Stranded on a Tiny Planet

First Contact

Merco was growing very frustrated. His ravenous hunger didn't help matters, nor did his pounding head wound. Every missed thrust of his spear was energy wasted and he was losing it very quickly. He could see the fish-like creatures jumping not far away, taunting him. He realized his speed and aim had to be true to spear one. He took a calming breath and waited.

Just then he could see a sizable, torpedo-shaped form wandering toward him. He held perfectly still, not even letting his eyes blink lest it give away his position. It swam closer, unaware. He thrust hard. Much to his delight and astonishment the spear tip hit home. The spear whipped and thrashed against his hands as the impaled creature fought back. Merco held it down, stabbing hard to the lake bottom. When its thrashing lessened, he hefted the spear upward, lifting his prize out of the water.

It looked like a fish. It had large golden scales like an Earth carp but a wide predatory mouth like a bass. Several long stringy tentacles trailed from its sides, curling and flailing like dozens of worms. It had three black eyes on either side of its head and a broad, paddle shaped tail.

He'd speared it just behind its head and dark purple blood spurted from its wound. Merco laughed with triumph and chucked the fish creature ashore. Quickly, he ran out of the water to his catch. It was pretty big; about as long as his forearm. Plenty for a meal. He hoped it wasn't poisonous or inedible, otherwise it would be his last meal. His hunger shoved aside his paranoia.

The fish flopped a bit more until he pulled out his pocketknife and severed the spot just behind its head; where he assumed the spinal cord would be located. He guessed correctly, and the fish went still.

Merco was shaking he was so excited.

He was going to make it! He was going to survive!

He set to work immediately. Holding the fish's jaw firmly with one hand he slit open the belly of the creature. Strange multicolored viscera spilled out onto the ground. He made a grossed-out face as he opened up the body to view the meat. It was a light purplish color.

"Strange. Hope it tastes better than it looks." he thought to himself.

Just as Merco began to cut loose the organs he saw a large, bluish-purple sac dominating the other organs. He guessed it to be the creature's stomach. What caught his attention was the fact that it was moving; as if had eaten something just moments ago and it was fighting to get out. Morbid curiosity prompted the man to see what was inside. With a quick slice of his knife he opened the stomach and what spilled out made his eyes widen.

There, covered in slime, was a tiny, humanoid creature no more than four inches tall. It had two thin arms and two thin legs. Its skin was a lavender purple color. A small, silvery plume of feathery scales adorned the top of its little head rather than hair. The face was alien but petite and pretty, with large eyes and a tiny lipped mouth. There wasn't much of a nose, only a pair of small nostrils. It...She... had a feminine appearance. The ears were strange inhuman structures; more like arching tentacles or antennae jutting upward from the sides of the head. But what struck Merco was that she was clothed in a tight-fitting, blue jump suit that made her resemble a tiny pilot. Meaning, she wasn't just some random animal indigenous to the planet but one of sentient intelligence.

"What in the world?" he mused quietly. "Am I seeing things? Is my head wound making me hallucinate?"

Gingerly, he poked the tiny form. Was she alive? She didn't move. He rolled her over on her side and gently tapped the tiny back. He jumped visibly when she suddenly coughed, spewing slime out of her lungs. Her little arms flailed a moment and braced against the ground as she coughed. Once the coughing fit subsided the little being slumped, clearly exhausted from the ordeal.