District 8
Lacen Cervelt, 17
Five years prior to the Games
Flames. Surrounding him, everywhere, engulfing his home in a sea of magnificent reds and oranges. He was panicking, looking desperately around at his surroundings, the place he called home for such a short period of time as it went up in flames. Where was Fustian? He was young, far too young to know how to navigate his way out by himself, far too young to have to witness the horror the night would bring.
He could hear screams of agony belonging to his father, screams of sheer desperation as his mother tried to find her children in the quickly burning house. Lacen wanted to find his father, help him in whatever way he could to stop his screaming.. but he had to find Fustian first. He knew his father was a capable man, he could make it out of here okay. He was sure of it. His four-year-old brother needed him; he wouldn't survive this without him. So he made that decision and ran upstairs, leaving his father to hopefully escape the grasp of the burning flames, and find his brother. If he hadn't, he wouldn't be able to live with himself.
Once upstairs, he could hear him, just about over the roar of the fire, his crying for their mother. He dashed in the direction of the room, ignoring the searing heat of the flames that consumed the door to the bedroom, and found his brother, in the far-left corner of the room, as far away from the fire as possible, huddled over and clutching his knees to his chest.
"Fustian!"
His name escaped his lips before he even realised it had and he rushed over to him, scooping up his little brother into his arms and bolted like the speed of light out of the room. The smoke was beginning to make sight a problem, it burned his eyes and made them water, each inhale of it was excruciating and he wasn't sure how much longer either of their lungs would hold up.
As he ran down the wide, dark oak stairs, despite the ever-rising presence of the smoke, he caught sight of himself in the now cracked mirror that hung just at the corner of the wall where the direction of the stairs changed. A young twelve-year-old boy stared back out at him, covered in soot, and clutching his sobbing sibling in his arms. Why would somebody do this? Hurt his family like this? Those were questions he would have to ask himself later on, otherwise neither of them would live to see the morning light again.
Once he reached the bottom of the stairs, he glanced towards the kitchen, where he could hear his mother and twin brother both yelling to each other. He would come back for them, surely their father was outside by now. Lacen bolted out the front door, away from the burning house and scanned his surroundings, in search of his father. He wasn't out here, which made the sinking feeling in his stomach worsen even more.
However, he did see his two younger sisters, Scarlet and Zebeline standing not too far away from them, covered in an equal amount of soot and shaking violently. A wave of relief washed over him, and he ran towards them, carefully placing Fustian onto his feet.
"Where's Mom? Where's Dad? Are- are you both okay?" Lacen asked, his gaze between his sisters and the blaze.
"We… we're okay." Scarlet replied weakly, concern written all over her more than beautiful, but soot covered, face. "Neither of them has come out! Linen hasn't either, they were grabbing one thing from the kitchen and Mom told me run and get out of the house with Zebeline so.. we did! Are they going to be okay? What if they need us?"
With each word, Scarlet was becoming more frantic and panicked, and then to add to all the emotions, there was a loud 'thump' from inside the house and a scream of pain. He recognized it instantly as his twin Linen's scream, which sent even more adrenaline running through him. He knew he had to go back in and help get them out before it was too late.
Lacen took his ten-year-old sister by the shoulders, looking her deep in the eyes and spoke with a firm and calm tone.
"Stay outside and do not come inside under any circumstances, you hear me? You need to stay out here, yell for help and take care of Zebeline and Fustiar until help comes. I'll be back, I promise."
After that, everything else seemed to fade into the background, his younger siblings crying out in a plea for him to stay, Scarlet holding strong and keeping them close, everything. Everything around him was just a blur of oranges and reds as he ran inside once more, an overwhelming heat hitting him immediately, but not deterring him. He beelined for the kitchen and once he entered, he found his twin on the floor, his leg trapped underneath a now fallen and still lit, in places, support beam. Tears were streaming down the soot-stained face of his identical twin and on the ground, desperately trying to lift the beam off her son's leg with one hand, the other being severely burned.
Without a second thought, without any hesitation, Lacen ran over and lifted the beam up as quickly and for as long as he humanly could, even if it meant burning his hands in the process. Thankfully, he had picked one of the less burnt areas and with his help, they got Linen's leg out and the pair dragged him out of the kitchen and out of the blazing house together, pulling Linen with his arms around their shoulders until they reached his younger siblings. All three collapsed, each in agony and out of sheer shock at what they had all just been through. When they finally looked up, looked back at the now flame engulfed place they deemed home crumbling, and realised that there was one person who had not made it out and would not be leaving alive.
And as help arrived and neighbours came out into the night to see what was happening, the family wept, and wept, and wept.
The Reaping
Lacen's eyes were closed as the Capitol escort for District 8 droned on excitedly about the differences and similarities between the two places and how excited she was to return to 8 this year. The years of the Reaping, even before he was eligible, were all a blur and just lumped together by the same escort, repeating the same things each year. By now he had learned to tune it out, only listening when the names were being called to make sure it wasn't any of his siblings, Tucker or Latana.
Tucker stood next to him, his calming presence felt by Lacen as a warm summer breeze passed by them. Often, he made Lacen feel a mixture of calm and anxiety at the same time since he may have a had a crush on him. It hadn't started out that way, they had been close friends for a while now, but it had been a solid year since these feelings began to well up inside Lacen and he had absolutely no clue if his friend felt the same way about him. But he refused to potentially ruin their friendship by speaking up about these feelings, though Latana had been encouraging him to admit how he felt ever since he told her. Crushes and feelings were awkward and hard to explain at the best of times for a teenager, so for the moment, Lacen pushed aside those feelings, squashed them down deep inside him and carried on as friends.
