I am back with another chapter! This chapter introduces the first six tributes in the 201st Annual Hunger Games! I am thoroughly excited to post this chapter and post more in the near future. Anyway, the tributes will be introduced over a span of five chapters. After that there will be some pre-game chapters and then finally the game will begin!

Also, I plan to respond to each and every review I get! I like when authors take the time to show appreciation for their reviews, so I will try to put forth effort back into thanking you and responding to your reviews!

CelestelzaFanLolz: I appreciate your review! Also, it's the first one for the whole fan fiction. ;) And don't worry, I definitely will be posting more (and hopefully at a good pace, too). Anyway, thanks for taking the time to review and I hope you enjoy this FF.

Beth: Thanks for your review, too! Hopefully I'll get the chapters up quick enough and not painfully slowly. I hope you like the way this story turns out! :) I'm glad you like where the story was going because I didn't really include too much in the intro. Just enough to *hopefully pique someone's interest. Thanks for the review, again. ;)

Districts 1-3 Tributes

Two career districts stepped off the train that had taken them to the Capitol. They were, as all career tributes were, highly anticipating the games. On top of that, they had been selected as early favorites and were, as most people thought, undoubtedly going to receive many sponsorships. Each individual not only had a high probability of winning, but a winning tribute from district one was, as always, expected.

DISTRICT 1 MALE

Name: Atlas Rockwell

Age: 31

Atlas looked over the scenery surrounding him. He seemed unfazed and entirely in-control. Whereas most people were heaping masses of tears and sobbing as they stepped off the train, Atlas was cool and relaxed. He moved his short, but strong body toward the building at which he would be staying. He didn't say a word to anyone, not even those who prodded him for interviews.

He was quiet. He was not the stereotypical loud-mouthed, alpha tribute. He, although strong and absolutely terrifying, was not ruthless by nature. His strategy for the games was, surprisingly, not one that required much strength of body or physical persistence. Although immeasurable from the outside, Atlas was equally as gifted mentally as he was physically.

Caesar: So Atlas, will you kill the district one female as though she were any other tribute?

Atlas: I didn't really plan on killing my district partner. I don't know her personally, but I still feel as though I have some kind of connection to her. I don't think I'd be able to kill her unless she were the last one standing.

The first night in the Tribute building was particularly easy for Atlas. Having had to do no training or physical exercise that day, Atlas merely spent the night thinking about the games and talking with his district one partner. He went to bed early that night in order to conserve his energy for the days to come.

Caesar: Tell us something about yourself that would surprise us.

Atlas: This is my first time in the Capitol. Most people from my district get to go to the Capitol all the time, but this really is my first time. When the train pulled up, I was staring out the window in awe. My parents had always told me stories of the Capitol and its extravagance, but until now I never really knew what to believe.

Atlas fell asleep that night realizing that he was not there to make friends. He knew he had had years of practice training for the games, so he was very willing and excited to get to use those skills. If someone was weeping, or if someone needed assistance, he knew he could not help that person. The thought of such cruelty disturbed him, but he wanted nothing more than to return back home to his family and say that he beat out twenty-eight other tributes.

Caesar: Tell us about your family.

Atlas: I have two children: a boy and a girl. I've been missing them, but I know they're strong and that they can handle me not being home for a while. Also, they've both started their elementary hunger games training a few months ago, so they'll know exactly what I'm going through.

Caesar: Other than for survival, why do you want to win the 201st Annual Hunger Games.

Atlas: I want to prove that I am the strongest out of twenty-eight people. I want to prove it to myself and to my family. I've been training for this moment for as long as I can remember, so to have more than twenty years of training snuffed out by someone hiding in the bushes will really be disappointing.

Caesar: Thank you Atlas. Thank you very much. Interesting reason…

DISTRICT 1 FEMALE

Name: Moon Vexus

Age: 25

Moon stepped off the train and straightened her hair. She felt the beating rays of the sun on her face and immediately applied suntan lotion so as not to burn. Due to a skin condition, she was particularly susceptible to the rays of the sun. Thus, in the arena, she'd need to take great care of keeping herself out of the sun.

"Atlas," she said, "do you know where to go?" Her voice was seductive and charming, and her pitch-black, wavy hair made her look like some sort of alluring siren. Every time she finished saying something, she always pursed her lips and formed a slight smirk.

"This building right up here," Atlas answered in a deep, emotionless voice. He did not sound like the kind of person to mess with.

Moon walked behind him and looked around the Capitol. She had been there many times before, so the sights were nothing to behold. Atlas was looking around a little more excitedly, yet he did not show it. The whole scene looked rather dysfunctional; Moon was about a foot taller than Atlas (she was very tall), and the two as a pair absolutely refused to show any kind of emotion.

Caesar: So Moon, will you be working more with your mental strength or your physical strength.

