Lucius is filled with regret. What had he done!?
Yesterday, the hovercraft took the body of the dead avox, the avox who committed suicide after refusing to fuck with him. She was struggling from his grip. She was beautiful. She made him want to fuck her. Now, it's like he killed her indirectly. What had he done to deserve this!?
Luckily for him, he's not voicing his thoughts. He will be criticized of his womanizing and hypocrisy, especially as a Capitolite who will not need to kill to get out alive.
Lucius then remembers that he encountered tributes yesterday. It reminded him why he's here. All he's doing lately is enjoying all this luxury while being filmed 24/7 like he's in a reality show. Well, he actually is in a reality show. He's here for a reason. He's here to win money.
Is he doing his job correctly? It's a question even he can't answer. The first tributes he saw were the two boys from yesterday. Nobody else has visited him prior to that, or since then.
For the first time since he entered the arena, Lucius visits his control room. He remembers that he should be activating Wave One soon. It's day three already! He'll get to it when he gets to it. In the meantime, he wants to check what the cameras can see in his sector. The pair of boys are nowhere to be found. He, however, sees a girl at the base of the pagoda. She's just there, sleeping.
Lucius is excited! He's finally gonna have a guest. He's finally gonna do his job well. He's finally gonna have some action in his residence. Lucius puts on his outfit. He told the stylists not to give him clothes anymore, but they insisted, so he ended up with plain orange board shorts and a red cotton robe. His dark scarlet skin and flaming hair already makes up for it anyway. He wore his skin and his hair to his interview with Isis, and with less clothes, people are gonna notice it more.
Lucius gets the help of a few avoxes to pick up the girl outside the pagoda. He's excited that something is finally happening to this fun job!
The sun is about to rise, and Titan's three guests went to bed just half an hour ago. He wonders what's happening to his fellow sector guardians, but he knows he's doing his job correctly. He enters the control room, trying to contain his excitement as he's aware that he's being filmed, and the whole nation would see him.
He takes his seat by strapping himself to his soft chair to relax for a bit. He already feels relaxed because he didn't have to do any crazy stunts yet. It's like he's on vacation but he's not. When he's ready, he gets off his seat and lifts one of three plastic lids covering three buttons on the control panel. The neutral gray button meets his skin as he puts two fingers on top of it. He closes his eyes dramatically, waits for a few seconds, then pushes the button calmly.
There's no turning back.
With that, all he has to do is wait for the first wave to set itself on the environment. He checks his monitors to see if there are any tributes outside the tower but within his sector, and there are indeed three trained tributes who have positioned themselves over the floating island. At least they are not too close to lava, but they will be stranded there for a good twenty-four hours, or at least he thinks.
"Good luck," he mutters as a reaction.
As he relaxes on his seat once again and prepares himself to sleep, he receives a message from Halizeia.
"I'm activating my Wave 1 soon."
Titan reports his too to his fellow guardians.
"I have just activated my first wave."
Titan feels more relaxed while strapped on his comfy seat. It's about time for him to sleep.
Ciara and Arlenna are moving as fast as they can, especially now that the entrance back to the mountain cave is within their sights. Arlenna remembers them paragliding off the mountain instead of passing through here. She actually wonders what dangers are inside this mountain.
Once they get inside the mountain, and to shelter too at last, Ciara and Arlenna drop their bags to the ground.
"I'm wet!" Ciara complains as she takes off her jacket. "This was useful at first."
Arlenna takes off her jacket too. Her shirt is slightly wet on the shoulders and at the back. She looks at Ciara and sees the same from her. Her pants are also wet, but because of the spandex material, it feels like she just came from the swimming pool or something.
"Maybe we should've stayed," Ciara says.
The first sound of thunder emanates on the world outside them.
"But I'm glad we made it here," continues Ciara followed by a sigh. She looks outside, and so does Arlenna. The rain pours more heavily now.
Maybe the gamemakers were just waiting for us, thinks Arlenna.
The pair takes a few more minutes to settle down properly. Ciara takes her shirt off because it's half wet, but then she remembers that she's being filmed, as she is in the Hunger Games. Well, they probably saw her at the shower in the mansion, but maybe that was cut from what's shown to the whole nation. This one, who knows? Therefore, she's keeping her shirt on even though it's half wet.
Arlenna yawns. Sleeping now is considered sleeping late, but she's in the Hunger Games. She's adjusting her sleep to get here and away from that suspicious mansion. She finds a good spot to lie down on, then remembers she has a sleeping bag.
Ciara prepares her sleeping bag as well on the spot she claims.
"Should someone keep guard?" Arlenna asks.
"Nah," Ciara answers almost immediately. "We both need sleep. I don't think anyone's attacking us or stealing from us in an arena this big."
Arlenna thinks about it and somewhat agrees to it, but she also wants a security blanket, and that can only happen if someone is keeping guard. She would've volunteered, but she's too sleepy to guard. She thinks Ciara is on the same boat as she's in right now.
