A/N: wow guys, I am sorry for the long break. But with it being the holidays I haven't had much time to write. Here is the first chapter of the games. I hope you enjoy it and tell me what you think about the arena so far.
I am frozen. My legs wont work with me. The other kids have already ran and some are even fighting. But my legs just wont work. The entire plan to get the pack and leave has been thrown out of the window. The rain has soaked through the coat, but it has still kept me warm.
I close my eyes and think about Malva. What would she do in this situation? I can almost here her now. "Get off of that stupid plate and run" she would say. But you can't can you? The voice sneers in my head. You are just a weak girl from district 9. You can't win these games...you never could. Just die Serenity, do the world a favor and die.
No...I dont want to die. Something deep inside of me jolts my legs awake and I stumble off my plate. Screams fill the air as tributes fight and others die. I scramble forward, heading towards where the pack was, just to find its been taken. "No" I almost shout. I stand up from the rocky floor and stumble backwards. That's when I see it through the thick rain. The spear risen in the air over a tribute I don't know. Glitz eyes shine with a terror that scares me. Is he really a blood thirsty monster like the other careers?
I don't get to see him kill the tribute because the back of my foot catches on my plate and before I can stop myself I am falling off of the big rock and towards the murky water. The water hits me like ice, stinging every part of my body. The air has gone from my lungs and the only thing keep me from drowning is the flotation sack around my waist.
I break through the surface of the water and start kicking my legs. It seems to work and I am slowly propelled to the shore. I drag myself onto the grassy bank and just lay there, staring up at the sky that has unleashed tons of water onto us. I got nothing...nothing to survive off. All the energy has been drained out of my body and washed away with this rain.
'Dont give up...'
'Come back to us...'
I hear Allison's voice. "I am sorry Allison. I just dont think I can do this. I was so certain that I can at least survive the bloodbath with something to survive off of, but no. I cracked and just stood there. I am so sorry Allison" I say all in one breath, tears falling from my eyes and mixing with the rain water.
"Serenity!" I tilt my head to the side and see somebody thrashing around in the water. "What are you doing?" I recognise that voice...Maple. Of course, I am allies with Maple. I push with a burst of energy and sit up. She climbs onto the grass and she drags me to my feet. "Come one" she yells and drags me across the field.
I try to keep up but I keep stumbling. But with the help of Maple we make it into the wooded area in under 10 minutes. But even then she doesn't stop running. After another 20 minutes of running she finally stops. We are both breathless and I collapse against a tree. "Are...you...okay?" I ask between breaths.
"Yeah, got...a little...graze" she says as she looks at her arm. The material is torn and a thin trickle of blood is soaking the surrounding fabric. "Nothing too bad" she finishes. She tears a strip from her jacket sleeve and ties it around the wound. I look to the floor beside her and just realize the axe and a medium sized pack. On the blade of the axe is blood that wasn't washed off in the rain.
"D-did you kill?" I ask, feeling nervous around Maple all of a sudden. She looks to the axe then at me then back at the axe. She doesn't say yes or no, but I know the answer from the sad look and tears in her eyes.
"H-he just came r-running" she stutters as her breaths become ragged. "I acted on instinct and swung...now he is dead." She has not taken her eyes off the axe.
"Who?" I ask. She doesn't answer at first so I ask again. "Who was is Maple?" I am starting to get scared. Did she kill Vice or Glitz?
"Skyla" she shouts out, clearly crying now. I sigh in relief but then it hits me. Skyla was her district partner.
"Oh Maple" I say as I scoot closer to her. I may be drained of energy, but my motherly side never goes away. I pull her into my arms and she sobs into my shoulder. We don't talk, I just hold her while she cries. I find myself crying silently as I think about home.
A couple of hours have passed since the games began and the rain has stopped completely. I didn't get anything from the cornucopia, but Maple got an axe and a pack. Inside the pack is a canteen, matches, a bag of dry crackers and some rope. Not much, but it will keep us alive.
Maple has barely spoken since she told me about what happened in the bloodbath, how she killed her district partner. She has just stared ahead, as if it isn't actually her. Like her body has been taken over by some unseen entity. Its beginning to scare me. We walk for a few more hours but stop when nightfall comes. This forest is huge, but we are lucky enough to come across a small stream.
"I will take first watch" she says as I sit down on the forest floor, leaves crunching under my weight.
"Okay" I mutter, a little startled that she spoke. I wait up for the anthem though and when it comes I am surprised that Vice had made it out alive. Where is he? Is he hurt? Does he have an ally? I suddenly feel worried for the small boy I never got to know. There are 9 deaths altogether. Both from 3 are dead. The girl from 4 and both from 6. Skyla from 7. I look to Maple and see tears in her eyes as she whispers sorry to the sky. Both from 8 are gone and the girl from 12.
After the anthem stops playing I lay my head down. Even though it was raining before, its now warm. The forest floor is soft with moss and leaves and it isn't long until I drift off to dream land.