James Oak(District 7 Mentor)
I don't believe this, I mean seriously how unlucky can I be that year after year I have to watch my tributes fuck themselves over beyond all belief? I mean last year wasn't as bad and hell even I bought into the hype that I might finally have a winner to mentor, hell it almost looked like Fox and Susan could finish one and two with a little luck, but it looks like that dream was just as stupid as any other year.
"Isn't it a little early to be drinking James?"
I set down my glass and turn my head ever so slightly as my mentoring partner Orchid slides into the chair to my left and calmly orders a glass of juice. I quickly turn my attention back to my overly strong vodka concoction and down it with an exasperated gulp before slamming my glass down and quickly signaling the bartender for another.
"It's never too early to drink Orchid, especially when our tributes are about to extend or districts winless streak to double digits for the first time in Hunger Games history."
"James I know this has to be frustrating for you but Susan and Fox are still your tributes….They're still our tributes. Don't we owe it to them to keep trying as long as they're alive?"
"Who said anything about not trying? I'm not going to stop until both of the little shits finally die, but I'm not going to hold my breath and hope for some miracle either."
"Isn't that our job, though, to preach hope even when it doesn't look like there's any left?"
Damn I'd forgotten how annoyingly optimistic Orchid can be, I mean it's not a bad trait and if we could ever manage to wrangle a tribute that's interested in competing and trying to win she might even come in handy, but now's not that time and these just aren't those tributes.
"Maybe you haven't noticed Orchid but it's hard to sell optimism to sponsors when your tributes haven't done anything except stumbled and bumbled their way from one disaster to another. No one and I do mean no one wants to shackle themselves to a lost cause, not this late in the game anyway."
"Then why is Oatis out there drumming up support for Kimma? Why is Zapp pulling out all the stops to help Shapiro? Is this really about a lost cause or are Fox and Susan just not living up to your personal expectations?"
"First off Oatis's girl has a serious chance to win, I mean she's got a good weapon, plenty of supplies and most of the serious competitors have forgotten about her. Hell, she might be the only tribute with a real shot at snapping the career district winning streak."
"Fair enough but that still doesn't explain why Zapp is trying to help his tribute while you're drowning your future sorrows prematurely. I mean Shapiro is in just as much trouble if not more than Fox and Susan are."
"It's a different kind of trouble and you know it Orchid."
"I don't see it that way, James."
"Then you're a fool Orchid. I mean look at our tributes, do you see any way out of that little wadi they're stuck in?"
"Not as such, but that doesn't mean you get to stop trying James. We're the only real supporters they get in the Capital and if we quit on them they're as good as dead."
"At least one and most likely both of them are already dead Orchid, they've been dead since the reaping's. Only their stubbornness and dumb luck have kept them alive this long."
Fox Jameson-16(D7M)
I don't know how the hell we're going to get out of this mess; I mean how the hell did the mutt find us again? I mean I've had my share of bad luck and on more than one occasion the only reason I survived accidents on the line with all my limbs was because of dumb luck, but my luck sure did pick a shit time to run out.
"Fox we need to get out of here quick, it's not going to take long for the mutt to corner us if we don't."
It's too late for that, for all intensive purposes the mutt already has us cornered. I mean we could try and climb a tree but when the monster hunting you can start fires with a touch or a smile I'd rather not be up something that'll go up on flames that easily, and with our backs planted firmly against the wall in this little impression I don't really see may other viable options for escape.
"If you've got an idea, Susan, I'm all ears."
"Why do I always have to come up with the ideas? I've done more than my fair share so you come up with something."
"For the love of god Susan I've been flying by the seat of my pants since day one and you know it."
"Well then this is the perfect time for you to STOP and trying thinking things through for a change!"
I can't believe this, we've got a mutt bearing down on us and we're bickering about who should come up with the idea to save or skins?! I mean I know we've had our differences of opinion and more the one personality clash but this is hardly the time or place for it to spill over, I mean I'm not ready to die and I have a special aversion to doing so by burning.
