Magicians of Gor

22 My Plans Proceed

"The door opens, Master!" said Lavinia.

"I shall draw back," I said.

We were behind the great theater, near one of its rear entrances. Lavinia well knew the portal. There were various folks about, mostly coming and going, workmen, bearers of burdens, and such. One fellow was drawing a two-wheeled cart, loaded with basketry. There were loungers in the vicinity, as well, interestingly, among them, some free women, in habiliments suggesting diversities of caste, and one level or another of affluence. Two palanquins, too, set down, the carrying slaves about, were behind the theater, their curtains partly parted.

"It is he!" said Lavinia.

She backed against the wall, her head, clutching the note, at her breast. I walked back, casually moving away. I would stay in the vicinity, not really far away, but not so close that I might hear what transpired. I doubted that converse would flow unimpeded if one were within clear earshot.

A few yards away I turned to observe. Lavinia was where I had left her. She seemed rooted to the spot. Her heart, for whatever reason, I suspected, must be rapidly palpitating. I, could see the suggestion of agitation, if not of terror, in the heaving of her bosom. She clutched the note. I trusted that it would not be crushed and soiled in that sweet sweaty little palm of hers.

The fellow, with two others, had emerged from the rear portal.

Lavinia did not move.

I was curious to observe this small encounter, but I had come mainly to protect her, if it seemed necessary. I was not certain as to how her approach, and overture, might be received. She was, after all, even though in the seeming livery and collar of a state slave, still only a slave. Too, she might be remembered from the days of her freedom, when her person had been sacrosanct and inviolate, and her will selfish and imperious, and this might earn her some abuse, perhaps to assuage lingering resentments, accrued from formerly endured affronteries, or perhaps merely, for the agent's amusement, to remind her of her present vulnerability and station, of her change in condition, that it was not now she who was to be pleased but rather that now it was she who must please. Too, she might be recalled, as well, from her days as a house slave in the house of Appanius. There, of course, particularly as a new slave, she would have been at the mercy of the men of the house, and, I supposed, of even the higher slaves. They might have formed the habit then of treating her poorly, or venting spite and frustration upon her. Accordingly, I would stay in the vicinity. I had no objection to the fellow kicking her, or cuffing her about a bit, of course. Indeed, such things are good for a slave. But I did not wish any serious injury to be inflicted upon her. That might lower her price, for example.

But Lavinia had not moved from the spot!

Her immobility exasperated me, but, on the other hand, perhaps it was just as well. Four or five of the several free women who were about hurried forward to throng about the fellow. Others hung back. The palanquins did not move. Various veils, I thought, were not as carefully adjusted as they might have been. the hem of more than one robe was lifted up a little as the women hurried forward. Surely this was interesting, as the alley was dry. I detected, at any rate, neither mud nor puddles in their path. Doubtless they wished in their haste to avoid stirred dust, hoping to keep it from their robes. There were some lads about also. Perhaps they had come to witness what revelations might be betrayed by a subtly disarranged veil, or to see if one might not, if sufficiently alert, and if one were so fortunate, catch a glimpse, perhaps no more than a flash, of an ankle. To be sure, they might, as they wished, feast their eyes on slaves.

I growled to myself in frustration. On the other hand, it would not have done for Lavinia to rush up to the fellow, competing for his attention with free women. That would have been extremely unwise, and even dangerous. She was in a collar.

The fellow was very patient with the free women who clustered about him, as I suppose it behooved him to be. They were very close about him, and some even touched him. Their eyes shone as they looked up at him. Several could scarcely speak. He was a tall fellow, and towered above them. I considered them in their robes. They might make a group of lovely little slaves, I thought.

I looked over to Lavinia. She was standing so close to the wall that she might almost have been attached to it by a fixed neck ring.

After a time the two men with the fellow, apparently with soft words, and certainly with gentle gestures, began to suggest that the fellow be permitted to continue on his way. The women did not seem much pleased with this. Some uttered little noises of dismay, of protest. Surely they must have a few moments more to cluster about him, to touch him, to utter their compliments. Was it so soon that they were no longer permitted to bask adoringly in the warmth of that bright smile? Then they drew back, standing behind, looking after him, longingly, as he continued on his way.

I looked to Lavinia. Still she did not move!

More than one of the women left behind was not repinning her veil, almost as though in embarrassment. How had it slipped so?

Then some of the more timid women who had not dared to approach the fellow hurried to him, one after another, to be along with him, if only for a moment. He would smile upon them, and kissed the gloved hand of one.

He was proceeding on, heading in my direction. Lavinia was now well behind him. I looked at her. Did she think she was chained to the wall there? I made a tiny, almost imperceptible gesture. She moved a bit from the wall, as though to follow behind the fellow and the others. At the same time one of the bearers of one of the palanquins approached the fellow's party and knelt, and indicated the palanquin. Lavinia quickly moved back. I was now growing impatient, but, surely, I would not want her to compete in these matters with the occupant of the palanquin, who was doubtless a wealthy free woman. the palanquin, at any rate, did not appear to be a rented one or its bearers rented slaves. It would be all I would need for Lavinia to be beaten by the bearers and the not lost somewhere in the dust of the alley.

I scuffed about for a time in the dust of the alley. The woman in the palanquin must indeed be wealthy, or well-fixed, or something. The two men with the fellow even withdrew so that he might converse with the palanquin's occupant. I saw, too, after a time, him bow his head and place to his lips the fingers of a small, gloved hand extended between the curtains of the palanquin.

This probably did not please the occupant of the other palanquin. She, incidentally, for I assumed it to be a she, from the dA©cor, and style, and closed nature, of the palanquin, had not only bearers with her, but one or two free men as well. I wondered if the bearers of these palanquins, on behalf of their mistresses, occasionally interfered with one another in the streets. I supposed it not impossible. On the other hand, things seemed relatively civilized this afternoon.

When the fellow then took to his way again this second palanquin, in a fashion I though rather reminiscent of the investigatory movements of the nine-gilled Gorean marsh shark, slowly, silently, and smoothly turned in his direction. I made an impatient gesture to Lavinia.

How helplessly distraught was the beauty!

The fellow with his attendants passed me. Briefly did out eyes meet. Hastily did they look away. In a few moments the second palanquin, too, had passed, nosing after the fellow and his small party. Lavinia, then, timidly, left the vicinity of the wall, and began to follow in the wake of the palanquin and its putative prey. As she passed me I took her by the arm and pulled her to the side. "What is wrong with you?" I said. "I await my opportunity, Master!" she said, looking not at me, but rather after the party down the street. I released her arm. To be sure, there was no real point in being angry with her. She, a mere slave, had had as yet no suitable opportunity to make her approach. I think rather my being somewhat out of temper was the result of my fear that she might bungle the matter, as simple as it was, because of some inexplicable emotional upheavals or unrests, or, perhaps, it was merely that I was anxious for the business to be successfully and expeditiously completed.

