Scout Parker, 15, D1M
"We're not covering enough ground." Diamond says suddenly, clearly not happy with the progress we have made, as we trek through the murky muddy waters. "Yea well, you're just going to have to deal with it." Ziana says with a scowl. Great, now they're going to start fighting again. I'm talking next to Jamee, lagging behind a little bit because we were just talking, but then we started walking in silence but that beautiful silence, that our of peace and quiet was broken by my district partner. Diamond is obviously not happy with the Snark Ziana's giving her doesn't retort back but only scowls. Maybe I was wrong this time. Maybe there is a limit to how much two girls can fight. Maybe they've finally realized that this is the Hunger Games and we're the career pack, maybe they're finally realized that they only need to put aside their differences for about a week and then they are free to kill each other. Pft, now I'm lying to myself. As if that will happen. And then the silence resumes...
... Only to be broken again by Cedric's complaining. "Guys, I'm hungry." He states, rubbing his stomach with his one good hand. This makes Diamond face palm.
"We've just eaten like an hour ago..." She groans, clearly not happy with Cedric's needless speaking.
"She's right Cedric, you'll have to wait until it's dark." Mason says calmly, not even giving Cedric the chance to say anything back. And by the iciness in his voice Cedric knows to not argue with this guy. He may seem happy and normal with Ziana by his side and latched onto his arm (as she always is) but when provoked I'm scared of what this guy can do to someone. I don't want to end up like that girl from eleven: half decapitated by a career's axe, I prefer my neck whole with no gashes in it and I prefer my head to be completely attached to my shoulders thank you very much. At least I hope we stay like that. I don't see why we wouldn't, I mean the odds are someone from this career pack will win, if it's not me then I'd want Jamee to win but I also really want to get home, I really want to win.
Maybe I shouldn't think about stuff like that.
"Okay, let's make camp here," Mason commands with a defeated sigh. He's just as tired as we are. "Me and Ziana are going to take a walk, you four can do whatever you like just nothing stupid, we'll only be about fifteen minutes." He explains and before we know it him and Ziana are walking off, leaving just me, Diamond, Cedric and Jamee. The moment of silence is tense, it's not secret Jamee and Diamond dislike each other, in fact I think Jamee is a bit scared of her, I know I am. Dominic's bodiless head flying across the river will forever be engraved in my mind no matter how much I try to sleep it off. She just severed it clean from his neck in a fit of anger like it was nothing.
"I-I need to go take a piss." I say wearily as I haul my self up and begin walking away from the camp. I didn't really need to go, I just wanted to get away from everyone. I don't know how long I walk for, five minutes at the most? I just needed to get away. Diamond scares me, Cedric annoys me, Ziana annoys me when she fights with Diamond, Mason scares me but I respect him, he's a good leader and an even better fighter. Gosh, how am I going to kill these people? Killing that girl from twelve, Olive, that was hard enough and I'm still not over it. I still can't believe I did it, sunk my arrow straight into her throat. I'm a horrible person, I thought killing was nothing, I thought all those big strong careers from previous years who could sever heads and smile about it... I thought I could be like them. But I can't. I scream out in frustration, scream out at nothing in particular, maybe the air or something, the fake sky. Screaming at all the faces of the tributes that have gone to join the fake stars. I don't want to be one of them.
I stop walking and lean against a tall tree, that's even probably fake. Everything here is fake and artificial, I just want to get into the real world. The real world where it's natural, where I have real friends who I don't think are going to slit my throat any minute now. I- I just...
My train of thought is suddenly halted, I heard something, I know I did. Like a a grunt and a branch snapping. I instinctively notch an arrow into my bow and search around, frantically aiming. "J-Jamee?" I ask, my voice clearly quivering in my throat. They must be able to smell the fear. I have to steel myself against this, for all I know it could be a bunny I can shoot down or something. It takes a lot but I manage to silence my frantic breathing that's making my hands shake and steady it, so it's calm and controlled. Just like I was taught. My heart is frantically pounding against my ribs. Calm down, calm down. It's probably nothing, it has to be nothing. No other noise so far... I was worrying for nothing, that has to be a reasonable explanation. Silly Scout.
SPLASH!
I instantly spin around to see a figure charging at me, brandishing a bloody meat cleaver and screaming the same word repeatedly like a banshee. "Die!"
