The team were aghast to discover the day after the events at the ranch that the body of Waldmont had been discovered in a notorious bordello, and that the bodies of Kross and his wife had also been found there in what was obviously a staged "affair of passion discovered by wronged husband" tableau that was being gleefully explained to all on the front page of the Denver Morning Examiner.
Deputy Bewley was quoted in his description of the events, which he explained involved Kross bursting into the room to discover his wife and the rake Waldmont in the height of their adulterous passion, drawn a gun and fired, killing his wife and wounding Waldmont who fired back with a pistol hidden under his pillow. Three dead, all because one man, a visitor to the great state of Colorado, couldn't restrain his animal passions.
It was all very lurid and the population of Golden was properly outraged and angered that such a libertine had perpetrated a crime of unmitigated unholy lust in their midst all under the guise of his fame, and their outrage began to bleed over onto our brave lads, who were bewildered and horrified that the Brotherhood could act so swiftly and precipitately to impugn not only the great Waldmont but also anyone who had been his friend.
Forsyth decided to make a recce of the ranch from cover, using a powerful spyglass, and found it much as described in the lurid stories in the Examiner. The bunkhouse was a burned out wreck. The Barn was a mere pile of smoking charred wood. He did spot the remains of what could have been an "organ pipe" rocket launcher, but could not risk a close inspection of the site.
After a brief interview with Deputy Bewley, who informed them that a wagon and team would be out at their disposal provided they were out of town by three pm that afternoon, the team made a brief shopping trip, asked a few questions at the morgue, collected their poor besmirched friend's corpse and their loaner transport, and quit town under a cloud, the townsfolk's scowls and the young ruffians' thrown stones.
The team had a day's journey ahead of them, and would have to camp since they had started out in the late afternoon. Fortunately the wilds of Colorado turned out to be considerably tamer than expectations, and our heroes were able to reach a viable campsite without incident. Their night was unbroken by visits from wild animals, injuns or rough types looking for trouble, and they began their journey saddened by their loss but with their spirits still up to the task of fighting the foul Brotherhood of Luxor. Indeed, the loss of their friend seemed to have set a steely resolve in each hero, a resolve to redeem their friend's reputation in the eyes of the easily led and the sensationalists that seemed to be everywhere.
Burke spotted a cloud of dust behind them and pointed it out to the others. Forsyth took his trusty spyglass and surveyed the scene. Bewley and a double handful of men were riding in a very determined manner along the same trail they had taken in their wagon. It did not bode well, and the heroes decided to pull the wagon off the road into the broken prairie, secure the horses, and set an ambush. If Bewley and his posse were not up to no good, they would ride by. If not, they would find a warm welcome. Accordingly each adventurer hid as best they could in the small ravines and behind the small rises that abounded.
Bewley's Posse rode up and dismounted, drew weapons and pushed out into the prairie, obviously looking for trouble.
Forsyth opened fire from cover, killing his target. Burke fired, killing his. The posse returned fire. Copperfield executed a masterly ambush from the rear, and the battle was joined in savage exchanges of gunfire. Early on the rifle Forsyth had "borrowed" proved to have been owned by a boob who didn't go out with a full load, and he was obliged to switch to his trusty pistol. Burke also suffered a catastrophic failure of his pistol and - possibly possessed by the spirit of his friend Waldmont - elected to make a lunatic charge with his sword across the broken ground. He was shot down before he could engage the enemy.
Copperfield spotted one of the posse making a run for his horse, clearly having no stomach for further violence and attempted to intercept him, but was unable to make contact.
Reverend Fogg used the confusion of the firefight to run to the road, cross it and the intervening space to the wagon, where he prepared himself to assault Bewley, who at the time was busy shooting at Burke.
Dead-Eye Pete was among the posse and he decided to attmept to get into hand-to-hand combat with Forsyth, and was shot-up quie badly for his pains. At this, his posse-mates broke and ran for their horses. Dead-eye made contact with Forsyth but was unable to prevail and the Englishman left the bully dead in the long grass, not before taking a number of wounds of his own.
And when Bewley stepped around the wagon, guns blazing in two-gun fashion, he was knocked unconscious by the waiting Reverend Fogg and tied up.
The field was won. Britannia was in the ascendant.
Burke was dragged to the wagon but his wounds proved beyond the healing powers of Reverend Fogg. Fortunately for Forsyth, Fogg was of more help to him and he was soon on his feet, hale if not hearty. Forsyth used a trick he had learned in "Injah" to revive Burke, but could do nothing beyond that, not being an actual doctor, or even medical orderly
Fogg decided to attempt a Herculean task and when Bewley came round he attacked the man with ... honesty! Fogg used his powers of oration, honed in the stews of London, Liverpool, and Belfast, and no lessin the foul, reeking swamps of Venus to attempt to bring Bewley, formerly an admitted bought-and-paid-for ally of Dirk Cairo (who, he said, owned the town of Golden) into the light, to make him no less than a fellow knight in the fight against the dastardly Brotherhood of Luxor.
The muttered unruly and ungenerous sentiments of his team-mates were shown to be unfounded when Bewley, gradually at first but then whole-heartedly underwent a dramatic change of allegiance and swore to fight Cairo should he return, and to establish the rule of true law in Golden. The look on Bewley's face as he began to truly understand the situation was matched by the looks on the faces of Fogg's fellow heroes at this wondrous transformation before their very eyes.
After reaching Denver, a train was taken to Dallas, where an airship was taken to New York, and a second then directly to London. There they learned that Waldmont and Wilhelm had been requested to attend Princess Aramaranda in Thoth. The Foreign Minister is anxious that this request be honoured because of the tense political situation on Mars. But there is a problem. Aramaranda cannot welcome a dead man, and who knows what she will say when she finds out the circumstances under which people believe he died?
The Foreign Minister hopes that Waldmont's brother can perhaps in some way explain matters.
With that in mind, the heroes are introduced to Waldmont's borther, who - to the Foreign Minister's dismay - turns out to be a far cry from the Great White Explorer his brother had been known as before the current bad business was revealed, but some sort of inventor-scientist, whose main claim to fame appears to be some sort of portable flame-thrower and a new-found drive to rehabilitate his family honour.
The Foreign Minister, not without a wry reflection on the nature of choices open to beggars, send the heroes on to Mars on a diplomatic courier.
