Prosper Mallister (18) D1M

There were two of us left. I trusted Gallant, somehow, probably because he hadn't killed me yet. We took turns keeping watch and he hadn't abused his power, so he was trustworthy. That was important, since he was my only ally left, and there was an alliance of five people we still had to deal with. I wanted to destroy them for my life, but I knew Gallant wanted, just a little bit, to avenge our fallen allies. We couldn't know for sure that the large alliance had killed us, since we hadn't been there, but who else would be brave enough to attack two Careers?

"I have a plan," I said, watching as the words jarred Gallant from his thoughts. We had been walking in silence, trying to think of a way we could take out five people without being killed ourselves. A sight had jarred my thoughts, the sight of some lighter fluid and a lighter. We were in the gardening section, where campfire supplies could be found. We were in the gardening section, where the vases were supposed to be "artsy" when they looked like bottles. We were in the gardening section, which was within eyesight of a bunch of clothing. "Let's blow them up like they blew us up."

Gallant's eyes slowly lit up as he realized what I was saying. I believed and hoped that he wasn't excited to kill but to live. I knew killing could be artful. I knew it could be beautiful when done right. But I had seen Gallant shy away from it and prefer to be calm, hoping to be more of a supporter while others hunted, and I didn't want that to die unless he did.

Radian Sempli (16) D3M

Theo and I saw Prosper walking to the clothing section, grabbing about fifteen shirts, and walking back to the gardening section. We didn't know what the plan was, but we did know what the Careers considered a home base, and we knew we wanted nothing to do with that. We looked at each other and nodded, refusing to say anything when a Career was so close to us, walking so close I could throw a roll to him from where I was in the last aisle of groceries. We moved all the way to the back of the store, seeing a Career with a goal and getting as far away as the Arena would allow.

Jacob Ezekiel (15) D9M

We saw Gallant and Polaris approach us and knew there was trouble coming. Luckily for us, there were five of us and only two of them. We all stood up, ready to defend our territory but knowing that we'd rather avoid a fight. One of us, probably more, would die if we fought. I thought it could very well be me, seeing as I had the least valuable weapon. Amelia had a makeshift spear. Nyle had a bunch of knives. Lumara had a fishing pole, which was still better than my weapon. I had what was basically nothing but a hope and a prayer.

Still, I had to be the first to stand when Gallant and Polaris kept coming. We'd hoped that we could make enough of a show that they'd know they'd lose if they attacked, but apparently they had decided that dying was worth taking us out. So I stood, pointing my gun directly at Gallant and staring him down. "Back off. You know you're not going to win this one," I spat, trying to hide the faltering in my voice.

Gallant didn't stop. Instead, he looked at Polaris, who looked at me and laughed. "Are you going to shoot?" Polaris asked, staring me down. When I didn't, it was clear my bluff had been called. Why would I wait to shoot when I had the chance to aim? Only because, in a place full of guns, we hadn't been able to find a single bullet.

A light appeared in Gallant's hand and suddenly my skin was scorched. I turned to run and heard a second, then a third glass shatter. We had been ambushed. And, while Nyle and Amelia both dutifully threw their weapons the Careers' way, it was hard to aim when you could see nothing but smoke. Our only option was running and hoping that we didn't get hit.

Gallant Deacon (18) D2M

Once we'd thrown all twelve of our Molotov cocktails, Prosper and I ran. It had definitely been overkill to use so many, but we were willing to be a bit dramatic. Prosper said it was "a beautiful showing of our human nature, the beauty shown in chaos." I thought it was a way to make sure the horrible five never attacked us again. They had taken our allies, more likely than not, and they managed to graze me with their spear. It wasn't the end of the world, but it was another nuisance to be counted against them.

We knew exactly where we were running to. We wanted to get back to the garden section, hidden far from the terrible alliance, across the fire from them. We heard the first cannon go off before we reached our hideout. We began to cough, our eyes watering, when we ran through the sliding doors that signaled the end of clearance and the beginning of gardening. We curled away from the spreading heat and the burning cardboard packaging, trying to keep ourselves as cool as possible as we realized that twelve cocktails truly was too many.

Yvette Ishi (12) D7F

I heard the explosions from where I was hiding. I heard the pitter-patter of the Careers' feet as they ran right past me, taking the same path they had for days. I was hungry, but not starving. A parachute had done that for me. Still, I didn't have too long to live. Hiding where the Careers would never think to check kept me from ever being killed, but it didn't protect me from everything. It didn't guarantee me safety from the explosions I assumed the Careers had caused. Only following them into their home would do that.

Nixon Hankook (13) D6M

All alone, I began to cough. All alone, I felt my eyes watering. All alone, I felt my life slowly draining for me, and only then did I begin to question myself. If I really died, that meant everyone to ever enter the Hunger Games did. If I really died, it meant the Capitol wasn't necessarily fake. If I really died, it meant people really were so cruel as to murder children. If I really died, it meant that I was better off without the world anyways.

Amelia Gomez (17) D11F

Fire burned me as I ran. I could smell the flesh around me scorching and feel the fire spread and grow, taking away all life with it. Why did the Careers choose to destroy the entire Arena? A fire like this might leave nobody behind. I was already trying to gasp for air, running difficult even with the perfect incentive. The Careers hadn't just killed us. They'd destroyed the entire Arena.

