Magicians of Gor

21 I Receive the Report of a Slave

"I am terrified, Master!" said Lavinia.

I thrust her into our small room, in the insula of Torbon, on Demetrios Street, in the Metellan district, and closed the door behind us.

"How went it?" I asked.

"I am frightened!" she said.

"Why?" I asked.

"How dare I be seen before him," she asked, "As what I am now, a slave!"

"You will be in the modest livery of a state slave," I said, "nor even belled."

"I am frightened," she said.

"Put off the cloak," I said.

She put to one side the cloak which she had clutched about her, concealing her garment of white wool and the collar on her neck. To be sure, her exposed calves and bared feet had left no doubt in the streets as to her status.

"I would not even dare to lift my eyes to his, to look into his eyes," she moaned.

"You must do so, if he commands it," I said.

"Yes, Maser," she said, in a misery.

"But it may not be necessary," I said.

"Yes, Master!" she said.

"Change your clothing," I said, "quickly."

She drew off the modest garment of white wool, and, then, just for an instant, perhaps hardly even aware of it, she stood before me, naked, and looked at me.

"Vain slave!" I laughed.

She blushed, and quickly put down the garment of white wool, and fetched the gray garment of the state slave.

I smiled.

Well had she displayed in that brief moment her master's property.

In an instant she had drawn down the tunic of the state slave over her head and was smoothing it down about her hips.

I regarded her.

She stood before me.

"Excellent," I said.

She smiled.

I then fetched the collar, designed to resemble a state collar, from the flat leather box. I went behind her and locked it on her neck, above the Appanius collar. She now wore two collars. I then removed the Appanius collar from her neck. In this way there was no moment in which she was not in at least one collar.

"Do you know what time it is?" I asked.

"No," she said. "I hardly know what I am doing, or where I am."

"Kneel," I said.

Chronometers exist on Gor, but they are rare and valuable. Marcus and I did not have any, of intent, at the time, among our belongings. They would not have seemed to fit in well with our guise as auxiliary guardsmen. In many cities, of course, including Ar, time tends to be kept publicly. Official clocks are adjusted, of course, according to the announcements of scribes, in virtue of various astronomical measurements, having to do with the movements of the sun and stars. The calendar, and adjustments in it, are also the results of their researches, promulgated by civil authorities. The average Gorean has a variety of simple devices at his disposal for marking the passage of time. Typical among them are marked, or calibrated, candles, sun dials, sand glasses, clepsydras and oil clocks.

She was breathing deeply.

I sat down, cross-legged, opposite her.

"Master, too, seems apprehensive," she said. "Forgive me, Master."

"Catch your breath," I said.

"Thank you, Master," she said.

She had not neglected to have her knees in proper position. She was, after all, before a free man.

We must soon to the theater of Pentilicus Tallux, the great theater, which was more than two pasangs away.

"I am frightened," she said.

"How went it?" I asked.

At this point the eleventh bar rang.

"It is only the eleventh bar," she said, gratefully.

"Yes," I said.

She closed her eyes in relief.

"You are frightened, aren't you?" I said.

"Yes," she whispered.

She was entitled to be frightened, I supposed. She was, after all, only a slave. "Why are you frightened?" I asked.

"Because of he before whom I must shortly appear, and as only a slave!"

"Ah, yes," I said. I myself would have thought her terror might more plausibly have been motivated by what had occurred earlier this morning.

"Tell me of what occurred in the Central Cylinder," I said.

"It was much as you had anticipate," she said. "I approached the Central Cylinder. I knelt before the guards, my head down. The capped message tube even touched the stones. I looked up. I made known my errand, that I bore a private message emanating from the house of Appanius for the Ubara. They read my collar. It seemed then surely that I was a girl of Appanius. The guards were skeptical that I would be admitted. However, to their surprise, I was to be permitted to enter the presence of the Ubara."

"That the message might emanate from a particular person in the house of Appanius, and presumably not Appanius himself, who would not be likely to have any direct business with the Ubara," I said, "was what gained your admittance. The Ubara would suspect, and perhaps even hope, from whom the message might come. Too, of course, that the message was considered «private» would tend not only to confirm her suspicions, but to excite and intrigue her."

