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As they took the shuttle to the shopping level of the ship, Jan asked, Are your
parents still alive?
My mother s on Teril. He looked out the window as the corridors flashed by. My
father was on the ship. He was one of those who died.
Jan knew him well enough now to read his expression. He was trying to keep his
face blank but she sensed his sorrow. I m sorry, she said, her voice soft. I lost my
father a year ago. It s very difficult.
The illness took my father, my brother, their wives, two of my sisters and my
wife. He kept his face turned toward the window. It s the same for all of us. Most
were traveling in family groups. Almost everyone lost a father, a brother. Some of us
had our young with us& all succumbed to the illness. And every female died as well.
His hands lay on his knees, the knuckles white. Tentatively she put her hand over
his. His fingers gripped hers.
Concerned mainly with the kidnapping of her own kind, she hadn t thought much
about the illness that had killed so many Terilians. Now, suddenly, it seemed personal.
She tried to imagine going on a cruise with her whole family and losing them all at
once. Would she have even wanted to go on living?
His voice was much lower as he added, It was a hard time to be a doctor. They
kept dying. No matter what I did, they died.
Were you sick too?
No one escaped the illness. There were days I couldn t work. Couldn t leave my
bed& He looked down at their entwined hands, his brow creasing.
On Earth, we have a name for what you re feeling. It s called survivor s guilt, Jan
said. I m sure you did everything possible.
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One Thousand Brides
Part of me knows that, he said quietly. Part of me thinks I should have done
more.
I m glad you lived.
He squeezed her hand. I am too now.
The shuttle halted. Delos kept hold of her hand as he led her to the corridor of
shops.
Unlike Earth shops, with their brightly lit windows filled with merchandise, these
stores consisted of a discreet length of plain gray corridor with small entrances every
ten or twenty feet. Jan drew near and read the tiny sign, Joyous Adornment. Restricted
to primuses only.
I can read this! she exclaimed.
Delos took on a smug expression. You don t think I d have fitted you with an
inferior brain chip, do you? You ve gained both spoken and written language. He
guided her to a tiny viewing window at eye level. Look here to preview the
merchandise.
She peered in at a lovely black tunic. The draped material was caught up on each
shoulder by a decorative copper button. As Jan watched, the tunic turned slowly,
showing the graceful folds of the front and back. When the rotation completed, the
picture changed. Now she viewed herself wearing the garment.
As always, black was slimming. Jan said, I wouldn t mind having a tunic like
that.
Delos took a quick look. Under our sumptuary laws, only primuses are permitted
to wear gray or black. As they went to the next shop, he added, Of course, you ll be a
primus s wife. You ll be able to shop anywhere you want.
She looked up at him, caught by the pain and bitterness in his tone.
I have to keep reminding myself, he told her, his voice grim. I don t dare
imagine that you could be mine permanently.
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Solange Ayre
Isn t there any way that we can be together?
He looked into her eyes for a long moment. She felt sure he was going to tell her
something. Then he said, The primuses have first choice. In everything.
Why did she have the feeling he d almost said something quite different?
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One Thousand Brides
Chapter Six
Delos gave her an appraising look. You re probably not ready to do the jumps
between floors. We ll use the elevator.
He took her to the recreation and exercise floor. Jan imagined the floor would be
like a health club on Earth but it seemed that Terilians did not care for mindless,
repetitive exercise. Many of their exercise routines engaged the mind as well as the
body.
He showed her a large variety of virtual-reality games, usually played wearing full-
body suits. Some of them were performed in low-gravity chambers, which looked
especially entertaining.
Other games were played in large groups. Delos took her to an observation deck
where they watched fifteen primuses, formed into three teams, play something that
resembled capture the flag .
Do you ever play that? Jan asked.
The Medical Corps has four teams. I m the captain of the doctors team.
Because you re the best player?
I m not the best player. He grinned. But I am the best strategist.
What other games do you like?
Delos led her to a small room that he said was a ball court. As Jan watched from an
upper balcony, Delos stood in the center of the court, unsheathed his claws and said,
Ready! Small, fluffy balls in various colors began to rain down from the ceiling.
Spinning, turning, leaping, Delos caught them with his claws. A scoreboard on the far
wall changed rapidly. If I catch a blue one it counts against me, unless the lights are
blinking, he called up to her, not pausing in his quick movements.
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Solange Ayre
The game looked like fun but when he asked if she wanted to try it, Jan declined.
She d never been athletic and didn t want him to see how badly she d do. Perhaps she
would try it on her own, later.
He showed her sparring pits where males wearing gloves tipped with rubber claws
fought each other. Jan couldn t figure out the rules as she watched two males in a free-
for-all that combined wrestling, clawing and body blows, sometimes standing,
sometimes rolling on the ground.
Jan didn t care for either boxing or wrestling on Earth but the sparring held her
interest because it was so quick and graceful. The participants were like two dancers
who had rehearsed with each other often and could anticipate the next movement.
Delos watched intently. Jan, startled, saw that his claws were extended. Somehow
she d never imagined the doctor as dangerous before.
Good one! he exclaimed as one male clawed the other s face. That would ve
taken an eye in a real fight.
Jan shuddered. Do you ever do that?
Not for real but I spar with Hannus once a week.
She remembered the orderly who had helped her walk around the hospital room.
Hannus! He s twice your size.
Delos gave her a wicked grin. Yes but I m much faster.
As they left the sparring area, Jan saw a glass bulb on a silver stand, filled with tiny,
multicolored spheres. Surely the Terilians hadn t developed human-style gumball
machines. What s this?
I ll buy a couple, Delos answered, waving his palm in front of the stand. A light
came on briefly, then blue and gold spheres dropped from the machine. He handed her
the blue one. They re memory balls. Twist open and sniff.
Watching how the gold sphere separated under his grip, she followed his lead. The
pungent odor of Gary s musky aftershave filled the room. The present seemed to fade
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One Thousand Brides
away. Gary s beige and leather living room appeared in front of her eyes. Jan heard
herself saying, I m just startled. We ve only been on what is it, six dates? I had no
idea you felt like that about me.
Gary smiled. I wouldn t waste my time going on all those dates with a woman
who didn t interest me. Besides, we ve worked together for two years. I know you re
punctual, conscientious and an excellent programmer.
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