30th Hunger Games Story.
Chapter One: Let the Games Commence!
And so the time had finally arrived; the moment in which some people had been anticipating and others had been dreading. One thing was for certain however; the audiences in the Capitol were probably more excited than anyone for the 30th annual Hunger Games to begin.
The air within the arena was thick with tension, as each of the twenty four contestants was raised from their metal pedestals into the arena that had been created especially for them. The sunlight shined down onto the Cornucopia, as many tributes glanced around them for the first time. The arena appeared to be split into three vastly different sections, a snowy area, a rainforest and a desert area.
The golden coloured Cornucopia was located in the middle of the rainforest area, where all the tributes were waiting The Cornucopia was the place in which many different supplies and weapons were stored, all of which were just waiting to be used by the tributes, and this was very tempting to many as the seconds were now ticking by.
60… 59… 58…
For the tributes, this was it. Live or die. Each of them knew that only one of them would survive this, and for the other twenty three who wouldn't, it only pained them too much to think how much pain their families would be in. For the last person standing, their life would become one of glory and riches, bathed with luxuries in their home district and forced to mentor future participants of the games. Many believed that this was not a wonderful way to celebrate your victory; becoming a mentor, only for your own tributes to be likely killed.
30… 29… 28…
Why was time going so slow at this moment in time? Many of the tributes now began to glance nervously at their competition, whereas others got ready to run straight for their weapon of choice in order to defend themselves from the others.
3… 2… 1…
"Ladies and gentleman; let the 30th annual Hunger Games begin!" Claudius Templesmith, announcer of the games, said just seconds before the gong sounded and the games had begun.
The ground blurred beneath their feet, as many dashed forward, eager to get their hands on whatever they could. Almost instantaneously, fighting started as the tributes began to fight over weapons and supplies. A minute had not even gone by when the first cannon sounded, indicating the first death of the games. Chanel Cook, the lovely, polite, and yet sometimes ferocious girl from District Nine was the first to go down after she had been quickly hit in the back by a metal spear by James Harrison, the young and yet quite deadly male from District Seven. By now, most of the tributes had managed to quickly grab whatever they could, as some of them made their way to what they thought would be the safest place to hide in the arena.
The tributes that remained at the Cornucopia were, of course, the career tributes. In every Hunger Games, it was very often that the tributes from Districts One, Two and Four teamed up and hunted down weaker tributes or those who they considered a threat, all in aid to fight for the ultimate crown of becoming the victor.
Out of the career pack, Kieran, the male from District One, was considered the biggest threat by most. He had gained eleven out of twelve in his individual training session, the highest of everyone. He was a master at using any weapon that he came into possession of. Yes, he was the most powerful of the pack, although he didn't have the slyness that Becky and Mathieu, the tributes from District Two had. Both of them had gained a nine in their training session by showing off what they could do in a tight situation. Connor, the male from four, had gained a score of eight, and Alice, the female from four, had gained the lowest score in the pack of six. Although Connor and Alice were weaker than the others, together they would prove to be a tough group to beat, and the others knew this only too well.
Their eyes were menacing, and already, the six careers had begun to discuss their plans. Little did they know however, that they were being watched. Patrick Cartledge, the cocky and sometimes arrogant male from District Eight, poked his head out from behind a tree as he tried to overhear what they were planning. He wasn't about to lose to anyone, and once the careers were dead; he would have no problem in winning. However, even he knew that going after them was a risky move, but at a time like this, he knew risks had to be taken.
He grabbed a knife from the backpack that he had gotten hold on, and aimed it in their direction. His aim was spot on, as Conner collapsed suddenly in from of them. The knife had hit him in his side, and must have been deep, as Conner tried his best to pull the weapon from his body before his cannon sounded. The Careers instantly turned towards Patrick, but he wasn't worried; he could easily outrun them if he wanted to. He turned and headed towards the other side of the Cornucopia, where he aimed at the group again; this time pulling out a gun from the backpack. The sounds of the gunshots echoed in the air, but none of them hit their targets. The Careers now had him cornered with nowhere to run or hide. Kieran stepped forward, sword in hand, as he got ready to deal a fatal blow. As Kieran swung it, Patrick ducked, as he grabbed an axe and threw it at the nearest Career, which was Lauren. Seeing the huge weapon coming towards her at full speed, she ducked, as the weapon bounced off the Cornucopia and landed on the grass nearby. Patrick had underestimated them, as they attacked him head on without giving him any warning. The sound of the cannon once again filled the air.
