The Forty Fifth Annual Hunger Games


Introduction

The race was on for the new Head Gamemaker position after Ilius Turum stepped down after a truly spectacular six year period of Games. Starting at the giant tree, he'd only grown, with his oasis-speckled desert, his poisonous jungle, his mysterious basalt pillars, the lagoon and all it entailed, and finally the path of life. Many feared no one would be able to top the revered man's ingenuity and prowess steering the Games ship, but dozens were eager to try. From Gamemakers to politicians to everyday Capitolites, over a hundred applied for the position. President Coriolanus Snow himself, who was still reigning strong over his domain called Panem, headed the board that would select the new Head Gamemaker. Also included were outgoing Head Gamemaker Ilius Turum, Coriolanus' newer wife Agathia, and Victor Porter Tripp of the 38th Games, who had taken up history as her talent and was well tutored in the ways and whims of past Gamemakers and what it took to be one. In the end, the board narrowed down the immense field to two top prospects. Their names were Cyndala Clargy and Zealand Cruxe. Cyndala was a Games fanatic with a nack for drawing and writing. She was also a masterful filmmaker, and had made many a fan film about the Games. She'd worked as a paparazzi investigating the lives of the Victors and as a portrait drawer, among other things. She was young and lively, and ready to create a fantastic series of arenas. She enjoyed outdoor arenas more so, favoring their classic appeal. Zealand had worked as one of the top advisers to Ilius for all six years of his career, as well as a top adviser for Burtlas for the latter third of his career. He was streamlined and had worked hard to get to the top, year after year, inching up the social scale from poverty (for the Capitol, at least) to being one of the richest non-politicians in Panem. He had been waiting patiently for more than a decade to show off his skills, and he knew he could do well. However, he was on the older side and was more reserved and would be less of a public figure. The board could not decide who to choose, so they instituted a competition. Cyndala would be the Head Gamemaker for the 45th Games, and Zealand would be the Head Gamemaker for the 46th Hunger Games. A poll would be taken throughout the country as to which Games was better. Whoever won the popular vote would become the Head Gamemaker for good, while the other would lose their job. Cyndala leaped at the chance, and decided to bring back in some old fashioned elements, as well as some new twists. These Games would be harrowing, to say the least. The only two hint clips Cyndala would put forth stirred the interest of the public. They were of a wisp of dark gray mist, along with a reptilian eye the color of a rotten pear. Caesar Flickerman and Claudius Templesmith kept their Games mania show running year round, and they heavily covered the Head Gamemaker trials, using their immense fame to hype up the Capitol at large once again for the upcoming Games. Cyndala and Zealand both became instantly famous soon enough. Cyndala crafted her chosen arena to display her skills, and she then eagerly awaited her tributes. The Careers were a good starter. All six scored either a 9 or a 10, and they all seemed reliable and decently skilled. The pair from 1 was as beautiful as ever, and the boy was a good tactician, while the female was a master archer. The pair from 2 weren't as great as many of their predecessors, but both could demolish anything if they were given a mace. The pair from 4 made a good showing this year to make up for the sad failure of the prior year. The girl was a revolutionary model, and the boy was a famous surfer in the District. There were no other volunteers besides the Careers. The other tributes scored between 7 and 2. Here are the tributes:

District 1: Misha Lindberg, 17 (9) 6-1 and Huxley Rabe, 18 (10) 4-1

District 2: Caelinia Thatcher, 18 (9) 7-1 and Uranus Timble, 18 (9) 7-1

District 3: Kaicee Hender, 15 (3) 54-1 and Cade Thode, 16 (5) 32-1

District 4: Ofelia Tessard, 18 (10) 4-1 and Bodhi Grunge, 17 (10) 5-1

District 5: Sulema Jacardy, 18 (6) 23-1 and Lawson Benedict, 16 (7) 19-1

District 6: Indre Cubbard, 13 (2) 62-1 and Tahoe Marchly, 18 (6) 21-1

District 7: Alannis Hardt, 16 (5) 31-1 and Duncan Putime, 13 (3) 53-1

District 8: Tistera Zaye, 17 (5) 33-1 and Booker Yallansen, 18 (6) 22-1

District 9: Mazarine Kemblebex, 12 (2) 64-1 and Einagan Cirelo, 16 (4) 43-1

District 10: Candace Backe, 18 (4) 41-1 and Feline Budge, 17 (5) 31-1

District 11: Vieve Littel, 14 (3) 52-1 and Chaff Abwenza, 16 (6) 23-1

District 12: Queta Yari, 15 (3) 51-1 and Otto Layke, 12 (3) 53-1

HGBA Odds: 20% on Ofelia, 19% on Huxley, 17% on Bodhi, 15% on Misha, 13% on Uranus, 12% on Caelinia, 1% or less on Kaicee, Cade, Sulema, Lawson, Indre, Tahoe, Alannis, Duncan, Tistera, Booker, Mazarine, Einagan, Candace, Feline, Vieve, Chaff, Queta, and Otto.


