The ravine narrowed as Gilbert swam deeper, its walls rising into tall, jagged cliffs of dark stone veined with threads of faint blue light. The water here felt different — heavier somehow, charged with quiet anticipation. Even the currents whispered in hushed swirls, as though this place held secrets that disliked being disturbed.
Still, Gilbert pressed forward.
He followed the faint shimmer he’d seen earlier, winding through tight bends until the walls suddenly opened into a wide basin. The sight made him freeze mid-stroke.
The basin glowed.
Not in a bright or obvious way, but like a dream remembered from long ago: soft pulses of light drifted across the rocky floor, weaving patterns through the sand. Strange plants with glassy leaves swayed in the slow current, each one releasing tiny flecks of luminescence that drifted upward like lazy stars.
Gilbert’s gills fluttered. “Whoa…”
He’d taken maybe three steps into the glowing basin when something small, fast, and squeaky slammed into him from the side.
“YEOW!”
Gilbert spun around in a puff of startled bubbles only to find… something hiding behind a rock. Something small. Something watching him with enormous, trembling eyes.
Gilbert blinked. “…Hello?”
Two tiny ears popped up. Then a quivery little head.
Then the rest of the creature.
It was round, very round, with a slightly bumpy teal body, tiny legs that looked too short for its enthusiasm, and a head that seemed to be 60% eyes and 40% startled expressions. Its tail swished so rapidly Gilbert worried it might launch the creature into orbit.
It let out a high-pitched chirp.
Gilbert waved awkwardly. “Um. I’m Gilbert.”
The creature stared. Blinked. Then burst into frantic squeaks and flops, scrambling in a tiny circle before accidentally smacking itself with its own tail and falling over.
“Oh no—are you okay?” Gilbert swam closer.
The creature hopped back to its feet, puffing up its chest as if pretending it hadn’t just made a complete fool of itself. With great dignity, it lifted a single stubby foot and tapped Gilbert on the forehead.
“Bip.”
Gilbert blinked again. “Is that… your name?”
The creature nodded proudly, then tapped its own chest. “Bip!”
“Well… nice to meet you, Bip.”
Bip chirped happily, bouncing in place. Its tail smacked a plant, which released a poof of glowing spores that drifted across its face, making Bip sneeze so hard it did a somersault.
Gilbert tried very hard not to laugh, but a few bubbles escaped anyway.
Bip marched right up to him, tapped on his cheek with one tiny foot, and made a very serious face, as serious as someone with giant eyes and zero coordination could look. Then it grabbed Gilbert’s fin and tugged.
“Bip! Bip-bip-bip!”
“You want me to follow you?”
Bip nodded vigorously and tugged harder. When Gilbert didn’t move fast enough, Bip climbed onto his head and pointed dramatically toward a narrow passage in the basin wall.
“I take it that’s a yes,” Gilbert said.
Bip squeaked triumphantly.
They swam through the passage, which wound upward like a spiraling well. As they reached the top, Gilbert realized why Bip was so insistent.
Spread before them was an overlook, a high ledge peering into a vast underwater valley carpeted in shimmering lights. Rivers of luminescent algae flowed like glowing streams, weaving between crystal-like rock formations. Strange silhouettes moved in the distance; fish with billowing, ribbon-like fins, drifting coral drakes, and tall kelp structures that glowed from within.
Gilbert’s heart flipped.
“Is this… part of the way to Lumina Lagoon?”
Bip nodded, though the creature looked far more excited about Gilbert’s reaction than the scenery itself. It flopped onto his shoulder, kicking its little legs in triumph.
Gilbert looked out across the radiant valley. The path ahead was long and winding. Mysterious creatures, hidden magic, and who-knew-what-else waited out there.
He swallowed, a flutter of nerves flickering in his chest — the kind Grandpa Axol’s memory stone was meant to soothe.
Bip noticed. The tiny creature patted Gilbert’s cheek with a soft squeak.
Gilbert smiled. “Okay. You can come with me. But no more running into me, okay?”
Bip nodded decisively… and immediately fell off his own perch with a squeaky thud.
Gilbert laughed for real this time.
Together, they looked out into the shimmering unknown.
“Alright,” Gilbert said. “Let’s find the Lost Lagoon of Lumina.”
Bip squeaked, struck a heroic pose, and promptly tripped over absolutely nothing.
But Gilbert didn’t mind.
Because every adventurer needs a companion — even one shaped like a panicked blueberry.
And somehow, Gilbert knew Bip wasn’t just tagging along.
He was exactly the sidekick this journey needed.