Dance w/ finger cymbals.. Dance for her Captor..

Dance with Finger Cymbals and Music

Talena retired behind the silk partition, and I built up the fire in the center of the tent, not wishing to retire as yet. I could not forget the figure on the throne, he of the black helmet, and I thought perhaps that he had noticed me and had reacted. It had been, perhaps my imagination. I sat on the tent carpet, poking at the small fire in the cooking hole. I could hear from a tent nearby the sound of a flute, some soft drums, and the rhythmic jangle of some tiny cymbals.
As I mused, Talena stepped forth from behind the silk curtain. I had thought she had retired. Instead, she stood before me in the diaphanous, scarlet dancing silks of Gor. She had rouged her lips. My head swam at the sudden intoxicating scent of a wild perfume. Her olive ankles bore dancing bangles with tiny bells. Attached to the thumb and index finger of each hand were tiny finger cymbals. She bent her knees ever so slightly and raised her arms gracefully above her head. There was a sudden bright clash of the finger cymbals, and to the music of the nearby tent, Talena, daughter of the Ubar of Ar, began to dance for me.
As she moved slowly before me, she asked softly, "Do I please you, Master?" There had been no scorn, no irony in her voice.
"Yes," I said, not thinking to repudiate the title by which she had addressed me.
She paused for a moment and walked lightly to the side of the tent. She seemed to hesitate for an instant, then quickly gathered up the slave whip and a leading chain. She placed them firmly in my hands and knelt on the tent carpet before me, her eyes filled with a strange light, her knees not in the position of Tower Slave but of a Pleasure Slave.
"If you wish," she said, "I will dance the Whip Dance for you, or the Chain Dance."
I threw the whip and chain to the wall of the tent. "No," I said angrily. I would not have Talena dance those cruel dances of Gor, which so humbled a woman.
Tarnsman of Gor, pages 134-135


Dancing for her Captor

Then, to the festive music of flutes and drums, the girl kneels. The young man approaches her, bearing a slave collar, its engraving proclaiming his name and city. The music grows more intense, mounting to an overpowering barbaric crescendo, which stops suddenly, abruptly. The room is silent, absolutely silent, except for the decisive click of the collar lock. It is a sound the girl will never forget.
As soon as the lock closes, there is a great shout, congratulating, saluting the young man. He returns to his place among the tables that line the low-ceilinged chamber, hung with glowing brass lamps. He sits in the midst of his family, his closest well-wishers, his sword comrades, cross-legged on the floor in the Gorean fashion behind the long, low wooden table, laden with food, which stands at the head of the room.
Now all eyes are on the girl.
The restraining slave bracelets are removed. She rises. Her feet are bare on the thick, ornately wrought rug that carpets the chamber. There is a slight sound from the bells strapped to her ankles. She is angry, defiant. Though she is clad only in the almost transparent scarlet dancing silks of Gor, her back straight, her head high. She is determined not to be tamed, not to submit, and her proud carriage bespeaks this fact. The spectators seem amused. She glares at them. Angrily she looks from face to face. There is no one she knows, or could know, because she has been taken from a hostile city, she is a woman of the enemy. Fists clenched, she stands in the center of the room, alone, all eyes upon her, beautiful in the light of the hanging lamps.
She faces the young man, wearing his collar.
"You will never tame me!" she cries
Her outburst provokes laughter, sceptical observations, some good -natured hooting.
"I will tame you at my pleasure," replies the young man and signals to the musicians.
The music begins again. Perhaps the girl hesitates. There is a slave whip on the wall. Then, to the barbaric intoxicating music of the flute and drums, she dances for her captor, the bells on her ankles marking each of her movements, the movements of a girl stolen from her home, who must now live to please the bold stranger whose binding fibre she had felt, whose collar she wore.
At the end of her dance, she is given a cup of wine, but she may not drink. She approaches the young man and kneels before him, her knees in the dictated position of the Pleasure slaves, and, head down she proffers the wine to him. He drinks. There is another general shout of commendation and well wishing, and the feasts begin, for none before the young man may touch food on such occasions. From that moment on, the young man's sisters never again serve him, for that is the girl's task. She is his slave.
Outlaw of Gor, pages 52-53


Dances Mentioned in the Books But Not Described

Brand dance: This is a dance that is mentioned in the books but is never described. From its name, we can speculate that it is a story dance about a girl being branded. The beginning phases of the dance may concern the girl's fears about being branded. The middle phases will depict the actual branding and the latter phases will show the girl accepting and admiring her new brand.
Hate/Rebellion dances: These dances are not described much though it is obvious they are meant to show certain emotions. They allow a girl to show hatred and rebellion toward their master but that is not how they will end. Each of these dances concludes with the ultimate surrender of the girl to her Master as his love slave. Like the command, "show rebellion," these can be cruel dances to make a girl dance.
Mat dance: This is another dance that is not described much in the books. It is performed on a slave mat and consists of many floor movements.

Dances Specific to Cities or Cultures
Dance of the Tuchuk Slave Girl: This dance is done by the slave girls of the Tuchuks, a tribe of the Wagon Peoples. Little description of this dance is given unfortunately. Most of these dances are performed at night, openly by firelight.
Landa dance: On the island of Ianda, located north of Anango and close to the shore, girls learn how to dance using their hands and beads to form certain figures which have symbolic meaning. Some of these figures include a free woman, whip, yielding collared slave, thieving slave, terrified girl summoned before her master, girl meeting one with the plague, obedience and joy. It would be similar in some ways to the sign language of the Red Savages though beads are also used in this dance. Few girls outside of Ianda would know this form of dance.

Rence Girl dances: The Rencer Caste lives in the swamps and marshes of the Vosk Delta. The dances of rence girls are unique on Gor. There is some savagery in their dances but also stately and stylized aspects. There are movements reminiscent of the casting of nets, poling of marsh craft, weaving rence or hunting gants. But, their dances all eventually become the dances of women who desire men. Even the shiest of girls will become quite wanton. In the Rencer community, it signals the end of childhood when a girl first dances. The dances are usually done in a circle at their occasional festivals. Only single women are permitted to dance and after the dance, they will pair off with the single men.
Girls either volunteer or are put by Men into a circle.
One girl starts pounding on the rence mats with her heel.
She raises her hands over her head. All the other girls join in, pounding and dancing. They begin to writhe in ecstacy.
When a girl tires, she leaves the circle. A Man follows and lightly throws His rence net over her.
He leads her away.
This happens till all the girls have left the circleRaiders, pg 45