Day Thirteen. Make sure you've read everything up to here, because things. Also forgot to put a warning last chapter, so placing it here: a few curses used. My tributes are stressed. I hope you understand; I don't curse much, but I'm sure I'd be worse than a sailor in the Arena.

So there.

Also, sorry for falling a few days behind. You see, I finally got myself a subscription to Netflix, and, well… I can see what all the hype was about. However, Arrow stole my weekend from me.

Thanks dreams for the review.


Esmeralda "Mera" Annalise Dawn, Age 18, District 4

District Four Female, Sixth Quarter Quell


I've felt so invigorated since I killed the Nine boy yesterday. He's been my most exciting kill since the Bloodbath, and I can't help but revel in knowing that I've tied Mason for most kills. There's no way I'll be breaking any records, unfortunately, but getting a kill on only my second day alone seems really promising.

This morning, I found the beach where I caught the Three girl a few days ago. The remnants of the camp she and the young Ten girl shared are still here, which means that Ten has been smart enough to not return. I had really hoped she might have, figuring I could track her down and eliminate her as I had Nine. Unfortunately, luck doesn't seem to be with me.

Even as I lay in the hammock they had oh-so-graciously left up for me, I feel the first tremors. My head swings around, surveying what little I can from my vantage. I glance over at the sea, and I feel my eyes bug out as the water, only a few feet from the treeline twenty minutes ago, recedes drastically. Large waves begin to take shape on the horizon, and I scramble out of the hammock.

Shit.

I turn tail and run, deeper into the jungle. Another tremor shakes the island, and I stumble. I'm quickly back on my feet, however, and I hear the wave crashing down in the distance. Soon the distant crash becomes a roar, and I know I can't outrace it.

I give up on running, searching for any particularly large tree I can climb, or something else I can use to protect myself. I'm nowhere near enough to the mountain housing the Cornucopia, but I have to go up. High ground is the only protection I'll find in the Arena.

I cry in relief as I find a particularly tall mangrove. Scaling it is easy, and I reach the highest boughs as I first catch sight of the tidal wave. My stomach drops.

The wave is still incredibly high, easily over my head, and it's ripping down half the trees in its path. I climb around the side of my tree, trying to use it as a shield, but that quickly proves impossible. My arms are quickly soaked as the wave breaks around my mangrove, and I hear several cracks as the forest around me is ripped apart.

Suddenly I can't hear anything, just the roaring of the ocean. I close my eyes tight, my fingers clutching the smooth bark of my perch.

Suddenly I'm falling, my head going under. I try fruitlessly to swim, and I feel branches and rocks scratching at my face.

How ironic. I manage to think. The girl from Four, drowning.


Cheyenne Bruno, Age 13, District 10

District Ten Female, Sixth Quarter Quell


The ash follows the first tremors. Memories of the Second Quell quickly come to mind as I stand up, making a mad dash away from the looming volcano and the Cornucopia. I hear the explosion in the distance, but I don't turn back. Looking back slows you down, and that's the last thing I want.

My feet fly across the rough terrain of the jungle, heedless of the dangers of tripping headlong into the dirt or even another tribute. Right now, my only thought is to run, as fast and as far as this Arena will let me. I come to the river, and I jump halfway across before sloshing through the water to the other side. The underbrush whips past me, and I feel a low branch snag my hair. I don't stop, however, and the pain in my head becomes another focus of my thought.

A throb of pain, followed by the jolt of my boot hitting the ground. Throb, jolt, throb, jolt, throb, jolt. The mantra continues, never-ending as the sounds of the volcano grow louder and louder.

Finally, I glance back, and it saves my life. A glowing orb of molten rock flies over my head, obliterating a tree ten feet ahead. I stop, ducking to the ground as splinters fly in every direction. Something embeds itself in my shoulder, and I gasp.

I'm up and running again as another explosion sounds nearby, and I allow myself to stray from the straight line I had been trying to keep. Weaving in and out of the trees, hopefully the Gamemakers will have a harder time hitting me.

There's a blinding flash, a cacophony of sound, a wave of heat, and I drop to the jungle floor.


Cassia Lyra Maurise, Age 18, District 2

District Two Female, Sixth Quarter Quell


Mason and I hunt carefully in the middle of the chaos, watching each other's backs as fire rains from the sky. We take turns watching the sky and the jungle, sure that the Gamemakers would leave us alone but also not wanting to trust them completely. With a little luck, we might come across another tribute and win the country's favor, but until then we remain potential targets in this disaster.

