I walk through dense forest, careful to dodge branches and roots that have made their way to the surface. Sweat rolls down in an endless stream - it isn't long before I'm completely drenched. I stop myself for a minute and listen to my surrounding: the whistle of the wind gliding above the trees, a choir of birds chirping their song, a steady stream of water. No cannon fire though, I am beginning to wonder if it's broken, or the game-makers are trying something new this year, seeing if the lack of knowledge influences the Games would be my best guess. As I continue on, I wonder if Caela - the female tribute in my district, 15 years of age and the most innocent personality that I have known - is still alive... 'Perhaps there were no deaths back there.' but that thought only makes me feel worse knowing that there are still 23 people hunting me. The sun begins to set, so I sit down against a tree and cautiously search for other tributes. No pictures shine in the sky tonight, 'the game-makers are probably pissed that there was no bloodbath at the Cornucopia and I'm almost certain there will be deaths tomorrow; caused by them or not.' Night drags on but the adrenaline I feel prevents me from even closing my eyes; I do however begin to daydream about the day that brought me here
...…
It was the fifth time I listened to the opening address of the Reaping, the representative of the Capitol spoke with such enthusiasm because our district - District 5 - won the last Hunger Games, and he wanted another.
"Caela Harriot" the cameras quickly found her, her face expressionless as she stepped forward and made her way onto the stage. "Any brave soul who wishes to take her place?"
"NO!" she yelled. "This role is mine. I will be the tribute"
"Well then, onto the guys then..."
I couldn't help but marvel at how calm she was; she must have known that she had just been handed a death sentence. Her eyes caught mine and mouthed something incomprehensible.
"...-ron Nadell!? Please step forward." I was still trying to figure out whose name had been called when a couple of peacekeepers grabbed my shoulders and carried me onto the stage; laughter roared throughout the crowd. "Please applaud your district's tributes for the 32nd Annual Hunger Games... And may the odds be ever in your favor" I turn to Caela and she gives me a glance as she walks off. In shock, my feet are locked in place
"Aaron!" my name is called once more and I turn to see my parents rushing towards me. My mother wraps her arms around me and her cries drown out all the other sound
...
The sun rises and I decide to head back to the place where I heard the stream of water. Cannon fire goes off two times and my steps become more cautious; I have no doubt in my mind that trouble's going to find me today. The stream becomes a welcome sight as I drink the water and wet my face; I tear off a 10 inch strip of cloth from my jeans, dip it in the water, and place it around my neck cooling my vitals and hopefully refraining me from sweating. I wet my face once more and a figure catches my eye; he holds a sword already stained with someone else's blood, and wears a smirk about his face. He is the tribute from District 1, Bellat if I'm not mistaken. I slowly rise to my feet and give him eye contact.
"Is it worth a few breaths trying to reason with you?" I ask him.
"Not really in the reasoning mood today;" He smiles and continues: "Don't worry, I will make your death quick."
Without thinking, I sprint off in the opposite direction, and his footsteps ensures that he is chasing me.
My mind wants me to stop, to give up; but my body does not listen and if anything tries even harder. He is about six meters behind me and closing in. Before long, we have made our way back to the cornucopia; the girl from District 1, Diamond, emerges with her bow drawn and takes aim at me. The arrow leaves the bow and flies towards me; but to my surprise, it misses and, as if by blind luck, hits Bellat in the shoulder. He drops to his knees and cries out in immense pain.
Diamond rushes to his aid and pulls out the arrow; while I look on, dumbfounded.
"What the hell have you done!?"
"I missed... Bellat I'm sorry." She tries to hug him but he shrugs her off. The mouth of the cornucopia caught my eye, filled with food and weapons; realizing that there was an opportunity, I ran to the mouth. I grabbed a backpack and began stuffing it with food rations, a combat knife, a tarp, and a canteen... All in all added about 30 pounds to my weight. I grabbed a quiver of fifteen arrows and the sturdiest bow I could find. The screams continued outside, and I realized I still had time. I swept over everything one last time, took a machete and sheathed it as I walked outside. I cautiously approached both of the tributes
"Mind if I take a look at the wound?" I asked him.