"Yes, Master," said the girl.

She had, of course, reported to the guards at the Central Cylinder back-braceleted, with the message tube about her neck. In this way, she could not have uncapped the tube and read the message. She would presumably be in ignorance as to its contents. Indeed, in a sense she was ignorant of its contents as Marcus and I, with Phoebe's expert assistance, as it turned out, had composed it yesterday evening, while she had been scouting the public boards for us, for any news that might be of interest. It is best for slaves to approach the public boards in the evening or very early morning, when it is less crowded in their vicinity. In that way they are less likely to be beaten. She did know, of course, its general purport, and its role in our plans. The letter itself, of course, had been written by Marcus. I had removed the bracelets from her and the thong, the tube attached, from about her neck, of course, when we had had our rendezvous, after her departure from the Central Cylinder. I had given her the cloak then and we had made our separate ways back to the insula of Torbon.

"Go on," I said.

"My bracelets were checked," she said. "It was found that I was perfectly secured.

"Yes," I said. Having her back-braceleted, of course, was also a convenience to the guards. That would save them putting her in their own bracelets, before conducting her into the presence of the Ubara.

"Then I was double leashed," she said.

"A single metal collar," I said, "with chain leashes on each side?"

"Yes," she said.

There are several double leashing arrangements, sometimes with two collars, and sometimes with a single collar, with leash rings on opposite sides. The collars are usually of leather, metal or rope. The leashes, too, are of similar materials. Some collars, stocklike, are of wood. The point of double leashing is security and control. A prisoner is not likely to be able to pull away from two leashes. At least one is likely to restrain him. Similarly, by two leashes, he can easily be immobilized, kept in place, held, say, between two leash masters, unable to reach either of them, or a third person. In the case of females double leashing is primarily aesthetic. Certainly a girl would not be likely, more than once, at any rate, to attempt to attack a leash holder, say, to bite or kick. That is something she would never do again. On the other hand, in Lavinia's case, clearly the guards would not wish to risk her approaching the Ubara too closely, even back-braceleted.

"I was then conducted by five guards within the double gate of the Central Cylinder," she said. "The leader went first. Two were with me, one on each side, each holding a leash. Two followed, with spears. Inside the double gate, I was hooded, and then I was led through what seemed to be a maze of passageways, and levels, and turnings. Sometimes I was even spun about. I had no idea where I was in the Central Cylinder. Then I was told to kneel and my leashes seemed to be fastened down, on either side of me. "Bring me the message from my dear friend, Appanius," said a woman's voice.

"What was the voice like?" I asked.

"It seemed friendly, even kindly, and charming," she said, "but, somehow, underneath, cold, or cruel."

"Continue," I said.

"I felt the tube being taken in hand, and uncapped, and heard the message being removed from it. The leader of the guard, I presume, did this, and then delivered it to the woman. For a time I heard nothing. Then she spoke again. "It is nothing," she said, "this little note from my dear friend, Appanius, news of a coming play. But leave us now, alone. And before you go, unhood the slave. I would see her."

I was unhooded.

"I was kneeling in what appeared to be a private audience chamber. It must have been well within the cylinder. It was lit by lamps. The hangings were scarlet and magnificent. There was a dais a few feet before me, and on this dais, resplendent in robes of concealment, beautifully veiled, on a curule chair, there sat a regal figure. I was speechless.

"We await without," said the leader of the guard. He then, with his mem, withdrew.

"The hood which had been removed from me lay to one side. The message tube, with its cap, attached by its tiny thong, was still about my neck.

"I looked timidly to the woman on the curule chair. It seemed she did not notice me. She read the letter in her hands over and over, seemingly avidly.

"The chain leashes attached to the leash rings on the metal collar I wore were fastened to rings on each side of me. I was held in place. I could not rise to my feet."

"The woman on the curule chair looked down upon me. I put my head down to the floor. The message tube then, on its thong, was on the floor as well.

"Is that how you kneel before a free woman?" she asked.

