The fifth day
-Ollie Kirk, 17, District 11-
"We're sinking." June's eyes held a pain in them Ollie hadn't seen before. She was hurting. All of them knew that there was no way she was going to be able to save either of them, not with that tiny little boat. All three of them knew that the boat was what Jasper had given to her before he died.
How could she have possibly known? As soon as Ollie thought the question he remembered Chervil mentioning that there was some kind of scandal among the mentors…
Before he could gather his thoughts, June tore past him, running out of the dining room as fast as her legs could take her as the ship rocked to the side. Ollie found himself almost losing his balance. Tables were starting to tip over, and glassware was shattering. Ollie knew that he had to do something quick. The announcements that were blaring in their ears said that lifeboats were on the top deck.
"Ollie!" Luckily, before he could start to panic too much, Kaelys snapped him out of his thoughts. "Let's go. We don't have much time." Ollie had a hard time computing her words. His heart was pounding and his mind was going a million miles a minute, knowing that all the tributes would certainly be in the same place…
Before he could move to follow his ally, the floor in front of his feet suddenly up, revealing inside it a silver container. Could this be?
As quickly as he could, he opened the container. When he saw the folded up orange object inside, his heart only beat faster. His hands were shaking, partly with fear and partly with adrenaline as he pocketed the note included on top and took the square out of the container. He knew he would have to read the note later. There was no time, there was no time there was no time.
While Ollie had received his gift, Kaelys had been carefully scaling the room, holding the wall for balance as the ship rocked back and forth, and when he looked up she was at the door to the stairs, ready to dash for the top floor. Kaelys turned back, and when she saw Ollie with the boat her eyes widened. Time seemed to slow as they made eye-contact, and Ollie's mind screamed at him to run. He couldn't make himself move, he was frozen.
He was about to apologize, or try to share it, when he saw Kaelys pull a knife out of her belt. When the boat rocked again, Kaelys lunged at him. Ollie's body took a second to move, but once he got it going he ran, ran as fast as he possibly could with an unstable ground beneath his feet. He couldn't help but wonder why the sponsors had chosen him to save, but he couldn't take too much time on that now.
With a yell, Kaelys threw a glass pitcher at Ollie's back, which shattered in a painful explosion. Both of them were thrown to the side when the boat rocked, but Ollie refused to let any of that stop him. He continued to run until he saw the door of one of the bedrooms already open, probably where June was. She had a plan, and Ollie was only hoping he could somehow benefit from it, because he had too many options to know what to do. He entered the room, Rapidly, he pulled the cord and held on tight as the little boat filled with air, showing the navy blue 11 proudly.
When Ollie entered the room, June was still there, a look of frustration appearing to be plastered on her face. She didn't even look before charging at the giant bedroom window. The window, which had been cracked already (possibly from previous attempts at getting out), burst open. Water started pouring into the room. June grabbed her lifeboat, took a deep breath, and jumped out of the hole in the window. In the blink of an eye, she was gone. Ollie couldn't help wondering if that was safe, but now, like June, he only had one choice.
Ollie could hear Kaelys's footsteps, and knew that to avoid a fight with her he was going to have to think fast. He didn't want to kill her, and using a weapon would risk putting a hole in his boat. He tried to get the courage to run at it, but before he could he heard her burst into the room. Ollie's body acted on its own from there.
The boy from District Eleven dropped the boat in a flash. Kaelys was charging at him fast, and before Ollie knew what he was doing, he picked up a lamp from the dresser and swung it as hard as he could at Kaelys's head. By some miracle, the lamp hit its target, and Kaelys immediately crumpled to the floor, out cold.
She wasn't dead. Ollie saw her chest rising and falling still. Her head was bleeding, but she would wake up. Ollie's hands shook as he picked up the boat, stepping carefully into the broken glass towards the water that was still pouring in through the window. By now, it was getting to the point where Kaelys's head would be covered.
She'll wake up, Ollie thought. I didn't kill her. He still felt like he had, though. His hands were still shaking, but as the room suddenly jolted and rocked again, he knew he couldn't put it off any longer.
He took one more shaking breath and picked up his boat, holding on as tightly as he possibly could. He took a deep breath and held it, running towards the window at full speed and jumping through, into the deep blue ocean.
Ollie continued to hold onto his boat as it slowly raised to the surface, him still inside it. He gasped for breath as his head broke the water's surface. He clutched the side of his boat for dear life, his entire body shaking and quivering.
He was alive. For now.
But he also knew that the worst was yet to come.
.
