The Zealots · Part 2 (2/2)
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Just then Erig walked up next to her and put a hand on her shoulder. The man turned pale and quickly turned his back and hunched over his drink. Erig noticed his reaction and smiled.
Erig and Mahoon bought beer at the bar and took it to a table that was out of earshot of the other patrons. Erig said, "I talked to Maro and he plans to leave here tomorrow if he can hire more guards. Elna knows all the local slave dealers and she agreed to guide us around today. She'll meet us here."
Mahoon looked over to the door. "Here she is now." She waved her arm, and Elna joined them at their table.
Erig asked, "Can we buy you a drink, Elna?"
"Maybe later. Let's get moving.
All of the dealers close up shop at sundown. But tell me, why do you two want to buy slaves?"
"We don't want slaves. Two days before we met you Arabella and I happened to meet the agent of a rich merchant who is searching for his two missing daughters. He gave us a description of the girls, and told us there's a nice reward if we can return them to their father, or even if we can prove they're dead. We want to visit the dealers to see if they have the girls, or if they've sold them."
Erig and Mahoon finished their beer and the three women left the tavern. Elna said, "We'll try Peticus first. He's the largest dealer in town, and he never asks any questions about where the merchandise comes from. Let me do the talking. He'd think it strange for you to be buying slaves and would gouge you. Nudge me if you see a slave that might be one of the missing girls."
They hadn't walked far when
Elna stopped at a house. Like all of the other residences in town it showed only bare whitewashed walls to the street. The only indication that this was not a private dwelling was a small picture of a woman in chains painted on the massive wooden door. Elna pounded on the door until a peephole opened.
The peephole closed and the door opened to reveal a burly man with a club and a whip attached to his belt.
Elna said, "Hail, Dino. I'd like to look over your stock. A brothel in Sar is trying to fill a special order and asked me to see what is available here in Pune. Is Peticus around?"
"Hail, Elna. Peticus is busy right now, but you can come in and see what we've got. Who are your friends?"
"This is Zana and this is
Arabella. They're guarding Maro's caravan."
Dino nodded and let them into the building. He locked the door. "You know where we keep the women.
Go and take a look. I've got to stay by the door."
Elna led the way to another door. The woman guarding it nodded to Elna and unbolted and opened the door. The three women entered an anteroom that fronted a large cell. Three of the cell's walls were made of stone, but the side facing the anteroom was a grillwork made of iron bars.
Erig and Mahoon looked closely at each of the women in the cell. Two young women were sitting on the floor near the back wall and having a quiet conversation. Their clothes were stained and torn and they had bruises on their arms and faces, but Erig recognized them. They were the missing students.
Erig shouted, "Ho!" When the women looked at her she pointed at them and commanded, "You two. Come over here."
The women got up and walked to the grillwork. Erig was surprised by their good condition. They weren't crying and they weren't catatonic, and they were moving normally. Erig asked, "Are you two the daughters of Azoz the merchant?"
The women reacted with startled expressions and one asked, "How do you know about Azoz."
"Azoz has offered a reward for your return."
Erig turned to Elna. "These seem to be the missing girls. Let's find Peticus and buy them."
Just then a man entered the anteroom. He was dressed in black clothing and had a black, pointed beard flecked with gray. He strode over to Elna, enveloped her in a hug and exclaimed, "Elna, my beloved! Dino told me you were here. Does this mean you've quit
Maro and will live with me? We can play some amusing games."
Elna pried herself out of his grip. "No, Peticus. I'm here for business only. Besides, I've heard about your games. Sometimes your playmate ends up on the other side of those bars."
"Just in fun. I've never actually sold anyone. I certainly wouldn't let you go."
"That's something else I'd be concerned about. But on to business." She pointed at the students. "A brothel in Sar asked me to look for girls of this type. How much do you want for those two?"
"They do look exotic, and they're very valuable." Peticus named a price.
Elna scoffed, "Exotic? They look beat up to me." She countered with an offer less than half the price
Peticus had quoted.
The bargaining continued for some minutes until Peticus finally said, "Sold! Ah, Elna. If all of my customers bargained like you I'd be bankrupt in a month."
"I bet." She turned to Erig, who handed her a heavy leather pouch. She removed some gold coins and gave them to Peticus, who used a key from a ring on his belt to open the cell door. He beckoned to the students, and when they had left the cell Peticus locked the door. He used some thin rope to tie the girls' hands behind their backs.
"This will hold them for now, but if you want collars or shackles riveted on my smithy is available for a nominal fee."
"Not right now, thanks. We've got to go."
Erig held one student by the arm and Mahoon held the other, and they followed Elna and Peticus to the entrance hall. Peticus gave Elna one more hug, and then they were on the street and walking back to the inn.
When they reached the inn
Erig gave Elna a gold coin. "Thank you for your help. The coin is your commission for handling the purchase. When we get the reward we'll give you a share."