Moon: That question is easy: my physical strength. Since I could definitely beat and woman here in a strength contest, and probably half the men, using my physical strength should push me to about the final seven. After that, we'll have to see.

Moon and Atlas talked for awhile about themselves.

"I have a wife," Atlas answered her question. "She's beautiful. You don't know how much she wanted to be a tribute. She wanted to volunteer in your spot, but I begged her not to. After all, then we'd both be in the arena, and one of us would have to kill the other."

"That would suck," Moon stated bluntly. "You know, we oughtta team up in the arena. Two is better than one."

"And four is better than that. We should team up with district two. Or maybe district four."

Caesar: What's your weapon of choice?

Moon: Anything you can throw. Knife-throwing is a personal favorite. But if I pick up a harpoon in the arena, I'll know how to use that, too. So you better watch your back, because I'll have no problem putting a butcher's knife through it.

Moon said to Atlas, "I could take care of the women, and you could take care of the men. I don't want there to be a woman out there who thinks she's stronger than I am. I'll show them…I'll rip them in half if I have to. I'm serious, you know."

The two then exchanged countless ways of killing a person. They were very well-versed with their weapons and human pressure points, so the two felt right at home talking about ways of killing people.

"We can torture them, too…" Moon said, twitching a little bit as she looked out the window to the streets below.

Caesar: Tell us about your family.

Moon: All of my close family has been exiled to district fourteen. My parents, my sister, my brother, everyone. They didn't rebel or anything, but they kept on killing their games trainers. I don't have anyone to lose if I die, but I wouldn't care if I did; family just holds you down. You need to worry about what is most important.

Caesar: Other than for survival, why do you want to win the 201st Annual Hunger Games?

Moon: Because I'm on a mission. I'm from district one, so I should be number one. I will feel like a let myself down if I lose. I want to win so I can represent my district and march through the streets and say, "Yeah, I won the 201st Annual Hunger Games."

Caesar: My, how charming!

Two more careers dismounted the bus at the Capitol. As were Atlas and Moon, this pair was ready to win the Hunger Games, at any cost. They strutted past the onlookers who, of course, swarmed them with microphones. The male stopped first, turned to the female, and nodded. The two were very cooperative with the journalists flocking around the scene.

DISTRICT 2 MALE

Name: Xion Macabre

Age: 29

"Am I scared? No." Xion answered a journalist's question.

"Even a little? We saw Atlas, the district one male, get off the train a few minutes ago, and, well, he looked rather intimidating."

"Psh. You think that means he's competition? Just 'cause he looks intimidating? I'll tell you this: district two breeds winners. I don't care if Atlas is seven feet tall. You see these muscles? Yeah, well how would you like to fight with them? Huh? Wanna test it out?"

"No, sir…I merely—"

"Well then don't tell me that Atlas is hot stuff, because I don't care. Xion will be the champion of this little game. I mean, the Capitol could have at least picked real competitors! I mean, half the tributes are old. I'll be in the arena with Aunt Sally, and, no, I won't spare her just because she knitted me a bird sweater."

Caesar: So Xion…you think you'll get emotionally attached to anyone?

Xion: Getting emotionally attached to someone is a sign of weakness. I have suppressed all emotion since I was seven years old. Ha!

When Xion finished with the reporters, he made his way toward the building. He had a defiant swagger that seemed to insist he meant no business. However, for such a distant person, his walk and talk almost made it seem like he craved attention.

Many of the female passers-by gave him this attention. He was tall, bronze, and exceptionally muscular. His hair was black and his head looked strong and stony. His hands, too, looked strong enough to rip a person apart in seconds.

Caesar: Tell us your favorite memory.

Xion: Favorite memory? One time my older brother didn't think I'd have the guts to do something "bad", so I wired and triggered an explosive that went off when he opened the door to his bedroom! His whole room caught on fire! Sure he wound up in the hospital, but hey — what are siblings for? It was just really funny…

Caesar: Wow…

Xion spent the majority of that night meditating and trying to suppress any kind of emotional feeling he could possibly have. But when he thought of his family, and how he might miss them, he simply thought of all the bad times he had with them. This just got him angry (so he punched a pillow for a while) and then finally settled down. His recollecting had him so angry at his parents and siblings that he knew he had successfully depleted any kind of melancholic memory that might have resurfaced.

Caesar: Tell us about your family.

Xion: My family? I have my parents and a brother and two sisters.

Caesar: Don't you miss them?

Xion: Of course I don't. I'm playing this game for myself, and I plan on winning. I don't miss anyone. I can't waste time remembering and worrying when I have twenty-seven people to kill. I don't mean to put it so bluntly, but I mean…yeah.

Caesar: Other than for survival, why do you want to win the 201st Annual Hunger Games?

Xion: I made a bet with my siblings once that if I ever was in a Hunger Games, I would win. Winning that bet would get me a lot of gloating rights and would establish me as the strongest person in my immediate family.

