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Day one: 24 Tributes remaining
It had all gone so fast. Just a week ago she was standing in the center of her district listening to her own name being called out during the reaping. She vaguely remembered being stuffed into a train, then a long billowy dress, and then into a room full of 23 other teenagers with a ticking clock on their lives. Now Darna was slowly being raised into the courtyard of an old, slowly crumbling ancient castle. Quickly whipping her head around, she could spot several staircases that ran into the castle – some up into torch lit halls, others into dark, narrow corridors. As she counted down the 60 seconds searching for an escape route she took note of her opponents. The Careers were as strong, beautiful, and deadly as always; barely being able to hide the glee and bloodlust already building on their faces. Some tributes seemed to be prepared for what was about to happen. The boy from District 6 had impressed Darna during training with his ability to pick up huge metal bars with little hesitation – had he mentioned that he helped lay the tracks for the capital trains in his interview? He seemed pleasant enough, having ignored the Careers during training, and he had even complimented Darna on her skill weaving and creating blankets from leaves and grasses. Maybe I should try and get him on my side; it's better than doing this alone right? Just as Darna contemplated the idea of an alliance, the boy from District 6 had begun jumping up and down in an attempt to get his body ready for the sudden exertion of the Bloodbath. Unfortunately, his leg had jarred on his come down and, with nothing to stop him, he hit the ground with 32 seconds remaining. Oh well, thought Darna, as the boy's body was obliterated in front of her. I've never been a fan of boys anyway.
10 seconds left… Focus! What is there for you? The area around the Cornucopia was scattered with backpacks and packages. Nothing out of the ordinary – the best stuff must be right in the middle. 9… Grab and run. Isn't that the best way to survive the first day? At 15 she was no physical wonder like the boys from District 1 and 2, and even the boy from District 6 when he actually had a body. 7… I can run, but where? 5… She noticed a hallway behind the two 12 year olds from District 11, and between it and Darna a midnight blue rucksack. 3… Well… if they get in my way a quick death now is better than a drawn out one. It is the Hunger Games after all… 1…
The gong reverberated across the courtyard, amplified by the stone walls. Darna set off immediately for the rucksack, grabbing it with one hand and shoving one of the other tributes to the ground – he fell surprisingly easy; adrenaline is a hell of a steroid after all. The rucksack is heavy, a good sign thinks Darna, but she needs to get into a safe space before the Careers begin hunting. As Darna dashes down the long hallway, the other tributes begin to rip through bags and boxes to find the tools necessary to win the Games. The Career pack is at the Cornucopia now; desperately searching for anything they could use. 6 years of training for the Hunger Games would have been pointless if they ended up having no advantage over the weaker tributes from the poorer districts. The lack of weapons momentarily confuses the careers, however, the cold metal of the cornucopia and the hard rock of the courtyard is quickly utilized. Only four tributes die at the Bloodbath; but it more than lives up to its name when three of the tributes have their heads viciously slammed into the ground until their skulls begin to crack and what was once a young girls face becomes a bloody pulp. The fourth has a cleaner death – his neck broken instantly by the boy from District 10 who worked his way into the Career pack with his sadistic knife work and love of flaying animals back in his district. He got lucky; had the District 10 boy had a knife his death would have been long, torturous, and surely beamed directly to his family's television.
In the confusion over the lack of weapons the remaining tributes managed to escape to the depths of the Castle, and while 4 deaths, plus the boy who fell, is low by Hunger Games standards, the brutal nature of their deaths would placate the Capitol for the time being. Sometimes the Games need a few days before the starvation, desperation, and bloodlust to really set in. Then things get exciting. It had been 4 hours since the Bloodbath and Darna had settled in a small closet that was nearly as big as her house back in District 8. Unpacking her rucksack, she found a coil of rope, a small bottle of water, some dried fruit, some nuts, and an additional pair of socks. Well, if it gets bad at least I can hang myself. That's a positive. In the distance a cannon blasts, the sound slightly muffled by the thick layers of wood and stone surrounding her. One…Two…Three…Four…Five. Well, let the Hunger Games begin. I should probably go find some food. Darna mutters to herself, but honestly, she's exhausted. She's also well hidden, so content in the knowledge she'll either wake up safe or not wake up at all she pulls down an old piece of fabric and cocoons herself in it, and quickly doses off.
