THE ABDUCTION OF MYRIAM

from Var-Kor to Teletus

Lady Kallis, who lives in the city of Var-Kor, had sent me a message. She, now the head of the Scribes, wanted me with her as a Magistrate. The position was vacant, and they needed me. I had already been to that city for the Autumn Fair. I had stayed for a while, but at the time, the city was expanding, and there was no work for me, so I left. Now it was different. Kallis was calling me, and I, as her friend, had been secretly in love with that woman since the time of the first Cartassa, where I had courted her. But on the day of our ceremony, the slave YI YI, in agreement with Lady Athena, a jealous woman, staged a supposed betrayal on my part, and she abandoned me, running away to live in the Black City, on a remote island in Thassa.

I arrived in Var-Korlei, she was no longer there. She had left with an Assassin for the city of Teletus, and the Scribes' door was closed. I knew I could enter freely, but this time I remained outside sitting at a table waiting. While I was sitting, Lady Myrian finally arrived with her escort. I didn't know an escort was needed in the city. I invited the woman to sit with me. I've known her since the time I was at the Tashid oasis. She was from the Combo family and studied to be a Scribe, while I was a Magistrate and had the Desert Tashid news newspaper. We talked about work and she told me she had become HoC Scribe after Kallis' escape. I was very happy about this. I saw the girl and she finally made a career. Sir Vulcan the Ubar of Var-Kor rewarded her.

As he spoke, I noticed a hint of sadness in his voice. I asked him if he had any worries. He remained silent for an indefinite period of time, which seemed like a long time to me, but only a few minutes. Then, in a low voice, he said, "I've had a bad experience lately and I want to forget it." I pressed him, and he finally replied, "I was kidnapped, and fortunately, Sir Vulcan came to free me with his men." I was astonished. I couldn't believe that even today, rude men kidnap women, especially free women. I asked him to tell me what happened. Then, slowly, after taking a deep breath, he said: Some time ago, I had traveled to the city of Teletus. I knew that Sir Abraham was the head of the Scribe caste and that he had classes for apprentices. I was in Var-Kor, but I needed some information about the caste and how to become a good Scribe. But when I arrived, Sir Abraham had already left, no one knew where. It was said he had health problems and needed rest.

I was staying in the house of a friend of mine, promised to a free merchant, who in turn had a brother who was also a merchant. I was looking for a companion. My friend asked me if I was available, but I didn't want a companion yet, nor did I want to live with a merchant who was always traveling, so I refused. The man didn't take it well; he thought that with his gold cooper tarsks he could buy anyone, and I left again for Var-Kos.

I resumed my work in the Caste, Lady Kallis was OhC, and I continued to study and learn everything I could. My house was on the plateau behind the caste palaces, a resort area inhabited only by free people of the high Caste. In the evenings, I walked up those long steps and down that dimly lit avenue to reach my home. That evening, I was particularly nervous, I didn't know why. I quickened my pace to get into the house and be safe. I had no escort, there was no need in the city; everyone was calm and happy. But as soon as I turned the corner of the avenue, someone covered me with a sheet, making me faint. I woke up; we were on the road, and I recognized the Merchant from the proposed companionship. My cries and screams were useless; we were far from the city by now. They took me to the city of Teletus. He and my friend's brother, whom I had already met, took me to the city. The Merchant was keeping me hidden; no one knew my fate, but I refused to give in.

Meanwhile, in Var-Kor, they had noticed my disappearance and everyone was busy searching for Myriam, even Sir Vulcan the Ubar was mobilized, and at the main gate the guards reported that some merchants from Teletus had entered the city but that they had disappeared. It was immediately clear that she had been kidnapped. Myriam had told an apprentice about the Merchant's request for company, and Sir Vulcan organized an undercover expedition to Teletus. He and some trusted guards disguised themselves as Merchants and reached the city. After investigating the merchants, they discovered their house, first the friend's brother, who confessed to his friend's crime and directed the men to the house. After a fight with the Merchant, they freed Myriam and brought her back to Var-Kor.

A few days later, an Assassin was wandering around the city. No one knew the reason, but I believe he was just passing through and had taken lodgings in the tavern across from the Scribe Caste headquarters. The man noticed the beautiful Lady Kallis drinking tea every day outside the door, and approached her. After many attempts to convince her to become his companion, she agreed and fled with him to Teletus, the Assassin's city.

