Shine

Chapter 29

Day Five

Warnings: This chapter contains depictions of violence and death because it's the Hunger Games. I did not come up with the idea of having 12-18 year-olds murder each other for sport, Suzanne Collins did, so when you're Reaped in a few years, blame her, not me. Anyway…

A/N: Today, two more Tributes will die. We're getting down to slim pickings, so place your bets, then read on.

President Coriolanus Snow POV

"Mr. Mallard, please come in," I say to my Head Gamemaker. The man steps into the room.

"May I ask why I am here, Sir?" Mallard asks. He's grown a lot since just last year. He is now a confident young man.

"You may. I have been very pleased with the way you are running these Games, Mr. Mallard. Your execution of that Eight girl," I don't remember her name and don't care to. Just another failed Rebel. "Was beautiful. I have one more request, Mr. Mallard."

"Yes, Sir?" He asks.

"The girl from Three, the twelve-year-old one. Allowing her to live provided some entertainment with her brother, but she has served her purpose. She should not be allowed to live," I say clasping my hands in front of me and smiling ever so slightly. The expression is designed to put Mallard on edge, but he does not flinch.

"Yes, Sir," he says. "I can have a mutt-" I wave my hand to stop him.

"No, Mr. Mallard. We have killed too many this year. I have a… more eloquent way of handling this. One that will also be much more… juicy than simply another mutt attack," I smile again.

"May I ask what that is?" Mallard asks.

"Worry not, Mr. Mallard. Your task is simple. All you must do is ensure that this message makes its way to the Tributes she is currently with," I hand him a folded piece of paper. "You may read it."

He unfolds the paper and scans the simple message. "Ingenious, Sir. Would you like us to show this message?"

"I would not like it, but I believe that these Tributes will make it impossible for us to not show the message," I say.

"Sir?" Mallard asks.

"They will fret and debate for so long that it will become clear what we have done. You shall show the event."

"Yes, Sir."

Emery Colt –17- -D5- POV

A soft ding comes from the sky as I'm on watch, just before I plan to wake up Kayne and Tontu. That's odd. I look upwards, and a small box floats downward on a parachute. It lands next to me, and I open it. Inside is a note. I read the note. Then I immediately, but quietly, wake Kayne and Tontu and take them to the spot where we talked about Clear, who is still sleeping, yesterday.

I show them the note silently.

Emery, Kayne, Tontu. You must kill the Clear girl within fifteen minutes of receipt of this message. Failure to do so while result in all of your deaths. Comply or not, she dies. Would you like to go with her? President Snow.

I then ask, "What do we do?"

"What can we do?" Kayne asks. "Our options are kill a sleeping girl or let her die along with ourselves?"

"As I see it, yes," I say. "It's an order from the President, I guess."

"Like tha-" Kayne starts but stops himself. "I- I can't kill her."

"I can't either," I say.

But, Tontu writes, either way, she dies. Who knows how bad her death – and ours – will be if we ignore this message?

"That's a good point," I say. "But still… that's so… wrong."
"This whole thing is wrong," Kayne points out. "If you want right, it's not in the Hunger Games."

Look at it this way. If the question was to kill four people or one, which would you pick? Tontu says.

"One," both Kayne and I say.

"I guess… I guess we have to, then. But I don't want to do it," I say.

"Me neither," Kayne says.

Me too, Tontu says.

"Okay then," I say. "Who's gonna do it?"

"How about we draw lots?" Kayne asks. "I hate it, but… I hat everything about this."

A few minutes later and we have dry reeds for use as sticks. Tontu picks one first. Kayne picks one second. Both of their reeds are the same length. With a sinking feeling, I pull out the last reed. It is shorter than the two others.

"Well, crap," I say. "Okay, okay, fine. We don't have a lot of time. How do I do this?"

"Slit her throat," Kayne says. "Fairly painless and quick."

"Okay then," I say. "I guess that's what I do. But we don't have a dagger."

"She does," Kayne says, pointing towards Clear's bag lying on the ground. I walk over to it and pick up the dagger. How wrong is this, I wonder, killing a little girl with her own knife in her sleep. Then I think of something. I move out of earshot again and speak to the sky.