-Becquerel Pierre, 17, District 3-
As soon as the boat jolted, Bec knew this was his only chance. He wasn't exactly sure how he was going to get out of this alive, but he knew that he'd far rather be dead than be a slave to Ester and Attila any longer. He had gotten his revenge for Dyna's death, and after spending so long around these sick sadistic fucks, he was ready to start playing the game on his own.
The alarms started to blare, and that was when Bec ran.
He wasn't really sure why he ran. He honestly wondered if he was running towards his grave at the bottom of the ocean, but he knew this was his only chance to bullshit his way out of this. After all, he knew that Attila acted without thinking. Maybe Attila would self-destruct and kill him. Bec wouldn't be surprised if that was a risk he was willing to take. The nice thing was that neither of the murderous lovebirds had a distance weapon. If they wanted him dead, they'd have to come get him. Which was the entire basis of his plan.
Bec wasn't running towards the stairs. The calm woman's voice that was giving instructions said that the lifeboats were on the top floor, which was one flight up from where the three of them were. Bec wasn't running towards the staircase. He was running away from it.
He knew that Ester knew that pursuing him wouldn't be in their best interest. He knew that Ester and Attila were going to want to be the first to that island to get the string before anyone else. And Bec was sure the competition for it was hot, especially considering that Chance and Nerio were both still alive and kicking. If they wanted to avoid sinking and get that string while they could, they needed to get going. And if they did dare come for him, Bec was going to give them a chase. If he could just take long enough that they can't afford to be there any longer… They couldn't waste their time chasing a boy who was already as good as dead, right?
"Get back here!" Attila yelled, but he was cut off by Ester. Bec didn't stop to watch or listen for what was happening. He ran from the fitness center past the huge pool towards the spa. He had no idea where he was going or what he was doing, but they didn't pursue him. Bec took a minute to breathe as the room started to tilt, causing pool water to start pouring out on the ground.
He grinned when he saw that it was empty. Attila and Ester had other priorities than killing the boy they thought was just going to die anyways. They had to get that string. It was all strategy.
Honestly, Bec didn't care if they did or not. Either way both of them would have to die if he wanted to make it home. Although, if their fates were tied together, Ester was the obvious target. Taking her out meant taking out the strongest person in the Arena. Maybe it would be an advantage to everyone. Bec waited carefully, until he was sure the two of them were gone. Then, he carefully snuck back to the fitness room.
Bec hit the button on the lift, but as he expected, it didn't work. He slipped into the darkness of the staircase, right behind Chance and Nerio. Bec was careful to keep his footsteps as quiet as possible. There was no way he wanted anyone to know where he was, especially not either of the killer pairs. Although he was sure they probably had better priorities right now than killing Bec. He just couldn't be too careful.
Bec stayed behind in the staircase for a minute, waiting for the threats to clear. Surprisingly, the top floor was empty. As soon as Cherio got a boat for themselves, Bec could sneak in, get his own, and ride it out. Chance and Nerio immediately went for a boat, and Bec just watched them. Chance glanced behind him, but luckily for Bec, Nerio pointed out the first lifeboat on the water, and they quickly descended. Bec couldn't help how lucky he felt. He remained careful as he slipped out from the stairwell.
Before Bec could get a boat, though, he heard the voices of two very deadly and familiar tributes. He barely had time to think before they appeared. He hurriedly ran towards one of the large pink waterslides that was still hanging sturdily above the pool. He knew he could just wait until they were both away before he could get his.
"We got the last two," Wicke breathed, quickly getting into one of the final remaining single boats. Bec's heart pounded as he realized what this meant. If they both took the last ones, Bec would be trapped. He'd lose his shot. And he couldn't have that. Before he could think it through, he quickly took off, charging at the girl from District Two before she could get on her boat.
Wicke, by now, was already being lowered into the water by a mechanism on the side of the boat, and she had to choose whether or not she was going to risk her secure spot on a boat to help Dania. Unsurprisingly, and luckily for Bec, Wicke didn't intervene. This left Bec with an open window. It was his last chance for life, after all. His last chance for a boat. If he didn't get one, he had no idea what would happen. The boat shook again, pool water spilling out and causing both Dania and Bec to lose balance as water from the pool splashed on their feet.
Dania growled and charged at the boy from Three, who had nothing but two bags of food in his pockets. Direct fighting wasn't really his style, and he'd been hoping to keep a low profile through the Games as much as possible. That wasn't really working out right now. Bec dodged as best as he could, but Dania knew how to control her weapons. By the time Bec actually had a strategy, he was already bleeding from numerous places.