"Thank you. You're very generous."
"You know how it is with mercenaries. Spend it if you've got it. We don't have to save for our old age."
Elna went into the tavern and Erig and Mahoon took the students to their room. Once inside, one of the girls asked, "Who are you and how do you know about Azoz?"
"I'm Lieutenant Pami Erig and this is Junior Lieutenant Swamka Mahoon, Star Fleet Survey Service.
Who are you?"
"I'm Mayi Onona and this is Yoki Zukia. What are you doing here?"
Erig was puzzled by the question.
Maybe this girl had been addled by her ordeal. "Your university reported that you were missing and we were detailed to find you. We questioned the bandits who captured you and we know what you experienced, but you seem to be in very good condition, all things considered. Do either of you need immediate medical or psychological assistance?"
Yoki answered, "Except for some bruises we're fine. We expected to be raped, so before we came to this planet we got neuro-psychological conditioning that would make us enjoy rough sex."
Mayi elaborated, "The reason the bandits sold us was that they were embarrassed that they couldn't keep us satisfied."
While they were talking Mahoon had untied the students. Erig said, "I'll call and arrange for a shuttle to pick us up. We can't leave Pune until the gates open in the morning, so it'll be tomorrow night before we can get back to the ship."
Yoki said, "We won't go back to the ship." Mayi nodded her agreement.
"What! Why not?"
Mayi stated, "Slavery is evil, and we've decided to stamp it out, starting with the Sarex Empire."
Erig was puzzled by Mayi's statement. "Slavery is evil all right, but it is also present in every primitive culture. It never really disappears until it becomes uneconomic, and that requires industrial development. What makes you two think that you can change that?"
"We have developed a theory that will guide us. The details are far beyond your powers of comprehension, but we will do it by working from within. When you took us away from the slave dealer you set back our program."
Mahoon said to Erig, "This sounds crazy to me. Can you make any sense out of it?"
"No, but I don't have to.
I'm going to buck this up the line and let the Captain decide what to do."
Erig activated her communicator and when Captain Goda was listening she said, "We found the students, Captain, but the twits are refusing to return to the ship. They say they have a plan to eliminate slavery and they want to start implementing it by becoming slaves themselves. What do you want us to do?"
Even over the communicator they could hear the Captain groan. "I wish we got the easy ones. I'll check with the admiralty and Azoz University and see what they say. Stand by until I call you."
Erig made another attempt to convince the students that their plan was lunacy. "You two are young enough and pretty enough to be sold as concubines or to a brothel, but even that can be dangerous. Suppose you are bought by somebody who enjoys torturing women? Or somebody who will chain you to the bed and keep you there? Don't you understand that as slaves you can't do as you wish?"
"Our theory takes all of that into consideration. Nothing can go wrong."
After that statement there was nothing more Erig could say. There was a strained silence until the
Captain called.
Everyone could hear the disbelief in Captain Goda's voice as she said, "The university backs up the students.
It isn't their theory, it was developed by the whole xenopsychology department, and the girls are just the zealots who volunteered to implement it. The admiralty says to give the university what it wants."
Erig asked, "What are our specific orders, Captain?"
"Take the girls to Sar and sell them."
Erig said to Mahoon, "Well, you heard the order. You take the twits to the slave pen, and I'll see if we can hire on with Maro's caravan." Erig finished tying a student's hands behind her back. She was pissed, and the girl winced as Erig cinched the cords.
When Mahoon returned to the room she found that Erig was already there. Erig was standing naked in a basin and giving herself a sponge bath. Mahoon had stripped down to her shift. "I supposed you noticed that there is just the one bed."
"Yep."
"I don't want to sleep on the floor."
"Me neither."
"I suppose we can share, but remember that I'm not bi."
"Of course you're not."
Mahoon removed her shift and got into bed. She looked over Erig's naked body. "You've got an impressive collection of scars. Is that deep one on your butt where you were branded?
It must have hurt."
"Yes, but you can kiss it and make it better." Erig snuffed the candles and slid into bed in the dark.
The next morning Maro's caravan left the city soon after the gate opened. There were now six guards in addition to Erig and Mahoon, so Erig felt secure enough to walk with Elna behind the first wagon.
Elna indicated Yoki and Mayi, who were connected to the end of the slave chain by a rope around their necks. "So they weren't the merchant's daughters after all?"
"No, they were maids in the merchant's household for a while and knew something about it, but when
I asked the identifying questions they didn't know the answers."
"So you're going to sell them in Sar?"
"Yes. I can probably make a profit, thanks to the way you bargained with Peticus." Erig pointed at
Yoki. "Why did you tie her hands behind her back?"
"I told her not to touch the neck rope, but she grabbed it anyway. I'll leave her like that until we stop at noon, unless you want me to untie her sooner."
"No, leave her like that.
