Breaking Point Sextet IV
Tempest: The 73rd Hunger Games
Chapter Fifteen
Train Rides Pt. 1
Luxury "Lux" Duval –16- -D1- POV
After leaving the Justice Building, I posed for the publicity pictures with Dax, although there was no train, and then… wait, I feel sort of groggy. That's odd. I open my eyes. I'm on a bed on a moving train, I realize quickly. I sit upright. The room is artificially light because it's dark outside. The train is moving though. This isn't right. I quickly get up and walk out of my room, looking both ways down the train car. One door is clearly the way to go, the other one looks like where the Peacekeepers must sleep. Heading that way, I find the dining car, where my mentor, Jennifer White, a twenty-four-year-old woman with blonde hair and blue eyes, is waiting.
She stifles a yawn as she greets me. "Hello, Luxury. Please, take a seat." I do, sitting at the table across from her. "Coffee?" She asks, holding out a pot of the stuff. "Takes the edge of those sedatives."
"Yes, thank you," I say, deciding that being polite is probably a good idea right now. "What's going on though?"
Jennifer fills a mug with coffee and slides it across to me. I sniff it before taking a drink. I don't smell any drugs, although I don't know how I got here, so…
"The trains were running late due to increased security," Jennifer says, gesturing at the Peacekeepers guarding the inside door of the car, who I hadn't thought much about, "but they couldn't have most people knowing that, so they sedated you until the train got here and then quietly put you aboard. You'll get there about twelve hours later, but the Capitol will just say that the photos they send out were delayed for some crap technical reason and no one will be the wiser. You also, can't, you know, tell anyone about this."
I nod. "I understand. Why did they think they needed increased security?" I take another sip of the coffee, feeling the fog in my mind evaporate away as the coffee floods it.
"I don't know," Jennifer says. "All I know is that L- someone important decided that's what needed to happen." She shrugs. "Anyway, I hope Dax wakes up soon, we can get to our discussions and threat assessment. I guess I can do my usual questions for you," she yawns again and takes a drink of coffee, "before he gets here. I am assuming that you want to ally with him and the careers, right, Luxury?"
"Yes, of course. I'm not stupid," I say. "And, Lux, please."
"Lux," she nods. "Good to hear. Oh, and nice to meet you. I don't think I said that."
I smile diplomatically. "No, you didn't. Nice to meet you too, Jennifer." We shake hands.
"So, questions," she says. "First, do you have a boyfriend, a family?"
"No boyfriend or girlfriend," I say. "Just my parents and I, along with my friends."
"Good," she says. "Why are you here?"
"I was chosen to volunteer, I've been training since I was twelve and I'll stop and nothing to win," I say.
"I see," Jennifer says. "But why are you here? Why did you train, volunteer? Why do you want to win?"
"Because I want the glory, the fame. Because I will do it," I say with vehemence.
"Um-hum," Jennifer says. "So, next question. Do you deserve to win?"
I consider lying. No, that doesn't seem useful. "Yes," I say. "And I'll make it happen."
"This," Jennifer says with a sigh, "is the point where I usually give a speech about how no one deserves to win, but somehow I doubt it'd get through to you, and," she yawns, "I'm really tired. But I'll try. Look, Lux, you don't deserve to win. No one deserves to win the Hunger Games. Not me, not you, not that girl from Twelve, no one. Got that?"
I don't answer for a second. I might as well just say yes, I guess, otherwise she'll probably keep monologuing. "Yeah," I say.
"No you don't," she says. "But you never well. They never do."
"Hey!" I start to say, but she cuts me off with a wave of her hand.
"Lux, don't argue with me. It's too early. Have a scone," she hands me the plate of scones across the table. I take it from her and angrily snatch one scone. I really want to shout at her, but fighting with my mentor won't get me anything. A minute later, Dax enters.
Dax Lingery –17- -D1- POV
After I wake up, I head to the dining car, where I find Lux and Jennifer already seated. After I ask Jennifer what happened and she gives me a brief explanation, she starts my questioning.
"Girlfriend, family?" Jennifer asks me.
"No, yes," I say. "Just my mom and grandma."
