Aulus Maximian's face was pale, so much so that it looked artificial, and being from the Capitol, it probably was. His eyes were of a deep blue colour, an almost identical match to his hair, which was styled into Caesar Flickerman's signature ponytail. It was not hard to imagine Aulus sitting in Flickerman's chair, interviewing the year's tributes. The head gamemaker often fantasized of such a life, but although his flamboyant, materialistic personality was very much suited to it, his intellectual mind was far more valuable to the games when used behind the scenes.
As he scanned over the other, less important gamemakers in the room, a warm smile grew upon his lips. The expression was not genuine, but the way his eyes crinkled at the sides would have anyone fooled.
'I trust that you all know why we are here today,' Aulus's voice, booming with pride and authority, echoed against the walls. 'This, darlings, is the beginning of the 76th Hunger Games!'
A cheer spread through the gathered gamemakers, lasting no more than four seconds before the burst of excitement faded, allowing Aulus to continue.
'This one, darlings, is important. One of the most important, in fact. Panem has spent the last half-decade recovering from the rather unfortunate events that have occurred in recent years,' he explained, a serious tone creeping into his voice, though it did not banish his faked warmth. 'But recovered we have, and so, it has been decided that the Hunger Games shall live on.'
'We have to do something big!' an enthusiastic call sounded from the back of the room.
'You took the words right from my mouth, darling. We need to do something completely unanticipated. Something that Panem has never seen before. Any suggestions?' Aulus inquired, his smile becoming almost sincere as an ocean of hands shot up. He indicated toward a young, dark-skinned woman, whose emerald eyes shone with eagerness. Perhaps he would have thought her beautiful if women had been his area of expertise.
'Maximian, sir, perhaps we could introduce a new rule?' she suggested, dark, slender fingers brushing a strand of curly hair from her face as she spoke.
'Well, that is the general idea,' he retorted, then pointed to a middle-aged man sitting in the audience with his arm reaching upward. 'Yes, darling?'
'Cladis Curio. We could release Cladis Curio into the arena,' the man proposed. 'He's a psychopath. What good is he here?'
Cladis Curio. The name sent an electric cloud of shocked excitement over the room. Curio was a victor from district 2 who had won his Hunger Games due to his downright insanity. Aulus remembered watching him torture the other tributes, pushing them slowly and painfully toward their inevitable deaths. Cladis had been deemed unfit to return to his district, and was kept captive in a mental hospital in the Capitol, where for the first few months, his behaviour was studied and was somewhat useful to advances in psychiatric medicine. Now, however, he was a waste of space, and seeing as he was still too dangerous to let loose, the name 'Curio, Cladis' was already on death row.
'Darling, that's grim,' Maximian smiled darkly. 'I love it.'
Hello, readers!
The story is set seven-ish years after the 75th games. District twelve, along with any other districts damaged, were not fully destroyed, and things began to be built up again. At the time of 76th games, a lot of the damage still remains, especially in the poorer districts.
The rebellion was unsuccessful, and district 13 was destroyed before Peeta, Johanna and Annie were rescued. All those in 13 at the time were killed. This includes Katniss and Finnick.
It is illegal to mention the rebellion, as it is feared that any talk of it could spark another uprising. Anything representing the rebellion is also forbidden. Failure to abide by this rule is punishable by death.
There are no longer career training centres due to the fact that for a long time, it didn't look like the Hunger Games were going to happen again. Training does still happen, but it isn't to the same extent.
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Good luck, and happy Hunger Games!