And so this story begins. I would just like to say this is the longest chapter I have ever written for any story ever! The old me would have had this as 7 different chapters. Oh well.
The weapons are just as much a character as any of the tributes, so we'll start with them.
The pentamorte started out as a gardening tool. The handle is similar to brass knuckles. Coming out of the top is a one inch thick circular rod made of steel. Half-way down the rod, four more rods come out perpendicular from the first going up, down, left, and right. About three inches down each of the four rods, they curve forward. The rods continue for six more inches before they come to a pin-point. The result is five spikes in a cross. It's usually used as a dual-weapon with one in each hand.
BBB stands for Bi-Blade Boomerang. Created sometime during the revolt, it is basically just a wooden 'S'. However, once it is thrown, two curved blades extend out of each end. Only the most skilled fighters can use this weapon for many reasons. One: as soon as the BBB leaves your hand, the blades extend out of force. If thrown incorrectly, the blade will slice into your arm. Two: the way you throw it affects the way it spins. Sometimes, it just spins forward and never comes back. Other times, it spins out of control and cuts up the thrower. It takes years to master the spin. Three: catching it. Those are blades spinning as fast as lawnmower blades! It takes hand-eye coordination, extreme focus, and a quick hand to grab it while in motion. Obviously, not many people know how to use this.
The final new weapon is the Capitol arrow heads. Best used with a crossbow, these arrow heads were each designed for a different purpose. One of them is a wedge with two trapezoids taken out of the top. This one was used for slicing off limbs. Another is a cone with small spikes jutting out from the sides. This was usually dipped in poison and was almost impossible to take out without ripping most of the flesh. The last is probably the most diabolical. It is just like a normal arrow head in appearance, but these have remote detonators. Once the arrow penetrates the skin, the shooter can press a button and have the arrow head split in half. Each half turns ninety degrees, digging itself deeper into the victims skin. These arrow heads never come out.
These are the only new weapons being used in the sixty-ninth Hunger Games.
Back to the arena.
Before I give you the life story behind every tribute, some of them have to die.
Districts 4, 5, and 6 were in the water section of the arena. The tributes from 5 and 6 didn't know how to swim. They never had a chance. As the gong sounded, they were left on their little steal plates with no hope of going in the water. All the other Districts ran towards the weapons, except for the District 4's that swam. The floating four looked at each other questioningly. What were they supposed to do? The answer soon came. As the boy from District 6 looked back towards the land, a BBB chopped off the top of his head. The girl from District 5 saw it in time to duck. But the other three weren't so lucky. In the blink of an eye, three dead bodies fell limp in to the once blue, now red, water. The survivor stayed crouched down. She was covered in blood and shivering. She was not prepared to see death that close. Her eyes were pressed together with fear, but the smell still made her vomit the contents of her stomach into the bloody water. She waited there to die. When it didn't come, she opened her eyes. All the tributes had either scattered or died. She was left alone. Well, almost alone. At the edge of the water was a boy with a spear.
Districts 10, 11, and 12 were in the wind section of the arena. Once the gong rang, the tributes from 12 took Haymitch's advice and ran. Unfortunately, they ran right into the wind section. As they neared the sand dune, a gust of wind blew the sand off the dune and engulfed them like a wave. They were buried alive. The other four ran straight into the action. Among them was the fastest runner of all twenty-four of them. He ran towards the cornucopia, grabbed a handful of knives, hit a District 2 in the leg, and ran deep into the forest. He was from District 10. The boy from District 11 made it to the cornucopia before the girls did, just in time to get his right arm cut off with the slicing arrow head. He screamed in pain and fell to the ground. The girl from District 11 knew this boy. She picked him up and ran with him into the forest. She wasn't the strongest of the group, but the boy was only one hundred and ten pounds. Plus, she had an adrenaline rush, possibly because she loves him? More on that later. As for the girl from District 10, she tripped and ended up getting a spear through the head.
Districts 7, 8, and 9 were in the fire section of the arena. The girls from 8 and 9 also decided to run away instead of fight. However, they didn't have a giant sand dune of death to stop them. They ran towards the horizon of the desert, never looking back. The rest of them ran in the opposite direction, towards the danger. The boy from District 7 planned to run straight for the trees. He was hit with an arrow in his gut, but didn't die. He simply fell to the ground and assumed someone would finish him off. The other two boys were able grab a pentamorte each. They disappeared into the trees, but not before the one from District 8 got an arrow shot into the back of his leg. He limped away. The little girl from District 7 also tried to run towards the forest, but had her head completely cut off by a sword.
Districts 1, 2, and 3 were in the earth section of the arena. The tributes from District 3 considered themselves lucky as they ran into the forest as fast as they could. The District 1's and 2's would work together with the District 4's, just like every year. The boy from District 2 had his eye on the BBB, but he didn't expect to get a knife in his leg as soon as he did. He fell to the ground and swore while the others left him. That didn't stop him because he quickly got up and limped towards his weapon of choice. He didn't spend his whole life learning how to use the BBB just to die before he got to use it on someone. The girl from District 1 was able to get to the arrows and slice the arm off of a boy that was running towards her. Before she could reload, the girl from his District was carrying him off into the woods. By then, the boy from District 1 had found a spear and launched it at a girl that fell down. It went straight through her head and pinned her dead body to the ground. The District 1 girl reloaded and shot a boy in the gut. The District 2 girl grabbed the BBB and threw it to the District 2 boy that was still a ways back. But she was smart enough to know how not to throw it. The boy caught it and smiled. He looked around and found four tributes in the water that apparently couldn't swim. He threw it right at their heads. The last girl in the line ducked and flew over her head. He wasn't too worried about her. He just killed three people in one throw. He was proud. Maybe a little too proud. As the BBB came back, he timed is catch wrong and got a cut across the back of his right hand. The District 2 girl picked up a sword in time to decapitate the little girl trying to run past her. Once the District 4's got to the other careers, almost everyone else was gone. They gathered up as many weapons they could carry and started for the trees. One of them asked about the boy on the ground. They decided to leave him.
Once the boy heard their conversation, he waited for them to leave before getting up. The arrow was still sticking out of him and he didn't dare try to pull it out. He grabbed a spear that was in the head of a girl near-by. He went to the water to wash his wound. That's when he saw the girl out on the water. She opened her eyes. He remembered the new rule and decided to make an alliance.
Let's recap
1 - both alive (careers)
2 - both alive (careers)
3 - both alive (in forest)
4 - both alive (careers)
5 - boy dead (BBB), girl alive (cornucopia area)
6 - both dead (BBB)
7 - boy alive (cornucopia area), girl dead (decapitated)
8 - both alive (boy in forest, girl in desert)
9 - both alive (boy in forest, girl in desert)
10 - boy alive (in forest), girl dead (spear through head)
11 - both alive (in forest)
12 - both dead (buried alive)
Which leaves 17 out of 24 left alive. Reviews please. Tell me which group I should go in depth with first. And remember the thing about the names.
