And we're caught up in the crossfire of Heaven and Hell,
And we're searching for shelter.
Lay your body down,
Lay your body down,
Lay your body down.
And tell the Devil that he can go back from where he came,
His fiery arrows drew their bead in vain.
And when when the hardest part is over, we'll be here,
And our dreams will break the boundaries of our fear.
The boundaries of our fear.
Troy Reed.
After the little shrimp came back, claiming Nerine was dead, I knew something was up. Hate to sound all District Four, but something was fishy. A small cut and a small amount of blood. Yeah, sure, he's small. But whoever killed Nerine and "tried" to attack him, didn't exactly make much damage. I thought he was supposed to be a genius, and yet, I saw straight through his little game at the very beginning.
But my alliance, well, they believed him. Shows the mental state of all of them as well.
"Where did they come from?" Kaden asks Alex.
He shuffles his feet, kicking a small stone, shaking his head. "I-I-I don't remember.."
Kaden huffs, slamming his axe against the stone wall in anger, narrowly missing a light. Red flushes his face, anger taking over. Short fuse, how amusing. That's something I can work with later on.
"Kaden, calm down," Camila soothes him, placing her hand seductively on his shoulder blade. He smirks devilishly, taking a deep breath. "Remember where we are and what we came to do. I'm here for you baby. We'll get Twelve some other time."
"Right, well, I guess it's no big deal she's dead. It was gonna happen sooner or later, whether it was someone else or Troy."
I smirk at his choice of me. He is completely and utterly right. She is lucky someone else took her life, otherwise, it would have been me and that would have been more painful and humiliating. The spear rolls around in my hand, scratching against my skin. I could just take this and kill them all. All of them, gone, just like that. I don't know why I don't just do that, but then, I imagine Four and my parents. I had all the chances to kill them, and yet, it was more enjoyable to just fuck with their mind. It made more sense.
Maybe I should try that with these guys. Toy with their minds, just as Kaden said about me playing with my toys.
They just don't realise that they are in fact my toys. And trust me, if I had any toys to play with as a child, they would have been damaged and broken within seconds. Lets hope these "toys" don't break so easily. Otherwise, it'll be no fun. I don't realise I'm thinking too much until Kaden's voice brings me back.
"Oi, psychopath, we're thinking about splitting up and seeing as you're the youngest and most likely to cry or sulk, what do you think?"
Oh how he pisses me off. But no, it's not a good idea. My toys need to stay together, like a collection. It's easier to keep track of them.
"I don't think it's a good idea. Besides, what if shortstuff was lying and he killed Nerine?"
Everyone glances at Alex, who plays the petrified card again, before they turn back.
"Yeah, cause he looks so murderous," Nico snorts. "I think someone is overestimating themselves and their ability."
I nod, looking out the corner of my eye. The smug little shit, he's smiling whilst no-one is looking. Everyone begins to walk down another tunnel, leading god knows where. I stay back slightly, waiting for Alex. Diamond is the only one who stays slightly back, but then again, she still abandones the monster.
"I know your game, shrimp. Don't think you're so clever, you're nothing and the minute they've been killed, your next."
He takes a minute to respond. "Why not kill me now?"
His voice is cold and detached. I knew it. "Because, my little elf, we're not so much different, and truth be told, that makes your kill the most entertaining out of them all."
I can see the ghost of a smirk on his lips, illuminated by the amber glow. "We'll see about that."
Branton Callahan.
My heart hammers against my chest as we slow down, finally having ran as much as possible. The minute Blaize told me that the Careers were heading back, I shot up. Like hell was I taking them on. I don't even remember how many turns we took, steps we climbed and slopes we slid down. All that ran through my mind was the fact that these tunnels are stupidly confusing. Each intersections splits into many other tunnels. Then there are steps that take you up a level, mud slopes that you can slide down to get to the lower level.
Fuck knows how many levels are in this whole place. All I know is, we're further down then before.
"Do you think we lost them?" I ask Blaize, breathing heavily.
She takes a moment to compose herself, taking one final deep breath. "I doubt they caught up. But I wouldn't be surprised if someone else heard us. It's not just them that we have to look out for, Bran, everyone seems to be a killer. You saw that little guy from Eight, he killed a Career. A freaking Career!"
