A plane of the now ex-rebels took off from District 9.

"Plane left" announced a soldier turning towards Plutarch. Plutarch turned towards Beetee, still locked in his usual silence, leaning against the back of the wheelchair from which it seemed he would never be separated.

"This is madness, Plutarch" he said "How will you explain it to the others?

"We didn't decide it, but the Districts, I have already explained it to you" answered the former HeadGamemaker.

"When you talk about Districts do you mean the usual elite?" asked the inventor sarcastically "Are we still at that?

"No, I am talking about a democratic choice of the survivors. With. of the abstainers"

"Ah, we have not descended completely into madness, then"

Beetee turned to the small screen to her right in the large room of monitors. It was divided into sections, each showing different tributes. Effie and Cinna's granddaughters had recently formed an alliance with the boy with the mosaic on his face and the son of Plutarch's rival, and were on their way to the valley. The "Favorites" were nursing their wounds from a fight with the hybrids. Those creatures had also been pure madness. It was not possible to survive them. Clarisse Snow was always alone, and she was climbing a tree to gather some fruit. Brave or stupid choice, depending on opinion.

"Will you see to it that one of the "new ones" wins?

Plutarch finally looked at him.

"It's not me who decides"

"I thought so. It's your fellow citizens though..."

"Stop telling me that!" exploded the man, surprising Beetee, who nodded.

Plutarch recomposed himself.

"They're already making fools of themselves, those new allies, showing that they haven't understood how the Hunger Games work" he added.

"Just because they don't know how to kill... " murmured the inventor. His face lit up in an instant.

"They don't know how to kill" he repeated aloud "It's better for them to be allies.

"What are you saying?" Plutarch questioned him.

Beetee shook his head but smiled.

"More than madness, Plutarch" he continued "You gave me the solution to Panem's problem.

He left moving the wheelchair. The other one followed him frowning.

"Beetee" he called him "Beetee"

\\\\\

Lyssa shouted with joy.

"What did you see?" shouted Helios several meters behind her. He reached her and was amazed: very tall trees laden with fruit stood out over acres and acres of land. The two ran to climb among the curved branches. Lyod, who was still carrying Jendy, gently placed the little girl on the ground and stretched. Then he slipped off her backpack and rummaged through it, taking the bandages and the alcohol.

"I hope this won't hurt too much" he murmured and began to apply a new bandage. Jendy grimaced in pain but said nothing. Meanwhile Lyssa, who was higher than her new ally, gave herself five minutes to look at the view: it was too beautiful to be a tomb.

"Hey, up there!" Helios told her "What are we doing, loafing?

Lyssa, in a moment of frivolity, stuck her tongue out at him. Then she picked a fruit from a branch: it was shaped like an apple, but of a purple color and smelled intensely. The little girl pressed a finger on the peel, which immediately broke, leaving a sticky juice dripping. Lyssa licked it cautiously: it was one of the tastiest things she had ever tasted. Her stomach began to growl: between the night she'd spent running away, the few miles she'd logged with injured Jendy, and the trek to the valley, they'd eaten plenty of the meager dinner of jerky. He waved the fruit in Helios' direction.

"You can eat it!" she cried happily. The other one lifted his thumb in the air and began to pick as many fruits as possible. After picking what seemed like an infinite number of them, they both went downstairs to join the other allies. Jendy was sleeping peacefully now that her wound seemed to have stopped bleeding and Lyod was putting away the supplies.

"I must say" said Lyod "that you and your friend were luckier than us about the Cornucopia.

Lyssa bent down next to him and put her loot on the ground.

"Why, what did you get?

Helios and Lyod looked at each other.

"I" said the younger boy "at least I managed to get a handbag.

"Yes, only the only useful things in there were the dagger and the mint candies" Lyod replied irritated "At least I took a pack of matches from the girl of the Elister gang.

"Yes, and it was..." Helios started to say but a trumpet blast interrupted his words.

"A banquet already on the second day?" asked Jendy, who had just woken up, looking at the sky.

Tributes! began Caesar's grotesque parody As of midnight this day, six new competitors will enter the Arena. There is no chance that you will know them, at least that among you there are no rebels laughed at his own joke Good Hunger Games and that luck is always on your side!

The four allies looked at each other in silence.

"That's why there were only eighteen of us at the Reaping" said Jendy.

"But what does it mean?" asked Helios "Where do they come from? Are they... human?

"I guess so!" exclaimed Lyssa in reply "But if we couldn't have met them at Capitol, it means that..."

"Yes" said Lyod "I was thinking the same thing.

\\\\\

He reopened his eyes very slowly and panic hit him immediately. They had really done it. They were not threats. He got up cautiously and looked around: he was in a forest, the kids he had left with had disappeared into thin air. Next to him he saw a rather large backpack. He opened it and sighed to see that its contents were useful for average survival. He looked around again. He had to come up with a plan: first, he had to search the area and find some water, second, he was going to track down at least a couple of his companions, third... he had to live. He raised his head to the sky. It seemed clearer than the one in District 3.