Early Bird Gets the Worm

Posted on Sun Mar 30th, 2025 @ 8:32pm by Commander Izzy Schröder & Jase Jackson & Ronan D'Sai & Jo McEntyre & T'lari

2,026 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: A Choir by the Bay

ON:

Aboard the small Aerie class starship Warbler space be it working space or living space was an elusive commodity that evaded everyone aboard. The ship itself was designed initially to operate with a minimum crew of two, something that a bit of jerry-rigging and software upgrades could cut down to one with the assistance of some automated systems. Professor Isabella Schroder had the Warbler operating as best it could. The resources allocated to it from the Federation Science Council, the United Federation Department of Education, and of course Starfleet Academy had gone a long way in making the small starship designed with the role of a surveyor in mind, into a capable albeit compact schoolhouse among the stars. It could comfortably hold a crew of ten albeit comfortably was up for debate. She had planned for Herself and a few instructors to crew the ship with the rest of the space going to students accepted into the program.

This adventure was going to be a bit different. She would spearhead it alone with a handful of young and eager minds, students from across the Federation and affiliated worlds. Four of them had been accumulated in the past few weeks: Jase Jackson and Josiah McEntyre from Earth, Georgia and Texas respectively. Then there was Ronan D’Sai originally from Rimeron III. Rounding out her students was T’lari, a young Vulcan girl from the Lake Yuron region. Each of them had a unique perspective and personality. Izzy was unsure how they would get along, but that would be part of her job as their teacher. She was going to have to be a jack of all trades for the time being, which had meant being quartermaster as well. Room assignments were easy with only a few of them and no other instructors to factor in. The Warbler had four living quarters that were laid out bunk style, a top and bottom bunk. There were two larger quarters with a single bed. She had claimed one of those for herself of course. With only four students aboard, she gave them each their own room. That would undoubtedly change in the future.

A small briefing room on the first deck of the Warbler, just off the bridge served as a conference room. It had an elongated oval table with seven chairs, three on either side, and one at the head. There was a small screen display between bulkheads, appropriate lighting features, a few decorative plants, and a food and beverage replicator the size that would be on a runabout. Izzy had a stack of PaDDs on the table as she waited for the four students to arrive. She had summoned them only a few minutes ago to meet her there. Izzy already had plans for the four of them and the Warbler, an educational trip of ecological significance.

The ship was small and easily learned, something he'd made it a point to do once he was on board, because knowing where you were and how to get to somewhere else was a necessary survival skill. Curiosity and a strong desire to do something that didn't involve artificial environments encouraged him to answer her summons quickly. If life were to have possibilities, to feel more like he was living rather than just being warehoused somewhere, imprisoned, he was, truth be told, eager to begin.

Greeting Ronan with a small smile, Izzy gestured to the replicator. "Are you familiar with how to operate a replicator, Ronan?" She did not want to make any presumptions. "You're welcome to get yourself something to eat or drink. The others should be here shortly."

"Yes," Ronan said with a slight curl of the lip. To him, replicated food lacked taste, not when compared to what the natural world provided, but protein was protein. To his people, meal preparation was a communal event and while he had been young when he was taken, there were memories, good ones, buried among the tragedy. Yes, protein was protein and he found that he required more, with respect to protein and calories than most humans he had met. He made his way over and ordered Protein Smoothie 1 in accented Federation Standard. As odd as it sounded, Orion was the tongue he spoke best since his own people communicated through group telepathy and sign. This one contained banana, strawberries, blueberries, milk, yogurt, almond butter, chia seeds and vanilla protein powder. He took a sip and licked his lips as he found a seat and sat down.

T'lari had stared at herself in the mirror for a good long while. This was what she'd wanted and this was what she'd gotten. She felt as though her throat were closing, anxiety, uncommon for a Vulcan but one that had accompanied her for a life time. She'd left her home, her family, she'd come here. She would be on her own here as if she were born from the very sands of Vulcan with nobody to witness it. She would make her own decisions and this would lead to Starfleet. All her life she'd been told she wasn't good enough, that she would not achieve anything, being here was an achievement in itself. This was a new start for her.

Having dressed in the appropriate uniform she made her way to the briefing room. The familiar face of the Commander greeted her along with someone she had yet to meet. "Commander." She said as she gave a nod, proud that she displayed a confidence she had yet to feel.

The young Caitian, Josiah, was the next to enter the briefing room. Their yellow uniform was fitted, neat, zipped up with a bit of their neck exposed, in a v-neck style, under which, they wore a silver chain with a set of old style dogtags. They were 22nd Century Digital Dogtags, the id on them "McEntyre, Josiah. Col. MACO SOCOM", an artifact of his famous ancestor. They wore a long style cardigan sweater over it that flowed behind him as he entered. They looked around, timidly, nervously, not sure how to really interact with everyone. They decided to simply nod to the others and quickly and shyly go over to the replicator to order a breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausage, hash browns, toast, and a small portion of medium ribeye steak before sitting down towards the end of the table.