Ciara remembers something then says, "Did you see the cows flying a while ago!?"
"Yeah."
"That was crazy! I don't understand why the gamemakers would put cows on the farm then have them abducted like it's some alien movie."
Arlenna lets it sink in, then responds with, "What if those were alien mutts?"
Ciara stays silent. She wants to respond with something, but she doesn't know what it is. It scares her a bit to think that she can be killed simply because alien mutts take her into a hovercraft. Now she's even more glad that they've made it to shelter.
Arlenna shuts her eyes. She can easily sleep even with the sounds of rain and thunder just meters away from her, due to the exhaustion from the day.
Annaleigh and Horden are ready to get moving again. They survived the night with their kinetic fan, because there's no wind inside the mountain. They also decided to get rid of one of their bags after rearranging some items. There's no point lugging around a lot of useless objects with them. It's just that extra weight and temperature aren't their actual problems.
"Time to look for food and water," Horden says determinedly.
"We're hoping to stumble to the correct exit," Annaleigh says.
They leave the area of the locked katana. They don't see the need for it when they have other weapons they prefer more. They tried to unlock it to have an extra weapon with them, but right now, food and water are more important.
Annaleigh and Horden aren't the only trained tributes to have issues with food and water, however.
Argentum bites on a raw carrot he was supposed to share with Jeanne, but she didn't want to eat that.
"Gross," Jeanne comments.
"It's good for your eyes. Good for mine too."
Jeanne looks at Argentum then rolls her eyes.
"AAAAA"
Jeanne now wonders why she volunteered for the Hunger Games. She was expecting to be famous! She'll be a big celebrity in her district just like the other Four victors. She wasn't expecting to be stuck with her closest ally, who's obsessing over a pet seagull and eating a carrot. She doesn't know how much longer she has to sit here and wait for the clouds to disappear. There are so many clouds all of a sudden! She won't know where she's heading. She is considering disposing Brenna. After all, Rufus is nowhere to be found. She doesn't need him either. If this pack is just gonna spread out and not work as a team, then so be it. What matters is that she wins. Jeanne wants her to be the only one getting out of here alive and be crowned victor. She can't wait to be victor!
"AAAAA"
Argentum crunches on the carrot once more.
Jeanne is annoyed with these sounds. Maybe she should've been the one to leave the pack, but she's the leader. It'd be so wrong for a leader to leave the pack and leave everyone else in it to die, but she doesn't really care anymore. She just wants to get out of here alive, and the first thing she needs to do is look for food. "Let's cook it."
"No!" Argentum protects Birdy from Jeanne by pulling it closer to him.
"I'm gonna make fire." Jeanne knows she's lying. She can't make fire and is afraid of fire. Saying she'll make fire is easier to do than actually making it. She tries to sit, as there's no gravity, and pretends to make fire at a spot where her back is facing Argentum. Brenna is sleeping, so she doesn't have to face her back between both of them. She doesn't know how long she's been pretending to make fire, but she can guess that it's about an hour.
Argentum grabs the ukulele he brought with him. He strums it randomly and sings, "Country roOoOoAaAaAds!"
Jeanne covers her ears. She heard this in his interview. She doesn't wanna listen to this again. She's just gonna keep her ears covered all day.
It takes almost half an hour for Brenna to wake up from Argentum's horrible singing. She wants to go back to sleep while her allies haven't woken her up. The problem is she can't. Argentum's singing is so bad it could probably spark another rebellion. Hopefully not. She keeps her eyes shut at least, still trying to sleep but failing to.
"AAAAA"
It didn't need to be right beside her right ear! Brenna rolled within her sleeping bag and held the seagull in a chokehold. After a few seconds, she lets it go. Now she's regretting not following Rufus out when she had the chance, but she doesn't want to trust him anymore. She noticed how shady he's been lately, and while she's not the brightest star in the galaxy, she knows that trusting him could be her downfall. She tries to imagine how they would fight if they ever bump into each other again somewhere in the arena. Brenna doesn't know how long she's been in the sleeping bag just keeping her eyes shut. She just knows it's a long enough time for her to be sleep deprived.
"Two, let's go." Jeanne shakes Brenna to wake up.
That's when Brenna stops trying to sleep. She shows no emotion of her mood, or any violent reaction to Argentum's horrible singing.
"Argentum, shut the fuck up because it's time to go." Both of Jeanne's hands are on her hips. She's more than annoyed at him that words can't describe how she hated the sound of her environment.
"Okay!" Argentum prepares his stuff and looks around if he's forgetting anything. "Where's Birdy?"
Nobody makes a sound, but Brenna smirks faintly. Not only did she subdue the annoying seagull, but this is her chance to escape the pack.
"There you are!" Argentum pulls the sleeping seagull to his direction as he brings it along.
It takes a few more minutes before everyone is ready to leave. That's when they all realize that they don't know where to go and how to leave. They are surrounded by clouds on every possible direction.
It takes all three brain cells on the floating island a good amount of time to realize that it's hardly possible to go hunting today with this kind of weather.
