Economies of the Flesh

There are sure signs that a woman knows herself fully and truly slave. One certain way is if she asks, aloud or to herself, 'What am I worth?' Not simply 'What am I worth?' in some intangible, existential, emotional type of way. 'What am I worth?' in simple matters of coin. Is she a free woman disrobing before a mirror, wondering if she is shapely enough, exciting enough to illicit bids based on her appearance and mien, not simply due her status? Is she a slave that watches the negotiation of price on another girl and finds she cannot help but wonder 'What am I worth?' Women cannot help but to compare themselves to one another, though they cannot possibly gauge an accurate value of themselves based solely upon their level of loveliness relative to their peers.

It is true that certain markets value certain types more than others and, similarly, look for different aptitudes and talents. A girl fitting a certain type, obviously, will be worth a bit more if she meets a fellow's criterion. Some fellows are not looking for anything more than a type and care little, if anything, about who the girl 'is.' Who she 'is' will become a product of his will in time regardless.

I think that the city of Ar is ideally suited to gauge an approximate average worth for a variety of girl types. Not only does it contain several of the largest slaving houses on the planet and the most respected institution of the craft and Caste, The Curulean, it is situated in the very cradle of the continent. No 'type' is truly unknown here. You can fetch a Thentian blonde with blue eyes and shapely legs or a tanned and darkly maned girl of Turia with fair ease. A black girl from the rainforests or the south Thassan archipelago is a bit more difficult to find, but not unknown. Cuddly sluts courtesy of the Sons of Torvald can be purchased here and so will girls of a dozen Tahari kasbahs. All of this is simply to say, while that black girl might fetch a high price in Hunjer simply for the rarity of her type just as the cuddly, blonde bond maiden on a Jarl's chain will fascinate most dwellers of Tor, what they are really worth, on a world scale, is most accurately discerned on the blocks of Ar.

Personally, I have owned several types of girls. Most of them were purchased or acquired in the City of Ar. I have had opportunities, of course, in my travels to collect a pretty thing or two that piqued my interest on the road, but I have rarely done so. The bouquet at home, so to speak, is full enough, and varied enough, that one may pluck what one wants within a short walk of his own front door. That is not to say that a souvenir from a journey, now and again, is not a pleasant thing. That is just to say that it is an indulgence, not a necessity. And the prices at home, due the quantity and quality of the stock, are far more regulated. Also, it is simpler to negotiate a return or an exchange of merchandise with a Slaver that lives 'next door' rather than 500 pasangs or more down the road.

It is simply a matter of knowing the value of women.