BRANDING

The Iron Master secures the slave in the branding rack (shaped rather like an X-shaped table, using snap-bracelets (manacles) for her wrists and ankles at the ends of the X. A removable vise-like clamp fitted with spinning twist handles to adjust the tension can be attached to the left leg platform, holding the slave's left thigh motionless during the actual branding. The Iron Master holds up the heated branding iron, white-hot, for the slave to see and says, "You will soon be branded, slave." When the brand is ready, He holds it above her left thigh and says, "You are now to be branded, slave." He then brands the slave, pressing it firmly into her skin for five full ihn (seconds), then swiftly and cleanly removing it. He examines the mark closely, ensuring that it was clean and deep enough to create an excellent brand. It is common Gorean practice to allow the slave the luxury of screaming, since it is in effect her final act as a free person. Sometimes assistants are standing by with small vials of oil and salve, which they then dab onto the brand to reduce chance of infection and promote faster healing. The Iron Master frees the slave from the rack.