Just like that, Brenna growls a "grrrrr..." under her breath.
At least there's a tribute who's lucky enough to be able to leave the spot he's in, unlike the careers. Ingeo is finally ready to get moving. It doesn't take him too long to hear the sound of rain. No wait! It's the sound of a storm. He follows the sound in hopes of finding an exit.
Less than an hour after leaving his spot, he finds an exit. He can see the storm happening outside. He sees the mud on the ground beyond. He barely sees trees in the distance. He has a jacket, but he doesn't think he should step out.
Or should he?
He uses this opportunity to wash his hands. It's been too long since he last had a shower or washed his hands. He needs the former pretty soon. He can just use the rain as his shower, but he doesn't wanna get hypothermia.
Ingeo sits at the mountain exit, staring at the storm and thinking what to do next. It takes him a while to turn around and notice two sleeping bags, one girl sleeping inside each. It makes him wonder why they are sleeping in the middle of the day, especially with the stormy outside world within their camp's view.
Ingeo then feels something inside him twist. What if they'll be awake in a few minutes!? Ingeo has no courage to face these two. He's one. They're two. Not only that, but even though these girls are fifteen and thirteen only, he knows he can't win in a fight against both of them, especially when his only weapon are darts. He doesn't even know how to use those for killing.
Ingeo needs to think quick. Maybe he should run into the rain. He'll get away from them for sure. He can't kill them in their sleep. He has no weapons. He doesn't wanna walk around inside the mountain again. He's done with this place and he wants to get out of here. Well, if he can get out of the arena alive, then so much the better, but getting out of the mountain should keep him sane at the very least.
At the corner of his vision, he sees a bag on top of a rocky wall. He can guess without a brain that it belongs to the pair. Hmmm... I got an idea! Both girls are far enough from the bag. All he has to do is be careful. He tiptoes to the bag slowly and silently. It's making him nervous, very very nervous. As he reaches for the bag, thunder from outside makes him jolt in panic. He looks around. Both girls are still asleep. Okay, good. He carefully reaches for the bag and pulls it towards him.
Ciara snores aloud, sounding like a snort at the same time.
Ingeo tries to hide, but he instead makes a sound thanks to the contents of the bag.
Ciara turns to the other side of her sleeping bag and picks her nose.
Uhhh... Ingeo is very very nervous, and all he wants to do right now is just run out into the rain so he doesn't get caught stealing their bag, but doing so could still get him caught, so there's no point in doing so. He just observes Ciara in her sleep.
Once Ciara is done picking her nose, Ingeo tiptoes out of the room. He doesn't want to make another sound. He carries the bag carefully so that he doesn't make a sound. He makes it outside soon after, putting the jacket's hood over his head. Now he makes a run, but the thunder claps, and he clumsily trips onto the muddy ground. He thinks he really needs to take a shower, but he knows he's not getting any here aside from the rain. Hey, at least he's not snotty anymore. He carefully picks himself up and hides under the shelter.
Phew!
He hides there long enough to get wet, because trees can only cover so much. He's feeling cold. He's an idiot. He ran off with a fellow tribute's bag though. That's an achievement! He doesn't know what's up next, but he finally made his move, and that in itself puts a satisfying smile on his face.
Eltha woke up happily today. She feels so much excitement making these fluffy pancakes. It's like hosting a big surprise party to a friend who tried to hide their birthday. She can't stop smiling. Her heart is filled with nothing but happiness. She can't make it fade away. Eltha has never felt this wholehearted in her everyday life. Here, she gets to make fluffy pancakes to someone who she would treat like her own child. She's so happy that words can't express it!
"Finally, I have someone to accompany me, someone to love me, someone who looks like a child, someone who could trust me and believe in me, someone who can fulfill that emptiness in my life." Eltha enjoys monologues, regardless whether she's in a reality show or just at home.
Inside a bedroom in the castle, Chip wakes up to see everything ice blue. It's like waking up in a fairy tale. There's a table made of crystal with a chair made of crystal. There's a painting with a crystal frame on the wall. The closet is made of crystal too. Even the mirror is framed with crystal. He looks to his left, and he sees a balcony, also made of crystal. The curtains are made of cloth at least, but they're ice blue. He's on a bed made of crystal, but the cushion and sheets are ice blue too. The only thing that's missing is he being crystal and blue. What is going on?
Chip is trying to remember what happened last night. He was wondering if kids from Nine get named Barley Wheatstalk. He chuckles at the thought, but no that's not significant to how he got here. He was admiring his dead allies' faces in the sky. Mmhm, but that has nothing to do with how he got here, right? He saw cows flying. Hmmm... Then it got him.
Aha! That's it. He was taken inside a hovercraft, wherein he saw someone in a blue diving suit. He couldn't see the person's face, but that person somehow got him to fall asleep.
So is he outside the arena? Chip takes this time to go to the balcony. He sees a beautiful lake, frozen by the snowy weather. Snowflakes sprinkle from the sky, and he wonders how they get their shape. He looks beyond the lake to see a pine forest. Interesting.