Myriam, meanwhile, had recovered from her fright, and Sir Vulcan rewarded her by appointing her as Scribe Caste leader in Kallis's place, and assigned him a permanent escort.

I hope to become friends with her; I'm tired of living alone, and I'm considering moving to the city of Var-Kor to pursue her, but that's another story.

A few days later, an Assassin was wandering around the city. No one knew the reason, but I think he was just passing through, and he had taken up residence in the tavern across from the caste deglin.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 LOST IN THE INFINITY

Journey to the Far North

I told you about my journey to see Sir Balrough and Macha the Kajira dancer again. On the Pirate ship I'd asked to accompany me, we reached the city of Rive de Bois at the end of the Exange Point River. From there, I took a caravan to the city of Ko-Ro-Ba. I'd already been there for the Kajira dancers' festival, and it was there, many years ago, that I met Macha, the choreographer of the dancers of Tyros (the Cos archipelago). Sir Balrough and I would later become very close friends. But once we reached the city, everyone had left to reach the city of Olni, where they would open a dance school and the new headquarters of the Tyros dancers. All I had to do was return towards the Sea of ​​Thassa and then decide. We thus reached the city of Piedimont passing through the Teveh pass. We stocked up on provisions. There were two possibilities: reach Rovere in its gulf, or go down the river and reach the city of Laura, on the Larius river, and then head back towards the sea and reach Lidyus at the end of that long river.

Lidyus didn't hold much attraction for me, even though the city was located at the end of the promontory and on the route of ships heading to the islands to the north.

viking warrior

I could have gone south, but it was Spring, and I wanted to return to visit northern Torwsland, many large cities on the islands north of Lidyus: the great Farnacium on its own island, the coastal city of Kassau, then the island of Hulmeth, the island of Skjem, the city of Helmutsport on the coast beneath the Prigmar mountains, then the island of Scagnar, and the island of Hunjer. I had never been to these islands; I had always traveled along the coast. I stopped for a few days on the island of Scagnar. I wanted to explore that highly populated part of the planet.

I asked around about what lay beyond that sea. They told me there were no more islands, but on the coast were the Blue Tooth lands, then the Torvaldsberg region, in the Torvaldsmark region, and then it all ended with the great region of Axe Glacier, perpetually frozen. They told me it was impossible to live there, and no one had ever ventured into that frozen land.

Everywhere I went, I took note of the places and positions on the maps. There was still an unexplored region called Hrimgar Mountain. They told me that few had undertaken that journey, and many had never returned. This piqued my curiosity. I wanted to know everything about the planet, and I organized that journey into the unexpected.

Traveling in Torwsland is never easy. There are many difficulties to overcome. There are no pre-established paths; you have to travel by the stars and the moons. We had to head east, starting from Scagnar, the planet Gor, located on the other side of planet Earth. Therefore, the sun rises in the west and sets in the east. We had to follow the sun. And so it was that, after passing the great mountain of Torvaldsberg, we headed towards the mountains of Hrimgar, the last known ones. No one had ever discovered what lies behind those icy mountains.

We were already in sight of those mountains. Around us lay the desolation of the lands, great valleys crashing against the distant slopes. We found shelter at the foot of a hill whose summit was frozen. The cold was already making itself felt, even though it was the height of spring, and I was beginning to think I had made a grave mistake in wanting to visit that region.

One morning I went off to draw a map of the area. I was looking for a hill where I could take notes. The sky, initially clear with a timid sun, gradually became more and more cloudy as time passed. A light rain was falling, then from rain it turned to snow. I tried to return to the camp, but between the snow and the wind I lost track of the place and consequently my direction. I wandered in search of shelter. By now the snow was falling heavily. I don't know how long I walked, forcing my way through that storm, and finally, from exhaustion, I collapsed. I thought that this was my end, after a life spent traveling through storms and tempests at sea, the heat of the desert and the cold of the north. Then I fell asleep, exhausted.

I woke up, I don't know how long I had slept, I wasn't cold anymore, a warm fire was warming me and I had a Tarsk hide blanket on my legs. I looked around. I was in a large cave. A fire was illuminating part of it and I could clearly hear the moaning of some Tarsk and Borsk, and of course their stench, I got up and found myself in front of two large men dressed in skins with long hair and long beards, they had large axes in their hands, they looked like Vikings seen in old books, they looked at me suspiciously, I backed away in fear to the wall of the cave, until from the shadows came out a woman already advanced in years but, certainly, that she was expecting a child, you could tell by her large belly, she greeted me while signaling the men to stop.

