She can't wait.

.oOo.

Lindor MacAvoy, 18
District One Female
0 Kills

The glass tube keeps rising, higher and higher, and Frosty bounces on the balls of her feet as she waits for it to reach the top and enter the arena. When it does, she takes a good look around her: they're in some sort of building with tall, clear windows that show the arena outside. She shivers in delight when she sees the snow, and looks down at the small parka and snowboots she's been outfitted in.

They'll be in the snow these Games.

As the tinny, automated voice keeps counting down, she continues to look around. They're in a large, open room that must be the first floor of the building. There's a set of stairs that lead up to somewhere, but she can see at the top that the entrance is blocked. Unless that's moved by the game makers, the outliers won't be able to run so easily.

Especially with those steels walls that block the doors to the arena.

When the voice reaches thirty, she takes a look around the circle of tributes. They're all close to one another this year, everyone nervous but determined to get to the cornucopia. She can see the fear in the eyes of outliers who know that they can't escape, while others quickly determine that they'll have to get to the cornucopia. The fact that everything enclosed makes this bloodbath so much more delicious. They'll be getting rid of a good amount of the competition, if not all of them.

She can't wait.

"Get to the cornucopia, Frosty!" Fletcher yells from across the room, and as the gong sounds, he jumps down and grabs the boy from Three. Tearing off his belt, he wraps it around the boy's neck and pulls.

As the room descends into chaos, Fletcher chokes the boy until he's satisfied that he's dead and gone. Rubbing his skin where the boy clawed at him in one last bid for freedom, he walks, rather than runs, to the cornucopia.

He's in no hurry.

Frosty grabs the claws that have been placed next to her pedestal - just for her, she's made sure in her private sessions to let the game makers know what she can do with these - and leaps into the melee. The first tribute she finds is the boy from Five, rummaging through a box of supplies to find something that he can use. A quick slash across his neck fixes that, and Frosty digs into his neck with the claws to make sure that he's truly out of the way.

She's on her way to another tribute, looking for someone else that she can get rid of so that the field is thinned, when she feels a sharp prick at the back of her neck. Pausing, Frosty rubs the back of her neck before she starts to feel fuzzy.

As she collapses, she sees the girl from Five standing over her. Something's in the girl's hand, and Frosty tries to ask her what it is. Funny, she can't seem to get the words out.

She can't do anything at all.

.oOo.

Well, she only has to make it a few minutes more.

.oOo.

Audra Zimanski, 16
District Five Female
0 Kills

She stands over the body of the One girl, watching the light go out of her eyes before she gives a sigh and dies. No one's noticed her death yet, and Audra melts into the crowd. No one's paying her attention, she just looks like a scared girl that's running for her life.

She stumbles over the bodies of the girl from Seven and the boy from Nine as she heads into the cornucopia, clucking her tongue in sympathy. Too young, both of them. They didn't deserve this.

But they couldn't run. After all, the steel barricades haven't moved an inch.

Well, they are, she sees as she glances over at one of the exits. All of them are starting to move down, crawling down into the floor. Anyone who can defend themselves for the next few minutes will have a chance to escape into the arena, but everyone else is trapped. The game makers are trying to hand the Games to the career pack this year.

Well, she only has to make it a few minutes more.

In the corner of her eyes, she sees the boy from One slice apart the girl from Three before heading back for more. He's vicious, that one - she's avoiding him. Instead, she grabs a pack that she can fit between her shoulders - it's bright green, exactly what she asked the game makers to mark her pack as.

If everything that she needs is inside, she's prepared for the Games.

She heads away from the bloodbath and to the side of the chalet's walls, noticing that the two from Eleven are here as well. They're waiting by one of the doors, the boy holding a knife while looking around the room with a nervous gaze.

She's staying well away from those ones - they'll be dead in minutes.

As she walks around the room, staying to the perimeter, she sees a door behind the cornucopia that no one else has spotted yet. The barricade is over it as well, but it's almost down - in another minute, it'll be low enough for her to reach the doorknob and escape.

As she runs over to the door, she sees one of the tributes from Six head her way as well - it's Calaeno, the one with pale skin and white hair. She looks panicked, and Audra keeps away when she sees the sword in her hand. She's not going to challenge someone who's too dangerous right now.

But as the barricade keeps moving down, a trident whistles through the air and past Audra's shoulder. She gasps, whipping around to see the boy from Four running towards her. But he's focused on the girl from Six, who now has the trident in the centre of her chest.