He would like to think he's outside the arena, but for some reason, this place can also be an arena, as hard to believe as it is. He was in a mudland. How did he end up on a frozen lake? The trees from the mudlands are different from the trees by the lake. How else is he going to find out where he is?
He looks behind him, and he sees a woman, dressed beautifully in a gradient dress that starts off with light blue on top and dark blue towards the bottom. The dress's sleeves are laced in diamond patterns. It's in a shade of blue lighter than the lightest blue on the dress, almost like it's white but it's not. Since the sleeves are in lace patterns, it's translucent enough to show her skin from the shoulders to her elbows, if close enough. From afar, it's like she's on white laced sleeves. The sleeves of the dress reach all the way to her wrists, but she wears long light blue gloves made of brushed cotton on both hands. The woman with long straight turquoise hair flips her translucent ice blue silk cape awkwardly, then small holographic crystals sparkle out from it. She wears turquoise contacts and has pale skin, but to top off her overall appearance, she looks like a true royalty with her crystal royal blue crown on her head. There are a few light blue diamonds on the surface of the crystal crown.
"Greetings." Eltha is excited that the tribute is finally awake. "I am Eltha, guardian of the water kingdom and queen of Cryo Castle."
Chip is confused! Why would they have an actual human who's not a tribute in the arena with them? This can be a mutt, but she looks more human than mutt. That's a very shocking jump of technology if ever this Eltha queen is a mutt.
"I am here to protect you. I will take care of you and treat you like a son of mine."
What is going on? Chip doesn't know how to respond to Eltha welcoming him, all he realizes is that Eltha's arm is on his shoulder, and he's being brought downstairs to a dining hall, where everything is ice blue and made of crystal. The chandelier amazes him the most out of all he has seen in this castle so far.
"Please take a seat, and I will tell you everything that happened while you enjoy your fluffy pancakes."
Chip is being pampered? That has never happened in the Hunger Games before! Are these pancakes even real? Is this a trap? Is there poison in here? Chip doesn't trust the pancakes, but before he pushes away the dark blue plate made of crystal holding his fluffy pancakes, Eltha speaks up.
"I can guarantee you by a thousand percent that those pancakes have just been made not long ago. In fact, they're not poisonous because my contract says that I am not allowed to poison the tributes' food." Eltha takes out her contract as proof. The line she needs to look for is already highlighted in blue. She has prepared for this. She likes being prepared. Now, this tribute should trust her.
Chip takes a good look at it and is indeed surprised and puzzled why they would have non-tributes in the arena with them. There's a one percent of Chip that thinks this is all not true, but everything he's seen so far looks real. He's still in the arena, and this crystal queen is here to feed him and explain him everything. He takes a small bite of the blue pancakes. They are soft and fluffy. He is suspicious of it, so he takes another small bite. In front of him are a blueberry syrup and a light blue butter, prepared for him in case he wants to add them to his pancakes.
"I am one of four guardians in this elemental arena. Our responsibility is to feed tributes, protect them, help them in anything they need. We're here as helpers and as guidance, but there's a risk of us being killed, because we are inside an arena where a death match is happening. That is why we are alternatively known as stunt people. We act like gamemakers inside the arena. We guard over the land assigned to us, and we add flavor to it. When the time comes, we will destroy our respective lands and force the arena to become smaller." Eltha isn't sure if Chip listened to the whole thing. He was busy eating his pancakes and only looked up to her when she was talking about being gamemakers inside the arena. It makes her a little worried and nervous that what she tried telling him just didn't go into his ear completely.
Chip didn't realize that Eltha was talking to him until a word captured his attention. He knows she's a gamemaker inside the arena, and she has the power to destroy land to make the arena smaller. This probably won't happen until around final eight or six, but it's best to be prepared, in case he gets that far.
"Do I need to repeat what I just said?" Eltha asks worriedly.
Chip does not respond. Eltha waves her gloved hand in front of Chip's face. Now Chip's attention is on her.
Eltha calmly speaks, "Do I need to repeat what I just said?"
Chip nods, and this time, he listens attentively to every word Eltha said. It sinks in to him slowly, but he nods when asked if he understood their purpose in the arena. Interesting. Why did he not meet the guardian of the forest? Maybe 'elemental' meant that he was on the earth part of the arena. This time, he's on the water part. There is a question he needs to ask though. It's been bothering him since he woke up. "How did I end up here?"
"I rescued you from the storm. It was raining lightly earlier this morning, but the earth sector is now caught in a thunderstorm."
Chip does not want to let his guard down, but it's interesting that a guardian of a different element chose to rescue him from the rain. He would've asked why it was he who was chosen among all others, but he can easily think that maybe he was the only one out there earlier this morning.
