Pray POV

"Belisarius?" Arielle called when she pulled herself onto the Cornucopia island. I was still far behind her in the water. She ducked inside the Cornucopia, then rifled through the supplies.

"Is he gone?" I asked as I gripped the island's edge.

"Yeah," she said. "He took some stuff with him." She shook her head in confusion. I'd known Belisarius wasn't as devoted as the rest of us, but this was a bit unexpected. It didn't matter. Either someone else would finish him off or I would.

"There goes half the Career pack," Arielle said. She sat down on the warm rock, water dripping into a puddle around her. Then she stood up and started putting things into a backpack.

"What are you doing?" I asked. I tensed myself for a fight. I was a hunter, but I was beginning to see I wasn't the only one. I might not even be the strongest one. I had to be prepared at any moment.

Arielle stood at the water's edge, her hands carefully clear of the spear on her back. Her eyes bored into mine as she spoke.

"It's been fun, but we're two strong personalities. Sooner or later, there's going to be bloodshed. What do you say we leave that for the final two? We have outliers to kill," she said. Then she smiled. "Bet I can get more than you." She dove into the water so quickly and smoothly I didn't have time to react. I whipped out a knife and waited for her to surface, but I knew she wouldn't. I'd seen the way she drowned that boy at the Bloodbath. She could hold her breath until she was out of range, and she would.

It was no great loss. I'd been waiting for this moment for days now and the heat and the tension grew. I noticed my breath had quickened and forced it under control. We'd meet again eventually. I was ashamed to admit that it scared me.

Kazuo POV

Something was very wrong with Silken... Farlan. All this talk about a twin and Capitol murderers. Did he have sunstroke? Was there even more to his history than the sordid details he'd already told me? Every hour brought me more fear of my oldest friend.

"Silken isn't eating," Farlan said. He looked down at the uneaten packet in his hands.

You're not eating, I thought, but it was useless. He wasn't going to believe me.

"Maybe if you start first, to encourage him," I said. Farlan tucked the packet back into a bag. We sat in silence for a moment.

"Why do we take all this abuse from the Capitol? Why don't we fight back?" he said suddenly. I sat up straight and recoiled.

"What are you talking about? That's insane! The Capitol is good to us," I said, hating the words in my mouth. Farlan, what's wrong? Please stop. You have to.

"We can just all fight together," Farlan said. Something broke inside me.

I love you, Farlan. You're my best friend. But I have to get back to Mom. I have to get back to Ruby. I'm so sorry.

"Farlan, I have to go," I said. He looked up at me with more emotion on his face than I'd ever seen.

"I hope you and... Silken are all right," I said, my voice hitching. I turned my face away from the betrayal on his and started walking.

Mei POV

My back screamed with the pain of Pray's knife. It had hit me just above the hip, and it was hard for me to bandage it after I pulled out the blade. Every time I passed a bush or patch of grass I felt the slender leaves pricking into it. It twisted around awkwardly in an attempt to see it. Pinkish fluid covered the open flesh and the skin around it was pale. I poured a little water on it and tried to keep walking. The Careers wouldn't leave me for long.

I tried to keep quiet the rest of the day. I cried off and on, first from the pain and then from the built-up terror of the Games. I wanted to run and never stop running, far away from the other Tributes and their weapons. Thoughts flitted out of my head and were replaced with terror and helplessness. I pressed shaking arms against my face to keep from screaming.

The sun drooped and the light in the jungle faded. The energy drained from me and I sagged against a tree, crying out and shifting forward when it ground against my back. I tapped the wound gently with a finger to check on it again. The flesh was warm and I could feel my pulse in it. It wasn't as painful anymore, just dully sore. I was too exhausted to think about it. I stretched out on my stomach so I wouldn't lie on it and I was asleep in seconds. I didn't even hear the Anthem play.

Starling POV

I nibbled on some of the crackers from my sponsor package and watched the sun go down. It had been a quiet day- not a single cannon. That was bad news for me. I knew my limitations. If I was going to have any chance of survival, a lot of the others would need to kill a lot of Tributes. I wasn't about to take them all out myself.

Trees stretched on all around me. I longed to see the unblocked, wide open sky of Ten. It was like constant dusk here. I wondered if it was sunset back home, too. Sunsets were glorious there, filled with bands of wonderful color. Here in my cage of trees, I saw only a sliver of sky.

A tiny parachute blocked what little view I had. It wasn't as pretty as a sunset, but it was the next best thing. When I opened it, I saw two armbands and a note with one word.

GO

What does that mean? Is there a Career nearby? No, they wouldn't let Cornflower warn me. Anyway, in any case, I guess I'll go.

These Games WERE going awful fast! One deathless day should bring us closer to canonical timelines.

Near island: Chantel, Mei, Eleanor, Starling, Damien

Middle island: Oaken

Far island: Farlan/Silken and Kazuo

Indeterminate: Arielle, Pray and Belisarius

Oops, forgot Damien! There he is. He didn't randomly die.