Day One
Careers
The careers gathered the food around the cornucopia and piled it up inside the mouth.
"Okay, we can eat then we need to start hunting" Andesine told the group
Flint was sat with his back to them as he used a needle and thread from one of the packs to stitch up his thigh, he grunted with effort as he passed the needle through his skin but never called out in pain. "I'm good to go, just give me a minute to bandage this" he told the group.
Shimmer flicked her hair to the side "You could stay here and guard the supplies? Someone's bound to be hanging around the tree line waiting for us to leave.
Flint looked at Shimmer with pure contempt "You stay behind then"
Lowe and Goyle searched through the supplies and packed bags for them all, there were plenty of weapons, water containers and food so they made sure to take enough so the hunt could last a few hours at least.
Flint stood, his bad leg had a slight tremor but adrenaline surged through him and he felt good. "We ready?" He asked
Shimmer shrugged "Let's go before they get too far, we've already given them well over an hour"
"There'll be plenty who can't run that fast; we'll give a good show today"
Relay and Mika
Relay watched the careers leave the cornucopia from the treeline, she knew it was a risky strategy to stay so close but she'd gotten out of there so fast that she had taken nothing with her. Besides, the careers had done a poor job of piling up the supplies, in their haste to get hunting they'd left quite a bit scattered around. Soon she heard distant shouts that suggested they had found a target to hunt so she scampered out of her hiding place and headed for one of the weapons in the cornucopia's mouth.
A noise made her freeze and flatten herself against the side of the cornucopia, she spotted Mika who must have had the same idea. Relay chewed on her lip for a second before stepping out and revealing herself.
Mika raised her knife defensively "Don't come any closer!"
"Relax, I'm looking for an ally" Relay held up her hands to show she had no weapons
Mika lowered her knife and nodded "Have you had a look around yet?"
"No, I was waiting for them to leave"
"Me too, lets grab what we can and get out of here" The girls filled bags with food, bottled water and some knives. They grabbed a spear each and headed for the treeline, looking around furtively for the careers.
They walked in silence as they searched for a hiding place until they came to a particularly close crop of low hanging trees; the girls bent down and crawled beneath them, Mika spread out the plastic sheet she had taken from the cornucopia and Relay used a large knife to cut away a few low hanging branches so they had room to sit.
"What's that?" Mika asked as Relay emptied cogs, screws and metal sticks onto the sheet.
"Wait and see" Relay said with a smile "This is partly why I wanted to stay near the cornucopia, I wondered if they'd put one of these in here for me"
It took almost an hour, Relay had to keep stopping so they could listen to some noise or other from outside their little hideout, but eventually she rebuilt the taser stick.
"Can you kill people with those?" Mika asked
"I doubt it, the voltage is too low, it'll hurt though and I bet we could use it to hunt if we had to. We don't have any way to recharge it so it's for emergencies only, but at least its one thing the careers don't have."
Mika speared a passing rabbit through the branches of the trees which hid them; they decided to cook it and travelled a little way from their hideout to do so. Relay stood guard with the taser and a spear as Mika built a fire. The girls ate as they walked, looking for water, Relay had wanted to stay in the hideout and use the supplies from the cornucopia but Mika knew that their water wouldn't last long and the careers might not leave their supplies unattended again. They found a small stream and drank their fill before filling two large containers and heading back to their hideout to rest.
Palea
"Come on I can hear her!"
Palea could hear the careers calling to each other as she ran, she had decided to hide out at the treeline and wait for the career pack to leave, but she had second guessed her plan and moved position just as the pack was headed her way.
She looked around desperately as she ran but the thick cover of the trees was starting to thin out and she could see a field of tall grass ahead.
Her eyes brimmed with tears and she couldn't see clearly any longer, she slammed into a tree and felt a crunch as blood filled her nose.
Palea pushed herself up off the ground and almost leapt through the forest treeline into the grass, she crawled sideways as best she could, trying to stem the flow of blood with her coat sleeve.
"Did you hear that?" Shimmer's voice was too close, Palea held her breath.
"She can't be far, I saw blood back there, she's wounded" Andesine was cutting through the shoulder high grass, poking and swiping with his sword. Palea saw a flash as the blade came close to her leg but didn't dare move away.
"Hey! There's blood here as well!" Goyle called to the others, she knew he must be heading towards her, following the trail her broken nose had left for them, Palea decided to make a run for it and took a deep breath before jumping up and running as quickly as she could through the grass.
"Got her!" Goyle called, he threw his spear but his aim was terrible and it whistled past Palea's ear, she turned her head to see him running behind her but when she turned back Andesine appeared out of nowhere and knocked her to the ground. He stabbed his sword into her chest; Palea's world went cold before the blackness descended.
