Here we are, the Bloodbath! The Games have just started and buckle up, because it's going to be wild indeed!
Apollo Karaigme, 25
Head Gamemaker
Apollo watched as the tributes slowly rose up into the arena. The cameras panned upwards too, dramatically slow. He wanted the reveal to be big. He had spent so much time on this, after all.
And it was. The tributes gasped to themselves as they finally took in the sights around them. From the glimmering Cornucopia, to the bounty inside. To the colourful striped tents that lined the dusty path, to the banners flying overhead. Cheerful circus music played faintly in the background from speakers attached to large steel poles lining the streets, an eerily cheerful noise, considering the fate of the tributes.
The big showstopper was the giant red and yellow tent southwards of the Cornucopia. Its bottom was obstructed by some white trailers and the distance, but it stuck out like a sore thumb. All the way on the other end of the arena, to the north, was a large grey stage. It had all the fixings: lights, curtains, seats, and even rooms backstage. There were sturdy wooden bleachers in the front, waiting for the invisible audience to watch a show that would never be performed. No doubt both areas were tempting hideouts or bases for whoever could escape the Cornucopia alive.
Admittedly, a very odd arena for such a special event. But Apollo knew that just like the clowns of a real circus, he didn't lack any sort of surprises. Looks could be deceiving after all...
At the very north, right below the Cornucopia's horn, was Void. Julius was to his left, then Grey, Arwan, Autumn, Aurora, DJ, Jonathan, Hera, Ezra, and Amperia, all going clockwise. Synth was at the very south, next to a relieved Ace, Merona, Ember, Powder, Rosy, Palatino, Elana, Deloris, Rosy, Aldair, and Jenny on Void's right.
Everything seemed to be in place.
"Start the countdown," Apollo commanded.
Anthony did as he was told. Above the Cornucopia, a timer appeared, counting down from 60. The demeanor in the tributes changed. Some widened their eyes in fear. Others crouched low, ready to spring off their platforms. Some where faced in the direction of the more tempting supplies, while others clearly planned to run for their allies. Teeth clenched, tears fell, hearts quickened.
Apollo just folded his arms, trying to hide his own nerves. This was the moment he had been waiting for. Very few Gamemakers made it to the point where they were entrusted with the act of arranging a Quarter Quell of all things. So much effort had been placed into building this arena, its mutts, and its features that made it really stand out.
Apollo felt a surge of pride, smiling as the cameras circled the circus of an arena before returning to the tributes. This was his. His creation, his brainchild. Of course, he couldn't have done it without his spectacular team, but he organized the whole damn thing. He helped to make it happen.
He wondered how much of Panem was watching. He wondered if his mother and sister were watching. He wondered if the President was watching.
He hoped they were all proud.
The countdown continued to drop with each passing second.
10...
9...
8...
7...
6...
5...
4...
3...
2...
1...
And the 150th Hunger Games began.
Almost instantly, everyone was running for the horn, either to meet allies or grab supplies. Palatino tripped off his pedestal, causing Elana to shift her course and run for him instead. Ace and Merona were side by side. Autumn was shoved to the ground by Arwan.
Void burst off his pedestal and grabbed a small knife lying in the ground, only a few feet away. He whirled around and punched the nearest tribute in the face, which happened to be Jenny. She tumbled over and Void descended on her, stabbing her in the chest repeatedly. Blood flew everywhere. On the opposite side of the horn, Powder saw his dying ally and ran for her.
Ember had picked up a sword and jumped in front of Powder, cutting off the younger boy's path. With a quick slice, Powder crumpled to the ground, his throat cut open with blood squirting out everywhere. Ember ran straight into the Cornucopia, followed by Rosy and Amperia.
Synth had gone straight for the spears, followed by Alec. There were two racks of spears, both by the mouth of the horn. Synth and Deloris reached one of them at the same time. Deloris swung the water bottle she found at Synth's head as he tried to pull some spears off the rack. Alec crept up behind them both, grabbed the rack, and dumped it down on Deloris. Synth pulled two spears free and he followed Alec off.
DJ was holding an axe, following Rachel around as she shoved provisions into an empty backpack. Suddenly, Aldair grabbed the straps of the backpack and began to pull. With the handle of the axe, DJ struck his face, causing Aldair to let go. Elana, who had been tailing a dazed Palatino, ran over to help.
There was a sick crack as Aldair landed on his arm. Even Apollo winced.
Julius, meanwhile, was holding several throwing knives. He targeted Grey, who was busy freeing an axe from underneath a crate of dried food. The second she pulled it out, a knife went flying straight into her chest. Julius cackled to himself as she slumped over the crate, choking on her own blood.
Hera shoved her ally's body off the axe. The second she had it, she charged at Julius, swinging the axe into his head. Julius threw up his hands to block the impact as Hera continued to hack away at him, leaving him a bloody, crumpled corpse on the ground. The second Hera stood up, something sharp embedded her arm.
