An Uncertain Cause By: Nathan Garrido Life for the brown widow was not too complicated.

Believed to have originated in Africa or South America, this species of spiders ended up in the southern United States and California. The story of this particular brown widow begins with its birth. He was born from an egg sac containing around 80 of his siblings, most of which were killed by predators. He was raised in his mothers web located between small space between a cylindrical vase containing plants and the smooth, red, concrete surface. The web his mother had built was very close to the earth, as is a custom for all brown widow spiders in order to catch prey easier. This brown widow grew up quickly, happily and without worries. His life would only last three years at the maximum if he was lucky. There were other spiders in this somewhat artificial forest, which encircled the habitat of the giants (a widely accepted theory among these arachnids), although rarely was this brown widow able to interact with any giants or insects. Most spiders which he encountered looked just like him; they had clear legs with dark stripes and an orange hourglass figure on their bellies. Others, who were completely different than him, seemed hostile and preoccupied. Every now and then, it would encounter its own cousin, the black widow. Both spiders were easy to identify because of the hourglass figures on their abdomens, yet the two breeds were quite distinguishable despite being sister species (Black widows are completely black, and brown widows are sand-like and have different patterns on their abdomens) . It was because of this that he discovered that life for spiders did not involve others much. He would only need his mother and the assistance of his few brothers and sisters. As the brown widow grew older, he began to take up on the responsibilities of a grown adult, and so he was taught that the night-time was the perfect time to work, as all these nocturnal spiders do. He would spin a web, catch some prey, and do everything unnoticed. But one night, it all became a different story. As the brown widow sat on his web, preparing for what the night had in store for him, he began to notice something peculiar. An unusually bright light began to shine upon certain plants and objects. This light was moving frantically around, as if it were searching for a particular target. Some of the spiders around him began to wiggle in panic, while others were confused. Nonetheless, most remained still, including the brown widow. Since his eyesight was too poor to see out in the dark, he relied on the vibrations of his web to tell if he has caught prey or if danger was nearby. The light did not produce any strong vibrations on his web, therefore he stayed still. As the light began approaching the area he was at, he realized that the source of the light was coming from a giant two-legged creature. The beast was unlike any other this brown widow had ever seen; its height was massive, and it seemed to be moving all around the plants as if examining them. Surely it was one of those tall creatures who lived in the structure which his habitat surrounded. It suddenly shone the light on another spider. This spider was small and somewhat unaware of what was going on. The creature stooped down and examined it. Its eyes were so big it could have surpassed the size of any of the spiders around the area. It had a nose in between and below its eyes, with a mouth under that. It put down the light (which was coming out of what seemed to be a tube) and took out a clear, square, box. Using a stick, it touched the little spider and attempted to lure it into the box. The spider fell from its web, and began crawling rapidly to find shelter, yet the giant seemed to know the spiders predictability. Everywhere the spider went, the creature blocked its path with the stick he was carrying. The little one eventually climbed successfully onto a rock, but the giant creature simply grabbed the rock, and dumped the spider in the box.

Having witnessed the little ones frantic struggle to avoid captivity, the brown widow was compelled to act. Without a second thought, he rushed away from his web and tried to chase after the giant who took the little one prisoner. This brown widow was ready to bite the giant if he were to encounter it. The bite of the brown widow is far less perilous than that of the black widow, but it is known to have caused some serious damage. It is known to be a bit stronger than other spider bites, and can be dangerous to anyone, but its biggest impact is on those who are allergic to spider bites, yet it will only bite humans if pressed on their skin. If this brown widow wanted to successfully seek revenge, he could seriously hurt the giant with his bite if it was allergic. He rushed to the somewhat smooth red surface, which allowed him to run as fast as he could to catch up to the giant, but luck was on the creatures side, as it retreated further until disappearing into the very dark landscape. The brown widow continued to walk, changing his course frequently. Upon reaching a solid white wall, he made his way to crawl on it. He continued to walk on what seemed to be an endless white surface perpendicular to the smooth red earth below. The brown widow continued his trek nonetheless, and eventually found what seemed to be an entrance into the wall. He figured that it must be an entrance into the giants habitat. There seemed to be a thick, web like layer over this opening, yet to his luck, the layer had been ripped open, so he valiantly crawled into it. The entire space inside the opening was dark. There was some uncertainty within the spider as he continued to slowly crawl into and over the opening. Then, he noticed a long line of light which seemed to leak out of a crease in this dark abyss. The brown widow concluded that through the crease was where the little one could be found, and so he continued to walk carefully, making sure not to make a wrong turn and lose the light. As he crawled, he noticed that this abyss was in fact a part of the creatures habitat. He could vaguely see objects of all sorts of mysterious shapes and sizes; perhaps this was the giants den? The brown widow continued towards the light, until it had eventually ventured out into it. He was right: this was the giants home. He began to climb on the wall and past a huge brown structure decorated with portraits and trinkets, and contained keys that played musical notes when pressed on. Amidst exploring this strange and mystical home of the giant creature, the brown widow spotted the clear box, with the little one inside. He hurriedly walked towards the box, forgetting that his lack of caution could lead to catastrophic consequences. As he was about to reach the clear prison with the little one inside, out of nowhere jumped a big, white, four-legged furry animal, which spotted the brown widow immediately and barked in alarm. To the brown widows contempt appeared the giant, seemingly concerned over what his animal was barking at. Then it spotted the brown widow. It disappeared in a hurriedly manner and came back, with a red cylindrical object. One moment the brown widow was trapped in it and taken to an isolated, freezing chamber, then everything went black. He awoke to find himself inside the same small prison trapped with the little one, who seemed to be unconscious. The brown widow was surprised, angered, yet too weak to do anything. All it did for the time being was rest. When the morning came, the brown widow arose to find that the small box he was inside was being carried and transported by his captor, who sat still inside a transportation machine of some sort. After a decently long trip, the giant took the box and began to walk towards a destination the brown widow could not tell, since he was working on building a web. The web of a brown widow spider is rather thick and cobweb-like, making it difficult to tear and easy for the brown widow to tell when the giant was going to attack it, if he would. Upon entering a room full of giants similar to his captor, the brown widow noticed all sorts of insects encased in similar object such as his. His captor walked and handed the box to an

