James morphs into his wolf form. As fur erupts from his skin and his muscles triple in size, his clothes fall from his changing body in tatters. He stretches out his front legs and howls, then jumps at Edward, aiming for his neck. Edward hits him in the chin with the palm of his hand as Paul morphs behind them. The shaggy werewolf jumps over the fight and lands with a skid in front of Bella, just as Jacob finishes morphing and jumps forward to join in the fight. Paul snaps at Jacob and swipes at him with his claws, drawing four bright red lines across his rump. Howling in pain, Jacob growls again and jumps at Paul- who clamps his jaws around Jacob's neck and throws him against the wall. He turns away, victorious, and meets Bella's eyes with a sinister glare.
I adjust my stance, planting my feet further apart as Paul turns away from the defeated Jacob and starts padding across the rock towards me. Edward is still engaged in fighting James- and losing. Alice is dashing around the two of those, trying to find a space to jump in and slash James' throat with her razor sharp nails. Jasper stands behind me, keeping me calm and focused on the fight.
In a flash, Paul jumps forwards and rips my hand from the end of my arm. He spits it out on the rock and cocks his head to one side, like an innocent dog that just wants to play. Pain ripples up my arm as my body searches for the missing limb. I leap forward, rolling across the floor with my severed hand clutched to my chest as it stitches itself back to my arm. Instantly, Paul is above me. Strings of drool hang from his mouth, threatening to drip onto my face. He smells like burning and rotting flesh. It was him who burnt down the forest. Him who destroyed the arena, who caused this end.
His stinking body is hauled away from me as Jasper attacks, his hand stretched out straight. His hand plunges into the chest of the werewolf, his overgrown nails acting like a knife as he thrust himself forward. The wolf whimpers and limps to the wall, lying down and panting hard, defeated. But not for long- the huge wound begins to heal itself, vines of muscle stitching themselves together as we watch, horrified.
Jacob pulls himself away from the wall and lunges at Paul while he's down, clamping his jaws around his neck and biting down- hard. Paul's eyes bulge out of his skull as blood spurts from his jugular and across the white rock. As Jacob pulls back he spits the blood from his mouth and shakes out his shaggy mane, crouching down and preparing to lunge himself towards James.
Alice and Edward both circle him, while Jasper stands beside me wiping his hands on his trousers and calming the mood. As usual, Edward is trying to talk James out of it, trying to reason with him. James turns his back on him with a swish of his long tail and leaps at Alice, wrestling her to the ground and snarling in her face. I react quicker than Edward, and am on his back in an instant. I wrap my arms around his neck and pull hard, hearing the bones snap and break with my strength.
Edward looks at me as I climb from the back of the still beast, panting in exhilaration. Like there was another solution, another way out. "Come on, let's try and get out of here."
We walk across the ledge to a cave in the wall around the corner. The five of us stand in a row in the mouth. We exchange glances, and at the same time we take our first step forwards, ready to face whatever the Capitol throw at us next. Only one of us will make it out alive- and only one of us is alive. Only Jacob's heart still beats.
I grip Jacob's hand on one side and Edward's on the other. Edward takes Alice's hand and she takes Jasper's, and all together we take another step forward so that we're all standing in complete darkness.
Another step.
And another.
And then nothing.
I move my weight forward and find myself falling into the earth, spiralling downwards into never ending darkness with Jacob on one side and Edward on the other, their vice-like grips rendering my hands useless as we plummet towards whatever fresh hell awaits us.
