Story: AZ89 is a small and unusual Flyu from Colony 638. Isolated at school, she believes something inside her must be wrong, until another lonely child chooses her as his best friend and changes the course of both their lives. This is part 1 of a 2-part story following AZ89 and those close to her, part 1 is her childhood and coming-of-age. The setting is in an alien universe created by another author, cricketsounds. I have permission to write within her universe. Cover art was also drawn by cricketsounds for me, thank you so much. It features AZ89 & VR2. This story exists in a far-future biopunk and military themed sci-fi universe. I do my best to weave world lore through the story. Flyu are the master species of the universe, they have no rivals. They have spread across the universe over thousands of years, conquering and dominating. They take no prisoners and make no friends; however humans were a rare exception. Earth is gone, and humans have long ago been domesticated by Flyu, now bred and kept as pets. This story doesn't focus on the Flyu-Human element and is about the world of Flyu as they exist among one another. Z follows Flyu from one colony (638), Flyu have thousands of colonies. You can learn more about Flyu here: https://flyuprime.weebly.com/ TW: military culture, death, bullying, trauma