It's her chance.

She runs at the barricade, clambering over the metal and turning the knob. It opens, and she takes one last glance back to see the face of the boy from Four. He's aiming his trident again.

She slams the door, and runs into the snow.

Audra doesn't look back.

.oOo.

They have to run. They have to run.

.oOo.

Kane Rowan, 16
District Eleven Male
0 Kills

He runs with Chastity, a bag of food and a knife in his arms as he heads to one of the doors. The metal that separates them between the bloodbath and freedom is still taking its time to lower into the floor, but it's still moving down - slowly but surely. They're going to make it. They're going to make it. They're going to make it.

They just have to hope that none of the careers come after them until they can run.

Chastity bends over and begins to cough, phlegm flying from her mouth and onto the floor. "Oh, I feel horrid - please, Kane, you don't need to go with me. You can save yourself - I'll only hurt you, especially with your condition. Please, Kane."

"I'm not going to leave you." Kane draws his knife and turns around, his back now to the door. "If anyone comes after us, I'll put up a fight. When that happens, you have to run - doesn't matter where you go, just get away from me."

"I'll try." Chastity starts to cough again, breathing in deeply. "Oh… oh!"

Kane shudders, watching the girl from Three get stabbed in the back by the boy from One. None of the careers have noticed them, but he doesn't want to jinx his luck.

Just a few minutes more…

"Get away from me! Help, someone, help! I need to get out! Help me!" Kane turns around to see the boy from Nine running in their direction, a scream forming in the shape of an O on his lips. "Help me, someone! Help me!"

The career chasing him lets her go after a few more steps, and the boy keeps running towards Kane. He draws his knife and prepares to protect Chastity, but it's too late - he doesn't run towards them. He's heading to another exit, throwing himself at a boy who's standing there while hammering on the door to get out. "Give me your weapon! Give me it!"

The boy - it's the one from Eight, is his name Chase? - yelps. The boy from Five's nails rake across his face, leaving nasty scratch marks that won't disappear for a while, but the boy swings the spear in his hand at his opponent. The boy is knocked away for a moment, winded by the impact of the spear, and then the boy from Eight drives the spear into Nine's chest before ripping it back out.

Kane turns green with nausea, and the Eight does as well.

But then he turns away - Chastity's screaming.

The focus of her concern is the boys from One and Four, only coming closer and closer with weapons in their hands. The One boy looks immovable, holding a sword that looks like a toothpick in his hand, while the boy from Four pushes back his blond locks of hair before getting ready to throw his trident.

They have to run. They have to run.

He grabs Chastity's hand and yanks, just barely out of the way of the trident that comes soaring through the air. It hits the wall but doesn't stick, clattering down onto the floor. But Kane isn't around to see it fall.

The staircase, to the side of the room, is his focus: he pulls Chastity behind him as they start to mount the stairs to the next floor. He bangs his knee against the railing and winces, knowing that a massive bruise is already starting to form.

But they have to run, so he does and does and does until he realizes that the stairway's blocked by a barricade as well.

Chastity screams, clutching to Kane with all of her might. Her eyes, still bright green and brown, are filled with tears. "Oh, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have followed you."

"It's ok," he whispers to her as the careers ascend the staircase. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

.oOo.

"You can't be reckless if you don't want me to steal your kills."

.oOo.

Triton Clifford, 17
District Four Male
0 Kills

He shakes his head, giving a low whistle in surprise. "I didn't expect them to do that."

"It makes it all the easier," is Fletcher's reply. Triton raises his eyebrows, surprised by the response. He's barely heard Fletcher speak at all, and now he's gotten a whole sentence.

Fletcher is the first to walk up the staircase, his left hand tracing the railing. It's gorgeously made, a long strip of polished wood that circles around the spiral staircase. Everything here is so beautifully made. He's surprised by the quality of everything, already, and he hasn't even left the building.

What will it be like when they get into the arena itself?

Below them, Thetis is tussling with the pair from Ten. The boy is fighting as hard as he can, slashing at her with the knife in his hand, but her naginata - it took ten tries for Thetis to teach him the word - digs into his side. Triton gives a small grin, happy to see that Thetis is managing to fend for herself. The girl manages to get away, past Thetis and through a door on the other side of the room, but she manages to hack apart the boy before looking up to wave at him.

They're doing well.