The Games

The twenty four tributes ascended upon their pedestals, dressed in dark green, skin-tight body suits made of a plasticky material. A small blow up life preserver was clipped around their waist. Similar to those from the Forty Third, they would barely keep a tribute's head above the surface. The tributes were wary of what this arena would present to them. After all, Cyndala was putting forth her best work possible to try and score her dream job as Head Gamemaker. And boy, did she not disappoint. It was a fully outdoor arena, which was Cyndala's favorite. The arena was a quagmire of thick, soupy, swampy material, from waist to shoulder height, that you had to slog through, along with bands of mangrove trees and islands that dipped below the water level every now and then. Fierce alligator mutts, with thick, dark green plated armor and those frightened reptilian eyes, wound their way through the marshy water, willing to snap up any unassuming tribute. Food was scarce, and while water was in abundance, it was dirty and mostly undrinkable. It would have to be filtered in some fashion, or illness would most likely befall the drinker. A thick gray fog blanketed a majority of the arena, giving the place an eerie, ethereal feel. The Cornucopia was the classic golden metal material, although it was wreathed in shadows and fog, and soggy vines were wrapped around in, keeping it in a stranglehold. The Cornucopia sat on a moist, spongy pad of loosely packed dirt that would turn to slippery mud underneath the feet of the tributes. Food and water were in small amounts within the Horn, and the only weapons offered were swords, tomahawks, and throwing knives. There was also a single bow, made of springy oak, put their specially for Misha, with a quiver of a dozen arrows. The tributes prepared to head whatever direction they planned to go in as the holographic numbers of the countdown, brighter than normal to slice through the oppressive fog, ticked down towards zero.

5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

Three tributes (Indre from 6, Feline from 10, and Vieve from 11) headed away from the Bloodbath immediately, while the other twenty one tributes sprinted into the fray, a few slipping and sliding on the unreliable material the Cornucopia island was made of. Misha was the fastest tribute by several strides, spurred on not only by adrenaline, but also by the sight of the coveted bow waiting for her at the mouth of the Horn. She swept it up, slinging the quiver over one shoulder. She drew an arrow and fired it right into the forehead of a girl that was running perpendicular to her, trying to escape west with a plastic bag full of batteries. This girl was the first of ten to perish at the Bloodbath.

Kaicee Hender, District 3 Female; 24th, Killed by Misha, Bloodbath

Moments later, Ofelia grabbed a pair of tomahawks and tossed one to her District partner, Bodhi. The two sprinted forward and ganged up on the strongest Outlier, Lawson from District Five. He managed to kick Ofelia in the gut long enough to sidestep her, but Bodhi used his tomahawk to hack into his chest, ending him.

Lawson Benedict, District 5 Male; 23rd, Killed by Bodhi, Bloodbath

Candace from 10 tried to take advantage of Ofelia, still recovering from Lawson's kick. She tossed a throwing knife Ofelia's way, but it fell short. Ofelia clambered onto her knees and chucked her tomahawk through the air. It sliced into a stunned Candace's forehead, killing her almost instantly.

Candace Backe, District 10 Female; 22nd, Killed by Ofelia, Bloodbath

Huxley found a full belt of at least a dozen throwing knives hung on one of the interior walls of the mighty Horn. He clipped it around his waist, and then sprinted out onto the soggy field, a glittering throwing knife in each hand. He sent two hurtling in opposite directions. One scraped Sulema's right shoulder; she was escaping with a pack and a throwing knife, and the weapon frightened her so much she almost fell. The other smacked into the back of Alannis's neck, killing her.

Alannis Hardt, District 7 Female; 21st, Killed by Huxley, Bloodbath

The tag team of Bodhi and Ofelia ganged up on a boy who had fallen to the ground behind the Horn after getting shot in the left shin with one of Misha's arrows. He'd been unable to run any further, and the pair from Four diced him to pieces as the battle raged on around them.

Otto Layke, District 12 Male; 20th, Killed by Misha, Bodhi, and Ofelia, Bloodbath

The pair from 2 finally managed to grab swords; placed only a pedestal apart, they had been running forward together when the brave, tall, and strong male tribute from Eleven, Chaff, who had been between them, had pushed Uranus to the ground as to escape their threats. Uranus's leg had slid three feet into the soggy ground, and Caelinia had helped free him. Caelinia dashed forward, ready to make up for missed time. A girl screamed as Caelinia pinned her to the ground and slashed open her chest.

Mazarine Kemblebex, District 9 Female; 19th, Killed by Caelinia, Bloodbath

Uranus made his first move, sweeping his sword through the air and hacking halfway through a boy's shoulder. He screamed and fell to his knees, dropping the sack full of beans he had in his hands. Uranus finished the job, stabbing his sword into the boy's back.

Duncan Putime, District 7 Male; 18th, Killed by Uranus, Bloodbath

Bodhi had been chasing a boy for the past thirty seconds or so, and he chased him to the edge of the island. Surprisingly, Bodhi's prey could doggy paddle, and he managed to jump into the water and swim at a decent pace. However, Bodhi was a world class surfer, and he scissored through the murky, soupy water, quickly catching up to the boy. Einagan screamed and thrashed as Bodhi dunked him under water and held him there as he stabbed him. The water grew red as Einagan passed from a mixture of blood loss, organ failure, and drowning.

Einagan Cirelo, District 9 Male; 17th, Killed by Bodhi, Bloodbath

Misha had been letting her allies pick off some of the more close range tributes, but most of the remaining tributes were either gone or running. Misha nocked an arrow and pulled back the bowstring, aiming at the girl from 12. As Queta slid off of the edge of the island, and arrow imbedded itself in her waist flotation device. It popped, and Queta screamed as she bobbed haphazardly in the water. Moments later, she slid beneath the waves and drowned within a minute.

Queta Yari, District 12 Female; 16th, Killed by Misha and Drowned, Bloodbath

Huxley made the final kill of the Bloodbath. All of the non-Careers were off of the island at this point, but Huxley wasn't satisfied with only 9 kills from the pack; he needed one more to make them seem like a good pack in his eyes. He grabbed a weighted net and tossed it as far as he could when he reached the edge of the island. It wrapped itself around the left arm of one of the girls that were awkwardly front crawling through the swamp, trying to meld into the foggy, marshy environment. It was rather easy due to the low visibility and amount of things to hide behind, but this one girl got unlucky. Huxley then tossed a throwing knife into her abdomen as she struggled against the weight of the net. She lay on her back for over an hour, slowly bleeding out until she was dead.

