Chapter 1

The surrounding was absolutely beautiful. The sky was crystal blue, free of any clouds. The heat of the sun was muted, much to the tributes' confusion, but it would eventually work to their advantage. The grass was light green and soft, rustling around the tributes' feet as they stood on their silver pans, waiting for the gong to sound. There were colorful wildflowers dotting the grass as far they could see, and delicious-looking fruits hung off of trees. The scenery was as if it had just appeared out of a fairy tale book; everything was calm and serene. But the tributes knew better, you see. Sooner or later, this beautiful lush grass will be tainted over with blood.

However, this mattered little to Lucas Nario. Dread and a million thoughts pulsed through the tall 6'2" male's body, fueling him. The brown-haired boy clenched his fists as he examined the golden Cornucopia, a 20 foot high golden horn with a curved tail. Around the grand horn laid necessary survival things; weapons such as bows and arrows, several backpacks which were probably filled with a portion of food, and medical stuff. Yoon Sung's dark brown eyes settled on something he wanted in particular – the beautiful array of knives all hooked neatly on a brown leather belt. It was about 40 feet away from him, which was fortunate because his long legs and stamina allowed him to run swiftly. The tributes standing next to him also wore the same expression – dark and calculating – as they eyed each item they wanted first grabs at. To the 18 year old's disappointment, a district 6 boy also had his eyes on the belt of knives. He didn't want any competition, but this was somewhat expected. The district 6 boy had also placed an interest in knife throwing.

The gong sounded, and Lucas bolted off the silver pan before anyone else did. His long legs carried him a great deal of distance, arms swinging skillfully at his side. By the time tributes were sprinting for the Corucopia, Lucas had already grabbed his belt of knives and a backpack full of medical items and anything he needed to survive a while longer. He didn't plan on staying long, however, so he turned towards the forest and slipped through the bloodbath that was already starting. A district 1 girl, Lucas recognized her as Genevieve, skewered another girl from district 12 – Tracy Ferrer. Two boys were tugging on a bright orange backpack, which resulted in one being killed with a knife to the eye. A lithe, small girl from district 3, Aqua, had already escaped to the forest on the opposite side of the arena. Breaking his stare off of the bloodbath, Lucas turned and ran off. The only thing he needed to do now was to find a source of water. And survive, of course. The young man trekked through the beautiful forest, heart pounding like crazy, and stared at awe at his surroundings. The trees were over 100 meters, capped with lush leaves and having branches sticking out everywhere. The calls of birds and bears alerted Yoon Sung of both a food source and possible danger. With a bear around, this was going to be dangerous. He recalled the 87th Hunger Games when some girl by the name of Minnie was taken away and eaten by the bear. Yoon Sung shuddered at the thought and shifted his new belt and backpack. Thankfully, the low branches provided him with a resting spot. Resting on the ground would be too dangerous; leave him exposed to all sorts of danger. With that Career Pack prowling about, they were sure to pick off the weakest first. Find a water source.

He kept walking until something distracted him. It was a gray and white rabbit, hopping in a clueless into Lucas's sight. I might as well kill it; it might be my only meal for the day. Glancing at his collection of beautifully carved knives, Lucas picked one that was designed with a hooked end so it would embed flawlessly into the target. Gripping it skillfully in his pale hand, Lucas drew his arm back and threw it towards the creature. The knife glided silently through the air, smooth and flawless, before finding its target in the rabbit's flank with a thunk. The rabbit fell over, dead. Lucas smiled in victory and headed over to his caught prey, pulling the knife out, cleaning it on leaves before burying the dirty leaves somewhere else, and picking up the rabbit. Then, he noticed something. Its muzzle was wet. There was water somewhat around here; Lucas knew it. Thank you, rabbit. Your life will not go to waste, because you've helped me survive for the time being. His father always taught him how to thank the animal for its life.

