A/N: Alright, so I'm sure you guys have all realized that this story is going to be a bit different. I'm quite excited by this plot bunny, to tell the truth, and I hope you are too. I am also looking for a beta for this one, as well as some positive and negative reviews. All input should be constructive, though you should note I'm difficult to offend.
Chapter One: The Chasm
I wake up in what looks to be an underground tunnel. I'm not the only one. The others are close by, Marvel and Clove and everyone else who was taken by the Games. But if this is heaven, it sure looks like hell. The air smells too sterile- a doctor's office surrounded by aluminum walls, an endless cylindrical hallway with pristine white beds from here on as far as I can see. I don't know where I am.
The last thing I can remember is the pain of my body being ripped apart by the mutts. The girl from twelve- Katniss, as I recall- sending a merciful arrow into my torn body, ending the hurt. A pity kill. Saving me from more agony. These sorts of deaths are a blessing in the games, but I wasn't supposed to die at all. I was supposed to come out alive, that's what I volunteered for. It was supposed to be eternal glory, for me, for my family, for my district.
What a joke.
I didn't realize how much all of my training has turned me into the Capitol's lapdog until I was faced with the very real possibility that I had just volunteered myself to die in the place of a total stranger all because I wanted to be a victor. At least I took down a lot of people with me; at least I brought some achievement to my people. I showed them my raw power, lived for them, killed for them, died for them. My district, my family, they are all that matter to me. I failed them. I shouldn't be alive. I should have been able to kill Katniss and Lover Boy before they took advantage of me. So why was I still here, if I had failed so miserably?
I flexed my muscles temporarily, trying to urge them to move as I leaned forward. Several wires and cords pulled me back though, keeping me in my bed. I grabbed hold of the ones attached to my arms and yanked them out, wincing slightly as the needles slid from my skin.
I had just begun to reach behind me to remove a bandage on my back when three men in white came racing towards me, hands gripping onto some strange looking guns. I jerked the patch off and lunged from my bed. My feet hit the ground and slipped across the metal surface. I sprawled out across the floor, clambering with my arms for something to pull myself up with and finding nothing. A voice called out to me from my left.
"Cato! Don't fight them, you'll only-"
The rest of the words never reached me, as the men in white came closer. My eyes widened in anticipation. I grabbed the leg of the first man, smiling in satisfaction as he fell to the ground. I pushed myself to my feet, finally finding purchase on the slippery ground. The second man aimed his gun at me, and I grabbed it quickly before he could shoot, breaking his wrist like a toothpick while he screamed. This was easy; this was what I had been trained for. If only I had a sword…
It had taken me too much time to disarm the second. I was too late. The third man pulled the trigger, and I felt an excruciating shock surge through my body. I fell to the ground once more, my limbs shaking uncontrollably as I lost consciousness.
TTTTTTTTTTT
When I came to, there were many faces peering down on me. They all started talking at once, and I caught bits and pieces of their words.
"Is he okay?" a sweet voice asked.
"Oh! Clove, he's moving!"
"Gee, isn't that just great. Do you think he knows about-"
"-Shut up, Thresh, of course he doesn't. The idiot had himself shocked right back down again before I could say anything."
They all started talking amongst themselves, and only got quiet when I opened both of my eyes completely.
"He's awake," said the girl from five, motioning for the others to back off. Clove pulled her by the hair to shove her out of the way and grabbed my collar.
"You didn't bring any of the tributes from twelve down with you? How embarrassing. I should have killed them when I had the chance," she spat, watching shrewdly as I sat up. I opened my mouth to retort something nasty, but she held up her fingers for silence. For some reason, I obliged her. "Save it, Cato. Right now, you're going to listen to me, and you're not going to ask a single question until I'm done. Got it?"
I narrowed my eyes at her, but nodded in consent. It bothered me that Clove was so short with me, but then again, I wasn't there to save her in time. I would be mad at me too if I were her. I wish she was as happy to see me as I was to see her.
