Ryan Ritz, 15, D5M:

"Wake up." Tanya, my mentor, is standing above my bed, her mouth set in a hard line. She looks like a drill sergeant. "Today you're going into the Hunger Games. I need you out here right now, and you're going to eat every piece of food you can possibly stomach. It's going to be a busy morning." I follow her into the dining room, where she practically shoves the meal of eggs, potatoes, and breadstuffs down my throat. "Alright," she explains, "There's a special schedule you need to follow today. After breakfast, your prep team is going to get you clean and style your hair. Then you get to say your goodbyes to me and the escort, and your stylist will accompany you on the hovercraft to the arena, where you'll be dressed in the launch room. Then you'll go directly up into the arena. Understand?"

"I think so."

"Good." Thys is eating across the room, where her mentor is presumably saying the same things to her. Despite only having just woken up, I'm glad for the blinding stream of light pouring through the open windows. It'll make me more alert. Tanya shepherds me into the elevator, where I'm taken to the Remake Center. The three people on my prep team set me in a bath so hot I think I'm being boiled, and as they scrub me down, Tanya gives me some last minute advice. "Water is your biggest priority, Ryan. You need to get water before anything else. You can last three weeks without so much as a mouthful of food, but you'll die in three days with nothing to drink. You and your allies should head towards water immediately."

"Should I go into the middle and get supplies?" I ask.

"No! No, that's the worst thing to do. The second you have eyes on your friends, run into the densest cover you can find. You shouldn't go for the Cornucopia. It'll be tempting and there will be weapons, but it's not worth the risk of getting into the path of a Career. I was a Career, as you may recall, and I'll tell you right now it won't end well if you go into the center. Just grab your allies and run like hell."

"Yes, ma'am," I say.

Ellie "Elle" Callas, 15, D8F:

Once I'm fully clothed again and my hair is dry and ponytailed, my prep team tells me goodbye, along with my mentor and the escort. It's easy to do, because I never really bonded with any of them. I also say goodbye to Harry, because of district loyalty, but even that isn't very difficult. I know that I'm going into the Bloodbath, and I'm fully prepared to showcase some of my talent with gymnastics. I'll have to be careful to avoid the Careers, but I think I can do it.

Of course I'm a little afraid. Fearlessness is stupid, being scared is what will force me to me mindful of my surroundings. Radley and Jenna will also be on the lookout for danger, and they'll aid in defending me. All three of us are going to be in the thick of the action. I'm feeling a little nervous about it, but I don't have the time to dwell on it. I can't afford to be even a little off my game, since Rafe is sure to be gunning for Radley in the Bloodbath.

My stylist, Evio, is in charge of me now, and after picking up my token, he walks with me to the place where a hovercraft is scheduled to pick us up. "Are you worried?" he asks me on the way.

"Not very much. I'm going to win, you know."

"Oh, I know. You're one tough cookie, and I have no doubt that you're going to become the Victor. Just stay aware and stay smart, alright?"

"Alright. Do you really think I can pull this off, though?"

"You're a seamstress, Elle. You've woven thread into wedding gowns. You can pull off anything you set your mind to."

"I'll try to make you proud," I say.

Ardledge Merton, 18, D4M:

I wonder what Winnie and Adrian are doing right now. My son is probably fussing and making grabby motions at the television, because the colors and sounds are still so new and exciting to him, but Winnie will be worried, and probably angry too. As my stylist walks me to the place where the hovercraft will be landing, I try to collect my thoughts before I'm collected by the Peacekeepers. I've always been an unflappable optimist, but even with my protection, I know bad things can and will happen in the Hunger Games.

Emily's in danger of Trey, after all. So are Sorrel and Chip, and Griffin too, to a lesser extent. I need to preserve my own life. What if I fail to keep them safe? What if I get hurt myself? The disruptive thoughts almost make me feel nauseous. I'm the leader of our alliance, and if I show self-doubt or weakness, my friends will also lose faith in themselves. I can't allow that to happen. It's imperative that I stay calm and collected so that the rest of my alliance can prosper. It's more nerve wracking than I expected, but I thumb my token, a photo of me with my family, and I know I'm willing to do anything to get back to them.

My fiancée and my son are my whole world, and I need to get home safely and be a part of their future, even if it means committing atrocities in the arena. It's a sad fact of life that I'll have to kill other people, and I'm still concerned about my repulsion to blood, but there's nothing more I can do. Griffin-the-mentor has long since hugged me goodbye, and not for the first time since my departure, I'm wishing that he were here to guide me. I know that I need to protect myself and my allies with everything I have, and I have no moral issues with self defense, especially knowing what horrible things will happen to Emily if she gets caught by the Careers.

It's time for me to start getting focused.