Lavinia, released, hurried away, to follow in the wake of the palanquin and its putative prey.

I looked suddenly at a fellow nearby, which opportunity he seized to remark interesting arrangements of tiles on carious nearby roofs. When he had completed these architectural inquiries he found my eyes still on him.

"Yes?" I said.

"That was a state slave," he said.

"A branded slut is a branded slut, even if she is owned by the state."

"True," he said, agreeable.

"So what is your point?" I inquired.

"It is just that it may be improper to accost them while they are on their errands."

"Do you think that at night when they are chained at their slave rings the state caresses them?" I asked.

"No," he said.

The lot of a state slave can be one of great deprivation. Indeed, I fear it often is. Certainly it is commonly regarded as an extremely unenviable slavery by most slaves. To be sure, they are occasionally made available to male slaves, guards and such. Some state slaves, of course, usually girls of unusual beauty, are used at state banquets, to serve and entertain. But even there the state not unoften utilizes trained feast slaves, rented from carious establishments or, upon certain occasions, even the girls from a Ubar's own pleasure gardens. "Thank you for your observation," I said.

"It is nothing," he said.

We looked after Lavinia, hurrying down the street.

"She is a pretty one," he said.

"Yes," I said.

I then turned about and went down the same street.

I was not really displeased. The fellow had taken Lavinia unquestioningly for a state slave. That was reassuring, and was in its way a compliment to Phoebe's skill as a seamstress, which skill she had primarily acquired following her collaring. Too, he had reminded me that some folks, in particular, guardsmen, often disapproved of interfering with such a girl in the pursuit of her duties. This policy, incidentally, makes it difficult for such slaves to obtain simple, basic female gratifications, such as being caressed in the chains of a master. It was difficult for them, for example, to enter into, arrange or conduct affairs, even on the brief dark-doorway variety. On the other hand, the policy might prove useful, from my own point of view. In virtue of it, I thought I might be able to defend Lavinia, if necessary, without calling too much attention to myself, in particular, without identifying myself as her likely master. Who knows? I might be merely a civic-minded citizen, or perhaps a fellow spoiling for a fight, or one who might find it in his interest, on a certain occasion, to seem to be such.

In a few Ehn, on Aulus, in the vicinity of Tarn Court, I saw one of the free men accompanying the palanquin hurry forward to stay the fellow with his two companions. Lavinia was about thirty to forty yards beyond the palanquin. I was about ten yards or so behind her. Stayed, the whole group awaited the arrival of the palanquin, which now approached them in a stately fashion, the bearers impressive in their lack of haste, befitting the undoubted dignity of the palanquin's occupant. In a moment or two the palanquin had been set down on its legs, in the shady side of Aulus, near a wall covered with theater posters, may of them faded, tattered, overlapping and half torn away.* Many Gorean advertisements, incidentally, notifications and such, are not, so to speak, authorized. Some of these notifications, and such, perhaps inscribed by the proprietors of certain taverns or their agents, sing the praises of various slaves. I wondered, if the fellows passing these notifications, and such, recounting, say, the charms of a certain Tania or Sylvia, of such-and-such a paga tavern, even considered the possibility that these might be former free women of Ar, perhaps women thitherto unapproachable, once haughty, vain women, women courted in vain by many, perhaps even by themselves, who had now become slaves, women who must now, in their collars, answerable to the whip, to the best of their ability, serve masters. Perhaps they could even arrange for the purchase of one of them, not to free her, of course, for it is said that only a fool buys a slave girl, but to take her home and keep her for themselves. Graffiti, too, in Gorean public places, as the markets and baths, is not uncommon. Whereas this graffiti is mostly of a predictable sort, as one might expect, names, proclamations of love, denunciations of enemies, obscenities, and such, some of it is, in my opinion, at least, of quite high quality. For example, poets not unoften use the walls to publish their work, so to speak. Indeed, it is said, though I do not know with what truth, that Pentilicus Tallux, for whom the great theater is named, first inscribed his poetry on walls. Needless to say, readers then often feel free to write their own comments on he poems, or even to edit them. More than one critic, I fear, had been found bloodied at the base of such a wall. Indeed, there is a story abroad that Pentilicus Tallux himself, whose work is noted for its restraint and delicacy, figured in more than one fracas of that sort. One story had it that he slew seven men in formal duels alone. *Twice in the manuscript, later, Cabot refers to a "Flute Street." From the context it seems clear that this is "Aulus." I have accordingly edited the manuscript in the interests of consistency, changing "Flute Street" to "Aulus." My interpretation is supported by information supplied by a colleague in the Classics Department, to the effect that there is a Greek expression for a flute which might be transliterated as aulos. I think we may assume then, apart from contextual considerations, that «Aulus» and "Flute Street" are the same streets bordering the great theater, that of Pentilicus Tallux. Flute music is apparently extremely important in Gorean theater. Indeed, we learn from Cabot's miscellaneous notes that the name of the flute player usually occurs on theatrical advertisements immediately after that of the major performer or performers. It seems the flute player is often on stage and accompanies performers about, pointing up speeches, supplying background music and such. This is accepted as Gorean theatrical convention, it seems, much as locations as city streets, airplanes, life rafts and deserts. Various «modes» are supposed, as well, to elicit and express various emotions, some being appropriate for love scenes, others for battle scenes, etc. Lastly it might be mentioned that "Aulus' can also occur as a Gorean masculine name. This sort of thing is familiar, of course, in all languages, as Smith, Cooper, Chandler, Carpenter, Carter, and such, stand for occupations, and names like Hampshire, Lake, Holm, Rivers, and such, stand for places, and names like Stone, Hammer, Rock, and such, stand for things. a€”J.N.