"Forgive me, Mistress!" I wept. "The guards were about! "

"They are not about now," she said, "and even if they were, it is I who am Mistress here, not they."

"Forgive me, Mistress!" I begged.

"You will kneel before me demurely," she said.

"Yes, Mistress," I said. "You can now well imagine how modestly and humbly, and demurely, I then knelt before her."

"I warned you about that sort of thing," I reminded her.

"Am I to be beaten?" she asked.

"No," I said. "Such knee positions become almost instinctive in a female slave, and I would not wish to complicate your training by punishing you for having failed to alter them in a particular case. I do not want your dispositions to respond to become too complex, or inconsistent."

"Thank you, Master," she said.

"Too," I said, "the guards were men, and had been present."

"Yes, Master!" she said.

"But for your own sake, when you are before free women," I said, "I would advise you to be alert to such matters."

"Yes, Master!" she said.

"Continue," I said.

"The woman looked down at me. I scarcely dared look at her. Muchly did I keep my head down. I even trembled. You can well imagine how small and meaningless I felt there."

"Certainly," I said, "in such a place, in the presence of such a personage, the Ubara of Ar herself."

"Oh, yes, Master," she said, "certainly that. But it was not just that."

"Oh?" I said.

"I think it was even more that she was a free woman, and that I was before her, only a slave."

"I see," I said.

"This note does not come from Appanius," she said to me.

"No, Mistress," I said.

"Do you know from whom it comes?" she asked.

"From the beautiful Milo," I said.

"Do you know its contents?" she asked.

"No, Mistress," I said.

"Can you read?" she asked.

" "Yes, Mistress," I said.

" "But you have not read it?"

"No, Mistress," I said.

"Have you some concept of its contents," she asked, "any inkling as to its purport? "

"I fear so, Mistress, I said.

"Do you know who I am, girl?" she asked.

"The majestic and beautiful Talena," I said, "Ubara of Glorious Ar. "

"He could be slain for even thinking of writing such a letter," she said.

I was silent.

"He has eveb signed it," she said.

I was silent.

"What a fool," she said. "What a poor, mad, infatuated fool."

I was silent.

"How could he do anything so compromising, so foolish, so utterly mad?" she asked.

"Perhaps he has been driven out of his wits by some brief glimpse of the beauty of Mistress," I whispered.

"Excellent, Lavinia," I commended her.

"Speak," she commanded me.

"He has given performances in the Central Cylinder," I continued, "readings, and such. Perhaps in one of those times, due to no fault of Mistress he was charmed by her voice, as by the songs of the venminium bird, or again, by her grace and manner, the consequences of a thousand generations of elegance and breeding, or again, once more through no possible fault of Mistress, perhaps in a moment of inadvertent disarray he as so unfortunate as to glimpse a portion of her briefly unveiled features, or note a width of slender wrist betwixt cuff and glove, or even, beneath the hem of her robes, fearful to contemplate, the turn of an ankle? "

"Perhaps," she said. "And I had no doubt, Master, that the royal hussy had seen to it that such signals, such signs, such intriguing glimpses, such supposed inadvertencies, and such, had abounded!"

"In this," I said, "perhaps she was not so different from you."

"Master!" cried Lavinia, scandalized.

"At least," I said, "she never knelt at his side, in bangles and slave silk, and reached out to touch him."

"Had she been in my place, and only a slave," she said, "she might have done so!"

"Perhaps," I said.

"I think so, Master!" said Lavinia.

"And perhaps have found herself in the fields?"

"Perhaps, Master," smiled Lavinia.

The thought of the regal Talena shorn and in the fields was indeed an amusing one.

"Master?" asked the slave.

"Continue," I said.

"Do you know that he dedicated the first performance of his "Lurius of Jad" to me?" she asked.

"Yes, Mistress". I responded.

"And he has dedicated many other performances to me, as well," she said. "

"Yes, Mistress," I responded.

"Hailed as inspired performances," she said.

"Yes, Mistress," I said.

"Surely, Master, she must understand the political aspects of such things!"