I noticed that neither one of them seems to understand what it means to be a slave. Watch them closely, and if they give you any excuse at all use your whip. Better that they learn from you instead of from somebody brutal."
As the caravan got closer to Sar the road got better, and there were no more incidents. They stopped for the night at a campground near the river. A herd of cattle was grazing nearby, and the drovers had already set up their camp, but there was plenty of space left for the caravan.
Erig made a tour of the camp just after sunset. The six chained slaves were huddled together under the first wagon, but Yoki and Mayi weren't with them. She walked over to the second wagon and met Elna. Erig asked, "Where are the other two slaves?"
Elna pointed under the second wagon. Yoki and Mayi were lying on their backs, with their arms spread above their heads and their wrists tied to wheel spokes. Yoki was tied to a front wheel and Mayi was tied to a back wheel. "I can't have them with the other slaves because they're not chained. They won't be comfortable, but it's only for tonight."
As soon as it was completely dark the men of the caravan started to crawl under the second wagon. The cries of passion attracted the drovers, and they joined the crowd. After several hours of this Erig got tired of the noise. She went over to the wagon and announced, "The brothel is closed. All of you clear out."
One of the drovers growled, "Oh, yeah? What if I don't want to?" He moved to challenge Erig, but two of the wagon drivers stopped him. One driver whispered something to him, and he abruptly turned and left. Some of the the others grumbled, but no one else dared to defy her order.
Yoki loudly complained, "Don't make them go. We were having fun." Mayi echoed the complaint at greater length and louder volume.
Erig threated, "You two shut up or I'll gag you until morning."
They knew that she would do it, so they shut up. Neither wanted to be more uncomfortable than she already was.
The next afternoon the caravan reached Sar. Maro's establishment was close to the gate, so it took less than an hour to reach it, even though the streets were crowded. As soon as the caravan entered the courtyard it was disbanded. The drivers stopped the wagons under a roof extending from a large warehouse and unyoked the oxen and led them away. Laborers brought hand trucks and started wheeling the barrels of wine into the warehouse. Elna took the slaves to the pen.
Erig, Mahoon, and the other guards went to Maro's office. He was still suffering from his wound, but he looked much more cheerful now that he had safely returned home. He paid the guards their wages and they left. He took a heavy leather purse from his strongbox and gave it to Erig. "Here is your pay and the reward I promised you. You also have my thanks and my gratitude. We would all be dead if not for you two. Up to now I have hired new guards for each journey, but maybe it would be better if I had a permanent force. Would you accept such employment?"
Erig replied, "Thank you for the reward and for the offer, but it is not for us. We are warriors, and we would grow stale while we were not on the road."
"I expected you might feel that way. Then I must say farewell, and may fortune bless you."
"Farewell to you, Maro, and may you prosper."
They left the office and found Elna waiting in the courtyard with Yoki and Mayi. They were still roped together at the neck, and Elna had also tied their wrists and elbows.
Erig engaged Elna in conversation while Mahoon took the rope and led the students away from them.
Mahoon whispered in Galactic, "This is your last chance. You know now what slavery can mean. Do you want to return with us to the ship?"
The students looked at each other, and then Mayi said, "We know what we are doing. We are determined to demonstrate the validity of our theory by eliminating slavery in the empire."
Mahoon held out a communicator disguised as a religious medallion. "At least take this, so you can call for help if you need it."
Yoki shook her head. "No, we don't want it. We'll return to the university outpost when we're no longer slaves."
Mahoon frowned and shook her head. Erig saw this and said to Elna, "I feel sorry for these girls.
It would be best for them if we could sell them to a brothel. You know the city. Could you help us find a place that would buy them?"
"My cousin owns one of the best brothels in Sar. After I tell him what I witnessed at our camp last night I'm sure he'll pay top price for these girls."
"Arabella and I want to be out of the city before the gates close. Take the girls to your cousin and sell them. Hold the money for us until the next time we're in Sar. If you don't see us in a year you can keep it."
Erig and Mahoon shouldered their packs and prepared to leave. Elna said, "Farewell, Warriors. May your deaths be glorious."
"Farewell, Warrior. May you prosper."
Erig and Mahoon left the city and walked down the road to Pune with the setting sun at their backs.
Mahoon shook her head. "Those naive children. A year from now they'll probably be dead."
"Yeah. Those professors at the university are scum, to take advantage of the girls' idealism and zeal just to test their crackpot theory. I'd like to have Zana and Arabella pay them a visit."
Epilogue
Three years later the world of xenoanthropology was stunned by the news of the slave revolt in the
Sarex Empire. This was not the first slave uprising, but the previous revolts had been spontaneous, disorganized, and easily crushed. This one was meticulously planned and highly organized, and it was more like a coup d'etat than a revolt. The Empire was overthrown and a Republic was established. One of the most unusual features of the new Republic was that it was led by two co-consuls, both of whom were young women.
I welcome your comments.
The Zealots · Part 2 (2/2)
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