"May the odds be ever in your favor."

-Effie Trinket

Ethan Hart, District 10, 14

The platforms ascended into the arena, the sun so bright it was momentarily blinding. I rubbed my eyes for a second, then looked around, trying to take everything in as quickly as possible.

All of the tributes were in a circle around the Cornucopia. A quick glance at my sides told me that I was in between the girl from Seven and the girl from Eight, one of Jess's allies. The Cornucopia itself seemed to be… a picnic area? The Cornucopia itself was filled with tables, the kind you'd see in a cafeteria, but instead of being in a cafeteria, they were inside a large wooden structure with a tiled roof and wooden columns holding it upright. Hanging from the roof was a bold sign that read "VISITOR'S CENTER." Around it was a large, open area filled with grass and wildflowers.

Behind the Cornucopia were a lot of trees, a pointy kind that I'd only ever seen in pictures. Extending out from the Cornucopia were three wide dirt paths, and each disappeared into the trees once they reached the edge of the clearing. On one side, at the edges of the arena, mountains were visible in the distance, snow capping their peaks.

Despite the snow in the distance, though, it was hot here. We'd been up here less than a minute and I could already feel the sweat slipping down my spine, although the nerves might have had something to do with that as well. The sun, at first a welcome warmth after the coolness of the launch rooms, was beginning to become uncomfortably hot, especially with this jacket on. At least we had shorts.

I glanced at the counter hanging in the air above the Cornucopia. Only twenty seconds left.

I looked around for Parker and Halley. Halley I didn't see at all- she was probably somewhere behind the Cornucopia, which wasn't great. After looking around for another few seconds, I spotted Parker across the clearing, nearly obscured by the Cornucopia. They were sandwiched between the Career boy from Four and the tribute from Five. I managed to catch Parker's eye, and they nodded. We knew the plan. Find each other, and then run.

I looked back at the clock. Only a few seconds left. I readied myself, taking a deep breath as I prepared to run.

00:05

00:04

00:03

00:02

00:01

Ainsley Blare, District 5, 18

00:00

Everyone took off like a shot, scrambling in every direction possible. Unfortunately, I was next to the boy from Two, and closer to the boy from Four than I would've liked, so while everyone else darted forward, I hung back a little, observing. The Careers, as well as a few others, descended upon the Cornucopia, and everyone else was scattering, trying to find their allies. I looked around, trying to see where people weren't paying attention.

There.

Off to my right, a backpack was sitting in the grass. But the girl from Eleven was clearly headed towards it, her eyes fixed on the dark green fabric hungrily. I couldn't let her have it.

I bolted for it, running with all of my might, and swooped in just before she got there. We were close enough that I could see the flash of anger in her eyes when I beat her to it. For a second, I thought she would attack. But before she could do anything, I took off into the woods behind me, leaving her, as well as the chaos and bloodshed, behind. At least for a little while. I needed to find a safe place to lay low for as long as possible.

Travis O'Quinn, District 7, 17

I took off from my pedestal, running for supplies. Dale and I had agreed that while the Cornucopia was risky, going for it was necessary to give us an edge later in the Games. I quickly made it inside, and I saw Dale wasn't far behind. I threw on a backpack and picked up an axe that was laying on one of the picnic tables. The Careers were almost upon me- I could clearly see both tributes from Two and a few others rapidly approaching. I hustled out of there, hoping to get to the edge of the clearing and find Dale. Thankfully, the Careers seemed more interested in the weapons than in me. I bolted, my eyes behind me to make sure no one would attack me from behind. Even though they seemed disinterested in me for now, that could change at any moment.

I sprinted until I ran into another tribute face-first, both of us falling to the ground. My own damn fault for not looking where I was going. I dropped my axe with surprise. Quickly, adrenaline still pumping, I scrambled to my knees, recognizing the crazy tribute from Five in front of me. His teeth were bared, ready to strike.

Great.

I fumbled for the axe, and so did he. Unfortunately for him, I got there first. I swung the axe at him, hard, both hands gripping the handle tightly. My swing landed true, and before he could get out of the way, my axe cut clean through the lower part of his neck. Blood began spurting everywhere, and he clawed at his neck, choking on his own blood as he fell back into the grass. I got to my feet, calm, as the cannon in the distance signaled his death.

