Gallant Deacon (18) D2M
Prosper and I looked at each other after the cannons went off, both knowing what was coming soon but neither of us willing to be the one to bring it up. Only one person was left other than us, and we'd find that tribute before long. Then it'd just be us, one of us ready to kill the other, a Victor being crowned after a matter of minutes. That was something that didn't particularly need to be brought up, but still, I felt like we had to confirm it. I could feel Prosper getting antsy, ready to stop trusting me in a matter of seconds. After all, a sneak attack would be smartest now.
"We're gonna be the final two," I said quietly, not wanting to make it a question. It didn't feel like one. But there was a question hidden in there, a hint of what we both knew was true. I made myself keep my face neutral, waiting for a response and knowing what it had to be, even if Prosper didn't want to agree. He wouldn't give away his plans to kill me, but hearing him say it out loud would make it seem that much more true.
"Of course. I don't think an outlier stands much of a chance," Prosper replied, his response unrealistically optimistic. There was always a chance. We learned that from the Awful Five. Still, he was right in thinking we'd probably be the final two. Probably, probably. Two Careers and only one of them felt certain they'd make it to the finale.
There wasn't really much space for us to search. We were tucked into one room of the giant store, the one room we knew of that was safe from all of the smoke. If we could take a few steps past the sliding doors, we'd be out of the building entirely, but a quiet hum let us know we couldn't do that. So we just had to search, staring on opposite sides of the room and approaching each other inch by inch, until we ran into the outlier, who was running out of hiding spots. There were only about four aisles of plants and seeds in the main section, two aisles in the other, and the true bane of our existence: box after box and section after section of furniture, all big enough to hide someone. The fastest option would have been to set a fire to ensure none of the boxes were full, but both of us shied away from that.
It wasn't until we were almost halfway through combing the room that I heard Prosper's footing change. He stepped out of his regular rhythm, not enough to be immediately noticeable but enough that once I heard one step I was forced to hear the rest. I turned to see what was happening and saw him approaching me, the weight of his earlier lie written across his face.
Prosper Mallister (18) D1M
I didn't want to fight Gallant before the final two any more than he wanted to fight me. I didn't want to fight dirty and know there was no room for pride left in me. But I also knew I might not be able to beat him in a fair fight. He was bigger than I was, stronger, and neither of us preferred ranged weapons. I knew I had to take any advantages I could get if I wanted to win, and by the final three, that was all I could think of. The art of the kill would be lovely to embrace if I was given the chance, but first I had to focus on making the kill in the first place.
A quick glance my way proved that Gallant had heard my approach. I had to change my idea then, killing him before he had time to react. I rushed to him, hoping he'd be too surprised to do anything about it. My knife raised to attack, my strides long and confident, closing the distance between him while his stance proved I had made the wrong decision, leaving me ready to do whatever I needed without a second thought.
In the end, it didn't matter. I felt my foot land on something uneven, a hose that flicked through my field of a vision for the smallest fraction of a second, and didn't have time to catch myself before my face slammed into the ground. I didn't even have time to think before I was unconscious, blackness overtaking my entire world.
Yvette Ishi (12) D7F
I couldn't think of anything to do to hide from the Careers, but there also wasn't much of a way for me to fight them. All I could do for what must have been an hour was sit and pray that they'd go hungry before I did, but there wasn't much hope of that. They had to have sponsors in spades, and all I had was a handful of grapes somebody had sent me, enough to last a day in the cramped box I'd lodged myself into. It had once held a chair, it seemed, but I had lodged that in another setting while Prosper and Gallant were recovering from the flames. Still, hidden in a box, I had nothing to do but pray they wouldn't notice me. I tried to relax, slow my breathing and pretend I was fine, but that was nearly impossible.
A cannon fired, almost pulling a yelp from my lips, and I felt tears begin crawling down my face. I made it all the way to the final two. It was just me and one other competitor, a fifty/fifty chance at victory, but still, I found it hard to hold much hope. The other Career could have been weakened, but I was still only twelve, still just a small little girl with tear streaks on my glasses and a stomach ready to growl and give my hiding spot away. I was still able to die at just about any second, and all I could do was wait and hope I died second.
He has to sleep someday. The dull thought surfaced for a second, almost passing by before I latched onto it. I held my breath, trying to hold back any sobs I could. He'd have to sleep someday, and then I'd have a chance. I had to sleep too, but I was well-hidden, almost invisible. I was in a cardboard box that could only hold the smallest of competitors. I took the dagger I had been sent with my bento box, carving a small hole into the side of my box. I held my breath and prayed the sound wouldn't alert the last Career to my presence, then sat back and waited for what could be the longest finale ever. I just had to take a nap and pray I'd be able to see when the Career slept through the slit in my box.
3rd Place: Prosper Mallister - Tripped over hose
Prosper was a really cool, really in-depth character. He was a highly possible Victor (actually, the whole top three were - the "red herring" I mentioned last herring isn't really accurate, since these are all potential winners), but santiago asked for him to be removed from the story. No hard feelings there, but I needed a third place and it seemed to be his time.
It's heating up! Finale time. Post predictions, preferences, whatever you feel like!
And keep in mind, I write to make my readers happy ;)
