Note: This isn't your regularly scheduled Forty Seventh Games. Surprise! Enjoy. Don't rain on my sorta breaking canon? parade too much xD I hope you enjoy this special RESURRECTION Games! :D


The Auxiliary Forty Sixth Annual Hunger Games

(Informally known as the Sweet Sixteen Games)


Introduction

President of Panem, Coriolanus Bacchus Snow, was having girl problems. Not romantic ones; he was happily married to his second wife, Agathia, and he could get any woman in the Capitol to spend a night with him if he just said the words. No, the problem that President Snow was facing far superseded the pangs and whims of love and lust. President Snow was facing the full out wrath of his step daughter, Celandine "Celly" Staurae-Snow. She hated him with a burning passion; she was progressive and more Xabian in her mind set of things, and she rebelled heavily against her step father. Mind you, Miss Celly was not a rebel like the ones that hid themselves in the Districts, begging to tear down the Capitol. No, she rebelled as all teenagers do, mouthing off and ignoring their guardians. Celly didn't want to abolish the Hunger Games or anything like that; in fact, Celly was quite a Gamie herself. But she wanted things like equal pay as well as gender and sexuality equality. She was a feminist, but she was violent and obtrusive and unabashed in her ways. She once said, in her youth, that her step father "was a bigoted white man who had crushed the hearts and dreams of many a woman to get to his obnoxious seat of power." Of course, no one knew these words until Snow had passed and all the documents in the Presidential Palace were released. He could not discipline her beyond verbal reprimands, as the nation would then view him more unfavorably, for who beats or severely punishes their step daughter when they are the President of a nation as Snow wanted to do? So he had to placate her, and he had the perfect plan. Celly turned 16 a month after the Forty Sixth Hunger Games came to a close, and Snow presented his birthday gift. 5 months from her birthday, there would be a special Games. Celly would get to pick one tribute to bring back from the most recent 16 Games (31st-46th). Snow could finally unveil the resurrecting machines that he'd had finally finished four years prior; however, he was determined for them to be only put to this use. She would design the arena and the opening ceremonies and would be a ceremonial Head Gamemaker. Zealand Cruxe, who won the popular vote over who should be the Head Gamemaker in a landslide, would do the actual work, but Celly would do the bidding. Celly was overjoyed, and she quickly calmed down and grew to love her stepfather as she built a one-of-a-kind Games. Caesar Flickerman and Claudius Templesmith were ecstatic as well, and their show never stopped once, and Celly made daily appearances to talk with them. These Games were merciful, something that the Districts were surprised to see, as well as excited about. Sixteen of their children would be brought back from the dead, and they'd have the chance to compete for survival once again. This pleased the Districts immensely, and any thoughts of rebellion that might have been restirring in the Districts was stamped out for the time being. On the first day of the Pre-Games, Celly announced her picks and the reasons why, standing on a brightly lit stage. When she called out the tribute's name, they stumbled out from backstage, dressed to the nines, where they would sit on a purple couch. Upon Celly's insistence, they were having a starting interview and an ending interview, as well as no training or private sessions, as the tributes were exactly as they'd been when they had been tested previously, and a day to reunite with family and friends who had thought them long dead and gone. Snow was using his stepdaughter's relative kindness to soothe the burnt egos of the Districts. Celly's feminist core beliefs, however, stuck with her as she made her choices. All sixteen tributes she selected were women she felt were strong.

"From the Thirty First Hunger Games, I have selected Atasia Leyce, the District Six Female. Ms. Leyce inspired me with her beauty and poise, and with her humility, as she did not like displaying her half naked body to the audience as she bathed right before her untimely death."

"From the Thirty Second Hunger Games, I have selected Jewell Powell, the District One Female. Ms. Powell inspired me with her tenacity and willingness to break the norm when she left behind the Career pack, and made it all the way to the end before falling one placement short."

"From the Thirty Third Hunger Games, I have selected Blanche Sauvageau, the District Nine Female. Ms. Sauvageau inspired me with her grace and peacefulness, and how she kept fighting even though she was left in an arena with six Careers and the electrifying Beetee Latier at the time of her death."

"From the Thirty Fourth Hunger Games, I have selected Fiberra Ujomo, the District Three Female. Ms. Ujomo inspired me with her strength and the way she and her friend Bethella fought for their freedom against the Careers restraining them in the tower, even managing to fell a couple."

"From the Thirty Fifth Hunger Games, I have selected Lulah Inlove, the District Twelve Female. Ms. Inlove inspired me by the way she kept fighting and kept her head up despite her dire situation and her place of origin, the seedy backstreets of Twelve."

"From the Thirty Sixth Hunger Games, I have selected Nouvelle Harriss, the District One Female. Ms. Harriss inspired me by showing off all the finer things that a woman can be, including being beautiful and well mannered, while still being strong and smart."

"From the Thirty Seventh Hunger Games, I have selected Aprila Shale, the District Two Female. Ms. Shale inspired me as one of the legendary Shale sisters. I respect the strength, wit, and beauty of her family, and I want to give one of their brood the honor of competing again, especially one that had gotten unlucky enough to place so low."

"From the Thirty Eighth Hunger Games, I have selected Ree Cornering, the District Seven Female. Ms. Cornering inspired me when I learned that she had faced abuse as a child, as she shared at her interview during her first Games. Yet she was still well mannered and strong and ready to fight back."

"From the Thirty Ninth Hunger Games, I have selected Bettyann Pulliam, the District Eight Female. Ms. Pulliam inspired me with her strength and charisma, enough for her to be the first tribute I ever sponsored in a Hunger Games. I was heartbroken when she died in her first Games, and I felt that she deserved a second chance here."

"From the Fortieth Hunger Games, I have selected Rebecca Rubion, the District Twelve Female. Ms. Rubion inspired me by perfectly showing that a woman can fall in love and deeply care about a man, even in a life threatening situation, but she doesn't have to give up her wits and strength and personality once she commits herself to a man, that she can still be a unique human being when she is connected to a man."

"From the Forty First Hunger Games, I have selected Harrietta Oswald, the District Ten Female. Ms. Oswald inspired me by displaying her set of virtues and morals openly for all to see, and she only compromised them when she had to to protect her own life. She inspired me so that she was the second tribute I ever sponsored."

"From the Forty Second Hunger Games, I have selected the notorious Elaine Canterbury, the District Ten Female. Ms. Canterbury inspired me by being one of the strongest and smartest young women I have ever seen grace the screen. She kept fighting to the very end, despite the odds stacked against her and the loss of her twin brother weighing on her, and that gave me all the respect in the world for her, and it opened up my purse to send her sponsorship."

"From the Forty Third Hunger Games, I have selected Lylith Braidon, the District Seven Female. Ms. Braidon inspired me by her physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual strength and aptitude as she fought through the Games. She didn't give up even though she was left in the arena with herself and six Careers, and she managed to make it all the way to a respectable second place."

"From the Forty Fourth Hunger Games, I have selected Anilyne Poole, the District Four Female. Ms. Poole inspired me with her youth and confidence, and how she fought against the oppressive eventual Victor, who stole her in the night and murdered her as a part of his plan."

"From the Forty Fifth Hunger Games, I have selected Caelinia Thatcher, the District Two Female. Ms. Thatcher inspired me with her fighting, never-going-to-back-down attitude. Her upmost loyalty to her friends, including Mr. Rabe from her Games, also heavily inspired me."