It was a little over five years since the arson attack had happened and changed his family's lives forever. Since then, they had been struggling to get by since the burns on his mother's dominant hand had left her unable to stitch and incapable of doing embroidery, which was something which she was incredibly talented at and was her job. Was. She was slowly learning to use her weaker hand, though he could see how much it frustrated her that she wasn't learning quick enough.
With each passing day, they were slowly gaining less and less pity from their landlord, who was renting out to them because of the misfortune the family had been slapped with, and it was becoming increasingly clearer that one of the Cervelt children were going to have to be discovered by someone, either from the Capitol or from District 8.
The majority of the Cervelt siblings had a talent of some kind, something that made them stand out from the usual crowd. Linen, before the support beam collapsed onto his leg, was on his way to becoming an esteemed actor in the Capitol. Now, that dream had long faded away because he was left with a permanent limp, which frustrated Lacen endlessly since he could clearly see all the potential his twin had. Scarlet had been blessed with a beautiful face from birth and could model almost anywhere, if the right people knew where to find her. Zebeline was a sweet and incredibly humble girl, who was just as talented as their mother had been with a needle, and Fustian, well, Lacen had heard many a time that his youngest sibling's singing voice had been compared to that of an angel. Of course, he couldn't forget himself. He was a charmer and knew it well, and was an eloquent person, well on his way to potentially becoming a politician. Their parents had paid for public speaking lessons for him, for Linen's acting lessons, everything they could to improve their children's talents before the attack. They were the 'Golden Children', they had been referred to as such many times.
But there was one person that was both completely indistinguishable yet unforgettable in Lacen's mind, that person being the eldest child of the Cervelt's, Serge. Someone who was so bitter, so angry, so caught up in the fact that he hadn't been blessed with any kind of talent and had been forgotten about, that he conspired to kill his own family. It was him, along with their mother's extremely resentful brother Eldrick, that ruined their lives for possibly what could be forever. Just the thought of the two left a scowl on his face and a bitter taste in his mouth. Eldrick had been found and arrested not too long after the attack, interrogated relentlessly for the whereabouts of Serge, but that secret remained within the confines of his skull. He was executed not long after, something most of the family found solace and comfort in.
But it always was at the back of Lacen's mind, infuriating his very being that his older brother was seemingly nowhere to be found. To make matters worse, their mother had been receiving threatening letters detailing about how somebody, someone who Lacen knew was his brother, would return with a similar attack, this time to finish the job. It terrified him to think about such a thing happening, with no way to avoid or prevent it from happening. If he could get his hands on that asshole, that scum, he would personally finish the-
"This year's male tribute is.. Linen Cervelt!"
His eyes opened wide, his heart beating at thousand miles a minute. The fury and resentment for his older brother disappeared within an instant, replaced with an overwhelming fear. This couldn't be it. His brother would be dead the minute he stepped off the pedestal, his limp very much painting a giant target on his back.
He couldn't lose his brother, his twin, after what it was like after losing their father. He couldn't watch his mother and siblings grieve for another member of their family. They couldn't sit and watch as her son, their brother, was killed immediately by a Career.
Then it struck him. This, like many other things, was an opportunity. An opportunity to make himself known to not just District 8, but to all of Panem. A chance to save not only Linen, but all his family from this horrid mess that Serge had placed them in. All he had to do was say those two words. Without any other thoughts, in that moment of panic at the thought of losing his brother, he uttered the words that could very well doom him.
"I volunteer!"
Tucker whipped his head around, looking at him in utter disbelief.
"What are you doing?!" He whispered to him, his voice quivering. Lacen took a deep breath.
"Saving my family." He replied calmly, beginning to walk towards the pathway to the stage.
"Lacen, wait!" Tucker exclaimed, but by then Lacen was too far away from him to be stopped, and an idea of a plan inside his mind began to take shape.
The escort excitedly asked his name and about why he had volunteered, leaving him to quickly take on the angle he intended to use to get through this event alive. Confident, charming, and well spoken, like any other politician.
"He's my twin brother, he's family. He wouldn't be able to get through the Games alive, and I'd do anything for him, even that means doing this. I love him." He answered, smiling brightly at her before looking out, searching for his brother in the endless sea of faces. He found him standing not too far from Tucker, an expression of horror and shock written across his face. Nobody, not even he, expected this to happen.
"How sweet! I'm sure the Capitol will love you and your honuorable reasons. Everyone, give it up for Lacen Cervelt!" The escort said, as perky and peppy as she had been since the beginning, as if she was talking about a beauty pageant and not a deathmatch.
While a kind and charismatic smile remained on his face, the rest of the Reaping was one giant blur, only certain parts being retained in his memory. His district partner was a sixteen-year-old girl named Aya, a girl he had seen around the District in passing but had never spoken to. He had no idea what she was like. After that, their escort held their hands and said something to the crowd of people staring up at them before there was some applause and they were guided into the somewhat small, red-brick Justice Building.
The first people to visit him was his family, their mother immediately pulling him into a tight hug as she sobbed into his shoulder. In her eyes, she was losing another member of her family.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you baby! You saved your brother, but you must win, you need to! Please!" She begged him, pleading for her son to make it back. It broke his heart to see their mother like this, she only wanted the best for her children, Lacen knew she harboured quite a lot of guilt over Serge and not giving him enough attention. It didn't excuse what he did to them though.
