The Hawthorne Games Chapter 6
"BEEP BEEP" the alarm clock buzzes. My eyes open, the evening sunset shining through the windows of the training centre.
We've been allowed a few hours of sleep after the announcement of the training scores. We're to leave for the arena an hour after sunset. What happens then, I don't know.
A knock, and rising slowly from amidst the sea of blankets, I see a tired looking Gale enter the room.
"You look fantastic. I'm loving the sleepy look." I mutter to him.
He doesn't even laugh, he just sits next to me and pulls me in close to his chest. I can smell him, the musk of his natural scent, barely covered by some horrific smelling cologne.
Everyone last night, hadn't really said anything after the kiss. Well, Effie started cheering, Haymitch looked stunned and Cinna and Portia looked shocked. They still stayed rather silent though, and only spoke again to talk of the other tributes and their training scores. We'd then been bidden to go to bed to get some rest before the trip.
"Gale" I whisper into his chest. All he does is hold me tighter. "Gale" I whisper again.
"I can't breathe." I say, and pulling back, my nose full of synthetic Pine scents I cough. He laughs and tells me we're leaving in a few minutes, but not to bother as we'll be spending the morning in the training centre.
"Don't go" I plead as he heads for the door. "Stay, with me."
He still doesn't say anything, but comes and lies next to me. We stay that way for a few minutes until there's a knocking at the door. Haymitch's voice bellows through the door. "Boys, its time."
Looking at each other, we get up and head to the door.
"Give me you're arm."
I look up to see a woman, a capitol medic it seems, holding a metallic syringe. Giving her my arm she sticks it in, presses a button on the syringe. She then extracts the device and moves to the girl next to me.
"What is it?" I hear the girl ask.
"You're tracker, so we don't lose you in the arena." The sound of syringe into flesh follows and a click of the device.
Peeta was put on the other airship. I don't know where I am but I can feel the turbulence of the air around the hovercraft as we glide against the wind. We've been in the air for say, an hour or two. The woman has reached the end of the line of tributes and reaches for a microphone.
"Touchdown in 10 minutes." She says before disappearing through a door.
10 minutes couldn't come fast enough. At this rate, boredom will kill me before I get into the arena.
Having touched down, the other tributes and I were escorted into rooms. A meal was placed on the table next to the bed and the door was locked at the workers left. The only thing for me to do was eat the meal and lie down, wondering all the time how Gale was feeling and where he was.
Haymitch and Portia came through the door. Portia began setting out clothing for later on. Haymitch just sat on the chair and started giving me advice.
"So don't go into the centre for stuff?" I ask.
"No. You won't make it out. Just get some things from the outside then leg it. Remember, find water and a safe place to sleep."
"Okay. Have you seen Gale?"
"No, I'm going in to see him next."
"Can I see him." I ask, hopeful.
Haymitch sighs. "I'll see what I can do."
He leaves the room for a moment. I make brief conversation with Portia, asking her about what was being put out. She informs me that based upon the material and weight, it would be a mostly temperate setting, most likely forest or grassland.
Haymitch re-enters.
"Portia, you're wanted at the hovercraft for the journey back in 10. Peeta, come with me."
I follow him from the room. Portia bids me goodbye as I do so and continues fixing up my outfit. A peacekeeper waits outside and escorts me through the corridor with Haymitch.
Nearing a room with a 12 marked on the door, I see another tribute walking through the corridor. Her escort stands behind her. I recognise her face and her blonde hair, the girl from 7. Well one of them. She watches me as I walk through the corridor with interest, and before entering a door, she winks at me. Confused, I stop for a moment. It's then that the peacekeeper pushes me forward, and I continue on.
"Peeta!" I gasp as he appears in my doorway, grinning.
"Gale!" He moves to me and we embrace. Haymitch grunts and looking up, I see the peacekeeper covering his eyes.
"You're not allowed privacy. You're only allowed in here to say Goodbye, in case you don't get a moment in the arena."
"Oh." Peeta looks crestfallen. Looking into my eyes, he murmurs "Goodbye Gale."
I tap him on the forehead. "We're not saying goodbye. I'll see you in there."
Peeta grins at me, "all the same" he says, before our lips meet.