The cannon boomed overhead as the career pack whooped over their victory.
Bala and Capelin
"We can stop for a while if you like?" Bala said
Capelin's head felt dizzy, she knew she should have had more to eat that morning but she'd felt too sick at the thought of the day ahead. "No I'm okay, let's keep going until we find water"
Bala had grabbed a nearby backpack before they ran from the cornucopia; it contained some strips of dried meat, a small medical kit, a coil of wire, a very small knife and a sleeping bag. All were useful items but they had been running or walking for over three hours and were thirsty.
So far they were still picking their way through the thick, pine forest. It seemed almost relentless, Capelin was wondering if they should have gone in a different direction instead, her head pounded and her legs shook, giving way. Bala caught her as she fell and propped her up against a tree, he remembered something from survival training and used the little knife to peel away the old bark of a pine tree and handed her a piece of young green bark. "Here, it might help if you can chew on something"
Capelin nodded, and took it from him. She looked up to see an overly large blackbird with a golden beak staring down at her, another joined in on the branch, and another, and another. Soon there were birds all around them. "Bala…mutts" she whispered
"I know, just stand up slowly" He handed her the knife and picked up a large stick from the ground.
Adrenaline began to surge through Capelin's body and she forgot her thirst, they stood back to back and tried to side step together, away from the flock. A call made Capelin look down and she saw that the birds had them cut off; they needed to head back towards the cornucopia.
Bala stepped on a stick which broke loudly and all at once the birds seemed to be upon them, flapping, shrieking and clawing at their face and bodies. Capelin flailed wildly with her knife, shouting as they ripped her hair and arms, Bala hit out with his stick until he realised there were too many, their only choice was to run and hope the mutts stayed in a certain area of the arena. He pulled his hood over his head, grabbed Capelin's hand and dragged her away, yelling at her to keep her head down.
The barrage felt endless but it did end eventually, they had no clue where they were once the mutts flew away, somewhere within the pine forest but they couldn't tell if they were near the cornucopia or not.
"Capelin, look at me" Bala held her face in his hands, her skin had been raked by the birds and, as her head lolled forwards, he could see she was missing chunks of hair. He looked at the backpack but the birds had ripped the bottom and the meat and medical kit were gone.
Bala put the coil and sleeping bag into the undamaged part of the bag before hoisting it onto his back, steadying Capelin with his arm and trudging forwards into the unknown.
As he felt ready to drop with exhaustion and dehydration, Bala felt a cool, wet breeze and saw that they had made it to the treeline, where a huge lake was waiting for them. His steps had renewed energy and he tried to rouse Capelin "Come on, wake up we've nearly made it"
Capelin's eyes remained closed "No, come on, come on!" Bala called to her desperately. He dropped his bag and pulled Capelin to the water's edge; he soaked the cleanest hem of his shirt in water and wet her mouth and tongue. The moisture roused her and she opened her eyes, he guided her hands to the water so she could drink and drank deeply himself.
Time passed in silence as they quenched their thirst, they washed away the blood and surveyed their injuries. Their clothes had been torn by the birds but they were still basically intact and the wounds to their heads, faces and arms were quite superficial. Bala washed Capelin's head and used a few pieces of strong grass to tie her hair back so that the raw, bald patches were less exposed.
"Thank you" she held him close "You saved my life"
"I don't think they were supposed to kill us, I think they were herding us this way, we must be near other tributes now."
Capelin winced as she nodded. They looked around but couldn't see other tributes, the lake was huge, it was surrounded by a pebble beach and had an island in the middle, and on the far side of the lake they could see a meadow of tall grass. "What should we do?" she asked
Bala thought for a minute "We could swim to the island; I doubt anyone else here knows how to swim so that limits the number of tributes who follow us and at least here we have water."
"Okay, let's go before we're seen"
Capelin struggled to swim, the pain in her head was searing, but they made it to the island and collapsed, camouflaged in the trees.
Rosy
Rosy heard the boom of the cannon and froze, another one was dead, how many did that make now? She couldn't count, she had to concentrate, once she had reached the treeline near the cornucopia she had turned to look back and saw Eli's body on the ground. Rosy had panicked at first; she had hoped that she would make it through the first few days by relying on Eli's skills as a thief, now she felt completely alone. Rosy's instinct had been to run for a while until she found the lake, she didn't know if this was the only source of water so she decided to stay nearby and find a sturdy tree in which to rest.