The palanquin now having been set down, its bearers, its accompanying free men, and the two men who had accompanied the fellow from the theater, withdrew. This left the fellow in a position to conduct some form of tA?te-A — tA?te with the palanquin's occupant, of the privacy of which she would presumably wish to be assured. I wondered if this fellow commonly ran such a gauntlet on his way back from the theater to the house of his master, Appanius of Ar. When the palanquin stopped, Lavinia did, too, naturally, and, of course, some yards behind her, as, too, did I. While the fellow was engaged in discourse with the palanquin's occupant one of the free men, the fellow who had gone on ahead to call upon the fellow and his companions to wait, took notice of Lavinia and began to approach her. She must have seen him coming, for she reacted in fear, and turned about. She cast a wild glance toward me, but I pretended not to notice. She began to come back, back down Aulos, in my direction, but he called out, "Hold, female slave!" I was afraid for a moment that she might panic and bolt in which case he would presumably have her in custody in a moment and she would have been beaten. If he did not catch her I would have to beat her tonight, for having disobeyed a command of that sort, from a free person. Such are not to be disobeyed. But, to my satisfaction, accosted, although she had apparently momentarily gripped with fear, she had the good sense to turn about and kneel. Also, as he was a man, she had her knees in proper position. One of the advantages of that position, aside from its general suitability and its effect on the female, is that it commonly has placatory value. The fellow had, I assumed, noted her lingering about, too, in the vicinity of the theater, and had probably noted that she was following them, or, more likely, he whom they were following. Perhaps, while he was waiting, in order to while away the time, it was his intent to draw her aside, into a doorway, and thrust her back against the door or wall, for a bit of brief sport. I did not think I would object to this, if no danger came to the note. Too this might fit in with her guise as a state slave, for such are often not averse to such attentions, and have something of a reputation of provoking them. As I have earlier indicated the state is generally heedless of the sexual needs of its state slaves. At any rate, it seldom seems inclined to make any adequate provision for the satisfaction of these very real, and very profound, needs. To be sure, what does it matter, as the women are only slaves? On the other hand, it might be noted that state slaves being sold into the private sector often bring good prices. They seem eager to become private slaves, with a given master, whom they may then try to serve with such perfection and devotion that they may hope to exert some influence, however small, on the quality of their lives, for example, with respect to the nature of the contentments they may receive, those which their master may deign to bestow upon them. On the other hand, his mien hostile, so I moved somewhat closer. He stood now before Lavinia, angrily, who, wide-eyed, kneeling, quaked before him. She spread her knees even more. I say now that it was apparently his intention to protect his employer's interests, as he saw them, that he wished to warn her away. That would not do. He drew back his hand to cuff the slave. As his hand came forward I intercepted it, and held it, by the wrist, in midair. "Ai! he cried out, in surprise, in anger, in pain. When he ceased to struggle I released his hand. He pulled his wrist away, angrily, rubbing it.

"What is the meaning of your interference? he snarled.

"What is the meaning of yours?" I inquired, eagerly.

He back away a step. "Mine?" he asked.

"Interfering with a state slave," I said.

"She is following us!" he said.

"Why?" I asked.

"Well," said he, "not us, but another."

"Who?" I asked.

"He," he said, indicating the direction of the palanquin.

"What business is it of yours?" I asked.

"My employer would not approve of her pursuit," he said.

"And is your employer a competitive slave girl?" I asked.

"No!" he said. "She is the Ladya€”a€”"

"Yes?" I said.

"It does not matter," he said, irritatedly.

"Perhaps her master has not yet given her a name?" I said.

"You can see she carried a note!" said the fellow, gesturing to Lavinia. "Give me the note," I said to Lavinia.

"It is private!" she said.

I put out my hand, and she put the note in my hand.

"It is nothing," I said, glancing at the note, and handing it back to Lavinia. "Let me see!" he said.

"You dispute my word?" I said, eagerly.

"No!" he said.

"Draw!" I said. My hand went to my tunic.

"I am unarmed!" he said. "It is the law! We of Ar may not carry weapons." "Let us then adjudicate our differences with out bare hands," I said.

"You are drunk!" he said, stepping back.

If true, that will give you an advantage," I said.

"It is unseemly for free men to squabble before a female slave," he said. "I shall send her away then," I said.

"No, no," he said, anxiously. "She is doing no harm."

"You would keep her here, away from her duties?" I asked.

"No," he said. "No!"

"Glory to Talena, Ubar of Ar," I said.

"Yes, glory to Talena, certainly!" he said.

"Glory to Seremides, first minister to the Ubara, high captain, commander of the Taurentians, to Myron, polemarkos of Temos, to Luris of Jad, Ubar of Cos!" I said.

"Yes, yes," he said, "glory to them, glory to them all!"

"Glory to a fat tharlarion!" I said.

"If you wish," he said, "yes, of course!"

"You are very agreeable," I said.

"I try to be congenial," he said.

"I think that I shall make the acquaintance of your lady," I said.

"Do not!" he said.

"To complain of your interference with the duties of a state slave," I said. "She is in converse!" he said.

"No matter!" I said.

"Do not interrupt her!" he said.

"Perhaps you wish to stop me? I said.

"No!" he said. He then turned and hurried away, toward the palanquin.

"It is my recommendation," I said to Lavinia, "that you route yourself about and rendezvous with our quarry on Tarn Court, underneath the bowers. As I understand it that is his accustomed path. Also, in this way it will seem as though I sent you away, hurrying you back to your proper business."

"Yes, Master," she said.

"Tuck the note in your tunic," I said. "Deliver it when the opportune moment arises."

"Yes, Master," she said. She kissed the note, and then thrust it into her tunic. "It is a well-written note," I said.

"Thank you, Master," she said. She herself, as it had turned out, had written the note, it compliant, of course, with my directives and objectives. Marcus and I had struggled with the note for a time and then, for all practical purposes, had given it up. Lavinia had then composed it. It was sensitive, lyrical, tender, poignant and touching, the desperate, pleading letter of a highly intelligent, profoundly feminine, extremely vulnerable, extremely needful woman hopelessly in love, one eager to abandon herself and to surrender all to the lover. Both Marcus and myself were astonished that Lavinia did such an excellent job with it. It was almost as though she were writing the letter in her own behalf, and not as part of a plot. Only Phoebe had not seemed surprised, but had merely smiled. She did make a couple of suggestions, about the formation of certain letters, but, as it turned out, such things were common in the cursive script of Ar, a point in which Marcus concurred with Lavinia. The script of Ar's Station is, apparently, for the most practical purposes at any rate, the same as that of Ar. There are some differences in speech, that is, in accent, but even they tend to be negligible. For example, whereas Marcus' speech would have attracted immediate attention in Tyros or Cos, or even in the western Vosk basin, it attracted little, if any, attention in Ar.

"You understand why I did not permit the fellow to cuff you, do you not?" I asked.

"To protect me, Master," she said.

"Not really," I said. "There are other sorts of points more involved. First, there is a consideration of fittingness. For example, whereas others, particularly on certain occasions, and in certain circumstances, may, and should discipline you, this did not seem to me to be such an occasion, or such a set of circumstances. For most practical purposes, you see, you are primarily mine to cuff, or beat, as I might please, and not others."