Boom.

I looked around and saw Dale tussling with one of the Careers, one of the blond boys. I sprinted over there, nearly colliding again with the guy from Nine, before arriving. The boy had a spear, and Dale was doing his best to dodge the attacks. So far, to my relief, he seemed to have been successful- I didn't spot any major wounds on him. Dale spotted me coming up behind the boy from One and, as he dodged again, he ran off to the side, towards the edge of the clearing. I ran to meet him. The boy from One began to pursue us, but, seeing my bloodstained axe, retreated. He turned and ran back to the Cornucopia.

"Good to see you," Dale panted.

"Let's go," I said.

No more words were needed. We took off into the woods, down the nearest of the dirt paths, running for our lives.

Journie Teffs, District 9, 17

The timer finished counting down, and everyone began to run. From what I knew from looking around during the countdown, Deltro wasn't far, but Reese was. As the chaos of the Games erupted, I began running towards Reese, picking up a bag on the way. I was hoping Deltro would understand and follow me. I almost collided with another tribute, but I swerved just in time. Somehow, in the chaos, I made it nearly halfway across before running into any trouble.

Off to my right, as I began to round the Cornucopia, I spotted the red-haired Career girl, something metallic glinting in her hand. She brought her arm back, her gaze focused on me. My heart dropped as I realized that I was her target. She threw, her eyes squinting with focus, and I had to tuck into a roll in order to avoid it.

The breath left my lungs a little as I hit the ground, landing hard. I leapt back to my feet and kept running towards Reese, who had managed to find a tiny backpack of their own by now. They had spotted me sprinting towards them at this point.

I kept my eye on the Career, girl, though. She was poised to throw again, her knife shining dangerously in the sunlight. This time, though, her eyes weren't on me, so I kept running towards Reese, who was now making their way towards me. They were shouting something, but it was too quiet for me to hear yet.

I glanced at the Career again. She threw at someone a ways behind me, and I sighed internally, grateful that I was out of her line of sight.

Reese reached me, barely dodging a different fight before making it to me. "Look out!" they screamed, their eyes wide.

Heeding their words, I looked back at the Career girl. She was preparing a third throw, her eyes narrowed with deadly focus. I turned to look at who she was throwing at, because her eyes definitely weren't on me.

Oh, no…

Deltro Litmen, District 6, 15

I saw Journie tear across the Cornucopia clearing towards Reese, sending me a quick glance. He obviously wanted me to follow him. Unhesitatingly, I followed, chasing him through the wildflowers and grass.

It was almost like a dream. Journie, running in front of me, his long brown hair flying out behind him, looked just like Fender. My heart wanted to believe that it was really him. That Fender was still alive.

Whoever he was, though, he was still much faster than me. I struggled to keep up, my lungs burning as I sprinted after him. The heat wasn't helping. I was so lost in thought, reliving the past, that I forgot why I was running in the first place. My eyes were focused on Journie, and Journie only, when the weapon slammed into my ribs.

I fell to the ground, the sheer magnitude of pain taking my breath away. I gasped, trying to refill my lungs, but it was in vain.

I heard a scream. I looked up, my vision spotty, to see it had come from Reese. Journie had just reached them, and turned around, spotting me. His jaw dropped in horror.

I begged with him. I pleaded with him. Help me. Please, please help me.

I couldn't ignore the irony of it all. Fender died racing me. Now, I would die chasing Fender.

The last thing I thought about was my mom. She didn't deserve this.

Then, everything went black.

Journie Teffs, District 9, 17 (continued)

My eyes landed on Deltro, who had been following me across the clearing all along, just as the knife entered his stomach. He fell to the ground, his chest heaving, before the girl threw again. His eyes met mine, wide and pleading. This time, the knife landed in his skull. His eyes went glassy and his body became limp, slumping to the ground.

Boom.

Reese screamed. I grabbed their arm and began pulling them away just as the girl's eyes turned towards us, alerted by the noise.

"Duck!" I shouted.

Reese obliged me, ducking as I pulled them away from the chaos. We fled down one of the dirt paths, tears streaming down their face. I didn't stop to process what had happened, adrenaline still coursing through my veins. We needed to get out of there- the sooner the better. There was no time to stop and think.