"Continue," I said.

"But then I have inspired many artists," she said.

"Continue," I said. I smiled to myself. I wondered if the Ubara could be taught slave dance. If so, she might learn what it was like, truly, for a woman to inspire men. To be sure, the beauty of almost any slave is seldom ineffectual in such matters.

"I should destroy this letter," said the Ubara to me. "I should burn it in the flame of one of these tiny lamps. "

"Yes, Mistress," I said.

"It could mean his death if it were so much as glimpsed by one of the Council, or by Seremides, or Myron, or his master, or perhaps any free man," she said.

"Yes, Mistress," I said.

"But, Master, she did not destroy the letter! She folded it carefully, and concealed it within her robes!"

"I understand," I said. I suspected that that letter was too precious to the Ubara for her to destroy it. Perhaps she would treasure it. I wondered what she would do if she leaned that it had been written by Marcus. For a brief instant, a rather unworthy one, I was pleased that my own handscript was so poor, particularly with respect to alternate lines. To be sure, it also, theoretically, gave her great power over the innocent Milo. If such a letter fell into the wrong hands it was not unlikely he would find himself keeping an appointment with sleen at dinner time. Marcus might not have objected to this, but I would not personally have approved of it. I bore Milo no ill will, though he was a rather handsome fellow.

"Milo presumes outrageously above his station!" she said to me."

"Yes, Mistress," I said. "But I think she was pleased."

"He is, after all," I reminded the slave, "one of the most handsome men in Ar."

"The most handsome man in Ar!" said Lavinia.

"What?" I asked.

"Surely one of the most handsome men in Ar!" she said.

"Well, perhaps," I said.

"What a mad fool he is!" she exclaimed.

"Perhaps he finds Mistress irresistible," I suggested. "Perhaps he cannot help himself."

"Yes," she said. "It can only be that."

I myself was wondering if the Ubara could be taught to writhe in chains, or to move on the floor in such a way, so prettily, that the master would not lash her for clumsiness.

"Is Master listening?" asked Lavinia.

"Yes," I said.

"She then rose up from her chair, and came down to where I knelt, back-braceleted and fastened to the rings."

"Of what are you?" she asked.

"Of the house of Appanius, Mistress," I said.

"But surely that would have been suggested by my collar! Surely she had been apprised of this sort of thing by the guards, even when I was still on the street outside!"

"Continue," I said.

"Kneel straight, and lift your chin," she said. "Put your head further back!" she said. She then bent down, and put her hands on the collar, and checked it. 'RETURN ME TO APPANIUS OF AR' she read. "A suitable legend for a collar," she smiled, straightening up, "fitting for an animal."

"Yes, Mistress," I said.

"You are an animal, you know," she said.

" "Yes, Mistress, I said.

" "Incredible, she marveled, "the difference between one such as I and one such as you. " "Yes, Mistress, I said.

" "What are you called? she asked.

" "Lavinia, I said.

" "That is a pretty name, she said.

" "Thank you, Mistress, I said.

" "That is a pretty name, she said."

" "Thank you, Mistress, I said."

" "And you are a pretty girl, Lavinia, she said.

" "Thank you, Mistress, I said.

" "Very pretty, she said.

" "Thank you, Mistress, I said.

" "Do not dare to bring your head forward! she said.

" "No, Mistress! I said.

"Then she took my collar in her hands and held it, and looked down, angrily, into my eyes. "Meaningless, collared chit! she exclaimed.

" "Yes, Mistress! I gasped, frightened. But, Master, if she were in a collar, do you think she would be so much more than I?"

"No," I said.

"It would be, as fixed upon her as upon me! She would be as helpless in it as I! She would be no more able to remove it from her neck than I!"

"No," I said. "Such collars are not made to be removed by girls."

" "What are you to Milo? she asked, suddenly.

" "Nothing, Mistress! I cried. "Nothing, Mistress! " "How is it, she asked, "that you have brought this message? Keep your head in position! " "I have been assigned by my master, Appanius, to Milo, to be a personal serving slave to him, to clean his quarters, run his errands, and such. " "And does he sleep you at his slave ring? she asked.