In her hands she had a steaming bowl, it was Tarsk milk, I could finally warm up, they invited me to their table on the other side of the cave, after we sat down I explained who I was and why I was there, they listened with interest to what I said, the woman said that they had never seen southern men like me come all the way to their land, sometimes they came down to Laura in the summer, to sell their milk products, and the furs of hunted animals, and exchanged them for tools that were needed for survival.

They told me that they lived so free, that their mother was also their woman and with them also lived a sister of theirs who was sitting in the shade apart, a beautiful girl with golden hair and eyes as blue as the sky, they continued the family lineage among them, if at first they seemed like dangerous savages, in the end I had to change my mind, they were kind, they gave me some cheese, and some pieces of dried dog, they told me of their decision to live in those remote mountains, because they were descendants of the Vikings who came from planet Earth, and they did not want to change their family tradition or their culture.

They invited me to stay with them; they would give me their sister as a bride, and we would live happily. Their proposal made me proud. I liked the still very young girl with womanly curves, but I said I had my own oasis of the seven palms, and that they were surely worried at my camp and I didn't want to alarm them. So the next morning, by then it had stopped snowing, they accompanied me to the trail that led to the camp.

A contrasting experience, of people who lived promiscuously, but I respect their culture and their decisions, and I thanked them. I gave them some maps of the area to the west, and returned to the camp. My men had gone out to scout, and when they returned they found me and were happy.

So we set off again towards the coast. This journey had served me well, but I wanted to return to civilization..............

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 darian el nairad present............

NEW OASIS 7 PALMS

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Waterfalls%20of%20Wonder/191/242/24

 SEND BY SARAH-DANCER

 send by  lady Suya scribe

A pamphlet made of the finest Rence parchment paper is given to you... the art work fine in detail.   

(( we are not recruiting for a sim, it is a group of traders)) 

Tea Room Traders is a Trading Group made up of the free women in Gor. It does not matter you caste or if you are a merchant or not.  It is a way to connect and share ideas and also for fun and sisterhood.  For Protection as well.   

Here are a few ways that being a member of the Tea Room Traders benefits each woman who is a member.  

>Each Member Receives a small sign & certificate to put in your place of business or home, showing you are a safe place for other Tea Room Traders.

1.  When traveling~  contacting other women for places to stay. There is safety in numbers traveling together.   Planned outings and trades with cities. 

((1B.  Each member gets a Cart of their goods to use when traveling, you attach it and use it to travel and sell your wares)) 

2. Trading ~ Every Free Woman in Gor has a talent or a gift, a business. Healers, scribes merchants and wise women.  At one point we will all need one of these women.  

3. Community ~ as with 1&2, if we come together we can be so strong.  Be there for each other. Tea Room Traders is all of us.  In the tea rooms of Gor talking and sharing our lives with one another. 

4. In hard times~  we can care for each other.  One woman's bounty is another woman's saving grace.  A night at an Inn paid for. A place to stay or food for her family after a companion has been killed in battle.  We Are stronger together! 

5. Shared interest~  We all have a story to tell. A life we live on Gor.  This will give each woman a way to connect and host events. to share in new things, to have a way to reach out to others with ideas and stories. Events and fun times shared. 

NOW.. that is just the tip of the stick with Tea Room Traders. As we grow so will the trade group.  If you want to know more or how to join, Contact Lady Delta 

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Interview With Lady Delta about project from Tea Room Traders" 

1. The Beginning Of Everything. 

[17:24] Delta Heaven ™/me '' Well, lets then start at the beginning.  I have always been a free woman in Gor.  Being raised in the waters of the Marshes and grasses of the delta was a wonderful place for a girl to grow up in. The laws here in Caer Cadarn are best for Free women.  So I am not as closed off as most women and a bit bolder than them too.  

The Caer Cadarn afford me that.  So, a few years back, I got to thinking about being a trader and selling the good of the rencer folk.  And we all know that Gor can be dangerous for women just wandering around. So most women stay in their homes and rarely go anywhere.