Fletcher reaches the two quickly, and draws his sword out. "You two ready?"

The girl is blubbering now, holding onto her district partner like he can save her from her death with tears running down her face. She looks like a mess, and Triton winces when she starts to cough from crying so much. To stop the tears, he plunges the trident in his hand through her chest and back out. She screams, a long, high, shrill sound, and then crumples to the ground. She'll bleed out in a matter of minutes.

"That was mine, Four," Fletcher murmurs, and Triton looks over at him in surprise. Fletcher is glaring at him. "Don't do that."

"Why not? It's only one kill, Fletcher," Triton says. Fletcher grunts, then shoves the boy from Eleven over the edge of the railing. The boy plummets down, falling until they both hear a sickening thump and a scream to match.

"Now, let's go. We might be able to get a few more if we're lucky." Fletcher turns to head down the staircase, but Triton grabs his arm. "What?"

"You can't just push tributes like that - what if they get away?" Triton glances over the railing to see if the boy's gotten away. He isn't moving, but Lumara is dealing with him. Thank goodness. After watching the boy from Seven chop through the boy from Twelve's skull with his axe, he turns back to confront Fletcher. "You can't be reckless if you don't want me to steal your kills."

Fletcher responds by punching Triton in the face.

Triton stumbles backward, tasting blood in the back of his throat as his nose begins to throb. Then he launches himself at Fletcher, and they tumble down the staircase in a heap. Their weapons fall to the side and are forgotten, both boys trying to claw at one another.

Triton tries to get on top of Fletcher and land a punch, but the boy is too strong for him. Slowly, surely, Fletcher pushes his way up and on top of Triton. He grabs his sword, and Triton sees the boy from One smile for the first time. "I've been waiting a bit to do this."

But before he can, blood starts to pour out of his mouth. Triton gapes at Fletcher, then wriggles away in panic as the boy from One crumples to the floor. His killer chops through his neck with a large sword for good measure, severing whatever's left of Fletcher's spinal cord, then turns to Triton. "You alright?"

"B-but I thought you left the alliance - how?" Triton stammers, fumbling for his trident. "What happened?"

Dimitri Muller smiles, the corners of his mouth turning upwards ever so slightly. Triton can see Thetis descending on another tribute before turning to him, her mouth agape. They're both surprised. "I changed my mind."

Yep.

Before my much-needed apology, here are the eulogies! (only fourteen, so you don't need to throw that many rotten vegetables at me :o)

A lot of these things appeared to happen out of order, but this is essentially how it went. If you think that one of the placements is wonky, feel free to switch it around for yourself - they're all quite close.

24th: Paris Fresel, District Three Male; Killed by Fletcher Artesian. Created by laterglader.

Paris was a fun submission: one of the whinier tributes who acted younger than they were before dying early. I'm glad I got him, and now we can all be happy that he's disappeared. Thanks to laterglader and Fletcher for making and killing this guy respectively.

23rd: Del Picsis, District Nine Male; Killed by Triton Clifford. Created by Professor R.J Lupin1.

Del was a sweet guy, someone with a lot of nuance that didn't really get to shine the way he should have in this position. Thanks to Professor R.J Lupin1 for someone who deserved more than this.

22nd: Livia Donner, 18, District Twelve Female; Killed by Lindor MacAvoy. Created by santiagoponcini20.

Livia, quite simply, was one of the worst people to exist here. She was doomed to die early, either because her mouth got the better of her or because she just truly, truly sucked at keeping herself alive. It was Frosty who took her out - thank goodness, tbh. Thanks to Santiago for a girl that we could enjoy hating, or at the very least pretend like she wasn't here.

21st: Flora Perkins, District Seven Female; Killed by Thetis Clifford. Created by laterglader.

Our first pov tribute to die, and one of the more exciting, Flora was stubborn in her attempt to prove that the world was flat. She was a blast to write, of course, but there wasn't any reasonable way she'd survive the bloodbath unless she ran - and the fact that all of the exits were blocked doomed her. A lot more tributes may have survived if it wasn't for those steel walls, but they all fell to the bloodbath. Thanks to laterglader for the most stubborn girl here! Maybe her heaven is flat.

20th: Lindor MacAvoy, District One Female; Killed by Audra Zimanski. Created by BulletproofReed.

Frosty was fun as well, although she was a bit ditzy. She should have and would have performed better in another arena, where she'd get the chance to play the social game and, in her own right, prove to be one of the strongest threats here, but Audra had plans and Frosty was not among them. Thank you to BulletproofReed for a fun career.

