Authors: John; Norman
“They will think we have enlisted dragons,” said Lord Nishida.
I took them to be speaking of tarns.
The deck watch set men to the ropes and buckets, and, as the great ship, its sails filled, took its way west, streaming water ran with the wind across her sides. Most of what might have been hundreds of small fires had died out of their own accord against the Tur wood. The greatest marking, if not damage, had been done forward on the starboard side, where the flaming galley had been moved against the hull. Over the next four days, men, with small files and vessels of caulking, were fastened in the boarding nets, which were moved from port to starboard, and along the hull, and these fellows cleaned and repaired the timbers, removing hundreds of blackened arrow shafts, and sealing fissures and clefts in the wood. The arrow points, worked free, were saved, in small bags, worn at the belt.
The pursuing fleet of Lord Yamada had soon fallen behind. The ship of Tersites was no warship, no agile, many-oared knife in the water. But she had good lines, six masts, and an enormous spread of canvas. I thought there was little at sea that could overtake her with a fair wind. Tersites, with his small, crooked body, may have been half-blind and more than half-mad, but he had built a ship which, I think, will be remembered in a hundred songs.
Our losses had not been considerable.
Amongst those who were lost were two oarsmen, Thoas and Andros. They had been struck from behind.
I will report one part of a conversation heard the evening of the day of the altercation in the vicinity of the warning ship, which altercation took place on the second day of the second week past the fourth passage hand, as it has some bearing on what occurred later.
“What course has been given to Aëtius,” inquired Lord Nishida.
“We are continuing on, directly,” replied Lord Okimoto.
“You know our location,” said Lord Nishida. “Surely it is time to veer north. You know what lies ahead.”
“We shall move north later,” said Lord Okimoto.
“You know the season,” said Lord Nishida, “and what lies ahead.”
“Yes,” said Lord Okimoto.
“Why then do you continue on?” inquired Lord Nishida.
“Because,” said he, “I think the fleet of Lord Yamada will fear to follow.”
Chapter Seventeen
The Floating Stones;
Unusual Precautions are Taken;
I Converse with Tarl Cabot
Many of the crew, and certainly myself, were fascinated by the floating stones which appeared occasionally in the water, as we sailed west. More than one had been drawn aboard. They were rock, but light. One could crumble it in the hands, crush it against the deck. When we broke such stones open, we found the interior spongy, and porous, riddled with tiny apertures. We did not know the origin of these anomalous substances. If any knew, the information was withheld from us. Through familiarity, we soon lost interest in these strange stones, which, as we moved on, were occasionally encountered in drifts or shoals.
Oddly enough, by command of Lords Okimoto and Nishida, ropes were strung about the open deck, this though the weather was clear. Two days after this it was ordered, despite the heat of the day, that hatches were to be secured, save when used for ingress or egress. A day after that, access to the open deck was primarily restricted to officers and the duty crew. It was close below decks. There was much grumbling amongst the men. It was doubtless particularly unpleasant for the some two hundred
kajirae
aboard, intended for gifts, eventual sale, trade goods, and such, on their chains in the keeping areas. Often, in good weather, in the groups into which they were divided in the Kasra and Venna keeping areas, they would be brought to the open deck for an airing and exercise. At such times they were not chained, or even roped. To where might they run? Off-duty crew members might gather about while the girls, in one group or another, were brought to the deck. And much was the good-natured raillery, suggestions, observations, evaluations, hootings, whistles, jokes, gestures, and such, to which the lovely properties were subjected. Sometimes they clung together, frightened, as men closed in about them, but they soon realized it was forbidden to touch them, and then several of them dared to torment the men, with the movements, the posings, the expressions, and gestures of slaves. But did they not know they might be noted, and marked, well remembered by one fellow or another when, obedient to the snap of the whip, they might ascend the auction block? One fellow could not resist such provocation and seized a blond
kajira
, crushing her to him and raping her lips with the kiss of the master. He was flogged and she put under the five-stranded slave whip. He grinned under the lash but she wept, but I think, too, she would not forget that kiss. Did she not, later, often enough, when possible, place herself within his purview? Surely he marked her, and might keep her in mind. Perhaps she dreamed of being led to his quarters, bound, on his chain. I used to watch, when convenient, the second group from the Kasra keeping area, for in it was a slave, a ship slave, whom I thought might one day prove to be not without some interest. She had streaming dark hair, lovely flanks, an exquisite figure, and an inviting love cradle. Her face, so vulnerable so delicate, so beautiful, now that she was in bondage, might have made a bronze mirror cry out with pleasure. Her name was Alcinoë. I had thought she had behaved well when confronted with the horror of Seremides, but, of late, it seemed she had tried to carry herself as a free woman, that is, as much as possible when one knows there is a collar on one’s neck. I gathered she was pretending not to notice me, or the others. She affected a haughty, supercilious expression, and, once, when she looked at me, she looked away, her lip curling, as though in contempt. This amused me. Did the slut not know she was marked, incisively, unmistakably, and quite nicely; did she think she could slip a collar? I recalled her insolence in the place of dining. Did she not recall her punishment, at the mast, nor my lenience in not running her back to the Kasra keeping area, hands thonged behind her, a punishment tag wired to her collar? I recalled how she had begged, kneeling, at my feet, as a slave, plaintively, the attentions of a master, which attentions had been denied her. Was she now concerned to pretend that that had never happened, or that it had been of negligible consequence? Did she dare now attempt to assume the airs, the attitude, of a free woman? Did she not know that at a mere snapping of fingers she must tear away her tunic and prostrate herself?