Aurora had found the only supply of throwing stars. Her second one missed as Hera began to run away, with nothing but an axe. Aurora turned her sights onto an easier target. Autumn had been tussling with Merona to grab a yellow backpack. She had thrown the younger girl to the ground, but quickly retreated as Alec and Ace pulled her to her feet. Now, she was right in Aurora's line of sight.
Autumn didn't even have time to react. The throwing star landed right in her forehead and she went down immediately.
Deloris was still trapped. Synth and Alec pressed against each other, preparing for an oncoming fight, but Ember ignored them as he searched the inside of the Cornucopia for a second sword. Amperia, who Apollo could tell was pretending to be sorting supplies as she grabbed every knife she could find, had no intention of leaving the horn.
There were enough Careers on the loose anyways.
Void, caked with Jenny's blood, threw himself at Arwan. The two men began to wrestle, Arwan punching as hard as he could and Void brandishing his knife. For a moment, Apollo thought Arwan might be winning, until Void sent a knee between his legs, then grabbed the back of Arwan's head and scratched up his face. Arwan suddenly went limp and rolled off of Void, who shoved him to the side.
Rosy came running back out of the Cornucopia, surveying the damage. Ezra was busy throwing multiple bags onto his shoulders, unaware of the Career behind him. Aldair, broken arm and all, crawled to his feet and tried to jump at Rosy. She easily pushed him aside and stabbed a knife into his stomach. He began to shake, spewing blood into her face.
As his ally collapsed, Ezra screamed, then ran. He shoved past Deloris, who had finally managed to crawl out underneath the spear rack.
The camera slowly panned around as the Careers ran about, jumping at the remaining outliers with weapons. The alliance of Alec, Synth, Ace, and Merona had taken off towards the giant tent. Hera had gone in the direction of one of the trailers. Ezra had disappeared into the first tent he found.
Apollo surveyed the fleeing tributes, before the cameras suddenly jumped back to Deloris, lying facefirst in the dirt with two throwing stars embedded into her skull. Aurora stood over her; once she was sure the younger girl was finally dead, she stalked back inside the mouth of the Cornucopia.
The tributes were dropping like flies.
"Get ready to start firing the cannons soon. How many bodies?" Apollo asked loudly.
"Eight," Paige reported back. "Actually...hold that thought!"
A bruised and beaten Arwan, still lying on the ground, twitched violently. He slowly crawled towards a pedestal and grabbed it, risking a glance behind him. Nobody even noticed he was there, or that he was alive. Arwan shakily hauled himself to his feet and limped off.
The Careers were too busy chasing one final alliance. DJ was flinging knives at Ember, who was able to easily dodge the horrible throws. Rachel slipped two backpacks onto her shoulders, her misty eyes briefly lingering on the bodies of the dead District 12 tributes. Jonathan had a small hatchet and a bag of his own, but was also pulling a teary Palatino along. Elana followed behind, carrying a shield.
Until one of Aurora's throwing stars embedded itself into the back of her leg.
Elana nearly collapsed, throwing her shield sideways and slamming it into Aurora's stomach. Rachel screamed as Void pushed his ally aside, grabbing a large handful of Elana's hair.
"Go!" Elana screamed. "Run, all of you! Get out of here!"
They're not gonna make it, Apollo thought to himself. Surprisingly, Rachel and DJ took off running towards the stage. Palatino and Jonathan were able to keep up with them. Amperia was still gathering supplies in the Cornucopia while Ember and Rosy retreated back inside, neither too bothered about the four escaping tributes.
Elana gasped loudly, then went still as Void drove his knife into her chest one last time.
Rachel's purple glasses were cracked in one lens, having slipped off her face. They were crushed under Void's foot as he stalked off. Elana's blood dripped from his knife, down his wrist. It was a very exhilarating sight. The exhausted Careers, standing in a ring of blood and corpses. Rosy's knife was now gone, buried back into Aldair's chest to confirm he was fully dead. Ember and Amperia were armed to the teeth while Aurora used a small towel to clean blood from the stars she had retrieved.
"Can we fire the cannons now?" Cherry asked meekly.
Apollo just nodded, glancing over at the screens beside him. "Vitals are down; we've lost them. Fire the cannons."
Eight cannons rang out for the eight truly fallen tributes. The first two for the bright-eyed and busy-tailed pair from District 12. Next was the hot-tempered lumberjack, and followed by her killer, the tiny little Career from 2. There was the girl with the scythes. The stubborn party girl who listened to nobody. The quiet team mom who sacrificed herself for her alliance. The quiet man who enjoyed electronics and engineering.
The remaining Careers huddled together, each of them choosing a weapon to use. They probably realized it would be in their best interests to go hunting, as Apollo needed them far away enough from the Cornucopia so he could pick up the bodies.