Small space is my first thought. I'm in the tube. The door lies open and the Peacekeeper stands neutrally at its opening. The tube closes and I'm pulled into the sunlight.
Air. Fresh Air. Looking around I see the clock already counting down. I scan the tributes standing at their pedestals. Gale must be on the other side of the centre, the cornucopia of weaponry, food and supplies.
45
Backpacks of supplies. Loaves of Bread. A sleeping bag. All are scattered relatively close to me.
30
Scanning the tributes again, I see a girl from 11. The girl from 7 is also there, though not standing. She's kneeling in prayer.
10
The sound clearly wakes her and she bounds to her feet. Eyes surveying the ground around her. I turn to the supplies, and plot a route in my head.
5
I get ready to move.
4
I pace my breath as I tense my muscles.
3
I enter a starting position for sprinting.
2
I blink and block out all sounds.
1
I take the first step.
0
Sprinting. One bag in my grasp. A loaf of bread. I grab it too. A clash of blades. I run for the sleeping bag. Tripping. Sliding through the grass. Face into the earth.
Looking up I see a boy. No idea where he's from, but he holds an axe in his hands. He raises it above his head.
I can see Peeta, on the ground. I try to run towards him, but the backpacks are slowing me. Dodging the swords and axes of fighting tributes I close in on the boy above him. He raises his axe. I'm not going to make it.
Blades everywhere. I nimbly dodge. It's the girl from 4, swinging a broadsword. Sidestepping her heaving swing, I kick out at her stomach. She keels over and, using the knife in my hand, I slash upwards. She falls to the ground, blood seeping from the wound on her throat. Looking around, ignoring the horror of my first kill, I see the two boys.
One lies on the ground, the other runs towards him. The boy stands between them, I don't even remember his name. He raises an axe and I raise my knife. Before he can swing the axe down, my dagger, thrown from a distance, lands squarely in his forehead.
Turning, I see a boy running at me. The boy from four. He swings and I duck, at the same time kicking his ankle. In his surprise I seize the sword from his grasp and stick him with the pointy end in the chest. I then grab their supplies and make a run away from the scene.
I hear Gale's yells as he runs toward me, but I sink further and further into the darkness.
Blood is everywhere, and a boy lies dead at my feet, a knife lodged in his forehead. I didn't do this. Turning, I see the calamity unfolding around me. No one is paying Peeta any attention. In the distance I see dead bodies. The two from four, and a girl running through the
Panic. Peeta is lying, a large bruise on his forehead, unconscious. The girl is all of a sudden heading towards me. Raising the weapon in my hands she yells towards me.
"You, have to run. With him, you are target!" her voice is thick with an accent.
An arrow whistles past my ear and she rolls, dodging the incoming shot.
"If you want to help him, get her off me."
She begins routing in a capitol pouch at her belt, and pulls out a pot. Another arrow, which this time is perfectly on course. A log lies on the ground. I pick it up and the arrow lodges into it. I see the shooter, the young girl from 11.
"Get her. I will help him!" She yells. Deciding to take her advice I make a run at the girl. She advances on me, still firing. Dodging her shots I close in. Suddenly she is surrounded by people. The Careers. They've rallied around her and begin to encircle me. Turning, keeping an eye on them all I take a defensive stance. I see the girl pull Peeta into a fireman's lift. She motions at me to run before heading for the trees.
Raising the pike in my hands, I lunge forward at one tribute. They back off and I charge straight through the ring. They give chase, forcing me to change direction, opposite to where Peeta went. Entering the treeline I launch myself at a tree and climb. Now on the branches I began to run, back in my natural habitat, through the trees.
And despite my need to, I don't look back.
So okay, yeah I get that it was a LOOOOONG ass chapter. The new character, let me know if you like her. I need some form of Katniss substitute and I've been forming her in my mind for a while. She'll get important later.
But more is to come, fairly soon. I've written enough of this to cover book one so just let me know what you think because if not, I can't adapt anything.
Also considering implementing different fonts per point of view, seeing as there are roughly four POV people. Again let me know what you think.
Hope you enjoyed, please follow/fav/review!
KungThomasDenTrettonde