There were many marvels in the world of Spheraphase but the Seryphical Aquatunnel was its own kind of miracle.
It was a tunnel stretched over two kilometers in length and five hundred meters high, suspended by Spheraphasian tech and oceanic latticework developed by the Hydroborn.
The Aquatunnel was a place where the lost, the hunted, and the nearly extinct were given refuge and where the curious from all realms came to gaze into the abyss of the sea without having to brave the deadly Asmaphaeri Oceans themselves.
Narisva walked beside Vastarael, her hands tucked casually into her jacket pockets, her void eyes wide with something close to wonder as the two entered through the main glass gate.
"I've... never seen ocean creatures before."
Thousands of glowing blue lights reflected off the water tunnels around them, casting flowing reflections over her skin and jacket. Vastarael was half-smiling as they were swept in with a crowd of murmuring tourists and scholars.
"Oh? Then you're going to love this."
Inside, the dome revealed its true splendor.
They walked under arching glass tunnels that cut through endless aquariums on all sides. She saw walls of sapphire-blue water hosting thousands of species, each tank as large as mansions, stretching upwards like watery pillars. Whole underwater ecosystems shimmered under the bioluminescent glow of floating jellyfish-like lights. Long fish coiled like ribbons. Turtle-beasts the size of chariots floated peacefully near coral reef simulations and this wasn't even the main chamber.
Narisva couldn't hide it. She turned slowly in place, taking it all in. The children gasped in awe as the elders watched with nostalgic smiles. She spotted floating staircases that led to suspended glass platforms. Vastarael was already moving to her side, pointing at a display.
"This section was built about seventy years ago but the foundation of the Seryphical Aquatunnel began construction around four hundred years ago. My mother brought me here when I was thirteen, disguised me to avoid public attention. I still remember everything she told me that day."
She looked at him in surprise. "Wait. You've actually been here before?"
"Once. My mother, Lysameria, Seventh Aquatic Goddess and Nexus of Oceans, helped commission this place. She worked with the Hydroborn directly. They were the only ones able to guide the capture of these species without bloodshed."
He gestured toward a circular tank where a pack of silver-striped leviathans swam in slow spirals.
"These creatures here called Crestfins were nearly hunted to extinction. Their meat are considered a delicacy and scales a decoration in black-market synthesis. The Hydroborn petitioned to move the last twenty-seven remaining to the dome. Now they've bred over two hundred in safety."
Narisva stared at the leviathans but her gaze slowly drifted back to him. He didn't notice. Or maybe he pretended not to.
"The entire Aquatunnel is designed with an internal salt-pressure regulator to match the density of Asmaphaeri seawater. That's why everything here feels so... deep, even though we're standing on ground. Some of the tanks go almost eighty meters down. The pressure is absorbed by enchanted stabilizers around the frame."
She tilted her head, narrowing her eyes with a little smirk.
"You're enjoying this, aren't you?"
"Hm?"
"I mean... you, explaining this stuff like you're some kind of walking library. You've always been the brooding type. The 'I carry the weight of nations on my shoulders' type. I didn't expect this."
Vastarael paused then frowned slightly.
"I'm a Dynasty Monarch. People expect me to protect them, to lead them, yes but I also have to know things, especially when it comes to things as dangerous as the Asmaphaeri. Besides, I like the ocean. Always did. It feels... honest."
"Honest?"
"It hides nothing. It shows nothing. It just is. You either survive in it or you don't."
Narisva looked away briefly, her back toward the tank.
"That's kind of poetic in a depressing way."
"That's me."
"You know, you really do look good when you talk about things that matter to you."
"Are you saying I don't look good otherwise?"
"I'm saying you look better."
He rolled his eyes, the beginnings of a blush touching his ears.
They continued walking, his voice occasionally rising to tell her about other species, about aquaculture, about the fields that allow the leviathans to feel like they're in the open ocean.
But Narisva wasn't listening to all of it.
Half the time, her eyes were on him, her mind quietly absorbing the way he moved, the way his expression shifted when he spoke about things he truly understood. He wasn't just a warrior or a king. He was a man carved by knowledge and duty, shaped by years of burdens and a need to protect others no matter what it cost him. She didn't interrupt him when he spoke but she memorized every word.
-------
The deeper they walked into the Aquatunnel, the quieter the world became. The ambient hum of the arcane machines, the murmuring of water passing through containment seals and the gentle awe of tourists lowered into silence as the pair reached what was arguably the crown jewel of the entire facility.