"There's also going to be a blizzard here tomorrow, so I suggest you stay here for another two nights. I don't want you to be cold out there. The jacket you were provided won't be enough to protect you from the blizzard. On the bright side, I will make you any food you want as long as they fall under breakfast food or desserts. We also have milk and milkshakes, and if you need a shower, we have ice tubs. No hot water though if ever you're looking for them." Oh no, is what Eltha thinks when Chip only looked at her with the mention of 'desserts.' Eltha patiently repeats, "Do I need to repeat what I just said?"
Chip nods, and Eltha repeats whatever she just told him. This time, he understands what's going on. He's thinking this blizzard will be triggered by her, because that rain on the earth part of the arena is only at the earth part of the arena. Correct? He doesn't want to ask Eltha if she'll be the one to activate the blizzard as the gamemaker inside the water part of the arena. All he needs to know is that she's doing this because she was tasked to.
Wow, his attention is so hard to get. Eltha is glad to be patient, not a virtue possessed by everyone. She tells Chip that she's gonna get something and come back, but she doesn't know if he heard her or not. She goes to her control room anyway to pick up something that is meant for him. She returns to the dining hall to see Chip still stuffing himself with fluffy pancakes. "I have a present for you." Eltha waits for Chip to look at her, so she carefully waves her hand on his face, then repeats, "I have a present for you. It's not from me, but it's a gift from someone you might know."
Chip receives the gift from Eltha on the crystal blue table. He opens a container with the number three on it. He's thinking that it's a sponsor gift for him. He opens it to find a taser. Interesting. There's also a note that came with the sponsor gift.
Chip,
I didn't want you to feel unequipped or unprotected, so I thought I would give you this taser. Keep it safe and use it well.
Some stylists are trying to discourage me from sponsoring, but I ain't letting them stop me. But then again, it's not common for an escort or stylist to ever sponsor anything for their tributes independently in the history of the Hunger Games.
If you trust your algorithms, don't forget to trust your actions and heart, too.
From,
Anakyn.
P.S. Sorry if there's any tear stains... or blood stains on this note; some asshole insulted shit about you while Tira got killed, and... I lost it. I miss both of you a lot.
Interesting. He can't spot any blood on the note though. He wonders what happened. Although, he notices a medium-sized tear at the corner of the paper. Hmmm... Anyway, it's good to know that his district partner's stylist is on his side. Maybe it's because they're representing the same district. Maybe it's because of whatever happened to Tira yesterday. Maybe because he and Anakyn simply have a connection. It doesn't matter what caused him to receive a sponsor gift. He is thankful for it nonetheless, so he mouths a thank you to where he thinks a camera is hidden, then mutters a, "thank you," to Eltha for sending him the gift.
"You're welcome," Eltha says in a sweet tone. "If you need me or the avox, don't be afraid to get our attention."
Chip nods to that, and he watches Eltha leave the dining hall. Upon reaching the base of the staircase, she picks up a sparkling light blue object that has an intricate design. She puts it on her left wrist – and over her glove – before going upstairs. The object fits her wrist like a bracelet, but it's wider than what's usually expected of a bracelet. Chip takes another bite on his pancake. He just received a taser, and now he wonders what to do with it. Depending on the situation, this gift can save his life and change his algorithm for the better.
After what happened yesterday, Orion and Kobe decided that it's best to find another exit. For them, maybe this arena is a mountain with multiple exits. The last thing they want to see is a dead naked non-tribute killed by a burning devil wannabe.
While walking around the mountain, Orion is thinking of ways to prank Kobe. He's a good friend and ally, and Orion just wants to have fun with him. He remembers having fun with his friends back home. He, Heron, Reed, and Daisy would all spend time together in the woods. They would play like kids even though they're pretty much grown teenagers already. They would go fishing, and Orion remembers joking about the fish getting stuck in the river's traffish when going to and from the offish to work. Orion chuckles at that thought.
"What so funny?" Kobe stops and turns around.
Orion improvises, "You grew a tail."
Kobe looks at where his butt is. "Liar!"
Orion chuckles once again. "Just kidding." He puts on a nice grin and this makes Kobe glare before they continue to walk forward. Orion just wants to have fun. Kobe is too stiff and serious. His friends aren't. They'd go swimming at the river in the woods. Then he remembers his brother, Lake. Lake would tell him to be more mature, but he doesn't stop and continues to prank Lake. Life is boring without having fun, and this is his kind of fun. He even skips his shifts sometimes just to have fun. He then remembers Lake telling him to grow up and be a more responsible adult; be more mature. The word maturity crosses his mind after the thought. Should he really be mature? What's wrong with being immature? Heck, is Kobe even mature?
Kobe starts, "Look, we're in the Hunger Games for the love of Snow! You can't just make jokes that I have a tail. What if those trackers actually made us grow tails!? What if I tell you that you grew a tail too!?"
They both stop on their tracks, and Orion faces his butt towards Kobe. He waggles his imaginary tail. "It's a human tail."
"UGH!" Kobe facepalms. "Get out!"
"You know I want to, and you want to as well." Orion knows he should stop pranking Kobe because this is a serious situation they're in, but he thinks it's harmless anyway. What's wrong with having a bit of fun here and there?
