What's this?! A third update within one month?! Quick! Someone alert the press!
It is a miracle! How is this possible?
I don't know! But our levels of procrastination leading up to the exams have never been higher! Two months people, then all the Forbidden Year we can write!
It will be fun! We are both looking forward to it!
We just have this awkward, stressful bit in the middle. But reviews make our hearts glow, so as always, let's take a moment to thank our reviewers, who apparently don't hate us!
Dauntless Duck: Hello little duck, we're really glad you enjoy it so much and we love hearing how positive you are about it every time! We're so glad you hold our story in such high esteem, and can't wait to see what you think of this next twist!
Green Poke Guy: Glad to hear from you again my friend! Quite a few people are celebrating the demise of Greg. Remember, watch out for the sweet ones! Perhaps the three will be reunited soon; we shall see soon I'm sure! Wonderful to hear from you again, hopefully you enjoy this chapter just as much.
LyzeeAnne: Oh Astra's certainly picking up the pace now, she's in full on action mode. And it unfortunately does seem to be heading that way with Orion. That is one hell of a theory, a very interesting one indeed! Glad you're sticking with us, stay tuned for all the answers are soon to come.
Orion Ehra: Technicalities, technicalities, who needs them. Well, everyone I suppose, but eh. Where did Astra get the sword? I believe we mentioned many chapters ago that she retrieved it from one of the dead tributes, I'm not sure if you remember Ike from District 7? But if she'd impaled him to start with then we couldn't have her embracing her inner psychopath and crushing Greg's skull, which was far more exciting! The games do strange things to people heads. We too join you in your eulogy for Greg. He shall be missed dearly by us as well. Farewell my friend, I'm sure we shall meet again soon.
kat-rue: Hold onto that pride honey, because Astra's determined to make it through! We take that comment about Greg as a very serious compliment! You never know what we'll do, you never know what twists may occur, so stay tuned in and let us know what you think of the newest chapter of Forbidden Year
Once again, thank you to everyone who reviewed!
Your support is 100% amazing, and we hope we can hear from all of you and some more of you readers once you discover the twists and turns of this newest chapter.
And of course a friendly reminder that if you wanted to go back to the early chapters of the story, we are in the process of doing a quality update. Recently we posted the improved chapter 3.
So if you want to see a higher quality version of Forbidden Year, why don't you return to those chapters and let us know what you think it's the difference between HD and 240 pixels people!
Shall we proceed onto our latest chapter Selina? I'm dying to know what they think! ;)
I am slipping into the River Styx as we speak Ally, see you all next time!
~Selina
:) Ally
Chapter Thirty Eight: Desperate Tenacity
In the centre of the Capitol, the head of the Gamemakers was staring in shock as his subordinates extracted the corpse of Greg Bierman from the arena. They'd had to wait some time as the girl from District Ten dragged the Ehra boy away. He had never expected that the girl would so quickly turn to murder. She had always been the innocent type in his eyes, but then again he had seen more delicate people turn under the pressure of the games. That's what he'd always enjoyed about the Hunger Games, it made it very clear who people were under their facades.
Shortly behind the beheadings and torture, he accepted that this latest kill was among the most violent this year. It had never been intended to be an outright murder though. In truth he had rather hoped that Greg and Astra would kill each other and the Ehra boy would just end up bleeding out. That way they would be down to a pool of five tributes, and he draw out tributes and force matches between them at a whim.
But no, it hadn't gone to plan but in a very interesting way. He'd seen the look on the girl's face as she stared at the stone in her hand, the one that had become her murder weapon. She was no longer the weakest link in the games, though who it was now he wasn't too sure. Underestimating her audacity would not do him well in the future, and he would ensure he remembered that.
...
Sliding down the sloping tunnel into her burrow was a great relief for Astra as she pulled Orion after her. He had lost consciousness a while back, leaving Astra to drag him over the last two kilometers, which had taken over an hour in the icy rain.
Resting him gently down on a pile of blankets, she wrapped him tightly to try to warm him up. His skin was freezing under her fingertips, and she had no doubt if he'd had the strength, he'd be shivering. Dragging him for so long through the rain had washed him clean of most of the blood and muck. It did nothing to relieve her worry now that she could see the full extent of his injuries.
Carefully she pulled away the edge of his ragged shirt to see the deep slices across his skin, some were still leaking blood, others had scabbed over and some had no doubt been cauterized. Her throat tightened, tears threatened to spill onto her cheeks as she studied his battered body. Wrenching her eyes away from the cuts she looked at his face, brushing his saturated hair off his brow. Her fingers floated over the raw, red cuts in his cheek, her nose wrinkling in disgust as she recognised the District One symbol carved into his skin.
