Vidya sobs and hugs me. "Goodbye Emmy!" she wails, already having dressed me in sturdy but feminine leather boots, a camouflage leather jacket over a long-sleeved forest green top, and overly-tight leggings.
"No. See you later," I correct her.
"Twenty seconds."
"You can win," Vidya says.
"I will win," I say.
"Ten seconds."
I step into the glass tube, which immediately snaps shut. I wave and give Vidya a smile. The tube starts to rose slowly. Suddenly, sunlight blinds me.
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On one side there is a forest, with tall evergreens and elms and maples.
On the other side there are mountains.
Behind me there is a wide grassy plain.
In front is the Cornucopia, filled to the brim with weapons and supplies.
There is nothing behind the Cornucopia except a large lake.
I see a backpack near me.
Close to the backpack is a belt with 9 knives.
Not far in is a bow with a sheath of arrows. That is mine.
By looking at the 'sun's' position in the 'sky', I think that it's late afternoon.
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The gong sounds. I grab the backpack and throw it hurriedly on my back, picking up the belt of knives on the way. I hurriedly strap it on my waist.
Boom. The first killing in the ninety-second Hunger Games.
Another knife whizzes by my head-I catch it. I run forward a bit and crash into the boy from District , falling to the ground. Lust DeCroix stares me down angrily, holding his sword threateningly, and I scramble back, unsheathing the largest blade and holding it above my head like a shield.
Looking frantically around for enemies, I push off the ground and sprint away, the backpack weighing me down. I head toward the forest, which will provide the most cover.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
I see the girl from -Glimmer, I think-pinning someone to the ground, then stabbing and piercing them until they die a bloody death. I tear my eyes away. Boom. I hear a scream and slip in a patch of grass slick with blood, but I keep running toward the forest. The final cannons of the bloodbath sound.
Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom. Nine booms total.
I see a thick tall willow that will provide good shelter. "Good," I pant. I jump and pull myself up. Then I grasp another branch. I heave my body up and continue climbing. I unzip my backpack. I inspect the contents of the backpack.
"A sleeping bag, an empty water bottle, two long ropes, a small bag of beef jerky, some energy bars, and a bottle of iodine," I say. I tie me and my sleeping bag to a thick branch.
I hear begging, then an echoing scream, and another cannon sounds.
Then I hear voices.
"Can you believe it, Paris?" a dark-haired girl-Glimmer-says to a tall blond girl, coming into view. They are with two well built boys, one brown-haired, the other black-haired. Lust and Jace. They are this year's Careers. Paris chimes in.
"I know-she was like, 'Please! Please! Don't kill me! I'll do anything! Just don't kill me!" They all laugh.
Lust says, "We'd better be quiet; deaf tributes could hear us a mile away." They all fall silent and tramp over under my tree. I snap a twig and toss it down. It hits Paris's face and she yelps.
"Knock-knock!" I call mockingly down to the Careers. Jace looks up.
"What are you doing up there?" he calls. I scoff. He knows perfectly well what I'm doing up here.
"Avoiding your ugly face." I make a big show of looking anywhere but at him.
"Here, Jace," says Glimmer, handing him my bow. He shoots, missing, and throwing the bow down in frustration. I grab the arrow and wave at them.
"Thanks for the arrow," I call. Blondie the Boy growls and attempts to climb the tree. Crack. The branch breaks and he falls to the cold hard ground, gasping for breath, the wind knocked out of him.
"Whatever," Paris says. "Let's go." And they stomp 'cheerfully' off again. I rejoice; they have left the silver bow.
The bold Capitol anthem suddenly plays and a bunch of faces show. Landon Parkes-3, Carlos Mochilas-4, Jason McCarthy-5, John Pruett-6, Chrissy Linton-7, Nyssa Gordon-8, Benjamin Tyler-9, Louis Carlson-10, and Jane Quatre-10.
The faces fade away and I slip into my sleeping bag.
...
A couple of days pass, with Elena Dritz from six dying from unknown causes. All of a sudden, a man's voice sounds throughout the arena.
"Blah-blah feast, blah supplies blah," is all I hear, but I am excited. This is a chance to get ahead in the Games.
"... In the afternoon," the voice finishes. Then, everything is silent.
…
I eat four slices of jerky and a handful of edible berries. The water from the small creek running through the arena is clean from suspicious chemicals, so I quench my thirst. I cannot wait for the feast to begin.
A few moments later, I am struck with a superb idea. I hide my supplies, which have dwindled down to eleven pieces of beef jerky, a packet of nuts, half a bottle of healing cream, a length of rope, and my weapons, in a hollow tree. I, sadly, lost my second smallest knife in a scuffle with a strange animal. Also, I only have four arrows left in my quiver.
I make my way through the forest to the Cornucopia, trying to be quiet. I look around with a self-trained eye, searching for predators. The coast is clear. I dart, quick as a bullet, to the Cornucopia and climb inside to wait.
…
An hour later, a wooden table pops up from beneath the ground. No, strike that-two tables. One table for the lower six districts, and another for the upper five (remember, District Ten is wiped out). I hop out of the golden structure and look for eleven female. Nine, twelve, aha!-eleven is right there. I grab the back and sling it onto my back, looking up and starting to escape into the woods.
Jace Weldon and Paris Spiranthes are halfway to the Cornucopia, with Glimmer Amberloom and Lust DeCroix close behind. They all are surprised to see me there already. On my left, Raven Woodwind is sprinting closer from the mountains, while April Yarbrook and Gabe Spannel are approaching gradually from the lake.
Boom. Raven Woodwind has taken care of Gabe. Thomas from my district is coming from the plains, a determined look on his face. Kacey stands at the edge of the forest, thinking things over.
Nola Venn, Lila Memir, Cade Wilson, and Peter Milark are nowhere to be seen.
As I near the edge of the forest, a spear flies toward me. I dodge it, but it still grazes my shoulder enough to cause a minor inconvenience. Oh, and it also makes me faceplant. I curse mildly and leap for the trees. Boom. I glance back over my shoulder to see Glimmer sprawled on the ground with April standing over her. Geez, what a shock. A girl from nine defeating a Career? That's certainly a first. Just then, Cade Wilson emerges from the lake and stabs her in the back.
Boom. I decide there are too many tributes left, and send a few arrows sailing towards Cade and Raven. They hit their mark.
Boom. Goodbye, Cade.
Boom. Adios, Raven! Nine left. Two more to go until they interview the families. I shudder as I think about what lies my relations will spin.
The remaining three Careers then dash after me. I run farther into the forest, then scramble up into the exact same willow I sat in on the very first day, hoping to remain undetected. They yell out in frustration as they fail to locate me. I smirk. What a bundle of idiots.
I jump from tree to tree in the direction of my hideout. The backpack hinders me, but I can handle it. When I reach camp, I unzip the pack to find another quiver full of arrows, a full bag of beef jerky, a pouch of dried mangoes, and a fresh bottle of healing cream. My half bottle of cream is getting crusty, so I creep through the forest and throw it into the Careers' camp. I put my previous supplies in the eleven backpack and throw the old one into the stream.