Tistera Zaye, District 8 Female; 15th, Killed by Huxley, Bloodbath

With that, the Bloodbath concluded, the tributes floating, dragging, or trudging through the soupy water, spreading out more so towards the east coincidentally. The six Careers, their pack fully intact unlike some previous years, decided to camp out at the Cornucopia for the night. They found a large spotlight in the back of the Cornucopia, and Huxley affixed it to the top of the Horn. It burnt away the mist and lit about an eighth of a mile wide circle around the Horn. They collected the supplies, and threw some of the useless stuff into the swampy water to clear up more room to sleep in the Horn, as sleeping on the unstable mushy ground of the island outside could be dangerous. Luckily for them, the floor of the Horn was tough, padded dirt covered with a plasticky tarp, so they slept well. Cade had gotten a coil of silvery wire, a coil of rope, and a metal pail. He drifted on his back until he was about a mile from the Horn, paddling awkwardly when he couldn't walk through the sludge-like water. He found a small grove of mangrove trees, and he tied himself to some of the arching roots with his rope. He then set to work, trying to think of a way to use his wire and pail to win the Games like Beetee had. Sulema had a small wound on her shoulder, but she also had a full pack she had managed to snag from the mouth of the Horn without death, quite a feat. She found a trio of thick, slippery logs floating together in the marshy waters a good two miles from the Horn, and she dragged herself onto them. She then opened her pack, and discovered two packs of jerky, a water filter, a throwing knife, and night vision goggles. She strapped on the goggles and hunkered down on her makeshift raft. Indre floated aimlessly on her back. She was too short to touch the bottom of the bog, and she wasn't strong enough to use her arms or legs to propel herself. Tired, she bobbed in the water no too far from the Horn, hoping no one would find her. Tahoe and Booker had allied, and the stronger duo helped each other move quickly through the marshy waters. They discovered a cushy, unstable island, and they took turns sleeping, the other playing guard. Tahoe had managed to get an empty canteen, while Booker had nabbed a candle and a box of matches. Feline wound his way through the water. He knew how to swim surprisingly, and he sliced through the water swiftly. He had a throwing knife and a small sack with a sleeve of saltine crackers and a metal bowl in it. He just floated on his back after getting at least two and a half miles away from the Horn, relaxed enough. Vieve and Chaff were together soon after the Bloodbath, as the humongous boy discovered his little District partner trying to hide in plain sight a mere ten feet from the edge of the Cornucopia island, floating on her back and crying in fear. Chaff hitched her over his shoulder and had laid her in the branches of a mangrove tree once she fell asleep. He left her an empty metal water bottle, and then he went off to find his own place to rest. He wasn't a "good" enough person to care for a younger tribute and protect him. To him, the only life that mattered was his own. He'd done more than enough for poor Vieve. Chaff spent the night crafting a small raft out of mangrove limbs and trunks, tying them together with lengths of rope he had gotten from the Cornucopia. He'd also received two full bottles of water and a tomahawk. If he could find food, he would be the best set Outlier in the Games most likely.

On the morning of Day 2, the Careers were awoken by a nearby screech. Ofelia was the first to her feet, and the duo of herself and Caelinia dove into the water in investigate. The spotlight shone on them, and Huxley managed to loosen the bolts so they could pan the light farther. More area was alight, and Ofelia and Caelinia gasped as they watched the poor girl from 6 struggle fifty feet away from them, her left leg in the jaws of a thickly armored alligator mutt. Indre thrashed and tried to free herself to the best of her ability, but it was to no avail. The girl was emaciated before the Games even began, and she was unarmed and unaware; she didn't stand a chance the second the alligator had spotted her. Ofelia and Caelinia watched as the alligator devoured half of the girl before her cannon fired. Caelinia then drove the beast away so there would be some form of remains for the Capitol to send back home to 6.

Indre Cubbard, District 6 Female; 14th, Killed by alligator mutt, Day 2

The Careers became a little paranoid after that, worried about what the murky waters might hide. They decided to stay on their safe, illuminated island for the rest of the day. They disassembled crates and other things to make a makeshift raft, like the ones Sulema and Chaff were utilizing in the outer stretches of the arena. It could only support two tributes; Caelinia and Huxley elected to go hunting in the morning. Throughout the rest of the day, not much else transpired. Cade was at a loss of what to do with his metal pot and coil of wire without a power source, and all three Victors from 3 were working feverishly to try and send him some form of a power source. Sulema, Tahoe, and Booker all rested. Feline swam around and had a close call, nearly being attacked by an alligator mutt. Vieve had a panic attack when she awoke and discovered Chaff to be gone; she fell from her perch in the tree and nearly drowned before she pulled herself back into the tree. Chaff finished off his raft for the time being, and he fashioned a paddle from a strangely shaped branch. He piloted his smallish craft throughout the quagmire, looking for a food source. All of the other tributes should be doing the same, but they didn't really. Many of them were either too worried about staying afloat, were too tired, or were too scared to move from their positions.

On Day 3, Caelinia and Huxley pushed off of the Cornucopia island on the raft the Careers had crafted, armed to the teeth. The raft wobbled at first, but it remained upright. With hardhats on their heads that had flashlights imbedded in them (courtesy of eager sponsors), the duo paddled off into the abyss to look for tributes while the other four, mostly antsy and wanting a turn as well, waited at the Cornucopia. Bored, Misha checked on the spotlight to make sure everything was in working order, and Ofelia worked with Uranus to order the rations thrice. Bodhi just did some yoga and told some stories to the audience about surfing.

