Runa - Under the Sea 2018 Contest Entry

RUNA

I met the love of my life when I was eleven.

The station that my father and I lived on wasn't the largest or busiest of all the stations in our sector, but we'd still be a stop for the Interplanetary Zoo. The Interplanetary Zoo, or I-Zoo for short, was a collection of live exhibits curated from hundreds of planets in our system, all housed in a massive cargo ship. Some were from long-forgotten planets, ones destroyed from natural causes like an asteroid or their sun exploding, or those caught in the crossfire during the Great War. The projection screens at the entrance would talk about their conservation efforts, preserving species that would otherwise be forgotten, and that all exhibits came of their own free will or were captured as humanely as possible. Being an avid animal lover without any pets due to station restrictions, going to the Zoo became an annual tradition.

I was practically dragging my dad through the entrance. I was so familiar with the layout I didn't bother stopping to download the new map. I knew where I was going first: NEW SPECIES. This was where they'd showcase all of the new animals found throughout the year. The first few exhibits I saw were pretty interesting. A rare beetle I'd only seen online, another recently-discovered humanoid, this one covered in scales and spines like a reptile. I walked by each setup, carefully reading their info screens, and staring through the glass to try and find them. The last exhibit was at the end of the hall, nearly three times the size of the others. It was an aquatic set up, I could tell by the glowing blue and emptiness. Sure, there were some rocks and decorations to simulate a "natural habitat", but it looked empty. No animal, just water. I remember feeling a little sad staring at this one. A feeling of loneliness. I stared into the blue nothingness for a few moments, and then read the info screen.

Name: Runa

Species: Naiad

Planet: 3896, Section 72

Info: One of the only humanoid types to live primarily in water, the Naiad has been an elusive and isolated species. Discovered on 3896, a planet consisting of 95% water, Runa was found injured on one of the only areas of land, a small island with no vegetation or shelter. Our technicians were able to safely treat her injuries, and in exchange, she has agreed to a short-term stay here on the I-Zoo so we can build our knowledge base about her species and homeworld.

I moved closer to the glass, resting both hands on it as I tried straining to see it. I scanned slowly from left to right. Nothing. There wasn't anything there. "Maybe they're still setting up the tank," I thought to myself. I looked over to my dad. As expected, he was carefully scanning the beetle enclosure. I smiled a little, seeing how excited he was as he searched. One could easily see where I got my animal fascination from. I slowly turned my attention back to the tank, and there she was.

I'd never seen a Naiad before, not even online. I'd read little blurbs about them in the rare species forums, but no one had an image. Nothing could have prepared me for her.

She had the typical humanoid female body structure. Arms, legs, torso, etc. She had webbed fingers and toes, and her hands and feet were slightly longer than a human's. On each side of her torso right under her breasts were gills, very subtly moving in and out as she floated in front of me. Her face was smooth, no wrinkles, eyebrows or lashes. Her eyes were haunting, all black. My knowledge about aquatic species told me that this meant she lived deep below the water surface. Where her ears would be there were tiny holes surrounded by what I assumed to be fins. She had long blue-black hair that just flowed around her with the movement of the water. Runa was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.

We just kind of stared at each other for a moment. Then she smiled slightly, eyes softened and placed her hand on the glass. Without even thinking about it I moved my hand to be right where hers was, and suddenly I was inundated with images I'd never seen. It was like I was watching a movie of her life. I could see the beautiful blue water of her planet, her swimming with a group of similar creatures, almost like a school of fish. The word Ver kept coming in and out of this consciousness in a soft, feminine voice. I could only take a few moments of this before I was too scared, and removed my hand. She looked startled, and a little sad. By that time my dad had come up behind me. "Wow, what a beauty," he said in awe. She quickly looked to me, then to him, and quickly swam away, down back to wherever she had been hiding. "Yeah..." I trailed off, not understanding in the slightest what just happened. We walked away slowly from the tank and continued through the I-Zoo.