Rosy climbed ever higher until she could stretch out and see the vastness of the arena above the trees, it seemed to be the same dark forest for miles, except for a bright open meadow and an island in the lake. She saw two figures burst through the trees and quickly ducked down, she risked another look and saw them swimming towards the island, on the far side of the lake she spotted the career pack leaving the meadow and walking down to the water. It was starting to get cold, the heat of midday was disappearing and she needed to find somewhere to rest. Rosy had no weapons, just a container on a strap which she had filled with water and slung around her shoulder. Her stomach rumbled and she tried not to think about food, Rosy had filled herself with a hearty breakfast that morning and that would have to suffice, she'd gone hungry before, it was nothing new.
She leapt from tree to tree, pausing occasionally to listen to the careers that were too busy drinking to notice her. Rosy stopped when she spotted a hollow in the trunk of a tree below her. She pulled some of the old bark away from the opening and squeezed her slim frame inside, it wasn't very comfortable but she could hug her knees and use her coat to shield her from the wind. Rosy drank deeply from her container and surveyed the forest around her.
Zara
Zara was furious; she had waited on the treeline for Zane and saw his body just before it was airlifted away from the arena. Tears stung her eyes; she could see from his corpse that he had been the one who had exploded, the one who never even got a chance to fight. Well, she would fight twice as hard for them both. Zara climbed a nearby tree and waited, she saw the careers pass beneath her and saw the stupid girl from District 9 burst out of her hiding place and run.
Zara waited until they were out of sight and dropped down from her hiding place, she saw Mika and Relay at the cornucopia but decided not to reveal herself, her only alliance had been to her brother, everyone else was fair game.
Once they had cleared out, Zara walked calmly into the mouth of the cornucopia, she found water, food and a smaller, lightweight sword. She hid behind the large rucksacks stacked inside the cornucopia and waited, eating and drinking her fill as she did so. Let them come, she thought, let any of them come and she would kill them all.
Careers
"We should stay here" Goyle said "There isn't much water back there and we can see anyone who uses the lake."
Andesine nodded "True, but while we're here, the other tributes will use the supplies back at the cornucopia"
"I'll go back" Flint said "It's not far and I need another bandage" He wouldn't admit it to the pack but his leg wound ached in a way he couldn't describe, the skin was hot but he felt so cold.
"Shimmer, go with him, get food and bring it back here." Andesine told her
Shimmer gave him a withering look "Sure"
"Screw that" Flint snapped "I don't need help; I'll bring stuff back, pass me my sword."
He grunted as he walked through the meadow, he could hear movement but didn't investigate; right now he just wanted to get to the medical supplies and redress his wound.
Flint had his sword drawn as he approached the cornucopia; he circled it carefully and watched the treeline. Once he was sure it was safe he headed to the mouth and looked for the large red rucksack which he knew held an extensive first aid kit, his hands shook and he was sweating, he needed medicine.
Zara burst from her hiding place in the back of the cornucopia and thrust her sword upwards; Flint was caught off guard but quickly gathered himself and parried her attack. He was dizzy and the sudden burst of energy wasn't carrying him through, he had double vision and Zara seemed to be everywhere, stabbing and kicking at the air around him. Red mist descended and he became a whirling scream of metal, Zara struggled to get anywhere close and took several cuts to her arms. Flint swayed and began to feel exhausted; Zara took her opportunity and thrust two low blows into his stomach. Flint dropped his sword and fell to the ground, screaming in agony, Zara could hear the sounds of oncoming tributes; the career pack must have heard the fight and headed back to them. She quickly grabbed the rucksack she had prepared for a quick exit and headed for the treeline.
Andesine ran out of the trees as the cannon signalled Flint's demise. "Spread out!" he called "Find them!"
The group spread out amongst the treeline and searched but found nothing, an hour later they all returned to the cornucopia and agreed that, whoever it was, was gone.
The rain began, it was a torrential downpour which soaked them all through, they filled the largest rucksacks with food and carried them, along with three tents, down to the lake.
Zara smiled as she jumped down from her tree and removed the camouflage material she had found in her rucksack. She took shelter inside the cornucopia and decided to get some rest; the careers wouldn't be back tonight. Tomorrow, she'd hunt down another one.
Baulk and Buzz
Buzz jumped as the cannon boomed again "Another one" he whispered
"Don't panic, just keep up" Baulk told him, he still regretted his decision to bring Buzz along with him, his family were depending on him to come home but he couldn't just leave the boy to die. Buzz was too young, he wouldn't make it through this, but at least he didn't have to die at the hands of that sicko Flint.
They had found a small stream and followed it until it became a river; Baulk had stopped for a short while and speared a few silvery fish, now they were looking for somewhere safe to eat out of the rain.
