doomsday. [ yellowjackets ]

trente-sept.

xxx.

chapter trente-sept.
chapter thirty seven.

1996.

xxx.

            Alex had been wandering, or sulking, in the woods for far longer than she would've liked to admit, but she didn't know when the stupid competition would be over and she refused to sit in that cabin with the rest of them until then. Her hands were freezing though, even as she held them against her mouth, blowing warm air against them. Her conversation with Coach Scott was still hanging over her head; she had only told him that if she died and they tried to Jackie her, that he'd have to do it too this time, but she didn't say the opposite out loud.

          Coach Scott was far more likely to die than Alex was, she was aware of that, but she didn't know if she could take her own advice. Does one really consciously make the decision to eat another person?

          As Alex came to the clearing, she let out an exhale and dropped her hands to her pockets. She could see that godforsaken tree stump sticking out from the blanket of snow, and seeing it almost lit a new anger within her, but it was pushed aside as she walked closer, spotting bright red stains wrapping around the trunk. Alex took a few more steps before she saw Lottie, passed out on the ground before the stump.

        " Oh, shit, " She murmured, moving to kneel by the girl, pressing a finger against her neck to make sure she still had a pulse and hadn't frozen to death, too. Alex held her hand against Lottie's forehead then, but she realized Theo wasn't anywhere in sight.

         Alex gently sat Lottie back down as she stood up, cupping her hands over her mouth as she called out, " Theo! Theo? "

          Her voice echoed, weaving its way through the limber trees, but there was no response. Alex gave up after a few calls, figuring she would have to look for Theo rather than yell her name until she came running. She turned to look at the tree trunk, and it felt like she stared at the dead tree for way too long before something in her made a decision for her. This thing had been the center of the Doomcoming ritual, and now it looked like Lottie had tried to use it, presumably for help finding food.

         Alex bent down by Lottie again, opening the bag she had been carrying on her back. She sifted through its contents before finally finding the small axe they used for chopping firewood. She stood back up as she held it in her hands, hearing the buzzing of a fly zoom around her ear, but she didn't even swat at it, continuing to stare down at the trunk.

        Without another thought, Alex lifted the axe over her head and slammed it down, lodging the thick blade into the bark. It peeled down away from the body of the trunk, and as Alex leaned forward to yank the axe out for another strike, she saw a red liquid begin to drip down from under the bark, like she'd torn off its skin.

          " No fucking way. " Alex whispered, her face screwed up in a disgusted grimace before she raised the axe again, hitting the trunk with another hard slam. Another bug hovered around her head, and that time she did shake her hand around her face to get rid of it, then went to strike the trunk again.

            She wasn't sure how much time had passed or how many swings she laid on the trunk, but either she had grown weaker from the lack of food or this wood was the toughest in the entire forest; she'd made damage, but it was nothing compared to what it felt like it should've looked like. She had even started to hit it sideways, trying to just chop away the rest of it until what was left were the roots stuck in the frozen ground.