She wrapped him in a few more blankets before dragging over one of the packs she had scavenged from the cornucopia and the other tributes which rested in a pile close to the wall of her burrow. Despite the numbness of fingers, she rummaged through the pack, pulling out the various articles inside it. She desperately hoped that at least one of them would have a medical kit.
There wasn't one in the first, nor in the second or in the third. Desperately she opened the final pack in her cave, her heart thudding loudly in her chest as she hoped in vain that she would find what she needed. Her stomach knotted upon the dark realisation, and in pure frustration she kicked the pack roughly away into the wall with a loud thud. She buried her head in her hands, gripping her wet hair tightly.
She looked up as Orion mumbled something incoherent, moaning softly. Sliding back to his side she took his bloody, shaking hand in hers and rubbed his cold fingers. Under her fingertips she felt his fluttering, weak pulse. Her eyes closed, feeling the prick of tears behind her lids.
Still clutching his hand in both of hers she sucked in a shuddering breath. He wouldn't last much longer if she couldn't find a medical kit but she hadn't dragged him all the way back from that monsters lair just to let him die now. Leaning against the wall beside him, her brow furrowed in thought.
Perhaps Joel could send her one, or maybe one of Orion's mentors. However funding such a thing took time. And given Orion's current state, it was time he didn't have. She had to move quickly, if she wanted to save Orion, she had to find another tribute.
She ruled out Kali and Seir at once. Even if they had a medical kit, there was no way she could go up against the pair of them, no matter how injured Seir was. There would be one on watch at all times, she couldn't get in there without being noticed, and there was no way she could help Orion if she was dead.
Lyra was a possible option, if she could find her. Astra already knew that she didn't possess the ability to convince Lyra to help her. No doubt Lyra would sooner kill Orion than give Astra the equipment she needed to save him. Throw in her uncertainty that Lyra even had a kit… it wasn't exactly ideal.
Pursing her lips, Astra thought about the others who were left. The only other person who sprang to mind was Lilith.
Sitting up a little straighter Astra began to weigh up the possibilities and probabilities of success. The career tributes almost always had a set of medical supplies. If Lilith had a medical kit and if she was nearby then she was a decent option. True she was lethal with a spear and was a far more experienced fighter than Astra was, but she was alone. That meant that there was no one watching her back, especially when she slept. If Astra played it right, then Lilith would never know she was there.
Looking down at Orion, she lightly brushed her fingers across his cheek, nodding to herself as she made up her mind. Moving quickly she made sure that he was comfortable and warm, before she picked up her short sword from where it lay near the entrance to the cave and sheathed it. Carefully she kissed him on the brow.
'Just hang tight Orion,' she whispered, 'I'll be back soon.'
She emerged from the cave into the lightly drizzling rain, her nerves dulled by a sense of determination. One hand resting on the handle of her sword she took a deep breath, glancing around her before setting off at a jog into the snowy forest.
…
Astra couldn't believe how easy it had been to find Lilith once she started looking. She must have been nearby for days and they'd never come across her. Probably sheer dumb luck or maybe Lilith had been tracking them. Then again, the girl from District Four had always seemed too lazy to put a huge effort into hunting anyone. It was possible that now she was by herself she was putting a bit more effort into tracking. She might also have been trying to put more distance between herself and Kali and Seir. Either way Lilith was not conscious enough to confirm any of Astra's drifting thoughts.
From where she was crouched several feet away, Astra could just see Lilith curled tightly into the base of hollow tree, apparently taking shelter from the constant rain. Edging closer, she could see that Lilith's hand was resting just next to her spear and her pack was tucked tightly in behind her. She gulped knowing how dangerous this was, but the chance to save Orion was something she was unwilling to give up.
She inched forward and stealthily pulled Lilith's sleeve until she touched the wet grass. She didn't wake, but she made a disgusted sound and rolled over, releasing the pack as she turned. Unable to believe that it had actually worked, Astra slowly shimmied into the hollow so she could reach the pack. Glancing up at Lilith every two seconds she unclasped the pack, hardly daring to breathe as she began to gingerly look through the contents. There wasn't much, a water bottle, some packets of dried food which rustled horribly as she moved them, a spare blanket and a small cooking pot. Not willing to give up her search so easily, she shifted the pack so she could check in the side compartments, only to find a flashlight and a flint.
Her disappointment swelled in her chest and she sighed deeply, hanging her head. A sudden thwack against her legs knocked her over, the handle of Lilith's spear had suddenly slammed itself into her legs sending Astra scrambling backwards into the rain. Lilith stood in one fluid movement, almost too awake as she paced her way out of the hollow and into the clearing. Her eyes bored into Astra's skull as she simply said:
'What do you think you're doing?'