As Day 3 came to a close, Caelinia and Huxley had not returned. In fact, they were pretty lost, having floated far from the Cornucopia island after a strong current, spurred by Cyndala, swept them off course. Darkness fell, and their beacons of light were more dangerous than beneficial, but they couldn't figure out how to turn the lights off, so they kept them on. The glowing attracted a swarm of mosquitoes, as well as a ravenous alligator mutt.

Caelinia utilized her sword as a spear of sorts, smacking the flat side across the aquatic reptile's head and driving it back a couple of feet every time it came too close. She knew its skin was too tough on the head for her sword to break, so she wouldn't dull the tip. The only way she'd be able to kill it was if she could stab it in the stomach or the underside of its neck. Finally, as Day 4 broke across the arena, the alligator lost interest and wound off through the murk.

Not long after, it began to rain in sheets. At this point, everyone was pretty miserable. None of the Outliers had much food or water, if any, and they were wet, drenched, scared, and stiff. Caelinia and Huxley were hopelessly lost aboard their makeshift raft with not enough food or water to keep them sustained for much longer. Back at the Cornucopia, the other four Careers were going nearly insane just sitting around forever, and Bodhi attempted to go hunting before Ofelia dissuaded him. The only dry tributes were the four Careers, who huddled underneath the Horn. The others were drenched to the bone.

As Caelinia and Huxley dutifully paddled onward during the tail end of the fourth day, they spotted a tribute when Huxley's beam glanced off of a sparkly silver bangle on the girl's wrist. Vieve's token spelled her doom; if Huxley's light hadn't glanced off of it, she might've been able to hide behind the curtain of leaves long enough for the Careers to pass her by. Caelinia promptly launched herself into the water. Vieve screamed upon seeing the girl from 2 scissoring towards her, and she tried to climb higher into her tree. Her feet missed a branch however, and she fell, landing a foot in front of a bloodthirsty Caelinia. Caelinia stabbed her sword into Vieve's chest as the girl shrieked, and her cannon fired not long after. Everyone in the arena perked up at the sound of the cannon, and they weren't surprised to see who died that night when Vieve's face was in the sky.

Vieve Littel, District 11 Female; 13th, Killed by Caelinia, Day 4

Many things transpired on Day 5, although no deaths occurred. The four tributes at the Cornucopia were too restless, and Bodhi and Uranus got in a huge fight over if they should go hunting or not. They refused to talk to one another. Misha and Ofelia tried to patch things up, but neither boy would look at the other, not to mention work or hunt with him. The pack was starting to disintegrate, with Caelinia and Huxley stranded in a far off corner of the arena on their soggy wooden raft, Bodhi and Uranus ready to duel to the death, and Misha and Ofelia trying to hold them together. Sulema received a roll of gauze and antiseptic, which she applied to her wound. Tahoe and Booker fended off an alligator by throwing sticks at it until it became uninterested. Feline had swam so far that he had reached the edge of the expansive arena. A strong current pushed him away from the force field, and Feline got the memo from the Gamemakers. Chaff discovered a marsh plant with an edible root while on one of his excursions from the thicket of mangroves he usually kept his raft docked in at that point in time, and he gorged himself.

Day 6 was a different story from Day 5. Early in the morning of Day 6, Bodhi became fed up with waiting for Caelinia and Huxley to return. He shouted that they'd abandoned ship probably and were cowards, and that they should just go hunting and not be wimps. Uranus and Misha took immediate offense to their District partners being called cowards, and Uranus lunged at Bodhi, stabbing him in the right shoulder with his sword. Bodhi roared in pain and chucked a throwing knife right into Uranus's chest. The boy from 2 gurgled and fell to his knees, curling up in a ball as the blood drizzled from his wound. Misha looked at Bodhi warily.

Uranus Timble, District 2 Male; 12th, Killed by Bodhi, Day 6

Misha stormed off to the Horn, where she sat on the trap and simmered, trying to cap her anger so she wouldn't kill Bodhi and anger Ofelia. The two from 4 were immensely tight, and Misha knew she needed Huxley and Caelinia to return soon, or she was toast.

The island that Booker and Tahoe had been resting on suddenly starting to dip below the surface as Tahoe slept and Booker kept guard drowsily that night. Booker awoke when the water was at his waist, and he quickly ran over to Tahoe, who was spasming in the water. His flotation device was off, and he was drowning. Booker managed to hold his friend above the water long enough to activate his flotation device, and then the two of them clung to each other. Tahoe spit up water, and they floated about, looking for a new place to rest.

On Day 7, a week into the Games, further divisions were seated in the Career pack as Ofelia found herself trapped between Bodhi and Misha, both of whom wanted to kill the other. She was personally closer with Bodhi by a longshot, but Misha would be easier to beat in the end, so Ofelia didn't know who to side with. That day at noon, both took swords and squared off on the island, while Ofelia watched from the Horn, dismayed. Bodhi made the first move, and it was clumsy. Neither of the two was good with swords at all, and that showed in their performance. They got small cuts on one another, and the agonizing fight went on for two hours until Ofelia made them stop. Neither was going to kill the other. But when Ofelia stepped between them, Bodhi was already mid lunge. Too late, he tried to change course. His sword skidded across Ofelia's left thigh, and in horror she screamed. Out of instinct, she launched a volley of three successive throwing knives right at Bodhi's face, and all three hit their mark. Ofelia was devastated as Bodhi slid to the ground, blood seeping from all over his face.

Bodhi Grunge, District 4 Male; 11th, Killed by Ofelia, Day 7

On Day 8, Caelinia and Huxley settled their raft on one of the more concrete islands. Huxley was running a fever and didn't look so great, and he and Caelinia had bonded over their near week on the raft together. She helped him and the raft onto the island, and she laid him down and gave him the last of their food and water to drink. No one was sure what was wrong with Huxley, as he didn't have any infected wounds at all, yet he was severely feverish. A sponsor sent a pain reliever, and while that helped him sleep, he was still very sick, and Caelinia didn't know what to do to help him.