After a few moments, their mother began an attempt to pull herself together and pulled away from Lacen, giving her children a chance to say their goodbyes, possibly forever, to their sibling.
As soon as she stepped back, Linen grabbed his twin, tugging him into a tight hug, holding back tears himself, despite his incredible skill with being able to mask his emotions.
"I won't ever be able to thank you enough Lacen.. but don't you dare die in that arena. You win this and get back here, you hear me? We'll be watching you every step of the way. You cannot give up, okay? You need to think of us when you're there."
While they were completely different in personalities, they had always been and would always be inseparable. The thought of being apart from Linen made his chest ache but hearing his words, hearing him and his mother clinging for dear hope with every word, it just further motivated him to get back home, to win these Games and give them the life their family deserved. His adolescent sisters were doing their absolute best to hold things together, not wanting their last potentially last memory of their brother being filled with tears and sadness. Lacen gave them both a tight hug and reassured them he would come home and just as quickly as they had been escorted in, his family was escorted out of the room by the Peacekeepers.
The next people to visit was, unsurprisingly, Tucker and Latana. Latana reached him first, his dearest friend wrapping her arms around him and squeezing him as if he would fade away from existence if she let go.
"You idiot. You brave, stupid idiot." She muttered into his shoulder, Tucker standing not too far behind her.
She pulled away and took a deep breath, resting a hand gently on his shoulder. "You can do this. I know you can. So do you, otherwise you wouldn't have volunteered. But first, it's time to admit a secret we both know you have been holding onto for a while now."
Latana knew every secret that Lacen held within his mind, every single thing that had gone on in his life. She was truly his closest friend. And that's why he knew she was insisting on admitting his feelings for Tucker came from a place of love, she wasn't pressuring him, she just knew him well enough that if he didn't admit them, he would regret it. She stepped away, taking a few steps back from her friend and his eyes fell upon Tucker, who looked confused but obviously wanted to be able to say goodbye to Lacen.
"Tucker, I need to tell you something.. it's, uh, it's about.." He was getting anxious trying to get these words out, which was highly unusual for him.
Tucker stepped closer to him, watching him and listening intently to his every word. He had to say them, had to admit how he felt before the Peacekeepers took them away.
"I-.. I have feelings for you. Like, strong feelings. I like you, a lot. I have for like a year now and-" He cut himself off as Tucker raised a hand, carefully and ever-so-gently cupped the right side of his face, a soft smile resting on his face, with a hint of sadness. They stared into each other's eyes for what felt like hours but was only a couple of moments before Tucker cautiously leaned in, making it clear he was giving him the option to pull away, and gently kissed Lacen.
His lips were as soft as the softest fabric in all of the district, and he was so close to him that he was able to smell his deodorant, which smelled like the sweetest of chocolate. He made sure to memorize exactly how this moment felt, wanting it to stay like this forever. It was a dream come true in Lacen's eyes, if this meant what he assumed it meant. He felt the same way. Which made his passion to return home as strongly and as bright as the sun. He kissed Tucker back gently for a few moments, resting a hand at the back of his neck, until the pair heard a slightly awkward 'ahem' from a little bit beside them, reminding them that they were, in fact, in the company of someone else.
Tucker pulled away and slowly opened his eyes, as did Lacen, looking at Latana, who was grinning from ear to ear, before looking back at Lacen and smiled brightly at him.
"You win this thing, so you can get back here and I can have you all to myself, nobody watching us. Get through this for you. For us, you goof."
Training
As he stood in the elevator that was bringing both him and Aya to the floor where the training would be on, the fresh memories of the Tribute Parade still lingered in his mind from the previous night, so much of it burned into his memories. The other tributes, the Careers, the thousands of people watching them and cheering, and what stood out the most, his outfit for the parade. Aya and him wore similar outfits, though both stood out in their own ways, especially since both their stylists had done an amazing job and choosing the theme for said outfits this year. What they had decided on and created was outfits themed after gemstones and fashion combined, which left them dazzling.
While Aya was dressed in a big and dramatic crimson dress with golden patterns, for a princess, tiara with gemstones included, with little twists themed after the Capitol fashion, Lacen had been dressed in a deep, royal purple, stunningly patterned outfit that made him look regel, as royal as any young prince, a gem studded crown to go with it too. It went well with his dark hair and piercing blue eyes, it gave him a very posh and royal energy. Of course, like Aya, it had Capitol twists to it like sharp cuts and angles to the outfit, and many golden embroidery and lining, including the cuffs of his sleeves, his wide collar, and the ends of the knee length jacket that had been made from the finest fabrics the Capitol had to offer.
"Our deal still stands. Once we enter the arena, we might not be allies but we won't kill each other. Got it?" Aya said, snapping him out of his memories, straight to the point about reminding him of what they had agreed upon when on the train, on their way to the Capitol.
"Got it." Lacen agreed, keeping his focus fowards.
He knew that he had made his presence noticeable to the Capitol last night, that he wasn't going to be another run-of-the-mill District 8 tribute. He knew his plan, what he needed to do if he was going to survive this. Make himself seem charming and presentable, get the attention from the Capitol he needed which meant sponsors, and find a strong, possibly multiple, allies. When the time would come, he knew he would need to do what he had to win.
