THE SKY WARS

PART 1

THE TRIBUTES

1

I jump awake and check my clock. 5:30 am. I have about 8 hours to kill until the Sky Wars Choosing. Every year they have a Sky Wars competition where 24 kids – one boy and one girl aged 12-18 from all of the 12 towns – fight to the death inside an arena created by the Veterans. The Veterans are citizens from The City, the ruler of our country, who control the Sky Wars by creating threats. The most common one appears almost every year, Flying Crabs which when they bite, poison you.

I get dressed and go out into the cold air of Town 12. I head to the Black Market where I trade lots of things for food – say, I catch a rabbit or squirrel – but rule it out because I have nothing to trade. I head to the woods and grab my crossbow, crafted by my dad before he died, and venture into the woods. Although poaching is illegal and punishable by death, I do it anyway.

I head up to a place I met my best friend, Gabrielle Simone. I just call her Gabs. When she is already waiting there, she has a loaf of bread with an arrow stuck through it. "Look what I shot." She says. "Is that real?" I ask her. "Yes, of course it is!" She replies. I grab a few blueberries from a bush and we start to eat. When we finish, we head deeper into the woods and get 3 squirrels, 2 rabbits and a bird. We go to the Black Market and trade for food. After that we head off to our families. "See you soon." I say.

When I get home, my mother has set out a plate of food that I didn't know we had and some milk from my little brother's sheep. I wolf it down and add the bread. I leave to my room and find a nice shirt out with some jeans. "Your dad's." Says mum. I get dressed and head out to the Rectangle, where the choosing takes place.

I meet with Gabs, who is 16. So am I, and my little brother is 11. He will be in next year. Gabs can't talk because she has to look after her 12 year old sister. I head to my part and stand, waiting for the choosing to begin. Out comes the escort of Town 12, Nelly Hive. "Welcome, welcome. To the 99th Annual Sky Wars. As always, ladies first." She puts her hand in the bowl. "Ashley Simone!" She says. That's Gabs' little sister. "Ash!" Someone screams. "I VOLUNTEER! I volunteer as tribute." Says only one person, Gabs. "Well, looks like Town Twelve's first volunteer. Come on up dear." Says Nelly. "And what is your name?"
"Gabrielle Simone." Says Gabs.
"I bet that was your sister." She replies.
"Yes." Answers Gabs. "Now the boys." Says Nelly. Her hand goes in. "Adam Parker!"

Hey guys! I'm sorry about how short these chapters are - I wrote them last year and they seemed a lot longer xD. Anyway, please don't stop reading because of chapter size - the story is very good (at least I think it is)

Anyway, please enjoy the Sky Wars!