Ofelia and Misha huddled together on the Cornucopia island, unsure of how to continue. Hunting was really out of the question at this point for the pair, as someone needed to guard the Cornucopia and its bounty, and it was pretty risky to go hunting alone in this arena. It was an awkward silence between them; Misha had never really liked Ofelia all that much, and Ofelia had always felt awkward around the 1 girl because of that. Now that they were alone...well, it was weird. Ofelia was trying to suppress the guilt of killing her District partner, and Misha was trying to suppress the worry over the seemingly missing Huxley, who had been a good friend of hers in the Academy. Neither wanted to come off as weak, however, so they bantered awkwardly and did strange things to distract from their sullen faces and feelings.

Feline crossed paths with Chaff as night began to fall over the arena, and it was not a pretty, amiable meeting. The moment the two spotted each other, they lunged, Chaff wielding his tomahawk, Feline using two hunks of sharp rock he'd discovered. In the end, Feline's skull was split in two my Chaff's deadly tomahawk, although Feline did manage to damage Chaff's left wrist with his rocks. His left hand hung limply at Chaff's side, torn and bloodied, as he clambered back onto his raft and paddled away. Feline's bloody, mutilated body bobbed in the water until a hovercraft came to retrieve it.

Feline Budge, District 10 Male; 10th, Killed by Chaff, Day 8

Days 9 and 10 passed without progress as the tributes went about their now routine. Misha and Ofelia kept the uncomfortable companionship going at the Horn, and Caelinia continued to attempt to heal poor Huxley, who hadn't been able to stand since he'd left the raft on Day 8. His fever refused to break, no matter what medicine Caelinia managed to receive to give to him. Cade slept pretty much the entire time, still strapped to his tree, starved and dehydrated. Sulema hadn't made much of a showing, and she stayed that way, sleeping on her makeshift log raft, going wherever it floated. Tahoe and Booker found a grove of mangroves not too far from Chaff's on Day 10, and they holed up in the thick roots, sleeping as soon as they were hoisted into there. Chaff was unnerved by his killing. He already felt uncomfortable with leaving his poor District partner to die in the mangrove tree, and murdering another Outlier boy was just another thing to add to his uneasiness. He stayed in his grove.

On Day 11, the 3 Victors had finally amassed enough funds to send Cade what he needed; a handheld generator to power his mechanism that he would build. Cade was overexcited to see the batteries arrive, but not for reasons that his Mentors thought he would be. He was so hungry that every second of existence hurt. He wrapped one end of his coil around the metal pail and the other around the generator. He then put the pail over his head. His mentors were shocked, and no one could do anything as the tired, pained boy flicked on the generator to full power. He was shocked to death almost immediately, and his cannon fired loudly.

Cade Thode, District 3 Male; 9th, Suicide, Day 11

That left the Top 8: Misha Lindberg from District 1, Huxley Rabe from District 1, Caelinia Thatcher from District 2, Ofelia Tessard from District 4, Sulema Jacardy from District 5, Tahoe Marchly from District 6, Booker Yallansen from District 8, and Chaff Abwenza from District 11.

On Day 12, things were grim for everyone. Misha and Ofelia were so tired, uncomfortable, and bored with each others company that they were in a lull, sleeping too much and losing their focus. Huxley was in a dire state, his fever only growing little by little, and Caelinia was hungry and thirsty, without any supplies besides her sword and the raft. Sulema's water filter broke on Day 12, and her water supplies were quickly depleted. Tahoe and Booker were both immensely starved and dehydrated, and they tried to eat mangrove leaves and drink the murky water, both not the best of choices. The water was contaminated in that area, and the mangrove leaves were not the most edible. Booker was throwing up several hours later, and Tahoe was miserable. Chaff was increasingly filled with angst and worry over the deaths he had caused, directly or indirectly, and his water had run out. Around noon, it began to pour, hard. Everyone was suffering, and there was no clear Victor.

Day 13 rolled around, and the rain slowed to a faint drizzle. A shocking three cannons fired on that day. Early in the morning, Caelinia passed out while tending to Huxley. His cannon shattered the night, and she sat up with a start. Her fingers scrabbled at his neck, and she wailed in horror when she found that his pulse was non existent. She steadied herself and then left his corpse on the island, shaking and trying to not have a meltdown. It was later determined that Huxley had gotten malaria from a mosquito bite.

Huxley Rabe, District 1 Male; 8th, Killed by malaria, Day 13

Sulema started to freak out once her food also ran out at noon on Day 13. She started to have a panic attack, and she began to shake and groan. Her log raft had washed close to the island where Caelinia and Huxley had resided for several days. She fell off of her raft, and she spasmed in the water; her flotation belt was not on. By the time she triggered it to turn on, an alligator mutt had found her. It locked its jaws around her right leg and tore it off at the knee. She screamed loudly, so loudly that the alligator was shocked away from her, taking her leg with it. A current washed the poor girl up on the beach of the island Caelinia was now resting on, and the girl from 2 dutifully finished the job, severing the girl's neck cleanly and quickly.

Sulema Jacardy, District 5 Female; 7th, Killed by alligator and Caelinia, Day 13

Misha and Ofelia were getting uneasy around each other, and they seemed to be ready to explode, expecting the other to betray and backstab them at any given moment. It seemed as if they were about to get into a fight for a moment, but then they cooled off once a rumble of thunder from the sky scared the both of them. They calmed down long enough to make a truce, and in the morning they pledged to split the supplies evenly and head in different directions.

