By a quiet pond lived an old stork. Once, he was a skilled hunter, but now he was too weak to catch fish. He grew worried. Then an idea struck—he decided to trick the pond creatures.
The stork stood sadly by the water, refusing to eat. When the fish and frogs asked him why, he sighed, “Oh dear friends, I heard this pond will soon dry up. I want to help you before it’s too late. Let me carry you to a safer pond.”
The creatures trusted him. Each day, a few let the stork carry them away. But instead of saving them, the wicked stork flew to a rock and gobbled them up.
One day, a crab asked to be carried. The stork, greedy as ever, agreed. But as they flew, the crab noticed bones scattered below. Suspicion grew in his heart. “Where is this pond you promised?” he asked.
The stork laughed cruelly, “Foolish crab, I’m going to eat you too!”
Quickly, the crab clamped his sharp claws around the stork’s neck. No matter how the stork flapped or cried, the crab held on tightly until the stork fell dead. The crab crawled safely back to the pond and told the truth to everyone.
From then on, the creatures trusted their own wit, not false promises.
Moral: Don’t trust blindly—cleverness can defeat trickery.