Kobe can emotionally feel his heart being ripped out.

Orion was more than just an ally. He was a friend. For him to risk his life to save his alliance – well, friend – was so brave and heroic of him, but Kobe wish it didn't have to end this way.

A bot visits him. The anthem plays, and it shows the face of Orion. Kobe can't help but let out a scream. The anthem doesn't finish playing as Kobe carries the bot and smashes it to the hard ground, breaking it. He does it a second time even though it's already broken. It relieves him from a bit of stress. He lets out another scream in agony. He tries to shake the thought of Orion's death away, but he can't. He'll be sleeping alone tonight whether he likes it or not.

Even though Orion was annoying at times, he was a friend to Kobe. Maybe Kobe should've tried saving Orion at least. His memory flashes him back to the bloodbath, when Orion saved him from the same person who killed Orion just now. On that last fight, Kobe was unarmed, and he didn't have the confidence to pick that battle as he couldn't win it.

He's barely got anything left with him. All he has is a slingshot, a rope, and a candle. He can't use a slingshot, and the boy from Two could throw rocks successfully even without one. He wishes he can eat the candle, as he has no food or drinks left. The rope is something he can use to just... end his life. He'll be with Orion soon. He doesn't have to be in the Hunger Games anymore, in this cruel world, in all this madness he's living in.

Kobe quickly snaps away from that thought. No. Orion would want me to avenge his death. He would rather have me win over that stupid fucktard that killed him! A plan formulates in his mind. Yes. I'm gonna find the boy from Two, and kill him myself!

But first, he needs something to eat, something to drink, and something to kill. Once he has enough of all three, he'll be ready to hunt down Rufus and make Orion proud for avenging him.


If one were to ask Brenna if she's having any good luck, she would shake her head without hesitation. A bot came to let her know hours ago that another tribute has fallen and another day has passed.

Brenna sits down and takes a break. She has barely eaten all day since yesterday, so now is a good time to do so. She has been working hard trying to find someone to kill, but with the lack of good luck, all she did was consume energy without reaping any reward.

Just like yesterday, she has no allies to watch her back. This is not how she imagined her Hunger Games journey to go, but she's better off alone like this. At the same time, if she can't find her prey, then the predators can't find her either.


Titan visits his control room after breakfast. He's not afraid to go faster than his fellow guardians. He lifts a button cover and presses the button to activate Wave Two of his sector. He looks at his monitors to see that tornadoes are popping out from all directions.

He checks for updates from his fellow guardians. Lucius's first wave just finished minutes ago. Meanwhile, the ice over Eltha's lake is melting, as a result of the temperature there rising gradually.

He feels bad for Lucius when Lucius said he didn't have anybody left in his pagoda when he activated his first wave. It's like a twist wasted, but at least Titan has tributes with him on both waves he has activated so far.


Argentum is still asleep, but Jeanne thinks it's time to hunt. It's Day Six and she has yet to make a kill. Annaleigh and Horden left them; Rufus left them; Brenna left them. Who says she can't leave her babe behind? The fact that Argentum is still snoring solidifies her decision that she can indeed go hunting without him.

Jeanne proceeds to the living room to check the bags. She noticed that they don't have much left, then she remembers that she hid her handbag in her room. She goes back to retrieve it. Inside are a slingshot, a weird piece of cloth, a compass, a bottle of olive oil, a bottle of energy drink, a bitter gourd, and throwing axes. The throwing axes are what she needs. She's better with range weapons than with the knives in the other bags. She rearranges the items from her handbag and the other two bags, getting rid of what she doesn't need and taking with her what she thinks she'll need. She also brings the spear and mirror with her and puts the latter in her handbag.

Since she has already eaten breakfast, she'll just come back for dinner. Jeanne is about to step outside, when Titan shows up.

Titan says, "Jeanne, it's too dangerous to go outside."

"You're not the boss of me!" Jeanne responds.

"I told you I'd be activating Wave Two today."

"I didn't know what that was and I frankly don't care." Jeanne can see tornadoes swirling outside, but she thinks she can get through them.

"I understand that you want to go hunting," Titan says, "but perhaps going out tomorrow when the tornadoes are gone is a better idea. Don't you think?"

