Taj Pavonis, 17: District 6 Male

I love everything

Fire's spreading all around my room

My world so bright

It's hard to breathe but that's alright

Hush

I counted seven cannons going off a few minutes ago. I'm not sure who those cannons are for. Everything in that bloodbath was a blur. I just focused on grabbing a backpack and getting the hell out of there. Luckily, my plan worked. Nobody payed attention to me in the scramble for supplies at the Cornucopia. I was able to snag a bag and get out. However, I noticed that the backpack was kind of light as I was making my escape. Now, I'm wandering the arena trying to find somewhere to stop so I can check my loot.

The gigantic trees that tower above me are like nothing I've seen before, especially since there are hardly any trees in 6. And when I say gigantic, I'm not exaggerating. Some of these trees' trunks are wider than some of the buildings back home, and they're taller too. It's a surreal visual. The long branches with their bright green leaves high up in the sky provide ample shade on the brown ground below. A cool breeze blows through the air rustling the leaves and giving the arena an eerie, but oddly pleasant ambient sound.

After walking for at least another half hour, I finally decide to come to a stop at the base of a fairly large tree. I take a seat, noting the relative softness of the ground. I also notice that the general area surrounding me lies a bit lower than my current position, providing me with good cover and protection. It's nice to have the high ground for the time being. I unzip my backpack to take a look at what I got. The first thing I pull out is a pack of dried fruit, which will be good for later when I get hungry. Next, I pull out a small trowel. Then comes a few plain white rags, followed by two bottles of alcohol. My eyes light up at the sight of the clear liquid. I rummage through the bag looking for one last thing, hoping to whatever higher powers there are that my bag contains the one thing I need to complete this perfect combination. Then my hand lands on it—a matchbox. I shake it to make sure that the Capitol isn't tricking me. When I hear the rattle, I immediately thank my lucky stars. Looking at the supplies around me, a plan immediately forms in my head, and I get to work.

First, I start digging out a large hole with my trowel. At first, I think that this process would take a painstakingly long time, but the soft ground speeds up the process significantly. After a while, I have made a pretty deep hole. I climb out of the hole, then begin grabbing some of the dry branches and leaves and begin dropping them into the bottom of the pit. After I feel like I've put enough down, I cover the top of the hole with large logs that were strewn around the general area. I make sure that the logs can easily be moved, then step back and admire my work. It's the perfect trap that no one will see. It offers me another layer of protection, and it might get me a kill or two.

Cece Sandwell, 18: District 4 Female

Sometimes a certain smell will take me back to when I was young

How come I'm never able to identify where it's coming from

I'd make a candle out of it if I ever found it

Try to sell it, never sell out of it, I'd probably only sell one

The other Careers and I are sitting in the Cornucopia, waiting out the hovercraft as it collects the bodies lying on the ground. I notice that all of us are generally trying to avoid looking out of the Cornucopia, only stealing little glances every now and then to see if the bodies have been cleared. Except for Alto. He looks past the Cornucopia out into the forest past the pedestals. Everyone just ignores him, or at least until Annese has to speak up.

"What's wrong, Alto?" she asks.

"I should've killed that little shit," Alto says.

"You mean the boy from 5?" Annese presses on.

"Who else would I be talking about?" Alto snaps. "He's the one kill that got away."

"Didn't you say that you were going to kill the boy from 10, too?" I recall.

"That's besides the point," Alto says. "I should've got that little kid."

"Well, after that little kid kicked you in the jewels, you weren't getting anyone else," I say. Alto's angry resolve drops, face going pale with embarrassment. I hear a snicker and look over to see Jason trying to hold in his laughter. His face turns bright red as he covers his mouth.

"It wasn't even that good of a joke," Alto grumbles.

"It wasn't the joke," Jason says. "I was just remembering that stupid look on your face when the kid kicked you."

"It really hurt," Alto says.

"Not you admitting that a little kid hurt you," Annese chimes in. "I thought you were tougher than that."

"I got hit in the nuts for fuck's sake!" Alto barks. Everyone shares a laugh at Alto's expense. Eventually we all calm down.