"Finally, from the Forty Sixth Hunger Games, I have selected Isaku Adachi, the District One Female. Ms. Adachi inspired me by breaking all of the stereotypes that were set before her: curvy, light haired, flirty One girls. She broke them all successfully and flourished in the arena until she met her end."

District One Tributes: Jewell Powell (32nd), Nouvelle Harriss (36th), and Isaku Adachi (46th)

District Two Tributes: Aprila Shale (37th) and Caelinia Thatcher (45th)

District Three Tributes: Fiberra Ujomo (34th)

District Four Tributes: Anilyne Poole (44th)

District Five Tributes: None

District Six Tributes: Atasia Leyce (31st)

District Seven Tributes: Ree Cornering (38th) and Lylith Braidon (43rd)

District Eight Tributes: Bettyann Pulliam (39th)

District Nine Tributes: Blanche Sauvageau (33rd)

District Ten Tributes: Harrietta Oswald (41st) and Elaine Canterbury (42nd)

District Eleven Tributes: None

District Twelve Tributes: Lulah Inlove (35th) and Rebecca Rubion (40th)

HGBA Bets: 15% on Nouvelle and Isaku, 14% on Aprila and Caelinia, 10% on Elaine and Lylith, 7% on Jewell, 5% Anilyne, 3% on Rebecca, 2% on Harrietta and Bettyann, 1% or less on Fiberra, Atasia, Ree, Blanche, and Lulah


The Games

A silvery Cornucopia sat atop a mosaic-like dance floor made of vibrating, flashing plates of different sizes and shapes. They changed colors unevenly and sporadically. Inside the Cornucopia were only three things of use: machetes, throwing knives, and sickles. The rest of the supplies were fancy clothes, sugary food and drink, and vomiting tonic to clear your stomach so you could eat even more. A thin mist drifted through the air, and loud, electronic music surged forth. The sixteen pedestals formed a tight circle around the Horn, and just outside of the pedestals was an undulating crowd of thousands upon thousands of people-like mutts, reminiscent of the previous Games. However, they were not exactly lethal; they were just swaying and strutting and dancing their manufactured lives away, clogging the dance floor. Amongst them were several of Celandine's closest friends, but they were protected by tiny force field bubbles so they wouldn't get injured in the fray. Outside of the expansive dance floor was a tumultuous maze full of traps and tricks and puzzles, ringing the entire rim of it. It was pretty thick and long. Celandine herself stepped out of the crowd to make a declaration as the countdown ticked away silently above her. She stood in front of the mouth of the Cornucopia, and she took a deep breath, a smile seated deep into her face.

"Hello, tributes! Welcome to my very special Hunger Games!" Celly said jubilantly. A few of her friends cheered from within the crowd. "This is how this is going to work. It's very simple sounding. Ten of you will move on to the next round. There are ten doors, spaced evenly apart, on the perimeter of the arena. Once you enter a door, it will disappear, and no one else will be able to enter that way. The first ten tributes to enter a door will move onto the next phase; any remaining tributes will immediately be blown up by the trackers embedded in the base of your neck. If the remaining number of tributes and doors is the same, i.e. three doors and three tributes not inside a room, then those tributes will be guided to a door. All bets are off. You may kill, steal, torture, stalk, do anything in your power to make it into one of those doors. The only thing off limits is not having fun." Her sickly sweet smile could give anyone shivers; she'd already learned a lot from her venomous stepfather. As Celly finished her speech, the last seconds ticked away. Celly stepped to the side and climbed into a miniature hovercraft without a roof, and she circled high above, excitedly waiting for her custom Games to begin in earnest.

5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

It was mayhem as tributes rushed to and fro. The Careers were such a varied and ununified lot this year that no clear pack had formed. Everyone had made friends and enemies across the board, and the six young women who usually would be members of the pack had no cohesive idea, even at the opening minutes, of who was with who and all of that. The undulating sea of dancers pressed in the moment the chimes sang, and tributes were having trouble finding their way to the Cornucopia, no less to each other. A few girls made their way away from the Cornucopia without anything; these girls were Blanche and Lulah. The rest were trying to get something to defend themselves with, and they would do so with varying levels of success.

One girl fought out of the crowd first and stumbled into the open, unoccupied ring, about five feet wide, that encircled the silvery Horn. Aprila Shale grinned deviously as she grabbed two machetes, one for each hand. She would not repeat the mistakes of yesteryear. She was determined to come home this time and take advantage of Celly's act of mercy. Some things run deep, however, and the moment she saw Rebecca Rubion stumble out of the crowd, she saw red.

This girl had indirectly killed her younger sister Octoberia, as she had learned from Januaria when they watched a clip of the Fortieth Games. When Oct had asked to ally, she had accepted, and then Rebecca had fled like the gangly coward she was while her sister was slaughtered, just to save her own hide. Aprila knew deep down that she should be mad at Zion or Nolan, but Zion was an agreeable Victor, and Nolan's ashes had been windswept across Two for six years now. So she focused her anger on the last person she could: Rebecca Rubion.

The girl didn't even have time to scream as Aprila lurched forward suddenly, her machete digging deep into the girl's stomach. Rebecca gasped quietly as she fell to her knees, and Aprila stood over her before delivering the final blow to her throat, hissing, "For Octoberia Shale."

Rebecca Rubion, Fortieth Hunger Games Tribute (District 12); 16th, Killed by Aprila, Phase One

Aprila dashed off back into the crowds then, hacking her way through the manufactured party goers, who fell under her blades without a sound. Others stumbled out. Anilyne and Elaine made peace, and both grabbed a machete before going in opposite directions. Unified by a sense of District unity, Isaku and Nouvelle got weapons and decided to work together to at least get out of these oppressive crowds. Harrietta got a belt of throwing knives with no one else around, and Ree ran once she saw Caelinia and Jewell fighting over the last machete. Caelinia's fingers locked around the handle first, and she made to quickly eliminate the girl, her Two training showing strong and proud, the swamp of the Forty Fifth and this girl's taunts before the second interview never leaving her mind.

Jewell rolled out of the way at the last moment, and the machete skidded across the One girl's bicep instead of slicing into her chest, digging rather deep. Caelinia spat in dissatisfaction, but she could see others breaking out of the crowd, and she would rather find a door over killing or getting killed by others. She wove her way into the masses, and the other girls ran in and gathered things without attacking one another as Jewell struggled to her feet, cursing Caelinia Thatcher's name. Her fighting arm was wounded. The only girl who didn't get supplies who had went towards the Cornucopia was Atasia, who was hopelessly lost in the crowds and felt very flustered.

Blanche was surprisingly the first to elbow her way out of the crowd about a half hour later, her body battered and bruised from pushing and shoving and getting pushed and shoved back. She looked up at the uniform gray cement walls of the maze rising before her, and she sighed. As she walked forward, Celly appeared out of nowhere, walking from around a core. Blanche gave a little yelp and stepped back, but Celly calmed her, pulling out a map.

"Here's a map of this area of the arena for being the first to reach the maze. Enjoy your advantage," Celly winked, and Blanche snatched the map out of Celly's hands before jogging into the maze, carefully studying the map as she walked. Elaine darted out of the crowd, and followed behind Blanche, just out of earshot of the girl, but Elaine managed to keep on her tail, her machete clenched tightly in her hands.

Meanwhile, Atasia was having a panic attack, and she fell to her knees, weeping ingloriously, holding her pretty self as she rocked on the ground. The people stepped over, around, and on her, and she kept crying, unable to handle the stress and the feeling of being utterly lost. Her high pitched wails attracted an attentive Isaku, who tugged her quasi-ally Nouvelle towards the sounds. Upon their discovery, Isaku buried her machete to the vertebrae in the back of Atasia's neck. She was gone in moments.