Caesar: That's important…

DISTRICT 2 FEMALE

Name: Lilac Phios

Age: 30

Lilac was in a heated argument with some of the reporters. "I can beat anyone in the arena, no doubt about that. I can stab people once in 235 ways and still get the same result."

"So Lilac, what's your strategy for the games, huh?"

"Kill."

"You make it sound so easy."

"Well, considering I could kill you in about two seconds right now…yeah, it's not too difficult."

The reporter gulped loudly. She scampered away and looked for another tribute with whom to talk. Lilac just laughed and the reporter's cowardice and turned toward the tribute building.

Caesar: Lilac, will you beg for someone not to kill you?

Lilac: Beg? I don't beg. I am noble. If by chance someone has the strength or endurance to kill me, then so be it. I won't die crying like a little girl. But anyway, I don't think there will be a situation when I'm gonna be the one on the wrong end of the dagger.

Lilac was of medium height and of blonde hair. Her hair was so blonde, actually, that it looked almost white, especially when the sun beat on it. Her face was typically expressionless, but her mind was always racing. Having been trained by one of the most gruesome and grotesque trainers to ever walk in the districts, Lilac always contemplated the best and easiest way to kill a person given her situation. It was like a little challenge for her, when she's bored. After all, what else is a person supposed to do when they're talking to someone they don't really want to talk to?

Caesar: Pitchfork or bow and arrow?

Lilac: Pitchfork. I prefer close-range combat. Besides, it sounds more painful.

Lilac and Xion humored each other by spending a portion of the night talking with each other.

"I don't think I struck a chord with those reporters this afternoon," Xion said, shrugging.

"I think you did. What you told them was honest. And besides, it shows…a little cockiness. I liked that." Lilac smiled and, for once, didn't contemplate the easiest way to kill the person with whom she was talking. She seemed rather at peace for those few moments.

Xion accepted her complement and nodded. He glanced around and, due to his typically antisocial nature, didn't say anything. He was at a loss for words. Lilac, too, shifted uncomfortably on her sofa and just stared at him in silence.

Xion then spoke. "The reporters said some 'Atlas' guy is all beefy. We may need to watch our backs."

"I thought you said you could beat him easily."

"I could," Xion admitted. "I was just letting you know…"

"Oh, well…thanks."

Caesar: Tell us about your family.

Lilac: My parents are dead. They died under "mysterious circumstances". All I have left is a twin sister. I do miss her dearly, and I do hope that she supports me in these games. I want to come back a winner.

Caesar: Other than for survival, why do you want to win the 201st Annual Hunger Games?

Lilac: To avenge my parents. I don't care what everyone says; I think they were murdered. So now, I have the drive to kill people. All I have to do is think that I'm driving my knife into the skin of a murderer and I will have no problem killing anyone. It's…too easy to imagine.

Caesar: That sounds rather…unsettling…

The third district's tributes dismounted the train next. Both looked rather concerned and displeased. One couldn't tell if they were overconfident or simply scared. They both moved rather slowly, looking unexcited and unready. The male shuttered when he saw the large tribute building standing like an impending conscious just a football field away.

DISTRICT 3 MALE

Name: Raz Golding

Age: 40

When the reporters encircled Raz, he looked particularly uncomfortable. His face turned red and he found himself moving his messy black hair around to calm the tension. His hands, he noticed, couldn't stay still, either. One reporter asked, "So, Raz, how do you like the Capitol? Excited for the games?"

"I just wanna go home," he said.

"My, my…" the reported said unconcernedly, "this won't play well with the sponsors. Oh, no, it definitely won't!"

"I don't care about the sponsors…"

"But they are your key to survival!"

Raz looked unfazed. He just looked depressed and shrugged at what the reporter had said. He hated to admit it, but he didn't care about survival. At least not right then, he didn't.

"So you really don't care about winning the Hunger Games? You don't care about the honorable title you would hold if you were able to win? You don't care about the feeling of courage and—"

"I care about none of that. I do not wish to be here. I was not born a killer, nor have I ever wished to be a killer. Could you kill a person? Could you kill someone who's been injured and is lying next to you? What if they had a family? What if they had four kids who are all wondering why their mother or father has disappeared? Could you so easily plunge a knife into the heart of such a person? You disgust me."

The reporter looked rather taken aback. He muttered something to himself and then, when he tried to respond, couldn't find the words. He shifted awkwardly and after a few seconds said, "It's sad that you don't want to support your dear, dear country…"

Caesar: Raz, what would be your "perfect kill".

Raz: My perfect kill? How can such an adjective describe such an unfortunate word? A perfect kill? Well, let's see here. After I kill someone whose eyes told me that they had a newborn baby and two small children, and whose unmoving body tells me that I have just taken away everything good in their life, I kill myself. Killing myself for such a crime would be the only noble way to handle myself.

