Sam and Eric make their way to the top of the mountain during the night so they can watch the fire. It is the early morning and the darkness around them makes it easy for the brain to distort the trees and surrounding images. Upon their arrival to the top of the mountain, the boys become frightened by what they believe to be an ape-like beast before them. In reality, the boys are seeing the parachutist that is stuck in the tree, but Sam and Eric's vision is distorted by the lack of light.
Sam and Eric quickly retreat from the mountain and awaken Ralph in a terrified frenzy. Ralph, the chief of the boys, decides to hold a meeting to address the new sighting of the beast. Sam and Eric take turns describing the scary image of the beast, each comment scaring the other boys more. Despite the frightened group, Jack proposes the idea to go hunting for the beast, something that Ralph initially views as preposterous, but eventually agrees to.
The decision to hunt the beast becomes agreed upon and the group sets off on the expedition, leaving the littluns with Piggy behind on the beach. The boys explore the island in search of the dreaded creature, eventually coming to unfamiliar land where the boys believe the beast may be. Ralph, the head of the group, decides that he must be the one to go and check out the cave ahead of them, in order to protect the other boys and prove his authority. Jack had been taunting him all morning by making fun of his fright of the beast and Ralph wanted to prove that he was a worthy leader.
The boys eventually stop hiding and begin to roam. They become easily distracted, with Jack even claiming that he wanted to make the cave his fort. The boys begin to argue with Ralph, whose primary focus is on returning to the top of the mountain to keep the signal fire burning. The rest of the boys want to lay around and play at the beach or eat fruit, but Ralph is more task oriented. In the end, Ralph convinces the boys, begrudgingly, to join him so they can continue to have a signal for rescue.