So... Have You Considered It?

Though LaRee was a bit surprised to hear that Ayse had done something even his other-worldly grandma couldn't, LaRee didn't have much of an explanation. "Ayse has a talking wristband. He called it a 'watch'. And Ayse said that the watch works with a smart stone… I forget what the stone was called."

"A chip."

"Yes! That is what Ayse called it!" LaRee ecstatically accepted help from his grandmother. "Ayse said the watch and chip both learn tongues. That when together, they learn languages fast."

Arbory's jaw dropped slightly. Her mouth was briefly hung open before she shouted, "A translator watch? Or a watch with a translator app?! Either of those items would be fairly expensive, especially if it could start translating our tribal tongue in minutes!"

LaRee blinked. "Um… Does that make Ayse not normal?"

"Most likely," Granny Arbor replied. "But I have no idea how Ayse got such a watch, so I can't say for sure. There are just too many ways to make money in the universe. It's impossible to theorize how a young man could've gotten such a thing without more information. How old is he?"

"Ayse has nineteen years," LaRee answered.

Again, Arbory's eyes briefly bulged in surprise. "Nineteen? And how strong is he?"

"Only Dad would be able to fight Ayse. And I don't know who would win."

LaRee's plain answer dragged out Arbory's sense of bafflement. "That… Nineteen and he can fight LaRoe? Can Ayse use ohra?"

It was LaRee's turn to be confused again, unsure what his grandma was talking about. "Use… what? What is oh-ra?"

Nodding in realization, Arbory asked, "You know how your father can create threads of black energy? Either around his fists or his weapons?"

"That is called oh-ra?" LaRee caught on quickly, eager to know more. "But we never call it that. Even Grandfather and Great-grandfather never did."

Arbory offered a succinct explanation, "In the universe, that form of energy is called ohra. Though I know nothing about how to train it, every who grows up on a world with universal travel has heard stories about powerful heroes and villains using ohra.

"So, if this Ayse can use that ability, he would also call it ohra. But do you know if Ayse can use it?"

LaRee shook his head. "No, I am not sure. If he has this oh-ra, I would not be surprised. He killed the mammoth with only an arrow, no bow. And I never saw any oh-ra."

"Really? Then he can at least fight your father, maybe even beat him," Arbory laughed while finally pulling something out of her briefcase.

When she put a peculiar, clear bottle on the table, LaRee's eyes were instantly drawn in. The bottle was made of a material unknown to LaRee. Inside was a golden brown liquid. But LaRee couldn't smell anything due to the weird stopper plugging the bottle shut, seemingly made from wood shavings pressed together.

"I've been saving this for ages. And I only take a sip on special occasions," Arbory stated. At the same time, she produced two gleaming cups made of that same, clear material. "Would you care for a few sips?"

"... What is it?" asked LaRee.

She poured a bit into each glass, sharing a sly smile. "This is whiskey. And it will hit harder than any form of wine you've ever tasted from the village."

As a cup was slid across the table, LaRee accepted it. He followed Granny Arbor's example and brought the unusual cup to his nose.

But when Arbory took a gentle sniff, LaRee nearly snorted every possible alcoholic fume rising the strong booze. "Whoa! What is… What is that?!"

Arbory slapped the table and laughed, "Oh, you're just like your father! Careful, or you'll lose your sense of smell."

Then, Arbory took a sip.

And LaRee, with tomato-red cheeks from embarrassment, impulsively tried to act tough. So he gulped it all down in one go. "This is nothing. This is…"

Cough! C-cough!

"Hey, not bad! You handled it better than your father," Arbory chuckled between sips.

Meanwhile, LaRee shook his face and pounded his chest a couple of times. "That… Is whiskey a wine? From another world?"

Shaking her head, Arbory mentioned, "Nope. In the universe, there are more kinds of alcohol than you can imagine. The wine from other worlds is amazing too. In my opinion, the best wine comes from a world called Foraad. Our tribal wine might as well be piss compared to the good stuff."

Before LaRee could ask for another glass, wanting to redeem himself, the cork was replaced and the bottle was put back in the briefcase.

"So, now you've fought with someone strong from another world. You've tasted booze from another world. And you understand that at least half of your own blood comes from another world," Arbory remarked. "So far, do other worlds seem so bad?"

"... No. They do not," LaRee groaned. He shook his head in reply and also in minor disbelief.

Then, a subtle, somewhat hollow smile took hold of Arbory's face. "In that case… Have you considered going to other worlds?"

"No." LaRee promptly replied, rushing to his feet.

"Calm down, Little Ree. Calm down."

Arbory got up too. But she walked over to the ceramic teapot hanging over the tiny fire.

Then, while pouring them both another cup of tea, she sighed and clarified, "... I'm not asking a yes or no question, Little Ree. I'm asking if the idea of traveling to other planets intrigues you.

"After all, you've always been a curious boy since childhood. Especially when it concerns your mom and her unwilling absence in your life."

LaRee wanted to act on impulse again, at least partially. But the casual mention of his mother was too jarring for LaRee to close himself off to the topic of discussion.

"If you want to learn everything about your mother, then visiting other worlds is the only way."

Thump…

LaRee's knees almost buckled as he plopped back down onto his stool. "What do you mean? Is my mother traveling other worlds also?!"

Arbory took one more sip of tea before polishing off her final sip of whiskey.

With an awkward smile and a tilt of her head, Arbory said, "... Our current circumstances don't allow me to discuss what happened twenty-two years ago. But I can say that even your father doesn't fully understand why your mother couldn't stay with you.

"And the only way to learn the fullness of that truth is to find it for yourself, wherever it is that your mom ended up."