They get moving and continue to find an exit on the mountain. It's true though. Kobe wants to get out of this arena already. Life is so unfair. The careers get to volunteer and the other rich kids who don't want to be in the Hunger Games don't have to be in them, whereas his family lives in a poor place and nobody volunteers for him. It's way too unfair! He deserves to enjoy that as well. Why are the career districts like this? They should be poor for once. His parents work long hours, but they don't get paid much, so they're still stuck in the lower class of District Ten. He hates it. He wants everyone to be equal. If he's picked to be in the Hunger Games, then everybody should just be in the Hunger Games! Kobe keeps his mouth shut on these thoughts though. Everybody is watching him right now, and he doesn't want to not win because of what he says.
Rufus slept without any form of security. All he did was find a decent spot inside the mountain to sleep in. He doesn't know how his ex-allies are doing. In fact, he doesn't care. Sure, he could've been killed in his sleep, but that was his only opportunity to ditch them. He doesn't wanna be with them. He has a feeling that everybody's gonna ditch him first because he's twelve and scored a five only. He still had proper career training, so his ex-allies didn't throw him out. Although if it came down to it, he knew he'd be the one they'd ice out. It's only for his own good that he detached himself from the rest of them. Besides, Horden and Annaleigh made that move before him.
Right now, he's all alone. Freedom! He doesn't have to live by Jeanne's stupid leadership rules. He doesn't have to live with a bunch of people protecting each other anymore. Rufus may have risked his security during his sleep, but he can handle it on his own. He made two kills while everyone is asleep. He doesn't regret his decision of leaving them.
It's time to hunt. He gets his map and checks for where to find tributes. He can see dots on the holographic map, but they do not indicate which dot belongs to who. There are no district numbers either to give him a clue. What a shame. He'll find his target when he finds them. For now, he'll settle with anyone as long as he can get another kill or two.
He moves from his spot, but the motivation to hunt fades bit by bit step after step. He just woke up a few hours ago. He shouldn't be tired like this. It takes him a few moments to realize that he hasn't eaten nor drank anything in a while. Well, he ate the tomato and poured honey on every bite in desperation after he woke up, but that's not enough. With that, his motivation annexes to another level. He will hunt someone down, then steal their stuff. He needs food and water, and while he's not yet at the critical level, it would be absolutely pathetic and shameful to die due to thirst or starvation. He wants to avoid that while he can.
He opens his holo map again, and he notices something weird on it. It's like the weather outside is shown on the map. He can see the mudlands having a storm and the area he came from having lots of clouds. It's snowing lightly on the area with the lake. He considers where to go. He can probably drink the rainwater. Perhaps that can satisfy his thirst. Besides, what if the tribute he steals from doesn't have food or water too?
Quick change of plans then. He'll get to hunt down tributes after he gets a drink.
Where am I? is the thought that first came to Lainey's mind upon waking up on a bed with red sheets. There's an orange table with an orange chair. Her surroundings are red and orange. She's in an oriental themed room. She remembers sleeping outside a pagoda. Maybe this is what's inside it. How did she end up getting in here though?
She gets up and explores the pagoda. She sees a few women with makeup talking in sign language. What kind of pagoda is this!? She doesn't get caught by any of the women or mutts she saw, which is a good thing, she thinks. She continues to explore the pagoda. She tries not to open doors, but she gets tempted to check some of them. She's lucky they're all empty, so she thinks of how stealthy she's remained. She keeps going up until there's nowhere else to go. She finds a staircase going out to the roof, but she doesn't dare check it out.
She's about to head down when a man opens the door to the roof from the outside. She freezes in place as she sees the man with dark scarlet skin and orange board shorts. He doesn't have a top on, but his eyes are red and his hair is on fire that the red, orange, and yellow colors of his hair can't be noticed completely. It's literally on fire!
"Oh, hello! You must be wondering who I am and why you're here."
So he brought her in here!?
"My name is Lucius Thromanoid, and I am one of four guardians in Elymantyl." Lucius slowly makes his way down the stairs, approaching Lainey in the process. "As a guardian, my role is to protect you from outside elements – heh, elements – and accommodate you to your needs."
Lainey should probably run. He doesn't feel comfortable that this man whom she just met is carefully caressing her left cheek.
"Please come down. There's barbecue for you to eat." Lucius proceeds downstairs.
Lainey is confused. Why is there a mutt that looks like a devil who calls himself a guardian living in this sketchy pagoda? He may not have horns, but his skin color is unnatural, and add that to his literally fiery hair, it makes him look like a devil. The other thing I'm concerned with is the barbecue. How do I know it's not poisoned? It takes Lainey a while to digest all these unanswered questions, but she sees the women in makeup cooking barbecue. She is watching them cook from start to end, and she thinks there couldn't be any poison in any of those.
Lucius sits down on one of the chairs in the dining hall. He patiently waits for the barbecue to be cooked. When it's ready, one of the nine remaining avoxes in the pagoda served them the food. He asks for two bowls of rice for them to eat.