Chaff sat alone on his raft, shaded from the rain, which had ebbed up to a steady, normal rainfall. He examined his wrist every couple of minutes, sometimes flopping around the immobile hand and studying the cuts to make sure they were clean. One cannot always be the most attentive, however, and that day one of Chaff's cuts became inflamed and infected, and he could do nothing about it except try to fruitlessly clean it and keep it dry.

The third death of the day occurred about three hours after Sulema had been polished off at the hand of Caelinia. After the truce making of Ofelia and Misha and the featurette of poor Chaff sitting, bored, on his raft, the alliance of Tahoe and Booker came onto the screen. Booker was sitting on the roots of the mangrove, still out of it but quickly recovering. His body had thrown up the dirty water, and had gotten all the contaminants out of his system. The same could not be said about Tahoe. Now he was spewing disgusting things from both his mouth and his behind, and he was hunkered down on the roots of a tree several down from the one where Booker crouched. Tahoe groaned loudly after retching once more. He was feverish and shaky, and he couldn't hold anything down.

"Tahoe?" Booker spoke up. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Tahoe opened his mouth to respond yes, but more bile gurgled up the back of his throat, and he spat it into the water. A ripple of shivers went through him, and he curled up in a ball. He shook his head vehemently. Booker had no clue what to do. They were in the end game, so he shouldn't help his friend and ally, but he was his friend and ally. Booker hated seeing the poor boy so sick. Booker just stayed put and watched as Tahoe slumped against the mangrove roots.

"Tahoe?" Booker said after a while. There was no response. Booker immediately dropped into the water and waded his way over to Tahoe's tree. He flicked the boy on the face. "TAHOE!" he yelled in his ear, but Tahoe did not respond to Booker's calls. Booker opened his mouth, and bile spilled forth.

Tahoe gasped in a breath; he'd fallen asleep, and bile had been clogging his throat. He'd nearly suffocated in his sleep. He tried to sit up, but he just ended up tumbling into the water. Booker shouted in fear and tried to haul the boy up, but he'd blacked out on the way down. Tahoe weighed a good thirty more pounds than Booker, even though both were taller and had more muscle mass than most Outliers. Booker, weak from exhaustion, starvation, and dehydration, struggled to keep Tahoe's head above the water. When he finally rested Tahoe in the roots again, Booker was so tired that he fell asleep immediately. He was awoken twenty minutes later by a cannon. He prodded Tahoe, who was unresponsive. Booker screamed after opening Tahoe's mouth. Retch poured forth once again. Tahoe had chocked on his bile in his sleep, and Booker was driven half mad by Tahoe's death, which he blamed on himself.

Tahoe Marchly, District 6 Male; 6th, Choked on own bile, Day 13

On Day 14, lightning cracked through the air as the sun rose. The rain was torrential, the worst it had been in the entire length of the Games. Thunder rumbled so loudly and ominously that the five remaining tributes might have as well just been inside the storm cloud. Chaff hunkered down on his raft, keeping semi-dry, while Caelinia hid on her squishy, sad excuse for an island, covering herself with a tarp gifted from eager sponsors. At this point, Caelinia was the obvious Capitol favorite, with Chaff second; Misha and Ofelia's boringness had made others forget and/or not care for them, and Booker didn't stand a chance now that he was practically insane without a care in the world. Misha and Ofelia could also pull out the win it seemed, but Caelinia was the strong favorite despite being the Career least bet on in the pre-Games HGBA betting round.

An hour or so past noon, when the intense storms finally calmed down just a tad, Misha and Ofelia orchestrated their split. Misha took her bow, two packs full of food and water, and a tarp. Ofelia took a belt of throwing knives, two of her own packs full of essentials, and a thick quilt. They threw everything else into the water. After they shook hands, wishing each other luck, they headed in opposite directions. Misha walked north, while Ofelia walked south.

The moment that Misha reached the edge of the island on the northern side, she quickly whirled and nocked an arrow. She was behind the Cornucopia, and she crept around its side. Meanwhile, Ofelia seemed to think that Misha was already gone. She was gathering supplies she'd stockpiled underground on the edge of the island while Misha was sleeping or doing something else. As Ofelia retrieved her two extra bags that she had packed from the soil, Misha clambered up to the top of the Horn silently and then aimed down at the beautiful girl from 4, not feeling an iota of guilt as she prepared to kill her.

Ofelia kept her mouth shut when the arrow pierced her chest, although she was very surprised. She shouldn't have been, but spending so much boring time with Misha had lulled her into a false sense of security, even if she didn't trust her. Her brain was just half off. Ofelia dropped all of her bags, and closed her eyes, falling backwards. She bled out as Misha took all of her supplies and fished the rest of it out of the water. As she was ordering all of her now wet supplies in the dry haven of the Cornucopia, now solely hers, Ofelia's cannon boomed in between thunderclaps. The Gamemakers made it extra loud so it would be discernible from the storm.

Ofelia Tessard, District 4 Female; 5th, Killed by Misha, Day 14

Not long after, Caelinia and Booker had a close scrape. Caelinia was crouching low on her island, mostly dry underneath the small tent she'd pitched, using the tarp as a roof to keep the water out. Booker had just been slogging along since Tahoe's death, lost in the fear and worry and death clouding his mind, and he marched past her island. She prepared to go kill him, but a particularly strong bolt of lightning cascading through the air. Caelinia didn't want to enter the water until the intense storm was over; she wasn't going to throw away her shot at Victory by chasing after a hapless Outlier and then getting electrocuted while following him through the water. So Booker managed to survive one more day as everyone managed to make it through the terrible, soggy day.