"What happened to your father?" Jennifer asks.
I think back to that day and shudder, my father's eyes still haunting me. "Uh, I… don't know," I say.
"I see," Jennifer says with a tone that says that she doesn't believe me. "So, Dax, why are you here?"
"I was the chosen volunteer," I say, "and I've always loved the Games, so it made sense to win them."
"For the glory?" Jennifer asks.
"Yeah," I say, taking a sip of coffee.
"I see," she says. "Do you deserve to win?"
"Uh…," I look at Lux, who silently mouths 'no'. "No," I say.
"Good," Jennifer says. "Now that we've got that out of the way, let's begin our threat assessment. Help yourself to some scones." She pulls up videos of the other Reapings and starts with her threat assessment.
District Two: "These two will be your allies, normal careers. Strong, don't try to directly fight them if you can help it."
District Three: "The girl is smart, but she's neither strong nor focused. Still, if she gets some allies, she could wreak havoc on you with her intelligence. You don't want to end up like the careers from last year." Yeah, that's for sure. "The boy is young, thin, and weak. He shouldn't be a threat."
District Four: "The girl… she's only fourteen, and she volunteered. She'll be your ally, but watch out for her. She clearly has a lot of potential. The boy is strong, probably smart, fairly average for you and your allies. As always, watch out for him."
District Five: "The girl could be a threat, that arm gives her some good power. Apart from that, I wonder if it can come off, because if so, you could use it against her. Keep an eye out for her. The boy is strong, looks smart enough, he could be a threat."
District Six: "The girl's nothing special. She shouldn't be a problem. The boy is sort of small and fast, that could be an issue, but it shouldn't be."
District Seven: "The girl shouldn't be a problem. Neither should the boy. I wonder why he volunteered. Maybe he's just stupid."
District Eight: "That girl has a lot of confidence, but she's young and weak. She shouldn't be a threat at all. The boy could be a useful ally or a hard to defeat enemy. Try to make sure he's your ally, at least for the first few days."
District Nine: "The girl is nothing. So is the boy."
District Ten: "The girl's strong, she could be a bit of a threat. The same for the boy, I also wonder why he volunteered."
District Eleven: "She's athletic, level-headed, she could be a bit of a threat. The boy is also strong and might be a threat, although he won't be making any allies more than likely, so he should be easy to deal with."
District Twelve: "Neither of them are anything more than kills. I swear they get weaker every year, those coal miners."
Parker Hensley –18- -D2- POV
Where am I? A train. It's… night, or early morning, I realize as I open my eyes. The train is moving, probably to the Capitol because… I volunteered. Right. I don't remember getting here, though. I need to find Iron. I poke my head out of my cabin. He must be in the dining car. Ooh, food. I could use food too. Lots of food. I open the door to the dining car to find Iron Flint, our blond-haired, blue-eyed, twenty-eight-year-old mentor.
"Ah, Parker, you're awake," he says. "Come, eat, drink. There's coffee, scones, breakfast bread, all sorts of delicious food."
"Thank you," I say, sitting down and grabbing a piece of breakfast bread from the table. "What's going on? Why is it so late? Why can't I remember getting here?"
"It's actually early," Iron says, smiling. "And that's because the Capitol felt the trains needed extra security so they delayed them until they could spare the Peacekeepers, but they didn't want anyone in the Districts knowing."
"Well that's stupid," I say. "Especially for someplace like Two. They think I'm, what, going to try to escape?"
Iron laughs and shrugs his shoulders. "I don't know, Parker. It's not my department, so to speak. I just wish I didn't have to get up so early."
"I wish I wasn't drugged," I say.
He laughs again. "I think we're going to get along well, Parker. Now, tell me, I'm assuming you'll be allying with the careers?"
"Yes," I say, before quickly taking another bite of bread.
"Good. So, we're going to want to…"
Lysander Demetrius Spiros –18- -D2- POV
I wake up groggy and on a train. By the time I reach the dining car, Parker and Iron are already engaged in conversation about strategy, but Iron looks up when I open the door.
