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. And once within the trunk, it then closed again, she could, ofcourse, her hands being free enough in the sirik to accomplish this, undo thestraps, and conceal them in the flooring of the trunk, in a slot prepared forthe purpose. Then it was not magic? he said. That depends on what you mean by magic, I said. You know what I mean, he said, somewhat disagreeably. No, I said. It was not magic. But it could have been magic, he said. What do you mean? I asked.Magicians of Gor Even those these wonders could have been accomplished so easily be meretrickery, that does not prove they were! No, I said. I suppose not. The same effect might have quite different causes, he said, for example, inthese cases, having been achieved either by mere charlatanry or by genuinemagic. I have seen the equipment, I said.I had, in one of the wagons of theponderous fellow several months ago.IPage 184 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlhad even diddled about with it, for my own amusement. But that does not prove it was used! said Marcus. I suppose not, I said. I suppose that these effects, so easily wrought by askilled fellow, who knows how to bring them about, might actually, in thesecases, have been produced not by familiar trickery but by the application ofuncanny and marvelous powers. Certainly, said Marcus. Would you believe the fellow if he showed you how he did it? I asked. He might show me how it could be done, but not how he actually did it, saidMarcus. He might lie to me, to conceal from me his possession of mysteriouspowers. Well, I said, I never thought about that. I never had. I guess you reright, I said.Marcus walked on beside me for a way.Then suddenly he burst our, angrily, The charlatan, the fraud! Are you angry? I asked. They are only tricks! he said. Good tricks, I said. But only tricks! I don t think he ever claimed they weren t, I said. He should be boiled in oil! cried Marcus. To me that seems somewhat severe, I said. Tricks! said Marcus.(pg.270) I suppose you now respect them the less, I said. Charlatanry! he murmured. Trickery! Fraud! I think that I myself, I said, apparently responding to this sort of thingrather differently from yourself, admire them the more as I understand howingenious and wonderful they are, as tricks.I think I should be awedMagicians of Gor by them, but would not find so much to admire in them, if Ithought they were merely the manifestations of unusual powers, as, forexample, the capacity to turn folks into turtles or something. Perhaps, he said. Certainly, I said. I would not wish to be a turtle, he said. So let us trust, I said, that folks do not abound who can wreak suchwonders. True, he said. Similarly, I said, if there were such a thing as real magic in yoursense, whatever that might be, the world would presumably be much differentthan it is. There might be a great many more turtles, he said. Quite possibly, I said.I did not doubt, of course, from what I knew of them, that the science ofPriest-Kings was such that many unusual effects could be achieved.And,indeed, I did not doubt but what many such were well within the scope of theseveral sciences of the Kurii, as well.But these effects, of course, wererationally explicable, at least to those with the pertinent techniques andknowledge at their disposal, effects which were the fruits of unusual sciencesand technologies.I did not think that Marcus needed to know about suchthings.How inexplicable and marvelous to a savage might appear a match, ahandful of beads, a mirror, a stick of candy, a tennis ball. The slave was not in Anango! he cried. No, I said. I would not think so. But she said so, or let it be thought! he said. She is thus a lying slaveand should be punished.Let her be whipped to the bone! Oh, come now, I said. She is playing her part in the show, in theentertainment.She is enjoying herself, along with everyone else.And she is aslave.What do you expect her to say? To tell the truth, and spoil the show,Page 185 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlor perhaps have her master flogged? Do you not think such ill-thought-outintrepidity would swiftly bring her luscious hide into contact with the suppleswitch? Yes, he said. It is the master who is to blame. I do hope you get on with him, I said.(pg.271) What? he cried. Yes, I said, and, indeed, I would even recommend that you be nice to him. Why? asked Marcus. Because, I said, it is he who is going to obtain for you the Home Stone ofAr s Station. Magicians of GorCHAPTER 18OUT WALLETS ARE IN ORDER Here we are, I said.We had been walking about for some time after the show, even past the time ofcurfew the constraints of which, because of our affixed armbands, as auxiliaryguardsmen, we had not the least difficulty in circumventing.Challenged, we challenged back.Questioned, we questioned.And if ourchallenges and questions were satisfactorily met, we would proceed further,first volunteering, of course, in deference to alternative authority, our ownnames and missions in turn.If notes were to be later compared at someheadquarters, as I did not expect they would be, some officers might have beenastonished to learn how many sets of auxiliary guardsmen and diverse missionshad been afoot that night. This is the insula, I said, at which resides the great Renato and his troupe. The magician? said Marcus. Yes, I said.I had made inquiries into this matter prior to leaving thetheater, Marcus waiting outside for me, pondering the wonders he was convincedhe had beheld within
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