Michael Bray - Feed

‘What are you doing? Speed up,’ Tyler said. He stared at Benton and saw fear.

‘We lost the engine. Snagged a rock too close to the surface and ripped the propeller straight off. We’re stranded.’ They both watched as the Megalodon closed in on them.

They had come to rest, much like Carrington on a rock plateau. It began just a foot below the waterline. The boat was light enough to stay on the surface of the water and was drifting dangerously close to the deeper waters surrounding the plateau. Benton scrambled to reach under one of the seats and tossed Tyler a paddle. ‘Here, you take that side.’

‘And paddle out of here? It’s impossible.’

Benton scowled at him. ‘That’s not to paddle out of here; it’s to keep us on this rock platform and out of the deep waters.’

The Megalodon circled, lifting its head out of the water and staring at them in the boat, yet knew it couldn’t come closer. It rushed the platform, turning away at the last second, sending a wake crashing over the rock plateau and driving the Zodiac away from safety to deeper waters.

‘Paddle, paddle now,’ Benton screamed.

He didn’t need to be told twice. He knew the implications if they drifted into deeper waters. He paddled, using the little energy he had left as the wake washed them perilously close to the edge. The Megalodon swam to the rear of the rock, waiting for them to enter the area where it could get them. Somehow, Benton and Tyler managed to keep within the confines of the shallows. Benton was breathing heavily; Tyler was exhausted. He had nothing left to give.

‘Catch your breath,’ Benton said. ‘He’s going to try again.’

They watched as the Megalodon swam away, then came back at them, its speed terrifying. It surfaced and turned away, sending another huge wake rolling towards them.

This time, they were prepared and paddled into it, the Zodiac lurching up over the wave but still being dragged back; this time, they didn’t stay within the confines of safety, and were pushed over the edge into the deeper water.

‘Paddle, paddle with everything you have,’ Benton said, furiously pulling water with the small black paddle.

Tyler followed suit, aware how sluggish he was, how little strength he had left. He was starting to feel dizzy, the lack of food and the trauma of the last few days finally making his body give up the fight. Neither of them dare look but could sense the Megalodon approaching. A flash of colour from the left and Tyler was sure their luck had run out, but they had done just enough to get back above the shallow rock and out of the reach of the Megalodon. Its jaws snapped down on open water. It lurched away again, soaking them both as it spun away, ready to charge again.

Tyler collapsed onto all fours at the front of the Zodiac. He was done. He couldn’t even lift his head.

‘Stay with me,’ Benton said. ‘He’s coming around again. You hear me? You have to do this or we’re both dead. Pick up that paddle.’

Tyler understood the implications, and desperately wanted to comply, it was just that his body refused to cooperate.

‘Come on. Here it comes,’ Benton shouted.

Tyler managed to push himself up, the world spinning and lurching. He reached out for the paddle, seeing double and picked it up. He leaned over the side, then dropped it, the paddle bobbing by the side of the Zodiac.

‘Here it comes,’ Benton said.

Tyler didn’t even see it. He felt the boat pushed back, off the safety of their platform, completing a lazy circle as the wake pushed them into open water. He could still see the paddle. It was thirty feet away and drifting in the other direction. Benton realised it was over and tossed his paddle into the bottom of the Zodiac.

‘I’m sorry,’ Tyler slurred as black spots started to dance in front of his eyes. He was grateful that he would at least pass out before he was devoured. Benton knelt next to him, watching the giant fin come closer and knowing there was no escape. Not now. They closed their eyes and waited for the end.

Nothing happened.

Benton looked around, confused. Tyler saw it too, ignoring the nausea. He watched as the Megalodon raced off towards the rock island.

‘Who the hell is that?’ Benton said.

Tyler didn’t answer. Couldn’t answer. He was too exhausted. He could only watch, unsure if what he was seeing was real or an illusion.

Liam knew what he had to do. He had asked for a sign and watching the Megalodon’s assault had made it clear. He was starting to understand that what he had done was wrong. Even the voice in his head which he had so relied on to guide him was silent and had left him. There was only one thing left that could possibly make things right. Liam dragged his father’s bloated corpse towards the water and pulled him in. The corpse floated, the buildup of gases making it naturally buoyant. He waded out, pushing his father ahead of him, knowing this was the only way he would find peace and silence the voices in his head. He went as far as he could walk and stopped. He leaned close and kissed the bloated, blue purple cheek of his father, realising only then that he was crying.

‘I’m sorry,’ he said, ruffling his father’s hair. He watched as the Megalodon charged at the rock outcrop and managed this time to wash the boat into deeper waters. He knew there was no time to waste. He took the scalpel and plunged it into his father stomach, the nauseating stench as trapped gases erupted hardly bothering him. He sliced across the slippery flesh of the gut, pulling open the stomach then flipping the body over onto its front so the rotten contents spilled out into the ocean. When it was done, he took the blade and cut himself, slicing across the same path, mixing hot, fresh blood with the putrid mess in the water before dropping the knife into the water and waited.

The Megalodon was closing in on its prey when it detected the new and incredibly intoxicating signals in the water. Driven by hunger after expending so much energy chasing the Zodiac, it veered off, recognising the putrid smell of flesh as a dead or dying animal and an easy meal. It accelerated, the lust to feed overtaking anything else, even the danger presented by the shallows. Infuriated and determined not to miss another kill, the Megalodon closed on the kill, opening its mammoth jaws wide.

Liam saw it coming and ducked over his father, clutching onto his body as hot darkness engulfed him. He didn’t feel any pain as the Megalodon’s massive jaws crushed them both in a volatile explosion of blood and bone. The Megalodon’s momentum drove it up onto the shallow ledge surrounding the island, almost its entire body coming out of the water. For a moment, it didn’t care. It devoured its prize, shaking its mammoth head back and forth as it fed and turning the surrounding water into a bloody froth. Carrington had seen it happen, having swum out through the broken wheelhouse window. He was now at the Zodiac and was pulled onboard by Benton. The three sat there, watching the immense shark thrash, its enormous body becoming more stuck as it struggled.

‘Jesus,’ Carrington whispered as they drifted back towards the island. Benton paddled, making sure they were clear of the furious animal.

‘It’s shallow enough to walk here,’ Tyler said. They hopped out of the Zodiac and dragged it back on the rock island, a place Tyler never wanted to see again. The trio stood in silence, watching the power or one of nature’s most dominant creatures. Out of the water, the scars on its skin were more apparent. A map of the harsh life it had endured.

‘He’s an old one. He wears a lot of scars,’ Benton said.

The comment made Tyler think of Nash, and a wave of sadness swept over him. ‘Yeah, he is,’ he replied.