Theodore Elaine (15) D10M

I tried to count the cannons going off. I lost count at four. Jacob and I were far away from the chaos, but still we heard death after death, and we could only watch the cloud of smoke surrounding us grow. It approached us in our hiding spot and we knew we had nowhere to go. We were cornered as we watched death itself approach us. We were stuck just watching our futures disappear.

Before I get to the eulogies, I need to make one thing clear: Without this chapter, the story would never have been finished. I feel bad doing something catastrophic to wipe almost everybody out at once, but I couldn't work with this many people anymore. I needed to get to a point where writing a chapter didn't feel like a task, so I got rid of everybody except my chosen Victor and, obviously, two red herrings. So, to anyone whose tribute died in this chapter: This isn't because they were a bad character. This wasn't because you're a bad submitter. This is just because I refused to leave this unfinished but would never write without it.

So, as always, I welcome anyone who submitted to this story to resubmit their characters. It obviously got a bit derailed, and I didn't intend to lose all will to write when I was like halfway through it. Better to finish weakly than never finish at all.

14th Place: Jacob Ezekiel - Burns and Smoke Inhalation

Jacob was a pretty cool guy. He had a simple form, which made him very writeable and easy to work with. I appreciate that, and he was strong without being super OP or anything. Thank you to willemsbakedgoods for Jacob, who totally stood a chance. It ain't his fault he got submitted to me.

13th Place: Nyle van Buren - Burns and Smoke Inhalation

Nyle was definitely cool. He danced to the beat of his own drummer and did his best to be strong. He was obviously submitted as Victor material, but that's fine. Some people are meant to die and advance the story, others are meant to win. While Nyle stood a strong chance, he wasn't my Victor's pick, and he didn't really inspire me, so his story ends here. Thank you to Zacksteel for Nyle, who was cooler than the screen time he got.

12th Place: Arkane Erransaw, Burns and Smoke Inhalation

Arkane was a very in-depth character capable of being made great. He was strong and fun to work with, but he wasn't something I could do justice for. I didn't have it in me to write this many characters anymore, so he really got the short end of the stick. Thank you to Audmirable for Arkane, who really was a strong guy.

11th Place: Amelia Gomez - Burns and Smoke Inhalation

Amelia was a well-rounded, likeable character who stood a good chance from the start. I saw bits of me in her, with her bluntness and lack of complex empathy, and she did a good job existing. Her only flaw was that I didn't see her winning. Thank you to Queenofinsanity for Amelia, who made the Arena a better place.

10th Place: Lumara Hansen - Burns and Smoke Inhalation

Lumara was complex and powerful, a killer that certainly did her job well. She was strong without being ridiculous and somewhat prepared without being a Mary Sue. She certainly affected the turnout of the Games, since this whole fiasco wouldn't have happened without her bombing people. Thank you to LordShiro for Lumara, who probably did the most indirect damage of anyone in these Games.

9th Place: Adair Brites - Smoke Inhalation

Adair was fantastic. His character opened up a lot of possibilities that would've been very fun to explore, but I didn't have it in me to get them done. If anyone was wondering, I fully intended to have him hide in the book section and then have his books be dramatically set ablaze, leaving a huge trail of destruction, since he loved books. However, he perished due to my tiredness. Thank you to Reader Castellan for Adair, who was certainly fantastic to have.

8th Place: Indie Rayne - Smoke Inhalation

Indie was extremely complex and easily worked with. She made for a great character who could be used however I needed, from being a smart and sly fox to acting dumb enough that I could kill whoever I needed. Sadly for her, she was who I needed to kill. Thank you to Manny61945 for Indie, who definitely did stand a chance. Just not quite enough of one.

7th Place: Rhiannon Raimers - Smoke Inhalation

Rhia suffered the same fate almost everyone else in this chapter did: A good tribute, just not *the* good tribute. She was bright and bubbly and brought happiness wherever she went, and she was usefully strong without being ridiculous. She was a great addition to the story. Thank you to later . glader for Rhia, who made this story what it is.

6th Place: Nixon Hankook - Smoke Inhalation

What a guy. Nixon was so entertaining to write and work with, believing nearly everything was a lie. He was so fun to toy around with and see what he could decide was fake. I really did love working with him, even if I ended up killing him in the end. Thank you to Galaxy842 for Nixon, who was just amazingly creative.

5th Place: Radian Sempli - Smoke Inhalation

Radian was a very simple character, which is greatly appreciated. As much as complex characters are necessary, so are the simple ones to maintain balance. He popped up as needed and made the story interesting without ever being overbearing or problematic. He simply... was. Thank you to ItSaCaTwOrLd for Radian, who was one of a kind.

4th Place: Theodore Elaine - Smoke Inhalation

Theodore was such a complex guy, man. He was supposed to be a victim of trauma, learning his value around that and becoming strong as he went. Sadly, I didn't have the energy to write such an important story, so it didn't get written here. For now, he's the man who thought he had to be a leader. Thank you to SparkALeah for Theo, who was definitely a creative character.

Second time saying this just to prove the point: This chapter is my bad, not my submitters'. I'm running out of energy to write and don't want to leave you hanging, so something drastic had to happen. Everyone in this story is welcome to resubmit elsewhere to someone who can write them better. That's actually always the case, because I don't consider myself the owner of the tributes. I'm just the vessel.