He was walking through the African grass, its yellow strings clinging to him as he walked. It had rained the night before, a film of dew covering each blade. The sun had just come up, the scenery almost like a painting with its bright yellows and oranges that peeked through the trees. He was sent to fetch the plow and rake for a day of farming. The shed was old and rickety, vines and moss growing on the walls. His good friend, a native, warned them to be cautious around any sort of wildlife, as the animal could turn in a second. He promptly ignored the warning and stormed into the shed in ignorant determination to please his host. The room was dim, and the only light source was from the holes in the wall facing the sunrise. Dust particles floated around in the air as he stepped toward the pile of farming tools.

his hand was almost touching the rake when he felt a prick.

and then another,

and then another.

he looked down to see an inky black mouth and two large fangs.

a snake.

Before it could bite once more, he ran from the shed and slammed the door. He looked down at their hand, a tingling sensation around each bite. Small trickles of blood dripped down his hand as he realized how much trouble he was in. His friend had told them about the infamous black mamba once before, and how anyone who was bit in his village died because of 1 bite. he had 5.

10 minutes pass

he still didn’t know what to do. Out of shock, he had stumbled into the forest outside the little farm. The trees had uprooted a majority of the ground, causing him to trip over himself.

He started to taste metal. Cursing to himself, he kept walking through the woods. He knew going to a hospital was an impossibility because it was 56 minutes away. The village had no access to it without driving a car. He could feel his eyelids droop down as he could barely keep them open. Spit dribbled down his chin as he desperately tried to stay on his feet. He could barely see, his eyes blurry and barely able to comprehend the environment around him. He saw a small figure approach him. He noticed it become bigger and bigger as it came closer. It’s trunk blew, and before he knew it, he was sprinting away from an elephant. He had no idea if it was a real elephant or not, because of the blurry vison and fact that he was feeling dizzy. He fell over, wheezing in pain.

He closed his eyes, trying to think of something positive while he slowly was whisked away from his consciousness. He felt a soft flickering on his face. He opened his eyes to see a butterfly before him. He smiled, chuckling to himself as he fell asleep.

“You know, I always thought I would die peacefully.”