Chapter 10

Authors Note: I saw Divergent and it was awesome! It was so worth the wait. I cannot wait for the next two movies, it will be a while, but it will be slamming! Enjoy my next chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own the Hunger Games.

I didn't know what to do anymore. The bag containing Willow's medicine dangled from my hand limply as I walked. I just kept walking, replaying the incident over and over again. Cole died back there and I let him. I keep thinking back to what his family must be going through. There are his brother and his sister not to mention his parent all weeping at the loss of their son, their brother and not just them, but all of his friends.

Meanwhile back at the Capitol those snobs and phony faced pigs are probably safe and sound, warm and cozy in their homes. They are all laughing and clapping at the young boy's death and watching me weeping in the snow while my friends die.

I screamed.

I screamed louder than I ever had in my whole life. It was in between sorrow and anger. I didn't even care if someone came and finished me off right then and there. I just wanted it to be over, but it wasn't, it would never be over. But for now I could at least save Willow and make Cole's death worth something.

I got up from the snow and wiped the flakes off my face and trekked on. It took me a half hour, but I made it to the cave. I stepped inside and saw Ria holding a pale Willow in her arms. She looks up at me and then behind me, her face goes from tired to curious in a heartbeat. She was about to ask, but when she saw the petty look of despair in my eyes she quickly swallowed her words.

I knelt down next to Willow and opened up her gift from cornucopia. Only a small vial of medicine was inside. I let out a sigh and unscrewed the cap and with the help of Ria, who tilt Willow's head back, poured her medicine down her throat. She let out a few small coughs before dozing right back to her peaceful slumber.

With nothing else to do and nothing to talk about I walk over to a spot in the cave and sit down. I remember my bag was still slung over my shoulder. I pull it off and set it on my lap and zipped it open.

Inside were two canisters labeled beef stew and chicken soup. I looked over at Ria. She wasn't looking at me. I scooted over to her and placed the chicken soup next to her. She still didn't say anything.

I just sat there and ate my food in silence. I saved some for Willow for when she wakes up. I look down at the small can and think back to all the lives I took just to get it. I was starting to lose hope real fast. I looked over at my axe, it would be so easy. I could slit my wrist or my throat, it would be quick.

"Did he suffer?"

I was interrupted by my thoughts by Ria. She was looking at me. Her eyes, lacking that fire they had always possessed.

"No, he died instantly." I said.

"What are we going to do now?" She asked as she finished off her soup.

"We find the rest of these little bastards and finish them off." I explained. "Then we kill each other however we can."

"What?" Ria snapped. She looked ready to kill me right then and there. "That's it, that's your plan?"

"What do you want me to say Ria?" I asked. "We have nothing left, we are down to six players now and three of them are sitting in this cave. I don't know what to do!"

I got up from my spot and sat near the cave entrance. My whole body was hot and the cold air would help to keep me calm. I don't see Ria sitting next to me, but I do see Willow. She is still pretty pale, but she is better and that's what counts for now.

"Thank you for saving me." She mumbles.

"You might be swallowing those words when we have to kill each other later." I snort.

"Cole saved you, you know." She said. "He sacrificed himself for you not me." I didn't believe a word she just said.

"He sacrificed himself for me?" I retort. "Why, we were barely friends so why would he sacrifice himself for me?"

"Cole didn't have any friends, he never talked to anyone and no one would talk to him. I think you were the first person to ever ask him about his family or risk your life to save me." I was still confused.

"Wait, so he sacrificed his life for me, because I talked to him and offered to save you?" I asked rhetorically. This just didn't add up. Willow merely shrugged her shoulders.

"You could have let me died of natural causes, but you saved me. Maybe he wasn't the only one who saw you as a friend and not a potential enemy. Are we really enemies?"

"No, we're just lost." I say.

"So, let's not think about that, and let's just be friends."

"But-"

"No, no more talking about killing each other." She snapped. "I…I'm tired." I let out a heavy sigh. It had been a long day.

"Yeah, me too." I got up and led her inside the cave and led her near the dimly lit fire. She lay down on the ground and I covered her in the sleeping bag. I looked over at Ria who was asleep with her back towards me.

I only got a few hours of sleep before I managed to get up and see that the two were nibbling on the rest of the jerky. Ria handed me a few pieces.

"Thanks." I muttered. We ate in silence before continuing out into the woods. The sun wasn't shining today. I guess the Game makers wanted it to look how we felt, dark and grey. The snow was mixed with the dirt and sloshed against my boots with each step.

"So what are we doing exactly?" Ria asked.

"There are six of us left." I explained. "Atlas is probably near Cornucopia, he is alone and he doesn't want to venture to far by himself, but Sloan and Carmen they are probably camped out in a tree somewhere."

"Hmm, we should probably take it slow then." Ria suggested. "We are stomping around like the steers back home."