Which is very boring. But, what if we had a way to travel safely and also in comfort.  So, that was the first time i really thought about the trade group, Tea Room Traders.''

2. Paths That Open Up. 

[17:27] Delta Heaven ™ looking at the note card and reading question number 2 she smiled, and looked to Suya to answer that one. '' Hmm, with in the project the paths that are open to the other women are for one, fellowship and companionship.  

It also brings a level of safety for women traveling in Gor.  You are not so alone in it all.  We can help you with finding a home, a companion and even a skill that can then be used to support yourself if you do not wish to companion.  

We offer help in a many ways. Apprenticeship in a lot of trades. physician, seamstress and so many others.   Even here in Caer Cadarn.  My home. I was born deep in the swampy delta. Heck my name, Delta. 

But yes, Here my home we can offer a home and teaching, learning, and understanding. The men of the Delta as more open minded and want even the women to flourish.  Which is good for Women all over Gor. As each women prospers, so too do we all.''

3. The Relationship Between The City Of Caer Cardan And The Project.

[17:35] Delta Heaven ™ smiles nodding, '' Yes it si amazing and relationship of the trade group and Caer Cadarn is close.  It gives women a way to feel more at ease, which allows them to explore what they really want to do. I mean do not get me wrong, If you act out and act like a improper free women there is still rules, ya know. With Respect.  

And respect of one's self as well.  But the waters of the Delta are healing and life giving so the perfect place to come to grow and learn what is next in your life. ''

4. Challenges And Resistance. 

[17:44] Delta Heaven ™ looks to one side them looking back to Lady Suya she nods '' Yes for the most part they do.  It brings in trade and people.  Like most things women do, Most men pay no mind to it as long as they get their supper.'' then Delta laughs. " Also , There has been resistance in other cities and towns. 

Some men see it as us taking over trade. Which is also a reason to have a large womens trade group. We are stronger together.  

One man might stand up to a woman but will he then stand up to many women? We are free and entitled to certain things on Gor. Safety and trade are but two of them.  

And the men of Caer Cadarn support women growing and becoming better in all ways.''

5. The Role of the Free Woman in the Project and its Transformations 

[17:54] Delta Heaven ™ nods listening to Suya, rubbing her own hands along her lap as she thought for a moment. Then saying, '' Well If you think about the role of most free women now, It has changed. We are not just getting companioned or having babies. 

 I am an older woman and that time for me has passed.  So now i step into a new role as a leader of women.  I mean there are difficulties we face each day, just as women.  So, you have think out side the box which in Gor can be difficult for men to to do.  

The biggest difficulty i would say is the women seeing themselves in a different role or place in Life.  Thinking of themselves as warriors and traders, or even just a head of caste in your own homestone city. ''

6. The Future Of The Project And Their New Plans. 

[18:04] Delta Heaven ™ shifts on the couch and nods '' Ohh yes, for sure.  That is what we want to do. To expand on Tea Room Traders. In every tea room and in every city a women who can stand on her own and help other women as well.  I am a strong women of course, but even I at times second guess myself. 

Even with this idea of women coming together to add life to the Gor we all live in.  At time i hesitate, But, to be honest having women like you around me and other women that are strong make me so much stronger. I would like to see every city and  town have a tea room trader, even if there is no tea room in her village or outpost. It is something she carries in her soul and heart, ya know.'' 

Smiles '' Oh new projects,, well i am working on recruiting more women from different towns and cities,  And also a bit of traveling to visit and trade with other Tea Room Traders.  Though the next event i am thinking i will be hosting a day of water fun and sun.  A float trip and picnic here in Caer Cadarn.  Some time in June. near the end of it when the hot suns are warming up the delta.  Here let me give you some information about the group and the help we have for women in need.  Everything I earn goes to help house women and help them, and to Host events.''

Yes, i agree, and thank you for wanting to know more about the Tea Room Traders. Even though you are a member. Oh do add that it is free to join and be part of the Tea Room Traders.  And since you are part of us,, all can should  of hosting an event 

7. Considerations. 

[18:24] Delta Heaven ™ rolled her eyes thinking a moment, then nods looking back to Suya, '' Yes, i would like for all the women of Gor to know that they are so much stronger and wiser than they think they are and The Tea Room Traders Will help you find your crown to your Queendom.''