'Leaving,' Astra squeaked, before scrambling to her feet and attempting to sprint into the woods.
Lilith just cleared her throat, 'How far do you think you can run before this hits you?' she mused.
Astra slowly turned back, barely ten paces away, she knew Lilith was right. A superior smile had come across Lilith's face as her saturated brunette locks clung to her face. Lightning ripped through the sky, causing her to look up, the sinister light reflecting in her eyes.
'I could just throw it, but how boring would that be?' she told Astra, laughing softly, 'They do love the lightning filled battle to the death now don't they? It must have pulled it at least a dozen times in the last couple of years.'
'...If you aren't going to throw your spear can I just go?' Astra asked hopefully.
Lilith just smirked, flicking a wet strand of hair out of her eyes, 'I said I wasn't going to throw it, not that I wasn't going to kill you,' and with that said Lilith was on her.
Acting on instinct Astra threw herself out of the way, stumbling back and managing to draw her short sword. The rain was falling heavier now and the lightning strikes more often and brighter. Still smiling softly Lilith turned to face her and lunged forward again, using the end of her spear to knock Astra's sword to the side. The spear rotated rapidly, cracking Astra in the side of the head, blurring her vision in an instant. Stumbling Astra tried to tackle her, to do something at the very least. Lilith just danced out of her way and brought her spear down on the back of Astra's shins and knocked her to the ground.
Astra was still in shock when Lilith paused long enough to let her get up, but a sick feeling pounded through her system as she realised something. Lilith was just playing with her; she was giving the Capitol their show. Panting and blinking water from her eyes, Astra watched as Lilith circled her laboriously, her spear held lazily at her side. In a quick succession Lilith struck her in the ribs, her head and her arms when she raised them to defend herself. She then roughly kicked her in the stomach sending her sprawling back to the ground, splashing into a puddle.
Astra desperately tried to regain her breath, to get to her feet, but her brain was telling her it was hopeless. It was one thing to fight Greg; he was just as an inexperienced fighter as she was. It was another thing entirely to face someone trained in combat, and Lilith was an expert. This time Lilith didn't allow her to get up, kicking her down before forcing her spear through Astra's shoulder blade. Very deliberately she had missed her heart, still playing this sick little game of hers, wrenching it clear as Astra screamed in agony.
Curled on the ground, sobbing, and clutching her shoulder, Astra watched Lilith's boots circle her a few times before she was kicked roughly in the stomach. She could hear Lilith laughing as the shaft of the spear smashed into her time and time again. The girl quickly grew bored of her taunting, and placed her foot directly into the gaping wound of the spear, causing Astra to scream in pain.
'Well it was fun while it lasted little butterfly, don't worry, it won't hurt for much longer,' Lilith sighed.
Astra stared upwards in horror as Lilith brought her spear up again, the point hovering dangerously above her head. Suddenly, in the blink of an eye she couldn't see Lilith anymore, all she could hear was screaming. Hazily, Astra looked in the direction of the screams, and through the rain and her slightly blurred vision she could just make out Lilith on the ground a few meters away being pinned by … Lyra.
Her fists flailing, Lyra was striking again and again, but Lilith was not staying down. She may have been disarmed from Lyra's sudden attack, but that didn't mean she couldn't fight. Both girls were engaged in a constant flurry of kicks and punches, doing anything humanly possible to keep the other down. Lilith managed to claw Lyra across the face at the same time that Lyra ripped out a handful of her hair. For a long moment it seemed that they were evenly matched, but after a minute or two, Lilith began to gain ground.
Astra's vision was still hazy as she crawled to her feet, trying to steady herself enough to do something. However the frenzied fight was out of her league, as Lyra kicked Lilith in the head and Lilith retaliated by elbowing her hard enough to crack ribs. Distracted for mere moments, Lyra was thrown to the ground, where she and Lilith wrestled, trying to gain control. Lilith pinned her down, hands wrapped around her throat as she spat out blood and began to apply pressure. Lyra managed to get her leg loose, kneeing her violently in the chest and flipped it around till she was on top of Lilith. There was little Lyra had the strength to do other than keep her there as Lilith struggled to get loose, eventually pulling her arm free.
Reaching into Lyra's belt, Lilith pulled out one of the knives before she could be stopped. Then, the split second before she could have ended the fight right there, a sickening squelching noise rang out, followed by a sinister crack. Lilith convulsed violently, her arm dropping, entire body growing limp. Cannon fire ricocheted through the arena, the rain evaporating from the air. Very slowly, Lyra looked around, not understanding quite what had happened. The realisation hit her as she saw Astra standing a foot or two behind her, Lilith's own spear clutched in her hand, dripping blood onto the ground.