For the Birds

Posted on 23 Apr 2026 @ 2:11pm by The Narrator & Lieutenant JG Zhivise Silatuyok

1,070 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Unity
Location: Unity Station, Event Hall
Timeline: Before the Drama

Once the ceremony was over, it was truly the awkward part, the post-ceremony festivities of small talk. She didn't mind small talk; she just wasn't good at it, {if only there was the real stuff,} she thought, looking at the flute of Synethol. {And gods, why are these uniforms so ungodly uncomfortable? She thought, pulling on the collar, which kept her from paying close enough attention to her surroundings.

"...oh sorry, I um, yes, I was not paying attention," Zhiv said with a nervous chuckle.

"No trouble," came the response. The voice in question belonged to a woman — an Arrkun. She was tall and lithe, young, with her long silver-blue hair braided down her back and bright, pale eyes looking at the one she had just encountered. She had been fascinated by all the different people she'd been able to meet while attending this party, since, like all of her sub-species, she was fascinated by the novel. "You are with Starfleet here, I see?"

"Pilot, pilot for the USS Odin," Zhiv said in an answer to the Sai', Sai something, making a mental note to work on remembering these details for the future. "How are you enjoying the festivities?"

The Arrkun woman smiled. "I am enjoying it," she said. "I have yet to have such an opportunity to interact with so many other races. It is...fascinating. Envigorating." She held out her hand in a way she'd seen some here do. "I believe this is a common gesture among some Starfleet races? One of the greetings? I am Zahar."

Zhiv shifted her glass so she could return the gesture. A server walked by, "Care for another drink?" Zhiv asked, placing her empty on the tray and taking a fresh one.

"Certainly," Zahar agreed, taking another herself.

"May I ask, um, how many species have you met before we came along?"

The Arrkun chuckled softly. "Honestly? None. Sal'kiir had remained a very isolated world until interacting with the United Federation of Planets. Only those who left the system met other species, but I was not among them. I have been curious but remained close to home. It seems, though, that it is common for members of the UFP races to leave their homes and systems to explore."

"Humans, yes, there is something genetically in humans that calls for exploration and knowledge. I have to mention I have no medical or scientific facts to base that statement on, but we have been called 'Star Children', or some humans have claimed that," Zhiv said with a chuckle.

"Really?" Zahar asked, interest visibly piqued. "I have yet to hear that one myself, although as I have said, I have yet to meet many others. This party is most...intriguing for me." She smiled. "By the way, I don't believe I caught your name?"

"Oh! I am so sorry, I swear I said it, but then again, I swear I say a lot of things and... never mind, I am Zhivise Silatuyok, but most people call me Zhiv," she rambled, realizing just how fast she was talking.

Zahar nodded once. "Zhiv," she repeated. "I am glad to meet you. You said you are with the USS Odin, yes? That was the ship that headed the convoy of ships that came to us here, yes?"

"Yes, that is correct, I am the pilot for the Odin," Zhiv said with a smile, as she kept walking them towards the food table. "May I ask what you do within the Sai'...Sal'kiir," Zhiv said, hoping that was close.

The Arrkun resisted the urge to smile at the pronunciation. It was mostly correct, but it also wasn't the first human she had heard this evening who had trouble with it. "I am a zoological bio-geneticist," she replied. "I focus on the study and genome mapping of all of the fauna on Sal'kiir."

"Oh! Wow, that is a lot, I think, unless there aren't a lot of animals," Zhiv said with an odd, nervous chuckle.

"There are many animals on Sal'kiir," Zahar replied easily. "I am not the only one on the project, however. I specialize in flying fauna. What you would call..." She thought about the words she had learned. "Birds. So, I suppose in some ways, we do have something in common. I just study things that fly instead of doing so myself."

"...yeah, I suppose that is true, I mean humans became admired with flight, by watching birds, or flying fauna," she quickly added, as that would cover all bases. "How big do your flying fauna get?" Zhiv asked, knowing that at some point, size becomes a factor when flying under one's own power.

Zahar paused and thought, trying to remember human measurements. "There is a bird who lives in the high reaches of the Arrkuns' mountains. We, my people of the Sal'kiir, live very high up compared to our brethren. One of the birds I study is called the hy'all-q'ishmeer. The span of its wings is just over nine meters."

"9 meters, you sure? I mean, sorry, t that is just almost 30 feet," Zhiv said, still trying to believe her math. "H how does it fly?"

"Like anything else," the Arrkun replied with a light laugh. "When I knew that people from Earth would be coming, I studied some of the...avians from your world and its history. There were once creatures of a similar size called... I may not be able to say it properly. Terr-uh-sores?"

"Hmm, yes, I did forget about our prehistoric history, and those things apparently were majestic in the air," Zhiv said with a smile.

"I can easily imagine," Zahar said. "They are not common, of course, at that size. There are some specific outposts dotted in the underpopulated areas of the mountains where we have the best chance of observing them. Perhaps you will have a chance to come to the planet and visit one, maybe see one yourself."

"I would love that," Zhiv said with a big smile, as she was also always amazed by anything natural that was able to fly. Even the smallest natural thing that could fly.

Zahar inclined her head. "Well, when such time as you can make it down to the planet, call Arrkun Outpost Kare-Five and ask for Zahar. I would be happy to show you around."

"This is wonderful, I'll definetly will reach out," hoping that they come back for some RnR time.

 

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