Dania's attacks were vicious, and as much as Bec tried to dodge them, he couldn't keep up with a trained Career. He just had to earn some time, some time to see how he could possibly outsmart her.
Luckily, the Arena did the work for him. The ship was sent to the side, and a flood of pool water sent the tributes toppling over. The boat rocked and tipped again, and Bec acted before thinking. While Dania was still recovering, Bec picked her up and, taking advantage of the angle given by the tipping boat, swiftly dropped her over the railing. Dania, screaming, flailed for just a minute before hitting the water.
Bec, heart pounding, ran over to the last boat and got in. He wasn't lowered too much before he could feel the lifeboat hit the water.
Bec's heart pounded when he saw the small tribute from Two swimming his direction, knife raised. There was no way he was going to be able to paddle this boat faster than she could swim. He grabbed a paddle that was provided and braced himself to use it. Before he had to, though, she screamed at the top of her lungs. With wide eyes, Bec saw three shark-looking creatures. The only thing that set them apart from sharks was their fins, which looked razor sharp. Dania yelled and flailed her arms, stabbing into the water with all her might. The sharks were too much for her, and one of them gripped her arm with its teeth.
Dania screamed some more and tried to fight them, but the water around her was turning an ugly crimson. Bec couldn't stand to watch, and quickly pedaled away from there as fast as humanly possible, trying to ignore the sounds of her screams in the distance.
He didn't know for sure where he was going, but that didn't matter now.
All that mattered was getting away, far far away from the haunting screams, far away from the people that were out for his blood, and far, far away from the pool of blood left in the wake of the dead.
.
-Syca Gallen, 15, District 7-
Syca felt absolutely lost. He had no idea what to do now. He had to get up to the top floor, first off. He supposed that should be his first priority. He was still aching and could barely find the energy to move, but now he knew that he had no choice.
Syca collected what little he had, including his hatchet, and silently prayed that he didn't have to use it within the next moments.
Just before he was going to start out of the room, the floor in front of him started to open up. Whimpering, Syca backed away. Was the boat already faltering? Was this going to be how he died?! Surely it couldn't… He couldn't lose his chance like that…
Just then, he realized what it was. Inside the floor was a small silver container. How… Had Ani and Kendal actually done it!? Syca threw the lid off and staring back at him was even more valuable than gold. This was it. This was his chance.
Syca gave a small, happy laugh and looked around the room, towards where he thought a camera might be. "Anakyn, you are truly magic." He couldn't help but glance at the note.
To Syca and Riggs
Use it wisely. Help each other out, dudes. You're not out of this yet. Still believing in you.
Syca couldn't help but notice the trademark smiley face that always went along with the autograph of his idol. Hands shaking, he pocketed the note. He wanted to hold onto it for the rest of time.
Alarms blared and eerie red and blue lights flashed all around Syca as he took the boat and his things and started to move. He had been through so much here, he wasn't going to give up now. That was the last thing he wanted.
Keep breathing, Syca reminded himself, as he walked. He knew that if he didn't, he would probably black out, which was the last thing he needed. He knew he was moving slowly, but he had to ration out his energy and keep from blowing himself out before he made it to freedom. Not to mention he had absolutely no idea where Riggs was. Would he know to meet Syca up on the top floor? Had he gotten a note with instructions?
Syca just kept going, even if just thinking about climbing those stairs made his body ache. He had a boat, after all. He had security of survival. He had to move. He couldn't stop moving, he couldn't stop going. To stop moving would be to put Daria's memory to shame. Persei's. Ashlyn's, now, too. Syca wanted to win for them. He wanted to win for his family, too. His sister, waiting at home, and his parents. He wanted to win for Ani, and Kendal, and Wolf, too, all of whom were waiting for him back home. And his Capitolite secret admirer, of course. Her too. He had wanted to win for all of them since the very beginning. For the ones whose lives were lost, and for the ones who he loved.
But now Syca wanted to win for himself, too. And knowing that was empowering. Sure, Syca knew that he couldn't let down the other people he loved, the people who had lost their lives… But he also knew that he couldn't let himself down. He didn't want to let himself down. That was important to him now. It hadn't been before, but now it was. It wasn't fair to Syca for to give up. And Syca was determined to stop being unfair to himself. Would it be easy? Hell no. But would it be worth it? Well, it already was.
No matter what, Syca wasn't going to give up. He was determined. So what if he was the youngest tribute in the Arena? It had been done before. So what if he was injured? He wasn't going to let it stop him. He had to be realistic about his weakness, but he also had to keep fighting through it.
As hard as it was to keep going with each step, Syca did it. He knew that he had to.
