compensated for in a sophisticated die by trying to deduct equal amounts of
material from all surfaces, for example, an amount from the “one†side which
will equal the amount of the “six†side, and, indeed, on the various sides. At
any rate, in the Gorean dice, as mentioned, the numbers or letters, of pictures
or whatever devices are used, are usually pained on the dice. Some gamesmen,
even so, attempt to expend the same amount of paint on all surfaces. To be sure,
some Gorean dice I have seen to use the “scooped-out†approach to marking the
dice. And these, almost invariably, like the more sophisticated Earth dice, try
to even out the material removed from each of the surfaces. Some Gorean dice are
sold in sealed boxes, bearing the city’s imprint. These, supposedly, have been
each cast six hundred times, with results approximating the ideal mathematical
probabilities. Also, it might be mentioned that dice are sometimes tampered
with, or specially prepared, to favor certain numbers. These, I suppose, using
the Earth term, might be spoken of as “loaded.†My friend, the actor, magician,
impresario and whatnot, Boots Tarsk-Bit, once narrowly escaped an impalement in
Besnit on the charge of using false dice. He was, however, it seems, framed. At
any rate the charges were dismissed when a pair of identical false dice turned
up in the pouch of the arresting magistrate, the original pair having,
interestingly, at about the same time, vanished.
(pg. 60) I stayed to watch the fellows playing dice for a few Ehns. I do not
think they noticed me, so intent they were on their game. The stakes were small,
only tarsk bits, but one would not have gathered that from the earnestness of
the players. A slave girl was kneeling nearby, in a sort of improvised slave
brace, a short, stout pole, drilled through in three places. Her ankles were
fastened to the pole, by means of a thong threaded through one of the apertures,
near its bottom, her wrists by another thong passing through a hole a few inches
higher that the bottom hole, and her neck by a thong passed through the aperture
at the top part of the pole, behind her neck. There are many arrangements for
the keeping of slaves, bars, harnesses, and such. I will mention two simple
ones, first, the short, hollow tube, usually used with a sitting slave, whose
wrists are tied, the thing then passing through the tube to emerge at the far
end, where it is used to secure her ankles, and, second, the longer pole,
drilled four times, used with a prone or supine slave, in which it is impossible
for her to rise to her feet. Her ankles are fastened some six inches or so from
the end, and she is then, of course, secured, in one fashion or another, back or
belly to the pole, as the master might please, at suitable intervals, by the
wrists, belly and neck, the pole usually extending some six inches or so beyond
her head. The girl near the gamblers was apparently not a stake in the game. On
the other hand, it is not unusual for female slaves, like kaiila and other
properties, to serve as stakes in such games, as in races, contests and such.
Indeed, in many contests, female slaves are offered as prizes. I had once won
one myself, in Torvaldsland, in archery. I had subsequently sold her to a
warrior. I trust that she is happy, but it does not matter, as she is only a
slave.
“Larls, larls!†called a fellow. “I win!â€
“Alas,†moaned the other. “I have only verr.â€
“Larls†would be maximum highs, say, double highs, if two dice were being used,
triple highs if three dice were in play, and so on. The chances of obtaining a
“larl†with one throw of one die is one in six, of obtaining “larls†with two
dice, one in thirty-six, of obtaining “larls†with three dice, one in two
hundred and sixteen, and so on. Triple “larls†is a rare throw, obviously. The
fellow had double “larls.†Other types of throws are “urts,†“sleen,†“verr,â€
and such. The lowest value on a singe die is the “urt.†The chances of
obtaining, say, three “urts†is very slim, like that of obtaining three “larlsâ€
one in two hundred and sixteen. “Verr†is not a bad throw but it was not good
enough to beat “larls.†If two dice are in play a “verr†and a “larl†would be
equivalent on a numerical scale of ten (pg. 61) points, or, similarly, if the
dice are numbered, as these were, one would simply count points, though, of
course, if, say, two sixes were thrown, that would count as “larls.â€
A lad danced past, pounding on a tabor.
I stood there, in the camp, looking about, at the various fires and the folks
about them. Mostly, as I have suggested, these folks were of the peasants, but,
among them were representatives of many other castes, as well, mostly refugees
from Torcadino and its environs, in the west, and from the vicinity of Ar’s
Station, in the north, folks who had fled before the marshes of Cos.
“Ai!†cried a fellow a few yards away, tumbling off the filled, greased
wineskin. He would not win the skin and its contents. There was much laughter.
“Next!†called the owner of the skin. “Next!†As it cost a tarsk bit to try the
game I think he had already made more than the cost of the wineskin and its
contents.
I wondered if I could balance on the skin. It is not easy, of course, given the
surgent fluid and the slippery surface.