There's a flash of color through the trees in front of us, and I punch Mason in the shoulder. I gesture in the direction of what I thought was the boy from Six, and he nods. We quickly learned that we couldn't hear each other in all the thunder, but we know many ways of communicating from the Academy.

Mason takes the lead, cutting through the foliage like a wolf. I follow close behind, when a blinding flash stops me in my tracks. I blink a few times before my vision clears, and I groan inwardly.

A ball of lava had streaked through the air between Mason and I, creating a deep gash in the earth. As I watch, the floor of the trench breaks away, revealing the river of lava running at the bottom. Mason looks at me helplessly from the other side of the trap.

Go! I throw my arms out, and he nods grimly. I may not like him much, but he's my Partner and understands my will. He turns and races after the tribute, leaving me behind.

Below me, the lava is hotter than this furnace of a jungle ever was. I go to take a step back, but the ground shakes and I fall. The dark volcanic rock crumbles under my weight, sending me scrambling as I plunge into the ravine.

Over the roar of the Arena, nobody hears my screams.


Henry Reynoso, Age 14, District 8

District Eight Male, Sixth Quarter Quell


Run. Run. Runrunrunrunrun.

Devon and I were wandering near the volcano when the ground began to shake. We waited for a moment, trying to determine what it meant, when the volcano started to erupt.

We started to run in the other direction, through the jungle, when we caught sight of a wall of water rising over the trees. Without a word, we turned back.

I can hear the roar of the tsunami even over the explosions of the volcano. I don't look back, for fear of tripping, but I can't help but imagine being swallowed by the wave. The image itself is enough to make tears run down my face.

By some miracle, we reach the base of the steep mountain with time to spare. We climb, climb, and I don't look back until we reach the launch pedestals.

Devon is still about twenty feet below me, sprawled on the dark stone as though she had tripped. She's staring out at the roaring wave, and I get my first good look. It's a dark mass of rock and fallen trees, and it's clearly higher than Devon is.

She meets my eyes before being swept away, disappearing into the dark water. I can't hear anything over the explosions and the roars, but it isn't long after that when the volcano comes to a slow, and the water seems to wash away.

I sit there, shivering, on some tribute's launch pad. I pull my shirt up, covering my face; I don't want to inhale too much of the gasses the volcano spat out. I stare over the Arena, wondering if the Gamemakers are done with us for the day.

My answer comes about ten minutes later with the cannons.

BOOM

BOOM

BOOM

The Final Six.

I stand, shivering, as ash rains down from the sky. It's dark now, though I think that's only because of the clouds blocking out the sky. I climb the volcano, watching my step as lava steadily flows downward around me. The heat is intense, but I don't care anymore.

I reach the rim up top, and it's clearly bigger around than it was the first day of the Games. The Cornucopia was clearly incinerated, along with the top quarter of the mountain.

From this vantage, I can better see the Arena as a whole, something I didn't get the chance to do when I was running away from the Bloodbath almost two weeks ago. Everything is different now, blanketed in ash.

Two weeks. The Games are almost over. I suspect we'll only get only get two days before the Gamemakers force another confrontation, perhaps a Feast of sorts. Then we'll all die. Like Tulle. Like Blue. Like Devon.

Devon. She'd have died regardless of whether or not I gave her the poison. Now that she's gone, I feel nothing.

After surviving that cataclysm, I just want these Games to end.

Three days, Henry. Three days and you get to go home.


Devon Cynthia Rose, Age 17, District 5

District Five Female, Sixth Quarter Quell


Oh Ori. I've found myself in Hell.

Of course, I had expected that from a Quell Arena, but all the same. Haven't we suffered enough, year after year, losing tributes left and right? Heck, Henry told me that Eight has lost 111 tributes, in a row, leading up to Tulle.

Still, fire rains upon the Arena.

I can hear the roar of the tsunami better than ever before, and Henry and I aren't quite to the volcano yet. Henry's pulling ahead, my supplies dragging me down, and I can't bear the thought of throwing them away. At the very least, I can't let somebody else find them.

As we sprint, I vaguely recognize the grove of trees we started our run in. I glance up, and almost cry in relief as we reach the base of the mountain. Henry takes it in stride, barely stumbling as he climbs.