19th: Gadget Sycamore, District Three Female; Killed by Fletcher Artesian. Created by willemsbakedgoods.

Gadget was the third pov tribute to die (I killed quite a lot in the bloodbath oops), and definitely one of the weaker ones. She was strong-willed, smart, and willing to fight if she needed to, but the fact of the matter was that she was too small to survive an encounter with a career. Fletcher attempted to go on a rampage this bloodbath and was one of the biggest threats, so she fell to him as well. Thanks to willemsbakedgoods for Gadget.

18th: Nubis Skylar, District Five Male; Killed by Chase Farlay. Created by Galaxy842.

Nubis was a tribute who fell under the radar, ending up as someone who'd be cut to pieces if he found his way into a fight. It was Chase who had to deal with him in the bloodbath, and managed to stop Nubis with a spear and a lot of pluck. Thanks to Galaxy842 for Nubis.

17th: Lanson Paylor, District Twelve Male; Killed by Birchwood Mason. Created by santiagoponcini20.

Lanson was another pov tribute, and didn't deserve to die like this. I was originally planning for him to go further and have a bit more development, but his submitter requested for him to die in this position and I thought - why not? I love big bloodbaths, and I hope that Lanson's death was satisfactory here. He was a good guy. Thanks to Santiago for Lanson.

16th: Cody Ridges, District Ten Male; Killed by Thetis Clifford. Created by 66samvr.

Cody was a fun, lazy dude who ended up maturing a bit and trying to help his district partner escape, which really was nice of him. He was meant to float around and be lazy, but in the end he was won over by Bayleigh - idk how THAT happened - and protected her to the very end. She's made it out, so he's accomplished that at least. Thanks to Vr for a fun dude.

15th: Chastity Blythius, District Eleven Female; Killed by Triton Clifford. Created by LordShiro.

Chastity was doomed for the start - I mean, cystic fibrosis? She had no chance of surviving the bloodbath, although Kane tried to help her out here. She almost made it - if it wasn't for the exits being blocked, she might still be here. But the careers were nothing but efficient in the bloodbath, and it was her turn to die. Thank you, Shiro, for a fun girl for D11. They never had a chance, did they?

14th: Kane Rowan, District Eleven Male; Killed by Lumara Barrett. Created by Manectric11.

Kane was the other half of D11, and his submitter originally suggested to make him seem like he had a chance before ruthlessly killing him off. Almost dying in the parade really didn't help things out, but I hoped I fooled some of you with the direction that I took him in. He was a fun guy and deserved much more than this. Thanks to Manectric11 for Kane.

13th: Calaeno Cruise, District Six Female; Killed by Triton Clifford. Created by AmericanPI.

Calaeno was one of the tributes who didn't deserve to die here - they were capable and intelligent, but the fact remains that they were relatively weak and not strong enough to put up a fight. Instead of escaping, they ended up inadvertedly letting Audra flee the scene - bleeding out for a while before ending up in 13th. Thanks, PI, for Calaeno! I hope the fact that Triton killed them doesn't sting too much.

12th: Fletcher Artesian, District One Male; Killed by Dimitri Muller. Created by PaxZola.

Fletcher wasn't such a bad person at the start, but I wanted an antagonist for the arcs and storyline that I was planning and Fletcher was here at the right time and place. He had enough temper to make it happen, and fighting with Triton ended up killing him. It turns out that Dimitri was having regrets leaving the alliance, and he came back just in time to save Triton - assuring him a place, no matter how tentative, in the alliance. We'll see how the careers go from here. Thanks to PaxZola for Fletcher!

11th: Xiomara Castro, District Eight Female; Killed by Triton Clifford. Created by paperairline.

Xiomara would have been really fun if she was a pov tribute - but in the end, she ended up getting killed in the bloodbath due to the fact that she waited a few seconds too many to escape. She was smart, witty, and if she managed to get out, would have been a good pairing to Chase. This wasn't her bloodbath. Thank you, paper, for Xiomara.

Yep, f-o-u-r-t-e-e-n. I bet you didn't see that coming!

And now we're into the final ten - but the fact that so many died so early shall complicate manners. We'll see how this affects the arena, but for now I hope you're all content with this. I'm excited for the arena, and I hope you are too!

Enjoy. Until next time, TheAmazingJAJ