In the footsteps of Syrta Khîm
Before reading this article, please start the video. It will get you in the musical mood for the journey that follows and hopefully I have done my calculations well enough that you will read the last syllable with the last note of my favorite song.
The eleven-year-old fairy-elf stood in front of the huge antique display cases of Kythý's Natural History Museum. She was too small to see everything well. So she tightened her slightly pink glittering wings, floated upwards and admired the many discoveries on display there. With her big, googly eyes, she tried to memorize everything in detail. There were huge butterflies with wings in the most dazzling colors, beetles with crystal shells, birds with fluffy feathers, skeletons of extinct dragons and wondrous devices. Later that evening, the fairy child listed to her father all the things she had seen in the exhibition. Her little mouth couldn't stop chattering, she was so fascinated by all the different impressions. It was only when she was lying in bed and her father touched her on the nose with a stub and hugged her again: "Oh Syrta, you're going to be a great adventurer.", that she closed her eyes tiredly and finally gave herself some peace. That night, Syrta dreamed of a great future and the many discoveries she would make later.
Syrta Khîm was an alert fairy-elf who loved to use a magnifying glass to search for all kinds of beetles and insects in the garden of her parents' house in order to enlarge and study them. At the age of 12, Syrta was given a small notebook and "The Handbook for Extraordinary Adventurers", which became her greatest treasures. Now she could not only go exploring in the surrounding area with her best friend Nimb, a Téshàn sky glider, but also record everything with small sketches and descriptions.
At school she loved the subjects that dealt with Téshànian nature and explained everything or at least a lot of things around her. Syrta knew early on that she wanted to explore the ecosystems, landscapes and species of her continent and perhaps later also those of the wider world. At 15, she received a compass and a backpack and joined the Téshànian Cloudwalkers, a kind of scout group. There she learned survival techniques such as finding water and food, starting a fire, looking for a suitable place to sleep, setting up a tent and making it weatherproof and, of course, how best to protect yourself from dangers and accidents in the great outdoors.
After studying biology and geography in Qánsáví, she made a pilgrimage to the World Tree and took a position with a small research group led by Vikriti Cuarán. The group put forward the first theses on the cataloging of living beings, which was to accompany Syrta's life from now on. Unfortunately, the 1,609 AEC group had to be disbanded for financial reasons, but Syrta had already developed a reputation as an excellent biologist, so she was asked by the great surveyor and geographer Keóna Sáyàph to accompany him on one of his journeys along the banks of the Ténátís, to the sunken City of Lís and the island of Xaí Limtásh. She was only too happy to accept this offer, as it brought her a little closer to the dream she had hoped for.
She traveled with Keóna's group for two years and during this time she learned a lot about species identification and gained some experience in how to survive difficult or dangerous situations. After their return, the collected objects, animals and plants were cataloged and made available for the exhibition "The Wonders of the Glittering Sea" 1,613 AEC in the Natural History Museum of Aqila.
There Syrta met professor Okilani Phásòn. She later referred to Okilani as her older self because they both had the same dream in mind. Okilani Phásòn was already a respected professor of Téshànian paleontology and, after vigorously drumming up financial support for her own research and excavation trip, she unfortunately died of a short, serious illness. In her last will she stipulated that Syrta should receive all the money for her study trip so that her dream would come true after her death.
At 1,615 AEC the time had finally come. Syrta had assembled a team of five other experienced naturalists and eight assistants to accompany her on the journey. The first voyage lasted two and a half years and covered Brictælgis and Layida, the continents of Earth and Fire. The second trip lasted about 20 months and took Syrta and her team to the continent of water - Ulűri̋qi̋ . On the final journey, which lasted three years, Syrta visited the humans of Idaka and her home continent, the "airy" Téshàn.
An average of two years passed between her trips, during which she collected new money by giving lectures and sometimes making pieces available for various exhibitions or giving them entirely to natural history museums. for the species she had discovered At the same time, she began to develop a functioning nomenclature, to which she later added already known species.
During the third voyage, Syrta and her team contracted sulfurhidrosis on Idaka, which killed two members. Even afterwards, Syrta continued to suffer from the effects of the illness for a time, meaning she was no longer able to undertake longer, strenuous journeys. Nevertheless, Syrta and her research groups managed to discover a total of 126 new species during the three trips and describe them in numerous articles.
In 1,631 AEC Syrta published the Elaqitan Bestiary and in 1,636 AEC the Elaqitan Herbarium. Both works are still among the most important books for Elaqitan species of flora and fauna. In 1,638 AEC, Syrta was appointed Professor of Elaqitan Biology at the Natural History Research Institute of Aqila and received, among other honors, honorary doctorates from the Universities of Qánsáví and Kímýqán. The "Sanos NAKHIMI osmaemas" discovered after her death was named after her as the "Wild Khîm Cat". Even today, at least every Téshàni knows her name, as many Téshàn schools and streets honor Syrta Khîm's memory with a wing or the entire building dedicated to her. Many Elaqitan naturalists see Syrta as a great inspiration, whose tombstone in Qánsáví reads: "One does not have to be tall to achieve great things."
About 35 years later, Syrta found herself back in the natural history museum of her childhood. But this time she wasn't too small as she stood in front of a lectern. Her freckled cheeks and purple eyes sparkled. Many visitors came specifically to get to know her. But her greatest admirer was her father, who sat in the front row and listened carefully to her every word. After her short introductory speech, she opened the exhibition and led guests to the various highlights. Everywhere she told little anecdotes about her travels and explained her discoveries to amazed visitors. In the evening, just before the doors of the library and the exhibition were closed until the next day, she sat down on a bench with her father and they both looked in silence at a huge world map of Elaqitan, showing all the routes of their three world trips and the most important places and discoveries linked together. “You see, Syrta,” said her father full of pride: “You turned out to be a great adventurer!” He put his hand on her shoulder and with slight tears in his eyes, he smiled at his daughter who leaned her head on his shoulder.
Omg the story coupled with the music nearly brought tears to my eyes ;-;
Thank you so much, I was finally able to combine one of my absolute favorite songs with an article. I'm so happy that you liked it and that it evoked the right emotion.