"Well..."
Apollo clapped his hands together. " That ends that. What do we think?"
"Brilliant sir!" Anthony slapped his desk. "Really! A great start to a Quell!"
"A lot to see and watch," Paige mused, sipping a mimosa. "I'm willing to bet the general public will be pleased."
The other Gamemakers nodded, while Cherry just gave him a silent thumbs up. Apollo noticed she was gritting her teeth and some of her bright blue hair had slipped over her left eye.
But for the most part, they were all satisfied. That was good news to hear. Apollo focused back onto the cameras panning out over the arena. Now that the initial excitement was dying down, there was still a lot of work left for them to do.
Current Alliances:
Careers: Void, Ember, Aurora, Rosy, Amperia
District 10 plus Synth and Alec: Alec, Ace, Merona, Synth
The big alliance that has now been cut in half: Palatino, DJ, Rachel, Jonathan
Angry Lonely Lesbian: Hera
Needs A Hug: Ezra
He could probably use some first aid: Arwan
Kills:
Void: 2 (Elana, Jenny)
Ember: 1 (Powder)
Julius: 1 (Grey)
Aurora: 2 (Deloris, Autumn)
Hera: 1 (Julius)
Rosy: 1 (Aldair)
24th place: Jennifer Gaewick, District 12. Stabbed repeatedly by Void.
You were so young, and from the start at a disadvantage. You barely even got a chance to put up a fight. Your family, friends and dogs will miss you greatly. I myself want to thank you for being one of my first tributes. -Mars
23rd place: Powder Ridell, District 12. Throat slit open by Ember.
I loved the dynamic that powder had with Jenny, there were cute best friends. But considering the fact that he started out in the arena right next to a trained Career, the odds weren't really in his favour. I wasn't entirely sure what to do with him really, and I did need bodies for the Bloodbath, so his journey ends here. Thank for Powder, 2017tnt, and you have Amperia to keep cheering on!
22nd place: Grey Hemlock, District 7. Knife thrown into the chest by Julius.
You were a feisty one, always up for a fight. Whether it be Peacekeepers or fellow tributes, you never backed down from a fight. Your brothers, sister, niece and parents will miss your fiery temper. You put up a good fight, and went down swinging. -Mars
Thanks Author-Hime for Grey!
21st place: Julius Foster, District 2. Axed repeatedly by Hera.
You were the smallest career, and the youngest. You really just wanted to make your family proud, and prove you could win, and you obviously didn't win because I'm writing this right now. Your brothers, parents and friends will miss you. You really didn't deserve to die like this kiddo. -Mars
Thanks Author-Hime for Julius!
20th place: Autumn Farro, District 9. Throwing star to the head by Aurora.
The pragmatic and practical half of her duo, I loved Autumn because she could be caring and motherly, but also take care of herself and hold her ground really well. Again, not entirely sure where I wanted her to go and unfortunately, she ends up here. But it's always great to have a younger tribute like her, and in a fight with different circumstances, she could've easily dominated it all. Thanks for her, !
19th place: Deloris Malin, District 6. Throwing stars to the head by Aurora.
The zany and unpredictable half of her duo, Deloris was a wild child right from the start. She danced to the beat of her own drum and she was involved in a ton of rather mature activities. I knew her stubborn impulsiveness would be her downfall, as well as the fact that she wasn't very strong physically and unable to stand up to Aurora. EllaRoseEverdeen, thanks so much for this spunky gal!
18th place: Elana Briar, District 11. Stabbed repeatedly by Void.
You were so brave, and an amazing mother. It wasn't your fault Carver died. Your grandmother and friends will miss you, but you're with your son now, and I hope you're happy. You were an amazing person and ally. -Mars
Thanks Necklace of Rope for Elana!
17th place: Aldair Inderia, District 5. Stabbed in the chest by Rosy and bled out.
Although Rosy caught him pretty early, Aldair places here for the simple selfish fact I wanted to give his submitter the last placement he needs. In comparison to everyone else, he and Ezra were very lowkey. And going into the Games, Aldair had some pretty shitty luck, being right next to Rosy at the start and breaking his arm after some skirmishes with other tributes. Thanks for Aldair, 20, and I hope you'll continue to cheer Void on! (or not XD)
So there was the Bloodbath! Did any of the deaths surprise you? Was there anyone you were expecting to go down and was shocked when they didn't? Are you excited to see the rest of the arena and what it has in store?
And now, with the Bloodbath finally concluded, sponsoring is officially open! Remember, everyone (submitters and readers) can now send two sponsors gifts per chapter! PM it either to Mars or me (or DM us on Discord) to send it in.
I hope you enjoyed the crazy chaotic Bloodbath, as well as everyone's first look at the arena! Stay tuned for what's next to come!
-Vr