Atasia Leyce, Thrity First Hunger Games Tribute (District 6); 15th, Killed by Isaku, Phase One

Lylith Braidon marched through the crowds and reached the edge in due time, her sickle clenched tight in her hands. She found an entrance into the maze, and she quickly sped forward, recklessly turning corners and sprinting down passageways. After a minute of quickly twisting through the confusing switchbacks and sharp corners of the maze, Lylith was faced by a locked wrought iron gate. Twenty keys hung from strings from the ceiling, and a plaque embedded in the floor read, "Find the right key." Lylith was short, and she could barely grab some of the keys. She pulled down all twenty and then started trying to unlock the gate.

Fiberra walked through another section of the maze, taking deep breaths as she tried to regain her composure. She'd gone a little crazy in the never ending mob. She'd started sprinting and mumbling to herself after being lost for a solid half hour, and she'd found herself at the edge of the crowd just before she thought she was about to lose it. Now she found herself stopped at a part of the passage blockaded by a translucent glass-like wall. A mess of colorful pieces laid strewn on the floor for a 3D puzzle, and its metal frame stood on a pedestal in front of it all. Fiberra grinned; this was her element. She quickly started snapping pieces into place, and in under five minutes she had most of the puzzle finished. That was when Jewell Powell, breathing hard, a throwing knife in hand, stumbled into the corridor, blood drizzling from her arm. Fiberra didn't hear or see her, too absorbed as she slid the last couple of pieces into place. As the wall started to sink into the ground, Jewell cackled and made a lopsided toss with her non dominant arm. The knife still hit home, smacking into Fiberra' back. She whimpered as she fell to the ground, and Jewell raced to her side. The 1 girl pulled out the smallish blade and stabbed it in a dozen more times, peppering small to medium wounds across the helpless 3 girl's back as she struggled for freedom. Then Jewell sprinted across the now open passage, cleared by Fiberra's hard work. The girl continued on her trek as Fiberra swiftly bled out.

Fiberra Ujomo, Thirty Fourth Hunger Games Tribute (District 3); 14th, Killed by Jewell, Phase One

At that point, all of the tributes excepting a confused Anilyne were out of the crowds and working their way through the maze. Celly was getting bored of seeing Anilyne keep making "humph" sounds as she elbowed her way aimlessly through the masses, and she cleared a half-path, which Anilyne picked up on. She stumbled out of the crowd and grinned, dashing into the maze. Now everyone was at work, quickly or slowly advancing as they faced numerous challenges. They were primarily puzzles, but there were other, more physical barriers as time went on.

Blanche was moving the quickest. With her special map, she advanced quickly through the maze once she got her bearings. She avoided every trap except for a single, simple jigsaw-like table puzzle that only took her a handful of minutes. And after much twisting, turning, and map reading, she was by far the first tribute to arrive at a door. She turned a corner, and laughed quietly, tears gathering in her eyes, as she saw the simple metal door in the wall, waiting for her. She jogged forward, her hand reaching for the tarnished bronze knob-

She gasped as she felt Elaine's machete slide out of her back. She staggered around to face Elaine, who looked at her impassively. She'd been following the girl all along, and now that the girl had arrived at her destination, Elaine had killed her and taken the entrance for herself. She didn't even say sorry. She just opened the door and walked in herself. Celly's voice projected through the arena, announcing, "One tribute has reached their door." Blanche blubbered on the ground and soon bled out, her cannon firing a couple of minutes after Celly's announcement.

Blanche Sauvageau, Thirty Third Hunger Games Tribute (District 9); 13th, Killed by Elaine, Phase One

The hours ticked by as the tributes worked through the maze. Jewell grew flustered, and whenever she reached a puzzle station, she went back, as she was intellectually weak and knew she would have serious trouble solving the maze. Isaku and Nouvelle had split up upon reaching the maze, and both moved with amazing speed and dexterity through it. Caelinia moved rather quickly as well, and Aprila's progress slowed to a crawl once she reached a confusing 3D puzzle, more complex than the one Fiberra had completed before being killed by Jewell. Anilyne was moving fast enough, although the maze gave her the creeps. Ree was constantly worried; without Dez, her friend that had protected her in her Games and kept her grounded, she was a ball of nerves and worries. Lylith had succeeded in moving past the gate and keys and several other obstacles; in fact, Lylith was the second tribute to reach her door. She smiled triumphantly as she stepped inside and Celly announced, "Two tributes have reached their doors." Bettyann had to climb a rock wall to continue her progress, and she strained her wrist in doing so. Harrietta faced little difficulty, having surprisingly chosen one of the clearer paths out of pure coincidence. She had to complete two puzzles and travel through a jungle gym before she arrived at her door third. As the door clicked closed behind the 10 girl, Celly announced, "Three tributes have reached their doors." Lulah was stuck at a five foot patch of water she had to traverse; she could walk through it, but she had an irrational fear of water and drowning and was held up.

Celly announced, "Four tributes have reached their doors," when Isaku proudly stepped through hers after completing another puzzle. Only minutes later, Celly declared that five tributes had completed the maze as Caelinia finished, and a minute after that she made the same announcement about six tributes as Nouvelle completed the maze. The six tributes remaining, two of whom would not get to a door, began to work feverishly.

Bettyann smiled as she turned the corner of what she thought was the end of the maze. It had been, but she had arrived at the place where Lylith had left Phase One two hours earlier, and there was no door now. Bettyann cursed and went back, her fists shaking as she worried that she might not find another door in time.

Ree's fingers were tapping incessantly against her thigh as she slowly walked forward. Each time she turned a new corner, she was frightened that she might meet some horror or her death. Most times, there was nothing or a simple puzzle. But as Ree spotted a door, a slot in the wall parallel to the door opened up, and a hissing dog mutt slunk out, bearing its yellowing fangs. Ree's hands shook so much that she dropped her throwing knife, and her mind went blank of everything, even her instincts, as the rabid dog leaped onto her and ripped open her throat with its vicious fangs.

Ree Cornering, Thirty Eighth Hunger Games Tribute (District 7); 12th, Killed by dog mutt, Phase One

Aprila finished her very complex 3D puzzle after about a hour and a half's hard work. She sighed as she turned to corner, ready to see what other barrier or puzzle or challenge she would have to face to advance further in the arena. But all she saw was a stubby corridor and a simple metal door, and the Shale sister sighed in happiness as she sprinted forward and hauled open the door to the sound of Celly announcing, "Seven tributes have reached their doors."

Jewell was shaking as she stalked away from yet another puzzle challenge. Celly was becoming tired of the girl avoiding the puzzle, and was rather annoyed with her at this point. When Jewell reached the next barricade, it was of course another puzzle. She turned to walk away, grinding her teeth together in annoyance, but a wall of pure cement had risen up, boxing her off in that section of the hallway with the puzzle. A clock popped out of the ground right next to the several hundred piece jigsaw puzzle of a scene from the Twenty Ninth Hunger Games, showing the pair from 1 being consumed by Fox's wall of water from the freed dam. The clock started counting down from the thirty minutes, and Jewell pulled out her hair as she tried to put together the pieces. She didn't want to know what would happen if she didn't have the puzzle done in the allotted time.