"Ah, hello, Lysander," he says. "Please, come in, eat, discuss with us. We were just discussing the finer points of your and Miss Parker's strategy."
And so, with nothing better to do, I enjoy a Capitol breakfast and strategy discussion until we arrive at the Capitol after Iron fills me in on the details about the trains and drugs.
Diana Axel –18- -D3- POV
They say you don't dream while under sedation. Evidently, that's not true. Or, it is. But after I woke up from the sedatives, I fell back asleep immediately, since I guess the stress of the day was enough to cause me to sleep normally. And I certainly did dream then. First were the good, normal dreams. Dreams about Vax, mostly. One about being recognized for my inventions that have helped save Panem. Then came the weird dreams. The ones about weird mutts tearing me apart, about my family leaving me, about a twisted Vax eating me… ugh. I wake up with a start, sweating, on the very nice and surprisingly comfortable bed of the train. What happened? It's dark out, but it hasn't been more than a day, so it's either the night or the early morning. I'm on the train, and there was no train when I took those pictures. The trains normally arrive at the Capitol in the evening. So, the train must have been late and they didn't want me to be awake to wait. Okay, gotcha. I guess I should go find my mentor. Who is it again? It would be the last Victor, who was… Jack Snow (no relation), from five years ago. I stand up from my bed and walk out of the room. Looking one way done the hallway is clearly a room that I'm not supposed to be in, and the door across the hall has Wave's name on it, so not either of those options. That leaves the last option, the door that must lead to the dining car. Walking down the hallway and through the door, I see Jack Snow waiting for me, with his brown hair and blue eyes.
"Hello, Diana," he says. He stifles a yawn. "How are you this morning?"
"Worried. Tired from the sedatives," I say.
He raises an eyebrow. "How do you know you were sedated?"
"It's pretty obvious," I say. "I mean, why else would it be morning and I have fallen asleep? Evidently, the train was late and I wasn't supposed to know until later, probably so I couldn't tell anybody," I see.
"Exactly," Jack says. "Good job, Diana. You're smart, aren't you?"
"I like to think so," I say.
"Please sit down, Diana," Jack says, motioning to the seat in front of him. I do. "We have much to discuss. First of all, would you like allies? Or coffee?" He asks as he sees me yawn.
"I don't drink coffee," I say, "my parents say I don't need the extra stimulation."
"I see," he says. "Very well." He pours himself a cup. "What about my first question, allies?"
I think for a second. All of the recent winners, apart from Miria, have had allies, and you could argue that Miria didn't win on her own, she only won because of the sacrifices of those two boys, who were only in that position because they did have allies. So then, the answer seems clear. "Yes," I say.
"Good," Jack says. "I feel this should be obvious, but some people don't think it is. You're not going to get into the careers, nor would you want to."
I nod. "I don't want to be a part of such a crazy and unstable alliance."
Jack smiles. "Smart girl. So, I guess we should watch the Reapings and figure out who you want as allies, hmm?"
"I guess so," I say. At that moment, Wave pokes his head in the door.
Wave Llano O'Rialy –14- -D3- POV
"Hey, guys," I say, poking my head through the door of the dining car. "Can I come in?"
Jack looks at Diana. "I believe so, we were just about to watch the Reapings. Afterward, we can discuss your strategy privately. Unless, of course, you want to ally with Miss Diana." I consider that proposition for a second as I move to take a seat next to her. She's older, eighteen, and while she doesn't look that strong or fast, she's probably smart, given how she dresses and acts. Either that or she's just a really absentminded person who likes to dress for comfort rather than attractiveness, but that seems less likely.
"Sure," I say. "We can be allies if Diana wants to."
Diana looks at me, looking me over. "Sure," she says. "One ally for now, and we discuss strategy together then. Wave, would you be open to expanding this little alliance?"
"Of course," I respond without hesitation. We're going to need someone who can fight, after all.
