Wiress and Beetee relaxed in their compartment while they waited for the soldiers and remaining victors to return to District Thirteen. "Beetee, I hacked into –" Wiress began as she scrolled through files stored on her tablet.
"Hon, why would we need the records from the jail?" Beetee asked confused.
"So we know what they did –" Wiress explained sadly. "So we know how to help –" They were startled by a frantic knock on the door. "Oh –" A pale faced Boggs stood at the doorway of the Teslas' compartment.
"Come quickly. We need to figure out what happened to Peeta. He nearly strangled Katniss –" Wiress' eyes widened. "Yes, and we think the Capital did something to him in prison to trigger this behavior."
"Yes, we will get ready –" She smiled at Beetee, thankful she didn't need to remind him to get in his chair. The three made their way to the hospital where Prim greeted them with a stern expression on her small face.
"You have to help Katniss. Now." Prim demanded. She directed them into the hospital conference room. "I'll be waiting with my sister." Wiress pulled Prim into a hug before she and Beetee went to the conference room to join the other rebel leaders.
"Hm. Interesting." Beetee said as he scrolled through the documents from the Capitol prison. "Hold on – use of tracker-jacker venom – oh no –" He paused. "They altered the chemistry of his brain." Gasps from Haymitch, Boggs, Plutarch, Cressida, and other rebel leaders filled the room.
"Do the documents say why?" Coin asked, her face still stoic as she took in the information.
"They knew we would come eventually. Their computer systems weren't as aggressive with keeping out the propos and they did not deploy all the security features of the jail infrastructure –" Wiress began. "They wanted Peeta to come back to –" She paused as her eyes filled with tears and hatred for the Capitol. "They wanted him to come back and kill Katniss with his own hands."
"I see." Coin said quietly. "Meeting adjourned. You may tell the Mockingjay that her fiancé is a danger to her. We will see how she decides to proceed."
"District Two." Beetee said in a hovercraft two weeks later. "We're joining The Mockingjay and the forces there. Coin allowed her to go to help take down the last district still loyal to the Capitol." Wiress nodded and grasped his hand as they watched the landscape change out the window from plains to mountains.
"Yes, that's the official word. And so she can also plan –" She paused thinking about Coin's reaction to Peeta's predicament. She sensed the president was scheming and Katniss wouldn't like the outcome.
"Yes?" Gale asked quietly noticing Beetee didn't finish Wiress' sentence.
"Plan – how – how to use Peeta's predicament." Wiress whispered, her face going white. "She will fix him – enough to use him. Against her." Beetee put a hand on Gale's as his jaw clenched.
"We will help you protect her, son." He said quietly. "Any way we can." Humming happily, Wiress reached into her pocket and fumbled with a small device that looked like a USB flash drive.
"Oh – mountains!" Wiress gasped looking out the window. "Beautiful." Beetee and Gale knew she had turned the audio scrambler off so they chatted about the landscape and scenery from the rest of the flight.
"Oh good, two engineers!" Lyme said gratefully as Wiress and Beetee joined the other rebels in a conference room. A former military building overlooked a large mountain labeled "The Nut" on a diagram drawn on a whiteboard. "Perhaps you can help us. That," She pointed at the large mountain. "Is a military fortress where all the Capitol loyalists have holed up. Once we get that, they can stop sending their troops out to take down the rebels, and District Two will be ours."
"Hm, have you intercepted –" Wiress began.
"Any computer files or communications?" Beetee finished as Wiress opened a laptop and began typing.
"Well, we've intercepted some cell phone calls and radio signals out." Lyme replied. "What are you doing?"
"Oh, just breaking into their servers." Beetee said casually smiling as he watched his wife work. They took turns and retrieved blueprints of the building and some records within two hours. "Now we have everything downloaded to our hard drives: Blueprints, military records including supply lists, tactical maneuvers, and all their classified documents. I also sent these to District Thirteen." He said happily as Wiress planted a wet kiss on his cheek. "Dear –"
"I'm so proud of you, Beetee – sorry – I had to – he's worked so hard –" Wiress beamed at the rebels who chuckled. "We are excited to help you with this mission."