Even though Bettyann had ended up having to find another entrance, she was fast and intelligent enough, and she discovered a real door this time as she brightened with relief and joy. She stepped through the door and enjoyed the welcome words from Celly: "Eight tributes have reached their doors."

The last three tributes left out there (Jewell, Anilyne, and Lulah) were all progressing slowly. Jewell was still held up at the jigsaw puzzle as the time counted away, Lulah had managed to cross the water but was petrified from fear and was moving slowly, and Anilyne had already found three dead ends where doors had once been, and had yet to find an actual exit from Phase One. Only two of them would escape this Phase One.

There was a loud explosion from the southern part of the maze, and the cameras showed what happened when the last second of the thirty minutes was gone, and Jewell had barely fit together two dozen pieces. Explosives, buried underneath the ground, at least a dozen of them, exploded in unison. One second, Jewell and the puzzle and the cement walls were there, the next there was pure hellish fire, and the next there was rubble, no puzzle table, and most importantly, no Jewell Powell.

Jewell Powell, Thirty Second Hunger Games Tribute (District 1); 11th, Killed by explosions, Phase One

"Remaining two tributes who have yet to reach a door, there are only two tributes left and only two open doors, so you will be guided to a door by the holographic arrows that should appear in the air...now," Celly informed Lulah and Anilyne, who both looked relieved for the help. They followed the arrows, and within fifteen minutes both girls had stepped through their doors. They were rounded up and brought into another room where the other eight girls waited. They sat down with the others, and Celly strode in.

"Congratulations on surviving thus far," Celly said with a thin smile. "Our next test is simple. You have twelve minutes to run a mile to the next door and the next Phase. I doubt any of you will perish during this Phase. You have twelve minutes starting...now."

The ten girls clambered to their feet and pushed and shoved their way towards the single door on the other end of the room. They all stumbled out into a blistering, sandy wasteland that was a mile wide and a mile long. Far off in the distance, almost like a mirage, they saw a lone door embedded in a huge sandstone cliff. The girls set off as quickly as they could, with the fastest runners (Isaku, Anilyne, and Lylith) taking the lead as the other girls ran as well. Within twelve minutes, all of the girls had arrived back at the second door and were through it. Anilyne arrived first, Lylith close behind, at around 6 minutes, and Isaku a minute later. Aprila arrived fourth at seven and a half minutes, and Bettyann was a surprising fifth person to enter moments after her. Nouvelle and Elaine arrived sixth and seventh around the eight minute mark, and a minute later, Harrietta arrived. Caelinia had taken her sweet time and arrived ninth at around ten minutes, and Lulah pulled up in last, at around eleven minutes. Once all ten girls were inside the next room, they found it contained five glass boxes and five black plastic chairs. Celly strode into the room.

"Hello, girls. I'm happy all of you made it. So, the first five of you that arrived, sit down in these chairs. The last five of you that arrived, stand in one of those boxes," Celly instructed, grinning deviously. The girls followed her commands, those on the chairs looking relieved, and those in the boxes apprehensive.

"These boxes will be filling with water," Celly chuckled as the five girls inside the boxes, especially Lulah, looked frightened. "The first person to drown is dead. The other four will be let out and they will continue on to the next Phase. You five outside of the boxes will be betting on who will be the first to drown. Whoever gets their guess right gets to skip the next Phase altogether. Ms. Poole, since you arrived first, you will choose first."

"Harrietta," she said slowly, and the 10 girl glared at her.

"Alright. Ms. Braidon?"

"Lulah," she whispered, looking at her shoes. That left three stronger girls who probably wouldn't drown and had just taken their time on the run. Isaku chose Elaine, Aprila chose Caelinia, and Bettyann was left with Nouvelle. After the bets had been placed, Celly took a step back, and glass boxes began to fill with water. Immediately, Lulah began to quiver, and she was trying not to freak out before the water was past her ankles. Harrietta remained as still as a stone, taking careful breaths as to not waste the oxygen inside the sealed box. Caelinia and Elaine proceeded similarly, and Nouvelle seemed to remain calm, although she was involuntarily taking big gulps of air. Steadily the water rose, and as the girls started to float, Lulah started thrashing around. Once there was so much water in the boxes that the girls had to keep their faces pressed to the glass ceiling to breathe, Lulah was going nutzo, slamming on the glass walls, kicking and screaming underwater as bubbles streamed from her mouth. She promptly drowned, and a cannon fired. The other four boxes shattered, torrents of water and gasping tributes pouring out.

Lulah Inlove, Tribute of the Thirty Fifth Hunger Games (District 12); 10th, Drowned, Phase Three

"Ms. Braidon," Celly spoke up as some of the girls helped their sodden companions to their feet. "Since you guessed correctly, you will be coming with me." She gestured to a smaller door hidden in one of the corners, and Lylith, shaking, walked to her side. "The other eight of you will be going into a small chamber on the other side of that door. My boyfriend, Colossius, will provide more information on the other side." Celly, tugging Lylith along, disappeared into the side door as the other eight girls stepped into a tiny white room.

Colossius lived up to his name. Despite only being 16 years old, the dark skinned young man was taller and more muscular than most men in the Capitol, and he had a brutishly handsome face and a perfect posture. Probably training to be a Peacekeeper. He had a tray of eight syringes, each filled with a murky yellow sludge, and he grinned warmly at the girls.

"You eight will be injected with a lethal poison that takes two hours to act. There are seven vials of the cure inside the next room. If you try to share, it will not be enough, and both of you will die. One of you will die a torturous death from the poison, while the other seven of you along with Ms. Braidon will advance to the fifth Phase. Oh, and a hint. The cure is called greithicaleium, more commonly known as Greyscale."

Colossius injected the poisonous serum into each girl's forearm, and then he opened the door and said, "GO!" The girls sprinted forward and stumbled into the room. It was a huge ovular chamber filled with hundreds of free standing shelves that each had three shelves fixed together by poles. And on each slab of slippery plastic were hundreds upon hundreds of different bottles with different medicines and the like in them. The girls began sprinting through the room, some of them helping each other. Nouvelle and Isaku ganged together, as did Caelinia and Aprila. Vials shattered across the ground, and every girl was repeating the name greyscale over and over in their heads as they searched relentlessly for a vial.

After ten minutes, Caelinia found the first vial. There was a peeling wrapper on the warped glass bottle, filled with charcoal gray soup, and the wrapper read Greithicaleium, or Greyscale. She pushed a rabid Aprila to the side, who tried to steal it from her, their temporary alliance broken now that Caelinia had found the antidote. She drank the entire vial in one gulp, letting the slimy yet refreshingly sweet concoction enter her body. She sighed, and Celly opened the door on the other side of the room, Lylith at her side, as the other girls continued to search in a frenzy. Caelinia jogged over to the door, and the three waited to see who would not find a vial.

Harrietta was the next to lock her fingers around a vial, which she found in a small, faded box that contained all vials of simple cherry cough syrup. Before anyone could notice, she popped out the stopper and downed the entire potion. She grinned, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, as she strode over to stand with Celly, Lylith, and Caelinia. Aprila soon joined them, finding a vial near where Caelinia had found hers. The five young women, four ready to move on to the next Phase and one directing this whole affair, waited to see which four of Isaku, Nouvelle, Anilyne, Bettyann, and Elaine would join them.

Nouvelle found a tiny bottle of the elixir, but out of nowhere Elaine punched her right in the nose. The girl stumbled backwards, and while Nouvelle was shocked, Elaine managed to pry the bottle from the girl's bony fingers. She swallowed it before Isaku could stop her, and then Isaku was getting frantic. She left Nouvelle on the ground, her nose bleeding and her head throbbing, to look for her own dose.