It was only after they had avenged Connor that Kieran, Lauren, Becky and Mathieu noticed that Alice was missing. After seeing her District partner killed right in front of her, Alice had decided to retreat. She was currently on a high branch in a tree just outside the rainforest area. Her plan now was to wait until everyone was gone then she would search for others on her own. Because of how high up she was it was easy to see what else was going on around the surrounding area. The first thing she saw was Josh Harpley, the lazy, and yet intelligent male from District Twelve. He was fighting with what appeared to be Brett Sykes, the handsome and yet laid back tribute from District Three.
It appeared as though Josh had the upper hand in their struggle, as he had managed to get Brett onto the ground, and was attempting to stab him with a small knife. Using all his strength, Brett kicked Josh off him, quickly stood up and charged into Josh, knocking them both onto the floor yet again. However, Brett quickly recovered and snapped Josh's neck from behind in one hard tug.
Alice cringed at this, as Josh's dead body fell lifelessly to the ground. Many wouldn't have thought of Alice as being a Career tribute. Unlike the other Careers, she had many fears and lacked in confidence. However, she was just as determined to win as the rest of them were and nothing would change this. A gunshot suddenly caught her attention, as from down below, another tribute was aiming at her with a pistol.
Freya Cairns, the savage female tribute from District Six, was standing below the tree, as she took another aim at Alice. She once again avoided the gunshot, but in the attempt, she lost her grip on the tree branch and fell to the ground. Feeling dazed, she attempted to get on her feet, but she was not quick enough as Freya aimed her gun at Alice again and shot her in the chest.
As the familiar noise of the cannon sounded, Matthew Peacock, Freya's District partner, appeared from nearby and smiled at her, in hope that she would make an alliance with him. However, Freya completely ignored him, as she preferred to work alone. 'There can be only one winner, so what's the point in making alliances?' Freya had said in her interview with Caesar Flickerman the day before the games had begun. Sticking to this, she turned her back on Matthew and fled towards the desert area.
James Harrison from District Seven was proving himself to be a bigger threat than expected to the Careers, as they watched him try and shoot Samantha Doherty and Kyle Rankin, the two tributes from District Five. These two were cousins, and it had been very unfortunate that they were both reaped into the same game. The two took cover, as they fled towards the rainforest area. Wanting to get rid of the others as quickly as possible, James began to chase them down, but he was unexpectedly pulled backwards by Kieran. James struggled, but eventually escaped his grasp, as he fired a gunshot at Kieran.
A loud groan came from the Career, as the bullet went straight through his left arm. Despite his injury, Kieran threw a spear at him which James had unexpected. A small moan escaped from him, as he collapsed onto the ground. Kieran, without any warning or reason why, decided to flee into the rainforest area just as James's cannon sounded, much to the confusion of Mathieu, Becky and Lauren. Where was he going, and why was he leaving them?
By now, most of the fighting at the cornucopia had ceased, and very few survivors were left standing. Samantha Richardson, the female from District Eight, had been very lucky to have not been detected by the others, as she collected what she could, before she fled towards the snow area. However, she was seen by Mathieu from District Two, and he started to chase her. Samantha picked up her pace, but the Career proved too quick, as he swung a chain at her, which hit her in the back of the head. She stumbled and blacked out, as Mathieu went over and finished her off with a quick slash of his sword.
By now, the only tributes that remained at the Cornucopia were the Careers, who were now discussing their next plan of action. However, little did they know that Brett from District Three was watching from nearby, as he hid behind a nearby tree. Taking his chance, he threw a throwing knife, hoping that the weapon would hit. His aim was spot on, as the knife hit Mathieu in his side. As he fell to the ground, with blood gushing everywhere, Becky and Lauren decided to give chase, as Brett turned and ran into the forest, with the Careers hot on his trial.
The Cornucopia Bloodbath was over, and it had been unlike any Cornucopia Bloodbath the Capitol had ever seen. Half of the Careers were down already, and the games had only just begun. This was going to be a very interesting competition this year.
