Outcast of Gor Chapter Thirteen

 

It seems I was now courting a Turian Free Woman. How did that happen?

 

“You do look lovely together,” said Rolfe with a smile. “I understand she is teaching you to fish?”

 

“She is,” I said. Actually, the fishing was fun. There was a river close to the camp (military camps obviously set up close to sources of fast flowing fresh water) and we had gone there this morning with rods and nets. Kulai wore boots and leggings, a long sleeved, knee length tunic with a hood, and fingerless long sleeved woollen gloves, as she would be wading around on the muddy bank beside the water. She showed me how to set up snares in the stream and baffles to steer fish towards the net snares. “Sometimes they swim too fast to change direction in time. There is an art to steering them to the right place where they might flounder. You still have to be quick to seize the fish, beloved.”

 

Beloved. That is what she called me now. She would smile happily whenever she gazed at me. 

 

She laughed as I tried to pluck a slippery fish from a trap and failed to hold onto it. It splashed down to the side of the trap and swam quickly away.

 

“Rollo will not be happy,” she said as she lay on the bank, having shrugged off her leather boots. She wiggled her toes at me. “That is his fish.”

 

“Rollo can go and catch his own bloody fish.” I washed my hands in the stream and waded back to the shore.

 

Downstream some camp slaves were washing clothes in the water. They wore camp tunics and steel collars. Kelsee was not among them.

 

“It’s a lovely morning,” said Kulai as she lay down on her back, gazing up at the blue sky.

 

“That it is.” I lay down next to her and tried to figure out where I was going with all this. I felt Kulai reach over and take my hand in hers. Despite everything, it felt good.

 

“Made even better because we now spend time together. We do not have to rush things, beloved,” she said. In her hair she now wore a ribbon of courtship. Everyone knew I was courting her. “We will get to know one another. Have you ever courted a Free Woman before?”

 

“Yes, many times, in Newark. But it is very different there.”

 

She nodded and squeezed my fingers. “That much is obvious.” She rolled onto her side and regarded me. “You are very handsome. I thought so when I first set eyes on you. You looked different from your friends. I could tell you weren’t a warrior.”

 

“Wouldn’t you prefer a warrior?”

 

“Perhaps. But you are pleasant to my eyes.”

 

“Just pleasant?”

 

She looked shocked. “I am a Free Woman! What more do you expect me to say!” She threw a clod of earth at me and rolled away before I might seize her wrist. “No,” she warned, wagging a finger at me. “I am not some slave to be grasped and groped.”

 

“You know I will be leaving soon,” I said. “You do know that?”

 

“Yes. And I will travel with you.”

 

“It’s dangerous. I’m travelling to Corcyrus. You should remain with your sisters.”

 

“They are not my sisters. We are simply close. We have shared much over the years. And now it is time for me to find a new life, with my beloved.”

 

I wish she wouldn’t keep calling me that.

 

“It’s too dangerous,” I said. “You will be a Free Woman on the road, and there will be all manner of dangers.”

 

“We will face them together, beloved. Besides, I am probably better suited to surviving in the wild than you are. You can’t even hold onto a slippery fish!” 

 

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A rather less pleasant encounter took place the day before, when I was summoned by warriors to the enclosure of Livinnia of the Assante.

 

This time she was thankfully not torturing anyone with red hot irons. She greeted me with the same impassive expression I had become used to. I think only an experienced poker player could have read any tells from Livinnia’s face.

 

“Noble huntress,” I said, bowing slightly in her presence, as the men who brought me here left.

 

“I will be brief.” She wore a long gown that seemed incongruous with her brutal reputation. The gown was soft, feminine, and the sort of garment a gentle Free Woman might wear. I had to remind myself that this woman had probably killed dozens, if not hundreds, of men in her time.

 

“You are courting Kulai.”

 

“I am, yes.”

 

“And you are planning on leaving this camp in the next few days?”

 

“I have told her as much, yes.”

 

“Kulai sees in you something I do not. I see only an outlaw, branded by the city of Argentum.” The brand was clear now on my left hand, between my thumb and index finger. It would mark me for the rest of my life. “I assume you did something dishonourable to earn that mark?”

 

“A difference of opinion with a magistrate over the branding of my slave.”

 

“So you say. Or perhaps you stole a vulo, or raped a Free Woman?”

 

“I think if I had raped a Free Woman of Argentum, a magistrate would have sentenced me to death by impalement.”

 

“True.” She approached and stood before me. As with most Gorean Free Women, I towered above her. Gorean Free Women rarely, if ever, grow to the heights that some women of Earth achieve. It is rare to see a Gorean Free Woman who is taller than five feet seven inches. I suppose this is effectively selective breeding in progress. Women who conform to certain physical characteristics are considered more pleasing to Gorean men, and therefore they are more likely to bear children who will inherit their genes. 

 

“It occurs to me that you may lack a basic sense of honour. It occurs to me that you may have plans to abandon Kulai on the road to whichever city you intend travelling.”

 

“Corcyrus,” I said.