That's all. I'll leave the project information and Lady Delta Raven's contact details attached to the interview so that anyone interested in learning more knows how to proceed. 

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

send by Sarah

 Sarah published this article in a Phoenix sim magazine as part  of Sa Fora Kef's effort to spread knowledge of Gorean culture in SL

Kajira Dance Emotes in Roleplay (RP) by Sarah Luxembourg

"Kajira" or slave girl dance emotes are important to Gor SL roleplay. This article will discuss Gorean kajira emotes with some background.  Gor is the fictional setting for a series of sword and planet novels written by philosophy professor John Lange, writing as John Norman. The Gor world  was first described in the 1966 novel Tarnsman of Gor. SL has many Gor novel-based sims. Of interest to  Phoenix readers, Gemma Velvet has two kajira dance videos on her fllckr site.

Slave girl dances are very erotic. I saw an article that noted Gorean kajira dances were a BDSM subculture. In Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher)  is captured by the evil gangster Jabba the Hutt, and forced to wear a degradingly skimpy slave girl outfit. The outfit, which has come to be known as the Slave Leia costume, is one of the most popular uniforms in the Star Wars universe. Despite Lucas’ intentions, Fisher was apparently not happy about the Slave Leia costume. She later called it “what supermodels will eventually wear in the seventh ring of hell.”

add Leia as a slave girl picture

Gorean SL sims quote the Norman novels for RP rules.

"I am fond of slave dances. It is hard for a woman to be more beautiful than when she dances her beauty as a slave before masters."

Explorers of Gor     Book 13     Pages 342 - 343

A dance teacher I had wrote: "Gorean dance is not just a performance, it is an extension of roleplay, deeply woven into the storytelling traditions of Gor....: Gorean dance is fundamentally an act of immersive roleplay, where emotes bring the performance to the audience. She continued, "Every movement, every shift of a dancer’s body, carries meaning beyond the physical, it conveys emotion, intention, and narrative. The dance is not just about what is seen but about what is felt through the words that describe it."

add kajira book pic for article

I feel emotes are a way to reach my audiences and please them.  I used this emote in a Gor tavern dance:

[14:10] Sarah Luxembourg (sara.vermilion) her golden locks spill out...framing her delicate features as she dances...her blue silks flow with her body, swirling around her like an enchanted mist...her dance is an invitation to something darker and mysterious  beneath the surface, where her feminine  energy and vulnerability intertwine in a sexy way

See the pic of Sarah torch tavern dancing.

I wrote these emotes for our dance troupe Sa Fora Kef's (SFK) show at an SL Gor Fair, called En'Kara 2026,  this March. Url to the dance show:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBrnfZg2afk

/me sinks to her knees as the whip snaps near her back, her arms outstretched in offering...with each beat of the drum, the whip cracks fierce and wild, echoing the battle in her soul ..she  moves to display her pert breasts in dance....her lovely body trembling not from fear, but from the intensity of devotion burning within her kajira heart

[18:58] Sarah Luxembourg (sara.vermilion) glides across the the stage her belly coin chain jingling.. she rises in a brutal arc of her spine, her body seems to soar off the stage as she  stretches in dance..  she emancipates her desire in an undulating dance of sexual expression as she slips off her tiny silk bottoms...her slave heart beats wildly

as she reveal her sex to her audience. [modified for a Gor tavern dance, we did not strip in the formal show]

add sarah tavern dance pic

We also had emotes with poetry closings  in the show:

/me kneels in dance..she raises her chest to display her breasts ..she crawls to her audience  like a she sleen [Gor animal]...her long legs extend as she moves  on the dance floor.....she seems sexual and soft in her needs

For the dance, passion warms.

In leaps of joy, spins of art,

Reveals the depth of a dancer’s heart.

see the pic of Sa Fora Kef (SFK) dancers 

The use of Artificial  Intelligence (AI) derived emotes, like from ChatGPT, has been controversial in Gorean SL dance. Some dancers use AI for emote research. Other dancers feel AI emotes are not sincere and personal. AI-assisted emotes were banned for individual dance competitions in the large En'Kara Fair we danced in this March.