"Yes, Master," she said, swallowing hard.

"Secondly," I said, "I do not want you to present yourself before our quarry with, say, a scarlet cheek, or a swollen bloodied lip, such things. Such might provoke distractive speculation."

"I understand, Master," she said.

I glanced down Aulus, to the palanquin, still in its place. "You speed about," I said to Lavinia. "Our quarry will be along shortly. His conversation with the lady in the palanquin, although she is perhaps unaware of it, is about to conclude."

"What if I cannot do it, Master," suddenly wept Lavinia.

"I do not understand," I said.

"What if I should die of fear, not even daring to approach him?"

"I am prepared to take that risk," I told her.

"Master!" she said. "I am serious!"

"I doubt that you can manage it to die of fear in this business," I said, "but if you should manage it, I shall just have to find another girl."

"I see," she said.

"So, rest easy," I said. "As you see, there is nothing to worry about."

"I am much set at my ease," she said.

I crouched down before her.

"What are you?" I asked.

"A slave," she said.

"What else?" I asked.

"Only that," she said. "A slave, and only that."

"That is what you must remember," I said to her, softly. "When he approaches remember that, and its truth, in your mind, your heart and belly, that you are a slave, and only that."

"I see, Master," she smiled, through tears.

"I do not think you will fail," I said, "and if you do, do not fear, you will be severely beaten."

"I do not think I will now fail, Master," she smiled.

"Good," I said, standing up.

"You are so kind," she said.

"It seems you do wish to be beaten," I said.

"No, Master!" she said.

Then I waved my arm, back down Aulus street. "Do not dally here, slave girl," I said, loudly. "Be off. Be about your duties!"

"Yes, Master," she said, springing up, and hurrying back down Aulus.

I had decided that it would be better for her to carry the note in her tunic, in order that it not attract attention. The free man, for example, had noticed it. It had been all right for her to carry it in her hand, I had thought, when we had hoped that she would be able to deliver it almost immediately, say, behind the theater, but it seemed now she would have to wait a little, say, until our quarry reached Tarn Court, which, if had anything to do with it, would not be long.

I turned and looked at the palanquin. In a moment I was beside it.

"One side," I said to the handsome interlocutor standing beside the palanquin. "Oh!" said the woman within it, drawing back.

"I feared this," said the free fellow I had talked to earlier, up the street. The handsome interlocutor, our quarry, of course, did not interfere, but stood back. Had I insisted on it, he must kneel. He was slave.

"What is the meaning of this!" exclaimed the woman, hastily raising her veil, holding it about her face.

"This fellow," I said, indicating the free fellow with whom I had held brief converse but a moment or so ago, "interfered with the progress of a state slave."

"Be off!" said the woman.

"I thought you would like to know that," I said.

"Pummel him!" she said to the free fellow.

"That might not be wise," he said. He glanced to the other free fellow with the palanquin. Their exchange of glances suggested that his fellow fully corroborated his speculation.

"Will no one protect a free woman?" she inquired.

The handsome interlocutor, at this point, seemed for a moment undecided. He might even have been considering the wisdom, all things considered, of hastening forward. I said to him, rudely, I fear, considering his indubitable fame and talent, controversial though the latter might be, "Kneel!"

Immediately he did so.

"Oh!" said the woman in dismay, seeing the handsome fellow put to his knees. The two fellows with the handsome fellow, both free men, started forward a little at this point, but I threw them a welcoming, menacing glance, and they, looking to one another, decided to remain in the background. After all, on what ground should they object to a legitimate command issued by a free person to one who, after all, was but a slave?

"Attack him!" said the woman to the free men with her.

"He is armed!" said the fellow I had met earlier.

Actually I was not armed today, as I was not in uniform, not wearing, that is, the armband of the auxiliary guardsman, and I did not want to be stopped by guardsmen, line or auxiliary, as being in possible violation of the injunction against unauthorized weapons in the city, that injunction which placed a populace at the mercy of anyone armed. When I had reached to my tunic earlier, of course, I had merely meant to convey the suggestion to the fellow that I had a concealed weapon there. This suggestion he, a bright fellow, had been quick to accept. To be sure, had I been really armed, I would not have cared to be he, calling the bluff.

"Be off!" cried the women. "Or I shall set my bearers on you!"

"You would set your slaves on a free man in the streets?" I asked.

Her eyes flashed.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"That is none of your business!" she cried.

"It will surely be of interest to guardsmen," I said.

"Go away!" she cried.

"They will wish to ascertain what person ordered slaves to attack a free man, an innocent fellow merely engaged in reporting a misdemeanor."

"Begone!" she cried.

"Besides," I said, "if I disembowel a couple of these fellows, how will you get home? I do not think that you would care to walk through the streets, perhaps soiling your slippers." The slippers were well worked, colorful and intricate with exquisite embroideries. Slave girls, on the other hand, commonly walk the streets, barefoot, sometimes with something on an ankle, usually the left, a few loops of cord, an anklet, bangles, a tiny chain, such things.

"Also," I said, "what were you doing here, accosting a male slave?"

"Oh!" she cried, in anger.

"Do you not think guardsmen will be interested in that?" I asked.

"Beast!" she said.

"But then perhaps you are a slave girl," I said.

"Beast!" she said.

"Are you branded?" I asked.

"No!" she said.

"Why not?" I asked.

"Sleen! Sleen!" she cried.

"Then I gather you are not branded," I said.

"No," she said, "I am not branded!"

"I see," I said. "Then you are an unbranded slave girl."

"Sleen!" she wept.

"There are doubtless many of those," I said.

"Sleen! Sleen!" she cried.

I reached to her veil, and tore it away, face-stripping her. She seized the veil in my hands but, as I held it, she could do nothing with it. Indeed, she could not, as she held the veil, even draw her hood more closely about her features. She looked at me in disbelief, in astonishment, in fury. Her features, though distorted by rage, were of interest. They were well formed, and exquisite. "You are very pretty, slave girl," I said.

She released the veil, cried out with misery, turned about in the palanquin, and threw herself down in it, covering her face with her hands, hiding it from me. Her head was now toward the foot of the palanquin, and her knees were drawn up. This well displayed her curves to me, even beneath the robes of concealment. "You apparently have an excellent figure," I said to her. "It would be interesting to see how it might look in a bit of slave silk."

"Take me home! Take me home!" she wept.

One of the free men with her, the one with whom I had earlier held converse, signaled to the bearers, and they lifted the palanquin. Soon it was on its way. He drew shut its curtains as it moved down the street. But I did not doubt but what he, too, before he drew shut the curtains, had formed some conjecture of his own on the lineaments within, and how they might appear if properly clad, in slave silk.