I scream and I let the arrow fly and it soars through the air. However, the fact I was so surprised must have thrown off my aim because it only sinks into her left shoulder (her non-weapon hand) and she still continues to charge. Before I can even draw another arrow she's already upon me she swings her meat cleaver so it goes arching towards the side of my head and I duck, narrowly avoiding having the cleaver sink into the side of my head. I quickly jump backwards, drawing my knife and slash at her and it bites into her flesh and draws a visible shade of crimson than runs down her arm, still; I'll have to land better hits than this if I want to kill her. I dart back, away from her and slowly begin circling around her, our eyes still locked onto each other.
"Back off!" I scream, half surprised and half angry. It's only then I see the monstrosity that stands before me, her hair was clearly blonde but now it's clumped, tangled and stained brown in some places. Her hands and arms are covered with blood and mud at various points. Her blue eyes are sullen, and almost glass like. So this must be the insane girl from five. "Back off or- or I'll kill you!" So much for being threatening.
Jamee Holcombe, 17, D8F
A scream, the three of us heard the scream ring through the forest clear as day. And it's Scout's voice. Diamond and Cedric heard it as clear as I did and my hand instantly drifts to the handle of my mace and I shoot up. I notice Cedric and Diamond quite complacent, not even moving a muscle. "Get off your asses we have to help him!" I tell them but Diamond only seems to chuckle and Cedric's face remains neutral. They can't possibly mean to leave him and to let him die, can they? "You don't get it Jamee do you?" Diamond asks, still chuckling as if she and Cedric share some sort of inside jokes I wasn't aware of, I only raise and eyebrow. "He got himself in that situation, he gets himself out, these are the Hunger Games and he's a tribute not your friend, why should you risk your life for someone who's probably going to stab you in the back later?" She explains, still fiddling with her halberd, all the while staring at me. Cedric only seems to nod in agreement.
I honestly can't believe these two, these two ass holes. He's your ally. "So by that logic we should have left you to bleed out Cedric when you lost your hand?" I sneer at Cedric, my eyes drifting off to his stump. Cedric only shrugs his shoulders. I don't understand, I don't understand their mindset. Their strong career mind set. I'd hate to have a mindset like that, take what you want when you can no matter the cost, no friends, only yourself. The life of a careers seems so- so- I don't know how to explain it. "Fine then, you two can sit around and do nothing but I'm going after him!" I spit and then begin jogging towards the sound of Scout's scream. I hear a second scream followed by the screeching of a foreign voice and the repeated use of the word 'die'. He's fighting another tribute.
I sprint for a few minute before I find the scene playing out in front of me, Scout's wielding a bloodied knife while the blonde wildly swings her cleaver and Scout dodges. He's so quick and light on his feet. I have to help him, she can't see me and I think Scout can. He shoots me a pleading look with his eyes and I charge through the waist deep water and take an almighty swing with my mace. It smashes into her back, not breaking a bone but it definitely hurt, it drew blood, I can already see the crimson attached to me mace and the spot where I hit her is probably quite wet with it. She falls on her knee with a horrible scream and instinctively swings her cleaves and it bites into my thigh and tears through it, sending jolts of hot, white pain soaring through my thigh and a sea of red swimming through my vision.
I cry out and stumble back, trying to keep my balance and not fall into the water. Scout lunges forwards the tip of his knife sinks into her back and she falls onto the floor, dropping her meat cleaver but not dead. She attempts to get up but Scout, being the quick thinking career he is, throws himself onto of her, pinning her to the ground effectively. I know what I must do. It's almost instinct, an instinct fighting for the last few days has taught me. Attack, attack, attack! So with a yell I lift my mace up and bring it down onto her dirty, pain-filled face.
The result is definitely surprising and instantaneous. The spiked mace collides with her face and a sickening and very disturbing crunch! There's an explosion of red around her face area, quick, quicker than blowing a whistle and then it was clear but I wish I didn't see the end result. Ruined meat would be the best way to describe the aftermath of her face. I only remember that she was insane, not her name, district, training score, only that she was insane and paranoid. Shattered skull fragments litter the area around where I struck, a smashed brain spreads around the water and floats. I audibly retch at the sight of the remains of her face.
BOOM!
The blood spattered on Scout's clothes and face and he looks at me and my shaking hands. I take a look at him and realize he looks like he's about to sob. "S-scout are you-" however, my question is cut off by the sound of rapid splashing and grunting. "Holy shit!" Cedric exclaims in surprise when he seems me and Scout kneeling over the crazy girl's corpse. Diamond's jaw drops but then regains her composer. "Didn't know you had it in you Jamee!" Diamond says, shaking her head. "Shit, that is a really beautiful peace of work you did there Jamee." Diamond says, walking towards us and staring at the corpse, still twirling her halberd in her hand.