"And we are excited to have you here as well." Lyme said smiling. "So our children – and cousins won't be brainwashed to kill." Wiress gasped realizing Lyme was the cousin of Athena – the Career who made it to the end of Wiress' games. She and Athena had teamed up to kill the mutts that attacked them both at the end.
"So they won't have to kill to come back home." Wiress whispered understandingly. Lyme nodded before turning the discussion back to The Nut.
"unfortunately, we can't storm the Nut." Lyme sighed looking out the window again. "We've been talking about that for weeks."
"It's well fortified though I can potentially hack into the computer system and disable their security systems and surveillance."
"Then we can storm the entrances?" Someone else asked before Lyme sighed heavily.
"The next person who suggests we take the entrances better have a brilliant way to to it because you will be the one leading that mission." Lyme nearly snapped. The Teslas looked at each other before looking at Gale who looked at The Nut while deep in concentration.
"Think about it as a den for wild dogs." Gale began. The room was silent as he laid out his plan. Wiress and Beetee exchanged glances as Gale outlined his plan to trigger avalanches that would trap the workers in The Nut indefinitely.
"Gale, this plan will kill everyone inside." Beetee said quietly.
"So? When did they ever give us a chance to surrender when they firebombed Twelve?" Beetee stared sadly at the young man planning the demise of over a hundred District Two citizens." Predictably, Katniss protested Gale's plan. The Teslas silently agreed with her as they cringed at the thought of Gale living with blood on his hands.
In the end, Katnisss' plan to leave an entrance for evacuees won. The Teslas busied themselves with blocking The Nut's radar and security systems. As Wiress navigated the blueprints downloaded to her computer and took notes with snippets of code to email to Beetee, she sensed someone looking over her shoulder. "Yes, dear?" She asked Katniss quietly.
"So you're going along with Gale's plan?" Katniss asked not bothering to keep the bitterness out of her voice.
"I'm leaving some safeguards to get people to the evacuation point –" Wiress began as she gestured to the blueprint.
"You want me to leave the emergency lighting along the floor and the emergency oxygen reserve on?" Beetee asked interpreting Wiress' email in Katniss' earshot.
"Yes. Because you wanted to give them a chance, right, sweetie?" Wiress asked as Katniss nodded. She bit back a comment as Katnis glared at Gale who was huddled was a group of soldiers. The two victors overheard Gale say something about gunning down every last person who comes through the tunnel.
"Let's bring Thirteen into the loop." Beetee announced as he turned on another computer monitor which allowed the rebel team in Two to communicate with President Coin and her staff. "Gale, Katniss, thank you for your help. We will let you know what President Coin thinks. Get some fresh air, you two."
"Oh, and the mess hall around here could go for some venison and fresh game!" Lyme called as Gale and Katniss retrieved their bows and arrows from the guards outside the door. "I'm so glad both of them can hunt. Katniss is a good shot, so she's been bringing in fresh game. Now we can stock up." They were quiet as the video conference started. Lyme explained Gale's plan while Beetee added the technical details.
"The boy's plan seems flawless. We shall carry it out." Coin said nodding her approval.
"Madame Preaident, the Mockingjay wants to provide the forces within The Nut with an evacuation option. We will take the train station leading out of the Nut to handle anyone who comes out." Beetee explained.
"Very well. We shall take the useful ones that will provide us information to go forward and eliminate those that will not serve our purposes." Coin responded. "How long until the operation can go forward?"
"We just need to get the aircraft in place and send in the troops to begin securing the area around The Nut. Gale has come up with the troop movements and he will lead out." Lym explained.
"Very good. We will await your results. Begin preparation immediately."