Day 15 was a beautiful sight. The skies opened up around nine in the morning. The endless field of dark gray clouds, which had been burgeoning the entire Games up until the fantastic storm the day prior, were gone in under a half hour, revealing an open expanse of plain blue. A few stray wisps of cloud, white as snow, were burnt away by the sun. The same thing happened with all of the mist; by noon, the entire arena was clear of it. The water level even dropped a little, and the heat became intense. While it had been mostly cool and wet for the majority of the Games, now it was becoming seriously hot and humid.

The heat and humidity was the last straw for Booker. He began to thrash through the waters, running and screaming at invisible things. Chaff heard the boy about a quarter mile away from his grove where he was perched on his raft. He piloted the makeshift craft out to investigate; he was ready for these Games to be over.

By the time Chaff arrived, a duo of alligators had already teamed up on the 8 boy. Booker screamed and struggled as the alligator mutts pulled away ribbons of bloody red flesh, their enormous maws coated in it. Chaff regurgitated his breakfast of root and barely-purified water upon the sight, and he paddled away before he could see any more of the carnage. More images were piling into Chaff's mind daily; it was a nightmare. When Booker's cannon boomed, it was almost a relief to everyone, even the ferocious, most bloodthirsty Games enthusiasts in the Capitol. No one deserved such a death.

Booker Yallansen, District 8 Male; 4th, Killed by alligator mutts, Day 15

Days 16 and 17 passed without incident. Misha was getting stronger by the day, feeding off of her treasure trove of supplies at the Cornucopia. She'd become pessimistic and ready for these Games to end a week prior, and her sour mood and lack of action compared to Chaff and Caelinia pinned her as the least favorite and the villain of a sorts. Chaff was also ready to end the Games, but that was to be expected from an Outlier this late in the Games. He never returned to his safe haven of mangroves where he usually floated his raft. He searched avidly for Caelinia and Misha, eager to either meet his Victory or his death, but he could not find either. His bravery and skill was appreciated and he was a strong favorite of many, but Caelinia outweighed him in her support. She loved to sing, and she serenaded the Capitol out of desperateness for more and more gifts. Soon she had a mini Cornucopia of her own; two swords, a tent, two tarps, a filter, and any food she wanted. The Capitol adored and cherished the underdog Career for her charisma, her bloodthirstiness, her intellect, and her humanity, as when she tried to revive Huxley earlier in the Games.

On Day 18, Chaff received a sponsor gift of a small roll of gauze. He pocketed it and read the note that had been sent with it.

Look at the time on your left; it's not doing well. - Vissarion

He checked his left wrist and hand, which he had neglected to do for the past two days. He was shocked to find a small cut seriously inflamed and yellow in color, oozing a little bit of pus. Chaff bit his lip as he steeled himself for what he knew he would have to do. If he let the infection persist, it would spread beyond his hand, and his life and his shot at Victory could be terminated much easier.

He grabbed the tomahawk and bit down on a wad of leaves as he raised it in the air with his right hand and cut off his left hand and wrist.

Chaff's screams and groans echoed through the arena. He didn't even look at his bloody hand, quickly sinking to the bottom of the marshy waters. He wrapped the gauze tight around the stump of his left arm, biting down so hard that he split the inside of his cheek. He spit out the blood, and once the wound was wrapped up, he collapsed from exhaustion upon his raft, taking a short nap.

Day 19 was the day of reckoning. Cyndala loved longer Games, but these were getting a little too drawn out even for her eclectic tastes. She pulled out her last trick to manipulate the tributes and herd them to the center of the arena, where, as in most Games do, the final showdown would occur. All of the mangrove trees started to move, their nimble roots and branches like numerous limbs of an alien beast. Chaff paddled as fast as he could, but his supplies excepting his tomahawk were taken by the mangrove trees. They then started to try and tear apart his raft, but he managed to keep it intact until he reached the Cornucopia island. Caelinia had to swim and fend them off, and one wrapped itself around her ankle and tugged too hard. There was a snapping sound, and Caelinia grunted as her ankle was twisted. The mangroves didn't give her much trouble after that. Cyndala was horrified, because she wanted Caelinia to win so the nation would be most pleased with her and choose her to be the next full time Gamemaker. Misha was waiting in the mouth of the Horn, so the mangroves could not bother her, but a quintet of fiesty alligators invaded the island to pester her and possibly kill her. No one cared for Misha that much compared to Caelinia and Chaff. Misha wasn't that great with close combat, and she struggled to fend off the mutts. One alligator got a hold of Misha's left foot, and another her right elbow. They tugged her to the ground, and she screamed deafeningly as they tore into her, devouring her like they had devoured Booker several days earlier.

Misha Lindberg, District 1 Female; 3rd, Killed by alligator mutts, Day 19

Caelinia arrived on the island a minute after Chaff. He'd beached his raft on the island, and he was digging through the supplies at the Cornucopia for a second tomahawk when he remembered he only had a single hand to wield one with. He added more bandages to his stump, and then a rock hit the Cornucopia on the outside. Chaff perked up and spotted Caelinia stumbling out of the swampy waters, drenched and holding a sword in each hand, ready to slaughter him. Chaff knew the best move would be to throw the tomahawk, but he didn't know how. He slowly advanced, using a metal pan that Uranus had beat flat in boredom as a makeshift shield. Caelinia narrowed her eyes, and she rushed forward, forgetting about her ankle.

She crumpled, and she yelled in frustration. Chaff had a missing hand, and Caelinia basically had a missing foot. It was almost comical to see the two once-strong tributes teeter around one another. Despite how both had had much sustenance, they were tired and ragged and wet and injured and a little sick on some level from just living in the colder, wetter conditions of the arena. Caelinia managed to hit skin, digging a small divot into Chaff's bad arm and tearing away the bandages with her blade. He roared in fury, and smacked his metallic shield into her left kneecap, causing her to stagger.