I will end with a cute SL AI story. 

are  doomed."

see the pics of before and after

My dancer  friend Mizuki took a picture of an SFK dance practice and sent it to her AI engine. AI deleted all the blondes!  My so-blonde conclusion was-- "OMG AI hates blondes. Blondes 

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 From Kasra to the Wosk River

That little ship glided slowly down that river, which rises in the Voltan Mountains and is named Fayeen, until it becomes the Cartius Subtropical, which, flowing toward the Shendi Forest, feeds the great Shatwa Lake, then enters the forest inhabited by the Panthers, and finally ends up in the Thassa Sea as the Cartius River.

I couldn't wait to reach that city called Kasra, with its large port called Light Bay. When the city of Victoria fell, and after fleeing into the forest, we reached the river and from there took a ship to the port that gave its name to the city itself, bordering the territories of Kasra. I remember when I first arrived in Light, I couldn't play a prominent role and lived from day to day, selling maps and presiding over the odd dispute between merchants in my role as Deputy Magistrate.

One day I entered a path that led to the high walls of Kasra, I had heard about this small city and decided to go through the small gate that led to the road that led to the central square, in those days the houses were singular, they were shaped like mushrooms and were all white, I arrived in the square in front of the small paòlazzo of the administrator, I saw some people sitting in a circle, I approached further, and a beautiful woman dressed as a dancer was standing and talking, I learned later her name was Nacha and she was the administrator as well as choreographer of the dancers, around her a Magistrate dressed in white with the classic stick, (I as a high Magistrate have never wanted) then some freemen and merchants, and the one who was supposed to be her companion, they told me his name was Balrough, I approached further, but I was not welcomed well, in fact the woman rudely chased me away, because I was not invited.

I returned to Light confused. It was the first time low-ranking people had chased me from their land. I would become friends with them years later when I returned to that renovated and modernized Kasra. Light was now just a port. I had returned for a dance festival, and I wrote about the dancers of Tyros. They remembered the episode from years before, apologized, and we became great friends, and we still are.

When we arrived in Kasra, the city was still the same. I asked about Sir Balroug and Macha, and to my great surprise, I learned that they had left for a long tour in the North, and they said that their first stop would be the city of Olni. I was very disappointed after so many days of sacrifices of hunger and thirst. I expected to be able to stay with them for a while. The ship would continue its voyage to the city of Kurtzal, the last on that Fayeen River, then its mouth at the foot of the Voltai Mountains, and then the unexplored lands. We arrived at the city of Kurtzal. It was a very beautiful, classic desert city, with buildings finely decorated with oriental ornaments and designs. It was right around the time of the great fair. I stayed for a few days, making many sketches of the best spots, and then it was time to decide where to go and what to do. There were no ships going down the river, but asking at the port, they told me that some merchants were organizing a caravan to the great city of Klima. I have wonderful memories of that great city with the walkways connecting the large, modern Gorean-style buildings. I lived there as the Chief of the Scribes, but I wasn't happy. I was alone, I had no companion, only slaves to look after me, and we were far from everything and everyone. The closest oasis was that of the Four Palms, but it was many days' walk through the desert, even though caravans came and went. Finally, I decided I had to set out again, cross that desert and reach Shendi to return to my oasis, taking a ship from the great port of Kargash.

DARIAN EL NAIRAD-PASHA

But I didn't want to return to that far-away city. Perhaps it would be better to return to Kasra, and then decide whether to head north to the Imperial city of AR. I hadn't visited it in a long time. I'd been there years ago, only as a visitor during the En-Kara fair. Then the war with Tor and Holnesk broke out, and I had to flee to the city of Venna. I've told you about that city with its Blue Palaces, its lakeside resort, and its planetarium. But for now, I'm taking a break here in Kurtzal. I've spotted a beautiful red-haired slave, and I'll do everything I can to have her with me for a few days. Then I'll decide what the future holds.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

SENT BR LADY TRINITY
 

 RETURN TO CIVILIZATION

the harsh test of the Thahari desert

I kept my distance from that long caravan of slavers with their precious cargo of girls just arrived from Planet Earth.

I had waited for those men dressed in silver suits to leave the caves, and I approached the entrance to a large cavern. To my great surprise, I found everything, from food to water, clothes, and weapons. This was surely the slave traders' base, because nearby there were tables and chairs, and in the corner some beds that they might have used while they waited for their Earthly accomplices.