"Tornadoes? Psssh! They're nothing to me." Jeanne says, "I've been here for six days and I have yet to kill a tribute. Don't worry, I'll be back before dinner."

Titan watches Jeanne leave. He shakes his head due to her stubbornness, but at the same time, maybe she will show the whole Panem why it's best not to play outside on a bad weather.

Jeanne sees tornadoes but swims away from them. Of course she's not that dumb to swim towards tornadoes. She can get through the sky without bumping into any of them. Right now, her mind is focused on hunting down at least one tribute. She needs to kill because she's proven herself to be a loser leader. Her ex-allies abandoning her says it all.

She swims past the floating island they were on a few days ago. See? Tornadoes are nothing to be afraid of. Her mind thinks of those stupid ex-allies who abandoned her. Jeanne secretly feels bad about those allies leaving her, but she's using it as fuel and motivation to make her very own big move, and that's crossing the arena with tornadoes swirling in her surroundings. She gets distracted enough in thought that she swims past floating water. Thank goodness I can swim! She swims past the bubble of water and feels refreshed. "Woohoo!"

Jeanne continues to swim as she celebrates feeling refreshed, but that celebration doesn't last long as she swims towards a tornado almost touching the bubble of water she just swam through. She screams in panic, not knowing how to escape the tornado she just swam into accidentally. Maybe she should've kept her focus on the present. It doesn't take long for lava to be swallowed in by the same tornado she's in, and she screams in panic with her fear of fire.

She's not ready to die, not after she went out to hunt after five days of zero kills. The lava spewing onto her beautiful skin makes her scream louder. She's afraid of fire. She's afraid of death. She doesn't know how to get out of here. "NO! NOT LIKE THIS! AAAAAAAAAA!" She continues to scream as the heat and pain grows stronger. Fire reaches her hair, and she screams louder. She's already in pain. Why take her beauty away too!?

Jeanne never escapes the fire tornado, and it engulfs her in a world of eternal darkness.


Lainey can't keep track how many tributes are left, but she knows it's day six already. She's hiking up the mountain as she can't decide where to go. The mountain is a dark and rocky maze. It's a mysterious dungeon, and she's finding her way up to the summit.

BOOM!

She can feel herself getting one step closer to home. She doesn't know who it is. She doesn't care who it is. She came into this arena with a secret ally, only for her to not make it out of the bloodbath. Lainey wishes she can triumphantly take out the girl from Two in revenge, but that beast is intimidating. She has no idea how to take her out. She remembers how the girl from Two slayed her ally. It makes her sick. It makes her scared. She may have the courage to put herself in this situation, but she can only hope that she can get herself out without having to face that monster.

Lainey is going to the summit expecting careers to be gone hunting. Do they even know that there's more to this arena? She hopes so, because that would mean that they would be farther from their camp. It's not every year that careers use the cornucopia as their camp, but it happens often enough for it to be predictable. If she's lucky, she can get stuff from them easily enough. If she's not, then she'll need to be patient and wait for them to go hunting.

Part of Lainey thinks she's making a dumb move, but she thinks this as a high-risk high-reward challenge. If she wants the audience to not count her out, she has to make a bold move. The Hunger Games are unpredictable, so she will only find out what she can do once she makes it to the top.


For Eltha, lunch today in Cryo Castle is special. Horden was able to fish prawns from the lake this morning, and Eltha was able to order garlic from the gamemakers to make creamy garlic prawns. She was surprised with how much prawns Horden caught, but perhaps he knew a technique. It shouldn't be a surprise since he's from Four.

"Thank you for lunch, Horden, Eltha." Annaleigh shows her appreciation with a genuine smile.

"My pleasure," Eltha responds with a smile of satisfaction.

"No worries," Horden says as he takes a first bite on his prawn.

After a moment of silence for the lack of discussion, Annaleigh's curiosity perks up.

"Eltha, may I ask about the bracelet on your hand?"

"Oh!" Eltha reacts in surprise. "It's like a part of my costume. It's for aesthetic."

Annaleigh isn't satisfied with the answer, and Eltha can see it through her eyes.