Having spent the last 4 hours hunting with little success - how successful can a hunt with no weapons be - the Career pack of the District 1, 2 and 4 pairs, plus the boy from District 10 set up their own camp in the Great Hall directly in sight of the Cornucopia in the hopes that either the Gamemakers will suddenly supply them with weapons; or that a tribute will simply wander in oblivious to the well-trained killers awaiting them. However, several hours later when the Castle was lit only by the flaming torches adorning the walls the hopes that weapons would suddenly appear in front of them materialised. The District 1 male was the first to realise that the ornamental jewel encrusted sword above the fireplace of the grand hall was more than just proof that some forgotten Lord was richer than his subjects. When being forced through the lungs of the girl from District 6 who, as predicted, had simply wandered in, it was the same as any sword he had trained with.
Day 2: 18 Tributes remaining
Peeking over the windowsill Darna could see the courtyard and the Cornucopia below. Her room overlooked the still bloodstained starting point from the east, allowing her to spy on the Career camp without being spotted herself. The Career pack had soon found themselves armed with gold inlaid shields bearing the mark of a long forgotten noble family, heavy maces ripped from statues, and halberds taken from the steel gloves of a suit of armour. The Careers were armed to the teeth but were travelling light; however, with a 2-foot sword in your hand, who needs armour? As the pack set out, Darna began to plan her next move. Right, if they're heading out it means they're either so overconfident in their abilities that they feel like they don't need to guard their supplies because they'll be back before they get hungry – not unlikely; they have been training for this. But something was nagging at Darna. But they didn't take anything with them… which could mean they don't have anything substantial… She thought of her own rucksack; a bottle of water and some dried fruit was lucky, but not nearly enough to sustain her for however long she had left in this place. Maybe they're not just looking for someone to kill… maybe they need find food as well… After checking that the coast was clear Darna quickly began rummaging through the small bedroom she was in. After 10 minutes searching she had found a small bread roll, some dried beef, and in the dresser a sharp, yet small, letter opener. Not bad… no match against some maniac with a mace though, but at least it's something. A cannon blast shook Darna out of her contemplative state – while she had no idea who had died and what had caused it, she had to move. Tucking the letter opener into her belt, she poked her head around the door and set off in the opposite direction to the Career pack.
"Do you really have to take his skin off?" asked the girl from District 4 with disgust in her voice. With a steady voice and a smile, the boy from District 10 – Caff - replied that he can either flay the boy who died at his hand, or he can peel the skin off of her while she was still alive, and that it was her choice which one she would prefer. As he began humming, the girl rejoined the other Careers in rummaging through the boy from District 3's bag. No proper food in any of their packs either. In anger, the boy from District threw a delicate vase at the wall; smashing it into thousands of little pieces. However, from the destruction came a reward – hitting the floor with a light thud was a small, perfectly round orange. With a smile and a nod to his allies, the pack began to use their heavy weapons to demolish the sitting room, seeking the treasure hidden within.
Oh no... no no no… Darna didn't mean to kill her, she had quite literally walked into her knife. As Darna had walked round the door frame, the girl from District 11 had come around and promptly impaled herself. The look of shock was still etched on her face. Darna took no pleasure in killing her, even though that was the whole point of the Games. Taking a deep breath, she rolled the girl over, pulled her backpack off and looked inside. Damn, this girl was lucky until… Darna's thoughts trailed off as she pulled two turkey legs and a small packet of crackers from the girl's pack, as well as a water skin and some grapes. Darna couldn't bear to take the knife out of the girl's chest and began to rummage through the drawers around her. A breadknife and a long, curved knife were slipped into Darna's belt, and with a quick look at the girl's body she set out into the now dark hallway to find somewhere to sleep for the night.
