Zork (6) by Peony D Beckside

 

Zork

Peony D Beckside

Images by Arizona Wanderer
 
In appreciation of, and with thanks to John Norman for creating the wonderful world of Gor, in which this story is set.

 

 

Chapter Six: The Ferry

 

The female puny one that Cadmus calls Kiki is no longer afraid of me.  Sure I can make her afraid again, but that will make her less efficient in keeping Cadmus and Grunthon happy.  Yes, she would make a lovely meal, but she is the property of Cadmus.  Whilst the concept of ‘ownership’ is different for us, there is dishonour in destroying something that belongs to another unless one is provoking that Kur.

She was absolutely terrified when Cadmus gave her the comb and told her to groom me.  So much so that she involuntarily excreted.  Good job her garment has no nether closure, and that we were camped by a stream.

“No, Master!  Pleeeaase…, I beg of you.  It’ll eat me!”

Now she calls me ‘he’, not ‘it’.

“Do a good job girl, and perhaps he won’t…”

“Kill me, Master, please…”

Such was her lack of reason at that point.

“That’s illogical.  If I kill you, he certainly will eat you!  Obey, or I will give him permission to eat you”

Her only answer was to groan.  She came towards me and started combing hesitantly.  As I didn’t overtly threaten her, she became more confident.  Eventually she had combed just about all of my fur.  She did do a good job.  I’d not felt so well and sleek since landing on this miserable rock.  She’s a playful thing around me, and about the camp, scampering about as she does her duties.

 

Cadmus is lying behind a hummock.  He’s scrutinising the settlement ahead and the river it sits upon.  He’s using what he calls a ‘Glass of the builders’, a long tube that I suspect magnifies the image he sees with his eyes.

He returns to the campfire and calls myself and Grunthon to council.

“It’s not good.  The river is too deep, wide and fast flowing to wade or swim…”

I comment

“I am not a fish!”

He smiles at that.

“No, you are not.”

He pauses.

“There is however a ferry…

“What is a ‘ferry’, Cadmus?”

“A boat that is used to cross the river.  In this case, it’s big enough to carry six wagons, so it can carry us all, including Zork.  The ferry is attached to a rope or cable that crosses the river.  It’s operated by a group of men, slaves I assume, hauling along the rope.

            The problem is, that the ferry is at the far end of a small walled town, and it is guarded by quite a large contingent of armed men.  I doubt that even you, Zork, could kill them all before they brought you down and killed you.  Even if we got through the gate, down to the ferry landing, and onto the ferry, in order to protect the community on the other side from us, they would likely cut the cable.  The current in the river would carry us downstream into the jungle.  We don’t want that. There’s no viable way out of the jungle except up river or downriver to the sea.  We won’t have the ability to propel the ferry upstream, and even if we got down to Schendi, getting a ship north would be problematical.”

I consider what Cadmus is telling us, but before I can suggest a course of action, he speaks again.

“I have an idea though.  You might not like it Zork.  It would be terribly demeaning to you.”

“I can put up with that if it allows us to get past this obstacle.  What do you have in mind, Cadmus.?”

“Firstly, how many coins do we have between us.  I should have checked that man you ate, Kiki’s former Master to see if he had any.  In future, Zork, if you must eat humans, before you devour all of them, please check.  Money is always useful.”

“I have some coins, I remind.  I took them from a red-coated man, after he’d tried to stick his tiny knife in me.”

“Good, let us see how much you have.”

I produce the disk shaped items, I’d concluded were coins.  Cadmus examined them again.  He must have forgotten how many there were and their worth.

“Excellent, Zork!  There’s enough here I believe, to pay for the ferry crossing, and some extra equipment we will need, also for much needed supplies.”

Cadmus takes a pull from what I believe is his last bottle of Ka-La-Na wine.

“Tomorrow, Kiki and I disguise ourselves as an itinerant peasant and his slave.  We go into town.  I need to change Kiki’s collar, anyway.  While there I buy large amounts of the heaviest looking chain that I can find, then return.

