Chapter 56: Near-Death Experience (Again)

Ralph rolled and tripped head-over-paws down the little hill, scraping his chin, his legs, his back, and multiple other body parts on the hard and rough pavement of the road as he did. An occasional and painful ooh and ouch were heard as the dog clumsily stumbled his way down, banging and scatching his skin all along the way. The descend only last a few mere seconds, the hill was so little- but when falling face first down it like he was, it felt like a lifetime.

The poor, beat-up dog finally came to a skidding stop- on the already scraped up side of his face- and laid spawled out at the base of the hill for a quiet few seconds. The mutt then tried to stand shakily to his raw, aching paws, but his whole body and face was in too much pain to even lift his head up...

That was before, of course, he heard a familar sound of loud hissing and buzzing of large, terrifying wings hovering right behind where he laid.

Those terrifying sounds of the scorpion were somehow enough to numb all of Ralph's physical pain and he somehow had strength to stand. Peering over his shoulder and seeing the monsterous scorpion was looming and getting closer to him as it flew down the hill towards him, Ralph forced his body to bolt forward- and ran right into the strange fence that surrounded Sugar Russia city.

"Arg! Stupid fence!" Ralph hissed to himself outloud around the good dog collar, which he was able to still keep safely in his mouth despite his dramantic falling. He quickly and frantically tried find a way around the medium-sized fence, finding it was a lot taller than it had first appeared up on the hill.

Seeing the only way was to go over the top of the fence, Ralph backed up a little ways to get a running head start. Despite the sharp pain in his joints, he was able to spring up and somehow clear the top of the fence, his belly just razing the top of it.

After mastiff landed back on the ground was a loud clash, he stumbled over his large feet once more before sprinting forward down the road...the scorpion staying right behind him the whole time.

Ralph darted this way and that, the bright lights from the streets poles able to illuminate just where he was running. He zig-zaged up the sidewalks then back on the road again, passing shop after shop. As he raced, Ralph fantically looking for a place of refuge- well, a place large enough for him to fit, but not for the scorpion.

The scorpion seemed to read the canine's mind, flying itself in a zig-zag pattren as well in order to keep up with the dog. It flew on its' sides to fit in between the shops and the light poles like a graceful, yet huge, scary, and deadly dancer.

Once on the road again, the creature suddenly darted downwards, aiming it's mechete like tail right at Ralph's back. The mastiff was able to dart out of the way just in time, causing the scorpion to crash hard into the pavement.

It struck with such a force that caused the road to crack under the tails' pressure...causing the scorpion to get its' tail temporarily stuck in the pavement.

As the creature screeched in protest, Ralph kept racing forward towards the only intersection of the streets in the town. Seeing the scorpion was temporarily trapped for a few gut-wrenching moments, the dog paused long enough to pant momentarily around the collar in his mouth and desperately look around for safety.

To his horror, the tiny town oftered him not such hope- every possible hiding places in the town was too small for Ralph to fit or completely hide behind.

Ralph then frantically smelled the air for any trace of any other creature to seek help from, but with no results. There was no any other creature to ofter him any assistance, not even a human.

There's.. no where.. to hide...Ralph thought in despair as he panted. And...and no help...from anyone!

Suddenly his eyes landed on a large puddle of mud laying stagnant by a light pole not too far up the road, not too far from the closed up police station.

But...maybe, just maybe, he thought in a sliver of hope, I can get the scorpion trapped... and stuck in that gooey mud long enough to at least get help-

But Ralph's planning was cut short when a loud crack was heard behind him. He jumped and twirled around to see in horror that the scorpion had errupted out of its' restraining trap and had broken a huge part of the pavement off the road, allowing the creature to be now free and wild once again- and twice as determined to kill Ralph.

As it clumily took flight again, Ralph saw in sheer amazing that the creature's stinger was somehow still attached, seeming to be completely unaffected by its' concrete confinement. The knife-like tip seemed to be even more serrated than before, and even more steady and strong.

The mastiff was frozen in place for a moment before backing up wide eyed as the creature sailed through the air, approaching him at break-neck speed.

Ralph had to get the scorpion somehow to the mud pile. It was really the dog's only chance.

He quickly turned around and darted towards down the street towards the mud, his heart pounding like a drum in adrenaline and fear.

Just when he thought he was actually going to make it to the mud puddle in time to dart out of the way of the scorpion, Ralph unfortunately tripped over his paws halfway. He skidding a few feet flat onto his chin and scraped his chest hard on the pavement. At the impact, his mouth flew open, causing his good dog collar to go flying a little away ahead of him.

Wincing in pain, Ralph laid still for a few terrifying seconds, before finally cowarding himself up and covering his head with his paws with accepted fate.

There was no point in trying to somehow muster up the strength to stand and try to run ahead or get away- there was no time or energy for him to do so now.

Ralph knew he was done for as he heard the hovering overhead getting closer and closer to him before it became a near deafening sound. Literally being able to feel the tip the huge scorpion's wings as it was diving down right above him, Ralph ducked his as close as he could into the ground, preparing to be cut in half or stabbed to death...

When there was a sudden, low whoosh, as if an object was cutting through the air...And the creature diving down above him suddenly let out an ear-pericing cry in pain.

It squealed loudly before somehow sailing down into the road right before Ralph's nose, its' stinger still raised and extended as it just missed landing flat on top of the dog. The creature hit the ground with a loud crash, violently shaking the ground under Ralph.

The creature rolled and flipped serveal times in a jungled heap of wings and legs as its' whole body was forced to roll forward...

And with his head still plastered on the ground, Ralph watched in pure amazement as scorpion rolled right into the huge pile of mud square on its' back.

The mutated monster roared in protest as it seeked to quickly rightened itself up back onto its' legs and struggled to get out of the mud. It whined in disgust as its' frantic flailing around only got the creature more stuck. Weakly slipping forward, the scorpion's head became immersed into the mud as it screeched again, slowly filling the creature's mouth with the think mud it was trapped in.

Slowly, the creature began to weaken in strength and power as it slowed down in its' struggling. The mud in its' mouth seemed block its' air supply, seeming to cause the creature to slowly die.

Its' large, illuminating eyes blinked repeatedly in its' waning will to live as its' body wiggled and jerked around desperately...before the creature finally gave up and dramatically blinked one last time, its' body going completely limp and still suddenly.