I glanced to the fellow kneeling there on the stones. "You may rise," I informed him.

He stood up.

"Kneel," I said to him, sharply, angrily.

Immediately, startled, he went again to his knees.

The two fellows with him started forward, but I warned then back with a look. "Do you not know who that is?" asked one of them.

"A slave," I said. Then I turned to the slave. "Let us now try this again," I said. "You may rise."

"Yes, Master," he said. "Thank you, Master."

He then rose properly to his feet, humbly, permitted.

More than one person about gasped.

I think, as well, that this was not a familiar experience for the fellow. The slave, of course, need not verbally respond to all such permission, and such, but it is expected that his behavior will be in accord with the decorums of obedience.

"You may continue on your way," I said to the three of them, releasing them from the custody of my will.

"Come along," said one of the two fellows to the slave. The three of them then, together, lost little time in making their way down Aulus street. I noted that the fellow had not responded deferentially to the summons to come along, but then, I did not think that was my business. If the two fellows were disposed to treat the slave as though he might not be a slave. I did not think that that need be considered my concern. The interaction had not taken place, with me, for example. Also, of course, I had upon occasion, though quire infrequently, to be sure, on this world, remarked an instance in which a slave had seemed to me at least minimally deficient in deferentially to a master. In such instances, of course, one does not desire to usurp the prerogatives of the master, even if he is a weakling. One may always hope that he will eventually understand what must be done, and reach for the whip. Needless to say, all Gorean slave girls find themselves sooner or later, perhaps after a renaissance of manhood in the master, or a new sale, or some change of hands, kept under perfect discipline. It is the Gorean way. Only one can be master. The fellow did turn once, and look back at me, as though puzzled, and then, with the others, he continued on his way. I suspect he had not been reminded that he was a slave for a very long time. Perhaps Appanius had let that slip his mind. In my opinion, that would have been a mistake. At any rate I had seen no reason for doing so, particularly in the light of my plans. I did not think it would take them long to reach Tarn Court. Also, as I had cut short the fellow's conversation with the free woman in the palanquin, I had surely saved them a little time. I neither expected, nor wished, thanks for this, however. Briefly I recollected the free woman in the palanquin. Surely I had given her something to think about. Perhaps she was now curious as to what she might look like on a sales block, or what the nature of the bids might be.

As Lavinia was cognizant of the usual itinerary of the fellow from the theater to the house of Appanius and she had gone about to Tarn Court, on the way, and was presumably stationed there, to the east, under the bowers, I took a similar route, rapidly striding. In this fashion I would appear to be moving in the direction opposite the fellow and his two companions. I could then renew my contact with them from a distance, discreetly observing the encounter between that party and a girl seemingly in the garments of the state slave. In a few Ehn I was on Tarn Court, following the fellow and his companions. Once off Aulus, and perhaps being confident that they were not followed, they had slowed their pace. Tarn Court is a wide street, or, at least, wide for a city street of Gor. Several blocks east of Aulus, before noon, it is the location of a vegetable and fruit market. In the areas of the market, stretching almost from the north to the south side of the street, the street is shaded by a large number of vine-covered trellises, cresting bowers, which provide protection for the produce and, later in the day, shade for pedestrians. Many Gorean streets, incidentally, are almost always in shade because of their narrowness and the encompassing buildings. A result of this is that one is not always clear as to the position of the sun and, accordingly, it is easy to lose one's orientation, even as to the time of day. The fact that not all Gorean streets have generally accepted or marked names can add to the confusion. To one who knows the area this presents little difficulty but to a stranger, or one unfamiliar with the area, it can be extremely confusing. Interestingly enough many Gorean municipalities intentionally resist the attempt to impose some form of rational order on this seeming chaos. This is not simply because of the Gorean's typical reverence for tradition but because it is thought to have some military advantage, as well. For example, portions of invading forces have upon several occasions, in one city or another, literally become lost in the city, with the result that they have been unable to rally, rendezvous, group and attain objectives. Cases have been reported where an enemy force has literally withdrawn from a city and some of its components have remained in the city, wandering about for a day or two, out of communication with the main forces. Needless to say, the military situation of such isolated contingents is an often unenviable one. More than one such group has been set upon and destroyed. To be sure, invaders usually supply themselves with fellows who are familiar with the city. It is illegal in many cities, incidentally, to take maps of the city out of the city. More than one fellow, too, has put himself in the quarries or on the bench of a galley for having been caught with such a map in his possession. I was about fifty yards behind the group of three fellows, who were sauntering east of tarn Court. For a long time I did not detect the presence of Lavinia. Then, some seventy yards or so ahead, and to the right, near a wall, before the eastern termination of the trellised area where the morning market is held, from a patchwork of lights and shadows, I picked her out. She, after entering from the south, from a side street, had apparently hurried on ahead. In this fashion she could make certain that she would not miss the group when it passed. She would also have time to prepare herself, and regain her composure. She had positioned herself on her knees, at a wall, near a slave ring. This was fully appropriate. Too, it added to the effect which her appearance must have on all males who saw her, her beauty, her collar and a slave ring. The ring was about level with her neck. To such rings, of course, a master may fasten or chain a girl while he busies himself elsewhere. I was pleased that she had had the intelligence not to act as though she had been put at the ring "bound by the master's will" because her leaving the ring might then have elicited astonishment or comment. There are many ways of putting a girl at the ring, "bound by the master's will." One typical way is to stand her at the ring and have her place her right hand behind her back through the ring and grasp her left wrist. Another typical way is to kneel her at the ring and have her put her right hand through the ring, grasping her left wrist. One of the simplest and perhaps the most typical way of "binding by the master's will" is simply to have the girl grasp her left wrist with her right hand behind her back. Needless to say whatever amusement, pleasure or convenience this may afford a master it can be exquisitely frustrating to a slave to strive desperately and in terror to maintain this position while, say, being subjected to various attentions typical of the mastery. Most masters, in such a situation, would simply bind the girl, tying or braceleting her hands behind her back. In this fashion she knows her struggles will be unavailing, that she is helpless and cannot escape. She may then without fear or hesitation open herself completely to the joy of the subjugation, to the rapture of her conquest, to the bliss of her surrender.