He stared at Diamond in contemplation before he agreed to let me examine it. 'Go ahead.' He mouthed; I kick away his sword to ensure my safety and bend down. Inspecting the wound, I apply pressure to it and rip another strip from my jeans and clean the wound with it. He groans and curses under his breath.
"You're going to need to bandage the wound; disinfectant wouldn't hurt either." I tell him, he looks at Diamond.
"Go get the kit, Diamond." She rises to her feet and leaves for a second. "Volunteering was a mistake." He says.
"Why'd you volunteer?" I ask him.
"Diamond's my sister, she's only 14; it's my job to ensure that she wins." he gives me a look of sadness. "What happened back there was not anything personal, I wanted to kill everybody I saw as threats first." Diamond walked back in with kit in hand and handed me a small tube and a roll of bandage. I disinfected the wound and then wrapped the bandage around his shoulder and secured the bandage by wrapping it around his chest.
"I don't want to kill you, Bellat; but I am fighting to live as well, if it comes that you, her, and I are the only ones left alive at the end... I will fight the both of you." l stand up and hold out a hand to him as well; he accepts and I pull him to his feet "It's best if you wait a few days until that heals. If you want some help with food, you need only ask."
"Diamond normally doesn't miss a shot, she can protect the both of us for a few days."
"Suppose it's time for us to part ways... May the odds be ever in your favor." I head off into the woods.
"What's your name?" Bellat asks.
"Aaron." I am too far into the woods to hear anything else he may have said. After three hours of walking, I manage to find another source of water, so I sit down and fill the canteen with water. I drink rather slowly, despite my extreme thirst. I try to think of all of the tributes names to help put my mind at ease:
District 1: Bellat and Diamond
District 2: Lance and Incendia
District 3: Derrick and Jule
District 4: Trent and Rosa
District 5: Aaron and Caela
District 6: Fallstreak and Ashby
District 7: Martial and Pomeline
District 8: Canwarn and Viola
District 9: Garner and Kasha
District 10: Betcher and Vera
District 11: Jesse and Brianna
District 12: Edan and Mia
As I finish, cannon-fire goes off three times. More aware, I check my surroundings to make sure I'm safe. 'God, I hope the game makers don't go after me' There is another downside to being in the Hunger Games besides the fact that I am IN the games; and that is you don't have a clue how anybody dies or where anybody is. By sunset I have set up a hammock and made a fire about thirty yards from where the hammock is set up. I use a tree for target practice to get used to the bow, take out the arrows lodged in the tree, climb up in to the hammock and begin eating a food ration. My eyes are locked on the fire, 'someone may want to kill tonight, sneaking to the campfire with a weapon in hand... But I'll be the one that's going to kill'.
The Capitol's Seal lights up the sky and the profiles of five follow: Lance of District 2, Jule of District 3, Fallstreak of District 6, Martial of District 7, and Edan of District 12. 'Four guys... One of them a Career. I hope it doesn't come down to me facing Caela or another girl.' That may have sounded sexist... But their looks of innocence makes it the harder to kill them. 'It's not enough, the game-makers will probably do something else tomorrow to pick off some of the latter districts.' I think. Two hours pass quickly, and the fire begins to fade; I hear footsteps in front of me begin to slow, in a cautious way. The tribute makes their way into the light of the fire; and I realize its Caela. I lower my bow, jump out of the hammock and approach her.
"Caela? It's me, Aaron" The light of the fire reveals me.
A smile lights up on her face. "Aaron!" she drops the weapon she had in her hand and runs toward me.
Instinct tells me to raise my bow, and I obey. "Can I trust you, Caela?"
She stops and her smile quickly transforms into a frown, she is hurt by what I asked her. "Aaron, I'd never want to harm you."
I slowly lower my bow and then drop the weapon; I walk up to her and wrap my arms around her, and after a second or two, she does the same. "God, I was so worried that you would end up on the list tonight."
