A Brand New World by Ray Cummings

"Well! " said father. "Well, you did come safely, didn't you? I'm so glad, Peter. Light your light, Frederick. Well, Dan! I'm mighty glad to see you. Here's Hulda! Come here, child -- here is your Dan, at last!"

Freddie snapped on our light. Even in the confusion of our joyous greetings I was aware of how strange father and Hulda looked. Father wore his hair, snow-white now, in a long, thick, shaggy mass about his ears; a smooth and glossy black animal skin was draped about him, with a white decoration on his chest; his arms and legs were bare, with skin sandals on his feet!

And Hulda! Her brown hair was shot now with pure-white strands. It fell in waves upon her bare white shoulders, where her filmy robe of light-brown silken fabric was caught with gay red ribbons. The robe hung in folds nearly to her knees.

I have seen pictures of the maidens of ancient Greece. Hulda looked like that. Thongs of red crossed her breast, bound her waist and hung dangling at her knees with tasseled ends. Her legs were bare. Her feet in sandals like father's, but with pointed toes, the heel cut away, and thongs of red crossing her instep. Her right arm was bare; but on the left, her wrist was bound with a red ruching.

Dan had infolded her in his first hungry embrace, kissing her without thought of the rest of us, until she cried for breath. Then he held her off.

She was gasping, and laughing. "Do I -- look so queer? Dan, don't you like my looks? Don't you -- like me -- "

"Like you? " His great arms would have wrapped her up again, but she fended him off. She was radiant; I can imagine how Dan felt; I had never seen Hulda half so beautiful. She was blushing; she laughed at him archly.

"The red, Dan. " She indicated her tassels, and the ruching at her left wrist. "You see, I wear it -- for you. The sign that I am spoken for, and pledged to a man."

"Wonderful, Frederick, that you all got through so safely. " Father turned with Freddie, to me. "Frederick, you must meet Zetta -- Peter, have you seen Zetta? There she is -- come in, child."

Zetta was dressed very much as on earth I had last seen her. She stood lingering in the vehicle doorway, eager to see us, but reluctant to encroach on our family greetings. At father's words, she now shyly approached.

I stammered, "Zetta, I'm -- very glad to see you again."

"How do you do, Peter. " She held out her hand, and I took it. A confusion was upon me. This moment for which I had longed, came, and passed. Perhaps, as once before, the barriers of conventionality rose instinctively to hold my emotion in check.

I think it was so with Zetta, too. Our fingers barely touched; but my heart pounded harder, for I heard her murmur, "Be -- careful, Peter. Be ver' careful! " A warning against the power between us! Then I met her glance as she eyed me sidewise. A roguish, impish look. This was a new Zetta -- here upon her own world, her real self. Little imp, mocking my confusion with glee! She turned away, toward Freddie.

"And this is Fred'rick? I am ver' pleas' to meet so good a frien'."

I saw leaping into Freddie's eyes a swift surprise as he neared her, took her hand and shook it cordially. Freddie's nature, from mine, or from Dan's, is wholly different. Whatever surprise he felt, he gave no further sign; shook her hand heartily, grinned at her, and swung on me.

"Say, she's a little beauty, isn't she, Peter? " The old Freddie, relieved now of the responsibility of commanding our voyage, his characteristic breezy boyishness came back to him. I had not seen him in this way since the first dreadful days of the Great Change came upon us. He added, "You and I are going to be great friends, Zetta."

Her gaze on him was full of undisguised admiration. "Yes," she agreed. "I think so, too."

We were ready to start. "Leave everything," said father. "I'll have it guarded, and we're not going far."

He took his lantern; shook it. It seemed to be a translucent animal-bladder, possibly, filled with small objects that rattled. The light from it was a glow of phosphorescence. He held it aloft.

"This light is bad. Zetta, fix this up, will you? Can't they do better than this?"