even taller creature who seemed to be his superior. The superior giant examined the brown widow for a while and placed his box next to those full of other spiders, beetles, and insects. Some were moving around a lot, others were lifeless. The brown widows captor, though, had disappeared. Hours seemed to have gone by quickly, and whole groups of creatures would enter the room, sit down, and listen to the superior speak. He realized that all of these creatures had captured insects. They could have been relatives to his captor. He observed as the tall ones took their prisons in which their insects were trapped. Some entered a tube which was connected to a metallic container, and after seconds the insects passed out. Some giants took out their insects out of a freezing chamber just like the one the brown widow had been put in; these insects had been frozen to death. These insects were posed on flowers and leaves as the giants mocked them by capturing images of them with small electronic devices. The brown widow was disgusted by the cruelty of these beings. More time passed, and it was not until the afternoon when the captor returned to the room, and sat down with his group. A few more minutes went by and the superior spoke to them. The speech given by the superior was rather short, and after finishing, the tall ones got up and began towards the insects. The brown widow noticed that the little one had not awakened from his rest. Perhaps he was dead? Or he was simply too scared to move and think rationally? As he pondered the tall creatures came by and began taking the boxes. The brown hurriedly tried to awaken the little one as his captor was mobilizing them yet again. The small covering on the top of the box was opened up a little, and a tube was inserted. The tube blew a wave of carbon dioxide which hit the spiders hard. The brown widow struggled to stay awake as he retreated as far away from the tube. He was struggling to stay awake so much that he forgot about the little one, who had been immediately knocked out. Everything went black. When he awoke, the brown widow found himself inside a small clear cylinder. It was incredibly smaller than the box he had been placed in. There was no air coming in from the top. Instead, there was a lid blocking any possible opportunities for escape. On the lid he saw the little one, who was now wide awake, angry, and desperately trying to escape the tube. Relieved to know that the little one was alive and well, the brown widow attempted to communicate with the little one. He slowly crawled towards it, trying not to alarm the little one, as he could tell it was aggravated. As he got closer, the little one noticed that the brown widow was crawling towards it. Too frustrated to think twice, the little one dashed furiously towards the brown widow. The brown widow paused in suspense as the little one ran towards it. The brown widow attempted moving out of the way, yet he only made his abdomen vulnerable as the little one viciously sank its fangs into it. What an immense feeling of betrayal the brown widow felt! He had willingly given up his safety and cheated death several times in order to have his objective become his downfall. As the liquid in his abdomen began gushing out and deflating, the brown widow decided that it would not end like this. With the little one still clinging to his abdomen, the brown widow lashed at the little one, shoving him closer to his fangs. The little one was stunned by the brown widows counterattack, and a bit damaged by the strength of the blow. Finally, the brown widow took no mercy when he bit the little one in the same spot he had been wounded: the abdomen. An eye for an eye was what it had come to. Within minutes of the attack, the little one collapsed, and no longer moved, while the brown widow lay alone, agonized, and regretful, because the risk he took was made in vain. Now he knew why a spiders life did not involve others much.