The elevator finally stopped, making a little 'ding' sound as the door opened, revealing the tribute training centre to them. They weren't the last to arrive, which was good since that could leave the others less than impressed with him, but they weren't the first either. The Career Pack had already formed and was discussing something amongst themselves quietly, though they briefly paused to watch Lacen and Aya enter, assessing them quickly. They had stood out just as much, possibly even more than the Careers last night, so that might not have sat well with them. But that was only Lacen's gut feeling.
Aya parted ways with him once they exited the elevator, silently finding herself a space to watch the elevator and wait for training to begin. Lacen did the same, finding a place in the middle of the somewhat spaced out tributes and crossed his arms, looking around and analysing those that would be his competition. The Careers would certainly be competition, probably all trained from the day they could walk. Two or three other tributes stood out as physically fit from just observing, but he would only know who to watch out for when they began working at different stations. After about ten minutes, the last of the tributes arrived, from District 6, both of whom looked bleary-eyed and sleepy and the trainer told them they could begin. Finally.
There were many stations to choose from, but what caught his eyes first was the close ranged weapons station. He wasn't trained in any sense of the word, but he there was something deep within him that drew him to the station, wanting to figure out what weapons would be easier to wield than others, what came more naturally to him. So he approached the station with a calm demeanour, though he was not the only one to decide on starting at that station. Walking towards the same station was one of the Careers, from District 2.
They reached it at the same time, and the Career took one look at him, grabbed two swords and offered one to him. He had a silent air of confidence surrounding him, like he knew he was going to outright beat Lacen. He would prove him wrong or do his best trying.
"I'm Staron, by the way." He said smoothly as Lacen took the sword and they both entered the sparring area.
"Lacen. It's a pleasure." He answered, letting a friendly smile break its way out onto his face.
Lacen wasn't extremely experienced with swords, he had played with fake ones many times during his childhood with Linen and his sisters, but he had never held a real one until now. Gossamer, his father, knew little bits of trivia and facts about swords and had shown Lacen and his siblings how to properly hold one and how to (fake) fight with them realistically, little things he had picked up after his many years of watching the tributes on their television use them. What he would give to spend one more day with him.
"No lethal blows or serious blows, once you have defeated your opponent, you stop. Failing to do so will mean serious repercussions for you and your district partner. Begin." The trainer said, stepping back to give them space to fight.
"Let's see what your made of, pretty boy." Staron said, a smug grin on his face and a gleam of confidence in his eyes.
Staron struck first, lunging forwards, and swinging the sword towards him with ease. He was far quicker than Lacen was expecting, far quicker than someone normally his size, considering he was quite broad and muscular.
Lacen brought his own sword up, reacting just in time to deflect his strike. He was moving on the little instinct he had had from the past, hoping that would be enough to prove the cocky Career he wasn't just going to give in.
He took a step backwards, letting out a grunt before he took the offence, leaping forward and thrusting his weapon towards his chest, ready to stop in case the trainer intervened. Staron was ready for this, parrying the strike and hooking his foot underneath Lacens before pulling back, taking his feet from under him. He let out gasp of surprise as he fell, and Staron was standing over him and pointing his sword down at him without any hesitation, still grinning at him with a look of superiority.
"Ready to give up yet, prince?"
"Not even close." He muttered back, holding his intense stare as he grabbed his left foot and yanked it forward, completely throwing Staron off balance, leaving him stumbling backwards and giving Lacen the opportunity to get back on his own two feet. Luckily he had acted quickly, as the trainer was about to tell them Staron had won.
Within seconds, Lacen was back up and was taking his chance now that Staron had been caught off guard, grabbing him with his free hand and using all his strength to push him backwards, onto his back. He succeeded in doing so, knocking him off his feet, though Staron gripped his shirt and brought him down with him, but Lacen's body didn't even feel as they he landed on his knees with a loud thump, right over Staron. Without any thought, Lacen brought the sword to Staron's throat and held it there, panting heavily from the intensity at which they were fighting at.
"Finished! Back away from each other." The trainer announced, officially ending the sparring match between the two.
He stood up and moved back, blinking in shock at the fact that he had managed to not only catch him off guard, but beat a Career in a fight. It may have been a fluke, a total once-off, but he had done it. Proven himself to be a true competitor, not just bloodbath fodder, someone who might stand a chance at winning. Clearly Staron was thinking similarly, as he glared up at Lacen, eyes alight with a mixture of rage and embarrassment, but there was also a hint of intrigue.
Lacen offered a hand out to him to help him stand back up, raising an eyebrow at him in a silent question. Staron, after a few moments of contemplation, bit down on his pride and took his hand, got back up and muttered a few words along the lines of "Well played, good match" and walked back to the Career Pack.
As he stepped away from the station and wiped the sweat from his brow that he had worked up from the intensity of the sparring, Lacen felt all eyes on him. Not just from the Careers. He stood tall, let a charming smile rest on his face and glanced around at those watching him, nodded, and walked towards one of the survival stations, confident in at least one thing. He was going ally with someone, who it was, he would find out soon enough.
Interviews
"Now, everyone lend a hand and give a very warm welcome to none other than District 8's gem, Lacen Cervelt!" Vesta, the Games interviewer, and commentator, announced with a gleeful grin, gesturing for him to approach her on stage as the crowd roared with delight at the opportunity to see one of the most popular tributes of this year.
Lacen took a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment to put himself into the right headspace for this interview. He knew his strategy, what way he wanted to appear to the Capitol. His mentor, Eliora, had seen the charisma and natural confidence in him from the moment he set foot on that stage all the way back home, and she had pushed him to lean into and embrace that angle. It was the right decision in the end because from what he saw about the tributes on the TV in replays, ever since he volunteered for Linen, the people of the Capitol seemed to love him.