When the party of three, the handsome fellow, and his two companions, were within a few yards of her, she rose lightly, gracefully, to her feet. They noted this movement, of course, and doubtless had observed her earlier. Certainly it is difficult for a kneeling slave, and one of such beauty, as they could now detect, even given the mixtures of light and shadow beneath the trellises, to be ignored. Their eyes met, and then she lowered her head, humbly. This contact, however, brief as it was, gave them to halt. In it she had conveyed to them that she had been waiting for them, and would approach. The two fellows with the handsome slave looked to one another. This girl who had been waiting was a state slave. Could she bear a message from someone in the Central Cylinder, say, from one of the many free women in the entourage of even the Ubara? Too, they may have remembered her from the theater, and from Aulus. Certainly the slave had bided her time discreetly. Could something sensitive be afoot? There were few about. The street was muchly deserted. The market was closed. The day was hot, even under the trellises. I lounged against a wall, several yards away, near a doorway. I did not think it would be easy to pick me out, even if one were interested in doing so, given the variegated patterns of light and shade, and the dangling vines. Too, between us, here and there, were some of the posts supporting the overhead trelliswork. The fellow said something to them. The two men immediately drew back. That interested me. It seemed that no official note was to be taken of this encounter, or, at least, that its content was to be accorded the delicacy of privity, at least in theory.

I watched the girl approach the slave.

She approached with rapid, small steps, her head down, her hands to the side, slightly extended, palms back. When near him she lifted her head slightly, hardly daring to meet his eyes, and then she knelt before him, as before a master, doing obeisance onto him, her head down to the stones before his golden sandals, the palms of her hands, too, on the stones. This was not appropriate, of course, even though both were slaves, as she was female and he male, and the obeisance thus, manifested in this instance in the persons of slaves, might be regarded simply as that of that of femaleness to maleness. The perfect obeisance, of course, the natural obeisance was that it seemed so perfectly to exemplify that of the female slave, literally that of the slave to her master, though it was performed before a male who was not only not her master, but himself a slave. That I found of interest. Did she think he owned her? Too, she did not have to perform such an obeisance in this context. It was not, for example, required by custom or prescribed by ordinance. Too, as he did not own her nor expect to encounter her he would not have had an opportunity to specify certain details of her relationship with him, for example, his preferences with respect to her manner of presenting herself before him, the nature of the rituals of deference or submission to be expected of her, and such. He was, after all, only a slave, too. Indeed, sometimes female slaves are quite cruel to male slaves, taunting or mocking them, and such. Let the female slave hope, in such a case, that she does not find herself braceleted and put to him in his cell, a whip tied about her neck. In such a case he is as master to her.

Lavinia looked up at him, tears in her eyes. He then, I think, from his reaction, clearly recognized her, well recollecting her once a free female, whom he, as a seduction slave, had entrapped for his master, Appanius. He seemed stunned. I did not know if this were merely his surprise at seeing her here, again, from so long ago, so unexpectedly, she now in her collar, or if the startled response to her might be more the result of recognizing the incredible transformation which had taken place in her, that the mere free woman he had entrapped had now become, in her bondage, so astoundingly fascinating and beautiful. Perhaps it was both. Lavinia then, seemingly overcome, trembling, put herself to her belly before him, her lips and hair over his sandals, and beggingly, timidly, as though she feared she might be struck or kicked, began to kiss and lick his feet. I myself, I am sure, was little less startled than the fellow to whom these attentions were addressed. I had expected Lavinia to kneel before him and give him the message, little more. Indeed, I was not certain that she would have been permitted to do even this. I had thought it possible that she might be kicked back or cuffed away from him, if not by him, then by (pg. 391) the fellows with him. She was, after all, a slave. If this sort of thing occurred, I would not be likely to interfere, of course, for that might reveal, or suggest, my connection with her, a relationship which I was eager, at this point, to conceal. I did not anticipate, of course, that she would be subjected to much more abuse than is natural to, or fitting for, a female slave. I was prepared, of course, to interfere if it seemed likely she might be in danger of disfigurement or serious injury. After all, she was not without value in a market, and one would not wish anything to happen to her which might lower her price.

She slowly moved to her knees again, her head down, licking and kissing, and then, her knees under her, she began to raise her ministrations to his shins and calves. She looked up at him, again. It seemed he could not move, so stunned, so startled, he was. Tears were in her eyes. Then she put her hands on his legs, and began to kiss him about the knees, and then above the knees. She now, kneeling before him, close to him, had her arms lovingly about his legs, her head down, shaking as though with sobs. She then looked up at him again. It seemed there was no other place that she would rather be. She then, again, lowered her head, and was kissing and licking delicately at the sides of his legs. To serve him and give him pleasure seemed as though it might be her desire, her happiness, her meaning and destiny in life. Did she think she was his slave? Again she looked up, this time pleadingly. I saw the two fellows in the background exchange alarmed glances. Was the handsome fellow in some sort of danger? Were there risks involved which might be clear to them, if not to others? She then put her head to the side, brushing up the purple tunic with the side of her head, kissing and licking at his thigh beneath the tunic. At this point one of the fellows rushed forward with an angry cry and seized her by the hair. "Lewd slave!" he cried. He hurled her, she crying out with pain, to her side on the stones of the street. He then rushed to her, and she curled up, making herself small, and kicked her, twice, to which blows she reacted. She was then on her right thigh, and the palms of her hands, half-sitting, half lying, on the street. She looked at them. The handsome fellow had not moved. He stayed where he was, as though rooted to the spot. "Away, lewd slave!" snarled one of the men with the fellow. "Begone!" said the other.

At this point Lavinia swiftly knelt, her knees in proper position, that of the female slave who is used also for the pleasure of men, reach to her tunic, and from within it, from where she had concealed it, from where it rested, at her bosom, withdrew the note which she then held, her arm extended, to the handsome fellow. One of the other two strode forward to seize the not but Lavinia drew it back, clutched in her tiny fist, held it to her body, and shook her head vigorously, negatively. This note, it seemed, was to be delivered to the slave alone. The fellow reached for it again and she put down her head to the stones, rather as in common obeisance or in kneeling to the whip, holding the note beneath her. "No, Master!" she said. "Forgive me, Master!"

"Slut!" he cried, and kicked her, again.

"Hold," said his fellow. "You are under orders?" he asked the slave.

"Yes, Master!" said the girl. "The note may be given to one, and one alone!" "Very well," said the second fellow.

Lavinia then, gratefully, rose to her feet, and went to kneel before the slave. How well she knelt before him! how well she looked at his feet, though he were only a slave. She then lifted the note to him, her head down between her extended arms, holding the note in both hands, proffering it to him, much as in the manner in which a slave offers wine, and herself, to a master. The fellow gasped, and seemed shaken by this, the sight of the beauty so before him. I almost feared he might fall, so beautiful she was. Never I suspect had he had a woman so before him. In that instance I think he may have first begun to sense the glories, the exultancies, the fittingness, the perfections and powers of the mastery. I watched Lavinia surrender the note to him. it was almost as though it were her own note, offered pleadingly to him on her own behalf, and not putatively the note of another, in whose transit and delivery she was merely humble courier. To be sure, she had written the note herself. I was much puzzled by her behavior. I was also much impressed by it. I had never hitherto realized she was that beautiful.