Chaff was a whirlwind, using his last amount of energy to bury the tomahawk diagonally between Caelinia's right shoulder and her neck. Chaff staggered backwards, falling onto his butt, as Caelinia gasped, pulling the tomahawk out of her body with a wet squelch. She fell to the ground, hissing in pain. It had severed some tendons in her neck, and she bled out in a couple of minutes as Chaff nursed his furiously bleeding stump arm, waiting for her to die.

Caelinia Thatcher, District 2 Female; 2nd, Killed by Chaff, Day 19

"Chaff Abwenza of District 11, you are the Victor of the 45th Hunger Games!" Caesar and Claudius shouted into the arena, Caesar excited and Claudius a little disappointed (Chaff was Caesar's favorite, while Claudius had favored Caelinia). Chaff just struggled to his feet and gritted his teeth, refusing to look at Caelinia's corpse. He stood ramrod straight, a testament to his tenacity, as he waited for the hovercraft to retrieve him.


Aftermath

District 11 had just won six years earlier with Seeder, and they hadn't expected to retrieve their fourth Victor so soon after Seeder. They'd expected another two decade plus wait like they'd had between Freeha and Seeder, not just over half a decade. 11 was now cementing itself as a stronger outer District for sure; it now had the most Victors out of the Lower Districts (7 thru 12). Chaff was a strong Capitol favorite for a while. His Games were very interesting, and he was very sexy and popular in the Victor prostitution trade for well over a decade until he fell out of style. He refused to receive a prosthetic hand, although he allowed them to get rid of his scars from the Games. Chaff was hearty and lovable and very charismatic, but secretly he was very rebellious and plotted much for a way to end the Games. He turned to alcohol to quiet his many demons from the Games, and he would find drinking buddies in some of the soon-to-be Victors, those from the 50th and the 52nd. They would form a formidable group, and those two would be some of the only people Chaff truly talked to besides his fellow 11 Victors.

Chaff would live to age 74, dying from liver cancer soon after the 106th Hunger Games. He would not marry and would have no children, although he would be engaged later in life. His finacee would die from lung cancer before they could marry, however.

The payouts on his Victory were pretty good, as .58% bet on him.

His Victory Tour was pretty decent, and he was a pretty good speech giver.

Fun Fact: Chaff is the first Victor to lose a body part and not have it replaced by the Capitol.


Victor's News

Chaff moves into the Victor's Village of District 11, in the house next to Seeder's.


List of Victors

1st: Kelan Thather, District 4 (1, 1 Male)

2nd: Dillon Tripp, District 9 (1, 1 Male)

3rd: Tugra Ertra, District 5 (1, 1 Female)

4th: Noor Tuskararus, District 2 (1, 1 Female)

5th: Ishania Patel, District 7 (1, 1 Female)

6th: Guild Tonneroy, District 1 (1, 1 Male)

7th: Chaplin Nastaro, District 3 (1, 1 Male)

8th: Irmentrude Marley, District 5 (2, 2 Female)

9th: Vissarion Chamantel, District 11 (1, 1 Male)

10th: Greason Trails, District 6 (1, 1 Male)

11th: Mags Flanagan, District 4 (2, 1 Female)

12th: Salandra Valour, District 1 (2, 1 Female)

13th: Barcelona Sepias, District 10 (1, 1 Female)

14th: Freeha Indepp, District 11 (2, 1 Female)

15th: Clermont Lackrey, District 1 (3, 2 Male)

16th: Bex Martin, District 4 (3, 2 Female)

17th: Jaguar Crusoe, District 10 (2, 1 Male)

18th: Deana Mitchellson, District 9 (2, 1 Female)

19th: Romulus Armidale, District 2 (2, 1 Male)

20th: Grover Elms, District 7 (2, 1 Male)

21st: Fitore Renoro, District 2 (3, 2 Male)

22nd: Mascara Curler, District 1 (4, 2 Female)

23rd: Woof Parsons, District 8 (1, 1 Male)

24th: Dorsal Rance, District 4 (4, 2 Male)

25th: Venice Grammar, District 12 (1, 1 Female)

26th: Calculata Fenceley, District 3 (2, 1 Female)

27th: Florianna Urnston, District 2 (4, 2 Female)

28th: Mercedes Benson, District 6 (2, 1 Female)

29th: Fox Rennolls, District 5 (3, 1 Male)

30th: Tarquinius Isselhardt, District 2 (5, 3 Male)

31st: Ivelisse Horner, District 1 (5, 3 Female)

32nd: Pomona McCrea, District 7 (3, 2 Female)

33rd: Beetee Latier, District 3 (3, 2 Male)

34th: Flotsam Bresten, District 4 (5, 3 Male)

35th: Organza White, District 8 (2, 1 Female)

36th: Januaria Shale, District 2 (6, 3 Female)

37th: Gnaeus Deccum, District 2 (7, 4 Male)

38th: Porter Tripp, District 5 (4, 3 Female)

39th: Seeder Howell, District 11 (3, 2 Female)

40th: Zion Alvarra, District 1 (6, 3 Male)

41st: Indigo Arnett, District 6 (3, 2 Female)

42nd: Surge Tomlin, District 5 (5, 2 Male)

43rd: Syren Calanthe, District 4 (6, 3 Female)

44th: Brutus Asesino, District 2 (8, 5 Male)

45th: Chaff Abwenza, District 11 (4, 2 Male)


A/N: Eek! This took a while but I loved this chapter so I hope it was worth the wait :)

This is the longest chapter yet! :D By a substantial amount actually, like a couple hundred words

I didn't switch tenses this time! :D

What did you think of Chaff and his Games? Please review, I'd love to hear what you all have to say :)

Until Next Time,

Tracee