"This isn't helping Susan, now we BOTH need to think of a way out of this mess or we're going to be headed home extra crispy."
"Really Fox, you pick now of all times to make a joke?!"
"It was reflexive, sometimes I use humor to mask my fear and uncertainty and right now I'm more than a little afraid so I'll ask you to excuse my humor outbursts."
"Fine if we make it out of here alive I'll forgive you. Now please tell me you've thought of something, I….I don't want to die Fox."
Neither do I but I don't really see a way out of this for the both of us, so that might mean it's better for both of us to take our chances. I mean I'm sure that even a mutt as powerful as this one has limitations on what it can do and I'm betting that one of them is the inability to direct fire two ways at once. If we get lucky maybe one of us can slip past while the other ends up trapped. I mean it's a fifty-fifty shot but it's better than the zero chance we have if we keep standing here like morons.
"Ok Susan I have an idea but you're not going to like it."
"At this point not liking something isn't a valid reason not to do it. So what we're you thinking Fox?"
I quickly turn my attention toward the steadily advancing mutt and zero in on the one spot along its path that's wider than the rest and with a less than steady hand, I quickly point toward it while turning Susan's head in the general direction.
"See the part there where the water flow was wider than the rest?"
"If you mean that extra five yards on either side of the banks then yes, what about it?"
"Ok when the mutt gets within a reasonable distance of it, let's just say ten yards or so we make a break for it. I'll go for its left side and you go for the right and with any luck, we'll be able to clear the area before the flames have a chance to spread and close it off."
"What if it doesn't work Fox, do you have a backup plan for if it closes off before we make it through?"
"We burn Susan, we either make it out or we die."
"Great pep talk Fox….Ok, we'll go on your call."
I stare impatiently into the distance as the mutts formally decent pace seems to slow to a near crawl the closer it moves toward the outcropping. Within what seems like minutes, the mutt has closed to within maybe fifteen or so yards as I bend down and coil myself up fully prepared to explode out as soon as it closes the final few feet.
For a moment time seems to stand still as the mutt slowly approaches the point and as soon as it crosses the arbitrarily predetermined spot I've chosen I let out what's probably a barely understandable bellowing growl.
"NOW!"
We both explode out and within a couple seconds, Susan has built a small lead over me as we both charge headlong toward the mutt as it slowly continues uninterrupted towards us. We've closed maybe half the distance between us and the mutt when I decide to make my cut left just as Susan starts towards its right, and within a few seconds both of us are on the rapidly closing on the farthest reaches of the outcropping.
For the briefest of moments I dare to hope that we've confused the mutt enough that it won't respond to our presence, that maybe our luck finally swung enough that both of us can make it out of this mess alive. It's a futile hope as no sooner does Susan reach the center of her half then the mutt simply extends its hand and flames quickly spring up and engulf Susan in a matter of seconds.
The sounds that come from Susan are almost animalistic and it takes all my strength and resolve not to stop dead and sprint towards her in a vain attempt to save her. A few seconds later her screams have become all but unintelligible as the primal side of the pain slowly overtakes her seared and rapidly burning body. Luckily I'm able to make it through my half before the flames completely cut me off, though if the searing pain in my legs is any indication my victory could be short-lived.
No sooner have I cleared the area then my instincts start screaming at me to turn back as if throwing my life away could somehow make up for Susan's inevitable death. I ignore my personal feelings and do my best to bury them as I press on, despite the pain and the sorrow I'm feeling I refuse to stop or even look back as the roaring echo of the cannon signals the end of Susan's pain
~BOOM~
Willock Stanton-17(D2M)
This waiting is unbearable, I mean I'm very pleased that my technique was as effective as it was but I don't know how much longer I can wait to start the fun. I mean I've waited this long and when you add in the near week of good behavior before the reapings I've been a very very good boy if you don't count my near slip up with Meghan that is.
"Hmm, where….Where am I?"