Another fellow addressed himself to the task, but was on his back in the dirt in
an instant. There was more laughter about the skin.
“An excellent effort,†called the owner of the skin, “would you care to try
again?â€
“No,†said the fellow.
“We will hole you while you mount,†volunteered the owner.
But the fellow waved good-naturedly and left.
“A tarsk bit,†called the owner. “Only a tarsk bit! Win wine, the finest
ka-la-na, a whole skinful, enough to treat your entire village.â€
“I will try,†said a fellow, determinedly.
I walked over to the circle to watch.
The fellow was helped to the surface of the wineskin. But only an Ihn or so
later he tumbled off into the dirt. Fellows about slapped their thighs and
roared with laughter.
“Where is more wine?†called one of his friends.
There was laughter.
How odd it was, I thought, that these folks, who had so little, and might, were
it not for the forces of Ar, such as they were, between Cos and the city, be in
mortal jeopardy, should disport themselves so delightedly.
I watched another fellow being helped to the surface of the skin.
I supposed it might be safe, now, to return to the tent. Presumably, by now, it
would not be a violation of decorum to (pg. 62) return to the tent. Indeed, by
now, Marcus and Phoebe might be asleep. Marcus usually slept her at his feet, in
which case her ankles would be crossed and closely chained, or at his thigh, in
which case, she would be on
a short neck chain, fastened to his belt. A major
advantage of sleeping the girl at your thigh is that you can easily reach her
and, by the hair, or the chain, if one is used, pull her to you in the night.
These measures, however, if they were intended to be precautions against her
escape, were in my opinion unnecessary. Phoebe, as I have suggested, was held to
her master by bonds compared to which stout ropes. Woven of the strongest,
coarsest fibers, and chains or iron, obdurate, weighty and unbreakable, were
mere gossamer strands. She was madly, helplessly, hopelessly in love with her
master. And he, no less, rebellious, moody, angry, chastising himself for his
weakness, was infatuated with his lovely slave.
The fellow struggled to stay up on the bulging, shifting wineskin, and then
slipped off. He had actually done quite well. Nearly had he won the wine.
There was applause about the small circle.
I heard a fellow advertising the booth of a thought reader. This reader probably
read coins. One, presumably without the knowledge of the reader or a
confederate, selects one coin from several on a tray or platter, usually tarsk
bits, and then, holding it tightly in his hand, concentrates on the coin. Then,
after the coin has been replaced on the tray or platter, the thought reader
turns about and, more often than not, far more than the probabilities would
suggest, locates the coin. One then loses one’s tarsk bit. If the reader selects
the wrong coin, one receives all the tarsk bits on the tray or platter, usually
several. I assumed there must be some sort of trick to this, though I did not
know what it was. Goreans, on the other hand, often accept, rather uncritically,
in my mind, that the reader can actually read thoughts, or usually read them.
They reason that if one fellow can see farther than another, and such, why can’t
someone, similarly, be able to “see†thoughts. Similarly, less familiar with
tricks, prestidigitation, illusions, and such, than an Earth audience, some
Goreans believe in magic. I have meet Goreans who really believed, for example,
that a magician can make a girl vanish into thin air and then retrieve her from
the same. They accept the evidence of their senses, so to speak. The taking of
auspices, incidentally, is common on Gor before initiating campaigns,
enterprises, and such. Many Goreans will worry about such things as the tracks
of spiders and the flights of birds. Similarly, on Earth, there is a clientele,
(pg. 63) particularly in uncertain, troubled times, for those who claim to be
able to read the future, to tell fortunes, and such.
“Noble Sir!†called the owner of the wineskin. “What of you?â€
I regarded him, startled.
“A tarsk bit a chance?†he invited me. “Think of the whole skin of wine for you
and your friends!â€
A skin of wine might bring as much as four or five copper tarsks.
“Very well,†I said.
There was some commendation from others about. “Good fellow,†said more than one
fellow.
“Surely you do not intend to wear your sandals,†said the owner of the wineskin.
“Of course not,†I said, slipping them off. I then rubbed my feet well in the
dirt near the skin.
“Let me help you up,†said the fellow.
“That will not be necessary,†I said.
“Here, let me help you,†he said.
“Very well,†I said. I had not been able to get on the skin.
“Are you ready?†asked the owner, steadying me.
“—Yes,†I said. I wished Lecchio, of the troupe of Boots Tarsk-Bit, were about.
He might have managed this.
“Ready?†asked the owner.
“Yes,†I said.
“Time!†he cried, letting go of me.
