Quest

Journey

...

"Lucas, dinner's served."

She called again. He stared at his Bernoulli-holo, not registering anything. He was miles away. Later he would tell his friends that that was the exact moment he realized he needed to get away. He should go on his Khar, his personal quest.

As he entered the kitchen, he announced, "I think it's time I did ..., something. I think I want to go on my Khar."

"And so you should," mumbled his father, spooning vegetables on his plate with one hand and holding some report in his other hand, reading it. His mother knew him better. She looked straight into his eyes, seeing more than felt comfortable. "You're going off-world." More a statement than a question. His father looked up from his reading, feeling that he was missing something. But then, it had to wait. They'd tell him if it was vital, and he had to digest this report before the council meeting at six-thirty.

Luke looked at his parents before taking his first bite and felt his love for them flow through him, warming him. But, God, he needed to get away for a while.

Just before six, his father's car stopped in front of the house, and Brian, his father's assistant, entered the kitchen. "It's time we left, sir. Traffic is unpredictable." Being Mayor of Great Bethnell, the capital of their nation and for all practical purposes of their world Bethnell, had its drawbacks, as it had its perks.

The mayor looked briefly at his wife, who scrutinized him and then nodded: his hair was ok, as were his shirt and tie. The daily council meetings at dinnertime were a burden, but this situation was only temporary until after the Jamboree.

Lucas smiled inwardly. Perhaps seeing all the off-worlders and aliens had triggered his desire to go get out. Who knew ...? Probably his mother knew.

When his father had left, his mother looked at him for a brief moment, and then she astounded him, as she was prone to do. "Well, maybe your father is right. Maybe you should."

...

"Your Khar, is it an inward journey, or is it outward?"

"Sorry? Oh, I see what you mean. Well... It's outward, but the purpose is also to advance inward, though maybe not to travel."

"Agrrr," gurgled Xolorrr, his best friend, really. Luke had come to understand the sound as something between a sigh and "hm."

"So, what is the purpose of your outward and inward advancement journey?"

Xolorrr Dhagtharrr was an alien. To be precise, an Urrr. He was about seven inches tall and fit comfortably in Lucas's pocket, where he would sometimes stay when they were about.

Urrr, like Humans, were widespread in their part of the galaxy, both being compared to the respective variant of fleas in the pelts of the respective variant of dogs by other species.

"Traditionally, it has two purposes. They are called 'Itrabrahar' and 'Kudri Hadratar' in the old language.

'Itrabrahar' literally means balance between within and without. It is to see yourself in the context of your world..."

Natasha snorted. "Jesus, you have been paying attention in school. It's just vacation. Cost a fortune, but the best vacation I had."

They were having a beer in The Crypt, waiting for Ben and Alice. And then they would go downtown, truth be told, just to gawk at off-worlders. Bethnell might be great, but a jamboree was something else altogether.

"Well, anyway. And 'Kudri Hadratar' literally translates to 'tokens of going-there-manship'. You bring stuff that shows something of what you have done and what you have accomplished in your quest."