"Did you hear those three cannons go off? It was a scuffle involving about eight of us; I think we were put together by the game-makers. After two of them dropped, three fled the scene; I took a cut to the arm when I stabbed the last one."
I tighten my squeeze around her and tell her "But wasn't there another one?"
"She just stood there, petrified. Ashby is her name; it was her District's male tribute I killed. I just stared back at her, for a good fifteen minutes we just stood there. I turned my head to look at the bodies being picked up, and when I turned back to her she was gone." I can hear sobs and sniffles from Caela as she rests her head on my chest. "I took him from her, Aaron; they could have been friends, or each other's hope at the very least."
"Caela, you have to accept that there can be only one victor. I'm pretty sure that she would have to lose him anyway." These words try to comfort her, but the sobs only turn into cries.
"I don't want you to die. If by luck we are the last two, I don't think I could kill you."
I think about that scenario for a minute, contemplating what I would do. 'Would I kill her? Probably not. Would we wait for one of us to starve to death, or have the game-makers choose who lives and who dies? Maybe' another option pops into my head but I refuse to think about the scenario any longer. I try to change the subject, "Are you hungry?"
I feel a slight nod and hear a whisper, "Famished." She pulls away from my embrace and wipes her eyes and cheeks. I take her hand and lead her to my hammock. I climb up and grab my sack and take it back down with me. I pull out a food ration and hand it to her. We sit down and I survey the area while she eats.
"Have you slept yet?" I ask her.
She finishes chewing and swallows, and answers: "Last night, for a few hours I think. I figured everyone was too exhausted to hunt anybody else during the night, so I closed my eyes and began to dream."
"I don't feel safe enough to sleep, I have to stay alert. Do you mind if we sleep in shifts tonight; while the other one is keeping watch?"
"I don't mind, you can sleep first and I'll wake you when I can't keep my eyes open anymore."
I nod, get up and walk to the fire. I pick up the knife she had and my bow; then I douse the fire. The moon surprisingly lights the area enough to where I can see ten feet in front of me with ease. I find my way back to her, hand her the bow, and climb up into the hammock.
...
The night before the Games, I was given 'some words to live by', as my mentor, Alec, put it: "You have the right to protect your life in there, Aaron, but do not succumb to the desire to kill; fighting your instinct is the best way to ensure that you are still 'human' and not just a mindless killing machine." He pats me on the back and whispers into my ear. "If you love her, prove yourself to her... Even if that means making the ultimate sacrifice." He leaves me to myself and I stare out the window, looking at the lit up buildings of the Capitol, 'A huge difference to solar panels, tesla coils, and generators' I think. The buildings they power instead of what powers the buildings.
...
I awake to the sound of her voice, "I hate to cut in; but I almost fell asleep standing."
I nod and climb down, "It's all yours." she hands me the bow and climbs up; when she's finally situated, silence fills the night sky.
As dawn breaks, the sound of twigs crunching draws my attention and my bow is instantly pointed in its direction. Incendia cautiously approaches me with a dagger drawn and a look of insanity about her face.
"You're not going to shoot." She smirks.
"Try me!" I yell at her; she accepts the challenge and inches towards me.
"You won't shoot me. I saw what happened at the cornucopia; you've a soft heart, one that most likely can't stand to kill another human." She continues towards me slowly.
I draw my arrow back even more. "One more step, and you will find out that I am more than capable. I'm giving you a chance to just walk away." Her approach turns into a full on sprint towards me and the arrow leaves the bow; it hits her in the chest, a little to the right of the heart. She stops and stares at the arrow in disbelief.
I draw another arrow; but when she drops to her knees, I rush to her.
"I didn't think you'd actually-" She looks at me with a stare that seems half-mad but sincere. I gently break the arrow off and throw it to the side; I put my arms around her and my eyes begin to tear up.
"Don't be upset. You did exactly what you were supposed to do." she gives me a smile and then her breathing becomes displaced. I lay her on the ground and hold her hand in mine.