Diana Axel –18- -D3- POV
After the conversation with Jack is over, we've identified several potential alliance targets, including the pair from five, the girl from Nine, the boy from Ten, and the girl from Six. Once we're done, I leave the dining car to head back to my room, supposedly to change into something more fitting for the Capitol. And while I will do that, my first priority is to make sure that the note from my father is still there and see what it is. I head into the bathroom, where there shouldn't be any cameras (hopefully), and I turn on the shower, to hopefully drown out any noise I might make. Besides, I will need a shower, at some point. I pull the note out of my pocket, where it still is, luckily. I guess they didn't search me that thoroughly. I unfold it carefully and read it. Diagrams and notes are scrawled across the single page in Dad's handwriting, and I'm amazed that he managed to fit so much information on one page. Although it's his handwriting, it's a sloppier version, and the diagrams are crude, although good enough to get the point across. What I'm staring at seems to be a theory about how to break through the side of the Arena and escape. But that would be treason. Haymitch Abernathy used the side to bounce a weapon off of and the Capitol didn't like that. If I tried to breach the Arena, they would kill me. And besides, even if I managed to get out, a trickier proposition than normal this year since I won't be on the surface most of the time, where would I go?
Mari Simone –14- -D4- POV
I wake up groggy. Let's see, it must be, oh, hey, there's a clock. Only one in the morning, it seemed later. Why was I drugged though? Oh, probably so I didn't try to escape or anything while I was waiting. Got it. Okay. Time to go meet my mentor. I walk through the train into the dining car, where Margaret Adams, our middle-aged, dark-skinned, dark-haired, dark-eyed mentor waits.
"Good morning, Mari Simone," she says. "The youngest career ever from Four. Congratulations."
"Thank you," I say. "Margaret Adams, I presume?"
"Yes," she says. "Pleasure to meet you, Mari." She extends her hand and I shake it.
"Pleasure to meet you as well, Margaret," I say. I sit down.
"I presume you'll want to get right to strategy, then?" Margaret asks.
"Yes," I say.
"Okay," she says. "So, obviously, you'll be allied with the Tributes from One and Two, not Three. There's one other person you might want to consider, and he will certainly ask to join you. That person is Erwin Reiss-Ferrer. There's another person who might try to join you, a Caden Toson. He's not worth it, I wouldn't worry about him. Now, on to general strategy…"
Ripple Fischer –18- -D4- POV
I wake up after a weird dream. I volunteered for the Hunger Games and then Elias kissed me and… crap. That wasn't a dream. I did really volunteer for the Hunger Games, I'm on a train to the Capitol, and Elias did kiss me. Why I was knocked out, I don't know, but it must just be something the Capitol does. Whatever. I should go meet Margaret.
I do go and meet Margaret and Mari and we talk strategy for a bit. I keep thinking about Elias though, which I can't do. I need to have a clear head. I can't be worrying about… about all that. Not here. Not now. So, I focus on Mari to distract myself. She's actually sort of cute if you look at her. She reminds me of Sol, with even more energy and exuberance. It's a shame I'll have to kill her.
Alora Bell –18- -D5- POV
I wake up groggy. Looking over at the clock, it's two in the morning. Yeesh. I slept for a long time – wait. No, that's right, I did. Since it was morning when I was… was what? Sedated, that's it. Since I was sedated. Those sedatives must have been industrial strength, probably… well, I don't know, except that the trains usually arrive in the Capitol by the evening, so evidently something went wrong, and maybe they didn't want me to escape? I don't know. Whatever. I need to go meet Ashley. So, I head to the dining car, where Dean and Ashley are already talking.
"Ah, Alora!" Ashley says, her brown eyes glowing at me from under her tan skin. She stands up and moves to hug me, her brown hair moving slightly in its side braid. I return the hug, somewhat surprised. She actually looks a lot like Amber. Almost exactly. It's a little creepy, although she obviously didn't mean anything by it. She's sort of pretty too, but not like Amber. That's an odd thought, that a girl is pretty. "How are you?" She asks. "Those sedatives didn't hurt you too much, did they?"
"Uh, no," I say. "I'm fine, thank you for asking. Uh, how are you?"
"Oh, I'm just fine," she says. "I may have had slightly too much coffee so that I could stay up all night instead of just sleeping for a few hours, but that's okay. Please, sit, meet Dean."