"You have delivered your note, slut!" said one of the men, angrily. "Now, be off with you!"

"Yes, Master!" she said.

He drew back his hand, angrily, as though contemplating giving her a cuff. "Yes, Master!" she said, and scrambled to her feet, not at all gracefully, in her haste, and raced past me, going west on Tarn Court. Clearly she would not have relished further attentions from the fellow. Already she was a bruised, thrice-kicked slave. I do not think that he intended striking her that time, incidentally, but was only threatening to do so. The threat, however, had been sufficient to speed her on her way, and had she not leaped up and departed with suitable dispatch I did not doubt but what her lovely face in an instant, flashing and burning scarlet, might have suffered the sting, and perhaps more than once, of that ready, harsh masculine hand.

"She is pretty," said one of the fellows, he who had questioned her, looking after her.

"But she is only a female," said the other, he who had threatened her.

"And a slave," said he who had questioned her.

"Yet they are the prettiest and best, " said he who had threatened her.

"Yes," said he who had questioned her. "There is no comparison."

The handsome slave stood in the street, under the trellises, in the light and shade, looking after the slave, wonderingly. In his hand, neglected, was the note. It seemed he could not take his eyes off the retreating figure of Lavinia. Could it be that he found her of interest, and in the most profoundly sexual way in which a man may find a woman of interest, of slave interest? I had not counted on that. I trusted that this would not disrupt my plans.

"Read the note," ordered one of the fellows.

Absently, almost as though not aware of his surroundings, except for the now tiny figure of the slave, hurrying away, he opened the note. He could, apparently, read. I had counted on that. He was a high slave. Too, it would have been difficult for him, I supposed, as he was a well-known actor, to have learned parts without being able to read. To be sure, some actors do, having the parts read to them, and they memorizing them from the hearing of the lines. This is particularly the case with women, as most parts of women on the Gorean stage, other than those in high theater, which tend to be acted by boys or men, are acted by female slaves, many of whom cannot read. Also, of course, as is well known, singers, scalds in the north, and such, transmit even epics orally. Because there are many Goreans who cannot read, many stores, shops, and such, will utilize various signs and devices to identify their place of business. For example, a large, wooden image of a paga goblet may hang outside a tavern, a representation of a hammer and anvil outside a metal-worker's shop, one of a needle and thread outside a cloth-worker's shop, and so on. I have known extremely intelligent men on Gor, incidentally, who could not read. Illiteracy, or, more kindly, an inability to read and write, is not taken on Gor as a mark of stupidity. These things tend rather, in many cases, to be associated with the caste structure and cultural traditions. Some warriors, as I have indicated earlier, seem to feel it is somewhat undignified for them to know how to read, or, at least, how to read well, perhaps because that sort of thing is more in the line of, say, the scribes. One hires a warrior for one thing, one hires a scribe for another. One does not expect a scribe to know the sword. Why, then, should one expect the warrior to know the pen? An excellent example of this sort of thing is the caste of musicians which has, as a whole, resisted many attempts to develop and standardize a musical notation. Songs and melodies tend to be handed down within the caste, from one generation to another. If something is worth playing, is it worth remembering, they say. On the other hand, I suspect that they fear too broad a dissemination of the caste knowledge. Physicians, interestingly, perhaps for a similar reason, tend to keep records in archaic Gorean, which is incomprehensible to most Goreans. Many craftsmen, incidentally, keep such things as formulas for certain kinds of glass and alloys, and manufacturing processes, generally, in cipher. Merchant law has been unsuccessful, as yet, in introducing such things as patents and copyrights on Gor. Such things do exist in municipal law on Gor but the jurisdictions involved are, of course, local.

"What does it say?" asked the fellow.

The slave clutched it to him. "It is private," he said, "and, I fear, personal." "Let me see," said one of the fellows.

"Better that only I and Appanius see this," he said. He seemed white-faced, shaken.

"Very well," said the fellow who had spoken, stepping back. He had judged from the slave's response, it seemed, that the matter was not one for just anyone to press.

"Is it important?" asked the other fellow.

"I am afraid," said the slave.

"Let us return to the house," said the first fellow.

They then again took their way east on tarn Court and, in a bit, once beyond the trelliswork, went to the right side of the street, which now, given the lateness of the afternoon sun, was the shady side. Normally Goreans keep to the left sides of streets and roads, as is proper, given that most men are right-handed. In this fashion the sword arm is on the side of the stranger. A similar, interesting historical detail, though are particularly pertinent to Gor, as most Gorean garments have buttons, is that, on Earth, men's shirts, jackets, coats, and such, have the buttons on the right side, so that the opening of the garment is held down, and to the right. This is because the sheath of the knife or sword is, by right-handed men, commonly worn on the left, facilitating the across-the-body draw to the right. In this arrangement of the garment's fastenings, thusly, the hand, or sleeve, or guard of the weapon, will not be caught or impeded in its passage to the ready position. A similar provision does occur, incidentally, in various Gorean garments, having to do with pins, brooches and such. Also the male tunic of the wraparound variety has its overlap to the right, presumably for a similar reason. Warriors, in situations of danger, commonly carry the scabbard over the left shoulder. The scabbard is held with the left hand and the draw takes place with the right. The scabbard and strap is then discarded, to be recovered, if practical, later. Obviously the scabbard attached to a belt is not only an encumbrance but it is something which someone else might seize, cling to, and perhaps use to his advantage.

I watched them withdraw. I was not even certain that the slave would show the note to Appanius. On the other hand, since he had been witnessed in receiving it, which I had not known would happen, it seemed highly likely he would do so. My plans, as I had laid them, of course, did not require that the note be seen by Appanius. Appanius did, of course, figure significantly in my plans. The note did not, as far as Appanius was concerned. It could do its work with or without his knowledge.

I now went west on Tarn Court.

In a few Ehn I had come to the rendezvous point, on Varick, west of Aulus, which I had arranged with Lavinia. I waited there, near the doorways. She would not be loitering in the vicinity, of course, as that would attract attention. She would, rather, pass this point at certain intervals, in one direction or another. She may have passed it once or twice already. I would then, in the concealment of one of the doorways, put her in the small cloak she had worn before, now folded in my wallet, and we would then make our way home.

