The Measure of a Bondmaid
There are many images that come to mind when one speaks of Gor. Warriors in scarlet, high-walled cities of stone, the heat of the Tahari, the intrigue of the marketplaces. But in the north, among the furs and the cold winds, there is another image entirely. The bondmaid. A bondmaid is not simply a slave who happens to live in the north. She is a creature shaped by that environment, defined by it, and made vibrant within it. She rises early and labors long. She tends the verr, churns the butter, carries water, cooks, bakes, serves at feasts, and keeps the rhythm of the household moving forward. Her work is not light, nor is it optional. At night, she is shared among the men of the hall, another extension of her place within the structure of that world. She does not belong to one man alone in the way that many outside the north might imagine. Within the hold, every man stands as master to her. Each is, in truth, “my Jarl.” We see this reflected even in the books. A bondmaid, touched by a...