"Hey, Dean," I say, extending my hand to him. "How are you?"
He shakes my hand with a smile. "Fairly well, all things considered. Ashley has been wonderful, we were just talking about strategy. Say, Alora, you look strong enough. Would you be willing to ally with me and possibly others?"
I think about it for a second. "How many others?" I ask.
"As many as we can get, ideally," he says.
"You're thinking of doing something like the Outliers?" I ask.
"Yes," Dean says. "Hopefully. And hopefully, it'll work out better for us than it did for them."
"Yeah, hopefully," I say. I consider it for a second. A lot of allies is a lot of people who can stab you in the back. On the other hand, a lot of allies are a lot of people who will fight for you, and, as long as they're decently good people, will have your back in a fight. "Okay," I say. "I'm in."
Dean Solaris –18- -D5- POV
I wake up on the train groggy and in the dark. Why… I must have been drugged. Actually, I remember feeling a needle in my neck right before I passed out. For whatever reason, they must have put me asleep to cover up the schedule change. Odd, but I'm not the Capitol. They're all odd. I guess I should go meet Ashley.
"Dean!" Ashley says when I walk in. "Good to see you. Doing alright after those sedatives?" She stands up.
"Uh, yeah, I'm doing fine. A little groggy is all," I say.
She stands up. "Mind if I give you a hug?"
"Not at all," I say. I hug her quickly and we sit down.
"So, Dean, I guess we should start talking about your strategy," she says.
I nod. "I guess so."
"First, coffee?" She asks. "I know those sedatives don't wear off that quickly."
"Yes, please," I say. "Thank you."
"No problem," she says as she hands me over a cup of steaming hot coffee. "So, Dean, what are your initial thoughts? Do you want allies, to go solo, some sort of mix? My advice would be to go for allies, as many as you can."
"I was thinking of having allies," I say, "but I wasn't sure about how many. A big alliance didn't seem to work out too well last year."
"It might have seemed like that," Amber says, "but they actually did fairly well. For one, no other alliance has defeated the careers as soundly as they have, when the careers haven't taken any losses. Second, one person did live. And there's one point that I think makes this strategy a good one for this year."
"What's that?" I ask.
"Well, the Outliers strategy was based on a static defense, right?" Ashley asks.
"Yeah," I say. "That's how they managed to do so much damage to the careers."
"Right," she says. "And this year, the Games will be in tunnels…"
"Oh," I say, quickly getting where she's going. "So it'll be much easier to set an effective trap."
"Exactly," she says. "And the careers strategy isn't generally very flexible, so they'll probably run headlong into any trap you set."
"Fair point," I say. "Okay, so a big alliance then."
"That would be your best chance for success, in my opinion, yes," she says.
"Okay. That's what I'll do then," I say. At that moment, the door opens, and Alora walks in.
Chleo "Leo" Afeall –18- -D6- POV
I wake up groggy and with no memory of how I got here. The last thing I remember, I was in the Justice Building and – wait, the ground is moving. That's not good – I must be on a train. The train to the Capitol. They must have sedated me or something. Odd, but okay. I guess I should go find Miria.
When I walk in, Miria and Anton are already conversing in hushed tones.
"Good morning, Chleo," Miria says. "The first thing you should know is that Anton has asked to train separately, so if you could wait outside for just a minute more, we'll finish up, and then you can come in."
"Oh, uh, okay," I say, stepping back out of the room. Well, I guess I'm not allying with Anton. Not that I necessarily wanted to, but still, he didn't even meet me before making his decision. Oh well, I guess.
A minute later, Anton comes out of the dining car.
"You can head in," he says. "And, Chleo?"
"Yeah?" I ask.
"It's nothing personal, I'd just prefer to be a little cautious with my allies, okay? Maybe we can ally up at some point, just not now. I want to see who everyone else is first. Make sense?"
"Yeah," I say. "I get it. That's okay."
"Awesome," he says. "You seem like a nice enough person, we'll just have to see."
"Yeah," I say. "I'm gonna, uh, head in now."
"Oh, yeah, okay. Go for it," he says. I walk into the dining car where Miria waits.
