The full trunks were loaded onto the steam-driven carriage, and they returned to the airship with the girl to plot a strategy for the rescue attempt.
The captain, used to a disciplined and frugal life style from his time in the army, was the most affected by the hashish.
On returning to the mooring mast, he waxed lyrical about the airship, "Hey, wow, she's like so huge, and silvery."
Lady Sally looked askance at him, "Captain, if we need to make a quick getaway, will you be capable of steering
The Corseted Domme
."
"Well, yes, that's no problem. I'll just take her floating up into the stars, milady."
To Victoria, this latest escapade had the makings of a disaster.
Even the girl, Nisahur, looked alarmed at the help she'd enlisted. She wanted somebody important to use her influence on the sultan, not the full-scale raid on the royal palace the English lady was intent on.
Lady Sally's goal was to infiltrate the Topkapi Palace (the official residence of the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, Al Bin Kinkjani), seek out the harem, find Nisahur's sister, and rescue her and any other harem slaves who wanted to come with them.
She pondered on the logistical difficulties before exclaiming, "Aha, I have a plan!"
"A cunning plan?" asked Victoria.
"Don't sound so sceptical, maid. Yes, an ingenious plan. I am an English lady who has procured women for the sultan's harem. We simply go to the front gate of the palace, and I will use my charms to persuade the guard to take the girls to the harem; failing that, I have other means. The captain will be a snake charmer; he will carry an Ali Baba basket with blunderbusses, in case we need them."
"But, what girls?" asked Victoria.
"Well, that's where the ingenuity comes in. You, and the four gentlemen, dressed in belly-dancer costumes I purchased at the market. I intended them for some exotic play, but this is a far better use."
"But, we're all men, and we have beards, moustaches or whiskers."
"Yes, but I have veils to hide those."
"But madam..."
It was too late. Lady Sally was already rummaging in the trunks of her purchases from the Grand Bazaar to find the belly-dancer outfits.
They made for a bizarre troupe. Lady Sally, in order to portray herself as the perfect English gentlewoman, and despite the searing heat, opted for a velvet dress with a huge bustle with an ivory, cameo brooch at her neck. Victoria and the men looked ridiculous. They had material stuffed under their tops for breasts, whilst their skimpy costumes left their embarrassing middle-aged midriffs bare. Their costumes were vibrant colours, and decorated with tiny, silver cymbals, which tinkled with every movement. Their heads and faces were covered with silk veils though their assortment of facial hairs was all too evident. They looked comical, their absurd dress only emphasizing their strange mixture of body shapes--the bishop tall and thin, the banker, fat and round. Even Victoria, who was, of course, used to wearing women's clothes looked preposterous in such a skimpy costume. Only the duke, who had a slightly effeminate look, was remotely capable of pulling off the deception. Meanwhile, the captain was dressed as a snake charmer in traditional Turkish dress; baggy pantaloons, and a fez.
The effect of the hashish on the men was starting to wear off and, what had originally seemed like a wizard jape, suddenly looked distinctly outlandish. But having conceived of the venture, there was now no stopping Lady Sally.
They were soon at the gatehouse of the Topkapi Palace. Fortunately, the Turks were not in the same state of military readiness as the Prussian Empire, and the security was minimal to the point of lackadaisical. On being stopped at the gatehouse by a guard, Lady Sally set off on an elaborate explanation about how she had been instructed by the sultan to procure English ladies for his harem, and now she was delivering them.