Part of him didn't want to put on the act of the loveable, friendly politician who always knew exactly what to say. While it did come more naturally to him than it did for others, it was also draining, both emotionally and physically. But just the mere thought of Serge, the thought of him swatting in some hovel in 8, watching his younger brother rise to glory and reclaim their family's name as people who mattered, motivated him to deal with the draining feelings. Besides, before the fire, his public speaking lessons had taught him how to manage and speak in a manner that would get him on the best side of not only the Capitol, but all of Panem.
Lacen opened his eyes, let a kind and friendly smile find its way onto his face and with an excited gleam in his eyes, walked out onto the stage, being met with a roaring round of applause and whoops from the crowd. He gave them a wave and as he reached Vesta, he shook her hand and sat down in the plush red chair across from her.
"Lacen, welcome to the stage! There's no doubt about it that you are certainly one of the Capitol's favourite tributes of this year, after all you made quite the impression at the Tribute Parade! But I think the question that is one everyone's mind what drove you to volunteer? After all, it was your brother who had been originally reaped."
"That's right Vesta, it was my brother, my twin, Linen. I couldn't imagine a life where he isn't by my side, like most of my family, but especially him. He's been there for me through everything in our lives and he is like my best friend and the best brother at the same time." Just talking about him now had left an aching in his chest. Linen must have still been in shock about this whole situation, being without the person he was closest to.
"We've gone through a lot, which hasn't made life easy. He has a bad limp from an arson attack on our house just as we reached the age of reaping, so when I heard his name being read out, I knew what I had to do. I would do anything for my family, but especially for Linen. I couldn't sit back and just watch him get targeted because of his limp. Plus, I'm the more charming of the two of us!" He said with a wink, looking into the golden eyes of the interviewer.
"I think we can all agree with that, isn't that right everyone?" She said to the crowd, a resounding 'yes' being yelled in return. "How noble of you though, to risk your own life to save your twin! That melts my heart, there is nothing better than a strong family bond, I know that we in the Capitol value family above all else!"
Another roar of agreement from the crowd. Ironic, thought Lacen, considering he was on a televised deathmatch broadcasted to all their families.
"Moving on from that however, I think we all want to know what exactly you did to get yourself a good 8 in your private session, since I think its common knowledge that it's not exactly easy to get such a score. Is there something you're hiding up your sleeve?" She asked, an eyebrow quirking up curiously.
"I just showed off the skills I have, that's all I could do. The Gamemakers must see some potential if they gave me that score, I guess. I'm not that much different to the other tributes honestly."
"Surely different enough to ally with the upper Districts! Care to tell us a little bit about that alliance? If there, in fact, one to begin with?"
So, there was rumours about the alliance going around. "Well, I can't reveal all the cards in my deck just yet, can I?" He replied smoothly with a playful roll of the eyes, not missing a beat.
"Keeping us in suspense, I love it! We will just have to wait and see then, hm? Please, tell us more about your f-" The sound of the timer went off, reminding the pair that their time was up. Hopefully Lacen had made the right impression he had aimed for. Loveable, friendly and a hint of mystery.
"Looks like our time is up. Everyone, please join me in giving a round of applause the wonderfully charming Lacen Cervelt!" Vesta gestured to him, a wide smile showing off her perfectly white teeth, as Lacen took a bow, grinning and waving at the crowd before walking off to backstage, taking a seat beside the District 7 female tribute.
If his little performance with Staron hadn't proved he was worth allying with, clearly his popularity with the people of the Capitol did. And in return, he had the safety of knowing he would live past the bloodbath, that was unless one of the Careers got a little too jealous. Like the leader of the pack, Belladonna. The District Two tribute could keep her cool and had been sizing him up and what he was like ever since they offered to ally with him, but she had a fierce and fiery streak in her too. That was likely the reason she was so popular with the Capitol too, why she was seen as one of the favourites out of all the tributes. She would definitely present a challenge, but if he could take on Staron, Lacen was sure he could take on Belladonna.
He just hoped that his skills he had would be enough to make it through these Games. They had to be; he didn't have a choice in the matter. He had his family to get home to, they needed him to win this. He would do and use whoever he had to, to achieve the goal of winning. That's how these games were played.
Bloodbath
This was it.
Everything had been building up to this, every word that left his mouth, every action he had done, absolutely everything led up to this. His allies had briefly gone over the plan for the bloodbath after the interviews had finished, making it clear that he was going to have to kill tributes, or make an attempt at one.
He knew he would have to, and while it shook him up a little, he steeled himself up, forcing his thoughts to remain neutral and remind himself of why he was here. For Linen. For his mother. For revenge against Serge. He would get the love and help of the entire district behind him once he got out of this, took whatever he needed to find the fugitive that was his older brother.
His stylist was talking to him, chattering on about all the sponsors he would get while in the arena. He just nodded and smiled, letting him go on while he thought about what would go on soon enough.
He was wearing a relatively plain outfit, a beige shirt with puffy sleeves, plain brown trousers, and a dark brown undercoat. It led him to think that the arena wouldn't be some place extremely cold, and somewhere that could possibly be flashy. Why else would they put them in such plain clothes? It had bored his stylist anyways the minute they saw it.
"Thirty seconds until take-off." A woman's voice said calmly over a speaker in the room.
"Well, good luck dear! Make sure to stand out like the star you are!" His stylist said excitedly, patting him gently on the shoulder.