Day Three: 16 Tributes remaining
Darna heard the commotion before she could see it. With so little food between 7 of them it wasn't going to be long before tempers flared within the Career camp. From the shouts that echoed across the courtyard and into Darna's master bedroom above the Grand Hall, it seems that after refusing to share a piece of well-cooked beef delivered by parachute, the girl from District 4 attacked Caff in an attempt to quell the rumbling of her stomach. Unfortunately, she instead found herself thrown from a window and land, with a sickening crunch, onto the staircase leading up to the Grand Hall. Her cannon blasted seconds after her head hit the stone. Realizing what had just happened, the boy from District 4 went to grab Caff, raising his mace in revenge.
A knife flew across his neck before he had a chance to bring it down, and as the boy dropped lifelessly to the ground Caff dashed from the room, his blood splattered face beaming. Leaping over the District 4 girl's corpse, he sped across the courtyard and into the Southern area of the Castle.
Great, how he's on the loose. Darna thought. Well, he won't come back to where the Careers are, so this must be the safest place to be right now. Of course, in the Hunger Games, there are no safe places. The rest of the day is relatively uneventful; Darna moved back across to the Eastern wing of the Castle – replenishing her supplies with a small fruit cake, and a pigeon that, when grabbed, gutted and roasted over a flaming torch, tasted surprisingly good. She began to flinch at every sound however, and when a stone slams the wall next to her head – launched by the boy from District 7 with what appears to be a handmade slingshot, she scurries away. But her footsteps reveal her location and within the hour she is having to prize the boy's fingers off her throat – something made easier following a swift headbutt. Unlike with the girl from District 11; this time Darna feels no guilt as her knife cuts into the boy's abdomen. He doesn't even have anything useful in the pack on his waist. She leaves the room, and with no hesitation gets into the single four-poster bed and pulls the covers up to her chin. She's too numb to feel anything right now; so, if someone does kill her – hopefully she won't feel anything. As she drifts off she barely registers the cannon blast, one more down she thinks before her eyes slide shut.
Day 4: 12 Tributes remaining
The fourth day of the Games is relatively uneventful. With only 12 Tributes - 4 of which are the Career pack - remaining, all spread across the huge Castle, it's no wonder that there are no deaths that day. Darna remains in her bedroom; undisturbed and unfocused. She barely notices the parachute float into the room via an open window until it lands with a thump on her bed. Inside is a patchwork quilt that smells like home, and a small loaf of the twisted knot bread from District 8. With tears in her eyes she pulls the blanket around her and shuffles under the covers of her bed. She spends the rest of the day like this – cocooned in her blankets, taking small bites of the bread, and weeping silently.
Day 5: 12 Tributes remaining
It is the dead of night when the entire West wing of the Castle collapses, the cacophony of crumbling rock and the screams of tributes being buried alive waking the remaining players. When the shifting stone finally settled, five cannon blasts erupted as the dawn sun revealed the extent of the destruction. The grand hall had been split cleanly in two, dropping the pair from District 2 and most of the career packs' supplies - meticulously scavenged and rationed – into a black abyss. The loss of both his allies and his supplies was too much for the District 1 male - Leo his name, if the screams of his female ally, echoing throughout the empty hall as his sword is driven into her stomach, are anything to go by. The two other victims of the collapse are from Districts 3 and 12, but with a now unhinged Leo stalking throughout the Castle, the metallic scrape of his jewel sword dragging across the stone bouncing around the arena, apart from their image in the sky, their deaths are largely ignored.
Darna watched from her room as the Castle crumbled in front of her. The Games must have been getting boring she muses, knawing on a slightly charred pigeon wing. Several hours later, after the rubble has completely settled and the midday sun bears down on the courtyard she spots someone sneaking out from the East and across the courtyard into the South wing. How close had he been to her sanctuary? She's tempted to call him back, to protect him from what lurks within the Castle, but he's gone before she gets the chance. An hour later she hears a cannon and assumes it was for the boy. After all, he did wander into Caff's domain. 6 deaths… three quarters of us gone now. Hopefully that will placate them. With nowhere to go, and no desire to go anywhere, Darna retires to her room, swallows some dried fruit and crackers, and slowly drifts off to sleep.
