The Mocking Jay:

Squad 500

Deep cover; It's what we specialise in. Hidden deep behind Capitol lines, watching, waiting, seeing everything without been seen. We slip in, hind for days maybe weeks at a time before returning back home deep underground in District 13. I enjoyed being outside despite the danger of it all. Over the years many have been caught and taken to the Capitol's torture chambers, so far the number had gone down greatly. Maybe the Capitol is convinced we're no longer a threat and just let us do what we want. After all we're just watching and rarely enter any of the other districts. That or we're so good now we can avoid detection all together.

This time of year everyone is too busy preparing for the Games. In the districts they are too busy worrying about if their child will be picked or not. In the Capitol the poor, absent minded, shallow but somewhat hilariously looking people get excited about what will happen in the Games and this year is a biggie, the Quarter Quell. It's the 3rd one to be exact; celebrating 75years of this barbaric punishment.

Me and my partner Steel are camped out in the outskirts of District 7's main population centre, hidden in the thinning, winter trees with our custom made camouflage suits we are totally invisible from 1km away. I hold my long range rifle firmly into my shoulder and peer through the scope. Steel is looking through his Mono-scope. We're meant to be watching Peacekeeper patterns and the people's reaction to the Hunger Games announcements. People are gathered in the main square big screens light up; it's show time. The screen lights up with the seal on it, that pants sounding anthem and then the ugly git that is President Snow. I just wish I could pull the trigger and put a bullet through his face right now. 1 shot, 1 kill, 1 nation reunited. But unfortunately he isn't there; he's a few hundred kilometres away in his big fancy mansion. One day I might get the chance to do it, but not just yet.

Snow babbles on a bit the same old tat, the dark days, the hints that he could wipe out any district just like he did to mine. And then comes the time to open the envelope. He opens it and declares that the tributes for these games will be drawn from previous victors. The crowd within the square looks like it's frozen in time. A matter of minutes later our communication equipment comes to life.

'13 to Echo 500, come in over.'

'This is Echo 500, we read you, over.'

'Echo 500, you are to return to base. A hovercraft will pick you up at the following co-ordinates.' The operator replied.

'Message received and understood. We will move after last light, 13 have the 'craft pick us up then.' I replied.

'Best of luck Echo 500 and Tungsten stay safe. I miss you. 13 out.'

'I miss you too Alpena, Echo 500 out.' I answer, before turning to Steel, 'we've got new orders friend, and we are pulling out tonight.'

'Bit soon isn't it? Normally we hang around for a day or two after the announcement.' Steel replied.

'I know all I can think is that it's to do with Snow's announcement. Its ruffled some feathers back at 13, anyway make sure you have everything to hand and get ready to move as the light starts to fade.' I answered.

We lay in our hide for the remaining hours it took for light to fall, which in winter didn't take that long but it was cold and getting more so by the time we had to move. I'd have loved to move quickly but the increased amount of Peace Keeper patrols meant we had to move slowly to avoid detection. We moved away slowly and cautiously at first being so close to the town. 45minutes it took us to travel a kilometre; taking slow creeping steps and dropping to out bellies at the slightest bit noise, holding our breath for what seems like lifetimes before daring to let it out again and rising to our feet.

We soon reached wood land that was still fairly thick, huge soaring evergreens touched the cloudy sky above us, our pace quickened as the snow started to fall just a few flakes coming through the thick canopy above us. We neared our pick up point, all was still and quiet. You could hear the snow falling to the ground as it glided on the light wind. A little voice chirped in my ear; '1 minute Echo 500.'

We'd never hear the Hovercraft until it was on top of us and even then we wouldn't see it as the invisibility cloak would be turned on. I turned on the night vision gear and looked through my scope, scanning the clearing and its edges. Nothing was moving, it was too still, usually there would be some form of animal scurrying about. Something was amiss but I couldn't tell what. Steel looked at me with the same concerned look; we'd both done this a few times before and knew something was strange.

The hover craft swung in low over the tree tops, making them bend into the air currents and created a small blizzard, the cloak was still up. It came into a low hover, we made the short sprint to it, a door swung open revealing the uncloaked inside illuminated in red. Members of the crew half hung out the door, arms out stretched ready for us. I leapt up at the open door my hand grabbing a crew member's forearm as he did the same with mine and hauled me in. Steel and I crouched on the floor of the hold as the craft turned as it banked away towards 13. The crew member that had hauled Steel in went to shut the door when I saw a small glint of light in the trees.

'Hold that door!' I cried and pulled my rifle up into my shoulder and aimed down the night scope, I caught sight of the glint again and zoomed in a bit, and there clear as day in a dark green tint was a Peace Keeper with a rocket launcher. I fire immediately, the bang echoed around the small hold space making the crew jump, more Peace Keepers appeared in my scope and fired more shots out the open door. Steel didn't even flinch.

'Pilot; get us out of here, Peace Keepers!' he screamed joining me in firing on the Peace Keepers. The Hover craft banked and rolled violently as he dodged multiple rockets before settling into a very fast flight along a roundabout route back to home which took us 5 hours instead of the usual 2. We touched down in the hanger back at 13 and disembarked. Cobalt and Nickel were there to meet us; they looked the hover craft with curious looks. 'Ok who did you piss off?' Cobalt asked.

'7's Peace Keepers. How they knew we were there I have no clue. They popped off a few rockets at us.' I explained.

'We bagged a few of them though. Tungsten got a fantastic head shot on the snap. No breath, out the door of the hover craft as we were banking.' Steel bragged with a huge smile.

'Really?' Nickel asked sarcastically, knowing Steel's tendency for over exaggerating things.

'Yeah,' I begin, 'I saw something in the forest, just a glint of light and upon looking it was a PK with a rocket launcher, I pulled the trigger. Not sure if it hit him or not though.'

'You sure did buddy, right down the scope!' Steel cried.

'Ok, tell it to us in the morning. Go get scrubbed up and get some sleep, things are about to really hot up big time.' Cobalt ordered sternly. Steel and I did as instructed and hit the showers scrubbing the grim of 7 off us and then hit collapsed into our beds finding sleep almost instantly. I cant speak for Steel but I all that run though my dreams was how many times it could have gone wrong back there. A hundred different scenarios played through, in all of them we either went up in a fireball or were executed by Peace Keeps live on Panem TV.