"So, what's the plan for tonight?" Ancatha asks.

"We're gonna go hunting, obviously," Alto says. "I say we start now."

"Hold on just a second," Jason interjects. "We're not just going to go out and hunt without a plan."

"Why do you always have to shut down everything I want to do?" Alto asks.

"Because quite frankly, your ideas are stupid," Jason says. "Now, where were we?"

"Our plans for tonight," Cyrus reminds Jason.

"Oh yeah," Jason says. "I was thinking that Cyrus, Cece and I would scope out the arena later tonight and get a lay of the land. If we come across any tributes, we'll take care of them."

"What am I supposed to do?" Alto asks.

"Stay here and guard the Cornucopia until we come back," Cyrus says.

"Come on, let me go out with you," Alto pleads. "I want to get more kills."

"And that exactly why you're staying here," Jason says. "You're way too much of a flight risk."

"That's bullshit," Alto says. "I should be able to go out too."

"Hey, you said you would go along with everyone else or leave," I say. "Do you want to leave and go out on your own?"

"Fine," Alto says dejectedly. "I'll stay here."

"Good," Jason says. "I say we leave after the Fallen display."

"That sounds like a plan to me," I say.

Callum Selkirk, 18: District 12 Male

I know you're scared of the unknown

You don't wanna be alone

I know I always come and go

But it's out of my control

Kaven's been uncharacteristically quiet since the bloodbath. He's obviously taken Kaliah's death pretty hard and losing Avena couldn't have been easy for him either. He wanted to help Kaliah so bad, but I couldn't let him go after the girl from 6. After seeing her knock Kaven out, I knew that letting him fight her wouldn't end well for him. Then again, I probably could've gotten Avena out of the bloodbath if I had just let Kaven go.

It disgusts me to even think like that to be honest. I didn't let Kaliah or Avena die. Both of their deaths were out of my control. If I had let Kaven die, that would've been solely my fault, and I don't think that I could live with that on my conscience. If I could've easily prevented either Avena or Kaliah's deaths, I would've done it in a heartbeat. But I couldn't do that, and now I have to live with that for however long I'm still alive.

"You think this is a good stopping point?" I ask Kaven as we approach one of the countless giant trees that fill this arena.

"Sure, whatever," he huffs. He slumps down with his back against the tree, staring off into the distance.

"Kaven, are you okay?" I ask.

"What do you fucking think?" He mutters.

"I really don't know," I say. "Otherwise I wouldn't have asked."

"No, I'm not okay," Kaven says. "There, you happy now?"

"Do you want to talk about it?" I ask.

"You should've let me fight her," Kaven says. "I could've saved Kaliah."

"And get killed in the process?" I respond. "I don't think so."

"I would've been fine," he says.

"That girl literally knocked you out, Kaven," I say, trying not to raise my voice. "You're lucky you made it out of there alive."

"We all could've made it out alive if you didn't hold me back!" Kaven yells.

"We all would've been dead, Kaven!" I yell back. He's finally worn my patience thin. He needs to get it through his thick skull that he isn't as strong as he thinks he is. "The girl could've easily killed you if she killed Kaliah. Hell, she probably could've killed me just as quickly."

"That's just what you think," Kaven says. "I could've taken her."

"No, you couldn't have," I repeat. "You saw it with your own eyes, Kaven. That girl stabbed Kaliah right in the throat and she dropped fucking dead. If you went in to try and save her, you would've been dead too. I know it's hard to accept, but that just the truth of the matter. I wish we could've saved them too, but they're gone now."

Kaven finally eases up a bit. I think I got it through to him that there was nothing we could've done. He probably doesn't know it, but now I have another job to do. I have to protect Kaven. Not only do I have to protect him from the arena and the other tributes, but I have to protect him from himself as well.

Isaak Monroe, 15: District 8 Male

'Cause I'm out there

Tried to tell you that I'm out here on my own

I told you I was out there

Tried to tell you that I'm out here on my own

Ever since we got done taking inventory of our bags, we have been on the move. Tomaz came up with the idea to never stay in one spot. Everyone seemed to agree with him. It isn't really a good idea to stay in one place. It makes it easier for the other tributes to find us. Not to mention that the gamemakers would get bored and probably send all sorts of shit our way. It's best if we keep moving to keep the Capitol somewhat interested.

