Ch. 8: Betrayal
I ran as fast as I could towards the cave. We were all positioned about 50 yards away from the cave. When I was 25 yards away I reached down and grabbed the bow and arrow that were lying there. I wasn't the best archer in the world, but I needed a weapon in case the plan with my axe failed. I then turned a full 180 and started dashing in the opposite direction. On my way I slung the bow and it's quiver over my shoulder and grabbed a few other items that I saw. I first grabbed a bundle of rope and weaved my arm through it's loop. I then grab a medium weight jacket, two backpacks that had something in them, a sleeping bag, and another bundle of rope.
I reached the edge of the clearing and turned around to see Rue dash into the woods with a backpack. I then looked a little more and saw one of the tributes get taken out by another. Then I see something green and brown run into the forest. Hiccup. He had run to my right and was probably trying to get as much distance between himself and everyone else in the arena. Which is what I should have been doing. I turned back to the cave and saw someone turn to look at me. I quickly turned around and ran into the forest in order to lose them, should they try to catch me.
I ran through the forest, making left and right turns at random intervals till I was sure I had lost anyone following me. I then sat down on a fallen log and put the stuff I had gathered down before me. I started figuring out what I should do with it. The bow would be needed if my axe didn't arrive, and might still come in handy even if it did. The rope I was sure I could find some use for, maybe some traps, or maybe I could poke some holes in the sleeping bag and turn it into a hammock. Either way there was a lot of rope. The jacket I decided would be needed should there be cold nights. I then opened up the backpacks to see what they held. The packs themselves were black and bright yellow. I'd have to change the yellow, stands out too much in all this forest. Inside were a water bottle each- empty-, some beef jerky, and some kind of trail mix. That was were the similarities ended between the contents. Some of the contents were odd. Matches, could be useful. Some more rope, can never get enough. Small knife, you never know. Binoculars, kind of cheap but useful. I had been taught and had learned firsthand that anything can be helpful in the wilderness, however I still hadn't the slightest idea how breath mints were going to help me in my current situation.
The sun was setting so I put on the jacket. I carried the quiver on my back. I took the rope and carried it over my shoulder/across my chest. Then I put everything else except the bow into one of the backpacks and slung it onto my back. I then put the bow over my shoulder. The sleeping bag I had managed to stuff into the backpack, leaving only the second backpack. I took out the small knife and started cutting up the second backpack. I doubled back the way I came and made a fake trail using pieces of the backpack to lead them away. I made the trail split off multiple times before going back to the log I had been sitting on earlier.
The sun was almost gone so I climbed the biggest tree there and laid the sleeping bag down on one of the branches. The tree was different from the ones on Berk, because the branches were wide enough for me to lie on them and still have an inch to spare from the edge. Not much, but when you compare it to your average tree branch it is quite large. Leaning back I did the one thing I could, sleep.
I was woken by the anthem. I looked up to the sky and saw the faces of the tributes that died today, with their island number underneath. Today's casualties were both from islands six and seven, and the girl from nine. The images disappeared and I went back to sleep.
The next morning I woke up, repacked the sleeping bag, and went to find the second thing on my list of priorities (the first being staying alive), find water. I erased any signs of my being there and went off away from the fake trail I had made the day before. Then I just kept walking.
I seemed to be walking for hours. The sun was already at its peak. I decided to take some bites of the beef jerky. I was stuck walking through a denser part of the forest. My intended direction probably being thrown off by having to weave through all the trees.
I eventually came across a footprint in a patch of dirt. It was going to my left. The wind had picked up last night, and the track was clean enough that it must have been left there earlier today. I took off my bow and walked slower with constant vigilance. The footprint was made by a tribute who might still be nearby, and I wasn't about to get caught off gaurd.
I kept up the slow pace for about an hour before I found a small semi underground stream. The area had become rocky and the stream was in a small crevasse beneath me. Now the question came, do I go upstream or downstream? Downstream would lead me closer to the clearing where no doubt Cato's club would be setting up base. Upstream, I had no idea what waited for me upstream. Possibly the tribute who's footprint I had spotted earlier. I decided to go downstream, at least I knew more about where that led.
I started to feel the early effects of dehydration when the crevasse opened up enough for me to stick a water bottle down into and fill it up. It looked clear enough, but I decided to wait till I had gone to a bit more defendable position before I set camp to boil it clean.