"You made me do this. At least make sure she's not awake to feel it." No response from the Capitol. I'll just have to hope. I force down my urge to vomit and cry as I creep towards Clear's sleeping figure. I kneel over her and force down the urge to drop the dagger, run away, and cry. I force my hand to pull the dagger across her throat. Apparently someone in the Capitol was feeling mercy that day, for she doesn't wake up. She simply stops breathing and that's it. I don't think she even felt it. Still, I drop the dagger and cry. Kayne and Tontu come rushing over. Kayne pats my back.

"It's alright, Emery. You did the right thing. You did the right thing." Somehow Kayne's words sound hollow, probably because they are. We all know that there's no right thing here, only the right thing for here. What I've done is horrible, but it was also the best possible action.

Sometime after I killed Clear, her cannon fired. I don't remember when exactly. It was Tontu who suggested the idea of burying her. We liked it, and the Capitol didn't even try to send a hovercraft. We manage to dig a Clear sized hole in a few hours and gently place her body into it. After we cover her with dirt, smooth the dirt over, and place flowers around her grave, as well as some apologies to her family, I tell Kayne and Tontu that I'm taking a walk. Kayne tries to tell me not to go alone, or at least to take a weapon, but I tell him that right now I don't particularly care if I die and I just really want to be left alone. I must have said it in a manner that invited no room for argument, as he left me alone after that. I walk, alone in the woods now. The birds sing around me, unaware of the horrible tragedy – the horrible murder of a little girl by a boy – no, by a President – the horrible murder of a little girl by an evil man sitting in an office miles away. As I listen to the bird song, it reignites something in me. Something that I remember from the passion and the sadness and the birds and the woods. I start to sing. It's a sad song, a funeral song. It's a song of apology and remembrance for Clear. It is beautiful and sweet and haunting. And it ends with the haunting whistle on or about the notes of G, A#, A, and D. After what feels like minutes but must have been at least a half-hour of singing, I wander back into the camp and tuck myself into a sleeping bag. I need a nap.

Giselle Serpentine –16- -D2- POV

Today I walked. And walked. With so many Tributes dead, it's not a surprise that I don't run into anyone, I guess. I have ample food and water, and so walk all day, only stopping at sunset to make a fire and set up a temporary camp before watching the Anthem – three dead today, the traitor Falcon among them, and heading to bed. All day and night long, the faces of the dead swim in my eyes. It's hard to know what's real and what's not. It's scary. I'm scared. But if just a few more die, I'll be free. I need to focus on that.

Harper Satin POV

I woke up in the morning, had some breakfast, and set off for the nearby hill. I need to win. For Thia and Rhylee. Their deaths have reinvigorated me, in a way. I'm sad, but my sadness has turned into motivation for me to win. And now I don't have to worry about killing them. It's a long walk up the hill, and I reach it around noon. Apparent noon, at least. I have no idea what time it actually is back home. As I crest the hill, I'm not prepared for what I see. A cabin, with a fire in the front yard. Three people are sitting around the fire, eating and talking. I stop dead in my tracks. What to do? It's simple. They're enemies. Now is not the time for more allies. The Games will be over soon. I grab a knife and get ready to throw it when the dark-haired, olive-skinned girl looks up. She shouts something and the other girl turns around. I throw my knife at her.

Val Stensland POV

After barely sleeping last night, I got up a few hours later than Serena and Andrew and was only up for a couple of hours before lunch. We didn't say much. Serena tried to console me a bit. That's nice of her, but I don't need her help, just to be alone.

Then, during lunch, she shouted, "Val! Behind you!" I turn around to see a girl with light skin and brown hair holding a knife. I stand up and she throws the knife at me. I duck it and it impales the wood of the cabin behind me. I run towards her, not caring about a weapon.

Harper Satin POV

The girl I had tried to hit with the knife runs towards me. I only have one knife left, so I ready it to stab her. She comes closer and I hold the knife close to my side. She comes at me, swinging around me. My knife impacts the side of her chest, but it doesn't seem to do damage. It's then that I realize that she's wearing armor. Crap. My plan had been to stab her when she came close enough, but she whipped around me at the last second. I feel a strong arm across my neck and she pulls me back towards her larger body. I feel her squeezing my throat between her arms. What can I do? I can't cut her on her torso, that's protected. But if I don't do anything, I'm going to die. My arm moves downward, and I slice the knife across her leg. She releases her grip for a second and I slip free, falling forward. I feel a sharp pain in my stomach and as my vision opens up from the narrow tunnel it had been, I see the other girl holding a sword in front of me. She pulls the sword out of my stomach and I fall forward to the ground.