A good fifteen minutes of frantic searching passed; even Nouvelle was back in it, having stopped the blood flow from her nose with a strip of fabric she'd torn from her shirt. There was a jovial shout in one of the corners of the room, and Anilyne almost dropped her vial as she pried it open and drank it before Bettyann, nearby, could pounce on her and steal it. A minute later, Bettyann shrieked in relief as she found one tiny bottle hidden in the shadows behind a large beaker full of liquid painkillers. She swallowed it all, and then Isaku and Nouvelle paused, staring at each other in horror. One of them would survive, and the other would not.

It was bound to happen on way or another; if it took a day or if it took a millisecond, the result would still be the same. One would die, and one would survive onto the next Phase. They both searched frantically. Nouvelle skipped over the last vial of greyscale as she searched relentlessly, her uncareful eyes skimming over it. Isaku saw it glint in the light as she moved closer to it, and she grabbed it and swallowed its contents before looking ruefully at Nouvelle.

They'd been searching for up to an hour and forty five minutes at this point, something around that, and all the girls watched in horror as Nouvelle began to collapse around the time two hours had passed since the beginning of the search. She moaned and shrieked as greenish pus oozed from the cavities in her body, and many of the girls looked away as the girl thrashed in a pool of putrid pus and slick blood, mixing together into quite the foul concoction. Within ten minutes of the second hour striking, Nouvelle's cannon fired, causing Harrietta to jump and Isaku to groan quietly.

Nouvelle Harriss, Tribute of the Thirty Sixth Hunger Games (District 1); 9th, Poisoning, Phase Four

That left the Top 8: Aprila Shale of the Thirty Seventh (District 2), Bettyann Pulliam of the Thirty Ninth (District 8), Harrietta Oswald of the Forty First (District 10), Elaine Canterbury of the Forty Second (District 10), Lylith Braidon of the Forty Third (District 7), Anilyne Poole of the Forty Fourth (District 4), Caelinia Thatcher of the Forty Fifth (District 2), and Isaku Adachi of the Forty Sixth (District 1).

"You all have my upmost respect in even more depth now that you have reached the halfway point of this competition," Celly told the girls with a tight smile. You've been through quite an ordeal so far...it's actually been two days since this whole thing began! To reenergize the lot of you, I have a special day planned. One to four of you won't survive it, but it will be well worth it I am sure. This Phase will last two days. Please, walk through this door with me." Celly gestured to the next door, and the girls, tired and ragged, followed hesitantly. Celly opened it to reveal a small circular room with twelve doors. Each door was a different color with a different emblem above it. There was a dusky golden door with a sun emblem, a dusty orange door with a boomerang emblem, a light gray door with a skyscraper emblem, a dark gray door with a glowing mushroom emblem, a shiny metallic door with an Avox emblem, a dark green door with a snowflake emblem, a turquoise door with a palm tree emblem, a dark purple door with a propeller emblem, a rosy pink door with a crown emblem, a brown door with a leaf emblem, a navy door with an anchor emblem, and an iridescent silver door with a shopping bag emblem.

"You will each choose a room," Celly informed the girls, who stood, clustered and scrunched together, in the center of the room. "In each room, you will be transported to one of the previous arenas. Four randomly selected arenas have lethal things in them. When you chose a door, you will walk in. Two of the doors will have something that will attack you almost immediately, while the other ten will have a way to lead you to a truly relaxing paradise, trust me. On the second day, you will exit your rooms and rechoose, excluding any doors that killed a tribute the previous day. Two of those rooms that were previously safe will now have lethal dangers. You are required to choose a different room on the second day. We will make selections by who completed the last Phase first. Since Lylith was exempt last round, she will be choosing first."

The selections quickly happened. Lylith chose the dark purple door, which led her to the Thritieth Games's airship arena. Caelinia chose the turquoise door, which led her to the Twenty Eighth Games's tropical archipelago arena. Harrietta chose the brown door, which led her to the Thirty Ninth Games's giant tree arena. Aprila chose the dusky golden door, which led her to the Second Games's savanna arena. Elaine chose the rosy pink door, which led her to the Thirty Sixth Games's crystalline palace arena. Anilyne chose the navy door, which led her to the Forty Third Games's cruise ship and lagoon arena. Bettyann chose the dusty orange door, which led her to the Eighth Games's Australian Outback arena. And finally, Isaku chose the shiny metallic door, which led her to the First Quarter Quell's Capitol arena.

They all entered at exactly the same time. An inactivated pack of wolf mutts was retrieved from the dark green door, which held the Twenty Seventh Games's arena. One door had been chosen that was lethal, however.

Harrietta walked out onto the giant tree, smiling as the sun beat onto her face. Up ahead was a giant shack made entirely of glossy fall leaves, and when she opened the door, she found tables of decadent desserts along with a handsome man. After she had her fill, the man led her out of the hut and put on a parachute pack. The two strapped together, and Harrietta screamed in wonder as the two skydived out of the tree and freefell for quite some time, soaring across the arena, before landing right outside the cave where Seeder had hid for the majority of the Games, gorging herself on food and water. Inside the cavern now was just the spring that Seeder had drunk from, and an Avox waited with bath soaps and oils and candles and other things to clean her up and rejuvenate her. Harrietta sighed happily as she slid into the warm water and was scrubbed and waited on by the Avox.

Similar things happened to the other girls. Bettyann took a jeep tour through the Outback while eating cookies and drinking lemonade, and at the end she was deposited atop a large red rock bluff where she did yoga with a renowned Capitol yoga instructor. Isaku had dinner at a famous Capitol restaurant and then went on a shopping spree in downtown Capitol before seeing the thousands of Avox mutts do a flash mob like dance for her. Elaine was dressed up like a queen by a team of Avoxes, and then she was carried atop a bench that the Avoxes lifted to the throne room, where dozens of Capitolites screeched in excitement as she held a false coronation. Then she feasted on medieval food and sparred with one of the fearsome Black Knight mutts and explored the crystal palace to her heart's content. Aprila went on a wildlife safari guided by a trio of knowledgeable Capitol zoologists, and then she got to touch some of the animals, like a lion and a hyena and a giraffe, which were calmed by the zoologists with weak tranquilizers. Then she got to have a picnic in the orange mountains that overlooked the entire arena. Caelinia travelled to the island archipelago, and immediately tribal-like people surrounded her and lofted her high into the air, doing a tribal dance as they carried her down the beach. They settled in an area where a sunny colored cabana had been erected, and a strong, handsome man gave her a luxurious massage before she went kayaking and snorkeling out in the shallow, warm sea full of reefs and other hotspots for oceanic life. Lylith was brought into the fancy large dining room of the airship. Dozens of famous Capitolites were there, as well as two of the more famous Victors: Ivelisse and the Victor from that arena, Tarquinius. She danced with both of them and lots of other people she recognized, and had a splendid meal, before she went into the pilot's bubble. There, Beetee Latier showed her how to pilot the thing, and she actually flew it for a minute before Beetee took control so she wouldn't crash it.

And then there was poor Miss Anilyne Poole. She stepped out and found herself the slippery wet deck of the cruise ship from the Forty Third, the Games right before her own original Games. She smiled, looking around for a guide or a trail to follow that would lead her to her relaxing destination. Instead, she suddenly felt a slimy tentacle wrapping tight around her left ankle, and by the time she realized what had a hold of her, three more tentacles were already squeezing her.