I fall to the ground, however. A deep pain rakes my body, and I sit there on the ground for a moment, trying to gather myself. When I come to, Henry is halfway to the pedestals. I get to my feet and run.

I shudder as I scale the steep incline. I imagine, around the mountain to my right, my experiences of the Bloodbath the first day. Cassia's knife cutting the air as it flies toward my neck, my own knife as it slices open her hand. The dull thud as another cast landed in my backpack.

I shouldn't be alive.

I stumble again, before looking back at the massive wave. There's no way I'm escaping that. I stare to the sky, almost black with ash, and whisper.

"I'm sorry, Ori. Please, forgive me."

I look up at Henry, who's watching me desperately. I catch his eye, taking a deep breath, before the wave strikes me.

I'm smashed first against the volcano, before I feel myself being torn away. My body scrapes against the rocky ground, and I imagine myself a bloody mess when they pull me out of here. Soon I'm floating freely through the water, riding it through the Arena.

I'm tossed around, eyes closed tight, my hair wrapping around my face. Differing currents threaten to tear me apart, tugging my every which way.

After what feels like an eternity, but must be only moments in the roiling, foaming water, something strikes my head.

I let out the breath I'd somehow managed to hold.


Cordin Bolt, Age 16, District 3

District Three Male, Sixth Quarter Quell


I have found refuge in the treeline at the base of the volcano, for now. The firebombs soaring through the sky are arcing into the jungle behind me, and I'm safe. For now.

Lava is flowing down the mountainside toward me, just like it was the first day. It's remarkably fast, following the flows from the Bloodbath. The nearest stretch will reach the base twenty meters to my right, so I'm not worried.

Then again, moving back couldn't hurt. I stand, striding into the jungle.

There's a tremor, deeper and rougher than the ones before. I fall twice before sitting back on my butt, looking back to the volcano. I can still see it all clearly, the angry red lines crawling down toward me.

A bubble forms over the nearest branch, inflating like a balloon. I watch it expand before bursting, and I scream in horror.

As a child, I had watched a tribute from Eight get ripped to pieces by what had appeared to be overlarge Siberian Huskies. I was small, and it was the first Games I had seen. This creature on the mountainside is definitely worse, with black obsidian skin glistening like armor, fiery magma glowing in the seams.

I scream, hiking up my pack and running away. I don't look back as the crackling of the stone grows louder behind me. Over the roar of the Arena, I still hear the howls.

I shudder, sprinting through the burning jungle. My limbs are shaking, blood pounding in my ears, tears streaming down my face. My breath comes in heaving sobs.

I hear the thing yipping excitedly, closing on my heels. In a moment of panic, I run up the nearest tree and climb, scrambling around the limbs of the mangrove. I climb as high as I dare, but it isn't high enough. I look down as the beast lunges for my throat, teeth snapping inches away from my face. I can't go any higher, and the beast's strength is incredible.

After three failed attempts, it tries a different approach, ramming its head into the base of the tree.


Malaya Garnet, Age 17, District 1

District One Female, Sixth Quarter Quell


I've lost Aran. I'm not sure what happened, but one moment he was running beside me, the next he had disappeared.

"Aran!" I call again, though I doubt he can hear me over the explosions. He's got the arrows and our sword, though I have the bow and my spear, along with our supplies. We barely managed to escape our hideout before it exploded, though neither of us were hurt. We both took up close-range weapons for just-in-case purposes, should we get separated.

Looks like our caution was for the best.

I continue to call, spear held at the ready. The smoke is thick down here, and I can only see a few feet in front of me. The balls of lava have stopped lighting the sky, however, and things seem to be calming down. If he isn't dead, I should be able to find him. Hopefully.

Aran Quade, you had better not be dead or I swear. After I win, I'll make the Capitol bring you back so I can kill you again you stupid, adorable dingus. I refuse to lose you now.

Gradually, the Arena quiets. I pause to listen, hoping for a sign of some sort. A soft crack splits the silence, and I jump. At my feet, the ground opens a few centimeters. The rip stretches out, off to my left, glowing orange. I understand immediately, and take off after the glowing snake below.

The Gamemakers are here to put on a show; that's their whole job. Aran must be in some sort of trouble, and they are leading me to him. Perhaps he's in a fight, and they want me to protect him.

Or he's dead, and they want me to find his body.

Don't think like that, Laya. I smile slightly in my sprint, remembering the first time he had called me that. So much has changed since I first left District One.