"Incendia Pelafu of District Two, may your name be remembered in the hearts of all your district's citizens." Moments pass and her breathing halts; cannon-fire resonates throughout the air - it breaks my heart as I shut her eyes. "Rest in peace, Incendia." I whisper into her ear and move away from the body to let the hovercraft retrieve it. I grab my bow and stare up at the hammock to find that Caela had watched the entire thing. She doesn't sleep anymore and decides that it is best not to talk with me for a while. I make my way to the water source and fill the canteen, watching carefully for any tributes. Her pale blue eyes are still fresh on my mind, and they distract me from my actions. 'Why? Why does she have to die?' I ask myself inside my mind. 'You know why, Aaron. The Capitol won't let you forget... Your grandparents start an uprising, thus comes the Dark Days, and as a consequence, two children, one girl and one boy, from districts 1-12 are randomly selected to participate in the Hunger Games as a reminder to the Districts of their disobedience... indefinitely.'
"Aaron?" I am brought back to reality as Caela talks. "It's not your fault."
"Really?" I say to her sarcastically. "That arrow that killed her wasn't mine?"
"Aaron, that's not what I meant." She puts her hand on my shoulder and squeezes it tightly. "It's not your fault that she died... We all know there's a 1/24 chance of surviving in the Games."
"I killed her... I almost wanted her to kill me; but then I thought of you, that I had to protect you." I turn around and embrace Caela.
"Why do that for me, Aaron?" She asks me.
'Why, because I love you. I want nothing and nobody to hurt you... If my name wasn't called I would volunteer to be here with you.' that's what I was thinking; but I couldn't tell her that. "I promised your father, and everyone else in District 5 that you would make it back no matter what."
"That's quite the promise!" She isn't flattered by this but instead very pissed. "You can't expect to keep me alive to the very end, can you?"
"Caela, I'm going to do just that. You will win the Games." I assure her.
...
Two days pass by and five more have fallen: Derrick of District 3, Kasha of District 9, Betcher of District 10, Brianna of District 11, and Mia of District 12; which means there are still thirteen tributes including Caela and I. The food rations depleted yesterday, and that means I am going to have to hunt enough game to ensure both of our strengths. As the day drags on I find different areas where tributes have been; camps, burnt wood, discarded weapons. I take anything I find of value and continue on; thinking about Incendia's dying body in my arms; the beauty of her blue eyes, the half-crazy smile she relayed when she told me that she didn't blame me, the heat of her body slowly fading just minutes after. My eyes began to wet as I went on through the trees, blurring my vision slightly, so I began to rely on my hearing: a few birds singing, a steady stream of water, twigs snapping behind me. I knew who it was, I never left her sight since day two. She speeds up next to me, takes my hand in hers, and begins to sing a tune that was originally sung by her grandmother when she sang it to her father, and then from her father to Caela:
"Weep not, hurt not,
O my dear companion;
For though you may be broken,
A smile helps a lot.
Listen to the sound
Of a birdsong in the morn;
Because within each note,
A lot of hope is found."
My mind is comforted by her song, and I bring a smile to my face; knowing that she cheered me up, Caela smiles back and kisses me on the cheek. I instinctively hug her and it takes a while before I can withdraw.
The mood instantly changes when a cannon sounds off once more; reality sinks back in and I continue on, keeping my guard up. There won't be any sleep for me tonight; I won't allow Caela to look out while I sleep; I can't sleep anyway. The Capitol's logo appears in the sky and grabs my attention; the face of Rosa from District 4 appears, a 13 year old who was a happy little girl known and loved by all the residents of her District.
…
I walk grudgingly into the room as I noticed Caela, Alec, and Jonas – our district's representative – sitting on the couch watching the recap of the Reaping.
"Ah, look who finally got cleaned up." Jonas says as he focuses on my appearance.
"W-whatever I can do for sponsors, right?" I say unsteadily, then I notice our district display on the screen. I sit down and smile at my own reaction to being called; a few minutes of commentary making fun of the moment before they move on to the next district.