I forced the image of Deltro's pleading eyes out of my head and ran, Reese not far behind.

Damion Cloud, District 3, 14

The timer finished counting down, and the chaos began. I spotted a small knife not too far from my pedestal. It seemed safe enough, so I grabbed it and tucked it inside my thick belt. I then bolted for the edge of the clearing, having no intention of engaging with the Cornucopia in front of me. Anyone who'd seen the Games should have known it was a bad idea. A ton of tributes always died there. Kellin had advised against it, and I planned on following that advice.

I was a few feet away from the trees lining the clearing when I was tackled to the ground, knocking the wind out of my lungs. I felt something knick my face, and my cheek began stinging.

"How do you like that, you fucker?" said Halley, pinning down my arms.

I gasped for breath, trying to regain some oxygen. I struggled under her weight, but I couldn't get her to budge. She reached up to swipe at me again with her nails, letting go of one of my arms in the process. I grabbed her arm, twisting it. She screamed as something popped, loosening her grip on me. I brought up my knee, dealing a blow to her lower back, which only made her screech more. I wriggled out from under her and lunged, pinning her down.

"Fuck you," I hissed. Halley began to go feral, trying to bite and scratch and kick me. She writhed like a wild animal, bucking madly to get me off of her. What she didn't know, though, was that I'd been holding back all this time. She'd never seen how strong I really was, because I'd never let her.

Barely managing to hold on, I pulled the knife from my belt and stabbed her in the gut. She gasped, tears silently streaming down her face. She stared at me in shock as blood began to flow from her stomach. Before I could strike again, though, I was kicked in the ribs. I loosened my grip on Halley and tried to breathe, but I was shoved to the ground, off of Halley.

I rolled over, groaning. I quickly recognized my new attacker- one of Halley's boyfriends. The other one arrived quickly. Ignoring me, they picked Halley up off of the ground, carrying her carefully, and took off into the woods before I could catch my breath. Luckily, though, my knife was still there, laying in a pool of blood in the grass.

I got to my feet and made for the edge of the clearing again. I picked up my knife and turned to run for the woods again. The edge was so close. I was almost there.

Before I could run, though, my ears perked up at the sound of footsteps behind me. I whirled around, just in time to see a boy with a spear running towards me. I tried to run, but he was so fast. My knife wasn't even drawn yet when he launched his spear.

I wheezed. It felt like I'd been hit in the chest with a brick. I looked down at the spear between my ribs, then back up at the boy. He jogged up to me and ripped the spear back out, igniting a white-hot pain in my chest. I cried out and fell to the ground. The boy stood over me, his spear raised, ready to finish me off.

Boom.

Salome Terris, District 6, 14

As we emerged into the arena, I was relieved to see that my podium was right next to Levi's. She gave me a grim nod as she prepared to enact our plan. Jess, my other protector, also wasn't too far off. I didn't see the others, but I knew they would be okay. Sienna had Ianto looking out for her, and Ianto was strong.

The timer finished counting down, and Levi and I took off, running towards the nearest backpack. We grabbed it with ease, and I tossed it to Levi. She put it on just as Jess ran up, a knife in her hand.

"Good," said Levi, noting her knife.

Jess looked around wildly. "There's another over there," she panted, pointing off to the right. We ran as a group, with me in the middle and the others on my side. I reached it and threw the pack towards Jess. She snatched it and threw it onto her back.

"That's enough," she said. "Let's find the others and get out of here."

"Agreed," said Levi. "Ianto's over there."

The two began to run towards the rest of our alliance. I looked in the direction they'd pointed: I saw Ianto, holding a weapon as Sienna dove for a bag. I began to follow Jess and Levi towards Ianto and Sienna. I was about ten feet behind them, so I noticed a backpack they'd missed. It was just off to the side, and it wouldn't be hard for me to get. I swerved, running for the extra supplies.

Caligula Van Zandt, District 2, 18

I took in the arena quickly, spending most of the countdown studying the Cornucopia. There was a sword close to the edge that I could grab if I got there first. Looking around me, and spotting no real threats other than Virgil and Muir, I figured my odds of getting it were very, very good.