“How well you are doing!†he cried, at which point I slipped from the skin. I
sat in the dirt, laughing. “How marvelously he did!†said a fellow. “Has he
gotten on the skin yet?†asked another, a wag, it seems. “He has already fallen
off,†he was informed. “He did wonderfully,†said another. “Yes,†said another,
“he must have been on the skin for at least two Ihn.†I myself thought I might
have managed a bit more than that. To be sure, on the skin, an Ihn seems like an
Ehn. Before one becomes too critical in these matters, however, I recommend that
one attempt the same feat. To be sure, some fellows do manage to stay on the
skin and win the wine.
“Next?†inquired the owner of the wineskin.
I looked about, and picked up my sandals. I had scarcely retrieved them when I
noticed a stillness about, and the men looking in a given direction. I followed
their gaze. There, at the edge of the circle, emerged from the darkness, there
was a large man, bearded, in a tunic and cloak. I took him as likely to be of
the peasants. He looked about himself, but almost as though he saw nothing.
“Would care to try your luck?†asked the owner of the wineskin. I was pleased
that he had addressed the fellow.
(pg. 64) The newcomer came forward slowly, deliberately, as though he might have
come from a great distance.
“One tries to stand upon the skin,†said the owner. “It is a tarsk bit.â€
The bearded man then stood before the owner of the wineskin, who seemed small
before him. The bearded fellow said nothing. He looked at the owner of the
wineskin. The owner of the wineskin trembled a little. Then the bearded man
placed a tarsk bit in his hand.
“One tries to stand on the skin,†said the owner again, uncertainly.
The large man looked at him.
“Perhaps you will win,†said the owner.
“What are you doing?†cried the owner.
No one moved to stop him, but the large man, opening his cloak, drew a knife
from his belt sheath and slowly, deliberately, slit the skin open. Wine burst
forth from the skin, onto the ankles of the large fellow, and, flowing about,
seeking its paths, sank into the dirt. The dust was reddened. It was not unlike
blood.
The large fellow then sheathed his knife, and stood on the rent, emptied skin.
“I have won,†he said.
“The skin is destroyed,†said the owner. “The wine is lost.â€
“But I have won,†said the bearded man.
The owner of the rent skin was silent.
“Twenty men were with me,†said the large, bearded man. “I along survived.â€
“He is of the peasant levies!†said a fellow.
“Speak, speak!†cried men, anxiously.
“The skin is rent,†said the man. “The wine is gone.â€
“Speak!†cried others.
The fellow pulled his cloak away and put it over his arm.
“He is wounded!†said a man. The left side of the fellow’s tunic was matted with
blood. The cloak had clung to it a bit, when he removed it.
“Speak!’ cried men.
“I have won,†said the man.
“He is deliriou
s,†said a fellow.
“No,†I said.
“I have won,†said the man, dully.
“Yes,†I said. “You have stood upon the skin. You have won.â€
“But the skin is gone, the wine is gone,†said a fellow.
“But he has won,†I said.
(pg. 65) “What occurred in the west?†demanded a man.
“Ar has lost,†he said.
Men looked at one another, stunned.
“The banners of Cos incline toward the gates of Ar,†said the man.
“No!†cried a man.
“Ar is defenseless,†moaned a fellow.
“Let the alarm bells sound,†wept a man. “Let her seal her gates!â€
I had some concept of the forces of Cos. Too, I had some concept of the forces
of Ar in the city, now mostly guardsmen. She could never withstand a concerted
siege.
“I have won,†said the bearded man.
“How have you won?†asked a man, angrily.
“I have survived,†he said.
I looked at the rent skin and he reddened dust. Yes, I thought, he was the sort
of man who would survive.
Men now fled away from the circle. In Ihn, it seemed, the camp was in
consternation.
I stood there, for a time, holding my sandals.
Men moved past me, pulling their carts and wagons. Some had slave girls chained
to them. Some of these women, in their manacles, attached to the rear of the
vehicles, thrusting and pushing, helped to hurry them ahead. I heard the
bellowing of tharlarion being harnessed.
“How far is Cos?†I asked the man.
“Two, three days,†he said.
I gathered this would depend on Myron’s decision as to the rate and number of
marches. I did not think he would press his men. He was an excellent commander
and, from what I had gathered, there need be no haste in the matter. He might
even rest his men for a day or two. In any event, an excellent commander, he
would presumably bring them fresh to the gates of Ar.
I donned my sandals.
Many of the fires in the camp had now been extinguished. It might be difficult
finding my way back to the tent.
“Are you all right?†I asked the bearded fellow.
(pg. 66) “Yes,†he said.
I looked to the walls of Ar. Here and there, on the walls, like shadows
Norman, John - Gor 25 - Magicians of Gor.txt Page 9