Lainey arrives at the dining hall to see Lucius eating the barbecue. Now there's absolutely no way it's poisoned. Lainey sits across him, and an avox delivers her a small bowl of rice. Lucius gets one too.
"Bon appetit," Lucius says before he continues biting on the grilled meat.
Lainey takes a bite on the barbecue.
"The rice is imported from another sector. Enjoy it while it lasts." During the meal, Lucius tells her about the guardians' common purpose in the arena, and that they'd get a million dollars if they are alive. He also talks about the stunt he's put himself into as well as his actual job as a stuntman.
Lainey eats what she can. She doesn't know how valid this information is. She's just being told of them without any proof. For all she knows, the devil will barbecue her then feed her cooked meat to the next tributes who will come and visit him here, then the cycle repeats. She gets herself full at the end of the meal. This is an opportunity to regain energy, and she's definitely not gonna miss out on an opportunity like this, especially now that she can confirm that the food is not poisonous. "Is there a bathroom?"
"Oh yes! We have a shower, but be warned that it's hot because we have no cold water. We also have a sauna you can enjoy."
Lainey stays careful and wary as she enters the bathroom. She's aware of her presence in the arena, and anything the gamemakers put in the arena can kill her. She doesn't wanna die naked, but this is her chance to clean off, and excrete.
As she sits on the toilet bowl, she appreciates the warm ambience of the bathroom. It reminds her of the endurance rooms in the training center, but this is like the heat endurance room only. The toilet even has a bidet. What if it could kill her? Well, she needs to clean off, and it's a good thing the bidet doesn't kill. It just sprays warm water.
It is difficult for Lainey to shower in hot water, but she finally gets to clean herself. She inspects the sauna, but nothing is there to kill her, so that's also a good thing. After an unspecified amount of time, she leaves the bathroom and is provided something that looks like her arena outfit, except she is given the choice between orange and red. She picks the red spandex pants as well as the red cotton shirt. (Underwear is provided; color is subject to readers' imagination because it doesn't matter.) She is informed through a note that the avoxes are washing her jacket. Okay, but Lainey feels like there's a theme color here. Even the towels provided for her were either red or orange.
Lucius sits at the dining hall, drinking his oolong tea calmly as he waits for Lainey to come down. He currently has his shades and red robe on. He checked the control room and received a warning about his horny behavior in the arena. He's gonna stop, for now. He's not into Lainey's age, at least, but he can't ignore the fact that she's a woman and he likes women. He licks his lips at the slightly erotic thought, but also to appreciate the thin layer of tea on his upper lip. He looks at the wall on the living room just beside the dining hall. He can see the platinum crest with his face and his name in fancy font engraved on it. It's the treasure he asked for, a personal prized possession. He can't wait to take home the souvenir and brag it to people who will visit his house.
It takes him really long to realize that Lainey isn't coming down, so he gives up waiting and tries to keep himself occupied without having to fuck more avoxes, besides checking his social media which he's been doing while waiting for Lainey. He's still using his phone though, and he decides to play games instead. He moves to his soft red sofa on the living room and lies down there as he plays a mobile game.
Dante consumed the last of his edible supplies. He has neither food nor water left.
He should move.
He can survive without food and water for a bit longer, but he doesn't want to be found and hunted down here.
He should move.
He's set a designated pee and poo spot nearby, and it's starting to stink even on his favorite spot.
He should move.
He has no choice but to move, and so he carried his bag with him and left the spot he stayed on for what could possibly be two or three days. He hasn't seen sunlight in days. He finds a good spot to settle down. It's somewhere where he can't smell his wastes. There's a machete inside a locked case. He doesn't know how to open it, but he can try. There's nothing else for him to do anyway.
At the gamemakers' headquarters, a few gamemakers discuss the events for the day.
Lirlina reports, "It's great to see Titan and Halizeia activating their Wave One disasters. So far, it's working as expected. Eltha is planning to activate hers tomorrow, and we have no news from Lucius."
"Lucius," repeats Nova with an eyeroll.
Jom says, "Don't worry, I sent him a warning for his naughty behavior. Can't believe he got an avox to commit suicide."
Vint adds, "On my end, I have yet to receive news from any of the four of them about when they're planning to release their guardian mutts."
"It's a one time thing, Vint," starts Jom. "You can relax on that. I'm thinking they'll do it by day seven or eight."
"Hmph," Vint reacts. "At least I have my mutts ready. I'll have them roam the mountain, and also have one of them pick up the bag with the wire and the shield that Annaleigh and Horden abandoned this morning."
Jom says, "Looks like there's no incoming action among the tributes, so we can just play the anthem and not put any faces tonight."
"I think so too," agrees Lirlina.
A few moments later, Al visits the room the four gamemakers are in. He carries a plastic folder with papers in it. "I have the report from Celestina."
"Ooh!" Nova reacts with interest.
"Please share it with us," Jom requests.