Walking through the arena, we pass by so many trees that look like carbon copies of each other. It feels as if we're walking in circles. Everything just looks the same. Everywhere I look around, I see nothing but enormous trees that rise high above the ground. Not only are they tall, but they're wide too. There are virtually zero trees in District 8, and the few trees that we have are nowhere near this big. I've never seen anything like this before.

"Tyler," I say. "What did you say that these trees were called again?"

"They're called redwoods," Tyler says. "They grow in some parts of District 7."

"Well, they're fucking huge," Tomaz pipes in.

"Yeah, they are," Tyler says. "We rarely ever cut them down. And when we do, it takes forever."

"I bet it does," I say.

"How much longer do you think we'll be walking for, Tomaz?" I ask.

"I'm not sure," he says. "I kind of want to keep moving, but I wouldn't be opposed to finding somewhere to settle down for the night."

"Me either," Tyler says. "My legs are getting tired."

"Alright, then it's settled," I say. "We'll keep walking for a little while longer and hopefully we'll find a good stopping point."

We keep on walking through the rows and rows of oversized trees, getting more and more fatigued as we go along. Looking at everyone's faces, I can tell that we're all exhausted, especially Tyler. He really looks tuckered out. I'll definitely let him sleep first tonight. He needs the rest. After about ten more minutes of walking, I notice that the tree cover is become more and more sparse.

"What the hell?" Tomaz says. "Are we back at the Cornucopia?"

"There's no way," Azo says. "We've been walking in the opposite direction of it since we started."

"Well, how about we find out," Tyler suggests. He pushes past Tomaz and Azo.

"Hold on," I say, holding out my arm to stop him. "We don't know what's on the other side of these trees. I think it's best if I check it out first."

"Alright," Tyler says. "Go ahead. Just scream if you need help."

"Will do," I say. I walk ahead, passing the rest of the huge trees and out into a clearing. The first thing I notice is that the ground slopes downward. Looking ahead, I spot a big lake. Jackpot. This discovery couldn't come at a better time. We need a spot to settle down for the night and we could use some water too. Tyler's one full bottle won't last us that long.

"Hey guys!" I call. A few seconds later, Azo, Tyler, and Tomaz come running out to the clearing.

"What is it?" Azo asks.

"Look down there," I say, pointing to the lake.

"Nice find, dude!" Tomaz says, patting me on the back.

"Let's go ahead and set up camp down there," Tyler says. "I'm getting really tired."

Tyler begins to walk down the slope and towards the lake. Once again, I rush up to him to stop him in his tracks.

"Wait a sec," I say. "I want to check if it's safe before we set up camp for the night."

"Fine," Tyler sighs. I wince at his tone. I know he's tired, and he's getting kind of cranky. I need to scope out the area quickly so he can get some rest. I walk down to the lake and take a quick survey of the surrounding area. The lakeshore is clear, the water looks fine, and it even feels fine. I wave the others down, and they walk down to the lake. Together, we set up camp along the lakeshore. We all take sips of water out of Tyler's bottle as the sun sets. The arena gets dark fairly quickly, but the soft light of the moon still allows us to see each other and for a reasonably far distance.

"So, who's taking first watch?" Azo asks.

"I'll take first watch later on," I say. "For now, I want to have a word with Tomaz."

"Sure, what's up?" Tomaz says. I mull for a moment on how I want to approach this. Tomaz is young, but I think I can be upfront with him about this. Besides, I really don't know any other way to go about this.

"You know you were about five seconds away from being killed in the bloodbath, right?" I say.

"Oh, I'm very aware," Tomaz says. Once again, I'm taken aback by his bluntness.

"So, you know that you have even more of a target on your back, I'm assuming," I say.

"Yeah, I know," he says nonchalantly.

"You're not worried about your safety?" I ask.

"Only a little bit," Tomaz says. "Chances are he'll probably forget about me and focus on the next person who somehow crosses him."