Aww looks like my new toy is finally awake, good. I'll let her stew in her fear for a little while, after all, a scared toy is so much more fun to play with and oh so much more fun to break. I have every intention of using this pathetic little worm as the centerpiece of my little exhibition and after I'm done with her no one will ever forget what I did to her and why I did it, then finally I might be able to move on with my life.
"Please is anyone there?! I need help hello!"
"No one's coming to help you little dove, it's just you and me now."
"Who's….Who's there?!"
"No that's going to be my little secret for a while, after all, you wouldn't want to spoil the fun would you?"
"I don't know what kind of game you're playing but this isn't 'fun' for anybody pal."
"On the contrary, Shapiro….I'm having a great time. Then again I'm not in your position am I?"
"How….How do you know my name?"
"I took extra special care to learn EVERY female tributes name this year, after all, it would have been rude of me to pick a target without knowing a little about her. Wouldn't you agree?"
"What do you mean target, seriously what the hell are you trying to prove?"
She's a feisty one I'll give her that, then again it's not like it's going to save her in the end. Though I do enjoy a good fight now and then, it makes it so much more exhilarating when they finally break.
"Now is that any way to talk to a stranger Shapiro, where are your manners?"
"Probably back where you knocked me out you sadistic fuck."
Now that's over the line, I can tolerate quite a lot but language like that isn't something I can let slide. I curl my hand around the soft green block I fished out of her pockets while I was tying her up and bring my clenched fist crashing into the back of her head with just enough force to make my point.
"See being a rude little shit get's you hurt, so I'd advise you to 'rethink' your responses moving forward."
"Or what, it's not like you're going to let me live after going through all this trouble. I'm as good as dead anyway."
Ahh now that's what I needed to hear, despite her tough outward persona the fear is readily evident in her voice when she's talking about dying, the little shit's afraid. She's hoping that if she acts tough and unafraid I'll kill her and get it over with, but I've seen more than my share of 'tough girls' over the years and they all have one thing in common, they're willing to beg before the end.
"Yes you are Shapiro, but your actions leading up to that end will determine just how much you suffer before it comes."
"You're sick."
"Oh, I am….But not in the way you're thinking."
"W-what do you mean by that?"
Now she's intrigued, Shapiro continues to amaze me with her reactions to all of this. If I didn't have to kill her I'd keep her alive after all, toys like this only come along once in a great while.
"I'll tell you Shapiro, but first a little history lesson."
"I suppose this is where you give me your sob story as if that's going to justify what you're doing."
"Something like that yes. Now this all happened about seven or so years back, I was just a little guy of ten when the peacekeepers broken down the door of my little apartment and tried to arrest my mother. Now my, mother was very much like you, she had a fierce and rebellious spirit and naturally demanded to know what it was she had done. Well they didn't take to kindly to being questioned by some 'poor downtrodden bitch' like my mother so they decided to 'dispense' justice right there in our home, right in front of me."
"That's it?! You're doing this to me because some peacekeeper hurt your mom in front of you?!"
"Now now the story is just getting good Shapiro. Now this was no 'ordinary' offense according to them so it required an 'extraordinary' punishment. So while I watched on helplessly the three of them 'took turns' punishing her like the 'slut' she was, and after they were done they shot her dead and left her to rot in our home."
"That's….That's awful, but what does any of it have to do with me?"
"Well it's simple Shapiro and if you'll just be patient I'll get to it. Now I've spent the last seven years wondering 'why'? Why did she deserve to die, why was what she was doing so much worse than what anyone else does to survive? Questions like these have eaten away at me ever since and the only conclusion I can come to is this, it's because she went against the 'natural order of things' in Panem."
"You're completely insane. If a peacekeeper killed your mother then she was obviously doing something she shouldn't have been."
"You see Shapiro that's the reason why you have to be punished, the reason why everyone who benefits from the injustice and corruption of the Capital MUST BE PUNISHED!"
"What the hel are you talking about?!"