The timer hit zero, and chaos erupted in the arena. I sprinted for the Cornucopia, getting there just as the boy from Seven dashed out. I saw Virgil go after the boy from Twelve, and figured he could handle that. Sadie and Glowla went for the knives, Sadie positioning herself at the edge of the Cornucopia while Glowla opted to enter the fray. I didn't see Isla.

I grabbed the sword off of the table and turned, scanning the clearing for targets. I spotted the large alliance close to reuniting off to my left. Remembering we needed to cut that alliance down a little, I went after them.

Right now, they were in two pairs of two, with a single straggler veering off to snatch a bag. She was small, with brown hair, and light on her feet. I saw the backpack she was going for and ran up, slashing at her chest with my sword.

She fell back, just barely dodging the blow. She scrambled backwards in the grass, her eyes wide with fear.

"Please," she said, her voice tight. She began to shriek her allies's names. "Ianto! Levi! Sienna!"

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a few heads begin to turn at the sound of their names being called. I ignored them, though, and swiped at her again with my sword, leaving a deep gash across her stomach. She fell fully onto her back, her arms giving out. She looked down at her wound, tears running down her face, and then back up at me.

"Please," she whispered, blood dripping from her mouth. It began to mix with the tears. She coughed weakly.

I hesitated, caught off guard. Her eyes… I couldn't tear my eyes away from the look on her face. So much fear. She was truly, genuinely, utterly terrified of me.

"Caligula!" someone shouted. I snapped my head up, recognizing Isla's shrill voice. She glared at me as she ran towards one of the girl's alliance members, a knife in her hands. The two began to grapple. I returned my gaze to the girl on the ground, clutching her stomach.

"I- I can't," I said, apologizing. "I have to."

She stared at me for another moment. Then she nodded, resigned, and closed her eyes. Tears kept pouring down her cheeks as I raised my sword again, stabbing her in the chest. Her eyes flew open, and she began to choke. After a few seconds, though, she was gone.

Boom.

"Salome!" someone screamed. The red-haired Eight boy was holding back one of his allies, a small blonde-haired girl who was sobbing profusely. She squirmed, trying to free herself from him, but he was dragging her away. "Salome!"

Isla and the other girl continued to grapple. The last member of the alliance, who had a 10 stitched into her shirt, kicked Isla in the shins, punched her in the face, and pushed her away. She pulled the other girl away from Isla, who was spitting curses, and the two pairs met up. One of the girls took a knife to the calf, but I barely registered it, lost in thought. The boy slung the smaller girl over his shoulder, and the group began to run away.

Isla glared at me, jogging up quickly. "Could've used the help," she said, her hand on her cheek.

I ignored her, my eyes still on the girl I'd killed. Salome, I told myself. Her name was Salome.

Glowla Lush, District 1, 18

I met Sadie in the Cornucopia. We each grabbed a set of knives, Sadie hanging back while I reentered the chaos, ready to throw. I spotted the girl from Seven taking off and prepared to throw my first knife. But there was someone blocking my vision.

"Isla!" I shouted. "Get out of the way!"

"I'm busy!" she shouted back, chasing a tribute across the clearing. I groaned, pushing aside my resentment for later, and tried to find a new target. I saw the boys from Seven and Twelve running off, and prepared to throw again. Still, somehow, via her chase, Isla had managed to get herself in my line of sight, right in front of them.

It would be so easy to just throw it, I thought. Just take her out here, and never have to worry about her again.

I sighed. It wasn't the right move, and I knew it. Killing her would turn half the Careers against me. I glanced back at the girl from Seven, but she had disappeared into the trees. I saw the girl from Eleven not far off, though, and took aim. She wasn't moving much, clearly looking for an opening to get some supplies. She hadn't noticed me, either, which was even better.

I let my knife fly, and it landed in her shoulder. She screamed and took off into the trees. Not a kill, but a hit was still good. If we crossed paths again, it would be a serious hindrance. I wasn't happy that I'd practically given her a weapon, though.