"Thanks. I'll try my best, there's a lot of big personalities going in there." Lacen replied, returning the smile they gave him, and stepping towards the launch tube.
"Ten seconds until take-off."
He took a deep and calming breath before walking in, keeping his focus forward and concentrated as the tube closed behind him quietly. After a few moments of silence and a slowly building anxiousness about if his tube was working, the launchpad began to move upwards and with that, his anxiety faded and Lacen began to think about what laid ahead.
A difficult first day, countless others with the Careers, possibly even his own death. But deep inside him, silently fuelling his every word, was his burning hatred for Serge. He would pay for ruining his own flesh and blood's lives.
He raised a hand to help shield his eyes as he crested the lip of the pedestal and was bathed in light. After a few blinks, he adjusted and looked around, taking in every detail of his surroundings for the first time. They were outside, in the pristine gardens of a castle, one that was built to perfection, like what every child imagined a castle in a fantasy book looked like. It stood not too far from the tributes, up a small hill, and surrounding the castle grounds, in what he guessed was in a giant circle, was a massive moat. Past that were trees, obviously a forest, the leaves a perfect shade of emerald green, too perfect to be natural. What laid past that, if anything did, was unknown for the time being. So, a fantasy arena? Pretty fitting for the nickname that Staron had given him.
He turned his attention to the other tributes surrounding him, placed in one large semi-circle, many of them still in shock and taking in the arena, where they would soon perish in. The Careers were focused on the Cornucopia, which was just as pristinely built and structured after the castle, made from stone and arched perfectly at the mouth, and that reminded Lacen that he needed to focus on getting a weapon.
He scanned the supply of weapons laid out within and just outside the Cornucopia, searching intently for swords or something to the equivalent of it. When his eyes finally found them, placed at the righthand side of the mouth, closest to one of his allies, Excellence, one of the District 1 tributes. That was what he needed to focus on. Family, revenge, surviving, winning.
Ten.
Nine.
Eight.
This was it. There was no more hesitating or worrying now.
Seven.
Six.
Five.
Lacen prepared himself, his focus solely on those swords at the edge of the Cornucopia. Everyone was watching him at home. It was now or never.
Four.
Three.
Two.
One.
The gong sounded and with that, chaos began. Lacen didn't focus on anything else, running on adrenaline alone, dashing as fast as he possibly could towards the centre of the arena. Belladonna was the first to reach the Cornucopia, immediately grabbing a bow and arrows and getting to work. Lacen arrived next, breathing heavily but paying it no attention, grabbing one of the swords from the rack and turning back around, observing around him. A little over half the tributes had run off, away from the middle of the bloodbath and away to whatever temporary safety they could find for the moment. The other eleven tributes that remained, including his allies, were either running towards the middle, in an effort to grab a weapon or were running towards the closest supplies to them. He didn't have time to search to see if Aya had left or not, if he stopped for even a second, it could give someone else an opportunity to kill him.
District 5's male was the closest person to him, a boy not too much younger than Lacen himself. It was unfortunate, but it had to be done. Lacen targeted him, running directly at him, raising his sword and attacking as soon as he got within range. The boy raised his supply bag, something that looked more like a rucksack, as Lacen slashed down, ripping it open and protecting him for a moment. The Five tribute realised his protection had been demolished and scrambled to get up on his feet and run away, a wild panic in his eyes. Lacen kicked forward, right into the boy's stomach and knocking him to the ground, leaving him winded. He could hear pained screams around him, the dying screams of some tributes but all that didn't matter in that moment.
"I'm sorry, but I need to do this." He told the boy as he raised his weapon, frowning down at him. Without giving him a chance to answer, he thrust the sword downwards and straight into the chest of the District 5 male.
He let out a pained scream, a pleading look in the tributes eyes as Lacen yanked the sword from his chest, crimson blood stained his shirt, and without any other struggling, the light left his eyes. There was an ache in his chest, one he couldn't describe but he refused to acknowledge.
He turned and almost ran directly into another tribute, the fourteen-year-old District 12 female, and caught sight of a silvery glint in the sun and backed away quickly, moving on instinct. The young girl was relentless however, holding a dagger in her hand and slashing wildly in hopes of catching Lacen somewhere vital.
"Lacen, duck!" Belladonna screamed out, ordering him to drop, which he was going to have to blindly trust and hope she wouldn't let him die.
He dropped onto his knees, looking up at the young tribute and preparing to lift his sword as she raised her dagger above his head with both hands, letting out a scream and beginning to plunge down.
That was, of course, before something just as silver as the dagger zoomed above Lacen's head and straight into the throat of the tribute above him. She dropped the dagger and the scream turned into an attempt to speak, but only a watery gurgle escaped as she dropped to the grass, bleeding out within a matter of seconds.
Lacen looked behind him and stood back up, breathing heavily as he and Belladonna held each other's gaze. Despite cool face, her eyes were alight with an excitement and bloodlust that he had no idea how to begin to even describe.
He had a very overwhelming feeling that she was going to be far more challenging to beat than he hoped. But if he put his all into it, maybe, just maybe, he could beat her. But he wasn't going to think that far ahead, not when this very long first day had just begun.
Night Two
He had spotted the sponsor parachute before anyone else in the alliance had, and he would have announced that they had gotten one if he hadn't seen the dark 8 printed on the front of it. The first sponsor gift for him, and him alone. So excused himself to go relieve himself and walked away and picked up the container, walking far enough away than none of his allies would hear him opening it.