The Great View Tunnel.
It was massive, nearly half a kilometer long, suspended inside the largest aquatic chamber ever built. The tunnel itself was entirely transparent, made of enchanted glass reinforced with a lot of protective spell lattices. Around it flowed an entire ecosystem: deep-sea coral forests, abyssal trenches reconstructed with ancient Hydroborn enchantments and miles of open water where the rarest creatures known to Spheraphase swam.
A crowd had already gathered in anticipation.
Dozens of families, couples, tourists from other continents, even scholars in traditional robes were here. Some had been waiting for hours, others days, just for a glimpse of one singular creature.
Vastarael already knew.
He gently guided Narisva toward the railing at the center of the tunnel near a projection crystal that tracked motion within the tank.
"They're waiting for her."
"Her?"
Narisva asked, eyes darting around the open waters.
"The Multicolored Whale. The last of her kind or at least, she was. When I came here last, she was still alone. But my mother told me that the Hydroborn managed to find a male. He was a rogue deep-dweller, apparently. He was damaged and almost feral but the Hydroborn healed him and brought him to her."
He paused, voice carrying a note of childlike hope.
"By now, she should have given birth to kids."
Narisva turned to look at him. Vastarael was usually composed, strategic, sometimes distant in the way only a monarch could be. But right now? He was smiling like a boy who'd just been told his favorite story came true.
A soft beep echoed from the projection crystal and the tunnel lights subtly dimmed.
Everyone hushed.
From the furthest part of the viewing field, a silhouette began to emerge. It shimmered literally under the artificial bioluminescence of the dome. Its body was massive, bigger than any creature Narisva had ever seen, easily 120 meters long. It didn't swim so much as it glided, drifting like a gentle god across the sea. Its skin wasn't one color, but all of them.
The Multicolored Whale's body pulsed with hues of amethyst purple, ocean teal, aurora pink, sun-gold, moon-silver, emerald green and others. The colors didn't shift randomly. They flowed together. Beside her was another slightly smaller whale, almost black in comparison, with streaks of blue, green and maroon. Clearly the male.
Then came the sound.
A soft, mournful note reverberated through the water, broadcasted into the tunnel via spell-translation. Tiny flashes darted from behind them.
Little whales, about five of them, no more than three meters long, their colors still shifting and trying to settle. Their movements were clumsy and playful, circling their parents, chasing bubbles, diving and resurfacing.
The crowd gasped in awe. Some even cried. Narisva stood utterly still.
Her eyes shimmered with reflected color. The pure majesty of what she was witnessing was the harmony of an extinct species returned. The joy of a mother and father gliding through the deep with their children left her breathless.
"It's... beautiful."
"Yeah, That's Bubbles."
"Wait. What?"
He chuckled, his hands in his pockets. "Her name's Bubbles. That's what the Hydroborn called her when they saved her."
Narisva turned slowly, an incredulous smirk forming.
"Bubbles? The glowing celestial whale of the deep, the only one of her kind, this ocean's ancient creature, is named Bubbles?"
"She was almost eaten by a beast when they found her. They carried her to their sanctuaries, fed her, healed her and sang to her. And when she blew a massive bubble one day while playing, one of the kids just said it. 'Bubbles.' It stuck."
Narisva laughed softly, still smiling as she turned back to the whales.
"That's adorable. And ridiculous."
"It's fitting. She didn't have a name before then. And she responded to it. That's all that matters."
They watched in silence again as the male whale wrapped himself protectively around the little ones. Bubbles released a high-pitched hum, something like a laugh. Vastarael smiled softly.
Narisva looked back at him.
"You know all this? From just one visit?"
"Well, also because I keep track of her. I've been sending resources and aid to the Aquatunnel personnel to maintain this section since I became Dynasty Monarch. Bubbles was one of the few things that made me feel hopeful when I was younger."
."You loved her."
"I still do. Watching her survive despite everything reminded me that maybe there's still hope for things that are forgotten."
Narisva was quiet again.
"You said earlier she gave birth. But don't fish lay eggs?"
"Whales can't lay eggs. They give birth like we do. I'm surprised you didn't know this. This is basic information. I was taught a lot of things, but biology was not my strong suit."
"Whales give birth. Anyway, let's go. Time for some food."