DAY 1

Katniss Everdeen glanced wildly around her as the tube began to lift her up into the arena. Even though this was her second time going up this shaft, she had never gotten used to the feeling of it. To top it all off, she had just watched her stylist, Cinna, get beaten to a pulp.

She emerged at last, sunlight blinding her. When her eyes had finally adjusted, all she could see was water in every direction. One thought crossed her mind as she took in her surroundings: This is no place for the Girl on Fire.

Katniss had just been an ordinary girl from District 12 until her younger sister Prim had been reaped for the Hunger Games the year before. Katniss had boldly volunteered in her place. Using her wits and skills as a huntress, she had become victor of the 74th Hunger Games along with district partner Peeta Mellark.

Peeta. The young man who had helped her through the arena and was still alive because of her. The young man who was her pretend lover. The young man who would now die, along with 22 other previous Hunger Games victors, because of her.

No, that couldn't happen. She wouldn't let it and she was reminded of her chant: Keep Peeta alive. Katniss now searched frantically for him amongst the faces of the other victors. On her right was old Woof, District 8 victor. On her left, District 2 victor Brutus. He was motioning to District 1 victor Gloss on his other side. Katniss continued her search.

Where are you? She asked. Where are you?! But she couldn't see Peeta. He must have been on a plate blocked by the Cornucopia, which was sitting on a small island in the middle of a miniature, salt-lake sea. Spokes of sand jutted out across the water toward the tribute pedestals, creating wedges that held two tributes each: Katniss and Woof in one, Brutus and Gloss in another, and so on. Katniss finally steeled her nerves and willed herself to be a player in the 75th Hunger Games, the 3rd Quarter Quell that reaped from the district's existing pools of victors (59 total out of history's 75). And now, one would be crowned the victor of Victors to halt the uprisings in the districts. And the victor has to be Peeta, Katniss thought.

With that, the gong sounded, signaling the end of the 60 second waiting period. Katniss dove headfirst into the sea, and swam with all her might to the island. After a time, she pulled herself up onto the beach and sprinted down to the Cornucopia. Her peripheral vision told her that she was the first one there, so she had her pick of the supplies…which, when she got there, turned out to be weapons and nothing else.

She had just found a bow and arrows when a shift in the sand caused her to wheel around. There stood Finnick Odair, District 4 victor of the 65th Games, dripping wet and poised to strike with a trident.

He smiled and blinked in mock surprise. "You can swim too. Where did you learn that in District 12?"

"We have a big bathtub," Katniss retorted.

"You must," he laughed. He gestured to the tropical world around them. "You like the arena?"

"Not particularly. But you should. They must've built it especially for you," Katniss shot back with an edge of bitterness to her voice.

The grin did not fade from Finnick's face. "Lucky thing we're allies, right?" He flashed something across her line of vision, and as it caught the light, Katniss recognized it. The golden bracelet her mentor, Haymitch Abernathy, had worn throughout the lead-up to the Quell. At first, Katniss thought it was a trick. But, she then realized that Haymitch was sending her a message by choosing an ally of his own when she and Peeta had refused to. Oh, to hell with it.

"Right!" she snapped.

"Duck!" Finnick suddenly yelled. Katniss hit the sand as the trident whirred overhead. A sickening thud could be heard as it found it's target: the male victor from District 5, a drunk like Haymitch who had barely shown up for prep at the Training Center. Finnick pulled his weapon from the first kill of the Quell.

"Don't trust One and Two," he said flatly.

"Each take one side?" Katniss asked. He nodded and the pair darted around opposite sides of the pile. By this time she could see there was activity on the pedestals. Some tributes were swimming for the island, others had jumped into the water and flailed for the nearest spoke of sand strip and were now running, but many were still on the pedestals.

Katniss shot arrows at the Careers, who were now reaching the beach. District 2 victor Enobaria, winner of the 62nd Games, dodged it and re-entered the water. Gloss moved to do the same, but wasn't as lucky; an arrow got him in the thigh before he submerged.

"Do something about that, would you?" asked Finnick. Brutus was now barreling toward them, his belt off and held in front of him as a sort of shield. Katniss shot at him, but the belt managed to deflect it; however, a purple liquid shot from the fabric, coating Brutus' face.

At last, Katniss could see Peeta. He was one of those tributes who still hadn't budged from his plate. He can't swim, Katniss thought. So she made to go to him, dropping her weapons and preparing to dive in.

"No, I'll get him," said Finnick.

"I can," Katniss insisted, but Finnick just flashed her a smile. "Best not to strain yourself. Not in your condition." And he reached down and patted her abdomen.

Oh, I forgot, I'm pregnant, Katniss thought. Peeta had dropped that little bomb on her and all of Panem the night before at the interviews with Ceasar Flickerman. It was fake, of course, as was the belief that they were already married.

"Cover me," Finnick told her and he disappeared with a flawless dive. Katniss watched as he swam out to Peeta, who looked frightened and must've thought Finnick was swimming out to kill him. But Finnick showed Peeta the bracelet and when Katniss gave him a smile, he eagerly leapt into the water and allowed Finnick to tow him back in.

Katniss knelt on the strip as they drew near. She reached out a hand. Peeta grabbed it, hauled himself up and kissed her soundly on the lips.

"Hello again," he crowed. "We've got allies."

"Yes, just as Haymitch intended," Katniss said dryly.

"Remind me, did we make 'deals' with anyone else?"

"Only Mags, I think," Katniss replied. Finnick's district partner, who was the victor of the 9th Hunger Games and well into her 80's, was doggy paddling toward them. Other victors were now approaching the island and the Careers had regrouped. "Let's clear out," hollered Katniss. Finnick plucked Mags from the water and tossed her onto his back. Gripping his trident, the quartet fled from the Cornucopia.


The rest of the day was more eventful than Katniss could have ever imagined. Peeta had a brush with death when he ran into the force field surrounding the arena, causing Katniss to go momentarily into hysterics. Luckily, Finnick revived him with an advanced technique he called "CPR." The District 4 and 12 alliance set up camp halfway up the slope from the Cornucopia. They couldn't see anything below because of the dense jungle, but later in the day, 8 cannons sounded to signal the deaths. There weren't as many as last year's Cornucopia bloodbath, where roughly half of the tributes had died. Finally, a sponsor parachute appeared, which Peeta retrieved for them. It contained an odd device that Katniss later figured out was a spile. They used it to tap water from the trees, which seemed to be the only freshwater source in the arena.

As day passed into night, the Panem anthem played and the faces of the dead appeared in the sky. The male from 5. The male morphling from 6. Woof and Cecelia from 8. Both from 9. The woman from 10, and Seeder from 11.

Finnick and Mags seemed saddened by the deaths, as they must have known many of the victors. Peeta and Katniss pined for a few they had gotten to know during training. The quartet finally settled down to sleep. Mags and Peeta konked out, but Katniss and Finnick were fitful. Suddenly, 12 bongs chimed. A few hours later, they were disturbed by a mysterious fog…