Calico Damask (14), District Eight
The realization hits me like an electric shock, and soon I'm on my back, gasping and sobbing. My chest tightens and my breath hitches until I can barely breathe at all. The world starts to spin and I hear the deep thumping of my racing heart. Sabrina is shaking me by the shoulders, trying to get me to speak, but my lips feel like rubber.
I've become an animal, obeying its primal instincts to survive at all costs. All logic is gone. My calm mind has dissolved. Nothing matters except getting out of here. I scramble to my feet, leaving my bag of supplies in my haste. Sabrina and Palata scream my name, but I don't hear them.
I'm not dying. I'm not dying. I'm NOT dying.
The ceiling begins to tremble. I ignore it, crawling quickly on my hands and knees to get out of the cave. The ceiling trembles even more. I keep crawling. Faster. Faster. Kicking, clawing, pushing Sabrina backward so I can escape first. My own life is all that matters. My nails claw her hair and she screams, biting me on the hand. I kick her in the face, breaking her nose with a clean snap. There's time to be horrified later.
I'm not dying. I'm not dying.
Sunlight. I make a leap for it, landing on my chin in the gravel. My limp body tumbles down the slope, gaining speed until I'm sliding down on my back. Shards of rock impale themselves in my wrists and calves, but it doesn't matter. Wounds are superficial. Sabrina and Palata's screams echo out into the mountains, but the animal inside me continues to push forward. I can hear rocks tumbling behind me; I'm not out of danger yet.
Many minutes later, I'm on my hands and knees. I don't know when the rockslide stopped. Blood drips down my wrists and stains my cargo pants. My white tank top is in tatters, and my hair is coated with grit and dust. Even my fingernails have chipped off, leaving sharp stubs that hurt to touch.
I'm not dying. I didn't die.
A cannon sounds, and that's when I break down. My sobs echo along the mountainside, but I don't care anymore. The Capital has turned me into a monster. Mom and Dad must be ashamed of what I've become. Rosie, too. We might have all escaped the cave, but I was too selfish. I've never been selfish before. My parents instilled in me at a young age that being kind was the way to a happy life.
But you're still alive.
The back of my head tells me I made the right choice, even if I'm too horrified to believe it. I escaped, but barely. If we had all tried to leave at once, we certainly would have been crushed by the rockslide. In the end, one escaping is better than none.
Wait… where's the second cannon?
Sabrina Volta (16), District Five
What the hell is Calico doing? Palata and I struggle against her flailing limbs, trying in vain to escape the cave. She kicks me in the face, and a shooting pain fires up my skull. She broke my nose. Desperately, I bite her hand and attempt to hold her back, but she's out of the cave in a heartbeat. I fall back, holding my nose and cursing.
"Sabrina!" wails Palata, "Watch out!"
The ceiling begins to buckle, and all I can do is lie there and watch it. We'll never make it to the entrance. Calico has doomed us to die in here. She wasted our precious seconds to escape. I catch Palata's eye, and I see she's made the same realization.
"I don't want to die…" she whispers.
"Be strong," I say, "Don't let his last image of you be a crying little girl. Stay strong for your family."
I realize after I spoke those words that they were meant for me, too. I can only imagine what Martin and my parents are thinking right now. We all knew I'd die, but I didn't even make it to the top twelve. Some part of me was still hoping I'd win. I think everybody is hoping that, deep down, no matter how hopeless they appear on the outside. But in reality, only one person will have their prayers answered. And that person is not me.
"See you on the other side," says Palata.
"Maybe we'll see Sunny," I reply.
Good luck, Calico. You outlived us all.
The ceiling crashes down, and I feel a large slab of rock impale me through the chest. I cry out, but my voice is soon cut off by a stone slamming into my throat. Heart beating, nose sniffling, I wait for death.
I don't have to wait long.
Venus Albryte (14), District Six
"We need to keep moving," Vaska snarls, picking up his bag and knives.
"Why?" I ask, "We're safe here. We can hide out until the Careers pick off a few more threats."
If there's one thing I've learned from spending three days with Vaska, it's that he's impatient. This is the fourth time he's packed up and decided to leave, and every time I manage to talk him out of it. My shoulder is still bruised badly from the fight with Darren, so I'd rather not travel unless we have to. Unfortunately, I haven't received any sponsors. Vaska likes to joke that he's the District Six favorite this year, which is probably true. That can't protect him from dying, though.
I considered killing him last night, but then I remembered the fight with Darren and his ally. They were about to kill me, and it was Vaska's good hearing that saved me. Darren's weapon was inches away from my heart. I'm smart and decent at fighting, but it's clear that I'm no good at fighting two opponents at once.
