Scorpion Gulch by Cheetah Onyx (f, clay, grim) It's tough to work on a day like today. The Arizona sun was absolutely unforgiving. Brandy crawled around the canyon in her ultra white sun reflective shorts complete with matching top. Her silky long black hair dripped down her back. Wiping a fresh coat of sweat from her brow the freshly trained scorpion wrangler thought it would be better to position herself on all fours in order to search every inch and every crevice. "Damn it! I was hoping I could at least snag a couple before I had to go back to base." Brandy's frustration began to grow as the morning grew into noon and she had yet to catch one scorpion. She took deep swallows out of her precious water jug that had already been drank past to pre determined limit. It was well known that the last thing you ever wanted in the middle of a North American Desert was an empty water container. Time was of the essence and Brandy's patience was nearing the breaking point. It was at that exact moment a blossoming thought came to her mind. A small smiled eased its way on her face as she thought more of what she was going to do. She would invade the gulch. This wasn't going to be easy Brandy thought, as she leaned over Scorpion Canyon. Somehow she was going to avoid all of the quicksand patches scattered around the gulch. She would have to go deep within the belly of the canyon for her prey. She knew absolutely no one would be around especially now considering that it was now twelve noon exactly. The sun would be at it's most brutal. Climbing down the Canyon wall proved to be a hefty task. Brandy was an excellent climber but with this heat every muscle craved for just the slightest break. Finally in the heart of the gulch Brandy's heart exploded with joy as she saw all the beautiful arachnids scattering about on the hot gulch floor. Being extremely careful as she crawled around on the hot sandy floor, her day's work almost instantly became one of complete fulfillment rather then extreme disappointment. She had already rounded up more then twenty scorpions and they seemed to be bountiful. She wondered why the gulch was forbidden considering the sheer concentration of her venom filled little friends. Life was good Brandy thought, she had rounded up over forty scorpions and her bag was near the bursting point. Out of the corner of her eye she caught something that was to good to pass up. Two Gigantic King Sand Scorpions. "Oh my God! If I could get those two Mike will pay me a fortune!" Brandy focused her eyes on her target. Her body hugged the canyon wall as she made her way closer to her prize. As she continued she hadn't noticed that her boots were sinking in deeper with each step. She was a mere foot away from her catch when she realized she was up to her knees in a smooth creamy peanut butter colored clay. A chill went down her spine. She was so focused on her prey that she didn't take into account all the precautions of a Scorpion Wrangler. Her thoughts swam as she pumped both legs trying to establish any traction, there was none. "Shit, oh Shit! God, help me!" Going through the training to be a wrangler they had always given you lessons on how to avoid clay pits and quicksand, it's a whole different story when you are shin deep in it. Your natural instinct draws on your will to survive which then escalates to panic. Brandy's body was very well toned, her calves were huge for a woman, frighteningly powerful. Her hips pumped and pushed as the mud gently yet greedily sucked her in. Up to her waist now in the sticky ooze an even more disturbing thought became a fact when she saw where and how her scorpion sack dropped. It was right in front of her with the sack opening as wide open as it can be. Her eyes widened and nearly exploded from their sockets when she saw the now liberated scorpions scattering from their prison. Panic took over, Brandy had resisted the strong urge to try to push her way out of the pit. Now she had just made a terrible mistake of placing both hands underneath the mud in a vain attempt to push herself free. She was now waist deep with forty of her now free captives heading for her. Salty tears streamed down Brandy's face and unto her lips as she the awful scene played out before her. She realized that the scorpions had little to no effort in walking through the mud and toward her. She was completely helpless with a nightmare unfolding before her. "HELP! Somebody! Anybody! Help me please!" Her screams echoed of the canyon walls and melted into the air. Scorpion number one made strong strides as it gripped Brandy's blouse to pull himself up and within the blouse. It's stinger was sharp and meaningful. It soon had company in the form of his brothers and sisters. Brandy's eyes were blood shot from crying and the pain she felt was now excruciating. The scorpions were all over her now, biting and stinging her helpless form in an almost vindictive fashion. Brandy's moans were to no avail. She had determined that she had now somehow stumbled into hell. As the mud sucked her deeper within it's mouth she found that the scorpions playfully tortured the areas they could. Hanging from her lips, stinging her cheeks. They seem to take a form of joy with playing with their human toy. Brandy's voice was a mere whisper. Her begging them to stop was all she could do. She was dehydrated and being pumped full of scorpion venom. It was all she could do and as she begged she couldn't help but feel that tinge of humiliation at her plight. "Please, please! Stop! *cough* Please!" During the pleading she noticed that she was now up to her neck and that there was little hope. The scorpions had nestled all over her face casually stinging her nose and cheeks at their leisure. Brandy had to open and blink her eyes to get a good look at the two King Scorpions that were now in striking range and strike they did. Each chose a cheek and whipped out two tails that stung in every way. Both cheeks already sporting multiple pricks had now a couple more. They were gargantuan in retrospect to the others. "AAH! OOH!" The mud decided to be merciful and dragged a now glaze-eyed Brandy into its stomach, taking a couple of Brandy's companions with her as it glooped and slurped its latest meal. She now knew why the gulch was forbidden, as her last breath was mud instead of oxygen.