            This is where you have to ‘play along’, Zork.  The day after, you remove your clothes, all of them, and the translator.  Sorry, Zork, if this is to work the townspeople must think that you are a mere beast, and helpless at that.  We wrap chains on your limbs, tight enough that they look effective, but loose enough that you can slip them easily if necessary.

            We go back into town, all of us.  Kiki will hold a leading chain from your neck, Zork.  If someone so slight, a woman and a slave at that can appear to be able to control you, you will be thought of as harmless.  If you can approximate a human smile that would help.  Throw in a few jumps and capers, and I can tell people that I’m training you to dance…  No matter what the provocation, you must not let anyone think that you are dangerous.  I told you it would be demeaning…  Sorry Zork, but it’s the only plan I can think of that might be viable.”

I can’t help myself.  I laugh.  It’s so ridiculous it might just work.  If nothing else teasing the local inhabitants might have a humorous edge to it.  Even Kiki is amused, though she has had the good sense to remain silent.

“We go in slowly, openly.  If asked, I tell the guards that I know a showman who’ll pay me a large amount of money for a dancing beast.  We buy supplies and move down to the landing stage, negotiate our passage across and board the ferry.  At the far side, we use the same story, if asked, and then set off in the direction of Samnium.  When we are out of sight of anyone, we take Zork’s chains off, give him back his clothes and continue as before.  If it works we might need to use the same plan to cross other future rivers.”

“Make sure I can easily get out of the chains in case it doesn’t work, and have my axe hidden but easily accessible.”

“Certainly Zork.  It’ll be flat on the bed of my handcart where you can easily slide it out.  Anyone see any flaws in the plan, yes Kiki even you may comment if you can see an issue we’ve not thought about.”

“No Master, you seem to have covered everything.”

I make my decision.  If it works, letting Cadmus live, will have been a good idea.

“Very well, Cadmus.  I can’t say that I’m totally happy about this plan, but it does seem the most likely to succeed.”

 

Narrative of Cadmus

 

I anticipate some difficulty with the metal worker.  The removal of one Master’s collar from a slave and the affixing of another Master’s, without slave papers is a fraught negotiation.  I consider forging such documentation, but instead decide on using the truth, or as close to it as possible.

“Kiki, you may be asked about what happened to your previous master, and how you came to be my property.  You will tell the absolute truth.  The only item that you will withhold is that Zork is with our party.  Got that?”

“Yes, Master, but who will ask?”

“You know the saying about curiosity in slaves?”

“Yes, Master.  Sorry, Master.

I enter the forge, Kiki following like a well-trained animal, and am greeted by a large rubicund man.

“How may I help you, sir?”

“Kiki, kneel.”

“This slave’s previous Master is dead.  I have claimed her by right of capture.  I need to change her collar for mine.”

“You’ve no slave papers, no receipt?  That’s a serious matter.”

“No, we were in wild country, this is the first town we’ve come to.”

“Oh.  I don’t know…”

“I am leaving the building.  I am going out of earshot.  Feel free to ask the slave the circumstances under which she came into my control.  Lest you feel she’s been coached, as per the law, and the taking of evidence from slaves, you may torture her to get the truth.  Please however use a method that does not damage her.  I’ll be in the tavern across the road.  I’ll return in half an hour.”

I feel Kiki stiffen against my leg when I mention torture.  I examine a display of collar types on a board.

“This type of collar, I think.  My name is Cadmus of Ar.  Assuming that Kiki satisfies your apprehensions, how much will it cost for you to do the job?”

I cross the road and enter the Paga Tavern.  A lithe beauty enquires after my preferences.  I tell her that I’m only here for a drink.  She goes away and fetches it, serving it so well that I’m sorely tempted to take her to an alcove.  Instead I sip my paga appreciatively.

I think that I hear a vague but distant scream, but can’t be sure.

At the next table two men are discussing a war.  There’s always a war somewhere.  I hear the names Argentum and Corcyrus.  Not having my map with me, I have to recall it to mind.  I wonder if we really need to reconsider our route to Torvaldsland.  The original plan is to turn north west towards Samnium as soon as we are clear of the jungle’s edge, and thence to cross the Vosk river somewhere between Turmus and Victoria.  The problem with that is that we’d have to cross land controlled by Argentum, but potentially perhaps a war-zone.  I consider other alternatives.  Should we at the turning point, instead head north towards Torcadino, with the intention of crossing the Vosk somewhere near Ar’s Station.  I’ll check the map when I get back to the camp and discuss with Zork and Grunthon.

