Light the Way for Suiko!

Twilight dwindled to the comforting darkness of the night, to which the life that resided in it shifted. The cycle of the sea's life ebbed and flowed much like the eddies and currents that churned the seas. What once lived had fell into a deep sleep, and what once slept came to life. The miasma of plankton which had drifted through the waters had begun to spark, and flicker. In an instant, a light had flashed and quickly died down, but did not fully fade away. It hovered below, in the depths. An angling lure, for those who would be so brave to reach for it.

Through a crack in some coral, the light pulsed; shining and casting a shadow along the walls. Sparkling. Effervescent, almost. It fizzled in the eyes of a Phosray named Suiko, softly trying to sleep through the night. Unfortunately, this light would prevent his slumber. An unintelligible babble came from his lips, and tiny bubbles erupted from his mouth unceremoniously. He crawled and caught the water under his wings, flapping to investigate the light. After confirming that it wasn't dangerous, he turned his head to where he thought it was coming from. Suiko wondered it this was the birth of another Phosray, but then that thought was rationalised into oblivion. Phosrays don't give off that sort of light for that long. The idea drifted into nonexistence, washing away into sea foam.

Suiko held his tail in front of him as his guiding star through the darkness, he began to descend into the abyss. Deeper and deeper, darker and darker. A horrible tightness had begun to press on his chest. Perhaps it was the increasing water pressure, which squashed him smaller and smaller... or maybe it was that crushing feeling of anxiety. Without his guiding light, perhaps he would be swallowed whole in the darkness, and never be heard of again. A quiet death, that would spell his second end. What would happen after that? Would it be a true nonexistence, which provided no comfort, no love, no ability to think... ever again? Maybe he would think, or maybe... maybe...

Suiko's eyes forced themselves shut, and he floated motionlessly in the darkness. He hugged his guiding light so tight he feared it might crush itself. He would much rather be annihilated like that, than to melt away painfully in the belly of an incomprehensibly large beast.

But then, a light more powerful than his own had begun to shine, and through his eyelids, he noticed. The water sloshed around him, and whisked him around in a way which he was powerless to prevent. In the chaos, he bounded against a large, scaly creature.

"Awawawawawa! This is the end!" He cried, hoping that maybe, just maybe, it would stall his demise for a little bit longer...

But that end never came. The sea became calm, and Suiko floated idly beside this light.

Courage had finally given way, and opening his eyes, the picture was unclear initially. However, as his eyes adjusted, he began to interpret meaning. A whale was drifting along with him, sparkling with little flecks of light in the darkness. He was stuck inside its currents, and although he was powerless to do anything, he felt safe. Protected. It was as if this large animal was there to keep him safe, and sound.

The darkness felt warm, with his guardian traversing it. It lit up brighter than the sun on a clear day, or the lighthouse on the coast, but it wasn't a painful light, or an aggressive one. The light didn't demand anything of Suiko. It wanted to exist just as much as he did, and be content with its existence.

Had it been hours, or minutes? The Phosray couldn't decide. They drifted on through the abyss, lighting the way for all the nocturnal life. Colours, masqueraded by the darkness had came to life. Sleeping corals had woken and flashed their vibrant shades, before taking their bows and dying down.

Slowly, but noticeably, the current stopped, and Suiko began to fall back into the depths. The light of the creature was fading, and when he touched ground with his home cave, it was nearly invisible, blending in with the light of morning.

"W-wait!" Suiko called out to the beast, holding his cap along his chest. "Where are you going?"

But it was much too far away, and Suiko was much too quiet.

Yet... somehow, Suiko knew that... it was going to all be okay.