" "No, Mistress," I gasped, "he sleeps me on my mat, in the corner of his room, and I am not permitted to leave it until morning! " "Absurd! she said.

" "No, Mistress! I said.

" "And has he never touched you, in the way of the man? she asked.

" "No, Mistress! I said.

" "Do you expect me to believe that? she asked.

" "Yes, Mistress! I begged.

"She glared down at me.

" "I am to Milo only a meaningless serving slave, I said.

" "But you would be more! she said.

" "Please do not make me speak! I wept.

"She looked down upon me, and laughed. Oh, Master, how that laugh cut me! How deeply was I would by that sound!

" "Do not presume above your station, silly little slave girl, she said. " "Forgive me, Mistress," I said. Why was she so cruel to me, only a slave?" "Continue," I said.

" "Your hair is too short," she said to me.

" "Yes, Mistress," I said. "I served in the fields. " "You are pretty to have been put in the fields, she said.

" "I was punished, I said. "I served the paga of one of my master's retainers at an incorrect temperature. " "Stupid slave, she said.

" "Yes, Mistress, I said.

" "And after your time in the fields you were returned to the house, and assigned to the quarters of Milo? " "Yes, Mistress. " "Keep your head in position, she said.

" "Yes, Mistress, I said.

" "And Milo has never touched you? she said.

" "No, Mistress, I said.

" "Interesting, she said.

" "I fear he has thoughts, and eyes, for only one woman, I said.

" "Oh? she said.

" "Yes, Mistress, I said. "And I fear it is she, and she alone, to whom his heart belongs. " "And who might this woman be? she asked.

" "Perhaps Mistress can guess, I said.

" "He is a fool to write such a note, she suddenly said, touching her robes, within which she had concealed the note.

"I did not respond, Master, but surely Milo is no fool!"

"I do not know if he is a fool or not," I said, "but he did not, at any rate, write the note."

"True," she said.

"Continue," I said.

" "Are we the only ones who know of this note, she asked, "Milo, I and yourself? " "I think so, Mistress, I said.

" "Then, she said, "perhaps I should have your tongue cut out, and then have you skinned alive."

"She would not do that," I said, "as she would need you as a go-between." "I trust Master is correct in his assumption," said Lavinia.

"I would think so," I said.

"That would seem to borne out by her subsequent remark, that she herself would not be so foolish as to have written such a note."

I nodded. "After a time, she said, "You may bring your head forward. " "Thank you, Mistress, I said.

" "Do you think we should have our mad, rash boy, Milo, burned alive? she asked.

" "I would hope, I said, "that Mistress would to some extent, in view of her fabled beauty and the damage that even the thought of it may wreak in the hearts of poor men, be rather moved to pity, be rather moved to look leniently on this bold transgression. "She smiled.

" "Is morning to be blamed that it should glow in the light of the sun, or the tides that they are drawn by the moons, or oil that it cannot help but burn at the touch of fire? " "Perhaps not, she said, the vain, haughty thing!"

"Continue," I said.

" "Whereas you must understand that I am not personally in the least interested in matters such as these, she said, "there may be a woman of my acquaintance to whom such attentions may not be entirely unwelcome. " "Mistress? I asked. She thought I would believe this!

" "I shall have to consult with her, she said.

" "Yes, Mistress, I said.

" "Ludmilla, of Ar. she said."

"Ah!" I said.

"This is meaningful to Master?" asked the slave.

"I think so," I said. "I am not sure. It is something I have long suspected." "Master?" asked the slave.

"In any event," I said, "that is apparently the name she will use for her intrigue."

"That I had gathered, Master," said the slave.

"I do not think, at any rate," I said, "that it is a mere accident that that name occurred to her, as on the spur of the moment."

"Perhaps not, Master," said the girl, puzzled.

To be sure, there are many Ludmillas in Ar, as there are many Publias, Claudias, and so on. Indeed, there are doubtless several Talenas.

" "But it is you, Mistress, I protested, "not some other, for whom the beautiful Milo pines, as a sickened verr. "She laughed. She thought me stupid, doubtless."