Caesar: Oh…

Raz spent that night looking through all of his scrapbooks that he had brought with him. He needed to remember what his family looked like, for in the arena, he'd be calling upon their faces for company until his untimely demise.

He shuttered at that thought. But surely it would arrive. He did not plan to kill in the arena, so how could he possibly win? He rubbed his head and thought hard about how he would spend his last few days alive.

Caesar: Would you team yourself up with some careers if they asked you?

Raz: I suppose I would. However, I fear they would stab me in the back. I'd need to make sure I was safe. I can't die unknowingly or by someone who betrayed me. I must die how I want to die.

Raz had a difficult time falling asleep. He found it hard to comprehend death. He found it especially difficult to comprehend the fact that he would never be able to see his loved ones again. He didn't sign up for this. He never wanted to do battle in an arena with twenty-seven other tributes. Even the careers he felt bad for. Sure there were some unsavory characters, he thought, (he was never a fan of Xion and Moon) but he still felt bad. They…were too easily tricked, he felt. They were, Raz thought, out of all twenty-eight tributes, the most gullible. They fell too easily into the Capitol's tricks.

Caesar: Tell us about your family.

Raz: I love my family. I love my family very much. I have a beautiful wife and two children. I don't understand why it's fair that all of these beautiful things should be taken away from me.

Caesar: Other than for survival, why do you want to win the 201st Annual Hunger Games?

Raz: To see my family again. But if I have to kill someone to do it, I won't be able to live with myself. I am stuck, really, between my morals and my conscious. That's why this game is horrible. I would die for my family, but I couldn't ruin another family.

Caesar: How…interesting…

DISTRICT 3 FEMALE

Name: Spade Bex

Age: 32

Spade hopped the train and looked around uneasily. Her heart was racing and her mind was flitting about with numerous thoughts. She moved her orange hair to the side and moved quietly to the reporters. He short stature made her difficult to see from afar. Given her other child-like physical features, one could have easily mistaken her for a child if her face looked a tad younger.

The look in her eyes was rather odd, as well. She looked as though she was always studying someone. She looked curious and squinted when she couldn't quite understand something. She was quiet on her feet, too. No doubt she would be a good scout or rogue.

"Spade, what's your game plan?" A reporter asked.

"Game plan? I will not reveal that now." She turned away and hurried off. She didn't want to talk to the reporters any more than Raz did. She followed by Raz's side like a lost puppy and tried to engage him in a discussion.

Caesar: Spade, what kind of player are you?

Spade: I am like the wind. I am invisible and dangerous. I will not reveal what kind of player I am, but I will say that I am tougher than I look.

Spade said to Raz, "So, shall we be a team? Shall we take on the competition, the two of us?"

"I do not wish to fight," Raz admitted.

Spade looked rather surprised, but remained mysterious as always. She shuttered (a little over-dramatically) and looked Raz in the eye. "Well then I guess I will hunt alone."

"Why do you say 'hunt'?"

Spade looked like she didn't want to answer his question, but then gave in and said, "Because…I am the predator and everyone else is the prey."

"Am I prey?"

She turned and moved her shoulders a little bit. She sighed and said, "We shall see…"

Caesar: What would be the ideal arena?

Spade: One with a lot of trees. An arena must have trees. Trees are your protector and also your downfall. I have become one with nature, though. So I see no downfall in my future.

Spade spent the rest of the night trying to make a phone call, but the people working in the tributes building seemed to have a problem with her making a call. "We can't let you do that. Not today, at least."

Spade looked disappointed. "Why not? I simply must."

"Honey, please…return to your room."

Spade was furious, but she didn't show it. She tilted her head to one side and stared at the receptionist as though she were going to pounce on her. Then she said, "I will leave. But remember, you should not anger nature. If you cut down a tree, lightning will strike."

The woman at the counter just gave her an odd little look as Spade rushed out of the room and to the elevator. On her way up, Spade began to let a few tears fall from her eyes. All she wanted to do was call someone very important to her, and that mean woman at the counter said no. Spade was angry; lightning was ready to strike.

Caesar: Tell us about your family.

Spade: My parents are both alive, but I don't see them very often. The only family member I really have in my life is my little brother. I love him so much, because he just…understands me. He understands my love for nature and he shares this love, too. We hunt together all the time and he really is my favorite person. I…I will miss him.

Caesar: Other than for survival, why do you want to win the 201st Annual Hunger Games.

Spade: For my brother, of course. And to show that nature is powerful. I want to win because I don't want to be underestimated and considered weak. I…I…I must win.

Caesar: Well, good luck to you!

First six tributes there. Only 22 left! Anyway, I hope you guys like this chapter and I hope you guys are already forming favorites and whatnot. Thanks for reading!