I was glad I had held off as I found where the water led. It was a small pond of some sorts. It also had a large amount of trees surrounding it. With a few hours of daylight left I ate some trail mix and set up camp. I decided to position myself on one of the branches of a tree. I then cut up some of the rope to set some traps. Mostly the kind that hang the person upside down by their ankle. The rope was a dark brown color so thankfully it didn't stand out too much. As dusk hung overhead I lit a small fire and boiled two bottles of water. The second I had filled from the pond. While they boiled I stuck some mud onto the yellow parts of the pack to help camouflage it. I quickly drank one, filled it back up, and started boiling it again. I then drank half of the second one before refilling it and putting it back on to boil as well. When they were both boiled I took them off and put out the fire just as night came on. I walked in the mud around the pond a little before leading off into the forest again. I went back to camp through an area where hopefully my footprints didn't show. I then got into my tree and leaned back against the trunk and went to sleep.
I was woken up by the anthem and then looked to the sky. Up in the sky was a big patch of darkness without any stars. The darkness was soon replaced by the images of the tributes who died today. I watched as three faces lit up the sky. There was the girl from three, the girl from island four, and the boy from island ten. When the showing was over the sky went dark again.
I sat there and thought. Eight dead, sixteen remaining.
I didn't know what I thought about Hiccup not being dead. On the one side he was still alive, on the downside he will probably be killed within the next few days. I sat there thinking about what would happen as sleep slowly overcame me.
I was woken by a twig snapping. It was faint but the experience of being in here had already heightened my senses. I turned towards the direction it came from. I rummaged through my backpack until I grabbed the binoculars. It was night but if he/she/or they where far out I might have a better chance of seeing them with these. It turned out these weren't cheap binoculars, they were merely disguised that way to hide that they were also night vision binoculars. I was surprised when I looked through and everything was clear and green.
I could see a group of people carrying torches and flashlights. The first I recognized instantly, Cato. This must be his band of merry men out trying to find me. My gut told me my score of thirteen had defiantly made me threat number one, so naturally Cato wants me dead. I then looked at the other five. There was the other island two tribute. They were then followed by the island one tributes, the island five boy tribute, and Hiccup. Wait...HICCUP!?
I zoomed the binoculars as close as I could and saw Hiccup walking behind them through the forest. What was he doing with them!?
My question was soon answered.
"Yo, Berk boy. You sure she came this way?"
I watched his lips move as he responded,"Positive, she left that ankle hanger trap I saved you from being caught in remember."
He was observant. Especially if he saw it at night.
They approached where my fireplace was. Oh no. Hiccup would know the footprints were a trick. He obviously directed them away from the fake trail I had left. He said he knew everything about me.
I had half a mind to take my bow and shoot Hiccup dead right there. Another quarter told me that would only lead to my death. The final quarter was nagging at something else but drowned out by the other two opinions. I decided to wait for him to give me away, then kill him.
"Hey, here's a fireplace. And footprints. She couldn't have gotten far."
Hiccup knelt over the fire's ashes, then the footprints. "Yep she defiantly went this way." pointing to where the tracks headed.
"Are you sure? Why would she put up traps just to go to a different spot?"
"Positive. Believe me I know her better than anyone here. She knows better than to stick near water."
Well you obviously don't know me as well as you think. I thought to myself.
They walked away and once their torches had disappeared I leaned back and tried to go back to sleep. I couldn't. I just felt so angry with Hiccup. He betrayed me, lied to me. He told me about Cato and his offer and lied straight to my face. I then realized something, if he was going to help Cato kill me, then he not only lied on the elevator, but on the roof as well. He practically said he loved me and now he's trying to kill me. I thought of the headband. I considered throwing it into the pond or in a random direction and leaving it. But then I realized he probably lied about the headband too. Not to mention it was my token from home. The one true piece of Berk I had left. Plus, the fact that it was my favorite headband didn't hurt either. I decided to keep it. But now I had a new mission. First survive, then give Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third a painful death.
I went to sleep thinking of ways I would kill Hiccup. I was so focused on how to kill him, that I didn't notice the package attached to a parachute land right in my lap.
Dun dun Duuuhhhh! Hope you guys are enjoying the story. Remember to feel free to review and comment.