Eltha continues, "But, it has powers."

There we go, thinks Annaleigh. Now her speculation has been confirmed.

"The powers are special, and as the guardian of the water sector, it grants me water-related powers."

"Ooh!" Horden asks, "Will it work if other people use it?"

"It only works inside the arena," answers Eltha. "I only got this when I first arrived here. Every guardian has one."

Annaleigh plans for something big. She wants it. It's an arena-themed weapon, so it will come in handy when she gets into a fight with a tribute without prior training. It doesn't matter who they are. She can wipe out the girl from Two with that cuff. She just has to know how it's used.

"Can we see how it works?" Annaleigh asks.

Eltha hesitates, but she gives in to Annaleigh's calculating eyes. Eltha makes a mental note to watch out for her. Eltha looks at the glass of milk in front of her. She puts a hand on her cuff, and a bit of milk rises from the glass. She uses the finger on her other hand and waves it around in random directions. The string of milk follows her finger movements. She then puts it back on her glass of milk.

Horden claps and reacts, "Wow! I wasn't expecting that."

"That's pretty cool," Annaleigh comments.

Eltha and Annaleigh make eye contact once again. Eltha knows Annaleigh is up to something, and it can't be good for Eltha herself.


Chip can see the colors of sunset. For him, it means another day has passed and another time of darkness will be arriving shortly. He has a flashlight and a pair of night-vision goggles, so he's not worried. No one is in the forest with him, and he's very sure of that because he's been anticipating since yesterday. Walking in the forest feels like he's the only human alive in the world, except there was no apocalypse that caused it. There aren't even mutts in the forest. It's just him and the forest, but he knows he's being watched. He hasn't forgotten that he's still in the Hunger Games.

He continues to explore the forest while it isn't very dark yet. He noticed that it's less cold than yesterday, as wearing the same amount of clothing as yesterday would make him feel warmer. He reaches a point in his exploration that there's a transparent tint on the way. He looks around. It's a short clearing from the forest. This can only mean one thing: He has reached the border of the arena. The transparent tint is the force field. He remembers being told in the factory that force fields could kill back in the day. After the suicide squad bloodbath a few decades ago, they made sure not to electrocute tributes if they reach the force field. He uses his left hand to touch the force field. It feels like a wall but with an electrifying feel in it. He wasn't alive when there was a time that tributes used force fields to their advantage. He wonders how that was done.

After getting a feel of the force field, he turns around and explores in another direction. He doesn't return into the forest anymore. He can just follow this narrow clearing between the force field and the forest. To his right is the forest. To his left is the clearing, extending to the vast reaches until it reaches a cliff, perhaps a canyon.

Hours later, he reaches the mountain. He hasn't seen it up close since day one when he was still with his allies. It may be dark, but with his flashlight, he carefully climbs over the mountain. Since he's at the border of the arena, he can see where the mountain ends. It's not within his reach, but he can see it.

As he climbs over the lower part of the mountain, he can see a gigantic hole dug, where there's a chaotic mess of tornadoes spinning everywhere. He decides to rest on top of the mountainside for now. Not only is it getting dark, but it's too dangerous to explore the edge. He can see water, lava, mud, rocks, and clouds floating around the gigantic hole, and that's making him think that there's a zero-gravity part in this arena. It's not the first time that there's something like this in the Hunger Games. It doesn't take him too long to figure out. He's just thinking if it could've been something else instead.

Chip tries to see the bottom of the hole, but he can't see it. He looks across, but it's a vast nothingness that looks like the sky stretching forever. It's about to be the same when he looks to his left, to the direction of the force field, but he could see a thick line as he was making his way through here. He finds it interesting that gamemakers can build something like this. For the programming factory to be able to replicate this arena would be cool.

He hasn't seen a tribute for the day, but he sees the beauty of the border of the arena. He'll be safe here for the night. His algorithm tells him so.


Filly, Dorian, and Corinna live inside the mountain for another night.

Corinna says, "Let's never leave each other until the end. Good night guys!"

"Good night!" Filly reciprocates.