I'm running only for moments when the sound of clashing steel meets my eardrums. I don't need to follow the Gamemakers' guide to know where to go, and soon I spot my Ally between two trees, sword held ready from his sitting position on the ground. A figure in crimson stands over him, holding his own sword.

Mason's eyes meet mine as I haul toward the two boys, my supplies rattling softly in the bag. He steps back in surprise as I leap over the boy from Six, spear aimed for his face.


Mason Lepodolite, Age 18, District 2

District Two Male, Sixth Quarter Quell


Go! Cassia gestures toward where the Six boy went, and I nod grimly. I turn my back to my Partner, racing after the tribute. Deep down, I suspect that this will be the last time I see Cass alive.

Very little catches my eye as the trees fly past, my vision focusing only on the greys around me. It was a neat trick I learned back home, the ability to isolate a single color in one's head while ignoring all the rest. I spot the grey jacket among the greens and browns and blacks of the Arena quickly enough, and I gun for my target.

My sword trails behind me, point held toward the ground as I sprint. My vision opens as I close the gap between my prey and I, and I swing for his neck as he turns to check over his shoulder.

My sword strikes empty air, and I stumble over my own momentum. After nearly falling for a few paces, I stop, pivoting to face my opponent. He stands motionless, watching me. His own sword is pointing at my heart from ten meters away. The sky is still dark, but a smoldering bush provides plenty of light to see by.

Since when does he have a weapon? Must be how he survived this long, I reason.

"Ready to die, Six?" I call. He stands motionless, eyes glinting in the firelight. His sword flickers as his arm shakes, but I see no fear in his expression.

"I could ask you the same." He snarls.

"I'm sure I'd be happy to, when the time comes. For now, however, I'm sure my sword is delighted in the prospect of tasting your blood." I charge forward, legs pumping as I gather my strength. I swing down in a powerful overhand blow, and Six deflects it. I jump back, reconsidering the situation.

"You're not what I had expected you to be, Six."

His sword darts for my throat, and I smack it away. He recovers quickly, however, keeping the weapon between himself and me. I lunge, and he parries. I swing for his hip, and he dances into the attack, kicking me in the inner thigh for good measure.

I gasp as I whirl toward him. He was… incredibly close.

"Playing dirty, Six? I never thought someone as lowly as you were capable of such atrocities. What would your mother say?"

"She'd tell me to survive." The blade cuts toward my head, and I drop to my back on the jungle floor. A rock lodges itself in the small of my back, and the follow-up kick I had aimed for his crotch hits him in the stomach instead. He falls on his butt though, and I quickly regain my feet.

His sword lies next to him, abandoned. He looks up at me, stunned. I press my blade against his throat as I kick his away.

"Where on Earth did a Six learn how to use a sword?" I narrow my eyes, looking down.

He mumbles something, and I move in closer. "I asked you a question, pretty boy!" I grab a fistful of his hair, leaning in close. I glare into his eyes, my nose almost touching his. I vaguely recall another Victor killing his District Partner in a situation similar to this. He had caught her lips in his, before slitting her throat.

I smile slightly, imagining what the whelp's family will think as I lean in closer. I tighten my grip on his head as I pull him closer.

He jumps forward suddenly, teeth flashing. I fall back, surprised. The boy stays where he was, hissing. He looks around, likely for his sword.

Something warm dribbles down to my chin, and then the pain registers. He bit my lip?

I stand over him again, raising the sword. A grin breaks out across his face. "I don't think you'd like to meet my sword trainer, Two."

A shadow materializes behind the boy, accompanied by a tangle of orange hair. I barely have time to fall back as One's spear darts for my neck, and she lands between me and Six.

"Mind if I join the party, boys?"


Aran Quade, Age 17, District 6

District Six Male, Sixth Quarter Quell


"Mind if I join the party, boys?" Malaya doesn't look at me, keeping her eyes on Mason. She drops the bow and supply bag at my feet, however, and I scramble to collect them as she advances. The bow is quickly loaded, aimed at the duelists.

Malaya is like a whirlwind, dancing in and out of Mason's reach as she tries to flank him. He knows what she's doing, however, and I can't line up a good shot. Malaya's good, but the Two boy is better. His sword lashes out, and I can see hits being scored along Malaya's arms in the flickering light. While she's incredible with the spear, she doesn't get many opportunities to use it.

