Little pirate Marco lived on a ship with a red sail. He dreamed of finding real treasure—a big chest full of gold coins!
One morning, Marco saw something shiny in the water. He grabbed his telescope and spotted an old chest on the seabed.
"Hooray! Treasure!" he shouted, and jumped into the waves.
Marco dove deep, deep down. The chest lay among colorful corals. But next to it sat a tiny dolphin with a red ribbon on its fin. The dolphin was shivering and crying softly.
"What's wrong?" asked Marco.
"The ribbon got tangled in a ship," came the reply through tears. "I pulled, and it fell down here with the chest. Now I can't reach it…"
Marco looked at the chest, then at the dolphin. The ribbon was really stuck under the heavy iron.
"I'll help!" said the little pirate.
He pushed the heavy chest aside. The dolphin grabbed the ribbon and spun around happily in the water.
"Thank you! I'm Fisha. And you?"
"Marco. I'm a pirate."
"A real one? Cool!" Fisha beamed. "Want me to show you a cave with starfish? They glow at night!"
Marco glanced at the chest. He had searched for treasure for so long… But the dolphin's eyes sparkled with joy.
"Let's go!" the boy smiled.
Fisha led Marco to a magical cave. On the walls twinkled hundreds of stars, like a real sky underwater. They swam together, played hide-and-seek among the corals, and the dolphin told funny stories about seahorses.
When Marco surfaced, the sun was setting.
"Come back tomorrow!" called Fisha from the waves.
"I promise!" said the little pirate.
On the ship's deck, Marco looked at the stars. He never opened the chest. It still lay on the seabed. Maybe it held gold, maybe nothing.
But the boy smiled. Tomorrow Fisha would be waiting for him by the corals. They would search for the lost crown of the sea king, or goof around among the butterfly fish.
Marco closed his eyes and fell asleep to the soft whisper of the waves. The red sail swayed in the wind, and the moon lit up the peaceful sea.