Under The Crescent Moon

• Lauren Preedy, Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2009

The crescent moon reflected upon the water at Waterfall beach bathing it in an eerie glow. A gentle wind tugged at the thin grass showering the dirt with its seeds. The fire flickered in the camp site at the head of the beach. People were camped there. Their tents strung along the beach in a scraggly fashion. The adults were telling their stories around the fire and having their evening drink. Children danced barefoot in the moonlight pretending to be warriors and dancing to the sound of the rushing waterfall. Laughter rang out as two small children and their mother walked toward the water, torch in hand in search of their boat in the shallows with their brother and father aboard it. The torch’s light toyed with the shadows along the horizon like some children’s puppet show.
Evil red eyes watched from the surface ready to attack the unexpected prey that lurked in its territory. Its powerful tail cut through the water like a sharp knife as it propelled itself toward the boat where a man was washing a small boy on the side. Screams echoed along the beach and everything fell deadly silent. Footsteps thudded along the sand back toward the beach. “Crocodile,” the shout pierced the night sky.
The men marched down the beach. The tide was on a dead low so the 100 metres between the beach and the thigh deep water to the boat seemed like forever for the men. Their hearts thudded and their veins pulsed with adrenalin and sickening excitement. They loaded their guns bravely and readied themselves. Their guns clenched tightly in their old weathered hands as they held them above their heads and waded toward the boat, a mixture of cold and fear chilling their spines. The crocodile submerged. The small boy huddled in the hull wrapped in a woollen blanket, his head in a pillow. He tried to block out the sound of the men wading through the water. They shook and glanced around wildly and hurried to reach the boat before the crocodile decided that it needed fresh meat. The boy waited for a scream but none came. They jumped aboard the boat whispering curses.
The crocodile reappeared it red eyes glinting against the torch light, shining like a lighthouse giving away its position to its enemies aboard the boat. It propelled itself closer again to the boat. Its tail and legs powerfully pulling it expertly through the water at top speed. A shot rang out but the crocodile still crept closer. It knew the men were just toying with it, merely trying to scare it away but nothing would stop it now. All of its killer instincts had kicked in and it was not going to give up this fight. The men loaded their guns again. The second shot pierced the smothering night and the crocodile sunk beneath the surface. The crescent moon’s reflection rippled on the surface of the sea and all was silent.