The most dangerous creature on the planet

It was a beautiful morning! The sky was a crystal blue as if a turquoise cloche covered the earth. The waters were serene except for an isolated wave every now and then. The best part of the sea for scuba diving they said. John slowly ambled his way to the edge of the boat, weighed in by the heavy scuba equipment. He had paid top dollar to get the best scuba dive organiser on the cape for this dive. He was accompanied by a guide from the dive organisers, a stocky fellow who looked like he did scuba diving from the moment he stepped out of high school, with a perpetual frown creasing his face. They eased themselves off the stern of the boat into the azure waters of the cape.

A half hour into the dive, John felt his muscles cramp a little, fruit of all the gallivanting and extra beer the previous night. He signalled to the guide that they need to head back. John was gauging the distance back to the boat when he felt a presence in the water next to him and that presence was definitely not the forever frowning guide; unless the guide knew how to swim at more than a forty kilometres per hour. Being a marine biologist, two words crossed his mind. Carcharodon Carcharias, or by the name that normal mortals know it by, the great white shark!  The boat was a good twenty metres away and John felt his muscles burn. It was not the beer or his lack of exercise this time, it was pure panic. John also realised that he was in the presence of one of the most dangerous creatures on the planet!

He swivelled around to spot the guide a few feet away, who was now gesturing for him to swim to the safety of the boat. So he aimed for the boat and swam with all the energy he could muster. The twenty meters started feeling like twenty miles and John wondered whether he was going to meet his death today. His knowledge of sharks didn’t help the situation. He knew that the great white didn’t have any natural predators and had gained the epithet of the Great White Death for good reason. It was responsible for the highest number of unprovoked attacks on humans. One of the most dangerous creatures on the planet!

When he got to a few metres of the boat, he decided to check on the guide. To his dismay John realised that the guide was no longer behind him! What was behind him though was a large murky shape the size of a minivan, a minivan that was approaching fast. The snout of a great white is very uncharacteristic of its reputation. It looks like the killer fish is approaching you with a bright wide smile with all its shiny teeth, to give you a hug. That is, until the teeth part and it bites your head off. The most dangerous creature on the planet! So John watched the shark rush towards him and along with it his imminent death. He was not a man of God, but at that moment he let out a cry for help to the Almighty. Then he shut his eyes and waited for his demise.

That was when he heard the sound, like the sound of metal hitting rubber. John slowly opened his eyes and realised that the azure clear waters around him were crimson red now. The great white which was going to make a meal of him was now drifting away from him, oozing blood with a harpoon pierced right through its head. He also felt a hand on his shoulder, the hand of the guide who had shot the shark dead. John felt an immense sense of relief and gratitude to the stocky guide with the perpetual frown. John also realised he was in the presence of the most dangerous creature on the planet!