Vishnu Sharma | India
The Heron and the Crab
An old heron tricks pond creatures into becoming his food, but a wise crab discovers his deceit and saves his friends.
Once upon a time, in a dense forest, there was a big pond. Many fishes, frogs, and crabs lived in it. There was also an old heron who found it hard to catch food because he was so old.
One day, the heron had a tricky idea. He acted very sad and stayed at the side of the pond, not trying to catch any fish.
Seeing this, a fish asked, "Why are you not eating as usual? You look very sad."
The heron said, "I heard people talking about emptying this pond to grow their crops. I'm worried we will all lose our home and die. I'm too old to find a new home."
The news scared all the pond creatures. They went to the heron and asked, "What can we do?"
The heron told them about a safe pond deep in the forest. But, he said he was too weak to help them get there.
The scared creatures begged for his help. The heron agreed but said he could only carry a few each day. Every day, he would take some fish to a so-called safe pond. But he would really take them to a rock and eat them.
This way, the old heron could get his food easily. The number of creatures in the pond started to get smaller.
One smart old crab saw that no one ever came back from the new pond. So, when it was his turn, he wanted to see what was really happening.
The heron flew over the rock with the crab in his mouth. The crab saw the bones of his friends. He knew the heron was tricking them. He used his strong claws to cut off the heron's head, saving himself and getting justice for his friends.
After killing the heron, the crab went back to the pond and told everyone about the heron's trick. After that, the remaining fishes and frogs lived without fear.
