Sarkoja, Gozava, and the Buried Past

This flow follows the consequences of Sarkoja’s betrayal of Gozava and the eventual exposure of a secret that reshapes Thark leadership.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

Suspicion in Thark

Watching for a Transgression A hidden attachment Gozava and Tars Tarkas meet away from the community and conceal their love. Their private life is vulnerable because Thark custom treats personal attachment as a threat to communal control. Sarkoja observes Sarkoja notices Gozava’s absences and watches for evidence. Her suspicion turns intimate behavior into a political matter that can be reported to Tal Hajus.

The Secret Discovered

A Child Reveals the Truth Sarkoja enters the tower Sarkoja discovers Gozava with the hidden child and understands that the mother has violated Thark rules. She demands the name of the father. Gozava refuses Gozava protects Tars Tarkas by claiming that only she knows his identity. Her silence saves him from immediate exposure but cannot stop Sarkoja from reporting the matter to Tal Hajus.

Punishment by Tal Hajus

Authority Turns Cruel A captive interrogated Tal Hajus imprisons Gozava and subjects her to torture to identify her partner. The ruler’s power makes private love an occasion for public violence. A death made entertainment Gozava dies without revealing Tars Tarkas, while Tal Hajus and his followers laugh. The scene demonstrates the moral degradation Carter later condemns in Thark leadership.

The Truth Preserved

Memory Becomes Testimony Sola tells the story Sola recounts her hidden childhood and Gozava’s death to Carter. The account gives context to the Thark customs he has observed and the compassion Sola continues to show. A name entrusted Sola reveals that Tars Tarkas is her father and that Sarkoja betrayed her mother. She permits Carter to use the truth when it could matter, turning memory into a possible political instrument.

The Warning and Vanishing

A Buried Past Returns A private confrontation Tars Tarkas tells Sarkoja that her role in Gozava’s death is known. His warning invokes the same dangerous world of trial by survival that she helped impose on others. An unresolved departure Sarkoja is gone the next morning and never returns. The story links her disappearance to a new balance of power without detailing her fate, leaving justice incomplete but her influence ended.

During Gozava’s years of secret meetings

The night Gozava is found with Sola

After Sarkoja reports Gozava

During Sola’s conversation with Carter on the march

The morning after Tars Tarkas confronts Sarkoja