Jenna Reyer, 18, D7F:

Bethany is a good mentor, and I'm a good tribute. I had a good interview, I got a good score. Everything seems so darn good that it's easy to forget how many things can still go wrong. My stylist is an idiot, and I ignore him as he leads me out onto the tarmac. I have things I need to accomplish in the Hunger Games. Once my allies and I can get our hands on some supplies and are safely sequestered away somewhere, we need Elle out of the group. Her ambition got out of hand far too quickly, and she's beginning to become a hazard, more trouble than she's worth.

Radley is my true friend. He's well versed in survival skills, especially with medicinal plants, and it's reassuring to know that he'll be able to patch me up if I get injured. In addition, he can hold his own in a fight much better than I initially predicted, and a score of Ten definitely places a target on his back, especially since Rafe already has issues with him. The Careers will be coming after us, but my axe arm is strong from years of chopping lumber, and I'm ready to go on the offense if necessary.

Radley also has big plans to rescue his crush, the shy boy from District Six, and frankly, I'm all on board. Love is a noble thing, and I'm happy to help out. Besides, Quinten will be a great asset, judging by his camouflage skills, and he can help keep us safe if the arena has little in the way of hiding spots. I know what I'm doing, so I stomp my fears to the ground, pinning my long-ish bangs up out of my eyes with the barette that is my token. The rest of my hair has been put in two high buns to keep it secured to my head. This way, nobody will be able to pull my hair as a means of winning a fight. Everything I do is a calculated move, because I'm ready for this.

Pumped up on adrenaline and one last chat with Bethany, I'm prepared to face just about anything.

Pola Velek, 15, D3F:

When my stylist leads me out onto the worn concrete, I feel a burst of electricity as I touch the ladder. I'm frozen in place as it's retracted into the hovercraft, and a Peacekeeper injects something into my arm. I know what it's for, because my father works at the factory where these tracking devices are produced. They go under the skin so that the Gamemakers can monitor us, even if the cameras somehow malfunction, like they 'malfunctioned' in the training center. Chris, the Head Gamemaker's secretary, told me I could be as deceptive as I liked in the arena, but I wasn't allowed to destroy anything in the Capitol.

His deal was more than fair, and now I'm looking forward to feeling some technology again. I have good blackmail material on Oscar and the rest of the Careers, and I'm ready to run away from the Bloodbath quickly and avoid getting trapped in the slaughter. I can make use of the survival skills I learned in the Training Center, but Zea is of course going in, because she needs some throwing knives. We've decided to travel in the direction of the mouth of the Cornucopia and meet up at the first sign of available concealment. My plan is to grab Soren and get to safety, since Zea has said she wants me to be safe away from the action, and also that she can hold her own in a fight.

As I'm loaded into the hovercraft, tracker embedded deeply in my left arm, I buckle up and prepare for a long, boring ride. I fondle the dragon torque around my neck, a family heirloom given to me as my token. My job is to do what's best for the country at large, and I'm prepared to die if that's the case, but my death will benefit no one at the moment. No, I've got to survive, and make my impact as a Victor. One thing's for sure.

I might not be as quick as a true outer district kid, or as strong as a Career, or as charismatic as a younger tribute, or as willful as an older one, but I'm smarter than all of them combined.

Oscar Poudret, 17, D1M:

The hovercraft cuts smoothly and silently through the clouds, slicing through them easily as the pilot takes me to the arena. Fulton promised in the end that he'd help me as much as I needed and send me whatever he thinks is necessary, which is good, but I can't stop thinking about Livi. Her training score of Twelve is terrifying for sure, but it's also a good thing for me. She said that if she got control of the Career Pack, I'd become her deputy, and now I'm almost relieved. I just experienced a gain in power as well, if she's honest, and although she's definitely mean, she doesn't seem like a liar. Perhaps she's now lending me some security, and I'm very thankful for it.

Livi loves her little mind games, but I need to tune her out, even if it's just this once. The first five minutes of the Hunger Games are the most important, and my sole objective is killing Jenna. She's my target of choice, and it's my responsibility to take her out. I have to be focused on doing that, and only that, and not worrying about what Livi's plans are. The Career Pack is strong, and it's got to stay that way. I'm going into the golden horn and fetching a nice bandolier of throwing knives, and then I'm going to lie in wait for Jenna. She'll come cruising along eventually, because she needs her axes to survive, and I'll get her then.

It's going to be an excellent Bloodbath, with a great deal of deaths, enough to satiate the Capitol for a few days. Then we'll proceed to hunt down the still living tributes in order of importance based on the level of threat each poses. Of course, somewhere in the middle, a sprig or two of hemlock will also be making an appearance.I want a name for myself and an identity of my own. As nice as it is to be in the good graces of the Queen Bee herself, I'm more than just her loyal second in command.

I'm a Career tribute who's strong in his own right, and once I'm given a chance, it's over for that bitch.

Hey y'all!

Just so you know, the next chapter will be up this Thursday. I can't wait to put the tributes in the arena in a little over a week!

– LC :)