"Continue," I said.

" "You will speak to him of Ludmilla, she said. "He will understand. " "How shall I know this Ludmilla, or he know her? I asked.

" "You will report to me, she said. "All matters will be arranged through me. " "Yes, Mistress. I said.

" "And the first thing you will tell him is that Ludmilla scolds him for his foolishness in sending such a note, and warns him to quake in terror of having incurred her displeasure for having done so, and then she added, thoughtfully, "and yet that she is inclined, as is her nature, to be merciful, indeed, that she is not altogether unmoved by his plight. " "But should Mistress not confer with the noble Ludmilla before conveying these sentiments on her behalf? I asked."

"Beware, Lavinia," I smiled. "You are treading on dangerous ground."

"But she is such a haughty slut, Master!" said Lavinia.

"You speak of her as though she might be a slave," I said.

"I think she is a slave," said Lavinia, "but in the robes of a Ubara!"

"Perhaps," I said.

" "I can speak for her, she said.

" "Yes, Mistress, I said.

" "This will save time, she said. "I have decided it. " "Yes, Mistress, I said."

"Apparently the Ubara is eager," I said.

"Yes, Master," said the slave.

" "Tell him, too, said she, "that his plaint may not have been altogether ill received. " "Yes, Mistress, I said.

" "Put your head to the floor, slave girl, she said.

"I obeyed, and sensed the lowering of her veil, the soft sound of rustling silk."

" "You may look up. she said.

"I looked up, Master," said the slave. "I gasped. I could not even speak. I was awed. She was more beautiful than I had imagined! She was more beautiful than I could have dreamed! She was utterly beautiful!"

"Much was doubtless a function of the context," I said, "she in the robes and veils, so colorful and resplendent, and silken, and being Ubara, and you on your knees before her, merely a slave. The comparison is not really fair to you." "She is very beautiful!" said Lavinia.

"She had been said to be the most beautiful woman on Gor," I said, "but there are thousands upon thousands of incredibly beautiful women on Gor, perhaps millions, most of whom are in collars where they belong."

"But surely she is one of the most beautiful women on Gor!" said Lavinia. "I would not even be sure of that," I said.

"Master?" said Lavinia.

"She is pretty," I said, "and is, or was, the daughter of a Ubar. Such things tend to increase one's reputation in such matters."

"She is surely one of the most beautiful women on Gor!" said Lavinia.

"I am inclined to doubt it," I said. "Still she is pretty I recall that I once found her of interest."

"Master knows the Ubara?" she asked, in awe.

"Once, long ago," I said.

"Does the Ubara recall Master?" she asked.

"If she were to see me," I said, "I think it possible she would recall me." "She is very beautiful," said Lavinia, softly.

"That I think is true," I said. There could be no gainsaying that. On the other hand, it is one thing to be very beautiful, and another to be one of the most beautiful women on a planet. I would have surely granted that Talena was very beautiful, but I would really doubt that she might have counted in among the most beautiful women on Gor. this is not to deny that she would bring a high price in a market, nor that her alcove space on holidays might have been signed up early in the evening.

"She is so beautiful!" said Lavinia.

"Suppose," I said, "that she were not free, that she were not Ubara. Suppose, rather, that she were on slave among others, lovely slaves all, chained to a wall. Or suppose that she was paraded in a line, with other slaves, excellent slaves all, on all fours, in neck coffle, the chains going back under the slaves' bodies and between their legs, rising to the collar of the next in line, and so on, before a conqueror's chair. Would she then seem so outstanding? Or might not other girls, here and there, more appeal to one man or another?" "I see what Master is saying," said Lavinia.

"If she were a captured Ubara," I said, "and auctioned before Ubars, doubtless her price would be high, perhaps thousands of tarn disks, but if she were unknown, and only one slave on a chain with others, and it were she alone, the girl alone, only herself, so to speak, who was to ascend the block, hurried by the gesture of the auctioneer's whip, what would she bring?"

"I do not know, Master," said Lavinia.