"What makes you think that?" I ask.

"Well, for one, he's probably the dumbest tribute in the history of the Hunger Games," Tomaz says. "And I know you've seen how the other Careers treat him. They don't even like him."

"But what does that have to do with anything?" I say.

"Other than the fact that I can easily outsmart him, one of the other Careers will probably off him before he even gets the chance to come for me," Tomaz says.

"Well, as long as you're aware that you're still a huge target, I'll let you think that," I say.

"Isaak, I've been in even more dangerous situations before. I'll be fine," Tomaz says.

"Okay dude," I say. I lean back against my backpack and look out to the calm water of the lake. I don't think I'll ever understand how Tomaz can act so carefree, especially in the Hunger Games, but something must've happened in his past for him to be like this. And I can't help but wonder what that was.

Niobe Anicello, 16: District 11 Female

You're everything I need and more

It's written all over your face

Baby, I can feel your halo

Pray it won't fade away

North, André and I have finally settled down right on the bank of a river that cuts through this forest of gigantic trees. The way that they tower above everything, seeming to touch the night sky, is astonishing. These trees are so much taller than the ones I would perch up in back home working as a part of the night crew. Looking at the sheer size of the trees, they don't seem climbable, but I bet there's some way a tribute can scale their way up one of these beasts. However, I don't think anyone would be even remotely comfortable up this high.

"What ya thinkin' about, Niobe?" North asks, bringing me back from my little trance.

"Just about the size of these trees," I say. "They're huge."

"That's the first thing I thought when we got in here," North says. "They're even taller than most of the buildings in District 6."

"That's crazy," I say. "They might even be taller than some of the buildings in the Capitol."

"I don't think they're that big," André says.

"Well, they're still big as hell," North says.

"I never said they weren't," André says. "You guys are just exaggerating."

"Or maybe you're just being a buzzkill," North says.

"Buzzkill?" André repeats, chuckling sarcastically. "I'm the one being a buzzkill?"

"Yeah, kind of," North says.

"You're the one who killed a person in the bloodbath," André says, referencing the girl from District 10. With those words, the entire mood turns sour.

"I would've died if I didn't kill her," North says.

"She didn't even have a weapon," André says. "You could've easily beat her without killing her."

"Whatever, André," North says. "It's already been done. There's nothing I can do about it now."

"You could at least act like you feel bad about it," André says.

"You don't think I do?" North asks. "I never expected I would have to kill someone so early on, but it was either my life or hers."

North and André's bickering is interrupted by the national anthem being played in the arena. A blue light pulls our attention to the sky, where the seal of Panem with the words 'The Fallen' under it. The seal is followed by the image of the District 3 boy, then the District 5 girl. Next is the picture of the District 7 girl. I remember passing by her body when I was running away from the Cornucopia. The way her eyes stared lifelessly into the distance was bone-chilling. After her comes the District 9 girl, then her district partner. Next up is the girl from 10. André looks at North with his eyes narrowed while north just keeps her eyes on the display. Finally, the image of the District 12 girl is shown before the anthem fades out with the image of the girl, leaving only the faint glow of the moonlight illuminating the arena.

After seemingly turning around on the last day of training, it looks like André has gone back to his pacifistic ways. For some reason, I had a feeling that his new attitude wouldn't last. Something told me that after the bloodbath, he would revert back to his old self after seeing a body drop. Turns out I was right. I guess some people aren't built for the Hunger Games.

Cyrus Velaz-Ruiz, 18: District 1 Male

Look who's here, pink t-shirt

Oh, you met him last year?

Wish I was as cool as you

"Welp, that's the end of The Fallen display," Jason says. "Cyrus, Cece, are you ready to head out now?"

"Ready whenever you are," Cece says. We each grab a backpack from the Cornucopia and leave the area. On the way out, I stop in front of Annese and Ancatha.

"You two keep an eye on Alto," I say. "Don't let him run away or anything like that."

"We won't let him out of our sight," Ancatha says.