I shook myself from my thoughts. I needed to focus. I noticed the big alliance off to the side, and rounded the Cornucopia to take aim at them. I threw one at the boy, but he spotted me and ducked. I turned my sights on the group of three girls, where Isla had somehow, once again, managed to get in my way. She was fighting with the two older girls, and clearly losing. The dark-haired one pushed Isla off of the other, and the two turned to run. Before they were out of my sight, though, I threw again. I hit one of them, blood gushing from her calf. She screamed, and the other girl immediately looped her arms under her shoulders, helping her get away. I cursed, irritated that I hadn't hit somewhere more vital.

I threw again for good measure, to vent some anger. It went in the direction the large alliance had disappeared in, where of course, Isla was still standing. She turned just as I released the knife, spotted it, and began to dive out of the way. Unfortunately for her, though, I'd thrown it pretty hard. It reached her quickly, slicing into her upper arm before landing in a tree.

She screeched loudly. "What the fuck?"

"Sorry," I called, not bothering to attempt to sound genuinely. "I told you to get out of the way."

She brought her hand to her arm, and when she pulled it away, it was covered in blood. "Are you serious?" she shouted.

"Relax, it barely touched you," I called.

She let loose a long string of curses, stomping back over to the Cornucopia. She glared at me as she passed, quickly flipping me off before returning inside the Cornucopia.

Once she was gone, I smirked a little to myself. That one, I had "missed" on purpose.

Piers Morgan, District 6 Mentor, 20

As I'd learned last year, the Mentors had a room to themselves. More of a building, really.

Next to the Training Center, near where the Gamemakers worked, was a small annex. Inside, the largest room was a lounge-type area, although it had more desks than couches. The walls were mostly occupied by screens, and they flipped periodically to different shots of the arena.

The desks were scattered around the room and covered with technology. Each Mentor had a screen showing just their tributes at all times. Another screen was a map of the entire arena, with a dot showing where their tribute was located. The rest was mostly for communication with Sponsors. Each desk had a nameplate on it signifying whose it was, and they were generally in district order. This year, as Six's Mentor, I would be between Albert and last year's Victor, who I'd never met.

Other than the lounge area, there were bathrooms and small apartments, only holding a bed and a shower. The rooms were attached to the lounge, and their doors were labeled with their functions. Some Mentors opted to return to the ritzier Training Center apartments during the night, but many, especially those with tributes still standing, wanted to be close to the screens.

After saying our farewells to the tributes, we each left our respective apartments and headed to the annex. I was already nervous about my tributes. Deltro and Salome were both so young. So innocent. I didn't want to watch them die today.

Upon entering the lounge, I headed straight for Finnick. We'd both been busy trying to attract sponsors and advise our tributes the past few days, so I hadn't seen much of him since taking the train to Six.

"Hey, buddy," he said, noticing me as I walked up.

"Hi," I said.

"Hi, Piers," said Annie softly. She was playing nervously with her fingers. It had been fifteen years since her time in the arena, but I knew watching the Games was still difficult for her.

"How are you holding up?" Finnick asked.

"I'm okay," I said. It was mostly true.

"Good," he said, although I didn't think he believed me. "How are you feeling about your tributes?"

"They're very nice," I said. "I'm a little nervous about them, though."

"Understandable," said Finnick.

"How do you guys feel about your tributes?" I asked.

Finnick and Annie exchanged a glance. "They'll be interesting, that's for sure," said Finnick after a moment.

"Interesting how?" I asked.

Finnick shook his head. "I'm sure you'll see very soon," he said. "They're both, ah, very… strategy-focused. It'll be interesting to see how it plays out."

Before I could respond, the screens around the room lit up. The screens were white, with a black timer in the center counting down from one minute.

"We'll talk later?" Finnick asked.

I nodded, my throat a little tight.

"Best of luck," Annie said. The pair turned and walked over to their desks, which weren't far from mine, thank goodness. I made my way over to the desk labelled Piers Morgan and sat behind it, taking deep breaths.

The counter reached 00:00 and the screens changed to footage of the arena. The tributes stood on their podiums, preparing to run as the timer over the Cornucopia began its countdown. Tension riddled my body as the second timer hit 00:00 and the Games truly began.

I buried my face in my hands, trying to steady myself.

They were gone. Just like that, they were both gone.

I lifted my head, rubbing my eyes tiredly. My hands wouldn't stop shaking, which only reminded me of Deltro, which only made me feel worse. The cameras had gotten a good look at him as he fell, as well as a shot of his horrified allies fleeing. And Salome… I don't know what she said to him, but that Career looked like a shell after he killed her. I've never seen a Career look like that.