Lucas looked down at his belt and realized that there were at least three leather loops on the belt's side. They would prove to be useful. Grabbing some thick, but flexible, twig, Lucas proceeded to bend the twig in a hook-like fashion on both ends, hooked one end to one of the loops, and hooked the other under the roof of the rabbit's little mouth. To ensure it wouldn't fall, he stabbed the hooked end of the twig all the way up into the rabbit until he heard the crunch of bones as the end clung securely. He bent the other end of the twig on his belt loop until it securely bent all the way, making sure the rabbit wouldn't escape. It would be some extra weight, but this was going to be his dinner. The problem way making a fire. Anyway, the young man kept moving forward.

Rustle.

Startled, Lucas jumped for a bit, disoriented, before snatching a knife with sharper little spikes attacked to its side. "Who's there?" he demanded.
All of the sudden, a young girl appeared from the shadows of the forest. She was from district 4, Yoon Sung's district, and he recognized her as Zena Williams, but district 4 liked to call her CL for unknown reasons. The tall girl lowered her weapons – a blow dart and some poisoned arrows – and looked at Yoon Sung with large, dark brown eyes. "Kill me if you wish. There's a Career pack tracking me right now; might as well give yourself an extra advantage, right?"

He paused and sheathed his knife back into its respective spot on his belt. "I'm not about to be responsible for my own partner's death," Lucas grumbled, holding out a hand. He knew CL; they went a long way. At the age of five, they both lost their fathers when a boat suddenly crashed and sank. Their fathers' bodies were recovered in a few days, but it was horrible. CL's father had lost an arm, ripped off by a shark perhaps, and his eye socket was being eaten by sea maggots. Lucas's father had gashes all over his body, marring his handsome facial features, and looked as if clawed sea creatures had tugged in competition for his body. They were both buried at sea with the upmost honor, and Yoon Sung received the medal of valor, being the oldest son with no father to bring home the money. CL was forced to quit school at the age of 12 when her mother fell ill and her brother drowned due to some fighting at school. The young girl had kept her mother's business up; drying the fish, stripping the scales off of its body, and cleaning ay catch the fishermen brought in. Lucas met her when they both turned 14. He had just come from signing the teressae, which entitled him to some grain and oil. His boss had caught some fish and ordered Lucas to bring them to the nearest market to get cleaned. He had searched high and low, but only found the little, seemingly empty, shop down the road. There, he met CL as she argued with some customer, and he had helped her slip out of any conflict by subduing the man, twisting his wrist in a painful way, and shooing him out of the shop. CL wasn't too happy about this, and thought Lucas pitied her. But they eventually got through with their daily business, and realized that their situations weren't too different; they were both working at a young age, signed up for teressae, were the main supporters of their otherwise weak family, and still kept their pride. That's where they started. At first, Lucas was simply a regular customer. Later, she taught him how to gut and clean the sea creatures, how to differentiate which parts of the fish were poisonous and which were safe. In return, Lucas taught her some self-defense, moves that can be used to subdue opponents, and how to weave nets. They worked as partners, and were friends ever since. At the reaping of the Games, when the whole of district 4 was gathered, her name was called. Lucas couldn't believe, and neither could she. But CL had signed up for teserrae, which entered her name multiple times than necessary. He had watched with angry dark brown eyes as no girl stepped up to volunteer. Later, Lucas Nario was called from the boys' reaping ball. Dread had filled him that very moment.

CL gave a small smile, eyes thankful. She had long, dirty blonde hair that stopped somewhere above her waist, shot through with brown strands here and there. Her skin was pale from staying inside all the time and she stood at a formidable height. In modern days, you would describe her as a "Barbie". You know, long, slender legs. She tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her ear and said, "Thanks, Lucas." Holding out her hand, she gave another dazzling smile. "Partners?"

The brown-haired male considered his choices. The slight breeze rustled his neck-length hair, forcing it to cling to the sides of his neck and some strands on the side of his face, and growled. It distracted his thoughts. CL was his friend ever since childhood days. They helped each other out and saved one another's behinds from being plopped in a whole lot of trouble. Immediately, he held her hand and replied, "You can bet on it."

Smiling, Lucas knew somewhere in the back of his mind that he would soon regret his choice. But why should he care? They were both friends. If it came down to it, hopefully they could escape.