"People who accept that status quo are the problem, people who play into the hands of the Capital are the problem, and people whose very existence is owed to that corruption are the problem. You see Shapiro I originally focused my attention on the girls who strived to be here. the ones who wanted to be a part of all this, but the longer I stalked them the more I grew to realise that they weren't the real problem, people like you are."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"You know Shapiro people like you, the weak and timid, the meek and mild, the sacred and stupid. You Shapiro owe your very existence to the corrupt system that lets people decide other people's fate on a whim, a society that actively supports and even idolizes those who can't or won't make the hard choices to survive but has the gall to punish those who do, people like my mother."
"First off you know nothing about the struggles I survived back in three, and if you're trying to make a statement about how I've made it into the top eight by piggybacking off of Embry and letting the others kill each other off then you've sure as hell made it. Just kill me and get it over with."
"You still don't get it Shapiro, the fact is I'm not going to kill you, not yet at least. No first I'm going to show you and the rest of the maggots watching at home just what kind of HELL those peacekeepers put my mom and I through before she died, then after I'm satisfied that you and the rest of Panem truly understand my point….You'll have my PERMISSION to die."
I spin around the tree I've got her tied to and give her the first glimpse of my face even as my scarred hands reach down and tear open the front of her rich red tunic, only then does the realization of what's about to happen truly dawn on her as a look of pure terror spreads across her once hard and determined face.
"No, please don't….You don't have to do this, please just kill me, that'll make your point without you having to stoop to the level the peacekeepers did with your mom."
"But I thought you said she deserved it Shapiro, that is what you said isn't it?"
I can see her mind turning as she tries to find a way out of this but there's nothing she can say or do to stop this from happening, I'm going to have my revenge. Her continued peas fall on deaf ears as I tune everything out but my enjoyment and the next thing I truly hear is the first of her many terrified screams.
Quartz Blaze-17(D1F)
We've wasted entirely too much time already, I mean if we want to have any legitimate chance of taking Willock down we need to get a move on and quick. I mean we've already had one tribute die since last night's tribute and I'm fully fed up with missing out on kills that should be mine. Hell at this point Willock is almost more of a distraction than a real target as far as I'm concerned, but if I can take him and one of my 'allies' out after then it makes my remaining slog that much easier.
"Come on ladies, if we don't get moving soon we're not going to have a trail to follow."
"Tell that to Meghan, I can't get her up and moving for the life of me."
This is just sad, I mean I know I might feel different if it had been me that Willock had attacked but I can almost assure myself that I'd be doing a hell of a lot more cursing and stalking then sulking and crying like she is. I mean seriously she spent the entire night alternating between infuriated grunting and pitiful sobbing and it's kept on chugging right into the early morning light that we're currently wasting at an unimaginable clip.
"Have you tried talking to her Aurelia?"
"What exactly would you like me to say to her Quartz?"
That's a fair point, I mean there's not a whole lot we can say to her that's not going to sound like garbage. I mean neither of us have ever experienced that kind of personal and violating attack, hell something so violent would be enough to break most people completely. I'm not one of them and I'd like to assume both my remaining allies have the strength and fortitude to fight through it too, but it can't be easy. At least, that's what I'm going to tell her when I go try and get her moving that is.
"Gather up the rest of our supplies and I'll go see what I can do about getting her going."
"Good luck Quartz."
I watch carefully as Aurelia starts to sort through the remaining garbage we haven't decided to take or leave behind before quickly making my way toward the cornucopia. As expected it takes me a second to find Meghan hiding behind a small wall of empty crates she built up last night during one of her more active panic attacks but sure enough there she is clutching her spear so tight her knuckles are whiter than freshly fallen snow.
"Meghan it's time for us to head out, we need to get moving if we want a chance to track Willock down."
"I….I….I don't know if I can do it Quartz."
"Why do you say that Meghan?"
"How do I do it, how do I look someone who did something so vile, that took something so personal from me in the eyes? How do I survive that?"
"By being stronger than him Meghan."
"What if I'm not stronger than him though? What if I finally get to him and I can't….I can't."
"Finish the job?"
Exactly, what happens if I can't keep myself together long enough to kill him?"
"That's what Aurelia and I are for sweetheart, if you need one or even both of us to help you we will."