"What about the caves there?" Buzz asked pointing ahead
The caves weren't much more than small indents into the rocks beside the river but at least they would be dry. "Can you climb?" Baulk asked
Buzz nodded but his attempts were poor, Baulk had to push him up into the rock before climbing up behind him. They wringed out their clothes and each took a fish, Buzz grimaced as he bit into the oily, cold flesh and Baulk chuckled "I think you've gotten too used to Capitol food"
Buzz smiled "Thank you, for saving me. I'm sorry I shouldn't have told Caesar we were allies"
"Forget it" Baulk shook his head, it was too late now, he'd made his decision and Buzz was his responsibility. They looked through the bag that Baulk had ventured into the bloodbath to retrieve. It was a good haul; there was dried fruit and meat, a large sleeping bag, blanket, spare clothes, two water containers, first aid kit, waxed matches, fishing line and an array of hooks as well as the knives which were strapped to the bag itself.
"Wow, I think you grabbed the best one"
Baulk nodded in agreement "Yeah, we're looking good. I think we can get some rest now, it'll be dark soon"
He spread out the sleeping bag on the cave floor and they covered themselves with the blanket. Buzz wore the extra jacket and put the extra socks on his hands as gloves, he tucked himself against Baulk as they slept.
Dacia
The rain was pouring now, Dacia had made it to the lake but had to run again once she saw the career pack were there. The forest was too dark, too menacing so Dacia had decided to stay in the grasses, she had been drenched through at first but then she came to a kind of grass hedge at the edge of the meadow. It was thick and impassable but the grass which grew around it was also quite thick and could be bent and plaited into a serviceable shelter, it even kept the rain out quite well. As she sat under the bough of the grass she heard a thud beside her, this was followed by several more, they didn't sound like footfalls so Dacia peered out and saw that they were large nuts falling from the trees. She gathered a few and took them back to her shelter, they had a hard shell and required smashing with a rock before they would open however, once she had managed to get them open, they were delicious. She ate her fill and sat back, the arena darkening now and soon the images of the fallen would appear in the sky.
Bolt and Mili
Thud! The squirrel dropped from the tree and Bolt scurried over to collect it, he retrieved Mili's knife as she aimed for another one.
"You're amazing at this Mili" He told her as they sat and skinned their dinner, she didn't answer, she was too engrossed in her task. He shook his head and carried on.
"Can we risk a fire do you think?" He asked when they were done
Mili nodded "Its only dusk, we just need to be quick" She took the fire stones out of her backpack, her sprint in the bloodbath had been well worth the effort, the pack had been completely empty except for these but at least they could light a fire with ease.
They sat on the forest floor and ate, the darkness was coming quickly and the seal would soon appear in the sky. "I wonder how many are left?" Bolt said but Mili only shrugged
"You know, you're very difficult to talk to?" Bolt was becoming exasperated
"I suppose I only like to speak if there is anything important to say…" Mili trailed away for a moment as she listened to a sound in the distance "…besides, we should be quiet in case other tributes are nearby. We need to put the fire out now; it'll be too noticeable soon."
They trudged away from the camp fire and found a copse of trees with low hanging branches; they covered themselves with branches and stuffed pine needles into their coats to keep them warm as the air got colder, then they huddled together and waited for the seal.
Fern and Bear
Fern leant back against the tree; Bear had begun to breathe deeply, signalling that he was already falling asleep. He jolted awake when the seal appeared in the sky and music cued the start of the nightly report of the fallen.
"Flint from 2, that's unusual he's a career, the boy from 5, girl from 6, both from 9! Eli from 11 and Ginny from 12. Wow, seven gone on the first day" Fern shook her head sadly.
Bear's breathing slowed again and he began to sleep. Fern couldn't blame him, they had run from the bloodbath easily enough but Bear's stamina couldn't keep going for too long and he complained about their lack of food and water. They had found the lake but quickly exited when they saw the career pack on their way down from the meadow and were now in the forest sheltering under a plastic canopy from Fern's backpack.
They were hungry, there had been no weapons in the pack and all attempts to forage for food had been unsuccessful. Her pack had only contained the plastic sheet and a blanket which they were attempting to share, no food and no water, they had drank their fill at the lake it had been hours ago and they had no way of carrying water with them so they were thirsty again.
A noise made Fern pick her head up, a parachute was heading their way. She opened the container and found four rolls of the plaited bread they had at home! "Bear, Bear!" she poked his side, waking him.
Bear ate his rolls hungrily, Fern had thought they should save some, or even wait and eat it tomorrow when they were really desperate but in the end she had relented and eaten it all as well. They had waved a thank you into the air; no doubt it was seen by some camera or other, and settled down to rest, Fern took first watch and stayed awake as long as she could. She could hear rain but the sky over them was clear and she wondered how vast the arena was if they could all experience different weather? Eventually she woke Bear "I need to go to sleep; you must stay awake and watch for other tributes, okay?"
He nodded and sat watching the forest with one hand on Fern's shoulder as she slept; it made him feel better in the darkness as it reminded him he wasn't alone.