I was not the only fellow, of course, as you may have gathered, who enjoyed seeing
kajirae
brought to the deck, and exercised. They are so beautiful! It was delightful to see them, too, in their free Ehn on deck, hurry to the rail, throw back their heads, and drink in the keen, rushing fresh air of vast, glorious Thassa.
I did not know how much they knew of our venture, of the course, of the incidents at the warning ship, and such.
Did they know that war had been done on this very deck, now sanded and smoothed clean?
Did they know of the fleet of Lord Yamada?
Did they understand that these waters, so glasslike, so serene, might be fraught with peril?
I supposed not.
Would one explain such things to verr or kaiila?
Curiosity is not becoming in a
kajira
.
I have upon occasion mentioned an officer named Pertinax, a friend, it seems, of Tarl Cabot, the commander, or captain, of the tarn cavalry. He had been, for example, this Pertinax, captain on one of the galleys lost in the Vine Sea, that on which I had shared an oar with Licinius Lysias, the fellow from Turmus. In any event, when the first group of the Venna keeping area was brought for its airing and exercise to the open deck, this Pertinax was usually about, interestingly, seemingly preoccupied with one duty or another. It was not difficult, after a time or two, to detect that his presence at such times was not likely to be a matter of coincidence. It seemed clear, after a bit, that the object of his attention was a particular slave, a blue-eyed, blond-haired barbarian named Saru. Her hair was only half-grown, and thus I supposed she was either a recent slave, for some barbarian females come from the barbarian lands with their hair short, or that it had been shaved once or twice, perhaps as a punishment, or for use as catapult cordage, for female hair is much desired for that purpose. In any event, his interest was clearly justified, as she was a nicely formed, even luscious, bit of collar-meat. Barbarians, incidentally, are often of high quality, perhaps because of the time and cost of their acquisition and transportation. For this reason, if no other, they are likely to be selected with great care. It is not as though a city fell, and its women, naked, chained together, in lines a pasang or more in length, were marched away between the lines of victors, now their masters, to new walls, within which they would wear collars. It is rather as though they were fruit in an orchard, to be scouted with circumspection, and only then, after careful consideration, the choicest of the choice, selected for the delectation of foreign tables. This sort of selection is apparently not as difficult as it might seem, for, at least according to my understanding, many women in barbarian lands, even free women, do not dress their faces, but leave them naked, as naked as those of slaves; that it is not unusual for their calves and ankles to be discernible; that their small hands are often ungloved, and such. Is it not obvious that such women are slave stock, that they are suitably embonded, that they are by nature the rightful properties of masters? Surely they must long for the collar, and their fair limbs for the shackles, and the weight of chains, else they would not so blatantly invite them. Too, interestingly, in the barbarian lands, it seems that many women are distressed and forlorn, many not knowing why, denied the rights of their nature, forbidden the fulfillments of their ownership and submission, forbidden the joys of the surrendered, yielding slave. On Gor they come home to themselves, and their sex, and find the fulfillments denied to them in their own countries. Not only is the barbarian slave often intelligent and beautiful, such things involved in their selection, but, commonly, as well, she is hot, devoted, and dutiful. Embonded, she finds her freedom; enslaved, she is most content. In any event, whatever may be the reason, or reasons, such women tend, almost invariably, to do well on the block. They are prize stock. Men bid heatedly for them. This is perhaps one reason they tend to be resented, if not despised and hated, by their Gorean collar sisters, and, certainly, by free women. It is probably not pleasant to be a barbarian slave amongst Gorean women, either slave or free. Men, of course, like them.
