A Quiet Moment (Haasha Interlude)

It was late, and I was having trouble sleeping. I'm not sure what woke me or why, but my mind just chose that moment to not be quiet. After tossing and turning for a bit, I finally gave up and left my quarters to take a walk around the ship.

Walking the empty corridors helped ease my restless mind, and the gentle sound of my feet hitting the deck one foot after another reminded me that I was moving forward. "Always keep moving forward, even if it's just one little step after the other," I mumbled under my breath as I remembered the advice from so many years ago.

No happy moment lasts forever, so taking a step forward isn't a step away from happiness, it's a step towards finding a new moment. Some mistakes or losses will try to anchor us down, so every step forward is one where we learn to bear the weight and find the strength to make new mistakes or find something new to replace what we lost. We need to be like time, always moving forward. And so, I let my feet carry me around the ship, moving away from the restless moment that had woken me and forward to a new moment where my mind would be still and able to head back to bed.

The irony wasn't lost on me. I was moving forward so that I could then find a way to stop, preferably in a pile of warm in the middle of my bed. I smiled at that thought and wondered what my old philosophy teacher would say about that. I don't think moving forward to stop was part of the lesson he intended to teach, but he'd likely offer some bullshit about how we all need to stop on our journeys so we can process what's happened and find the best path forward. That way my late night trek would still somehow fit the lesson.

As I passed the crew lounge, I saw Captain Victor standing at the window looking out into space. I decided to take a detour to see what thoughts kept him up tonight.

"Good evening, Haasha," he said as I joined him looking out at the stars. "Or perhaps good morning is more appropriate given the time. What's got you up this late?"

"Restless mind," I responded quietly. "Not sure why, just woke up. You?"

"Just pondering a message from home," he said with a soft smile. "I know it's a strange and perhaps a bit morbid, but it's late at night and I'm curious. What are the Py'rapt'ch thoughts on death?"

"I find your species desire to bury or burn the dead strange, as is the practice of creating permanent memorials," I said honestly. "We've never felt it appropriate to make such a big deal out of death. It's a part of life, so we try to accept it when it happens. My people feel that making a memorial is like sharpening a stick and poking yourself in the eye with it. Every time you see it, it brings up the past and hurts. We're taught to always keep moving forward. As for our funerary rites, those don't exactly help with my species reputation in the galaxy."

"Oh?" the captain asked with evident confusion.

"The body is just something that held a person, it isn't the person," I explained. "And having evolved from a scavenger species, we feel a greater connection to the cycle of life and death. We know that dead bodies provide life. As such, when someone dies their body is returned to the cycle. All planets where my kind live will have a nature preserve. The body of the one who passed will be taken out, a calm place found, and then left for scavengers, insects, and nature to deal with. Lots of sapients think what we do is disrespectful, but for us it's just honoring the cycle of life."

"You said the body just held the person, but isn't the person. What do you mean by that?" the captain asked with genuine interest.

"Compared to most races, our thoughts on religion are rather vague and uncomplicated," I started before taking a quick pause to consider how best to describe things. "The body holds the person while they are alive, but sentience goes beyond what's explainable by science. I don't think any race has explained why or how any sapient thinks, feels, or acts and religions often conflict with each other, especially once you get different sapient species involved. My kind believes there's something more. We don't know where the spark that makes a person comes from or why it's there, but it is. And when you die, that spark is released."

"What happens to the spark?" Captain Victor inquired, still with softness and genuine interest in his voice.

"Not known, but in ancient times our people believed it would be released from the body and ascend to create a new star in the sky," I said as I put a hand on the window and looked out at the stars. "When the moment is right, you look up at the stars and your eyes will guide you to the right one. You'll have your chance to say a last goodbye. Beyond that, you honor their spark by keeping their memories with you and sharing the lessons they taught with others. That way we can all keep moving forward and benefit from their experience."

"Now that you have science and know how stars are created, has that changed viewpoints much?" asked the captain with some concern evident in his voice.

"Not much," I confessed. "The spark still goes somewhere, and we all need to find a way to say goodbye when the time is right. Finding the right star is just a way to discover and connect to the spark one last time before it moves on to whatever is next."

"An interesting viewpoint," he said. "Thank you for sharing. And I hope I haven't kept you up too late with my questions."

"Not at all," I responded as I took a moment to raise up my arms and stretch. "It helped clear my mind so I can get back to bed. Good night, Captain. Don't stay up too late."

"I won't," he said with a warm smile. "You've actually given me an answer to something that's been on my mind, so I've got one small thing to take care of before I head to bed myself. Sleep well."

As I left the room, I heard Captain Victor's voice speaking softly. I turned, and he seemed to be concentrating on a specific star.

"Ah, there you are," he said. "Goodbye, Uncle. Thank you for all the late-night conversations and lessons. I hope that in whatever comes next, our sparks will cross paths again."

-----

Apologies for this being a bit off Haasha's normal path. I had some things on my mind that needed sorting. This was the result, and it seemed well enough done that it would be worth posting. Don't worry, Haasha will be back to her usual antics soon!

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