Anilyne shrieked and struggled against the iron will of the tentacles, but it was no use. She began to pitifully cry as the impervious monster crushed her bones and muscles to a pulp and gulped down her shattered corpse. Her cannon was only heard when the seven other girls exited their rooms with light smiles on their faces and their bodies very relaxed.

Anilyne Poole, Tribute of the Forty Fourth Hunger Games (District 4); 8th, Killed by Kraken mutt, Phase Five

Everyone looked around and counted the others, and before most of them could process who had died, Celly made the announcement. "Ms. Poole is no longer with us. A kraken attack from this door," she said, gesturing to the navy one, "killed her. The navy door can no longer be accessed, as everyone knows that it is now void of a danger for this second round." Celly pulled out a ring of keys and locked the navy door, just for show. "Now you will all make your selections, this time going by alphabetical order via your first names. That means Ms. Shale is first, followed by Ms. Pulliam, followed by Ms. Thatcher, followed by Ms. Canterbury, followed by Ms. Oswald, followed by Ms. Adachi, and finally Ms. Braidon."

Aprila selected the dark green door, which led to the icy evergreen forest of the Twenty Seventh Games. Bettyann selected the iridescent door, which led her to the shopping mall of the Forty Sixth Games. Caelinia chose the dark purple door, which led her to the airship arena of the Thirtieth Games. Elaine picked the dusty orange door, which led her to the Australian Outback of the Eighth Games. Harrietta selected the dark gray door, which led her to the caverns of the Fifteenth Hunger Games. Isaku chose the light gray door, which led her to the ruins of New York City, the arena of the Thirteenth Hunger Games. And finally, Lylith singled out the rosy pink door, which led her to the crystal palace of the Thirty Sixth Games.

The girls who had chosen rooms that had already been visited all survived and completed the same task as the girls before them. Caelinia had the dancing and the driving the airship, Elaine had the jeep ride and the yoga on the red rocks, and Lylith enjoyed her coronation, sparring, and exploration within the stunningly beautiful castle. The other four girls had ventured onto a new frontier, and one of them would face death.

Aprila walked out into the icy arena, and felt the wind whipping across her face. She was also safe, since there had been a lethal threat (wolves) in this area the previous round of this Phase; no one had chosen this room so no one had perished. Two Avoxes quickly suited her up in a parka and snow boots and gloves and a scarf, all warm and fuzzy, and they guided her to a ski resort nestled in one of the far corners of the arena, where there was a couple of large hills that had never been featured in the year that Florianna won her Games here. Aprila enjoyed a spa day in the resort with hot chocolate, cake, and other delicacies, and towards the end of the day she even went skiing. Harrietta also survived. When she entered the caverns where Clermont, the first Career Victor, had swept up the title of Victory with ease, she was met by the fearsome man himself. He gave her a guide and lots of food, and at the end of the day they settled in one of the caves along with Harrietta's Mentor, Barcelona, who beamed upon seeing her and hugged her continuously. There they watched a comedy on a screen that had been installed in the cavern after it was turned into a tourist attraction like many of the arenas were; in fact, most of the places being used by Celly for her Games were already existing when she started designing, and they were popular vacation spots.

The moment that Isaku entered the ruins of New York City, she felt the metallic tang fill her nose. The radioactive dust that stirred around her made her cough violently, and then out of nowhere a wolverine mutt pounced and tore off her left hand entirely. Isaku screamed as three dozen more of the mutts poured out of every orifice in the rubble around her, and she managed to strangle and kick away a few, but they overpowered her within thirty seconds, and she was on the ground, screeching the whole time, as the vicious mutts took their time devouring her.

Isaku Adachi, Tribute of the Forty Sixth Hunger Games (District 1); 7th, Killed by wolverine mutts, Phase Five

Bettyann exited the shopping mall arena of the Games that had occurred only six months or so prior after having shopped and feasted for hours with her company, the fashionable and pleasant Jynx Mathels, an up and coming designer, along with the party Victor, Syren Calanthe of the Forty Third. It had been a whirlwind of a day, but now it was over. Bettyann and the others jovial faces grew grim as they learned of Isaku's death from a grinning Celly. Snow's stepdaughter also revealed that the other door that had held danger that round was the brown door of the Thirty Ninth, where a half dozen giant golden eagle mutts had laid in wait to tear an unsuspecting tribute to shreds.

"Congratulations to the six of you!" Celly chimed with a brilliant smile. Her outfit was completely different; while before she'd been dressed in a loose silvery gown made of tulle and silk (her special birthday dress, designed by Jynx Mathels himself), now she wore a stately white cardigan over a starchy charcoal grey blouse, along with a charcoal pencil skirt. She had on dark gray glasses she didn't need, and she seemed much more clinical and in charge. "Now, we're moving onto our sixth stage! This is the hardest stage yet, and after this one there will be only one more."

The girls all looked at each other, worried; two stages were supposed to kill five of the six of them? They must be pretty brutal. The six walked through a door in Celly's wake, fidgeting or stone cold, all nervous at some level about what was to come.

They walked into a blank black room that seemed to stretch out forever. There were six pedestals, each marked with one of their names, and they climbed onto them once Celly told them to. Suddenly huge walls split out of the ground, dividing the six girls into lanes of their own. Everything was pitch black, and a few of them started to get a little nervous, more so than before. Celly's voice emanated through the room, bouncing off of the far away walls.

"Take as long as you need to traverse your little hall of horrors, girls, and reach the candle at the other end. If you ever can't continue, scream stop. I don't think you'll like the consequences of saying that word, but it might be better than the pain and terror that you are about to face. To finish, you have to snuff out your candle. Good luck, tributes."

And then they were left alone. Aprila was the first to step off of her pedestal boldly, and the moment she did, the hallway around her changed from pitch black to the rubble strewn corridors of the maze from the Thirty Seventh. Aprila was screaming bloody murder before she even saw the gaunt Three boy, his corpse reanimated, the nets, or the robotic mutts. She knew they weren't real, and she forced herself to touch Gist's face as the tears streamed down her face. Her hand went right through air, and she sighed, closing her eyes and trudging forward. She couldn't touch them, but they could touch her. She tried not to yelp whenever she felt a cold metal leg or the brush of a net against her exposed flesh. And her arena was just the beginning. There was the Academy, on the days when she couldn't press herself hard enough and the trainers beat her down, or the days when girls ganged up on her to take a bite out of her. There was watching two of her older sisters die, and then reliving the pain of her death over and over. Aprila couldn't even breathe as she hobbled forward, shaking uncontrollably, but she was making progress.

The worst thing was that you could hear the other girls screaming, but you couldn't hear or see anything in the other corridors. Just the other tributes' screams. Elaine cried soundlessly as she saw a burning hut and a sacrificial twin brother and a rough life growing up in inner city 10, unable to find work at the meat packaging factories, so she beat others to the point of death for food and clothes. Lylith quivered, hobbling forward awkwardly, as she floated up towards the surface after being stabbed by Syren underwater. She hissed as she felt the cruise ship's slick slats underneath her feet, and the struggling body of the 9 girl beneath her as she killed her for straying onto her island. And, most of all, she saw the forest fire that had ravaged her small lumber village, and she heard the screams of her little sister as she was burned alive and Lylith and her parents escaped. Bettyann fought through nightmares of sending Usha spiraling to her doom and being buried under tons of fallen tree branches and unable to save herself as she heard the Careers' laughter getting ever closer. Caelinia wept as her parents beat her to "shape her up" for the Games, and as she was powerless to stop Huxley dying from malaria in the Games, as she got lost aboard a wayward raft and alligators brushed up against her. Harrietta sat down at the foot of her pedestal, weeping, as the little boy she'd killed without reason in her Games multiplied by thirty and surrounded her, and the jungle heat beat down on her, turning her mind to mush. It was no surprise when barely a minute in, Harrietta was screaming, "STOP STOP STOP!" at the top of her lungs. There was a loud explosion as the tracker in her neck detonated, and a cannon swiftly followed.

