Lying at the bottom of the coral reef a Sea Cucumber breathed in, expanding its bulk. A long, slender fish darted out of its anus and began her daily hunt for small crustaceans to feed upon. The silvery little Pearlfish skulked close to the coral formations relying on the almost total invisibility of her transparent body to surprise her prey and to hide from predators.

It was nothing more than a shadow, one shadow in a world of shadows, a vague movement on the sea floor among the fans and branches of the coral forest, but the Pearlfish knew what it was. She eased close, her long body just another shadow, and hovered inches above the opening that she knew harbored a meal. She waited motionless for her chance to strike.

A tiny crab, just half an inch across its shell and no match for the six inch Pearlfish, was hiding under the arm of a coral fan The crab saw the fish lurking above and waited just out of reach.

The Pearlfish, her long slender body rippling like an eel, rose slightly, just above the crab's eye-level, and stopped, motionless and almost invisible.

The crab inched forward, his eyes moving about on their slender stalks searching for the fish. He stopped still protected inside the perimeter of the coral fan, and waited.

The Pearlfish watched, concentrating on his movements. She allowed her head to sink slightly and her tail to rise anticipating a quick surge to take the crab. Her eyes fixed on the colorful little crab as he waited under the protection of the coral arm. She saw the small white tentacles attached to his claws like a cheerleader's pom-pom, but paid no attention.

The crab kept his two large claws poised in front of him, at the ready, as if in a prize fighter's stance, and moved forward. The tentacles waved in the ocean current. A shadow darkened the ambient light as a large fish drifted by overhead. The crab inched a little farther out exposing just enough of its body.

Now!

In a lightning quick motion the Pearlfish struck. Instantly, the crab, Lybia Tessellata, jabbed the Pearlfish in the face, like a pugilist, with his pom-pom of Sea Anemones, thus earning his nickname, Boxer Crab. The poisonous Sea Anemone wrapped its deadly tentacles about the head of the Pearlfish and stung it repeatedly. Within seconds the Pearlfish quivered and died and sank to the ocean floor where the little Boxer Crab and his friend the Sea Anemone began to feast upon her body.

Want to comment on this Short Stories? Sign up to Edit Red and you will be able to comment on Short Stories and get access to: Upload your own stories and poems, get readers and their feedback, promote your work...