Just to reassure you, I did research before I wrote these chapters, but I do apologise if there's anything wrong. More info at the end.

His body automatically reacted, as if sensing the danger without first consulting his brain. He swung around the tree, grabbing a large stick in the process. He was tempted to strike the snake with it, but he thought that would only anger it further. It already looked furious for having missed its prey. The snake slithered around the tree, searching him out with its tongue. Booth ignored all precautions and turned to run. He could hear the creature behind him; hear its body slither softly in the dirt. Hear its tongue slither out, tasting his scent.

Branches whipped out at his face, and at first he tried to bat at them with the stick, but he quickly gave up and let them mark his skin. He turned his head and could vaguely see the snake only a few metres behind him. He pushed more force into his stride, but he had little energy, and could feel himself quickly tiring.

He began to stumble as the dirt, leaves and twigs seemed to get the better of him. His feet were cut from the amount of foliage he'd stepped on. He was fully covered in sweat now, and wondered how much further he could go. As he stared ahead, struggling to take sufficient breaths, he stumbled and tripped on a tree root.

The snake took this opportunity to take its prey.

Booth began to crawl away, but the snake hadn't been chasing him for naught. Booth brandished his stick, and went to hit the beast, but it reached him first. It struck forward, and sunk its long teeth into his shin. Satisfied, it slithered away, leaving Booth clutching his leg. It was painful, and although Booth couldn't see well, he could feel it beginning to swell up. His mind began to race as he panicked - he knew next to nothing about snakes or their bites. He squeezed his eyes shut while trying to remember his high school science classes - he now wished he had bothered to listen to the teacher, instead of hitting on all the girls.

He made an instinctive decision, just trying as fast as he could to stop the venom spreading. He lifted his shirt over his head, grunting at the effort. He tore off the arms, and wrapped the shirt around his leg tightly. His leg throbbed and he winced as the material pushed down on the swollen skin. He picked up the stick he had carried with him, and wrapped it onto his leg using his shirt sleeves. His leg felt secure, and despite the circumstance, he felt proud at his work. He even managed a smile.

But although he didn't know much about snakes or first aid, he did know that their bites could easily kill you in a matter of hours. And this looked like a pretty big snake - maybe a python or a viper. He wasn't sure, and frankly, he didn't care. He just wanted help.

In the middle of nowhere.

He was as good as dead.

An hour later, and still he had heard nothing more than the whispers of the animals that inhabited the land. Every movement was an effort, and he didn't have much energy left. His blood felt drained, and he was struggling to stay awake. His head was beginning to pound, and he could do nothing to help it but will the pain to disappear. Multiple times he had the urge to vomit, and ended up gagging dryly into the dirt instead. He felt like hell, and assumed that he looked like it too.

Waves of nausea washed over him, and he felt heavy. He could do nothing but blink, and even thinking was an effort. He seemed to be able to feel the venom beginning to flow through his victim, and it appeared that his leg contraption was useless. Squinting, he could see a small blotch of red staining his shirt, and he sighed. Now he was losing even more blood. He really didn't know how much he had left to spare. He almost wanted this to be over - let the snake kill him. Then he wouldn't have to deal with all this pain - the physical and the mental.

Using all his energy, he cried out and clutched his leg. Deep in his mind, he wished that someone had somehow heard his cry, and would come to investigate. But he knew there was a slim chance of that happening. It was pitch black, and they would probably just assume it was another animal, hunting or calling for its mate.

He stared into the depths of the forest - and his eyes seemed to catch the glimmer of another. He blinked and peered into the thick bank of leaves. He was sure that there were multiple pairs of eyes blinking back at him. His eyes closed once more to blink, and each opening was harder, as though his eyelids were burdened by some great weight. He finally shut his eyes, trying to keep his mind awake, so at least he didn't fully succumb to the venom. But every minute longer was a struggle. The pain seemed to spread all over his body.

He didn't scream again. He didn't call for help.

He just gave in to the darkness in silence.

As I said, it was researched, but any mistakes I would love to know.

Please leave a comment or an idea or even constructive criticism on your way out - anything is much appreciated!

Info: The snake described was a Jumping Viper, which is found in El Salvador - viper bites can be deadly and very painful. I could go into all the boring details but I'm sure you really dont care.