"Good," I say before catching up with Cece and Jason. We pass the tree line and into the forest of skyscraper trees. We don't really have any intentions of hunting down any tributes tonight, which is one of the main reasons we decided to leave Alto behind. We just want to get a lay of the land. Naturally, we might run into some other tributes, but we'll take care of them if we do. In fact, I fully expect to cross paths with an outlier tribute some time in the next few hours. However, if we do happen to kill a tribute, Alto will probably throw a fit if he finds out. That's not something I want to deal with, and I don't think anyone else wants to deal with it either. Especially not Jason.

"Hey, Jason," I say. "Can I ask you a question?"

"You just did," he says, laughing at his own joke. Cece and I both just stare at him with blank expressions on his face. Jason stops laughing and just awkwardly looks back at us.

"What was the question?" he asks.

"What are we going to do about Alto?" I ask.

"What do you mean?" Jason says, looking confused.

"Well, it's obvious that none of us like him. He's nearly impossible to work with too," I say. "I know we already cut a deal with him in training, but now what?"

"Oh okay. Now I know what you're talking about," Jason says. "Cece, care to explain?"

"With pleasure," Cece says. "The plan I came up with is pretty basic, but still pretty effective if I do say so myself. We'll just let whatever happens to Alto happen. Good or bad. No interference or anything like that. If he ends up in a life-threatening situation when you're around, just let it happen."

"That sounds like an easy enough plan," I say.

"Yeah, that's what I said too," Jason says.

"That's the whole point," Cece says. "You literally just do nothing."

"Do Annese and Ancatha know about this?" I ask.

"Not yet," Jason says. "But one of us will tell them when we can get them alone."

"We might not even have to tell them," Cece says. "I'm pretty confident they don't like him either."

After our little conversation about Alto, the three of us moved through the arena in relative silence. I don't know how long we've been walking for, but it strikes me as odd that we haven't run into anyone else yet. Just how big is this arena? We might be walking through this place all night.

"It looks like we might be pulling an all-nighter walking through here," Jason says. "Are you guys okay with that?"

"Yeah, that's fine with me," Cece says.

"Cyrus?" Jason says.

"That's cool," I say.

"Well, let's keep on going," Jason says.

For the next few hours, Jason, Cece and I roam the arena, periodically taking breaks to rest and rehydrate. After several long hours of passing by giant tree after giant tree, the arena begins to brighten a little with the first peeks of daylight. The sun isn't up yet, but there is enough light to see for a decently long distance. After a few more minutes of walking, Cece holds out an arm, stopping Jason. I stop too, curious as to why she so abruptly halted our progression.

"What's wrong, Cece?" I ask.

"I saw something move behind that tree," she says, pointing to a thick tree trunk about one hundred yards away. I look at the tree, but I don't see anything.

"I don't see anything," Jason says.

"Just wait," Cece says. All three of us watch the tree intently, waiting for whatever Cece saw to make another appearance. We're staring at the tree for at least two minutes before I see a small flash of golden yellow peep out from behind the tree.

Then we rush it.

**SURPRISE**

You've reached the second submitter checkpoint. There will be a code word at the end of this Author's Note. If you have a tribute in this story, either PM me on this site or DM me on Discord with the code word.

Well, that was the second arena chapter. I know that there isn't much action in this one, but hopefully I made up for it with conflict and angst.

Questions:

What kind of trap did Taj set up?

Are the other Careers right to shut down Alto's ideas?

Is Kaven a danger to himself?

Should Tomaz be more worried about his safety?

Should North feel guilty for killing Kaliah?

Who (or what) did Cyrus, Cece, and Jason see behind the tree? HINT: If you're on my Discord server, check that.

KILL COUNT

Alto-2

Cyrus-1

Ancatha-1

Jason-1

Cece-1

North-1

Alliances:

Careers-Cyrus, Annese, Alto, Ancatha, Jason, Cece

Team Wholesome-Tomaz, Tyler, Isaak, Azo

Bad Bitch Party +1-North, Niobe, André

Lesson Learned-Kaven, Callum

Loners-Arti, Taj

Day 2 is up next! See you then!

Until next time,

Ty

STRIKE