"First is a quick update from the tributes in Topland Tower." Al peeks at the next page but returns to his current. "Nothing's happened to them. They woke up late and they're watching movies. Dorian in particular told people he's going to the bathroom a few times, when he actually went around exploring the tower. Titan is busy watching the movie to care."
"Interesting," Vint comments. "So nothing happened in Sector One?"
"Brenna, Argentum, and Jeanne are still stranded on the floating island they settled on last night," reports Al. "So while Dorian, Filly, and Corinna are stranded as well, they are inside the tower and safe with Titan at least, whereas the three trained tributes are just stranded in the middle of nowhere with no food or water left."
"That's pathetic," reacts Vint.
"What about Sector Two?" Lirlina asks.
Al continues, "Chip is inside Cryo Castle, just thinking inside his bedroom. Celestina said he looked cute just watching the sunset from his balcony."
"Awww, I can imagine," adds Lirlina.
"Me too," Nova follows.
"However, it's not only Chip in Sector Two now. Annaleigh and Horden found the north exit, and they broke the thin ice over the lake to get some cold but fresh water."
"Oh," reacts Lirlina, Nova, and Jom in unison.
"They went back inside due to the weather conditions, but a few hours later, they returned to the lake to fill up their water containers."
"Smart," comments Vint.
"While Annaleigh and Horden are staying on the north exit, Kobe and Orion found the west exit not so long ago."
Vint questions, "Did they do the same?"
"Not immediately, but they did. They also returned to the mountain due to weather conditions." Al makes a face. "I heard Eltha is activating Sector Two's Wave One tomorrow?"
"Yup," confirms Lirlina.
"Good luck to both pairs." Al flips a page on the document.
"Sector Three," Jom moderates.
"Sector Three only has Lainey. She's inside Pyro Pagoda after Lucius took her in."
"He's finally doing his job," says Jom with a stern look on his face. "I wasn't expecting that."
"That means the warning worked then," Nova concludes.
Jom nods to it in response.
Al proceeds, "On Sector Four, we also have two tributes who are taking advantage of water sources provided to them, all thanks to the weather conditions brought by Halizeia's activation of Sector Four's Wave One."
"Who are these two?" Jom asks.
"Rufus and Ingeo," continues Al. "Rufus found the east exit not too long ago. Ingeo came from the south exit this morning but he's pretty far from it now. He's under the trees, but he's still wet."
"I don't know if that's smart or if that makes him a dumbass," comments Vint.
"There are still tributes in the mountain, right?" Lirlina asks.
"Ciara and Arlenna have not moved from the south exit of Sector Four, but they are frantically looking for Ciara's missing bag."
"Which was stolen by Ingeo, I heard," Jom adds.
"Exactly," replies Al. "Then we have Dante."
Vint scoffs.
"He moved to the locked case with the machete."
"He barely moved!" Vint rages with his fists clenched. "Unbelievable. We gave him a full arena to explore, and all he's going to do is hide there like a coward!?"
Nova rubs Vint's back to calm him down.
"With trained tributes spread out and fragmented, I don't think it will be long before any of them finds him," Jom speculates.
"Pffft! I don't believe in that bullshit. He made it to Day Four doing nothing, not even exploring any of the mountain below the level he's in!" Vinton walks out of the scene.
Nova grimaces in fear of Vint's tantrum. The other three gamemakers just look at Vint's violent reaction.
"Well," Al says as he hands Jom the folder. "That is all Celestina has to report."
"Thanks," Lirlina and Nova say.
Jom says, "I'll put the report on the head gamemaker's desk."
"Where is he?" Lirlina asks curiously.
"He picked a fine day to play the card game with his buddies," Al says.
"Wow. What a responsible head gamemaker," reacts Nova.
"He's just taking a day off," Jom states. "I don't see anything wrong."
Lirlina and Nova consider taking a leave later this week then, but they're also excited to see these waves happening progressively on each sector.
Al shares, "As some of us like to call it, he's playing his cards of mortality." He chuckles before continuing. "Just like the guardians this year in the arena."
AN:
I mashed both Day 3 and Night 3 into one chapter. I'm on a roll these days, so expect the next chapter next week or the week after. We're gonna go fast from here, because I'm so excited to get to the fun parts of this story as well as open submissions for the sequel. It's gonna be a submit-your-own galore. More details when I release the sequel later this year, perhaps around July or August. I shared a sneak peek earlier this week over Discord. If you're not in my server yet, just PM me so I can send you the invite.
The Barley Wheatstalk referenced earlier this chapter is actually a minor character from Inter-District Inter-Disciplinary Events 2 by goldie031. Check it out, because even if you don't have a character in the story, there's reader involvement that can change the results of the competition in this non-traditional SYOT. If you're reading this chapter on time, it's not yet too late to be involved. :3
I'm gonna use the night version map when I write chapters that have events from the whole day, not just half of it. As usual, map and has-needs list will be updated soon. Sponsor points list is also being updated occasionally. Just a reminder that sponsorship can still impact the events in the arena.
Hope you enjoyed the chapter! :)