"Mind if I stay here awhile?" asked Baley.
"Go ahead," said Kiorissa.
Baley said, "Once the youngsters graduate out of the farm, how do you get them to court one another?"
"Court?"
"Get to know one another," said Baley, vaguely wondering how the thought could be expressed safely, "so they can marry."
"That's not their problem," said Klorissa. "They're matched by gene analysis, usually when they are quite young. That's the sensible way, isn't it?"
"Are they always willing?"
"To be married? They never are! It's a very traumatic process. At first they have to grow accustomed to one another, and a little bit of seeing each day, once the initial queasiness is gone, can do wonders."
"What if they just don't like their partner?"
"What? If the gene analysis indicates a partnership what difference does it - "
"I understand," said Baley hastily. He thought of Earth and sighed.
Klorissa said, "Is there anything else you would like to know?"
Baley wondered if there were anything to be gained from a longer stay. He would not be sorry to be done with Klorissa and fetal engineering so that he might pass on to the next stage.
He had opened his mouth to say as much, when Klorissa called out at some object far off, "You, child, you there! What are you doing?" Then, over her shoulder: "Earthman! Baley! Watch out! Watch out!"
Baley scarcely heard her. He responded to the note of urgency in her voice. The nervous effort that held his emotions taut snapped wide and he flamed into panic. All the terror of the open air and the endless vault of heaven broke in upon him.
Baley gibbered. He heard himself mouth meaningless sounds and felt himself fall to his knees and slowly roll over to his side as though he were watching the process from a distance.
Also from a distance he heard the sighing hum piercing the air above him and ending with a sharp thwack.
Baley closed his eyes and his fingers clutched a thin tree root that skimmed the surface of the ground and his nails burrowed into dirt.
He opened his eyes (it must only have been moments after). Klorissa was scolding sharply at a youngster who remained at a distance. A robot, silent, stood closer to Klorissa. Baley had only time to notice the youngster held a stringed object in his hand before his eyes sheered away.
Breathing heavily, Baley struggled to his feet. He stared at the shaft of glistening metal that remained in the trunk of the tree against which he had been standing. He pulled at it and it came out readily. It had not penetrated far. He looked at the point but did not touch it. It was blunted, but it would have sufficed to tear his skin had he not dropped when he did.
It took him two tries to get his legs moving. He took a step toward Klorissa and called, "You. Youngster."
Klorissa turned, her face flushed. She said, "It was an accident. Are you hurt?"
No! What is this thing?
"It's an arrow. It is fired by a bow, which makes a taut string do the work."
"Like this," called the youngster impudently, and he shot another arrow into the air, then burst out laughing. He had light hair and a lithe body.
Klorissa said, "You will be disciplined. Now leave!"
"Wait, wait," cried Baley. He rubbed his knee where a rock had caught and bruised him as he had fallen. "I have some questions. What is your name?"
"Bik," he said carelessly.
"Did you shoot that arrow at me, Bik?"
"That's right," said the boy.
"Do you realize you would have hit me if I hadn't been warned in time to duck?"
Bik shrugged. "I was aiming to hit."
Klorissa spoke hurriedly. "You must let me explain. Archery is an encouraged sport. It is competitive without requiring contact. We have contests among the boys using viewing only. Now I'm afraid some of the boys will aim at robots. It amuses them and it doesn't hurt the robots. I'm the only adult human on the estate and when the boy saw you, he must have assumed you were a robot."
Baley listened. His mind was clearing, and the natural dourness of his long face intensified. He said, "Bik, did you think I was a robot?"
"No," said the youngster. "You're an Earthman."
"All right. Go now."
Bik turned and raced off whistling. Baley turned to the robot. "You! How did the youngster know I was an Earthman, or weren't you with him when he shot?"
"I was with him, master. I told him you were an Earthman."
"Did you tell him what an Earthman was?"
"Yes, master."
"What is an Earthman?"
"An inferior sort of human that ought not to be allowed on Solaria because he breeds disease, master."
"And who told you that, boy?"
The robot maintained silence.
Baley said, "Do you know who told you?"
"I do not, master. It is in my memory store."
"So you told the boy I was a disease breeding inferior and he immediately shot at me. Why didn't you stop him?"
"I would have, master. I would not have allowed harm to come to a human, even an Earthman. He moved too quickly and I was not fast enough."
"Perhaps you thought I was just an Earthman, not completely a human, and hesitated a bit."
"No, master."
It was said with quiet calm, but Baley's lips quirked grimly. The robot might deny it in all faith, but Baley felt that was exactly the factor involved.
Baley said, "What were you doing with the boy?"
"I was carrying his arrows, master."
"May I see them?"