 I found a tarp and put as much food and water inside as possible. There were some botas, which I took, and some dried meats hanging on a wall. I also took a small sword, something that resembled a Raider's dagger. Finally, after resting for a few hours, I set off along the trail used by the caravan. I wasn't afraid of losing them, because they were dragging girls unaccustomed to the desert, and they would surely have made them lose many hours of walking.

The first day I passed, I stopped behind a small dune, while I saw the campfires in the distance, we were going towards the South-East, and as much as I remembered the first city you meet in that direction leaving the Shendi forest, it was the city of Kor, I didn't know it, I had never been there, because that was a city always at war with AR and with other cities of the Thahari desert, I was a cartographer and I know the desert, so if I go towards the North I will surely find the Cartius-subequatorial river, and following that river you arrive at the city of Kasra, I had been there other times, sir Balrough and Macha lived there,

sir Balrough  & Macha 

while if I continued to go down avoiding Kor I would have found the trail of the great oases, Stone of Silve, Oasis of Farad, Oasis Battle Red Rock, then the Oasis of Nine Wells, then the Kasbah of Salt Ubar, up to the city of Kurtzal on the Lower Fayeen river, while going further south I would surely have met the small city of Turma, and from there further east to the Oasis of Sadd Slreen, then the Four Palms and the Two Scimitars, then again to the Oasis of Lame Kailla, until finally arriving at the great city of Klima where I had lived for a few years, but to reach my Oasis of the Seven Palms, it was better to head west, reach the oasis of Stone Silver, from there again towards the great city of Turia, from there I would have reached the coast to get to the Island of Landa, the great city where I lived, and from there I would have rented a boat to reach the oasis which is a few miles from Landa.

landa isle

But I was still alone in that burning desert. That night was quite cold. I wrapped myself in the blanket I had with me. I couldn't light a fire; they would have discovered me and surely killed me. I knew the slave traders' methods; they left no witnesses. And while I thought about all this, I fell asleep. I dreamed of the cool stream flowing from the rocks of my Oasis, and of my slaves tending me and warming me with their naked bodies. Everything was in bloom in my gardens, and the palace with its golden friezes shone in the sun.

I woke early, the sun was just rising in the distance. The night had brought me no counsel. I still hadn't decided which path to take. The most important thing right now was to get away from those slave traders as soon as possible. I had already risked my life with the Panthers, and I wanted to stay safe. I spent a few minutes thinking about what to do, then decided to reach the river, then Kasra, and from there get to Cartassa or the oasis of Tashid. I would be safe. I knew the trails to reach the Wosk River. I didn't want to go west because there was a long way to go in the desert before reaching Turia. I didn't have enough water and I didn't have any food, so I slowly walked northeast. I would reach the river in a few days, and I would surely find some small boat that shuttles between the cities on the banks.

I walked for three days, resting at night, drinking as little as possible, not wanting to run out of water, and so, towards sunset, I glimpsed the ruins of an ancient city, and finally the river, finally, I was safe. I threw myself fully dressed into that river. I hadn't washed or drank enough for weeks. I rested in the shade of stone ruins, which must once have been houses, and waited quietly. The next morning I stopped on the riverbank until a small merchant ship passed by. I sent out signals, and they sent a boat to pick me up.

I would continue that journey to Kasra. Then I would decide.

I had finally uncovered the mystery of all those slaves who populate the cities of Gor, who were kidnapped from Planet Earth and brought to Gor...

For days I had been walking in the Tahari Desert. My caravan had been attacked by Panthers and rebellious Bedouins. We had no escape; there were so many of them, coming from every direction. I watched my men fall, one after another. I had no choice but to play dead. Perhaps it was the only way to escape that carnage. It was very strange that wild panthers had allied themselves with desert men, even those banished from their oases, earning a living by raiding passing caravans.

As I thought this, a sword flashed in the sun and struck me in the side. I fell into the burning sand that morning, pretending to be dead. I had indeed been hit by a scimitar, but my canteen hanging at my side had taken the hit, and I had fallen in the impact. After the howls of those panthers had subsided, some men were checking the fallen, making sure everyone was dead, leaving no witnesses in their path. When they reached me, as they bent down to check on my death, someone shouted to go away, and I was saved.