Youthful and a bit too hyper from the raktajino he had chugged earlier, Jase Jackson made his appearance dressed appropriately for his concentration of study, sciences. "She prefers Professor," he said referring to Izzy Schröder who greeted him with a polite smile. He had been her first student as part of the program but had only been aboard a few days longer than the others.

Izzy thought that was an apropos time to lay down some basics. "Jase is correct. I have spent a lot of my life focused on academics. I hold the rank of Commander in Starfleet, but my preference will be Professor. It's okay if you use Commander. It gets some getting used to. For the most part I'll try to be in uniform especially in an official capacity, but I don't live in it 24 hours a day."

"Is that true of us as well," Ronan asked. "Uniforms in class but not at night?"

Josiah continues to pay attention, but eats at the same time. They were a growing Caitian after all, even if they doesn't seem to grow.

Izzy nodded. "Yes, Ronan. While in class, manning a station, or while we are visiting an alien world or moon, I expect you all to wear a uniform. After hours, get comfortable. I'll make sure the ship's chronometer alerts us. I'll put on automated flight controls when I rest, the ship will alert me of any issues." She smiled broadly. "And we have a bit of a journey ahead of us."

"Where are we going," Ronan asked immediately. This was, after all, why he had agreed to all of this. The chance to explore, to learn, to not be confined.

Izzy smiled. "To Pyrithia, Ronan. It is a wonderful planet, but we will want to bring plenty of ointment cream and bug spray. Its wet, humid, and the jungles are thick."

"How long is the trip," Ronan asked, his eyes lighting up from within at the thought of seeing something new, being in a world where he could explore. Chained still by the rules and regulations of this place but, so far at least, they were thinner, lighter, than the ones he'd worn in the past. "Ronan is ready to begin."

"It will take us a few days to get there, Ronan," Izzy informed him. "An opportunity for us to get settled in and brush up on some of what Pyrithia has."

T'lari listened to the back and forth. She had questions but being in this group was...rather intimidating. She was afraid to ask. She raised her hand timidly.

"Yes, Ms. T'Lari?" Izzy called on her respectfully.

"My question," T'lari began, "is...if we choose to be in uniform fully is that alright as well?"

"Of course dear. You can wear your uniform as often as you'd like, a fresh one each day of course. Though don't be surprised if you catch me past zero hundred in my pajamas enjoying a stack of cookies and milk."

T'lari gave a nod. "I think I will opt for uniform...." She paused. "What are cookies?"

Izzy paused for a moment. How do I explain this she thought before deciding her best route was to offer the experience later. "We'll have some later and you can try. They are a small, flat, and sweet confectionery treat from Earth that generally contain egg, butter, milk, and flour. There are plenty of additional ingredient and processes that offer variety."

"Fascinating." She said. She made a note to connect with Izzy later. She wrote down cookie to do some research about them too.

Josiah kept eating, trying to not draw too much attention to themselves. The others seemed nice but still they had to be cautious. Kids were know to be…mean.

Jase had settled into a spot near Josiah. "What's on Pyrithia?" he asked. "Besides a lot of bugs" added the young aspiring scientist.

"Bats!" Exclaimed Izzy. "Big gorgeous Pyrithian bats the key predator to those bugs that I had mentioned." She looked at the kids. "We'll be in for spelunking."

T'lari suppressed a shiver. It had to be bats. She stayed silent and made a few notes about what to look up later.

For the first time in a long while, Ronan's curiosity was stirred. As a predator himself, the idea of large bats held no real fear for him, and he resolved to do some research on the ship's computers when he had a moment.

T'lari spoke up. "What is our mission?"

"Spoken like you're already in Starfleet, Ms T'lari" quipped Izzy with a smile to follow. "We have study opportunities, we leave missions to those better equipped for them" she said.

Izzy hushed her tone playfully. "At least as official records go" explained Izzy Schröder. "The bats on Pyrithia have been acting peculiar. They have migrated geographically to places uncommon for them. It's throwing off the ecosystems, and there's concern that the population of bats will dwindle."

"Has the planet gone through any geothermal changes or any abnormal weather patters?" T'lari asked.

"An excellent question, T'lari, and one we shall look into once we are closer to Pyrithia. I've already requested all geological and meteorological data. We should receive it before we get there. For now, let's call this little meeting adjourned and settle in."

Joisah at this point had finished their breakfast, getting up to put their plate into the replicator and returned to his seat, waiting to be formally dismissed.

T'lari gave a nod. This had been a most interesting experience. She looked around the room at the assembled group. As nervous as she was she could already feel her curiosity rising with respect to her shipmates.

 

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