Just a few more days. Then you can kill him.
This time Vaska seems determined to leave, so I begrudgingly agree. The sun is starting to go down, which means the scorpion mutts will be out, but he doesn't care. Vaska seems to think he's invincible. It doesn't matter to me. I don't need to outrun the scorpions, I just need to outrun Vaska.
Vaska leads the way down the mountain. He says we're looking for weaker tributes that might be hiding between the rocks. I try to tell him that weak tributes would have climbed as high as possible, but he doesn't listen to reason. With each step, I become more and more concerned. If we run into the Careers, we're toast. Vaska's torture knives are for close range, and although my knife is light enough to be thrown, it'll leave me defenseless. Finally, I put my foot down.
"Vaska. Let's stop for a water break."
"No. We need to reach the bottom by nightfall."
"Vaska. I need water."
He whips around, teeth bared. "You insufferable brat! I'm not falling for your mind games. You listen to me, or you leave. And trust me, you will receive NO mercy if I find you again. Is that clear?"
"Crystal," I hiss.
Since we definitely weren't taking a break anytime soon, I decide to put Vaska's rope to good use. As we walk, I rub two stones against my knife until they're razor sharp. Then I tie one end of the rope around the pieces of rock. I give the rope a test swing, and sure enough, the knot holds. With a grunt, I swing hard on the weapon, slamming the rocks into a shrub.
Now I have another weapon.
Kiara Wong (16), District Two
"Do you think that was Frank?" asks Jules. She looks questioningly at Nolan, who shrugs.
"Hope so. It's probably one of the alliance girls. They lost the Twelve girl, so they're probably hurting right now."
I still don't understand how they can talk so calmly about death. I don't want Frank or one of the girls to be dead. I don't even want Nolan to be dead. Seeing so much death the past few days has really scared me and knowing that I could be next only amplifies the fear. My angle is dissolving faster and faster each day, and soon the others are going to realize I'm panicking. I can't make myself an even bigger target.
The anthem plays, a sound I'm growing used to. A lot of tributes died the first day, and only Moira died on the second day. Tonight there are three faces in the sky. Sabrina, Darren, and Sunny. Only fourteen tributes left. I try not to think about the ten tributes that have died.
"Hey, six more and we're at the final eight," says Cendko, giving me a friendly nudge. He's been talking to me every day, trying to keep my head screwed on straight. It's nice to have a friend here, even if he'll probably be dead soon. Or maybe I'll die first. Does it really matter, in the end? The order doesn't matter much. Dead is dead.
Kimora… are you watching right now? I hope not.
I don't want my sister to see me like this. She's already seen me cut off a boy's arm. Kimora practically faints at the sight of blood. And my poor parents…. I've turned into a completely different person. They probably expected me to sob my eyes out, but instead, I'm battle-hardened and emotionless. On the outside, at least. On the inside, I feel like someone took a hammer and slammed me in the gut. Every second could be my last.
"Tonight we'll stay here," says Nolan, "Most of the tributes are running out of water. Let's let nature take its course."
"But the Capitol wants action," says Jules.
"They've seen enough," Lusi says dejectedly, picking salt off of her shirt. She's been really grumpy ever since Frank left.
"At least he's alive," I whisper to Lusi, in an attempt to be comforting. I think it worked, because she shot me a grateful glance. I can't imagine how I'd feel if Cendko abandoned me. He'd never do that. Or would he? Nothing's the same now that we're in the arena.
I don't know anything anymore.
SABRINA VOLTA- Palata Browns
She died right in front of me. First, she was there, telling me to stay strong. Then she was a pool of blood and guts. For some reason, fate decided to spare my life. I'm trapped in a pocket of air under the rubble. Although I can't see the sky, I mourn for my companion when the anthem plays.
DARREN WHITAKER- Matt Sickle
I'm safely tucked in a cave system, all thanks to Darren. Without my loyal ally, I wouldn't have been able to save Avery. We'd both be dead. I owe him my life, and I silently vow to shower his girlfriend with riches when I win. Now she's the protector of Darren's siblings, the kids who lost both parents and their eldest brother. They have to grow up all alone.
SUNNY COLE- Calico Damask
It's crazy how much things can change in twenty-four hours. Sunny died, Hideki betrayed us, and now Sabrina is dead. And Palata and I are separated. I'm glad Sunny died before all this happened because she was too gentle to deal with betrayal. Now she can rest in eternal peace.
Sorry for disappearing. My grandpa passed away, high school started, and writing was on the bottom of my priority list. I'll try to update weekly from now on, maybe faster if I have the time.