Dorian is concerned that nothing is happening to them. The gamemakers could come after them soon. He has two meat shields though, and if this girl doesn't want to let go of either of them, then this is good for his game, defense-wise. It's night six, and even though they're not yet halfway through, it's already the midpoint for some games in the past. Even for a few games, they've ended as early as night six. Dorian can't remember which ones. Regardless, he thinks this is a good time to make big moves. Only thing he has to do is take the opportunity when it presents itself right in front of him.

Filly misses his family so much. It's been over a week since he was taken away from them. He can't stop thinking of them, and he thinks he's gonna cry once again. He misses his friends too! He misses home so so much. He wants to live life with so much… kindness. He thought of the word fullest, and it brought him to think of Thomas. No, not again. He let his tears flow freely.

BOOM!

Filly makes himself alert. He gets up from his position, and it may be too dark to see everything clearly, but he can see something tackling him.

It's Dorian!

"Dorian!?" Filly cries in confusion. He turns to Corinna to see her just still. He can faintly see a knife stuck on her chest, and he screams.

Dorian holds Filly on a choke hold. This is the right time to betray his allies. It was unexpected for them, and the viewers. It was also unexpected on other nights, but he couldn't just get rid of his meat shields immediately. Now, he's not holding himself back anymore with these two just tagging along with him. His meat shields were of no use when he could escape a marble tower all by himself when he saw trained killers approaching. "OW!"

Filly wiggles away from Dorian's grip as he bites his ex-ally's arm. He runs away from him. He runs away from poor dead Corinna, who also did nothing to deserve this. He didn't know why he was subjected to this fate, but he's glad it wasn't him. He would rather be alone than be with an ally who could kill him. How could he be so naive!?

Filly has nothing left. He has no more allies and no supplies anymore. He has his life at least, and even if he could attempt to go back and get the food he got from the tower, it's not worth the risk. Why did Dorian do this!? is a question Filly himself can't answer. He's just crying out of panic and confusion.

Filly considers this his second chance in life, and he's not gonna waste his life like how he almost did just moments ago.


Larry sighs disappointingly with how the events unfolded. Another year without a co-mentor.

"Well, that's all we got, team," Sylvia says in a neutral tone. She didn't want to be sad, but she shakes her head now that both Twelve tributes are dead. "Let's have one last group hug."

Totochan, Anino, and Larry come closer to Sylvia for a farewell group hug, as both Twelve tributes have fallen at this point. They wouldn't need to stay in the lounge any longer as their chances for victory have sank all the way down to zero.

"I can't believe Corinna went out just like that," Totochan reacts in disbelief.

"See you whenever, wherever," says Anino before leaving the lounge. Totochan follows short after.

"How about you?" Sylvia asks Larry.

"Shouldn't I be asking you the same thing?"

"I'm staying here until the end."

"I'll go home tomorrow."

"You're going back to the villa?"

"Yes," Larry replies. "Good night."

"Night!" greets Sylvia back. When Larry said he'll go home tomorrow, Sylvia is reminded of the District Seven team. Orion died last night, and they only went home earlier today. Calient and Jakobbo haven't been back either. Royce is still in the Capitol, but Sylvia doesn't see him coming to the lounge.

At the District Four team's table, two mentors, one stylist, and the escort discuss.

"Shame on Jeanne," comments Ezairlayne. "She should've waited."

"Shame on the gamemakers, and on Titan!" Rogue shakes her head. "She was robbed. She's from Four. They should've let her through."

"Titan let her through, but she should've known better," Delta says. "I should've known better too instead of picking her to volunteer."

"She had potential." Tommy sips on his tea. "Hopefully Horden won't do the same."

"By the way, I talked to Velle yesterday." Delta stirs her orange juice. "She's mentoring next year."

"Velella Tahiti?" Rogue asks.

"Mmhm," Delta responds with a nod while sipping a bit of orange juice.

"I miss Velle!" Ezairlayne reacts giddily. "How about her co-mentor?"

"I haven't talked to anyone." Tommy smiles nervously. "We'll decide when the time comes."

"Okay!" Ezairlayne says excitedly. "I'll miss you two after this year."

At the District Five team's table, they notice the District Four team missing the other stylist. Actually, none of the Tristen triplets are here, but they are said to be at home supporting their respective tributes. The Umbra twins aren't here either. At least Caitlin and Maggie have Valtron with them every night.