"Yes, ma'am." Lyme replied before the video conference monitor went blank. Lyme worked with the military commanders on the aircraft positions while the Teslas worked on the computer systems within The Nut. They brought Gale back in to finalize plans for the operation. Katniss said nothing and sat silently by the Teslas while they worked.
"Alright." Beetee said after a few more hours of working. "All systems are ready to be disabled except the emergency floor lighting and oxygen supply which lasts an hour in normal conditions."
"And will be useless in ours." Gale added smugly.
"We're sending in aircraft to bomb the mountain as you have suggested, Mr. Hawthorne." Lyme announced. "The operation will commence immediately."
"All we can do is wait." Wiress whispered to Katniss.
"My father – Gale's father –" Katniss whispered sadly.
"Mining accident?" Wiress asked softly knowing Katniss was from the coal mining district.
"In our district, factory accidents were common –" Wiress began before the phone rang.
"Commander Lyme speaking." Lyme answered before her brow furrowed as she nodded. "Yes, Madame President. We will right away. Yes, Boggs and I will accompany her. I believe the Teslas will stay inside to use the computers." Wiress and Beetee nodded at that statement. "Yes, Madame President. Thank you." Lyme hung up the phone and signed. "President Coin requests The Mockingjay be suited up and on standby to do a propo. Boggs and I will go with you to the roof of the Justice Building."
"Come, sweetie." Wiress said taking Katniss' hand. Katniss said nothing as she dressed in her Mockingjay outfit in the women's restroom. Wiress hummed as she did Katniss' hair at the sink. "There." Her large eyes scanned Katniss' face. "I know you don't like it –" She began taking Katniss' hands. She sighed not knowing what else to say to the young woman in front of her. Wrapping Katniss in a hug, Wiress held her to convey comfort her words could not. "See you soon."
The Teslas were silent as they watched the triggered avalanches bury The Nut. They scrambled the Capitol soldiers' radios so they couldn't communicate. This helped the rebel forces, including Gale, push them a few blocks away from The Nut. "There's the screens at the square –" Wiress began.
"I'm getting Katniss' audio." Beetee began as they watched Katniss enter the square to begin the speech Coin had written. Wiress checked the email with the text of the speech again. They gasped as an injured man staggered out of the mine.
"What is she doing?" Beetee gasped as Katniss ran toward him.
"Helping – her father was in a mine accident." Wiress explained. Beetee hit 'record' on his end so her words were captured not only on the live feed to the Panem News Network, but to a file on his computer as well. They gasped as she was shot and crumpled to the ground. Wiress frantically opened her email and sent a message to the hospital in District Thirteen.
"Hon, they have her. Let's go." Wiress packed their laptops and other equipment and followed him to the awaiting hovercraft. Several soldiers were pushing a unconcious Katniss on a stretcher while Gale held pressure on a part of her abdomen.
"She's loosing blood internally." Boggs said worriedly as a medic nodded.
"Gale, I need to do a blood test. On you." Gale held out his hand as the medic pricked his finger. "Yup. You're a match."
"Good." Gale grunted rolling up his sleeve and offering his arm. Soon his blood was running through Katinss' veins. Gale kept pressure on Katniss' wound while Wiress hummed and stroked her face and held her hands.
"Good job, buddy." Beetee said gently as he sat by Gale. "I'm no medic, but her numbers on the monitor haven't been deviating by much." Gale nodded. He was silent for a moment.
"Ya think we made a mistake? Like she said?" Gale asked nodding to Katniss' resting form.
"Well, the bombing was reminiscent of the mining accident that trapped her father. And yours. Strategically, the way we disabled The Nut was a brilliant idea. Trapping the people inside in a man-made mining accident is something we will both need to process on our own." Beetee explained. "The revolution is necessary, but we don't need to enjoy ending life either." Gale nodded. "And speaking about life, you are bent on saving this one." He gestured to Katniss. "you have a good heart, kid. I want all you young people to have a good life in a free Panem very very soon."
