weight of the trident and turn the blows of other tridents, especially in the spring buffetings, attendant upon which follows mate selection.
"I shall accept," said Samos, "that the artist is sincere, that he believes himself to be telling the truth."
"That much is undeniable," said Kog.
"But the whole thing may be only the faithful report of a vision or dream."
"The portion of the skin pertinent to the dream, or vision," said Kog, "is clearly distinguished from the portion of the skin which purports to be concerned with real events. Further, we find little reason to believe that the artist could have been, or would have been, mistaken about the nature of those events, at least in their broad outlines."
"The dark guest may not be Zarendargar," said Samos. "The resemblance may be only a coincidence."
"We do not find that a likely possibility," said Kog. "The distances and the times, and the dating of this skin, the details of the representation, all these things, suggest that it is Zarendargar. Similarly fellows of our species, or their descendants, lapsed into barbarism, seldom roam the Barrens. There is too little cover and the heat in the summer is too severe."
"The story on the hide takes place in the winter," said Samos.
"That is true," said Kog, "but game, in the Barrens, is scarce in the winter. Too, the land is too open, and tracks are difficult to conceal. Our people prefer wintering in forested or mountainous areas."
"They will normally seek out such areas," I said.
"Yes," said Kog.
"It is your assumption, then," I said, "that Zarendargar is in hiding."
"Yes," said Kog, "in the unlikely and dangerous terrain of the Barrens."
"He knows that he will be sought?" I asked.
"Yes," said Kog. "He knows that he has failed."
I recalled the destruction of the vast supply complex in the Gorean arctic.
"I met Zarendargar," I said. "It does not seem to me likely that he would be hiding."
"How then would you explain his presence in the Barrens?" inquired Kog.
"I cannot," I said.
"We have searched for him for two years," said Kog. "This hide is our first clue."
"How did you come by this hide?" I asked.
"It was received in trade," said Kog. "It came, eventually, to the attention of one of our agents. Thence it was transported to the steel worlds."
"It does not seem the sort of thing with which the artist would willingly part," I said.
"Quite possibly not," said Kog.
I shuddered. The artist, doubtless, had been slain, his body left stripped and mutilated in the customary manner of the red savages. The object, then, through trade channels, would have come, I supposed, to one of the high cities, perhaps Thentis, the nearest of the large cities to the Barrens.
"We seek Zarendargar," said Kog. "We are his appointed executioners."
Yet there was something puzzling to me in these matters. I could not fully understand what it was. For one thing, I doubted that Zarendargar was in hiding. Yet, otherwise, I could not explain his presence in the Barrens. Too, I was not fully confident that the artist was dead. He impressed me as a competent and resourceful warrior. The skin, on the other hand, had apparently been traded. I was troubled by these things. I did not understand them.
"His crime was failure?" I asked.
"It is not tolerated on the steel worlds," said Kog, "not in one who is above the rings."
"Doubtless he received a fair trial," I said.
"Judgment was pronounced in accord with the statutes of the steel worlds," said Kog, "by the high council, composed of seventy-two members elected from among the representatives of the thousand cliffs."
"The same council was both judge and jury?" I asked.
"Yes," said Kog, "as is the case in many of your own cities."
"Zarendargar was not present at this trial," I said.
"If the presence of the criminal were required," said Kog, "it would make it impossible, in many cases, to pass judgment."
"That is true," I said.
"A limitation on judicial proceedings of such a sort would
"I shall accept," said Samos, "that the artist is sincere, that he believes himself to be telling the truth."
"That much is undeniable," said Kog.
"But the whole thing may be only the faithful report of a vision or dream."
"The portion of the skin pertinent to the dream, or vision," said Kog, "is clearly distinguished from the portion of the skin which purports to be concerned with real events. Further, we find little reason to believe that the artist could have been, or would have been, mistaken about the nature of those events, at least in their broad outlines."
"The dark guest may not be Zarendargar," said Samos. "The resemblance may be only a coincidence."
"We do not find that a likely possibility," said Kog. "The distances and the times, and the dating of this skin, the details of the representation, all these things, suggest that it is Zarendargar. Similarly fellows of our species, or their descendants, lapsed into barbarism, seldom roam the Barrens. There is too little cover and the heat in the summer is too severe."
"The story on the hide takes place in the winter," said Samos.
"That is true," said Kog, "but game, in the Barrens, is scarce in the winter. Too, the land is too open, and tracks are difficult to conceal. Our people prefer wintering in forested or mountainous areas."
"They will normally seek out such areas," I said.
"Yes," said Kog.
"It is your assumption, then," I said, "that Zarendargar is in hiding."
"Yes," said Kog, "in the unlikely and dangerous terrain of the Barrens."
"He knows that he will be sought?" I asked.
"Yes," said Kog. "He knows that he has failed."
I recalled the destruction of the vast supply complex in the Gorean arctic.
"I met Zarendargar," I said. "It does not seem to me likely that he would be hiding."
"How then would you explain his presence in the Barrens?" inquired Kog.
"I cannot," I said.
"We have searched for him for two years," said Kog. "This hide is our first clue."
"How did you come by this hide?" I asked.
"It was received in trade," said Kog. "It came, eventually, to the attention of one of our agents. Thence it was transported to the steel worlds."
"It does not seem the sort of thing with which the artist would willingly part," I said.
"Quite possibly not," said Kog.
I shuddered. The artist, doubtless, had been slain, his body left stripped and mutilated in the customary manner of the red savages. The object, then, through trade channels, would have come, I supposed, to one of the high cities, perhaps Thentis, the nearest of the large cities to the Barrens.
"We seek Zarendargar," said Kog. "We are his appointed executioners."
Yet there was something puzzling to me in these matters. I could not fully understand what it was. For one thing, I doubted that Zarendargar was in hiding. Yet, otherwise, I could not explain his presence in the Barrens. Too, I was not fully confident that the artist was dead. He impressed me as a competent and resourceful warrior. The skin, on the other hand, had apparently been traded. I was troubled by these things. I did not understand them.
"His crime was failure?" I asked.
"It is not tolerated on the steel worlds," said Kog, "not in one who is above the rings."
"Doubtless he received a fair trial," I said.
"Judgment was pronounced in accord with the statutes of the steel worlds," said Kog, "by the high council, composed of seventy-two members elected from among the representatives of the thousand cliffs."
"The same council was both judge and jury?" I asked.
"Yes," said Kog, "as is the case in many of your own cities."
"Zarendargar was not present at this trial," I said.
"If the presence of the criminal were required," said Kog, "it would make it impossible, in many cases, to pass judgment."
"That is true," I said.
"A limitation on judicial proceedings of such a sort would
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