"Well, she wasn't exactly a Career, Blaize," I point out, which only infuriates her even more that I've proven her wrong. I fight back a smirk as I try to continue. "She got a 7 and as far as I could tell at the bloodbath, she didn't make an effort to kill. The trident was practically greased up with her sweat."
"That's disgusting."
"That's life."
Blaize stops, then spins around, angered even more. "Well do you know what? Life sucks! It well and truly fucking sucks!"
Her voice booms against the cold, tunnel walls, bouncing around. "You're being awfully loud."
"Do you know what? Your smart mouth and sarcasm isn't helping."
"It isn't sarcasm. It's called survival instincts."
Blaize scoffs, walking to the wall and leaning against it. "Survival instincts.. It's funny that you never know when you actually need them. It's even more funny that now you actually wanna be serious."
I walk over to her, sliding against the stone, sitting next to her. I stop for a moment, taking notice of the water dripping against the rock. "I know what you mean. We lucked out, Blaize. Think about it, these tunnels are like mines. Like Twelve."
"I don't know, I've never been down there."
"Well I have, and I can tell you, it's like this. Cold, dark and ominous. It could scare anyone."
She turns her head towards me, strands of her hair falling to the side. She looks at me with her intense eyes, and for a moment, I get lose in them. Forgetting where I am or the situation we're both in. Together.
"Then why doesn't it scare you?" Blaize whispers.
Her voice sounds shaky, which isn't like her. The Games are changing her already, like they're trying to do for me. But it's not going to work. I'm going to stay myself up until my last breath. "Because I'm Branton Callahan. I don't get scared, I'm a warrior!"
She laughs, punching my shoulder. "You're not funny."
"I think I'm hilarious."
"Only people who aren't funny, think they're funny." Blaize corrects me.
"That's not exactly fair," I smirk. "That's like saying that someone who isn't good-looking, think they're good-looking. I think I'm good-looking, does that mean I'm not?"
Blaize looks at me, directly, without even hesitating. Pink lightly brushes over her cheeks, and in the dim light, I can see her face not moving once. I lean forward, placing my lips against hers. The whole world stops around us, fireworks roaring through my mind. I pull away, breathing heavy. The dripping becomes more heavier, that being the only noise that fills the air.
"Looks like you've answered for me," I smile, knowing how much I got to Blaize. "I think it-"
"Shush." Her finger touches her lips, eyes carefully scanning the area.
"Really, again? Cutting me o-"
"Shush."
"Stop it!"
"Shut up Branton, I hear something!"
Then I hear it as well. The dripping was getting louder and closer. I look around, frantically, when a drop of water splashes against my head. As I look up, I can see more and more and more. My mind doesn't process anything. I grab Blaize's hand, yanking her up and running again.
But it's too late. The ceiling gives in, water rushes down and everything goes black.
Ryder Corvair.
I hear the muffled sounds of a guy and girl screaming, a bit of a distance away from me. I'd say about 4 or 5 tunnels over. Either way, it was muffled, so they must be a fair distance away from me. Instantly, I pull my knife out, pointing it straight. Like hell will some idiots be the death of me because they can't keep their mouths shut. Stupid fucking people, seriously. Then, along with the screaming, I hear the rush of water. Not just the annoying dripping I've been hearing, but tons of it. Like a river flowing madly.
Panic rises in me and I start running away from the screaming, pocketing my knife in my boot. The dripping follows me, like it's chasing me. The sick people stay in the room at the Capitol, laughing at my attempt at running away from it. They're probably expecting me to be scared or at least show fear. Like fuck will they get that from me. All I know, I travelled down. I'm not that great with survival, but the further I climbed down the tunnels, the more I heard the dripping and clearly, that must mean there is a water source down below. God knows what, but I need it quick.
The sound of my boots slamming against the Earth quickens, and then, I hear it fully. I look up and behind me, noticing the ceiling collapsing, rocks falling down from the pressure of a ton of water, the eerie sound of water bursting against rock. It begins to get closer, almost above my head. But I keep running, running, running away from the bastards that done this to me.
Finally, I duck around an intersection, narrowly avoiding it. It stops there, as if by a magical yet invisible wall. My breathing begins to slow down, but instead, comes out in short breaths.
"Fuck!" I scream, punching the wall. I lost both the pipe and the knife when I was running. I dropped the pipe when I started, the knife must have slid out my boot.