 

“So you claim. I do not necessarily believe anything I hear from an outlaw. So let me be clear on something.” She produced a dagger from a sheath at her side. She touched the tip of it to my Adam’s apple. “Should I have any reason to suspect that Kulai has been abandoned on the road you travel. Should I have any reason to suspect you have simply robbed her, raped her, cast her aside, or perhaps even enslaved her…”

 

“That would not happen,” I began to protest.

 

“You will be quiet when I am threatening you,” said Livinnia. Her eyes were the controlled eyes of a psychopath. “If I learn you have done such things, I will see you suffer. The Assante are wealthy and it will be my pleasure to employ members of the Black Caste to hunt you down and kill you slowly. Men of the Black Caste will mark their foreheads with the ritual dagger and they will track you with trained sleen and they will bring you back to me. And when that happens, you will die very slowly indeed. Remove your tunic.”

 

“What?”

 

She drew the dagger away. “Remove your tunic. I will retain it should I ever need to pay for hunting sleen to find you in a city.”

 

“Now look, this is…”

 

“If I have to repeat myself, I will have one of your eyes removed. And I will do it myself. So, do I have to repeat a command?” She turned and regarded me.

 

I took my tunic off and handed it to her. It would have my body scent. Sleen could track that scent if she handed the tunic to a sleen handler. I stood there, naked now, in front of Livinnia, save for my sandals. If she seemed impressed by my body, she gave no sign of it.

 

“I personally know Hassan of Kasra. You are familiar with his reputation?”

 

“No.”

 

“He is a slave hunter, but he can also hunt free men and women. He famously tracked down and captured Sheila, the fugitive Tatrix of Corcyrus, when she fled to Ar. If necessary he will find you. Trust me when I say that. He will find you. One of my warriors will give you a fresh tunic when you leave. Remember my threats.” And then she turned away from me. I was no longer of any interest.

 

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“Is that a new tunic?” asked Rolfe as he whittled a piece of wood. He was carving the impression of a tarn.

 

“Yes,” I said, as I sat down beside him. “Livinnia just threatened my life with assassins of the Black Caste, and someone called Hassan of Kasra, should I abandon or rape Kulai, and then she gave me a new tunic.”

 

“Were you planning on abandoning or raping Kulai?" he asked, surprised.

 

“No, of course not. I’m an honourable man.”

 

“I am glad to hear that, for assassins of the Black Caste might have to kill me in the process.” He carried on whittling. “It is not the worst thing in the world to have a Free Companion.”

 

“Kulai is not my Free Companion.”

 

“Not yet. But you are courting her. Have you considered she may have a fat dowry?”

 

“First the bloody fish, and now you’re interested in her money?”

 

“You have no money,” remarked Rolfe. “You could do with a dowry. Corcyrus will be expensive. I have, as it happens, made discrete enquiries on your behalf. Would you be surprised to know that Kulai’s dowry amounts to ten tarsks of silver? A significant sum, and the women have hinted that the Assantes would offer a companionship gift.”

 

“The women?” I said, drily. 

 

“Well… one woman.”

 

“One woman?”

 

“Svetlana, to be precise. I chose  to speak to her about your impending companionship.”

 

“Did you now. Wait, what impending companionship?”

 

“The one Svetlana and I spoke of. To be honest, I grasped at any excuse to speak to the lovely Svetlana. I must thank you for providing me with one. We are now talking about many things. She has even laughed at one of my jokes. She has a delightful laugh.”

 

“You’re very welcome.” I had noticed in the past that Rolfe was impervious to my natural English sarcasm, today being no exception. “I’m not planning on taking Kulai as a Free Companion. With a bit of luck she’ll get bored of me and move on.”

 

“Unlikely. She seems to be very happy at present. Svetlana thinks, and I have to agree with her, that if you are taking Kulai away from her family unit, you really should make her your Free Companion, for appearances sake, and to reassure the Assantes that you can be trusted with her. Otherwise…”

 

“Otherwise what exactly?”

 

“Well, you are an outlaw.”

 

“So Livinnia reminded me. She assumes I raped a Free Woman or stole a vulo, both of which seem to be equally serious crimes in her mind.”

 

“A vulo?”

 

“You had to be there. She even offered to cut one of my eyeballs out.”

 

“The Assantes do have a reputation.”

 

“So I’m discovering.”

 

“Ten silver tarsks, my friend, and who knows how generous the Assantes will be!”

 

“You think I should Free Companion for money?”

 

“Of course. Everyone else does! A woman comes with a fat dowry. Everyone knows that. What are you going to do for money in Corcyrus? How do you know they will even let you through the gate if you cannot display evidence that you’re not a pauper or a beggar?”

 

“You have a point there.” 

 

“Companionship is only for a year. Ten silver tarsks!”

 

“It’s a bit soon.”

 

“Soon? These things are often arranged by parents. You’re lucky to even know the girl. You’ve even seen her face! And, oh, those lips.” Rolfe sighed. “I’d be happy to Free Companion her for, say, seven silver tarsks.”

 

“And I would take her for five,” remarked Rollo.

 

“I would just take her,” said Hergessvar, sadly. “A man needs a companion eventually.”

