The 'Scorpion Den', also known as the 'Terrifying Viper Pit of Dragons'
by humans, is a city in the Kingdom of Sand. On the map of Pyrrhia, it
is marked with an image of a scorpion. The den is home to mainly
SandWings, who were trying to avoid the bloodbath of the War of SandWing
Succession, and formerly Outclaws, an organization of SandWings that ran
the city. It is a place full of Dragons|dragon criminals who wished to
hide from Burn, Blister, Blaze, and their troops. It is also populated
by several hybrids. It has a mischievous and wild culture, as the
competition to prey on new visitors is always fierce, and many residents
often try to pick fights with one another.

## Description

The Scorpion Den is a sprawling, walled city with winding alleyways,
torn, faded canopies, and run-down stone buildings. The dusty streets
are filled with rickety stalls and tents, most of which sell different
types of merchandise. Almost every other stall sells water or
Plants#Medicinal plants|brightsting cactus, the only known antidote to
SandWing venom. The streets are dusty, crowded, and tight, as Sunny
discovered when she tried walking through them with Six-Claws on her way
to Thorn's tent. There is an oasis in the center of the town guarded by
the Outclaws, in which young dragonets up to eight years can visit every
morning for free meals. It is mainly inhabited by SandWings; however,
Sunny spotted a couple of SkyWings and an IceWing, whom she notes must
have been miserable in the heat.

It contains several taverns, fortune-teller tents, lamp stores, streets,
courtyards, and buckets of sand hanging from every wall as an easy means
of putting out potential fires. It included hundreds of narrow alleyways
that sometimes lead to dead ends. Dragonets were always racing around
alleyways scrapping and shouting and tussling over trinkets or prey.
Occasionally, dragonets bet on small games, like how long a mouse would
last against a cat, etc. It has been described to feel dark, crowded,
and trapped. The town has several entrances composed of gates, which
lead into a street lined with stalls, most of which are closed until
morning. Morning scents drift from those that are open, roasting beetles
and coffee mixing with the many, many much less pleasant smells in the
air. Some dragons marked their territory, and dragonets boldly imitated
them. The cobblestone streets are lined with gutters, and dragons are
often lying within them.

While Thorn was looking for Sunny, posters were put up all over the
Scorpion Den, promising a reward for any information leading to the
wherebouts of Morrowseer and Stonemover|Stonemover, for the present
location of Dune, or for a dragonet, six years of age, with unusual
features.

## Notable features

### Thorn's oasis

The oasis is set in the middle of the Scorpion Den. It is shown to be
large and is the source of water for the citizens of the town. When the
Outclaws took over, they made their base on the oasis based on the
belief that "she who controls the water controls everything." Some other
dragons living in the Scorpion Den, such as Cobra, forbade their
dragonets from coming to the oasis ever since the Outclaws took it over,
for fear that they would be kidnapped or become an Outclaw.

### Qibli's home

Qibli's home has torch sconces and carpets hanging from its walls that
smell hot and musty, mingling with the scent of roasting coriander in
the kitchen. Within one room, Cobra owns a single lamp. In another back
room, where Cobra always met with her clients, there is a table with a
scrawled sketch of a dragon's face on a document. The house also
includes blankets and a vat of grain. It is nested in a neighborhood
that is characterized by the smell of burning incense, flies constantly
buzzing around the garbage, brightsting cactus plants bristling in baked
clay pots hanging from the windows, and carmine-red scrawls of paint on
the stone walls, where rivals marked their territory and dragonets
imitated them boldly. An archway and a back gate lead to a run-down
courtyard, surrounded by walls and outside alleyways.

### Vulture's compound

Vulture's compound was described as one of the most well-fortified
structures in Pyrrhia, lined with mines and traps. It is located in the
Scorpion Den, and is home to Vulture and the Talons of Power. It is decorated lavishly with lots of
gold, onyx, emeralds, and more. The deadly structure is complete with an
observatory, pavilion, prison cell, oubliette, food storage, treasury,
and more.

### Market

The market is a busy area of the Scorpion Den. It is also where Bog
first met Vulture and decided to work for him.

center
Known products at the market

  - Brightsting cactus
  - Camel-hide pouches of water
  - Crocodile stew
  - Roasted scorpion
  - Bags of crickets
  - Fruit
  - Fabrics
  - Little blue dragons
  - Black spheres
  - Tea
  - Dried herbs
  - Candles
  - Bejeweled metal figurines
  - Lemonade

### Orphanage

The orphanage is the home of SandWing orphans from the war, the desert,
or the Scorpion Den itself. Not much else is known about the orphanage,
except that it was almost destroyed in a fire when an unknown dragon
panicked and set an area up in flames when they thought they saw a
dragonbite viper. The fire was stopped by the Outclaws and was revealed
to be a hoax set by Addax, who set the fire and lied about the
dragonbite viper because he wanted to kidnap Sunny and bring her to Burn
to get his space back in her army.

## History

### Pre-Series

Dune stole Sunny's egg from the Scorpion Den to complete the The Dragonet Prophecy (prophecy)|prophecy.

Qibli was raised in the slums of the Scorpion Den by his mother, Cobra,
before she sold him to Thorn.

-----

### The Dragonet Prophecy

#### The Dragonet Prophecy

As thanks for rescuing her, Kestrel told the dragonets of
destiny|dragonets where their eggs came from and mentioned the Scorpion
Den to Sunny.

#### The Brightest Night

Sunny followed Fierceteeth, Strongwings, and Preyhunter into the Kingdom
of Sand. They wanted to trade Burn the locations of the dragonets but
decided to get someone from the Scorpion Den to relay the message for
them, sure that if they went to Burn in person, they would be killed.
Before entering, Sunny hid the Obsidian Mirror in the dunes outside the
city. Six-Claws led her through the Scorpion Den to visit Thorn.

-----

### The Jade Mountain Prophecy

#### Darkness of Dragons

Qibli came to the Scorpion Den to negotiate with his grandfather, Vulture, after Ostrich was kidnapped. Qibli was imprisoned
but escaped with the help of Winter, Cobra, and Ostrich.

-----

### Legends

#### Dragonslayer

Wren and Sky traveled to the Scorpion Den briefly before Sky was
captured by Sandstorm|General Sandstorm as a present for Burn.

-----

### Winglets

#### Deserter

Six-Claws, Dune, and Kindle went to the Scorpion Den after Burn
mutilated Dune, with Six-Claws having believed he could escape Burn and
follow a new leader.

-----

### Field Guides

#### A Guide to the Dragon World

In the SeaWing chapter of the guide, Anemone briefly mentioned the
Scorpion Den in her letter to Tamarin.

## Trivia

  - The Scorpion Den is notorious for crime, although it was noted to be
    less chaotic under Thorn's management.
  - Several hybrids live in the Scorpion Den because Blister would not
    tolerate "cross-contamination" in her army, and Burn despised them.
  - There are fortune tellers in the Scorpion Den, considering how in
    Qibli's flashback in Darkness of Dragons, Qibli hid in a fortune
    teller's tent to eat a runty, spotted persimmon that had fallen
    under a merchant's cart.
  - There are many assassins in the Scorpion Den, seen when a dragon
    tells Sunny that if she needed anyone killed, she could contact
    them, giving her a card before vanishing.

## References

locations Category:Dragonslayer locations Category:Locations featured in
AGttDW Category:Dragon settlements