"Yeah, okay guys, we can do this."

We stick close to the trees and walk slower now. We had to keep an eye out for either Atlas or the archers from district one. Willow is looking better; I smile at her and crouch down in front of her.

"What is it Hunter?" She asks.

"Let me give you a ride." I smile.

She giggles and hops right up on my back and wraps her arms around my neck. I wrap my arms around her legs and run up ahead. I hear her giggling in my ear. I did this with little Amber all the time when she was feeling sad. She held me tighter and buried her face into my shoulder blades.

"Thank you Hunter." She whispers. I blush at her sentiment.

"No problem, kiddo." I looked over at Ria. She gave me a smug look, but it was a kind one at best.

After a half an hour of walking we decided to take a break. I let Willow down off my back and scanned the area. We couldn't find Carmen and Sloan anywhere. They must be hiding out somewhere at the other end of the arena, broken and injured for all I know.

"Where the hell could those two possibly be?" Ria asked.

"Who knows, they could be laying low. Atlas doesn't like betrayal very much." I joked. I pulled out my bottle of water and yanked off the cap before drinking half of the bottle. I hand it over to Willow and smiled at how she enjoyed her drink. "I don't even know if we are searching in the right place."

"Well they are archers." Ria stated. Willow passed her the bottle. "They are probably-"

The bottle flew out of Ria's hand and was knocked across the ground. An arrow was stuck in the center, water now leaking out of the large crack. I quickly pushed Willow behind a tree stump while Ria hid behind a fallen tree.

"Do you see them?" Ria asked while readying a dart.

I peeked over the stump and spotted the two, they were both sitting in two trees at the end of the forest. They were high, but still close to the ground. If I could get close enough to them I could throw an axe in their face and Ria could put a dart in their throat. The only problem is the fifteen feet of open land between us and them. I couldn't stop the chuckle escape my mouth.

"What the hell is so funny?" Ria whispered angrily.

"Those little bastards got us pinned good." I laughed. I didn't even know why anymore. "If we run they'll shoot us, if we attack they'll definitely get us and if we just sit around, Atlas will most definitely get us. This spot wasn't by chance, they had it planned perfectly."

"Dammit!" Ria shouted. She peeked over the tree before ducking back down. "What do we do?"

"I don't know." I snapped. "We have to think of something though."

"What if we try and get them from here?" Willow asked.

"Too far, and my arm isn't that good, especially when arrows are being shot at me." Willow sinks down behind cover with me.

"We need a distraction." Ria said.

"Yeah, I'll run forward and throw my axes at them. Ria you move in close and hit them with your blow dart." I look over and see her dipping her needles into the poison vile. "Willow, you stay here okay and if we don't make it…just run."

"Okay, when is the count down?" Willow asked, tears were slowly pouring down her cheeks.

"Count of three, okay?" I asked. Both Ria and Willow looked unsettled. I couldn't risk them screwing up the plan. "Okay?"

"Y-Yes, on three." Ria said in a shaky voice.

"On three…" Willow muttered. She hated me I know, but this was the only way. No way was I going to trade in a child's life for my own. "One…two…Willow!"

Willow was half way down the path. I could see the archers readying their bows and we had to move. I stomped into the ground with each step, both axes in hand. I threw one axe at Sloan and watched it get stuck in the side of the tree.

He fired an arrow and it cut the right side of my face. I could feel the warm blood pour down my cheek as I got closer. He was close now, so close that I could see the sun shine off his eyes. I could tell he was panicking as his hands fumbled for the arrows in his quiver. I took my chance and raised my axe over my head before throwing it at him as hard as I could.

His bow and arrow fell out of his hands as he fell from the tree with my axe in his chest. I felt his body tremor through the ground when he landed on his back. The two cannons fire and I quickly looked over at Carmen. She was dead.

And so were my friends.

Two more cannons fired into the sky. My legs gave away and I was now crawling like a dog. Ria had an arrow in her chest, she had died instantly. Her eyes were open, staring empty into the false sky. I pulled the arrow out from her chest and threw it as far away as I could. I looked over at Willow, an arrow in her chest and her face in the muddy snow.

"Oh god." I whimpered. "Willow, Ria, I am so sorry."

I lifted her body and held her close to my chest. I stroked her hair and kissed her forehead. I then carried her over to Ria and laid them both side by side. I placed their hands over their open wounds and threw the sleeping bag over them. I wouldn't need it for much longer.

I walked over to Carmen and saw one of Ria's poisoned darts sticking out of her throat. It was a hell of a shot. Carmen must have shot Willow giving Ria enough time to ready an arrow before being killed herself. I smiled over at Ria and Willow. They were fighters till the end.

"Goodbye." I whispered.

I couldn't rest yet. Atlas was still out there and there was only one place where he would be. I grabbed my hatchets and ran towards Cornucopia.

The game ends today, either Atlas falls or today I die.