Sat inside was a small jar of poison, something he had only recently come to learn to recognize, and a needle and thread. Was this a hint? Did someone want him to use these to kill someone? How?
That was a problem for the future Lacen to worry about though, for now he would dwell on and think of any ways he could possibly use this gift to get out of here. He tucked it inside the pocket of his pants for the time being, to be stored and hidden in his bag when it was his watch, and walked back to the group, picking up his sword in the process.
"The prince returns. Thought you ditched us for a sec, buddy." Staron commented, smirking at him from where he sat around the fire in the forest, planning on scanning and searching through the village that laid past it tomorrow.
"I'm not an idiot. I wouldn't leave without my bag at least. Sure fire way to die in the next forty-eight hours." He replied, sitting down beside Staron and stared up at the night sky through the canopy of the trees.
"Thanks for the heads up." Orion, Belladonna's district partner, said with a blank face, but a serious voice.
"So, want to spill the beans on the reason you volunteered for your brother? The real reason." Belladonna asked, an eyebrow quirked up and those eyes of hers still alit with fire.
"To save him. There's no other noble reason behind why I volunteered for him, he's my family and I love him. Simple as." It wasn't a total lie, just restraint of some of the truth.
"I wish I could say the same." Belladonna sneered. "My family comes from all trainers, so I was expected to change our families name by being picked up volunteer, even if it I didn't want to be a Career. So you can imagine the pressure." She shrugged nonchalantly. "Grew to love it in the end though. So at least it wasn't a total waste."
He felt sympathy for her, unable to imagine himself in a situation where his true family would ever pressure him into anything, but that sympathy was dangerous to experience in the arena, so he quickly repressed it.
But fuck, she was making it hard to kill her by making herself more human.
Finale
After five long days, the time had come. There was three tributes left. Belladonna. Aya. Him. How Aya had managed to stay alive, what she had done to do so, wasn't a thought Lacen wanted to think about. He just hoped that they could tag-team this fight, work together to fight this twisted bitch.
Belladonna had gathered most of the supplies from the sponsors (that she knew about) and put them in a bag and without any utterance of a word, killed her district partner, completely out of the blue. It immediately tore apart the Career alliance, as she butchered Excellence and Rhine. Thalassa and Staron fought hard against their previous ally and it gave Lacen an opportunity, so he took the supply bag Belladonna had set aside for herself while they all fought and ran. He looked back only once, long enough for him to see Staron's chest getting pierced and stabbed through. He let out a loud cry of pain, cursing Belladonna for backstabbing them and begging for Lacen to help them. But he wasn't foolish, he knew that Staron would have done the same as him had their roles been reversed. And now he lay in a wooden box, while Lacen fought to live another day.
Three birds made of literal fire and ashes found him in the beginning of the small village and began attacking him, brutally too, until it led until now, running away from them as fast as he could, towards the Cornucopia, where everything had begun. They screeched behind him, almost nipping his back and heels as he ran with his sword in hand. He felt like he was going to die, running like his life depended on it, because it did.
As soon as he ran past the moat and into the castle grounds, those blasted phoenixes back off completely, instead circling above the Cornucopia and crying out occasionally. He huffed and panted and tried desperately tried to catch his breath before hearing a panicked cry as he saw two shapes emerge from the castle and running down the small hill, being chased by the companions of the birds that had chased him. But one shape wasn't really running, more so being dragged by the first shape.
Lacen ran towards the two shapes, in an effort to see who was holding who in this situation, though he already had a sinking feeling in his stomach. When he got within thirty feet of them, his suspicions were confirmed as he saw Belladonna dragging Aya by her hair, and as soon as he got close enough, Belladonna yanked Aya up onto her knees and held a sword to her throat.
"Looks like we found ourselves the little robbing thief! Who would have thought it would have been us three, huh Lacen? Just you, me, and your little district partner!" Belladonna grinned at him wildly, the spark that was usually in her eyes now a blaze.
"Leave her out of this Belladonna!" Lacen may not have been close to Aya, but she still reminded him of home, and she was an innocent party in all this.
"Oh no, she's got an important role to play in my victory now! Little Miss District 8 here is about to be remembered as one of the last kills of the 84th Hunger Games!" Belladonna even let out a cackle, basking in the attention and thought of becoming a Victor. Long gone was the tired girl who had been forced into becoming a Career. The thought of winning had consumed her.
"Lacen, please, help me! Please!" Aya begged, tears streaming down her face as she struggled against Belladonna's grip.
"Don't you dare, you bitch!" Lacen yelled at the District Two tribute, beginning to run towards them in hopes he might be able to save Aya, get her away from the madness that was Belladonna. He wasn't thinking about how they had promised not to kill one another, what they would have to face if he helped free her.
A wicked gleam in her eyes appeared, along with that sickening grin.
"Say bye-bye Lacen!"
The sword sliced across Aya's throat as she screamed, and briefly, Lacen saw a flash of one of his younger sisters. She was young and hadn't done anything to deserve what happened to her either. Yet her home had been burned away into nothing. And now Aya lay on the ground, drowning in her own blood and gripping her throat.
It filled him with a white-hot rage. When he looked up, all he could see reflecting back at him was Serge. Belladonna was exactly like him. He may not have saved Aya, but he would avenge her. Live for her and give his family a second chance at life.