"I'm sorry," came a voice from beside me. I looked over to see a girl with long dark hair and dark eyes looking back at me. I recognized her immediately as Acadia Marlow, last year's Victor.

I sighed. "It's okay," I said tiredly.

I saw a faint flash of recognition cross her gaze. "I remember you," she said. "You won before me."

"I did," I agreed. I extended a hand. "Piers Morgan. District Four."

"Acadia Marlow," she said, shaking my hand. "Seven."

I looked back at the screens. "Which tributes are yours?" I asked.

"Their names are Travis and Chaney. I'm honestly having trouble keeping track of where they went, though…" she trailed.

"Do you want some help?" I asked.

She hesitated, looking behind her. "I can just ask Marius…"

"It's okay," I said. "Marius's tributes are still running around. I don't have much better to do."

She studied my face warily. It was a look I remembered from watching her in the arena. After a moment, she sighed. "I guess I could use the help. I still don't know what all these screens do."

As I scooted my chair over to hers, I tried to put Deltro and Salome's horrifying ends out of my mind. They were beyond helping now. Acadia's tributes weren't.

*Eulogies:

24th: Samuel Harris, D5M (axed by Travis): I don't think this came as a surprise to anyone. Poor guy, what you really needed was help. Not a fight to the death. In a Games full of tributes busy strategizing, training, and making alliances, your focus was entirely different, which made you a nice change of pace for both reader and writer. Maybe you should've jumped out of that chariot after all. Thank you to wiifan2002 for submitting Samuel.

23rd: Deltro Litmen, D6M (throwing knifed by Sadie): I truly enjoyed writing Deltro. I loved his backstory and attitude, and enjoyed exploring how his life shaped his perspective and behavior in the Games. He felt like a truly realistic human person to me. Unfortunately, I just couldn't see him making it far in the Games. I also couldn't resist the parallels of the chase scene. Thank you to G00N for submitting Deltro.

22nd: Salome Terris, D6F (sworded by Caligula): Man, this one hurt. Salome was a joy to write. My goal with her was to make her feel like a true fourteen-year-old girl, and I hope I succeeded. What Salome wanted more than anything was to fill the whole leaving Tay had created, and I'm happy that Sienna was able to fill that hole for a little while. Unfortunately, she was just so impulsive, and I didn't see that boding well for her. Sienna and your many fans will miss you. Thank you to MoonlightSalsa for submitting Salome.

21st: Damion Cloud, D3M (speared by Muir): Unfortunately, "pissing Halley off had no consequences" was not a correct statement. The combination of Halley's rage and your refusal to be anything but nasty ended up being your doom. You were so steadfast in your attitude that there was no room for growth for you, which is why you ended up here. At least you managed to get some good hits in before you went. Thank you to wiifan2002 for submitting Damion.

Kills:

Caligula- 1 (Salome)

Sadie- 1 (Deltro)

Muir- 1 (Damion)

Travis- 1 (Samuel)

Alliances:

Careers: Virgil, Glowla, Caligula, Sadie, Muir, Isla

(Salome's) Dream Team: Ianto, Levi, Jess, Sienna

District Nine: Journie, Reese

The Three Musketeers: Halley, Ethan, Parker

Quiet Bros: Travis, Dale

Loners: Ainsley, Chaney, Alula

Ultimately, although I had originally planned on killing more in the Bloodbath, several factors kept this chapter from being deadlier. The main ones are the dysfunctionality of the Careers and the lack of aggressive strategies- almost everyone intended on avoiding combat. Don't worry, though, they won't be able to avoid it forever. Also, as seen here, there will be a Mentor POV at the end of each chapter, although they won't be as long as this.

In other news, the blog will be updated soon! Under the Arena tab, you'll be able to find maps, pictures, and alliances. Under the Tributes tab, kills and placements will be updated as well. Also, big thanks to those of you who voted on the poll, I appreciate that. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, I'd love to hear what you're thinking. To those of you whose tributes I killed, my condolences. Thank you again for submitting. I hope you keep reading, because those deaths are going to have some serious impact on everyone else.

See you next time,

-r-b*