I did not know if the slave, Saru, knew herself observed, for when she would turn, Pertinax would usually be otherwise occupied. To be sure, I would suppose it was suspected. When a slave knows herself observed, other than casually, she may well suppose the fellow is considering her against his resources. I did see the slave, once, seeing his eyes upon her, cry out, softly, and extend her hands to him, but he looked away, paying her no attention. As they were both barbarians I wondered if they had known one another in the barbarian lands. If so, that might well be forgotten. A mighty chasm now separated them, unbridgeable, save by the chain or whip. He was a man, and an officer, she a woman, and a slave. I was interested in this matter, and had made some inquiries. She was not a ship slave, but the property of Lord Nishida himself. She was apparently being groomed to be a gift for the
shogun
, Temmu. Her eye color and hair color were unusual, I gathered, in the lands of the Pani. Doubtless that would add something to her interest, or value. Lord Nishida had two contract women, as the expression is, at his disposal, Sumomo and Hana. These women, I gathered, were not slaves. Certainly they were not collared. On the other hand their contracts could be bought and sold, and the women would accompany the contracts, which did not, to me, seem all that different from being slaves. To be sure, they had a higher status, and were presumably respected and treated with courtesy. The Pani did, of course, keep slaves, as the gifting of Saru would make clear, as well as the likely disposition, sale or such, if land were ever reached, of the lovely beasts normally housed in the Kasra and Venna keeping areas. Saru’s outburst, and appeal, for the attention of Pertinax, brought her two strokes of her trainer’s switch, and she shrank down to the deck, covering her head. The switch was lifted, but did not fall a third time. Pertinax noted the punishment of the slave, and smiled, as she lifted her head to him in horror. Then he turned away. The strokes had been well deserved. A slave should know better.
She put down her head again, trembling.
She then understood that he approved of her punishment, that he recognized its suitability, and that, in similar circumstances, she would receive no less at his hands. She realized then that she was a slave, and even at his hands, should he one day own her, would be treated as what she was, a slave, and nothing more, as was appropriate.
When a barbarian male recovers his manhood, it is not likely to be relinquished.
I was concerned, however, at the interest taken in the blond slave by Pertinax, for she belonged, as I had learned, to Lord Nishida. It can be quite dangerous for one fellow to take too great an interest in the slave of another. A subtle line exists in such matters. Many masters, in their pride and vanity, and as evidence of their wealth, good fortune, or taste, enjoy displaying their slaves, much as owners of various goods, of various sorts, enjoy displaying other sorts of properties, statuary, rare coins, artworks, fountains, veminium gardens, classical czehars, early editions of famous scrolls, antique kaissa sets, and such. For example, it is not unusual to see masters in the parks, in the plazas, and on the boulevards leading, or being preceded by, a leashed slave, often with her small hands braceleted behind her. The back-braceleting of slaves is quite common, for it draws the arms back, this accentuating the beauty of her breasts, and proclaiming her vulnerability. These masters usually relish the admiring glances cast upon their properties, the compliments received, and so on. This is not unusual. The case is similar with other animals, prize sleen, silken-coated kaiila, even saddle tharlarion. To the male, of course, the female slave is of particular interest. Thusly, in the case of the female slave, the natural possessiveness, the easily aroused suspicion and jealousy, of an owner is particularly engaged. It is one thing, for example, to welcome attention bestowed on a prize kaiila and even another’s envy of one’s possession of so splendid an animal, and quite another to suspect that the other may have designs upon the beast. Slave theft, as other forms of theft, is not unknown. To keep a slave chained at night then is not simply to keep her in place, to help her keep in mind that she is a slave, and to have her conveniently at hand if she might be desired, but, as well, to guard against the work of slave thieves. It is easy to surprise, gag, turn, and bind a woman, but it is quite another to free her from a chain. So slaves are often chained at night, even in public barns. Consequently, almost all slave theft, as opposed to the theft of other valuables, takes place during the Ahn of day. Another discouragement of slave theft, aside from commonalities of Home Stone, and such, is that slaves, particularly in the high cities, tend to be abundant, and cheap. Why risk the theft of a slave when one might purchase one, perhaps better, at the local auction house? Prices are sometimes depressed, too, particularly in the fall and winter. To be sure, some slaves are extremely desirable, and those tend to be the most carefully supervised, guarded, and watched.