So he sped up, running at her with roar escaping him, the image of his sister in his mind, and slashed his sword swiftly downwards. His sword did not meet flesh, instead it met metal as Belladonna deflected his attack, and kicked forwards, right in Lacen's stomach. It winded him, but he didn't have the grace of stopping right now, his life, his family's lives depended on it. He braved through it, forcing himself to defend himself as Belladonna continued with her attacking.
She was slashing and thrusting the sword with expertise and seemed to almost know where he would attempt to strike, which was getting endlessly frustrating. She was advancing as Lacen continued to step back, barely keeping up.
It was after a minute of fighting, that he then noticed a pattern. Belladonna would attack, first a thrust, then a slash, then a kick of some sort, and then she would pause for a few moments before repeating the same attack again. He just needed to use that to his advantage.
He began parrying and advancing, slowly beginning to wear her down and have the upper hand. Slash, slash, thrust, step, slash. He tried to change his pattern so that he wouldn't become as predictable and as they fought, his fight with Staron in training came to mind. He needed to trip her up when she least expected it and then go in for the kill.
He stepped forward again, slashing upwards and keeping her focus up as he stepped closer and hooked his foot underneath her ankle and yanked backwards. Belladonna stumbled, a little unfocused from all the intense fighting, and looked as if she was going to catch herself so Lacen pushed her roughly to ensure she fell. Once she was on the ground, he quickly leaned down and held the edge of the sword against her throat.
"I dare you to do it. You don't have the guts." She spat at him, glaring up at the District 8 tribute. Then she uttered the words that would be the end of her.
"Your family deserved everything that happened to them. With a son like you, they deserve it again."
That white-hot rage filled his chest once again, burning a hole through his very being. She deserved this, more than any other person, but slitting her throat would be too much of a grace. It struck him in that moment what he thought she deserved.
Lacen moved the sword from her throat to her arms, before stabbing both twice, ensuring they wouldn't be of use. Belladonna screamed, but that faded into the background as he sat on top of her and pulled the poison, need and thread out of his pocket.
"Fuck you." Was his final words to her as he forced Belladonna's mouth open, letting her scream at him even more, before shoving all of the poison into her mouth and shutting it.
She immediately tried to spit it out, but Lacen was ready and pierced her lips with the threaded needle and slowly, but steadily, began to sew Belladonna's mouth shut. Everything else faded away as he did this, the blood that stained his hands, her muffled screams, everything. But it left her no choice but to swallow the poison, and in doing so, slowly killed her. He watched as she choked, struggled and eventually, died. Just like that, it was over, the cannon shot, and he heard Vesta's voice surrounding him.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we have our Victor of the 84th Annual Hunger Games, Lacen Cervelt!"
He did it. He really did it. Now he could get his family the justice they deserved.
Once and for all.
Epilogue
Six months after the Games
It had taken six agonizing months.
Six months full of extreme dedication and help of many people of the district. But he had found the little hovel Serge had been hiding in. Three weeks ago, he had given all his information on Serge, the letters, all the evidence he had surrounding where he had been hidden. They arrested him within hours.
Today was the day he was being shot, finally punished for everything he had done. It was also coincidentally the first day of his Victor Tour.
His stylist had stuck with the theme of gems, and had him in a golden suit, embroidered with all kinds of swirling white and silver designs, and on top of it all, his Victor's crown.
"The perfect outfit for the Steamster Career to begin his journey with." They had told him with adoration as he tried on the outfit.
Now, he stood at the Peacekeeper barracks with Scarlet, Linen, Latana and Tucker, ready to do what he had longed to for almost six years. Take Serge's life. Their mother and two younger siblings stayed behind, not wanting to witness more killing than they had to.
Since he was a Victor and since he had been the one that found where he had been hidden, they deemed it a valid enough reason to let him to be the one that shot Serge. After all, he had already taken two lives.
The Peacekeepers led them to the shooting area, where Linen and Scarlet and his best friend and boyfriend stood back with the Peacekeepers, leaving Lacen two meters ahead of them. Then, out came the bastard.
He spat at Lacen's feet as soon as he was close enough, the look of disgust and hatred filling his eyes. They forced him to his knees and instructed Lacen on how to use the gun before stepping aside, leaving the rest to him.
"I have dreamt of this moment for years, you know that? After everything you put our family through, you deserve this."
"Oh, poor little Lacen, poor Linen, all the Golden Children have been hurt, cry me a river you pussy! You all got what you deserved! Mom, Dad, all of you!" Serge yelled, glaring at his younger brother.
"You are useless, Serge. You are and always have been. There was a reason we were all the Golden Children because you are forgettable. And you will fade into the background like the insignificant speak you are and everything else you have done will too. Nobody will remember your name, give you a second thought. You will be forgotten."
And without giving him time to answer, briefly savouring the look of fury and anxiety on his face, Lacen pulled the trigger and shot his brother directly in the chest.
They were free. No more worrying, no more letters, no more anger or hurt. They could finally move on.
As he wiped the crimson dot of blood from his silver shoes, he took his partner, friend and family and held them tightly. And wept, and wept, and wept. But this time, in joy.
They were finally free. Lacen could live with that.
A little late but better late than never! This was my fic for the Verses Discord Victor Exchange, and who better to get than this fruity lil baby! I hope you enjoyed this fic of him everyone, but especially Oli as he was the creator of this wonderful lil fellow! I have had a blast writing him this past month and I have loved every moment of it and expect to see more of Lacen in HoaC, he will canonically be one of the mentors as I just adored writing him so much! I hoped you all had a wonderful time reading, as much as I've had writing and here's to another round of the Victor Exchange when it comes around!