Talons Hunger Games, Part 4 – Alisha/Zoe

Warning, death, violence, blood, graphicness… you’ve already heard all of this, but I’m obligated to tell you all this. Also, I don’t own anything. At all. Nunavut (Get it? Because none of it and Nunavut? Ahaha … ha.)

 

“Well, Julie’s dead.” Zoe smiled as she entered the clearing where Alisha sat.

“I heard the cannon. So is Jen A.” Alisha giggled. “I got her with a tree branch. Hell-o, irony. How was Julie, though?”

“It’s Julie,” Zoe smirked, sitting down beside Alisha. “What do you think?”

Alisha nodded and looked around, “I think we should leave. We’re too out in the open here.”

Zoe shook her head and sighed. “Please. We have tons of weapons, food and water. We have supplies, and to top it off,” Alisha grinned and finished Zoe’s sentence.

“We’re just a little bit crazy.”

But Zoe agreed that they needed to move. Even though they both had tons of supplies, cover and mystery was always useful. As they trekked through the forest, they heard a sudden noise in the middle of the bush. Both of them ducked down, pulling out their weapons and sneaking towards the noises.

It was Sam and Iris. They were circling around each other, unblinking and weapons at the ready. Alisha straightened up and Zoe had to have a grip on her shirt to keep her from running forward into the fight.

Suddenly, with a whirl of steel and blood, both Sam and Iris lay on the ground. Zoe stood up, Alisha at her side. They crept forward slowly and went to check out both of the bodies. Dead. Both of them.

“It … it happened so fast.” Alisha whispered, her eyes wide and full of a mixture of emotions.

“Death often does.” Zoe replied, sagely. Then, as if she were possessed, her face clouded with a dark expression and she leaned over Iris’ body.

“Let’s check for supplies.” And within 5 minutes, both bodies were stripped down of supplies and both girls were leaving, weighed down with more supplies than when they had begun their journey.

“I don’t like this feeling…” Alisha growled, shifting back and forth as they crept through the forest. “There could be people everywhere, Zoe.”

“But there aren’t. Only 8 people left, Alisha. We can win this.”

“Except… we can’t win this.” Alisha glanced up at Zoe, who stopped and turned to her. “Only one can win, Zoe. The rules won’t change.”

Zoe began walking again, and Alisha ran to catch up, saying the words that she’d regret until she died.

“Maybe we should end the alliance.”

Zoe continued walking, saying nothing. Alisha could feel the anger, though. It was the same when she was just about to kill someone. Anger and insanity, mixed together. Alisha could feel it directed towards her. And, for the first time since they had begun their alliance, she felt scared.

“Never mind, I didn’t mean it. Let’s keep going, I think I hear someone up ahead.”

Alisha sprinted ahead, afraid that Zoe would stab her if she said one more thing wrong. She surveyed the area, and instead of finding a person there, she saw a cat. A small, white kitten that blinked up at her with huge eyes.

“Awwwww, Zoe, look!” Alisha crouched down and was just about to touch the cat when Zoe screamed out and Alisha fell backwards, just as Clayton entered the clearing. Zoe leaned down, her lips right beside Alisha’s ear.

“It’s a muttation. Look at it, that’s no ordinary cat. It was made in the Capitol. We need to stay back, I’m not sure what it’s going to do.”

While she spoke, Alisha’s eyes were fixed on Clayton and the cat. He had leaned down and put his hand out to it. Bad move. Without a seconds notice, the cat suddenly hissed and began to grow. Within 30 seconds, it was about six feet tall, and at one minute, it had mutated and a second cat was forming alongside it. Clayton stumbled backwards as a third cat grew out and began to creep towards him. All three were hissing and yowling, beginning to move faster as he backed away.

“We should help him.” Alisha whispered, a bit of her sanity returning as she remembered back to their days in Talons.

“No. Even if we could, he’s as good as dead. Those cats will kill him, then us. We need to leave.” Alisha agreed, but she almost couldn’t bear to turn around and leave her friend to die. Zoe crouched down and snuck forward as fast and quietly as she could as Alisha followed, swearing she wouldn’t look back.

But she did, and what she saw haunted her. Blood smeared every surface of the clearing, and almost nothing was left of the person who was once her classmate. Instead, a small cat sat in the clearing, licking blood off its paws, yellow eyes searching for prey. Alisha turned around, swearing to herself that it wouldn’t be her.

But Clayton’s death had just scratched the surface. As soon as the two got away, both realised that they were hungering for more. They didn’t want to see more deaths, they wanted to cause them. As they walked, deciding beforehand to go to the city, they talked about who to kill.

“Who’s left?” Alisha frowned.

“The better question is who’s left that’s important to kill.” Zoe replied, stalking forward.

“Jonny.” Alisha responded promptly. Zoe nodded, “Jonny.”

“Well he’s in the city. I heard Julie talking to Jen before I killed them. Apparently he’s stationed at a swimming pool, which is no surprise.” Alisha gave Zoe a sideways glance, and Zoe nodded thoughtfully.

“Then what are we waiting for?”

And the two of them whipped out their weapons and began running into the old ruins, straight towards their deaths.

They found the pool in almost no time at all, their adrenaline pumping, knives swinging. Zoe was the first to appear in the doorway. Jonny had barely looked up before an arrow shot forward, hitting him square in the leg, right where Sepehr’s knife wound had begun to heal. Doubled over in pain, he could do nothing as Zoe and Alisha darted forward, choosing which of their vast array of knives to kill Jonny with.

Alisha plucked one gently out of her bag and sauntered over to Jonny, a grin plastered to her face, knife sharp and stained from her last kill.

“No… don’t, please…” Jonny’s eyes were wide with fear as Alisha stood over him, smiling innocently.

“Sorry Jonny, but sometimes you have to lose the game.” And with a slash, he fell to the ground, blood running through the cracks in the floor and leeching into the pool.

“Hm. Want some of his food? He has a lot.” Zoe pulled some containers of what looked like meat out of Jonny’s bag.

“Let me go out and heat it up. It’ll be a lot better.” Alisha took the container and stepped outside, beginning to search for materials to make a fire.

About half an hour later, Alisha was happily roasting several chunks of meat over a spit. She leaned forward and studied them carefully, inspecting them and making sure they were cooked thoroughly. Then, with quick and precise hands, she whipped out a handful of Japanese Yew berries and stuffed them into the meat.

Humming to herself, Zoe loaded up Jonny’s crossbow, and crouched down, lying on her belly and began to aim. Alisha had been right. Only one could win.

Alisha stood up, the meat balanced perfectly on the lid of the container, cooked perfectly all around. She opened her mouth to call Zoe, and the moment the name escaped her lips, she fell to the ground, a one hit death.

Zoe stood up and skipped over to Alisha, sitting down beside her and scooping up the meat.

“Too bad you didn’t have a last meal, but it’s alright. I’ll save some leftovers for when I have my victory dinner.”

And with a bite and a gulp, Zoe died, the cannon’s boom still ringing in her ears.