My hands shake so much I think I'm going to drop my mace. "Sh-shut up Diamond." I stutter but Diamond only laughs at me. I-I did this. This is much worse than breaking that boy's knees in the bloodbath, I killed her so messily, mercilessly. But she was going for Scout...
"You can take her stuff, you earned them," Diamond begins, still chuckling, "I always knew you were at least a bit of a killer... a monster like me." She says, grinning like some sort of idiot. And her words hurt, they hit me harder than that girl's meat cleaver. "N-no." I begin to stutter, my hands shaking even more and my lip quivering. "Hah, no use crying about it, be happy, you killed someone and you get her stuff." Diamond says, not taunting me, she's congratulating me. It's unsettling, eerie and so scary, so infuriating. Am I just as bad as her? My body is numb, I can't even feel the burning in my thigh any more, I'm a monster. I hang my head, my chin pressed against my chest and looking at the mess I made of her face. I-I.
"Leave her alone, Diamond!" Scout sneers, his fists clenched and the knife still held tightly in his hand. I look up and see that he's not crying like I thought he would, he's angry, he has some sort of scowl plastered onto his face, engraved onto his face like stone. He looks ready to fight, combined with the bits of crimson stained on his face he actually looks quite intimidating, but I don't want to watch, my head drops back down to the mess below me. "Chill out kid, I'm just playing," Diamond sighs and turns around, "we should get back to camp, Mason and Ziana will wonder where we've gone, also the hovercraft needs to take that body away." She says as she begins slowly walking back the way she came, Cedric following her like some sort of pup attached to it's owner. "Congratulation again, Jamee." She says, a hint of glee in her voice. She's mocking me. I can't say I'm any better than her, I'm a killer now, I've probably committed one of the most graphic murders these games, caving her face in with my spiked mace. Diamond knows it, I'm a killer now and she's a killer, I used to think I was better than her, I used to think that she was horrible, but I am to, I'm no different to her.
Scout turns the corpse over and slides her backpack off her back and hands it to me gently. I don't even want it but I'll take it, I might need it later after all and she might have useful things in there. "Don't be too hard on yourself." Scout croaked and begins walking back towards the camp and I follow him, my weapon of destruction stilled clenched tightly in my shaking hands and denial riddling my thoughts. I'm not a monster, I'm not a monster, I'm not a monster.
Gemma Lint - Wow, you were such a fun character to play with your immense and exaggerated paranoia and your craziness. Sure I made you do some crazy things but it all turned out for the best. I had to kill you eventually because even if I didn't kill you in this fight the Capitol would never allow a crazy victor. You attacked a career, even if Jamee hadn't shown up Scout would probably have killed you in the end anyway (he's a much better fighter), it was mostly just a case of attacking the wrong person. You were really brave and wouldn't back down from any fight because you thought you'd die if you didn't kill them first, your paranoia and braveness was eventually your downfall. I will miss writing you loads! R.I.P.
Death list so far
24th - Kris Cecil: Jaw broken by Dominic Roscow. Axed in chest by Mason Hammerfell. (Killer is Mason Hammerfell)
23rd - Johan Stattic: Slashed in chest and then stabbed in back by Cedric Avery. (Killer is Cedric Avery)
22nd - Victor Fagin: Knees broken my Jamee Holcombe. Stabbed in neck by Diamond Illuminare. (Killer is Diamond Illuminare)
21st - Joshua Breckan: Skull split by Jay Stark. (Killer is Jay Stark)
20th - Michelle Nami: Stabbed in neck by Ziana Cubic. (Killer is Ziana Cubic)
19th - Lori Ariza: Speared in lung then speared in neck by Dominic Roscow. (Killer is Dominic Roscow)
18th - Olive Birk: Shot in the throat with an arrow by Scout Palmer. (Killer is Scout Palmer)
17th - Amabel Greyson: Throwing knife in stomach, stabbed in chest twice and then chopped up into pieces by Gemma Lint. (Killer is Gemma Lint)
16th - Borris Tango: Slashed through neck by Raidan Bisalt. Severed Jugular vein. (Killer is Raidan Bisalt)
15th - Dominic Roscow: Shot in shoulder and stomach by Scout's arrows. Decapitated by Diamond Illuminare. (Killer is Diamond Illuminare)
14th - Sparrow Link: Stabbed through throat by Cedric Avery. (Killer is Cedric Avery)
13th - Marree Verana: Axed in neck by Mason Hammerfell. (Killer is Mason Hammerfell)
12th - Gemma Lint: Face crushed by Jamee Holcombe. (Killer is Jamee Holcombe)
Sorry for these delayed chapters, I will try and get them up at least once a week from now on!