"Ashby Wolcott." The representative booms the name into the mic, and a dead silence falls on the entire crowd.
"This is quite the interesting one; for those of you who do not know she is the daughter of District 6's mayor. And just look at the determined and angry emotion in her eyes; maybe the one to look forward to as well." We all stare in a state of disbelief at the situation that just unfolded; it was a proving point to all the districts that no one is truly safe from the Capitol's punishment.
…
Day 5 begins with shouting off in the distance; I tell Caela to get behind me and we slowly make our way towards the noise. My bow is ready and Caela has her sword drawn; we advance into a clearing and see a girl chasing a boy franticly making our way. The chase stops when they notice us; and the boy, unarmed, hides behind us. Ashby waits with a mace in hand ten yards in front of us.
"You, Caela and Aaron right?" she asks. "Give me the boy and I won't bother you two again today."
I look back at the boy for a second, noticing that he is Trent from 4; he is scared and stares at me pleadingly. "I'm not going to give him to you, Ashby; not while he's unarmed like this." Caela looks at me as if I were crazy.
She chuckles at me and shakes her head; "Are you willing to risk yours or your girlfriend's life like that?"
Caela steps in front of me and stares at Ashby for a moment. "I know there's the real you somewhere in there, Wolcott. Leave Trent be for now."
"Oh, don't give me that crap, 5; whoever you think I was is gone ever since you killed Fallstreak." She grows in anger at us. "Last chance to hand him over."
"I only acted in self-defense, Ashby; I couldn't exactly run away from all of you and I had to stand my ground." Caela makes her case to the 16 year old standing adjacent to us. I am curious as to what exactly happened to Fallstreak; I know Caela killed him, but did he really strike at her first?
"Alright then." She tells herself, and charges at us. I aim down at her foot and shoot, with outstanding accuracy; but this only slows her down. Motioning for the sword Caela has, I brace for the impact. I put the sword between Ashby and I and it stops the motion of the mace from doing its damage. I push her away, and I give her a second to catch her balance.
"Go!" I yell at Caela and Trent, and they take off back towards our camp. Ashby advances towards me again, with a try for my ribs this time; I am barely able to withstand the force by blocking it, but suffer a few punctures and a fractured rib. The pain is almost unbearable, and I let out a scream in agony. I drop to my knees, not ready to give up; and I watch Ashby look pitifully at me.
"Fallstreak wasn't going to kill her, 5. He was like you in a lot of ways, he only wanted to protect me." She bends down and takes the arrow out of her foot. "Like you, he never would have gone for the kill. She killed him in cold blood." She throws the arrow to the ground and lifts up my shirt to look at the wound; I try to resist at first, but notice that I will not win. "It's not that bad, Aaron; but I will not give you another chance to kill me." She jabs me in the wound with a fist and fractures two more ribs.
I let out a huge cry and look at her with anger and pain. "Just kill me, Ashby; but please, leave Caela and Trent alone." I beg her.
"Oh, no, no; not yet anyway." She leans in and kisses me on the cheek and then grabs the back of my neck. "I am going to kill everyone else off first, then Trent, and then Caela; finally, I am going to give you the honor of finishing in second, Aaron." She lays me gently down on the ground, takes my sword, and walks away.
I stare at the sky for an hour or two – drifting in and out of consciousness – before I see a parachute fall from the sky; it lands 3 feet away from me, and I reach for it with my good arm. I open the package and a vial of some liquid and a note fall on my chest; there is a sharp pain when I pick up the note and read it:
DON'T GIVE UP ON CAELA YET – ALEC
I pick up the vial and read its label as well:
MORPHINE+HEALING SOLUTION
INSTRUCTIONS: REMOVE LID, DRINK SOLUTION
I open it up and take a whiff, and after a moment or two of hesitation I manage to down the awful smelling and tasting liquid; three minutes in and I feel instant numbing and relief in every sore part of my body, as well as my veins getting thicker as I drift back in to unconsciousness.