Vallory 'Val' Stensland –16- -D7- POV

The girl's cannon fires.

"Thanks for the save, Serena," I say.

"No problem, Val," she says. "Although I think you would have had it handled."

"Maybe. I guess we'll never have to know," I say raising my leg to walk back to camp. "Ow!" There's suddenly a pain on my thigh.

"Oh my goodness, you're bleeding!" Serena says. "She must have cut you. Stand still, let me look at it." I do as Dr. Holden advises. "It's just a small cut," she says. "Surface level, not wide or deep. A bandage for twenty minutes and you'll be fine."

"What about an infection?" I ask.

"Shouldn't be a problem," she says. "As long as we cover it right away." Andrew brings over a spare piece of fabric, anticipating Serena's request. "Thank you," she says. "Val, lie down. I'm going to put this on your leg and hold it there for a few minutes, and then you should be fine. Okay?"

"Okay," I say, faking a yawn. "I could use a nap anyway."

Serena laughs. "Uh-huh. Just do what the doctor says, and you'll be good."

"Yes, Ma'am," I say, following her instructions. Serena applies the makeshift bandage.

Twenty minutes later and the cut is healed, although Serena advises me not to move too much as that could re-open the wound. The girl's body is taken away via hovercraft. I don't feel too bad for her. She attacked me, after all. It's always a little sad, but… if she hadn't attacked, she might not have died then. She killed herself. I move back over to the fire with Serena and Andrew.

"Lots of people like this hill," Andrew says.

"Yeah," I say. "Good thing we were here first."

"Good point," Serena says.

Serena Holden –16- -D5- POV

I'm glad that Val's wound isn't as bad as Falcon's. Losing both of them within a day of each other would have been heartbreaking. Of course, from a selfish perspective, I should have let that girl do her best to kill her, not helped Val with the bleeding, and let her die. Or pushed my sword further and killed both of them. But I couldn't do that. Val is my ally. For now at least.

Andrew Spayler –16- -D6- POV

I feel sort of bad for the girl that was killed, but she did attack us. I'm just glad that my armor was able to save Val from a more hurtful wound. With two cannons today, that means only seven people or left, or only four others. The Games must be ending soon. I just wonder what will happen to us. I hope that there won't be any gigantic walls of fire, because I'd probably die trying to run from one. I guess we'll see what happens. Nothing much else happens for the rest of the day, we find and eat a little more food, and then head to sleep.

Kayne Lytch –13- -D10- POV

I'm worried about Emery. After his walk, he immediately went to sleep. Not that I can blame him. There's a subdued mood ever since Clear's death. I hate the Capitol now more than ever. It makes me want to scream, to take my bow and shatter the dome of the Arena, or to shoot the President in his smug, child-killing face. But I can't do any of those things, so instead I sit, eat, and drink in silence until it's time to go to sleep when I see the faces of the boy from Four, Clear, and the girl from Six up in the sky. Seven left. Four others. Emery didn't wake up until dinner time, so he took the first watch. I don't blame him. It was hard enough watching Clear's death, much less killing her. I hope, I pray that even if I don't make it back, that never happens to Kylie. Even thinking about it makes me want to cry. The problem is that no one besides victors is exempt, so even if I make it back, I have to worry about her for four more years. Of course, if she got Reaped, I would have to volunteer. I don't think there's a rule against it, is there? And then I would die. But I would know she would be alright, and that's what matters. These morbid thoughts drift through my brain as I try to sleep.

Tontu Heinburg –18- -D11- POV

I'm glad I didn't have to kill Clear, but I feel bad for Emery. I can't even imagine doing what he did. We both tried to tell him that what he did was right, but it's hard to believe. It is what was right, he saved us by doing it. He'll just need some time to realize it. That night, I write another love letter to Noami by firelight. I hope that if I die, these will still get to her. I smile as I think of her and fight back tears at the thought of never seeing her again. Then I try to fall asleep.

