itself, or ventures out in a direction  away from the Oenotrians' boundaries, we should be safe enough."
This message was last edited by the player at 03:03, Wed 27 Jan 2021.

In reply to Grimsby H. Baskerville (msg # 129):

     "Touché, Grimsby." Joseph acknowledges with a smile, "And quite right, of course.  I had thought to land at Thymiamata solely on news reports that the locals appeared friendly towards the Americans who were doing business there."

     "But, as as Grimsby points out, neither a city full of friendly natives--or even an entire Company of Blue-Belly soldiers--could properly protect Americans travelling outside the city."

In reply to Joseph Rudyard Hunnisett (msg # 130):

Grimsby responded, "Honorably spoken, sir. As yet America has not had occasion to station its own forces on Mars in any quantity, but meanwhile, Britain will do her duty by her transatlantic cousins, as she did in the Hattabranx case."

"I think Felicity had a point," Petras adds. "I am going to Mars simply because I can, and so I can say that I've been there."

"Some people like to travel around the world to see that sights, such as the pyramids of Egypt or the Grand Canyon in America. I do not--yet--claim to be one of those people, but Mars is a horse of a different color, is it not?"

"So, what will we do when we get there? Are there sights to be seen on Mars? Are there significant differences among the Martians that we must 'see' them all? Or at least gather a souvenir from each of the different... tribes? Clans?"

"We stay for a week or two, have tea with a Martian King, and then fly back to Earth? Or do we visit another planet? This ship is remarkably fast, as I understand it, so it is possible for us to go out farther into the system. Alas, I don't believe the ship is large enough to support such an expedition."

"If we can be sufficiently resupplied, Venus and Mercury aren't out of the question."

"What say you, Fellow Travelers? Having stood upon the Red Planet, are there more worlds to visit? Or has the traveling urge now left you?"

In reply to Petras Valois (msg # 132):

Grimsby replied, a little didactically, "As for sights on Mars, there are ancient ruins on Mars which I, for one, find quite interesting, especially those of the legendary Seldonian Empire which once ruled much of the planet.
There are several sorts of Martians: the Canal Martians, who are fairly civilized and becoming more so under our influence, whom you will certainly meet, the Hill Martians, who are more barbaric -- about on the level of American Red Indians -- and the High Martians, who are vicious savages. Fortunately, you ae very unlikely to meet that High Martians, or even the Hill Martians.
You may meet Canal Martians from several different city-states. Some would be traders and quite willing to sell souvenirs, though by now they have met enough tourists to have quite sophisticated notions of prices, alas. The local king, or prince as they call him, in Syrtis has lost most of his power to the British, and is unlikely to welcome Earthly visitors, though if you assured him you were not British it might make him more agreeable.
I may say you did not mention hunting as a pastime, but Mars has some quite impressive fauna, if you care to take the risk of hunting them."

In reply to Grimsby H. Baskerville (msg # 133):

     "I'm pretty much with you, Petras." Joseph tosses in, "I've got the itch to go see what's on the other side of the hill, as they say. And Mars has a bunch of new things I ain't seen yet--new deserts to cross, new mountains to climb, new exotic cities to walk through."

     "Plus I want to make sure that Doc Solar, here, is safely set-up as far from that scoundrel--Schilling--as possible."

     "And if, somehow, I can make a little money along the way...well. that's good, too."

     As Grimsby speaks, a thought occurs to Joseph,

     "Hey!  Canals!" Joseph says excitedly, "Petras, we should land in a Canal!  Uh, Grimsby...this Syrtis Major place does have canals, right--with water in them?  Well, Petras built this ship to also float in water--so we should land it in the water, and then we can tie up to a dock.  It would be easier than having to keep the engine running and hovering the ship over a field, wouldn't it?"

Grimsby hesitates and then says, "Well the canals near Syrtis tend to be quite busy, naturally, but of course there are established customs for finding a mooring. Landing on a canal might be simpler than finding a place at the airship field, which is smaller."

"I should love to see the canals, I hear they are quite a wonder. I'd like to go to... goodness, I just don't know, but imagine there's ever so much to see on Mars."

In reply to Catherine Harston (msg # 136):

     "Well, then, let's be about setting down, shall we?" Joseph says, making adjustments to the ship's lifting system, and setting course downward--toward Syrtis Major.

     "Say, Grimsby--would it be ill-mannered of us to just drop straight down into that lagoon formed where all the canals meet, or do you think it would be better to land in a canal, just outside the city, and then sail into the lagoon?"

Grimsby said "Well, there are points each way. Of course the lagoon is the very busiest place in the port of Syrtis. On the other hand it is also the largest part of the port, so there might be more room for us. A canal might be less busy, but also narrower. I think I would advise that you keep a sharp lookout coming in, and choose whichever place seems to have room for us at the moment we are descending."

"There's one place where all the canals meet?" Catherine asks curiously.

In reply to Catherine Harston (msg # 139):

GRimsby replied, "One place where all the major canals that run through Syrtis meet, yes. Of course, there are smaller canals running off the major canals, just as there are smaller streets running off the main thoroughfares in a city like London. But I should think we would want to land in the lagoon itself or in a major canal nearby."

In reply to Grimsby H. Baskerville (msg # 140):

     Squinting at the...periscope...that's showing the land far below the descending airship, Joseph asks,

     "Hey Grimsby!  How about I set down north of the city--in that canal that runs pretty much due north-to-south--and then sail into the city center that way?  Would that be okay, d'you think?"