"Perhaps two or three silver tarsks," I said.

"Surely Master jests," she said.

"Remember," I said, "it is only she being sold, not her reputation, not her political importance, not her symbolic value as an acquisition, not her value as a trophy, not her possible historical interest as a collector's item, and such, but only she, only the girl, only another slave."

"I see, Master," she said.

"And I would conjecture," I said, "for two or there silver tarsks."

"Possibly," mused Lavinia.

"Indeed," I said, "it is possible that you would bring a higher price."

"I?" exclaimed Lavinia.

"Yes," I said. "And do not forget to keep your knees properly positioned." "Yes, Master!" she said, delighted, hastily readjusting the position of her knees.

"Do you really think I compare in beauty?" she asked.

"Yes," I said. Indeed, I thought it might be interesting to see both in slave silk, hurrying about, barefoot, perhaps belled, fearing the whip, striving to serve well, hoping to found pleasing by masters.

"Thank you, Master!" she said.

"Continue," I said.

"As you recall," she said, "I had just been permitted to glimpse the beauty of the Ubara."

"Yes," I said.

"Why did she show herself to me?" asked Lavinia.

"I suppose," I said, "because she was jealous of you, and wished, in a sense, to awe you with her own beauty."

"I thought so," said Lavinia. "What a vain creature!"

"She is a female," I said.

"Yes, Master!" said Lavinia.

"Like yourself," I said.

"Yes, Master!" laughed Lavinia. "Well, I assure you, Master, she was successful in her intent for I could not even speak for a moment. This pleased the Ubara certainly. She saw that I was much impressed with her beauty."

"That your awe was genuine," I said, "was much in your interest."

"Do you truly think my beauty compares with hers?" asked Lavinia.

"Certainly," I said, "assuming, say, that you were both on the slave block, that you were both chained to a ring, that you were both serving, and so on." "Then it truly compares with hers," she said, "as female to female, as beauty to beauty?"

"Yes," I said.

" "Surely the Lady Ludmilla, I said to the Ubara, when I could gather my wits and speak, "could not begin to compare in beauty with Mistress!"

"Again you were on dangerous ground," I observed.

"Perhaps, Master," smiled the slave.

" "She is every bit as beautiful as I, she said.

"That makes sense," I said.

"Well, then, Master," she smiled, muchly pleased, and readjusted her veil, and told me that I would be admitted to her presence immediately any time of the day or night."

"Excellent!" I said.

"But I was to approach, and be exited from, an inconspicuous side gate, no more than a postern."

I nodded.

"She then clapped her hands, recalling the guards. She spoke to them briefly, primarily, I gather, pertaining to her policies with respect to my access to her presence. In a few moments, I was again in the passageways outside the audience chamber, hooded, and double leashed. I was freed of the hood and leashes outside the gate, this time the main gate, by means of which I had entered."

"Of course," I said, "as you had entered through the gate this time."

"Yes, Master," she said.

"You are now the go-between in an intrigue, my dear," I informed her.

Just then the twelfth bar rang.

She looked up, frightened.

"It is late now," I said. "We must be on our way."

I rose to my feet and indicated that she should do so, as well, She had already donned the livery intended to resemble the state livery of Ar, and I had earlier put on her neck the collar designed to resemble a state collar. Indeed, I had even a few days ago, stopped a state slave, to check her collar. "RETURN ME TO THE WHIP MASTER OF THE CENTRAL CYLINDER" read the legend on the collar. I picked up the small cloak she had worn, and put it about her shoulders. I smiled to myself. It was much like a fellow helping a young lady on with her cloak, or coat. Yet what a difference there was here. I could do what I wanted with her. I owned her. We then, I first, she following behind at an interval, left our small room, in the insula of Torbon on Demetrios street, in the Metellan district. I was pleased, for my own purposes, at any rate, that state slaves in Ar were no longer belled, a consequence of the misguided and unsuccessful policies of Cos, to devirilize, and thus make more manageable, the men of Ar. Thus that the slave, Lavinia, beneath the cloak, was in state livery, you see, would not be suggested to any in the streets outside.