"First and foremost, I'm sure you've noticed that you're alive and well. Almost all of us are. It's a bit tough to explain, but several tributes that were killed in the Games each year aren't actually dead. We're all here, in a place we like to call The Chasm. The Capitol has found a way to keep us around as long as we are useful. I can't explain our jobs or how we are still alive to you until you've been inducted, but you need to understand that you are here because you were chosen. Not every tribute gets this opportunity. Many are killed officially as soon as they leave the arena, but for whatever reason, we possess something the Capitol desires and we get the honor of living in their service. That's all I can tell you right now," Clove finished, crawling to sit on the foot of my bed.
I sat up straighter, looking at the faces around me. Most of them, I knew. Marvel, Glimmer, Thresh, Rue, Clove, Fox-Face, and Chip. I winced when I saw his face. He was the boy from three, the one whom I had killed very intentionally after he failed to stop someone from exploding our supplies. I was surprised at the combination of anger and regret I felt at seeing his face.
"None of this makes any sense. You guys are crazy, we're all dead. This is just some sort of twisted hell we belong in, I know it as well as you, there's no way-" I started, when the boy from three interrupted me with a scowl.
"We all know you belong in hell, Cato. You're a ruthless killer," Chip snarled.
I rolled my eyes. "Well as flattering as that may be kiddo, that doesn't make this any easier to understand."
He narrowed his eyes, but didn't say anything more. The girl with the fox-like face from five stepped up closer, her features blank and her voice quiet as she recited something robotically.
"Rue will help you. She knows all of the ins and outs of this place. She'll lead you to the Director, he's the one who's responsible for explaining all of this a bit better. But once you have all of your answers, you can't share them with anyone or you'll be executed on the spot. If you have a problem with that, the medical tributes will make sure your death is painless. This time, there will be no waking up. If you think you can handle all of this secrecy, then please follow Rue and the Director will answer your questions and tell you how things are going to go from here on out. If not, now is your chance to speak up."
I felt my hands clenching, my fingers digging into my palms. It seemed I didn't have much of a choice. I hated having a lack of options.
"I guess you've left me no choice. But if I find you all are tricking me into joining up with something horrible that I can't understand, I will not hesitate to kill you in your sleep. I will hunt you down, and I will find you. You'd better be telling the truth," I said with my teeth grinding together.
I felt a small hand touch my bicep. Looking down, I saw the dark eyes of the little girl from eleven. Her eyes lacked the anger I could see clearly etched in the expressions of the others. I gulped, knowing I had killed her indirectly. It was my hunting party that tracked her, and any death in the Games made me feel elated at the time. Now it just felt a bit sickening to see such a little girl with such an honest, merciful face, pulling me down the hallway, knowing that the group I sent out had ended in her ultimate demise. The twinge of remorse wasn't enough to affect me completely though, and I still managed a slight growl. "Don't you dare mislead me, Rue, or you'll wish you were never born."
She removed her hand from my arm and walked a few paces ahead of me, her back towards me. Taking everything I said in stride, she laughed a bit. "I figured as much. Lucky for you I don't hold grudges like everyone else. I might have something unkind to say back to that."
I was silent the rest of the walk. Rue seemed to know where she was going, turning right and left into various hallways, a huge labyrinth of them, all with the exact same metal walls. It all looked identical. I didn't know how she could possibly navigate it so well. Against my better judgment, I felt a tiny bit grateful that someone else was leading the way for once. Eventually, we came upon what looked like a dead end, where the wall cut off into a single sheet of metal covered in tiny screws.
Rue pulled a small screwdriver from her pocket, and started unscrewing the bolts in a strange order. I watched as the wall gave way to a single glass door. She opened it carefully, and whispered to me, "I'm not allowed to enter- it's your meeting, not mine. Make sure to ask every question you feel you need to know, because you're never allowed to see the Director again. This is your chance to bargain for what you want in life. Use it well."
I nodded once, and stepped inside. The door shut behind me, followed by the metal wall, and I was instantly surrounded by darkness.
A/N: Don't forget to give your input on the way out. Answers will be given in the next chapter to several of the questions you may be having. Also, I apologize for the cliff hanger but this next part is going to be very long. I also wanted to let you know that the time break above, I normally use astrix's or something cooler, but FF doesn't allow that, so now you ended up with the letter "T" in bold. Sorry that it isn't the most attractive.