"I came at the right time to witness that huh," says Valtron. "I feel bad for the kid."

"I feel bad for him too!" Maggie expresses. "He needs to be sponsored something right now, but nobody is gonna remember him aside from being a crybaby every night. That's not gonna get him sponsors."

"Actually, nobody has been sponsoring lately." Caitlin draws as she talks to her fellow team members.

"Yeah," agrees Maggie.

"I'm gonna try to help, but it might not come immediately. I don't know how much time we have before it's too late," Valtron says.

"I'm scared for Filly, but now that he's away from that vile creature who was his ally, I hope everything gets better for him," shares Maggie.

At the District Ten table are two mentors. Mavine hasn't visited them, and Valentine was only in the lounge during Day Three.

"I can't find anyone to sponsor Kobe," says Kylene with a tired voice.

"I'm also trying, Ky," Abraham says. "Let's keep trying, and maybe we can help him get something soon."

"O-Okay," stutters Kylene.

"At least Arlenna isn't doing poorly."

"Yeah."

The two mentors can see on the television that Arlenna is helping her injured ally. The two girls have been moving a lot for the whole day, but they haven't been lucky. They're out of food and out of water. They're talking about plans to find an exit soon though.

The screen switches briefly to Argentum watching a movie with Titan in Topland Tower. After that is Annaleigh and Horden trying out the ice beds in Cryo Castle.

"I'm hoping for Annaleigh to do something soon," Ace shares to her team, composed of the substitute escort and the two stylists.

"Me too!" pipes Spring.

Frank says, "What about Argentum?"

"He's done nothing!" Ace starts. "All he did was play with a ukulele and a bird who's now dead. He isn't into killing. I wonder why he even volunteered! He needs better motivation, because he doesn't look like he's leaving that tower, like ever!"

Concordia shares, "What should we do then?"

"I don't know, watch him die when he does?" Ace responds.

"He might be useless now, but what if Annaleigh-" Frank gets interrupted.

Ace retorts, "Annaleigh is NOT dying before Argentum, OKAY!? She's about to make a big move with that cuff. What makes you think she's going before Argentum, huh!?"

"I just thought of the possibility," Frank shares.

"I thought it was possible too," says Spring. "But they're both safe inside, so we shouldn't worry."

The District Two team can see on the TV screen that Rufus has himself in a corner, hiding while still injured.

Joan says, "It's a good thing he has the first aid to himself."

"Yeah," agrees Cyrus. "He can take care of himself."

"He's made enough kills to just hide there for a few days and still get sponsor goodies," says Tasrita.

"Yeah, but sponsoring has been weak lately," Ganymede says.

"Rufus just needs food soon," says Joan. "He can survive a few more days without food."

"Brenna's fine too," states Leif.

"Yeah, except she hasn't killed since the bloodbath," says Joan.

"Yeah, but she never even went up or down the stairs she passed," Cyrus adds. "She's not getting any luck because she's limiting herself to the floor she's in."

Joan shakes her head and sighs.

"Don't worry, I think she'll figure it out," Ganymede says.

"She has to figure it out soon," believes Tasrita.

Leif asks, "So I'll try to look for food I can send Rufus?"

"Yes please," Joan says.

The screen switches to Kobe still inside the mountain and not knowing where to go. It then switches to Chip resting atop the border between Sectors One and Two.

Renz states, "He hasn't bumped into anyone after seeing the two careers entering the castle."

"He'll get his chance to kill, Renz," Hazel says. "I know he will. He's not like the ones you said that are not willing to kill."

"Yeah, but he has to show it," Renz says. "I can't just blindly believe that what you're saying is true."

Hazel sighs.

Cate says, "I'm waiting for the foreshadowings to happen."

Anakyn then returns to his team's table with drinks for everyone. He's glad he doesn't have to worry about Chip in the meantime. He still feels bad for Tira though.

"Thanks bud!" Renz fistbumps with Anakyn.

Hazel and Cate follow what Renz just did shortly after.