When I hear some steps, I shut my mouth and clutch where my heart is, hoping to make the thudding less obvious. The thing that gets me though, it's more than one set of footsteps. It's several, and what's worse, there's about 6 at one time. The Careers.
I push myself down into the tunnel, using the shadows to hide me. I look out, watching the pair from Two simply walk past without a care in the world. If I had my knife, I'd run out and slice Camila's throat. I wouldn't even care if I died. As long as the bitch goes down, I'm happy. But then, something shocks me. From the tunnel opposite me, I can see her. The girl from Seven whose name is something like Forest or whatever. She's lurking, on her knees, watching as the group goes by. Two, Four accompanied by their hostage. Neither surprises me that he got caught and she got killed. It's like a piece of written work.
But then, her from One goes by. Lacking behind is him. Nico.
She waits, looking like a cat about to catch a mouse. Then, when he steps in my view, she reacts. Screaming, she launches out at him, using her hatchet, swinging it madly.
"You killed him!"
Each scream, she swings her hatchet. When she does, sometimes, Nico clashes it with his sword. His team have returned, but rather than help, they watch. Like animals or the Capitol, which to me is both, they watch two teenagers battling it out for fun.
Nico manages to overpower her, bringing his sword down with such force, her hatchet comes flying into the tunnel I'm currently hidden in.
She falls back, scared.
"You killed him!"
"No I didn't. You," he points his sword at her eye. "You killed him with your stupidity. The funny thing is, he stood a chance. He actually could have gone further, and yet, he wasted his life on you. You. The girl that decided that she was a hero, capable of taking us on. He saved you, sweetheart, so technically it was your fault he died."
She launches herself up from the ground, kicking and punching. But it's no match. Nico catches her fist in one hand and twists. I hear the sickening sound of bones snapping, and like she was no more than a piece of wood, he chucks her behind him towards the audience. Her body slams against the ground and she yelps, clutching her broken wrist.
Nico turns, ready to finish her.
But he moves in. The psycho lines his spear up and lowers it down quickly, capturing her heart with his silver arrowhead. Her eyes go wide, mouth open and everything goes silent except for her weakened, strangled cry. A cannon sounds.
"Fuck you, she was mine!"
Troy smirks. "Kaden told me not to play with our toys. Whose the baby now, aye?"
They begin to walk away, but the glitter of the metal catches my eye. A hatchet, huh? Wonder what damage that could do.
Veena Avery.
A cannon booms through the arena, scaring me. But luckily, it doesn't bother me too much. It wasn't Rye or Everest or Demetria's, which is all I care about.
I lean against the rocky wall, enjoying the peace. Ever since the cave-in or whatever it was, everything has been peaceful. We have no food, but that doesn't matter so much. We haven't long eaten our apples, so I'd say we could last a bit longer. We walked ages, Demetria determined to find some sort of food source. She had this idea about jumping another tribute. Not killing them, just to steal their supplies.
She got out-voted instantly.
"Do you think it's almost time for the recap?" I hear Rye whisper to Everest.
He nods, wrapping his arms around his knees. "I'd say it's probably evening soon. So yeah, maybe, I dunno."
Rye smiles, nonetheless, leaning back against the rock wall opposite me, next to Ev. Dem is a bit away, but from what I can tell, she's glaring at the pair. I don't know why, though, but as she begins to lay down on the floor, I can almost feel the thick atmosphere. I push away the thought, though. These are my friends, her friends, I'm sure it's nothing.
"Hey Vee, do you have a weapon?" Everest asks me.
I nod, flashing my knife with a grin. "I still have it! We all have one, right?"
Everest and Rye nod in agreement, whilst Demetria stays silent. I look at her, but the glistening blade on the floor next to her points out the obvious.
Then, it begins. The anthem blares, the seal of Panem illuminating on the wall. First up is the strange boy from Three, the techy nerd. Followed by him is the girl from Four, which shocks me but then again, I remember people not really taking her serious. It's a shame, cause in reality, she was just like the rest of the reaped. The pair from Five follow, causing my heart to break slightly. Six male, closely followed by the pair from Seven. Then, it vanishes.
"Wow.."
I turn to Demetria's voice, noticing her sat up.
"What?"