Back in the arena, Samantha and Kyle from District Five were both on edge, as they knew that anything could happen, and that they knew that they had to be on their guard at all times. As the cannon sounded that signaled Mathieu's death, Samantha and Kyle started to run through the forest, only to bump into Elizabeth Fawcett from District Three. The three stumbled onto the floor, but Samantha and Kyle quickly recovered. Using the bow and arrows that she had managed to get hold of, Samantha pointed her weapon at Elizabeth, but to her surprise, Elizabeth held up her hands in defense. "I'm not going to fight." She said shakily as she took a step backwards. The two tributes from District Five were still not certain about this, as they continued to point their weapons at her.
"I just wondered whether you would like to form an alliance?" She suddenly asked which caught the two of them off guard.
"Sure." Samantha said, as she lowered her weapon.
"What? Are you crazy?" Kyle said to her, as he tugged on her arm sleeve.
"Look, the more people we have, the better chance we have of surviving." She told him, as Elizabeth joined the two. The three continued their travels north through the rainforest, as elsewhere, some of the remaining tributes including Laura and Matt from District Eleven, and Freya, had all gone off on their own and were now finding shelter for the night.
The day was drawing in quicker than expected, and many of the tributes were settling down for the night, all except the Career tributes, Becky and Lauren, who had by now lost track of Brett, who had proved too quick for them to catch.
After seeing that he was not being pursued any more, Brett stopped to catch his breath, but he suddenly heard faint talking nearby. He took cover behind a tree, before jumping out at his target. However, his targets were none other than his tribute partner Elizabeth, along with Kyle and Samantha. He instantly pointed his weapon, an AK47, at Samantha and Kyle, but Elizabeth stepped in front of him.
"Brett, wait! They're friends; I formed an alliance with them." Elizabeth explained.
"You what?" Brett said, a little bit annoyed by this.
"You heard. We might have more of a chance of surviving with them." Elizabeth said to him.
"But he's the youngest. I'm surprised he's survived this long." Brett told her, as he pointed at Kyle. What Brett had said was true; Kyle was the youngest tribute out of everyone, being only twelve years of age.
"He's got a name, you know." Samantha said, as she tried to defend her district partner and younger cousin.
Immediately, Brett's weapon pointed at her, and in return, Samantha pointed the bow and arrow at him. Before the two could shoot, Elizabeth ran and stood between them.
"Look, we have to get along." Elizabeth said. By now, she was sick of the fighting between them.
"Fine." Brett huffed, as he lowered his weapon. "But I'm leading then. I know a way that we might be able to lose track of the Careers." Without waiting, he led the way through the forest, as the others stood around, before finally deciding to follow him.
"See? The Careers are after him. He's going to get us all killed." Samantha told Elizabeth.
"He knows what he's doing." She replied, as they all ran to catch up with him.
An hour had passed, and nothing much had happened between the tributes, much to the audience's annoyance. The Gamemakers could sense that people were becoming bored of watching the tributes settle down for the night without some kind of an argument or fight. To solve this problem, the Gamemakers created a bear mutation and unleashed it into the rainforest area. This would surely bring some excitement to the games.
After having a small nap, Matt Hamilton from District Eleven woke up, as he made his way to the lake for a drink. However, on the way, he heard the sound of a small growl nearby. He grabbed his sword and was ready to strike at the target. As he turned around, he came face to face with the bear mutation, who roared loudly before charging into Matt, knocking him off his feet in the process. Matt quickly got up and ran, as the bear mutation chased him.
Matt was determined to make it to the lake, in hope that if he dived in, the bear would not follow. However, the bear proved much quicker than he thought, as he was suddenly pounced upon by the bear, which started to tear at his flesh. His cries for help echoed through the rainforest, and nearby, settled in their camp for the night, Brett, Elizabeth, Samantha and Kyle heard his distant cries before his cannon sounded.
Brett simply went back to checking on his weapon, as Elizabeth sighed to herself. Samantha looked down at her cousin, who was struggling to fall asleep after the distant cries. As she stroked his hair softly, she looked up to see the anthem which had begun to play in the sky. The first day and a total of nine tributes had been killed. That meant that fifteen tributes, including themselves, were alive somewhere in the arena. Although none of them said it out loud, the four knew that these games were going to be long and painful.