THE INN ON THE PORT

    That night I didn't sleep, I was anxious, I mentally retraced my memories, I remembered an episode that happened to me on the way back from the city of Jad to my oasis.


   I had paid passage on a ship, bound for the island of Landa, not that it was who knows what, from afar it looked like a ghost ship, and the crew was made up of sailors of fortune, the best ships had been booked by all the Ubars of the large ones towns overlooking the Wosk River, my cabin was close to the captain's, usually occupied by his second mate, small and smelly, but I had to put on a good face, I had no other choice, ships headed for the South there were few of them at this time of year, all traveling upriver or across the Thassa Sea north into Torvaldsland for the fur trade.



    Suddenly shouts on the ship attracted my attention, a merchant accompanied by his slave, slipped on the slimy gangway, falling into the sea hitting his head on the railing, promptly rescued by some sailors who, unaware of the danger, dived in, there was a risk of being bitten by Urt, (large rats of Gor) they pulled the merchant out of the water but he was now lifeless, they laid him on a blanket near a large basket, while his terrified and crying slave was in despair, they took her to covered he was refreshed with a little water they gave him a dry suit and the Commander of the ship called me to decide what to do.

    I told the captain that if we had called the port guards, they would certainly have blocked the departure for who knows how long, therefore it would be better to weigh anchor as soon as possible from that port, we would have buried the merchant at sea according to the laws of seafaring, divided the her belongings among the sailors, I took the slave over to my Oasis.
    So it was, the Commander, a smart guy, immediately understood and ordered the departure, while the slave was taken to my cabin and placed in a corner on a bed made with pieces of old sails, the ship put its bow to the South, my Oasis, but we would have called at the port of Brundisum to unload goods for the city of Ar, and loaded goods from Port Kar, it was customary for ships to make these stops so that the two cities were at war with each other, but in secret they traded using the free port of Brundisum.


    We only stayed in the free port for one day and would leave the next morning, then in the late afternoon when the work on deck was completed, I took the slave with me and we went down to the mainland. the girl still dazed and crying for the loss of her master, he was certainly more than a master for her, I took her to the manager of the Kennel (city slave dormitory) to make her calm down so it was, leaving the slave who in a moment of lucidity he told me his name was Aarre, I reached the commander near the tavern which at that time of the evening was crowded with passing merchants and sailors, the landlady of the tavern was a tall, large woman and I took us to a room behind the kitchen waiting for him to arrive. freed up a table.
While I was sitting alone, the commander was outside discussing with other sailors, I noticed a very beautiful girl sitting in a corner, even though she was wearing a veil you could tell from her hair the color of the sun and from her eyes as deep as the blue sea I saw her cry , I approached her and asked why she was crying so softly, she said she was running away because she hadn't confirmed her marriage agreement at the end of the year. (in Gor the free married women must confirm the union every year by drinking a jug of wine with their partner in front of a fire), I introduced myself as the Regent of the Oasis of the Seven Palms, and that I was returning home as soon as I learned of the my caste. I begged to take her with her and take her to my Oasis, I told him yes, she told me that she would pay for the trip herself, she had some silver plates from her work as a perfumer in her city, but just at that moment some arrived noisy people approaching her, I knew they were father, mother and son, the latter husband of the free girl whom he called Azula, with a trembling voice the drunken husband who could barely stand on his legs, begged her to return, she said he would never return with him an alcoholic, who spent his days loitering in the streets, and many nights in the tavern with the slaves stealing from the perfumery case.
  As soon as I understood the situation I called the guards on duty at the port and ordered them to escort the woman to my cabin on the ship and to chase those dirty and smelly people out of the tavern. so it was that I entered the tavern called by the landlady and after eating I passed by the Inn to pick up the slave Aarre and take her with me,  but as soon as she was outside she ran away through the streets of the port, and having reached an empty pier in the blink of an eye she threw herself into the sea, drowning in that putrid and smelly water.


    This fact left me quite upset, not that the life of a slave was important, I had let the situation slip out of my hands, I hadn't fully understood that girl's drama, then once the first few minutes of sadness had passed I returned to reality, reaching freedom. in my cabin, which in the meantime had changed clothes, she was shining without a veil, truly very beautiful, certainly the rest of the journey would have been very pleasant