Emery Colt –17- -D5- POV

I wake up around dinnertime. I eat some dinner and volunteer to take the first watch. At least I'm not tired. I know that I did the right thing, but I don't know that I did the right thing. I wish Mia was here. I mean, not here, but I wish I could talk to her. She always helped her friends with stuff like this. I mean, none of her friends ever killed a little girl in their sleep, but still. But I wonder if she would still like me. I hope so. I can't help but cry as I think about Clear and Mia. I go a little bit away from camp, to not wake the other boys. And after a few minutes of crying, I feel better. I feel like now, more than ever, I need to get home. At least see if Mia might still love me. And since Clear's dead, something should at least come of her death. One of us should win, otherwise, we should have all burned when the Capitol killed the four of us. I will go home. And I will see Mia, at least one more time.

Peter Mallard –36- -Capitol Resident- -Head Gamemaker- POV

As the day is ending, I'm called into the President's office again.

"Mr. Mallard," President Snow says. "I know that you fried that girl's brain before the boy's knife even touched her. It was painless and instant."

"Yes, Sir," I say.

"I will not mention this again," Snow says. "But it also will not happen again. I would hate it if my Head Gamemaker was going soft after only two years. Understood?"

"Yes, Sir," I say. "Will there be anything else?"

"No. You may go now, Mr. Mallard." I walk out of his office. I know what he means. If I show mercy to a Tribute ever again, he will show no mercy to me. He may have me ripped apart by mutts. I shudder at the thought. Why did I choose this job?

Clear: I might have cried a little bit writing her death. In some ways, I would say she deserved better, but she got the best death possible under the circumstance. I feel bad for her. She was a fun character, but as an unprepared twelve-year-old whose brother died in front of her, she was never going to win. At least she got a peaceful death. RIP Clear.

Harper: She was a fun character. I also liked Harper, and her interactions with the other girls were fun. Sadly, versus Val and Serena, she was never going to win. She was a fun character, and if she hadn't attacked, she might have lived longer. RIP Harper.

24th: Kayra Dawnbreeze, 13F, D10. Killed by a sword through the side from Ares Moretti.

23rd: Camelia Lloha, 12F, D12. Killed by a sword through the heart from Giselle Serpentine.

22nd: Char Alfand, 14M, D12. Killed by a knife through the heart thrown by Silk Daisly.

21st: Isaiah Lemont, 15M, D9. Sacrifice. Killed by a spear through the heart thrown by Tontu Heinburg.

20th: Brianna 'Bri' Tribiani, 16F, D11. Killed by knives through her heart and stomach thrown by Diamond Knowles.

19th: Diamond Knowles, 18F, D1. Mercy Kill. Killed by having her throat slit by Aster Ochs.

18th: Aster Ochs, 16M, D7. Killed by a partial beheading by Giselle Serpentine.

17th: Lustero Aldor, 17M, D1. Killed by swords through the side and heart by Giselle Serpentine and Ares Moretti.

16th: Ares Moretti, 18M, D2. Killed by choking by Giselle Serpentine.

15th: Becquerel 'Bec' Grey, 15M, D3. Sacrifice. Killed by tracker after transferring his Shine moment to his step-sister, Clear Palatino. Killed by the Capitol.

14th: Athena Rye, 14F, D9. Killed by being ripped apart by a Capitol mutt. Killed by the Capitol.

13th: Rhylee Kaski, 16F, D8. Killed by being ripped apart by a Capitol mutt. Target and killed by the Capitol for inciting a rebellion.

12th: Thia Zollis, 16F, D4. Killed by being ripped apart by a Capitol mutt. Killed by the Capitol.

11th: Silk Daisly, 16M, D8. Killed by a sword the chest and being beheaded by Serena Holden and Vallory Stensland respectively.

10th: Falcon Lockdust, 17M, D4. Killed by an infection resulting from a wound incurred in a fight with Silk Daisly.

9th: Clear Palatino, 12F, D3. Killed by electrocution from tracker. Killed by President Snow.

8th: Harper Satin, 16F, D6. Killed by a sword through the stomach by Serena Holden.

A/N: Only seven Tributes remain. Who do you think will win? Who will lose? Will Giselle overcome her challenges or will they end up getting her killed? What about Emery? See all of you on Games day 6! And please, stay inside and follow the rules during the trouble going on right now. -JStar14H