“So, there was a comment on a
previous post about my apparent lack of a slave brand in the picture
of me from Ubara of Gor. 'Why is this kajira not branded with a kef
on her left thigh?' wrote a puzzled Master or Mistress. (warm smile
if you happen to be a Master, and lowered eyes, and slight trembling
if you happen to be a Mistress...)
I am most definitely branded, but I
suppose the way I was standing face on in the picture, the brand
wasn't clearly visible as it's burned into the side of my thigh. I'm
displaying it now so you can see it clearly. I hope you like it.
These days I have mixed feelings about my brand. It was one of the
most painful experiences of my life when it was done to me in
Patashqar (a city I will always associate with my reduction to
bondage) in the Tahari, and for months afterwards I couldn't bear to
look at it or touch it. I would cry at nights remembering the
experience. I knew that like my pierced ears it would condemn me to a
lifetime of slavery, and that there was no way back from that. Once I
was branded and my ears were pierced I would never be freed.
But these days... I don't know. I've
come to accept it I suppose. On Earth tattoos were becoming common
place by the time I was abducted, so I now think of it in those
terms. And I suppose it is a pretty mark, beautiful almost. Men
certainly seem to like it. I don't think I've ever lain with a man
who hasn't wanted to touch it. It's part of me now, and I suppose I
no longer hate it, even though I had no say in it being burned into
my flesh.
So, yes, branded kajira... most
certainly branded.”
- Emma x
((with thanks to chloeK for her swift
artistic response to the query! I think she watches the blog for
messages like a hawk!))
Some slaves on the books do not have a slave brand, that's possible. Merchant Caste strongly on most cities suggest the brand, but it isn't mandatory in general (if I understant it well). If memmory serves me Miss. Elizabeth CardWell isn't branded for most the book. Red Hunters in general do not brand their slaves from other ethinic groups because any girl like that in their lands is assumed to be a slave, no brand is needed. Somewere in some book (I do not remmember whish one, sorry) a slave mention that her previous master choosed to not brand her because in his oppinion she was too beautiful to be branded (the idea is strongly criticized by 'Bosk of Port Kar', but no one says it is not true: can happen).
ReplyDelete“You're right, Master, that brands aren't compulsory, and every once in a while you may come across a slave who isn't branded, but in my experience such a thing is very rare on Gor. Having said that, I wasn't branded when I was placed in the slave pens of Banu Hashim for training in order to locate and speak to Erin. I remember it was remarked upon and considered unusual, and several of the other slaves wanted to examine me to see if I had some rare brand on another part of my body that wasn't clearly visible – like the sole of my foot for example. Curiously when it became apparent that I really wasn't branded, a couple of the girls remarked that my Master didn't think I was worth branding, as if the lack of a brand meant I was somehow worthless. I didn't particularly care what they thought at the time because those first few weeks I was a nervous wreck and I had a lot more to worry about than that. The funny thing is over the years I've adopted some of the Gorean mentality to the point where I'd now be surprised if a man didn't brand his slave-girl. I would wonder why. I almost hate to say this, but I think the lack of a brand would make a girl stand out amongst other slaves, and not in a good way. There's a pack mentality amongst slave-girls and they quickly form small cliques. I think an unbranded girl would quickly be seen as an outsider and 'not one of them' with negative consequences for the girl in question. She would be blamed for her lack of a brand, and possibly be accused of believing she's something special. It's dangerous to stand out for all the wrong reasons in a slave pen.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was First Girl on Brinn's estate I did ensure that all the girls were branded when they arrived. There weren't any exceptions, but I think if there had been I would have sent them to the metal worker to be branded.
I confess that these days one of my seduction techniques involves drawing attention to my brand, making it just about visible under the short hem of whatever I'm wearing, teasing a man to place his hand on my garment and draw it up further to expose the brand, and to touch it. I always respond with a measure of surprise and subtle but visible signs of arousal when he does that. What follows next is almost 99% guaranteed.” :)
- Emma x
A very lovely brand, girl. Tell me, are we going to see more of Rosalita and her adventures with her new slave, and the quite fun sounding party, soon?
ReplyDelete“Thank you, Master, you're very kind to a slave-girl.” *soft smile*
Delete“The Rosalita series is a little different from the other stories on this site as it's an exercise in a sort of role-play game with chloeK, my art collaborator, determining the actions of Rosalita, and me writing the consequences from her choices. She's been busy recently with finishing all the pictures for the Shadows of Gor novel and is currently producing lots of pictures for a three part story that will appear very soon. Once she's got those pictures done I expect she'll return to the Rosalita series and I'll produce the next piece based on what she decides to do. It's a different technique of writing for me because I have no control over what the main protagonist chooses to do.”
“And yes, I imagine the, ahem, party will be quite a lot of 'fun'...” ;)
- Emma x
It is a beautiful brand and it suits you very well. Women like you are expected to wear a kef and free people would be right to wonder why you were not properly marked.
ReplyDeleteThe tale of your responses sounds perfect. A slave should remember the hot iron forever. A brand shows whether a woman is a free person or an owned animal and every awareness of that mark on your body should remind you what you will always be on Gor.
I also look forward to further adventures of Rosalita, provided chloeK ever escapes from her artistic labors. I think all your readers suspect Isabel is planning more than she has told Rosalita, and fully intends to cheat when the tokens are drawn.