I don't remember how long I remained in that position, surrounded by the corpses of men who loved me and who had given their lives to defend me. I forced myself and stood up, looking around at that desolation, of fabrics thrown to the wind and open boxes thrown into the sand. There was nothing left to do but take something for my survival and head west. We had left Baku heading for As-Ar, the large city on the edge of the desert, then from there we would set off again for Isfahan. Lady Sabayna was waiting for me. She had returned from the Pani villages of the Sardar and had resumed her work as a herbalist and perfumer in the oasis (city).

That had been the mistake, crossing the Shendi forest. We didn't want to take the mountain trail, it was too tiring, but the result was only the death of my men and my caravan. I would have waited until the sun wasn't too high. I didn't have much water; my canteen was broken by the sword, but luckily, searching among the corpses, I found one. Full, it would have been my salvation in that hell of sand and sun.

I walked away from the sun; it was the only sensible thing to do. Sooner or later I would encounter some oasis or caravan. I walked until late evening, until the darkness covered everything. I had taken some cloths to cover myself, dug a small ditch, and fell asleep. I woke up in the morning, and the sun was already high. I still had a few biscuits in my bag. I ate one, then drank a little water, and I was ready for my journey into the unknown.

I don't know how many hours I had walked, I was dead tired, walking in the sand was an arduous task, but it was the only way to save myself, or die in that desert that had seen me born and grow up, I moved forward slowly, I scanned those sandy dunes in search of something, but everything was the same, sometimes it seemed like I had already been there, but I moved forward, I thought about my life, about my oasis of the seven palm trees, about my loves lived and lost, about my brother Orlando missing for so many years, about my adoptive mother Lady BB Arliss, and about everyone I had met on my travels, it was the only way to keep my brain busy before the scorching sun made me lose track of life. I rested at night, I had eaten another biscuit and drank a little water, my lips were chapped by the sun and thirst, my skin was red and burnt, I fell asleep, I dreamed of the great fountain in the central square of the oasis of the seven palms, I dived in together with the naked slaves who played with each other, and I drank that fresh water that flowed from the depths of the island, I woke up it was almost dawn and I was already sweating, I waited a little longer to regain a little strength and I set off.

After a few hours, something protruded from the sand in the distance, a strange shape like a large iron curtain. The closer I got, the bigger it got. I had seen something similar in old books where the Priest Kings had captured the crew of that strange shape they called a spaceship. It was said that the Goreans, with the help of those priests, had captured the crew that had arrived on Gor from the planet Earth, on the other side of the sun, and that the highly intelligent animal priests had discovered a way to make that machine work and organized an expedition to Earth to capture men and women to populate the Planet Gor. I approached with suspicion, but it didn't seem to be inhabited, there were no shadows or noises coming from inside when I climbed that iron walkway to the front door, I looked out and was amazed by the bright screens in front of the chairs surely used to drive that fantastic and shiny machine, what I was looking for was food, I found in a cupboard some brown substance tablets, my hunger was at its peak I didn't have

There were some anatomical chairs just right for me to rest in, and the inside of that big machine was quite cool. I fell asleep. I don't know how long I slept, but I woke up rested, and those tablets had eased my hunger. There were some cylinders with water inside, and I filled my canteen. Then I went outside and climbed up to the roof. It was quite high, I could see much further. When I reached the top, I looked around, scanning the horizon, and in the distance I saw something that looked like low hills, very high rocks. I decided to reach them. It was definitely a shelter for caravans, and I set off again towards those small hills. After some time, I came into sight of those rocks, and I was greatly astonished to see men dressed in silver robes with strange weapons escorting women towards a cave. There were also women with dark, almost black skin. I had seen some of them in some cities; even Sir Mingh in the city of Falswort had fallen in love with one of them. Others had golden and copper-red hair. I was hiding behind a small dune. I clearly saw slave traders talking to those silver warriors as they took over the chained women. There was definitely something fishy going on, men from Earth selling their women to the merchants of Gor.

When it was all over, the silver men disappeared towards their spaceship, while the slavers set off with those women towards a trail that could now be clearly distinguished. I waited a few hours and followed that trail, and finally I encountered a caravan of real traders heading for the Oasis of the Two Scimitars. They helped me with my now worn-out clothes, they treated my sun wounds, and they took me with them to the city of Ar, at war with Pot Kar, I stayed a few days and then left again.

I had finally uncovered the mystery of all those slaves who populate the cities of Gor, who were kidnapped from Planet Earth and brought to Gor...

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX