Chapter 7
An unforeseeable danger of incomprehensible proportions, fastly approaches the den, the nest of the little ghost shrimp family.
The threat level is beyond comprehensible; the beast weighing over 25 kilograms (55 pounds), with its height and the length of its body over a meter tall. It carries a large boulder-sized rocky seash.e.l.l on its back.
The red sea horse conch snail slowly slivers on the ocean seabed, sweeping away a flurry of sand in its path, as its large muscular foot contracts and expands, enabling it to move forward.
The red sea horse conch snail is travelling at a slow break neck paste, allowing for the many ghost shrimps that currently remained in the nest, to gauge the faint outline of a large ominous shadow approaching their nest.
'Leader! Something big is fastly approaching our nest! It seems too big to be normal. What do we do.' One of the surrounding ghost shrimp screams, alerting the other ghost shrimps within the facility.
'It's impossible to tell whether or not we can handle the creature... Go and inform the members of our group, wake them up if you have to, we're leaving.' The leader of the group, the strongest and biggest one out of the group, issued a direct command to his underlings.
'What about the others. Those that are not part of our group, should we wake them up, and inform them as well?' One of the ghost shrimp commented.
The leader of the group frowns, and issued a direct response, feeling obligated to give a firm stance relative to his position of power.
'We are not obligated to take care of others like they are not obligated to take care of our wellbeing. Even if we are related by blood, if they are not in our group, then they are strangers. Why should we care for strangers? So who would look out for us if we're not careful, only ourselves...' The leader said, emanating an aura of indifference, which attracts the attention of his many followers.
'Now do as what I've just said!' The leader issued a command.
'Yes, sir!' His many followers immediately responded.
They went out scowling across the ocean seabed, within the facility of their nest, following their leader's direct command. They began waking up their sleeping companions, gathering into large teams and is then prepared to leave their nest. Their once so-called safe haven, home, and paradise.
'Let's leave before the creature catches up to us. We use the others as cannon fodder to buy us some time to escape. Our survival is the number one priority do you understand.' The leader said.
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'Yes, sir!' His followers responded.
The leader and his group immediately fled the facility of the nest, leaving the rest of its brethren behind to act as cannon fodder, to buy them time for their escape.
Meanwhile, the other great leaders, each leading their own individual group of ghost
'I a.s.sure you guys know why we gathering here, at this point in time, in the middle of the night.' One of the great ghost shrimp leaders spoke, starting off the conference of the strongest, in the ghost shrimp family.
'It's about that large in posing figure that is approaching in our direction, am I correct?' Another great ghost shrimp leader spoke up.
'Yes, that is correct.' The previous great ghost shrimp leader responded.
'What is there to worry about, it's just one measly enemy. I'm sure we can easily kill it, by greatly outnumbering it with our large numbers. Even if it is strong and large, its stamina and health are not endless. I'm sure that we are able to slowly whittled down its health, stamina, and defences until we can eventually kill it ourselves.' Another great ghost shrimp leader decided to spoke up, in an arrogant tone with pride and arrogance.
Some of the other great ghost shrimp leaders look displeased at his response. However, the vast majority of individual group leaders would agree with his point of view.
'I disagree! We should fight a battle that we stood and should have a fair chance of surviving. Not a losing battle which results in great heavy loses. I and my group will not partic.i.p.ate in this affair.' One of the smarter ones out of the great ghost shrimp leaders spoke up.
'Me neither.' 'Our group won't partic.i.p.ate as well.'
Almost like a ripple in an ocean, which creates more rippling waves, as they grow in intensity; more groups are beginning to show great disapproval for the plan.
'Fine! You guys can leave if you want to, but you will be branded as cowards. Failures! Who escaped at the first sign of a strong enemy.' The great ghost shrimp who, who spoke of the plan, shouted at the other cowardly great ghost shrimp leaders.
'If it is just a chance to survive and live another day, then I would greatly accept it. Being branded a coward is a lot better than dying a dogs death as cannon fodder.' The great ghost shrimp leader said as they left the conference, to go into hiding.
'Leave, you cowards! Let's just forget about them and proceed on with the plan.' The great ghost leader said, as they all came to the same decision, and decided to fight the battle against the red sea horse conch snail.
An hour pa.s.ses by, as the gigantic red sea horse conch snail, reaches its destination. It steps foot, outside the boundary of the ghost shrimp nest, when a ma.s.sive army of hundreds of little ghost shrimp gathers. Launching consecutive attacks on the large red sea horse conch snail.
The red sea horse conch snail shrugged it off, as the numerous p.r.i.c.kling needle-like legs felt like nothing to it, it didn't pierce through its large fortress castle-like sh.e.l.l. Meanwhile, the thick harden blubber of flesh and muscles in its muscular foot, helps it insulate and protect it from external outside damages.
The red sea horse conch snail has a large cone-shaped mouth, in the front, attached to its body, instead of the usual singular head with eyes on top.
It opens up its mouth, by sliding down it thick hardens skin, revealing four proboscis long spear-like tubes.
The four proboscis tubes act like feelers, utilizing it to get a feel of the enemy. When the long proboscis-like tube touches the body of a nearby little ghost shrimp, it's hidden mechanism activates, as a thin bone-like needle is shot out, stabbing the little ghost shrimp.
The little ghost shrimp would then become paralyzed, as the thin bone-like needle injects a small dosage of strong paralysitic toxins. Temporary knocking out its opponent, or render them incapable of escape.
The paralysed little ghost shrimp remains stationary and frozen, as its body and muscles are unmoving and unresponsive.
The spear-like hook that is attached to the little ghost shrimp body, then began to be reeled in at astonis.h.i.+ng speeds, pulling the paralyzed little ghost shrimp into the mouth of the red sea horse conch snail.
'No! Someone, please save me! I don't want to die!' The little ghost shrimp cried, but it was already too late.
The paralyzed little ghost shrimp was swallowed whole, as the pressure of the red sea horse conch snail, crushed the body of the little ghost shrimp, immediately killing it.
Many of the ghost shrimp look up in horror, as they all saw one of its brethren being killed, right before their very eyes.
This filled them with an unimaginable sense of terror and fear. At the same time, anger and rage, for their brother being killed in battle. However, this could hardly be called a battle, as it's a one-sided slaughter.
The red sea horse conch snail continued the one-sided slaughter into the night, killing more than two-thirds of the total ghost shrimp population remaining in the nest.
Meanwhile, I was still sleeping soundly in the forest of vibrant peach soft coral reefs, unaware of what was going on. The ma.s.s killings, genocidal slaughter of my own brethrens.