"No worries," responds Anakyn. He's glad he doesn't have to fight anyone talking crap about his tribute anymore. He didn't want to do it again. "Glad Chip didn't cross the line on the arena."

"Haha!" Cate laughs. "Nice one, Anakyn."

"I'm glad he knows what he's doing," says Renz.

Hazel raises her glass. "We're all rooting for Chip to take home the crown now. I have strong hope in him."

"Me too," Anakyn says.

"Me three," follows Renz.

On TV is Ingeo sleeping inside Mudland Mansion. The screen then switches to Lainey who reaches the summit just now.

Vamp calls the attention of his district team. "Guys!"

Karla, Olaf, and Trav look to his direction. Vamp points at the television, and they can all see Lainey inspecting her surroundings.

"That's one lucky girl right there," Olaf says. "I'm not really against her going to the summit, but I wouldn't have done the same."

"What is that?" Karla asks as she sees Lainey get something from behind one of the pedestals.

"Oh my gosh," whispers Lainey in excitement and relief.

Trav says, "Ingeo is safe, and Lainey has an advantage now, so we shouldn't really worry, right?"

"I don't know if I would worry for Ingeo," says Karla. "He hasn't been doing anything, and he now has a straw hat in his room because he still thinks he's a farming intern in the middle of the Hunger Games."

"It's a weird occurrence," comments Olaf. "But it's part of the arena's many twists."

Vamp says, "The typical Capitolite audience would see them as nothing though. They're only gonna think that Rufus is dominating the game as of now. I wonder why District Two picked this kid as their tribute for the year, but given his performance, I guess everything makes sense. They wanted to throw off the other districts."

"Really?" Trav says. "Isn't it possible for it to be an accident?"

"I don't see how," Olaf says.

"I don't think it's impossible," reacts Karla.

Olaf and Karla gave each other weird looks with their contrasting responses.

The District Nine team can see Dorian staying in his spot after betraying one ally and failing to betray another.

Chay says, "I love betrayal!"

"Oh, wait until it happens to you," Amaya says.

"I've never been betrayed, but I love seeing it," Chay says nonchalantly.

Alana sighs. "I feel bad for Filament. He might think the District Nine team taught Dorian to betray. If he wins, he might hate us."

"That's not even something we should be worrying." Amaya pats Alana's back.

Neomett is sleeping on one of the vacant couches in the lounge. He likes staying here, but he's not really doing anything besides hanging around, eating, and sleeping. One can wonder why he doesn't get fat with that lifestyle for days.

"Look!" Alana points at the television, and almost everyone in the lounge watches Filly find an exit to one of the four sectors. Filly questions where he is, but he finds himself panickily running into a slightly rainy mudland.

"Go Filly! Woohoo!" cheers Maggie from the District Five team's table.

With thirteen tributes left, these Games are getting closer and closer to the end. For one of these district teams, it will be happy to celebrate its latest victor soon enough.


15th Place: Jeanne Maxima, D4, submitted by dreams and desperation. Burned while caught on tornado. Jeanne's death has been planned for a long time just like Dante's. I couldn't see her going far and dominating despite her being the dominant type. She was stubborn enough to end in this path, and a death like this is unique if you ask me. I enjoyed writing her arrogance and desire to look good while still in the Hunger Games. I got to create some funny moments with her dynamic with Argentum. She's the arrogant career that adds some flavor to this story. Thanks for her, Crystal! :)

14th Place: Corinna Pickett, D12, submitted by Astronaughty. Knife to heart by Dorian Belcorn of D9. I considered her for bloodbath at some point, but I kept her around to spread the number of deaths in a Hunger Games I plan to last for at least two weeks. Also, people like her very much. I might've killed her in the bloodbath if we had a stronger cast. I like that she's super nice and optimistic. I couldn't take her anywhere, but I love writing her friendship with Macy. I got to write interesting dialogues by using her sheltered lifestyle when she's talking to her escort. She wasn't anywhere near victor material for sure, but she's still awesome. Thanks for her! :)

I'm gonna have a poll up soon, so keep an eye out for that. Also, I haven't received a sponsor gift in a while. It can still affect tributes' fates, so if you wanna send something, just send it through PM!

Hope you enjoyed the chapter! :)