"I didn't expect either the guys from Six or Seven to die. They had the best scores compared to the Careers. Six even got an 8, highest non-Career."
"Looks like anything can happen at the bloodbath."
"Technically, they weren't all bloodbaths," Everest points out. "The five cannons in quick recession earlier, they were the bloodbathed. They just wanted to see if they could rack up any more victims before showing us tonight."
Demetria nods, extending her arm out and grabbing the knife, sliding it closer to her.
"Same difference, Ev. Either way, they didn't make it past the first day. They obviously had the bark, but lacked the bite."
Things soon lull into perfect comfort, the dripping of the water being quite soothing and relaxing. I feel my eyes beginning to close, the heaviness taking over. I swirl around in space, staring at the pretty stars. I'm back home at Nine, enjoying the day out in the fields, the sun beating down on me. Then, I snap back. Footsteps.
When I open my eyes, blurred, I can see shadows coming down the tunnel. Fear rises in me, seizing my throat. My hand stretches out, grabbing hold of Dem's foot. She wakes up, grabbing the knife and jabbing it forward. I back up, placing my finger to my lips and pointing to the oncoming person, my digit shaky.
Her fingers curl around a rock, picking it up and throwing it against the boys on the other side. It catches Everest's head, bouncing onto Rye after that. They both wake up and look at us, confused, but it's too late. The rock lands against the floor, and in the silence, it alerts them. The steps become faster, running, and my heart leaps to my throat. I scramble to get onto my feet, desperate to run away, but my legs are like gelatin. Demetria and Everest are a lot quicker, onto their feet in seconds. Demetria runs off, Everest shortly behind, waiting for Rye, but the fear causes him to struggle to stand. But he's slow and so am I.
The whistling of metal catches my ear, and noticing Rye getting up only to fall to his knees once more, tripping over himself, I make the conscious decision.
He deserves this more than me.
I leap across the gap, and then, it slams into my back. Blackness begins to swamp my eyes, tugging in from the corners. I see stars, like before, followed by the fields of Nine. Then, I see Rye's horrified face and Everest, tugging on his arm. I fall to the floor, weak. Sticky blood drips down my back, and then, the pain goes away. Everything seems peaceful, calm and quiet. I managed to save him. I managed to save my friend.
In the distance, I hear a cannon sound before the darkness smothers me.
Denim Weavan.
I watch from the distance as the axe that Kaden threw slams into the Nine girl's back. It wasn't even aiming for her. It was heading towards her district partner, the odd one. Yet, she sacrificed herself, taking the axe instead of him. She saved him and yet, I can't feel anything but slight regret and annoyance. She shouldn't have been so stupid. In all honesty, I've seen their alliance. The boy from Nine was the weak link, I think everyone could see that. The pair from Ten were the strongest, followed by her from Nine with the survival skills. He brought nothing to the table, and yet, she saved him.
"I think that was pointless," I mumble to no-one in particular, although Sorrel catches on. I turn, noticing her bewildered face. "She should have let him die."
Sorrel looks confused. "Would you have just let your district partner die? The little one?"
It takes some time to register, but really, I don't even know. Would I? I'm not sure. Don't get me wrong, he's a kid and really, I have nothing to go home too. But I doubt I'd save him by risking myself.
"I don't know. How about you and your little one?" I respond, slightly sarcastic.
Sorrel scoffs. "He's cute, don't get me wrong, but I wouldn't sacrifice myself. I would avenge him, though. Make sure his family was okay and everything. There's nothing worse than a family losing their child."
"Don't you ever wonder how families feel when they lose their child to the Games?"
She takes some time to respond, and for a moment, I can see slight annoyance in her face again. "I know how mine reacted when I lost my sister."
I never knew that. I never knew her sister was reaped and died. All I knew was that she lost someone to the Games, she just never told me who. That's the thing with Sorrel, she doesn't like to speak too much about her life or family. I guess I'm the same, well, I have no point in talking about her.
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be, you never did anything, did you? It was him, that mentor from Four."
"It was his year? You mean Lagoon Strong, right?"
"Yep," Sorrel responds icy. "He killed her. Bloodbathed."
So Sorrel has emotional attachment to this. That makes her a liability, a weakness, something that can slow me down or cause her to become more reckless than she should. That worries me. Maybe I should take her out now, whilst the power is still there? Possibly. I'd have to strike her when she's not looking, though, since I know she's a tough nut to crack. And yet, I feel the need to question her more on this.
