“You may groom all the beasts you wish,” he said.
“I must also please men,” I said.
“Doubtless,” he said.
“Master does not seem pleased,” I said.
“I dislike the naked feast of you in the arms of others,” he said.
“Master does not own me,” I said.
He made an angry noise, which pleased me, though I attempted to conceal my pleasure.
“Who owns you?” he asked.
“I no longer know,” I said.
“Legally,” he said, “you must belong to the Lady Bina.”
“I do not know,” I said.
“Master,” I said.
“Yes,” he said.
“The beast who attended on the Lady Bina, he in which you seemed to be interested,” I said, “is here, imprisoned.”
“I had not seen him,” said Desmond. “He is not one of them, then?”
“No,” I said. “Far from it. He was ignorant of this place. As nearly as I can determine, he is opposed to their projects, whatever they may be.”
“They have to do with worlds,” said Desmond.
“How does Master know these things?” I asked.
“Curiosity-,” he said.
“Surely Master does not think we cease to be women when we are collared.”
“No,” he said. “I think that is when you begin to be women.”
“Perhaps Master will one day speak to a slave,” I said.
“Perhaps,” he said.
“I think you would find the imprisoned beast,” I said, “is your ally.”
“How so,” he said.
“He is reluctant to abet the projects of this place,” I said.
“There are many beasts,” he said. “What is one more, or less?”
“He may have influence in a far place, an important place,” I said, “one from which support would be solicited.”
“I see,” said Master Desmond.
“And it is hoped he will solicit this support.”
“And he declines?”
“As of now,” I said.
“Of now?”
“I think they hope to secure his collaboration by means of the Lady Bina,” I said, “one supposes either by means of her influence upon him, or by means of her jeopardy.”
“They would threaten her?”
“I think he would do anything to protect her,” I said.
“Why?” he asked.
“How could a slave know?” I said. “He is a mere beast.”
“The key then,” he said, “is the Lady Bina.”
“I am sure the beasts flatter her, and enflame her ambitions.”
“She thinks she would be the Ubara of the planet?” he asked. He must have recalled such remarks from the journey.
“The prisoner, Lord Grendel,” I said, “perhaps better apprised than we of possible Kur power, thinks that would be within the realm of possibility, but would not be likely to take place. He thinks, rather, following a Kur victory, after which she would no longer be needed, she would be enslaved or eaten.”
“I see,” he said.
“Perhaps it is the Kur way,” I said. I thought of Lord Grendel’s speculation with respect to the likely fate of Tiresias.
“She must be informed,” he said.
“I do not think she would believe the informant,” I said, “especially if it were the prisoner, Lord Grendel, whom she suspects would wish, for personal reasons, for selfish reasons, to deny her such an exaltation, such station, and grandeur. She might well suppose him jealous of such fortune, and that he would prefer to keep things as they were before, to keep her in modest circumstances, and to keep her muchly dependent upon him.”
“If she would not believe the prisoner, who is Kur, and known to her, who would she believe?” he asked.
“I do not think anyone,” I said.
“Where is the Lady Bina?” he asked.
“Somewhere here, in this place, I would suppose,” I said, “but I know not where.”
“The complex is large,” he said.
“Many areas,” I said, “are closed to us, and many even to lesser beasts.”
“I have not seen Astrinax,” he said.
“He may be with the Lady Bina,” I said.
“Occasionally I see Lykos, Trachinos, Akesinos,” he said, “but muchly we are apart from one another.”
“Even so,” I said, “you must know more than I.”
“I doubt that,” he said. “In some respects kajirae come and go more freely than free persons. They may be less noted, and are likely to arouse fewer suspicions.”
“As pet sleen, wandering about,” I said.
“Precisely,” he said.
“I see,” I said.
“Certainly the beasts notice them scarcely at all,” he said.
“That is true,” I said. Certainly he must be aware that men often took note of kajirae. This was particularly the case in the feast halls, the guard stations, the gaming rooms, their quarters, when we were cleaning them, and so on. At certain Ahn walking down certain corridors, as when carrying provender to the guards at the outer gate, given the accostings, hootings, stolen kisses, playful slaps, and such, it could be something of a gauntlet. To be sure, such things remind a woman of her interest to masters. Sometimes a fellow’s superiors would permit him to write with a grease pencil on a girl’s thigh something like, “Tonight I belong to Leucippus,” to whom that night the girl would report, to give him pleasure, of the sort expected from a woman who was no more than a slave.
“Who is Agamemnon?” he asked. “I have heard this name.”
“I do not know,” I said. “This place is named for him.”
“Have you seen him?”
“I do not think so,” I said. “I have seen high Kurii, whose translators are on golden chains, such as Lucius, Timarchos, and Lysymachos, and several silver-chain Kurii, and a great many iron-chain Kurii, but, as far as I know, I have not seen a Kur named Agamemnon.”
“He may not be here,” said Desmond.
“There was a revolution on a far world,” I said. “He may have perished there. These Kurii may be the remnants of a force which was once his, one still loyal to a politics, or a memory,”
“I see,” he said.
“I think the golden-chain Kur, Lucius, is first here,” I said.
“Perhaps,” he said.
“It is late,” I said. “I must report back to the slave quarters. It is nearly locking time.”
“Then you are caged?” he said.
He looked at me as though he did not disapprove of that.
“We all are,” I said, “even our first girl, Nora, though she is the last caged and the first released.”
“Who does this?” he asked.
“A Kur,” I said. “We are Kur girls. I am told our collars make this clear.”
“Are the cages large?” he asked.