Harrietta Oswald, Forty First Hunger Games Tribute (District 10); 6th, Killed by explosions, Phase Six

The next six and a half hours were pure hell as the girls stumbled forward, clawing their way through the darkness as delusions and memories and twisted futures clogged their senses. Aprila made the most headway, touching everything and telling herself it wasn't real. By the third hour, Aprila reached the end of her two mile long hallway, crying and shivering all the while, but she was there. She picked up the little candle and crushed it to nothing underneath the toe of her boot before grasping out and finding a door suddenly there in the blackness. She sighed in relief and stumbled through, finding herself in a hastily set up armory with a sign that deplored her to pick a weapon. Her hands closed around a sword, and she waited for the others.

By the four and a half hour mark, Elaine and Caelinia reached the end of the hell-on-earth, about twenty minutes apart, with Caelinia arriving first. Caelinia, shaking so bad she could barely stand, selected a machete, while Elaine, emotionless and having steeled herself about halfway through, grabbed a glaive, shivering as more memories of her Games were brought into the limelight. Bettyann came in around the five hour mark and selected a dagger before sitting down in the corner and continuing sobbing. It took six and a half hours for a reluctant Lylith to limp out of the maze, and then she just grabbed a hatchet and huddled in a fetal position on the ground, unable to even speak. All five girls were now traumatized beyond belief.

Celly arrived and her smile faltered for a moment as she saw the horrible state her prize Victor prospects were in. However, she quickly recovered, and made a further announcement.

"I have to say that I am surprised by how many of you made it through that round, so we have to thin the crowd by one tribute before we move on to the next round. In thirty seconds, renowned swordsman Bauble Hui, who works as the swords trainer for the Hunger Games, will enter this room. He will kill one of you; it is your job to keep yourselves alive as long as possible. Understood?"

Four of the girls bobbed their heads, while Lylith remained motionless on the floor, and Celly stepped out of the room. Moments later, the massive Bauble Hui stormed in, a giant blade clasped in his enormous paws. The man rippled with muscle, and his beady black eyes inspired fear. All of the girls, excepting Lylith, scrambled to their feet to defend themselves. Lylith tried to get up, but she couldn't. Her eyes were bleary and she was unfocused; the hallway had made her half insane. She gasped for air once Bauble sliced his sword deep into her back, and she flopped around for a moment until her cannon fired ominously. Bauble withdrew, carrying her corpse with him.

Lylith Braidon, Forty Third Hunger Games Tribute (District 4); 5th, Killed by Bauble Hui, Phase Seven

Celly strode back into the room, stepping around the splotch of Lylith's blood on the floor. She then looked up at Aprila, Caelinia, Bettyann, and Elaine, and grinned.

"I'm happy it's you four who have made it this far. You're all my favorites. In this final phase, you will walk into a room. You must shoot someone." Celly drew out a silvery case, and cracked open the lid, revealing four shiny metallic pistols, each containing a lone bullet. "If you cannot complete this task within a minute, it's time to say sayonara to your second chance at survival. You can call it quits at any moment. If you can do this, you will become a Victor."

The girls all looked at each other; Celly had almost made it sound as if all four of them could become Victors if they completed this final Phase. But that couldn't be; it must be whoever could complete this Phase the fastest would claim the title of Victor and fulfill their second chance. Each girl gingerly took a pistol out of the case, and then Celly gestured widely. The racks of weapons slid apart to reveal a set of four doors.

"Good luck, my girls," Celly said sweetly and sadly. "Maybe I'll see you on the other side." Celly opened a trapdoor that appeared on the floor, surely to meet whoever became the Victor on the other side of the four rooms. The girls all stepped forward together, opened the doors, and closed them behind themselves.

Aprila Shale watched as the lights flickered on to reveal a blank white room. It was tiny, and in the center of it, strapped to a metal chair with thick cord, was her very own little sister, Februaria Shale. Feb's face was nearly emotionless as she stared at Aprila's chest, refusing to look her into the eyes.

"I hear that you've come to kill me," Feb's voice warbled, and her eyes flickered up to meet Aprila's, and the once older Shale sister saw the utter fear in Feb's eyes. She was now 20 years old, older than Aprila's resurrected body was. She was a beautiful young woman, and Aprila could see the engagement ring on her little sister's finger. Aprila began to weep as she fell to her knees. Then she heard gunshots and trumpets and then there was the explosion that blew her sky high now that she had been unable to kill her sister. Feb wept as they removed her.

Aprila Shale, Thirty Seventh Hunger Games Tribute (District 2); 4th, Killed by explosions, Phase Eight

What happened to the last three tributes is rather disputed, or at least it was for over a century and a half after the Games, when new evidence reopened and solved this historical conundrum. For all three other girls fired their guns, but only one emerged Victor. What happened inside the rooms was not shown to the audience; all they heard were three gunshots, three explosions, and one door opening to reveal the Victor.

Bettyann took the longest to fire her gun, but she still shot only around twenty seconds after entering the room. She found her best friend Melanie wrapped up in all of the rope and stuck to the chair. Bettyann was still dizzy and weary from all the other Phases, and she chuckled; it was just a fake person, right? She heard the other two gunshots as she walked closer to the girl. She did seem real enough, but they would never have them kill others, right? She fired the gun, and only after she'd killed Melanie did she realize that it wasn't a fake girl. Her keening shriek rose out of the room, but it was quickly covered up by an explosion. A choking Bettyann was extracted from the room by Peacekeepers, as was revealed when the tapes from the rooms were found in some old archives. However, Ms. Pulliam was declared dead after the Games despite having obviously being alive after the explosion.

Bettyann Pulliam, Thirty Ninth Hunger Games Tribute (District 8); "3rd", Killed by explosions, Phase Eight

Caelinia walked into the room and chuckled when she saw the woman in front of her. Tied to a chair was her mother, and Caelinia just kept laughing as her mother wept at her feet, begging weakly for mercy. Caelinia wasn't a cruel woman, but this woman, this monster, had beaten her to a pulp every day that she lived under her roof, to "toughen her up". Caelinia was still laughing, just hollowly and a little sadly, as she shot her mother right in the head. However, a gun fired moments before hers. There was a mock explosion, like had happened with Bettyann, and Caelinia was taken from the room.

Caelinia Thatcher, Forty Fifth Hunger Games Tribute (District 2); "2nd", Killed by explosions, Phase Eight

That left us with Elaine Canterbury. The moment she entered the room, she was faced by a man that looked similar to her, but she'd never seen him before in her life. It happened it was her estranged older brother, Elliott, who she had never seen nor spoken to before in her life. But the Capitol didn't know that; they thought that she knew him, and that he was her last remaining family. It was all too easy for her to fire her gun into this simple stranger's head. Then there was trumpets, and Celly walked into the room, flustered and screaming, "Elaine Canterbury of District 10, you are the Victor of the Sweet Sixteen Games!"