"What was her name?"
"Pickney."
Pickney Springfield. Hmm, guess it works. "I am sorry, though."
Sorrel shrugs her shoulders, switching the scythe in her hand to the other. I can hear the faint scoff, but as she walks ahead into the darkness, I can't help but feel like I've hit a raw nerve. But the way she walks, I can't help but judge her leadership and the feeling of wanting to take her out grows even larger than before.
Crew Willow.
"I can't believe it.."
Battery sits there in shock, taking in the news of Woods being killed so early.
"Battery, I don't like this," I say with as much strength I can muster. "They got Woods and Tasi.."
"I know," Battery responds, instantly standing up and walking over to me. "It's gonna be okay, Crew, I promise."
I look up, noticing the tiny tears pricking at my eyes. Through the blur, I can see Battery smiling softly and almost straightaway, I feel slightly better. Just like when mommy would hug me and tell me things would be okay, even though I could hear my daddy's screams of pain. Just like Seeder would tell me things would be okay.
Everyone tells me it's all going to be okay, but I know it won't. I won't be okay, but I'm okay with that.
"Come on little man, how about we start moving? I can't remember which direction she took off in, so we'll just try this one, yeah?"
"You're so smart, Battery."
"Thank you," Battery smiles, before turning her voice into a whisper. "But do you wanna know a secret?"
I nod my head, excited. I like secrets.
"Well, I am smart but I don't show it. Back in District Three, everyone falls under a stereotype. I want to be myself, an individual, so I hide it. Just remember, Crew, don't let them change you no matter what. You were born this way, so love it whilst you can."
"I know," I smile. "Can I have a weapon, just in case?"
Battery looks puzzled, debating on whether to give me something. Luckily, just as Tasi picked me up and dropped me off in a tunnel, before we ran back into Battery, he left me the backpack. Then, when Woods decided to go and try more supplies and Tasi went after her, he told me to look after the backpack. I don't know why, but a simple knife was inside.
"We only have one weapon, Crew, it'd be hard.. If something happens, I'd need to react. I'd need to protect you, you know."
"But I can protect you.."
Battery lightly laughs, brushing her hand across my cheek. "I'm the oldest, I think I should be protecting you."
I nod and smile, standing up. Battery does the same, wrapping her hand around mine.
"Come on, lets go," she smiles one more time, before turning to face the way we're going. But I can see shadows and footsteps and so can she. "Crew.."
Fear rises in me, then, the lights begin to dim. The glow dies out slowly, followed by the footsteps increasing. I look at Battery, whose head is snapping between the lights, the oncoming tributes and then the tunnel behind us. She doesn't know what to do.
Then, he materialises.
"Hey, look who we have here. My little doll to play with." Troy sniggers, grin darkening through the lights flickering.
Behind him appears the other Careers, who look baffled by the lights. Then, I look at Battery one more time, the fear present in her eyes and her grip around the knife becoming deadly.
"Let's have some fun, shall we?" Troy smirks one more time, then, the lights die and darkness swamps the tunnel.
Crossfire by Brandon Flowers.
I've deleted the website and created a simple, easy to use blog instead. To find it, go to - nowheretohidehungergames . blogspot . co . uk/ just take out the spaces and done. Deaths will be notified there.
Woods Davis, District Seven.
Veena Avery, District Nine.
Sorry to the submitters that lost their tributes, had to be done for the story. I'm sure you understand. If it makes you feel better, this is hard. :( I love these characters so much and I've grown so attached to a lot of them! If they died, it was for a reason and I'm sorry, but this is how the Hunger Games works, after all. I hope you stick with the story and still vote, cause you are allowed to keep voting, encouraging your favourites on.
If you don't, I understand.
VOTING IS REQUIRED ON EVERY CHAPTER.
20 Points -
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I should also point out, you can't vote for a tribute that is dead. It won't help them, well, because they're dead..
Also, I wanted to point out one thing when reading this. The whole arena isn't actually big, it's an optical illusion. To the tributes, they think it stretches on for miles and every tunnel is new. Reality is that it isn't. That's why the Careers are popping up everywhere at the moment. Everyone is crossing paths, cause really, there aren't that much tunnels.
It's all an illusion. ;)