"Good morning, Chleo," she says. "Please, sit. Coffee? Tea?" I sit down.
"Tea, thank you," I say, seeing that she herself has a cup of tea. "And call me Leo, please."
"Of course, Leo. Call me Ria," she says. I nod.
"Of course, Ria," I smile at her.
"So, first off, I'm sorry. I know that this sort of really sucks," she smiles at me as she drops a teabag in a cup and hands it to me, "but there's nothing I can do about it besides o my best to help you get home." I nod. "So, Leo, what would you say are your biggest Games-related strengths?"
"Well, I've always been good with my hands, holding stuff steady, throwing stuff," I say. "On the other hand, I'm a pretty horrible runner, and my hearing is sort of shot in one ear."
"You guessed my next question," Miria smiles. "Okay, well, we can work with that. You just need to not need to run really fast most of the time."
"Don't you need to run really fast in the Bloodbath?" I ask her.
"Yes," Ria says, "but only if the careers are focused on you. You just need to make sure that they're focused on someone else."
"Gotcha," I say. "So, keep a low profile."
"Exactly," she says. "Now, next question: do you want allies?"
"Most definitely," I say. "I think it might be the only way I make it out of this."
She nods. "I may not have had allies, per se, but without others' sacrifices, I wouldn't necessarily be here today." I nod. I know what she means. "I watched the other Reapings last night, and I have a few recommendations for you about allies…"
Anton Levinson –16- -D6- POV
I wake up on the train, in the dark. I quickly realize that I must have been drugged, this feels like one of the drugs we carry, albeit in a lower, legal, concentration. Not that I've ever had it, but I've had its effects described to me. Shaking off the effects of the sedative – I wonder if they do this every year? No, probably not. Normally there's a train in the photos they take – unless they just edit it in. I don't know, maybe, maybe not. Whatever. I should go meet Miria.
When I get to the dining car, I'm the only one there.
"Hey, Miria," I say.
"Good morning, Anton," she says. "Coffee, tea? I know that those drugs probably still haven't worn off."
"Neither, thank you," I say as I sit across from her. I know all too well the effects that drugs, including coffee, can have on a person, and I don't like tea. Besides, it's probably caffeinated too. I'll wake up on my own, thank you very much.
"So, Anton, I guess we can talk about your strategy than," Miria says. "First, would you like to train with Chleo or separately from her?"
"Separately," I say quickly. "I'm not sure I want any allies, and if I do, I want to pick them, not just be allies with them since we're from the same District."
"Okay," Miria says. "Fair enough. Next, what would you say are your Games-related strengths?"
"Well, I'm good at fighting, don't ask how," I say, "and I'm pretty fast and quick on my feet too. I'm also not one to get intimidated by some big guy or girl."
"I see," Miria says. "That's all good. What about weaknesses?"
"Well, I'm pretty small," I say, looking at myself, "so, you know, there's that. And, I don't know. I guess I'm forgetful sometimes."
"I see," Miria says. "Okay, I'll have to think about this. For now, I'd say to go with a sword, I think you can get one that works for you," I nod, "and some throwing knives, because I don't think you can get by with a bow," I nod again. "Now, let's look at the other Tributes and I'll tell you who to look out for…"
A/N: Okay, so, normally, I don't split the train rides up into two parts. But I know it's been a long time since I updated, so I figured that I would get this part out first so that you guys have something to read as I work on Seven through Twelve. I want to apologize for taking so long, but I had to move up to college, meet my new room/suitemates (I have three of them), get adjusted to college, do orientation, etc, so I didn't have a lot of time for writing. But now that classes have started and I've settled into a sort of routine, I have more time to write again and I should return to cranking these out more regularly. (If I can figure out how to spell regularly.) Anyway, I'd like to thank Persephone Fae for her wonderful review of the last chapter, I always love reading your reviews, but just one thing: You know, Bloom's 'dorky' confession was based on what I always thought I'd say to the first girl I loved if I ever told her how I felt (spoiler alert: I'm a freaking coward), and I resent being called a dork! ;)
See you all in Seven through Twelve! – JStar14H