I observed her approaching.

How beautiful she had been, how fetching she was now.

"Master," she said.

"In here," I said, gesturing to the doorway.

She stepped within the sheltered area and I took her by the upper arms and turned her about, and thrust her back, sharply, against the wall, to the right. "Master?" she said.

I looked down into her eyes. I held her by the upper arms, facing me, slave close. It is not unpleasant to hold a woman thusly. There were the tracks of tears, some only half dried, on her cheeks. She had thus wept even after leaving Tarn Court, probably while hurrying along.

"You are fortunate that you were not cuffed," I said.

"Yes, Master," she said.

"You are not unattractive," I said.

"Thank you, Master," she said.

I stepped back a little, not releasing my hold, and looked down at her.

"Even in such garments," I said.

"Thank you, Master," she said.

The recent garments prescribed for state slaves, of course, as such things went, were quite modest. They had their supposed role to play, doubtless, in the attempt on the part of Cos to depress the sexual vitality of the males of Ar, to devirilize them and make them easier to manage. That program, of course, as I have indicated, was unsuccessful. That the female is a slave is far more important than her garmenture, pleasant as that may be, dressing her in one manner or another for your pleasure, for example. That the female is a slave can double or treble, or more, the sexual interest and vitality of the male. It also has a considerable effect, an astounding effect, on the sexuality of the enslaved female, as well. The reasons for this have to do with the order of nature.

"Is Master angry with me?" she said.

"Stand back against the wall," I said. "Put the palms of your hands back, against the wall. Hold them there. Do not move."

"Yes, Master," she said.

I touched her.

"Ohh," she said, trying not to move.

"You are still hot," I said.

"Forgive me, Master," she said.

"No forgiveness is necessary," I said. "Being hot is commendable in a female slave. Indeed, she may be whipped if she is not."

Yes, Master," she said, swallowing hard.

"And recently," I said, "if I am not mistaken, you were steaming, and oiled." "Do not be angry, Master," she begged.

How exciting she had been on Tarn Court! How beautiful she had been on Tarn Court! I had been tempted to rush forth and seize her, putting her to my pleasure, I owning her. I had not, of course, done so. That would surely have interfered with my plans.

"Do not be angry with me, Master!" she begged.

"To whom do you belong?" I asked.

"To you, Master," she said.

"And to whom else?" I asked.

"To no one else!" she said.

I regarded her.

"The slave hopes that her master is not displeased with her," she said.

I then took her once more by the upper arms and drew her, again, close to me. I held her in this fashion for a few Ihn, and then she made a tiny noise, and turned her head to the side, to her right.

"You feel my closeness?" I asked.

"Yes, my master," she whispered.

"And you grow excited?" I said.

She looked up at me. "Yes, Master," she said.

"And you cannot help yourself?" I said.

"No, Master," she said, looking away…

"And I could be any man?" I asked.

"Yes, Master," she said.

"But I am your master," I said.

"Yes, my master," she said.

"You are a female slave," I said.

"Forgive me, Master," she said.

"I effect nothing critical," I said. "Your sexuality has been taken away for you, and out of your control."

"Yes, Master," she whispered, frightened.

"Do not be troubled," I said. "It is appropriate that a female slave be sexually alive, vital and responsive.

"Yes, Master," she said.

"Even required," I said.

"Yes, Master," she said.

"You would not wish to be whipped for insufficient heat, would you?"

"No, Master!" she said.

"Think no more about it then," I said. "Surrender, rather, as you now must, and wish to do, to your deepest needs and desires, to your most profound and helpless passions, to those truths, hitherto concealed in the most secret recesses of your belly."

"Take me somewhere, Master!" she begged. "Take me somewhere!"

"You are somewhere," I informed her.

She looked wildly at me, and I then, by the upper arms, lifted her up, against the wall.

She looked down at me. "Master!" she begged.

I kept her to the wall with my body, and, in an Ihn or two, got my hands to her waist, lifting her up. She put her arms about my neck, sobbing. "Oh, yes, Master!" she breathed. "I yield me, as a slave, your slave!"

For an Ehn or two I held her.

"Aiiii," I breathed, gasping.

"I am yours," she whispered, "your slave!"

"Yes," I said. "Yes, you are."

Shortly thereafter I became aware of a presence behind me. I turned. There was a guardsmen there, a regular, not an auxiliary. I had never seen him before. He did not seem angry. I lifted Lavinia upward. "Ai!" I said, softly. I then put her to her feet in the doorway. She kissed at my arm, and kept her arms about me. Surely she was aware of the observer, as well. "Do you not know enough to kneel in the presence of a free man?" I asked her. Quickly she removed her arms from my body, smoothed down her tunic, and knelt, properly, in the doorway. "Does the whip master know where you are?" asked the guardsmen of Lavinia. "No, Master," she said.

"You are pretty," he said.

"Thank you, Master," she said.

"These state sluts are all the same, " said the guardsmen.

"Oh?" I said.

"I liked it better when they were belled," he said.

"That was nice," I said.

"It made it easier to keep track of them, in alleys, in doorways, and such." "Doubtless," I granted.

He looked at Lavinia, who lowered her head.

"I suspect it is lonely for them, in their chains, at night," he said.

"I suspect so," I said.

"She has duties," he said. "Do not stay here long."

"We shall be gone in a moment," I said.

He then turned about and went south on Varick.

Lavinia was trembling.

I had her rise and put the short cloak about her. Then, on a thought, as it pleased me, I had her adjust the hem of the garment she wore so that it was slave short. I then, too, adjusted the cloak so that it barely covered the raised hem of the garment. She would hold the cloak high, bunched, about her neck, to cover the collar. In this fashion it was concealed that she wore a garment resembling that of a state slave and her legs, quite contrary to the intent of the statelength garment, were extensively and delightfully bared.

"I delivered the message," said Lavinia to me.

"I know," I said.

"You saw?" she asked.

"Yes," I said.

She looked down.

"Do not be afraid," I said.

"I could not help myself," she whispered.

"I effect nothing critical," I said.

She looked at me.

"You are a female slave," I said.

"Yes, Master," she said, wonderingly. "That is it. I am a female slave. I have now become a female slave."

"Do you object?" I asked.

"No, Master," she said. "I love it!"

"You did your work well, excellently," I said. "I am very pleased."

"Thank you, Master!" she said.

I then looked out from the doorway. The guardsman was nowhere in sight. Indeed, the street was deserted.

"We will now return to the insula," I said.

"Shall I heel my master?" she asked.

"No," I said. "Precede me."

"Yes, Master," she smiled.