Day 6: 6 Tributes remaining
The trumpets echo around the arena. Darna barely registers them – not that she registers much anymore. The six days in the arena have taken its toll on her. She barely eats, drinks, or moves anymore. She is safe and warm in her bed, and that is all she needs to be. The words 'feast', 'tomorrow', and 'courtyard' work their way into her ears, but little else. Why would she leave her sanctuary to watch two maniacs hack away at each other? Later in the day a cannon erupts, with a second following a few hours later. Obviously, the remaining Tributes are energised by the idea of a straight up melee. While she has no intention of joining in the feast, Darna plans to watch. From her window, she has a spectator view of the courtyard. She knows that the Games are ending tomorrow, why miss the finale? Although the sun only shows the time at around 5pm, Darna crawls back into bed – willing herself to wake up tomorrow before sunrise.
Day 7: 4 Tributes remaining
Darna didn't need her willpower to wake up in the early morning after all. A cannon blast echoes around the now nearly empty arena at around 4am. One of the tributes clearly couldn't contain themselves anymore. Rising to the window, Darna sets out her remaining food – her remaining cracker, three slices of dried apple, the heel of her District bread, and half a bottle of water. A feast for the Feast.
As the morning sun lights up the courtyard she sees Leo descend from the Great Hall. He's skinnier than before, his muscles less defined. His hair encrusted with blood. He's focusing on something opposite him. Darna turns, expecting the Gamemakers gift to have appeared. Instead she sees Caff dragging another tribute by the hair into the courtyard; the blood trail the girl is leaving confirming what she, Leo, and the audience already knew. He's got a blanket as well. District 10 must really be behind him… But something is wrong. The material isn't as smooth as hers, looking like dried leather in the dim sunlight. Well, District 10 is cattle, it's us who can make proper blankets. It looks familiar though, especially a patch on the shoulder – it reminds her of home. And then it hits her. The material isn't leather, or felt, or velvet, or even burlap.
It's skin.
As he moves into the centre of the courtyard she can see it clearly. A patchwork quilt of victims. The girl from District 4; he must have snuck back for her body. The girl from District 7 that he dragged in with him. And the shoulder, the patch that invokes memories of District 8 – her male counterpart. Darna can't help herself, she vomits up the meagre breakfast she ate. When she dares to look down at the courtyard again neither boy has moved; but a plate with an entire roast turkey, surrounded by roots, vegetables and a mountain of rice on it has been placed in the centre. But they all know that the food wasn't the reason for coming here this morning. The boys – both unhinged, unrelenting killing machines; they want to destroy the other. Leo wants revenge for the allies he lost after taking Caff in. Caff just wants to add to his collection. They draw their weapons; Leo his jewel sword. Caff a pair of extremely sharp daggers – they pale in comparison, but It's clear that he has extreme skill using them. The battle between them is as brutal as expected. Caff's swift movements allow him to jab and cut at Leo; but they offer no defence when his sword knocks them away and is driven deep into his shoulder. Caff falls, the sword falling with him as he hits the ground. Leo stands triumphant; assured of his victory. Had he left then he would have certainly been able to hunt down Darna and bring the Games to an end.
But he doesn't. Leo drops to his knees and taunts Caff – laughing in his face. His final mistake. As Leo throws back his head to laugh even harder Caff strikes, driving a concealed blade on his wrist up and through Leo's neck. Now it is Caff's turn to laugh. He laughs manically as he withdraws his blade, getting soaked in his former ally's blood. Leo falls, gurgling as he drowns in his own blood. He hits the floor in a manner similar to the way the boys and girls whose skull he crushed against the floor nearly a week ago fell – in a pool of blood listening to their killer celebrate their death.
By the time Darna has made it to the courtyard Caff has removed the sword lodged in his shoulder and has gone exceedingly pale. He sits, back to the pedestal holding the roast dinner, chewing on a turkey leg and bleeding heavily. He looks up as he hears Darna approach, smiling as he swallows. "Hello beautiful. Have you come to join my gang?" he says, pulling his human cloak around him. She grabs the jewel sword that killed so many; yet couldn't kill Caff. He's still smiling as the sword is forced into his chest. "This is for them." She says, turning away from the now convulsing boy. She doesn't need to check to see if he finally died, the blasting of trumpets and cheering tell her that. She couldn't do anything to avenge the two Tributes she had killed. But she hoped that by killing Caff, she had brought some closure to the families of those he had desecrated.