The men continue their conversation.

“I hear tell that Corcyrus is attempting an alliance with Torcadino by marrying the daughter of the Tatrix to one of the Torcadino princes.”

“Interesting move, but I doubt it’ll come off.”

Hmmm.  What to do for the best?  Which route to take?  This Argentum/Corcyrus war is inflaming the whole of the Central plains of Gor.

When I return to the forge, it’s to see Kiki kneeling, a new collar on her throat.  She’s rubbing one of her fingers and has signs of tears having chased down her cheeks.  I pay the man the agreed sum and head for the trading post that I’d seen when entering the town.

I purchase a sturdy shoulder pack and affix it to Kiki.  To it I add a considerable weight of chain and locks.  Kiki struggles to carry the pack, but eventually we return to our camp site.

 

We approach the city gate.  I push my handcart,  Grunthon carries a shoulder pack with his own belongings.  Kiki skips along behind me, Zork's leading chain in her hand.  Zork has chains from wrist to wrist and ankle to ankle, neither short enough to seriously restrict his movement, but loose enough for him to get out of them quickly.

A squad of armed men exit the gate and stand in postures of readiness.  The officer speaks.

“Halt!”

“Where are you lot going, then?”

“The ferry.  We wish to cross the river.  Also to purchase supplies for our onward journey.”

The officer pauses

“What on Gor, is that?!”

“Don’t know, Major…”

I don’t know enough about Gorean military ranks to know if I have got the right one, or even if I’m flattering the man by ‘promoting’ him.  He just looks important.

“… I found him snuffling around a village rubbish heap.  The villagers were terrified.  I enticed it way with a piece of meat.  Fortunately Grunthon here is a good enough hunter to keep it fed.  It didn’t even seem to mind when I put the chains on it; it somehow seemed fascinated by them.  It even dances a little.  I hope to train it to do so better.  There’s a showman I know who’ll pay me much gold for a dancing beast!”

Zork doesn’t know precisely what I’m saying as his translator is switched off and hidden.  He’s sufficiently intelligent to make a good guess at the gist of the conversation, though he’s deliberately not showing any interest in it, or signs of perception.  His acting, at least so far is perfect.

“I don’t believe you.  Show me.”

“Kiki, get the beast’s attention and start clapping,”

I hope that Zork gets the message.  Kiki jiggle’s Zork’s leash and starts a rhythm.  Zork rises and begins capering about, hopping from one leg to the other.  Kiki changes the beat and Zork changes his movements.

“Fine, I’m convinced.  Captain Ferris!”

“Yes, Sir!”

“Your troupe will escort this group to the ferry landing, spears at the ready.  They can buy their supplies on the Via Rivierre.  They are not to be allowed into the side streets.  You are not to let them out of your sight.  You stay with them until they are on the ferry and it has left the dock.  Anything suspicious happens kill them all.”

“Yes, Sir!”

I pray to the Priest Kings, that Zork doesn’t react when Captain Ferris’ men drop their spears into what could be considered an attacking posture.  Clearly they answer, for Zork does not.

We wander, or more particularly are marshalled down the main street of this small town.  Captain Ferris allows our party to stop at several market stalls as I bargain for the things we need.  Eventually we arrive at the landing stage as the ferry is docking.  I find the vendor of the ostrakon needed to board the ferry.  He drives a hard bargain insisting on charging the rate for a whole wagon, just for Zork.  I have little option but to let him.  We board the ferry, Zork lying down appearing to sleep.  Comatose, he takes up nearly as much room as a wagon.

An hour later we have disembarked the ferry and are departing the small community at that side of the river.  We head north-east, with the intention of swinging north-west in about a week, so as to bypass the jungle.

As soon as we find a copse we disencumber Zork of his chains, give him his clothes and translator back.  I think he is relieved.  He goes off with his axe to kill something, hopefully not someone.