Out Of His Depth

Seeking adventure, Ben got more than he’d bargained for

299 words

Ben swatted a mosquito, the blood on his arm gave him a modicum of pleasure, yet knew the death of a single blood-sucking insect was futile as the familiar high pitched sounds of its friends whistled around his ear.

His position, standing ankle deep in crocodile-infested waters, casting a net for the bait fish required for the next fishing trip, was foolhardy, yet as the newest and youngest member of Macca’s Barra Fishing Camp he’d drawn the short straw.

Pushing back his broad-brimmed hat from his forehead, he wiped the sweat stinging his eyes.

Christ, the humidity is killing me.

His thoughts returned, as they did daily, of his father’s advice to finish school before seeking adventure.

I should have listened to the old man.

Ben dragged in the net, but it was empty. He knew it was useless returning to the camp empty handed, so he cast again, this time stepping deeper into the murky water.

He was well aware the bank he stood on dropped away suddenly, as before choosing this spot on the river he’d tested the depth with a stick.

Macca, a bush-hardened Australian, who had been running Baramundi fishing camps for years, employed young guys seeking a bit of excitement but played fast and loose with safety rules.

“You’ll be right mate, just keep your eyes skinned for crocs,” they were the only safety instructions seventeen- year-old Ben had been given.

Keeping a grip on to the net with one hand he bent to retrieve his water flask from the muddy bank with the other. He never knew what hit him, when in the blink of an eye an ancient battle-scarred crocodile leaped from the murk, grasping Ben in his massive jaws before taking him in a death roll back under the murky water.



Prompt: Write a story that includes the words: blink, net, stick

Written for: "Daily Flash Fiction Challenge"