The boat tipped and rocked. Syca was thrown to the side on a particularly severe jolt. It took every ounce of determination in his body to get back up on his feet. A few steps later, the boat rocked the other way, almost sending Syca into the pool. His body shook as he used the wall for support, but he knew he had to keep moving. He had to get up there and hope that Riggs would follow.
Slowly but surely, Syca made it to the staircase. The room rocked and shook, and suddenly Syca felt the bottom of his shoes becoming wet. The boat was sinking, with him in it. The first two floors were already under water. He knew that a lifeboat wouldn't save him if he was trapped in the boat with no way out. Syca took a second to breathe, still shaking, before he started up the stairs, as fast as he could. Each second that went by, the boat sunk faster, but he couldn't let it stop him. Syca fought through the pain on his way up the stairs.
He reached the top floor just in time. When he got up there, he saw the District Six boy grabbing a railing. Syca's heart flew, filled with relief and joy that he was here.
"Riggs!" he called. The boy's eyes drilled into him. His face was wet, and Syca couldn't tell if it was pool water or tears.
"It's TOO LATE!" he yelled. "They're GONE! We're just going to DIE HERE!"
"No! We're not!" Syca yelled back, hurrying over as fast as he could possibly go, feet wet from the floor being under water and pulling the cord that inflated the boat. Riggs jolted for a second, but drew back.
"You're lucky," he muttered. Syca's heart melted. He knew that Riggs wasn't a bad guy. He was going to let Syca go with what he had. Luckily, he didn't have to.
"Look!" Syca said, showing him the two blue numbers on the bottom. Riggs's eyes widened and his laugh boomed so loud Syca could hear it clearly over the wind.
"For us?!"
"For us!" Syca said. "Unless you'd rather sink!"
"Oh, hell no! Let's get the hell out of here!"
Before Syca's shins hit the water, he quickly climbed in the boat with Riggs, paddling away as quickly as they could as the S.S. Quinn was devoured by the darkness of the sea.
~.~.
A/N: Hey guys! Glad to be back and updating!
So yeah, this chapter was a lot shorter than the previous ones, but I wanted to split up the action over the course of a few chapters so I hope you all don't mind the shorter POVs. I wanted to have four in this chapter but thought that three was the most logical way to go.
I'm going to hold off on eulogies for now because we're not done with them yet. There's still plenty more action to be had.
Hope this was a good enough chapter that was intense and worth the wait! As always, reviews are appreciated!
Chapter Question: Who do you think will reach the island first? Are you surprised at the turnout of the chapter? Who do you hope takes the string?
Scores:
66samvr: 84
aceswims: 30
AKLNxStories: 160
Alecxias: 2
AllHailTheNerdiness: 215
AmericanPi: 25
Apollo's Slytherpuff Daughter: 113
Astralium (Guest): 10
Becksheart: 4
bLizzieard: 100
bobothebear: 14
calebbeers21: 6
Cass: 154
Cloe: 220
Coolgal02: 61
CrissKenobie-the-Numenorean: 110
Darkflame324: 10
DaughterOfTigris: 265
david12341: 275
deathless. smile: 15
District7axemurder: 15
Dreamer: 95
dreams and desperation: 120
Emrys Holmes: 98
TheEngineeringGames: 86
epictomguy: 248
XxXFangirlonlineXxX: 32
Feniks16: 10
Fire's Catching: 20
GalacticCoach: 68
Golden Moon Huntress: 169
goldie031: 279
hopefuldreamer1991: 364
Jeptwin: 2
judmud: 4
jul312: 25
Kate: 0
Lady Lysa Arryn: 127
: 220
Legend: 654
Littlefoot876: 10
Little Knight Mik: 99
Master Maedhros: 10
Mockingjay (Guest): 10
Mystical Pine Forest: 50
Nrrrd-Grrrl-Meg: 4
OfficialBengy: 200
OncerTillTheEnd: 4
paperairline: 34
xxPeppermintxx109: 159
Platrium: 299
Programming: 7
TheReaper94: 2
rosecatforever: 370
Rosemarie Benson: 12
ShunKazamis-Girl: 26
Silverdust64: 10
Singlewave: 15
stop-pulling-on-mariazell: 30
SparkALeah: 15
Sparky She-Demon: 44
tracelyn: 95
TyeTheLurker (Guest): 65
XxVallirenxX: 49
VeneratedArt: 130
the victor of panem: 71
watercolorgalaxies: 4
We're All Okay: 71
W. R. Winters: 316
Xechaste: 4
youngpatriot: 44
See you all (hopefully) soon for the next update!