"Is that really revenge though, is it really justice if someone else has to kill him for me?"
"Of course it is sweetheart, the only way it's not is if you don't try. If you let his actions beat you and keep you from trying then he wins and nothing else you do or say matters, but if you stand up and make him pay in blood for his crimes then it's justice."
"How can you be so sure of that Quartz? How is it you're so certain and strong while I'm a mess?"
"You want to know something, Meghan?"
"What?"
"The truth is I'm not as sure of myself as I always seem and I'd be lying if I said I'm not a little afraid that what happened to you could have just as easily have happened to me instead. The fact is none of us knows what's going to happen when we finally track Willock down, but I know if we don't then he's going to come for each of us eventually, and I'm not going to give him the chance to hurt anyone else."
"Y-You're right, if we don't stop him no one else will."
"Meghan we're the only ones who can, if we don't bring him down he's going to end up as the victor and that's something I refuse to allow to happen."
She offers me a confident if hesitant nod as I quickly reach out and grasp her hand firmly before pulling her to her feet. I offer her a reassuring hug as she scoops up her spear and slings her individual supply pack over her shoulder before offering me a quick but affectionate peck on the cheek.
"Thank you Quartz, I don't know what I would have done without you."
I offer her another reassuring smile even as my mind and stomach churn at the implication of what she just said, and unless I missed my mark I'd say Meghan is starting to think of me as a friend and not just an ally. There are only a few things Verity warned me about during training and getting too attached to your allies was at the tippy top of the list, hell it's cost more than one potential victor not only the crown but also their lives. After all Meghan's been through how do I take advantage of her friendship and trust now only to kill her later?
Then again when push comes t shove and it's her or me I'm sure she'll be willing to make the hard choice to save herself so why should I be any different? In the end there's only one winner walking out of the arena and I'm sure as hell going to do everything I can to make sure it's me, regardless of what anyone else had to survive.
A/N: Well that takes care of the first part of Day 4, was it worth the wait? Now I'm not exactly comfortable with what I wrote between Willock and Shapiro but it's gotten to be an important plot point so I tried to convey it as tactfully as I could and I hope it's not to graphic or disturbing as it seems to me.
Anyway I wanted to apologies for missing people in the fallen tribute in the last chapter as I not only missed Dusk but Allia as well so for that I apologies and I intend to get in there and make the changes to reflect the accurate number of fallen for day 3. Now then on to questions :)
1. How was the chapter?
2. Favorite POV?
3. Would you like to see more POV's from people outside the games as we go forward?
4. Finally who's your favorite to win out of the top 7?
AS always please review and let me know what you think and I hope to see all of you later this week for the next update :D
Death Order/Cause/Place
24-Grese Heathers-17(D6F)-Killed by Aurelia
23-Evianna Queens-14(D12F)-Killed by Meghan
22-James Hart-16(D9M)-Killed by Quartz
21-Erier Bosen-15(D3M)-Killed by Quartz
20-Paisley Trellis-15(D8F)-Killed by Meghan
19-Carson Flint-18(D12M)-Killed by Kimma
18-Vera Naylor-18(D11F)-Killed by Cristian
17-Llyod Cardonell-18(D8M)-Killed by Cristian
16-Audrey Constatine-16(D5F)-Killed by Allia
15-Bruinen Salt-18(D4M)-Killed by Willock
14-Victor Tavion-17(D11M)-Killed by Willock
13-Allia Iris-18(D10F)-Killed by Dusk
12-Cristian Valtier-18(D6M)-Killed by Meghan
11-Marlowe Everett-18(D1M)-Killed by Aurelia
10-Dusk Wayvell-17(D10M)-Killed by Kimma
09-Embry Jordan-18(D5M)-Killed by Aqua Mutt
08-Susan Forest-15(D7F)-Killed by Ignis Mutt
Kill Total
3-Meghan
2-Quartz
2-Willock
2-Aurelia
2-Kimma
1-Aqua Mutt
1-Ignis Mutt
2-Cristian
1-Dusk
1-Allia