 

“So there you have it. You are going to be together, anyway. You should be companions. It’s the honourable thing to do now that you are courting. Companionship ceremonies are always happy and joyous occasions. The paga flows freely, and you are surrounded by good friends who will wish you well. And after you have drunk the wine of companionship, you can do much more than gently hold Kulai’s hand!”

 

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It got worse.

 

That night I ran into Svetlana. Almost literally. She blocked my path, with a hand on the sheathed hilt of her skinning knife. 

 

“Kulai tells me you are leaving in a couple of days.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Kulai tells me she will be travelling with you.”

 

“Apparently so. I have told her it will be dangerous. She would be better off staying…’

 

“We all assume you will Free Companion her before you leave? It is the right thing to do.”

 

“We’re just courting at the moment.”

 

“It is not right that a man takes a woman away from her family, unless he has formally drunk the wine of Free Companionship with her. She needs security.”

 

“Look, Svetlana, this is all very sudden and I think we need time to get to know one another.”

 

“I have told Stannis Assante that you will Free Companion Kulai before you leave. He approves.”

 

“What? Now, look…”

 

“Do you understand what it means when Stannis Assante approves of something?” Svetlana gazed at me. “Are you going to tell him you have changed your mind?”

 

“I haven’t proposed companionship in the first place!”

 

“Stannis Assante approves of your coming companionship. He feels it is the right thing to do before you take Kulai away from her family. Give some thought to the implications of that, outlaw. And then you had better start making preparations with Kulai, unless you wish to delay leaving this camp. Or you can go to Stannis Assante and tell him that you do not think Kulai is worthy of being your Free Companion, after all. It is your choice.”

 

And with that she left. 

 

It was just a fucking kiss! 

 

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Kulai spent time with me in the evenings. She would appear as Rolfe was lighting the campfire and she would come over to me and greet me as her beloved. The men made her welcome, for she was a Free Woman that I was courting. She would stand there before me, smiling softly, pleased to see me again. She would hold out both her hands and I would take them, and then, we would touch noses and softly kiss. Rolfe would smile, but he wouldn’t say anything. 

 

“My handsome beloved,” Kulai would say. She was clearly in love. 

 

I had less time to see Kelsee. I suddenly became aware that a day and a night had passed without seeing her. Whenever I thought I might go and see my slave, Kulai would appear to spend time with me. 

 

“I like Kulai,’ said Rolfe. “In fact we all like her. This is not so bad. She will be a fine companion, I think, and she will bear you strong, healthy sons and demure, obedient, dutiful daughters.”

 

‘Uh, children is not something I’m ready for yet.”

 

“Nonsense. A man needs strong sons, and Kulai is fit to bear them for you. It is one of the advantages of companionship.” He slapped my arm.

 

I hadn’t even considered the possibility that Kulai might want children. Most free Women were indoctrinated to think that way from childhood. In fact, was Kulai even using any contraception? There was a drink available to Free Women, made from the sip root, that rendered them infertile for a time. It was a sweet tasting drink, apparently, unlike the bitter, unflavoured equivalent given to slaves. Kelsee had drunk the wine of the noble free woman soon after she had bought me, for she intended to put me to use and did not wish to become pregnant. But many women who didn’t own slaves, or have Free Companions, often didn’t bother. If they weren’t intending to have sex, and in Gorean society it was often difficult for a Free Woman to have sex, then it wasn’t necessary. In fact, procuring the wine of the noble free woman was tantamount to declaring that you intended having sex, and if you had no companion, questions might be asked as to your intentions. For all I knew Kulai might be fertile.

 

Not that there was any chance of us having sex before being companioned. That sort of thing was largely frowned upon. 

 

“You should introduce me to your slave,” said Kulai, that night, as we sat by the fire. Rolfe. Rollo and Hergessvar were falling over themselves to appear polite and charming, refraining from coarse, vulgar language and remarks that might offend the sensibilities of a Free Woman. She sat next to me, our shoulders touching, and after a while I put my arm about her and she snuggled into my embrace. “I need to set some boundaries now that we will be travelling together.”

 

This would be a shock to Kelsee. I had no idea how she might react to learning I was now courting Kulai, and that she would have to defer to Kulai and call her mistress. It was one thing for Kelsee to be my slave, until we reached the walls of Corcyrus, but quite another for Kelsee to be the shared slave of a Free Woman. She would not be happy. But realistically, what could she do? She was a slave in the eyes of these Goreans. 

 

“I will need a whip, of course,” said Kulai. “A slave switch that I can hang at my belt. Is your slave troublesome?”

 

“Um, no, not really. She is a good girl.”

 

“A filthy, lascivious slut, no doubt?” she gazed at me with an amused frown. “Men and their lusts,” she chided me gently. “Yes, I think I shall meet your slave tomorrow morning. She will perform abject obeisance to me, kiss and lick my boots and then, as is traditional, I will whip her thighs with my switch to mark and impress upon her, her new state of bondage to me. She will quickly learn I am not easy to please.”

 

This was going to be… awkward.