I make my decision as it becomes evident that the girl from One can't win. I dig through the pack for a moment, before pulling out a razor-sharp throwing axe. Laya had told me the Seven boy tried to kill her with it, and we kept it even though none of us had any experience with such a weapon.

I run up behind Malaya, quiver hanging on my back, bow in hand. Logan Woodson's axe hangs from my belt.

"Laya!" I shout, raising the bow again. She looks back at me for a moment, before dropping to the jungle floor. The Two boy looks at me for a moment before my arrow dives into his chest. He stumbles back, looking down at the arrow.

I sprint toward him, dropping the bow and replacing it with the axe. I jump over Laya's prone form and plow into the man from Two, axe raised. He falls back, me on top of him. He doesn't have his sword.

He looks into my eyes as the tomahawk lands once, twice in his neck. He gurgles, choking on his own blood as his eyes glaze over.

I stand, looking down at him before running to Malaya. The jungle is still now, silent save for the fires.

"Malaya!" I cry, relieved. I help her to a sitting position, tears falling down my face. "We did it! We-" I stop.

Malaya looks up at me weakly. "You really did, Aran." She looks down at the hilt of Mason's blade, protruding from her chest. She coughs. "Now you've got a real chance to go home."

I look down at her, horrified. "No. No! Laya, there's got to be a way we can save you! We've got Sponsors, right? They can send us something! We can-"

"Aran." She coughs. "You don't just walk away from having three feet of steel poking a hole in you. My journey ends here."

"No! It can't! I-"

"Will win." She looks at me intensely. Her voice is growing fainter, her breath heaving. "You're a good man, Aran Quade. You will make a fine Victor." She rolls onto her side. I take her hand, holding it to my chest.

"Don't leave me." I plead. I bury my face in her neck, her pulse weakening. "I love you."

"I love you too." Her heart stops. I sit there for a moment as the cannons go off.

BOOM

BOOM

BOOM

I hold her corpse, sobbing uncontrollably.

Final Six


Deaths!

TBR

Splitting Day Thirteen into 2 chapters. Sorrynotsorry


Placings!

26th: Sparky Montgomery, Age 12, District Thirteen Male

25th: Kenzi Williams, Age 16, District Seven Female

24th: Tulle Salane, Age 15, District Eight Female

23rd: Thorn Ashbury, Age 13, District Eleven Male

22nd: Keola Foeba, Age 13, District Twelve Female

21st: Harvest Miller, Age 14, District Nine Female

20th: Rebelle Rine, Age 13, District Thirteen Female

19th: Soot Maloy, Age 13, District Twelve Male

18th: Denny Rico, Age 14, District Ten Male

17th: Marcus Caelum, Age 17, District One Male

16th: Jetta Carter, Age 17, District Six Female

15th: Darius Line, Age 17, District Five Male

14th: Infiniti Reagan, Age 17, District Three Female

13th: Willow Orchids, Age 13, District Eleven Female

12th: Logan Woodson, Age 16, District Seven Male

11th: Jasper Blue, Age 16, District Four Male

10th: Thanatos Rize, Age 15, District Nine Male


Kills!

Malaya Garnet: 1 (Logan Woodson, D7M)

Marcus Caelum: 1 (Kenzi Williams, D7F)

Cassia Lyra Maurise: 2 (Thorn Ashbury, D11M; Sparky Montgomery, D13M)

Mason Lepodolite: 4 (Darius Line, D5M; Jetta Carter, D6F; Tulle Salane, D8F; Keola Foeba, D12F)

Esmeralda "Mera" Annalise Dawn: 4 (Infiniti Reagan, D3F; Thanatos Rize, D9M; Soot Maloy, D12M; Rebelle Sunflower Rine, D13F)

Devon Cynthia Rose: 1 (Jasper Blue, D4M)

Darius Line: 1 (Harvest Miller, D9F)

Thanatos Rize: 1 (Willow Orchids, D11F)

Other: 2 (Marcus Caelum, D1M (Sepsis); Denny Rico, D10M (Jaguar))


Alliances!

Malaran: Malaya (1) and Aran (6)

Glory for Two: Mason (2) and Cassia (2)

Poison: Devon (5) and Henry (8)


Loners!

Cordin (3)

Esmeralda (4)

Cheyenne (10)


Questions!

Who's dead, you guys!?

How are things going to go from here?

You ever watched Arrow? No spoilers, I've just finished Season One.