Elaine was pulled from the arena, shouting and grinning in triumph, and she was heralded as the only Victor from these Games for many years, until the tapes were discovered that revealed Caelinia and Bettyann being pulled from their rooms. More investigation lead the researchers to happen upon more tapes, which revealed a scene in the Gamemaking Center between Celly and her stepfather, President Snow, as the girls were facing Bauble Hui.

"I want all four of them who make it to the final Phase to come out," Celly growled, folding her arms.

"You get one, Celandine," Snow told her sharply. "That was the terms of the deal. I gave you limitless amounts of money to build this insane arena, I gave you total control of everything. All I ask is that you stick to tradition and law, and have one Victor."

"No," Celly hissed. "Okay, I'll let some of them die, alright? How about this. Any of them that don't shoot get blown up. The first to shoot gets to be your pretty singular Victor. Anyone else who shoots within the allotted time will be smuggled out."

"No," Snow barked.

Celly leaned in close and whispered something in Snow's ear. "I'll tell my mother about that affair you're having with the Director of the HGBA. What's her name, Helini? You should put soundproof walls in your office, and you shouldn't make so much noise, even if my mother's not home. It is rather disgusting to hear her fake moaning as she pretends to enjoy the way you fuck her with your most likely insufficient appendage just to climb the social ladder."

Snow stared at her, slack jawed, and his fists shook as he took a deep breath. He gave a simple nod, and that was all his stepdaughter needed. Celly strode over to her Gamemaking seat. Zealand sat in the one next to her. She explained the whole thing to him, and then she was gone to bring the girls into the final Phase.

For one hundred and fifty seven years, Panem thought that the Sweet Sixteen Games had one Victor. In truth, it had three. Caelinia Thatcher and Bettyann Pulliam are now honored as Victors on the Walk of Victors in the Capitol, and more researching has lead to old documents, tall tales, closely guarded secrets, and the like being found that describe what occurred to these two unofficial Victors. We now can piece together a coherent picture of what happened in these two women's lives.

But the main event was Elaine Canterbury. She was the focal Victor of these Games, and she beamed and pumped her fist as she was lifted out of the arena. Her entire family was gone, and she had no home, no friends, no anything. But she had the Capitol, which had given her life and had given her wealth. She would bow to them forever.


Aftermath

Elaine Canterbury

Ten was overjoyed to finally receive their third Victor. The last time they'd had a Victor was all the way back in the Seventeenth Hunger Games, nearly three decades prior, and they were quickly becoming known as one of the weaker Districts just because of their lack of Victors. Elaine energized her District with her Victory, giving them the food and the District pride that they needed to keep going. Elaine herself was a rather peculiar woman. She became a steadfast patriot after the Games, feeling that she owed her life and her success to the Capitol, forgetting that they were the reason she'd died in the first place. She didn't have much guilt from either of her Games, and she was a social and rough and tumble woman; she liked to drink not to erase memories like most of the other Victors who liked to drink, but for the sport of it. She was part of the circle of alcoholics that stretched from Chaff to Blight, although she wasn't really an alcoholic, she just liked to drink. She also enjoyed smoking cigars on her porch every day.

Elaine would live to age 64, dying a little bit prior to the 97th Hunger Games from unspecified causes. She would never marry and would never have children.

The payouts on her Victory were okay, as 10% bet on her.

Her Victory Tour was interesting. Since Wiress's Victory Tour was happening right after Celly's Games, Elaine and Wiress had a combined Victory Tour. She had fun stirring the crowds, even though she wasn't that great of a public speaker, she could rile them up with herself.

Caelinia Thatcher

After being smuggled out of the arena, Caelinia escaped back to Two in a Peacekeeper's jalopy after Celly gave her the choice between going home or staying in the Capitol. She found her way to the Academy, where she quickly sought out her personal trainer and mentor throughout her years at the Academy, a 50-something year old retired Peacekeeper named Clodi Harper. Caelinia took up permanent residence at the Academy, becoming a trainer, and she was one of Two's best kept secrets throughout the years, as most of the District knew she existed, but never once did word of her existence travel anywhere else. Caelinia had a good life, and she became a key part of the training staff at the Academy; she even served as interim Headmistress for a week until the new one could return from a trip in the Capitol.

Caelinia would live to age 99, dying the year of the 132nd Hunger Games from old age. She would never marry and would never have children. However, it seems to be that Caelinia had a long reaching romantic and sexual relationship with her old trainer, Clodi Harper, that only ended upon Clodi's death some years later.

Bettyann Pulliam

Bettyann had nothing left to go back to at home; just a drunkard father, a brother who lived all the way across the District and didn't talk to his family anymore, a mother dead from illness years and years ago, and her second family, Melanie's family, probably infuriated once they would find out that Betty had killed their eldest daughter. She chose to remain in the Capitol, and no one from her home District knew she was alive besides Organza and Woof. She masqueraded as a Capitol girl who was working as a lady-in-waiting of sorts for Celly. She had some plastic surgery done so no one would recognize her, and she renamed herself Jovia Pulliam. She was originally there as a reminder to Snow that Celly held power over him, but it soon evolved into something more. She and Celly fell in love soon after she moved in, and although they had a rocky relationship and they split several times, in the end they remained together. Their love was so large that Celly had a years long affair with Bettyann even after she was married off to a rich Capitol man. It is also popular rumor that it was Celly herself who poisoned her husband so she could be with Bettyann, even though a lot of evidence suggests it was one of her husband's political rivals. Jovia easily assimilated into Capitol life and enjoyed it.

"Jovia" would live to age 78, dying the year of the 111th Hunger Games in a car accident. She would marry Celly after her husband died when the two were in their 30s, and they would later adopt a daughter that they would name Celestia.


Victor's News

Elaine moves into the Victor's Village of District 10, in the house next to Jaguar's.

Caelinia escapes to the Academy in District 2, where she sets up a permanent residence as a trainer.

Bettyann moves into the Presidential Palace, and is retrofitted and turned into Jovia Pulliam.

Surge and his husband adopt a young boy named Lisle.

Seeder marries a man named Ragus Li.


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)

46th: Wiress Furuya, District 3 (4, 2 Female)

Sweet Sixteen (46th 1/2): Elaine Canterbury, District 10 (3, 2 Female), Caelinia Thatcher, District 2 (9, 4 Female), and Bettyann Pulliam, District 8 (3, 2 Female)


A/N: So you're probably outraged with how unrealistic this all is, yadda yadda yadda, yeah I know. I'm not going to do anything like this again, at least not for a LONG time. I originally planned to only have Elaine win, but Cae and Betty just sneaked their way into there, and now I want to write multichaps about both of them, so good for those girls xD

So what did you think? Rant if you need XD Hopefully it was interesting, even if I did break the rules. (Note, this isn't defying canon necessarily, since no one knew besides a very select few that there was more than one Victor, and there was never any mention of All-Stars Games existing or not existing XD)

Next chapter, we'll be back to a regular Games. I'm going to take a break from this and go back to working on BMO for a couple of chapters, since I've been working on this a lot more than that story. So I hope this was enough to hold you over for a little bit :)

Be on the lookout for a possible future multichap about Caelinia or Bettyann, since I might be doing one xD Speaking of stories related to this one, you should check out my The Control Center oneshot. It's about the Fortieth in this story from the Mentors' perspectives, and I'd love to hear what y'all have to say!

This came close to the word record, but it didn't get there. Good thing; I was imagining this as 6,000-8,000 words at most originally, so I'm surprised with the almost 13,000 words omg xD

Please review! :D

Until Next Time,

Tracee