Electra couldn't see anything. Not even the countdown timer that was usually lit up pretty brightly. At least she could still hear the automated voice counting down the seconds. It was already at thirty. Fuck.

From the blackness surrounding her, she could make out worried murmurs and quiet sobbing. Electra knew she didn't have time for that. She needed to stay focused on-

An explosion rocked the arena. Then came the screaming. Then there was another explosion. More screaming. Someone was shouting, "Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god" over and over again.

Someone must have fallen to the mines. At least that was two opponents down. Twenty-one more to go.

Over all the commotion, the automated voice began the final countdown: ten, nine, eight…

Electra crouched down. Since she couldn't see, she figured the next best thing to do was feel her way along the ground. She really didn't know what else she could do. She didn't even know what kind of arena this was. It could be an underground one, or maybe the Gamemakers just decided it would be more interesting to make it permanently nighttime. She never knew the night sky could be so dark.

Three…

Two…

One…

As soon as the gong sounded, Electra launched herself forward onto the ground and immediately felt something hard and lumpy under her leg. She felt around for it and grabbed hold of it. Whatever it was, it seemed to be made out of metal and had two circular protrusions on one side. Then her fingers felt a strap and she realised what they must be.

Night-vision goggles.

Electra didn't waste a second in putting them on - with difficulty - and flicking on the tiny switch that brought the goggles to life. Immediately, she could see everything through a sickly shade of green. Her chest heaved in relief… but she wasn't out of the woods just yet.

From what it seemed, only four other tributes had managed to put on their goggles, which had been placed by everyone's pedestal. The others either didn't know they were there, or, in the case of the boys from Seven and Eight and the girl from Four, had accidentally broken theirs. The others were running around completely blind, with their hands out to feel their way along. They'd bump into another, who may or may not have managed to secure a weapon, and then blood would be spilt.

Time to go.

Electra was incredibly thankful that she hadn't broken her goggles when she saw the boy from Eight run right into a girl's knife. She zipped and weaved her way through the helpless tributes, snagging two packs on the way. She was about to reach for a spear lying on the ground when she caught sight of Ash about to walk right into a fight between the tributes from Eleven.

"Ash!" she yelled.

Ash froze. "Electra?" he called, uncertain. "Where are you?"

"Stay where you are! I'll come get you!" Electra dodged the Six girl being thrown to the ground and stomped on by one of the Careers. Slinging both packs around her shoulders, she abandoned all attempts at retrieving a weapon and made a beeline straight for Ash. She grabbed onto his shoulder and started dragging him towards one of the many tunnels leading away from the cornucopia.

"Electra?"

"Keep moving," she said gruffly. Their feet pounded down the tunnel to the beats of their racing hearts. Electra threw her head back multiple times to check behind them. No one followed.

They ran for ages, then slowed to a jog, then a walk before stopping. By now, the commotion from the bloodbath was no longer audible. Indeed, there was very little sound coming from around them.

"I think we're safe now," Electra said sitting on the rocky ground.

"How did you know where to go to find me?" Ash was puzzled.

"Night-vision goggles."

"Aw, how come you got some and I didn't?"

"They were right by your pedestal. I'm surprised you didn't trip over them." Electra shrugged.

"Can I have a turn?"

"Later."

"Aw, fine." Ash sat down and leaned against the jagged wall. "Ow, this is really uncomfortable. So anyway, what can you see? What does the arena look like?"

Electra hadn't really paid much mind to the arena until now. She looked around her. They were in a rocky tunnel. No end to it as far as she could see. Dotted at regular intervals were what looked like wooden support beams of some kind. The air, while breathable, was a little hazy.

"I think we're in a mineshaft," she said quietly. "Or some kind of cave, at least."

Ash grumbled. "Well, it sucks. Why couldn't it have been like last years?"

"You'd rather risk dying in a volcanic eruption?"

Ash shrugged one shoulder. "At least you could see." He drew his knees up under his chin and wrapped his arms around them. "And at least it would have been warm."

"Fair point."

The two sat in near silence for a while, as they caught their breaths and tried to let their brains catch up from the big adrenaline rush they had just had. All around them, the only other sound was water dripping at regular intervals from somewhere nearby. There was no sign that anyone else had come this way, or was currently heading towards them.

That didn't mean they were safe, however. Years of having to watch the Games had taught Electra that lowering your guard was a good way to get blindsided.

"So," Ash said into the darkness, "did you get anything from the cornucopia?"

"I managed to get two backpacks," Electra responded.

"What's in them?"

"Hang on. Let me have a look." Electra pulled them closer to her and unzipped the first one. "This one's got some matches, wire, sandwiches and a bottle."

"A bottle of what?"

"I think it's a water bottle. It's empty, anyhow." Electra turned her attention to the second pack. "In here, there's some jerky and crackers, more matches, a sleeping bag and some iodine, I think that is?"

Ash stared in the direction of her voice. "Why do we have so many matches? It's not like we have anything to burn down here."

Electra shrugged. "Who knows. Anyway, we better keep moving. We need to find somewhere safer."

"Can I have a turn with the goggles now?"

Electra reluctantly handed them over, if only so he wouldn't bug her about them again.


That night, as they settled down in a little nook they found in the wall, the Capitol anthem blared from tiny speakers hidden in the rock. What followed, instead of faces in the sky, was a robotic voice listing the names and districts of the dead. The boys from Three, Seven, and Eight; the girls from Four, Six and Nine; both from Eleven.

So Pietro, that bastard, was still alive and kicking. How wonderful that was.

"I'm taking the first watch," Electra said. She picked up a rock twice the size of her fist and held it with a grim determination. Ash simply bade her goodnight before getting as comfortable as he could. He was out cold before Electra could even blink.

Then Electra was alone with her thoughts of slamming the rock into Pietro's stupid skull over and over again and listening him squeal for mercy like a little piglet. Like the animal that he was. Now that would be a great note to end the night on.

Electra couldn't stop grinning at the thought of finally getting payback on her tormentor, even when Ash took over for her and she went to sleep.


The second and third days dragged by uneventfully as Electra and Ash explored further in the mineshaft. They discovered a set of rails with a few empty minecarts, but nothing else of note. They didn't see anyone else all day. No deaths either, save for the boy from Ten.

But the fourth day was one of the worst days of Electra's life.

She and Ash had simply been walking along one of the tunnels when they reached an intersection of sorts, with many tunnels branching off in different directions. Electra, who had been the one wearing the night-vision goggles, was describing the scene to Ash when three separate voices boomed in her ear. Three Careers emerged from one tunnel, grinning from ear to ear at their lucky find.

"Shit…" Electra whispered.

"Is that the Careers?" Ash's voice was high with panic.

"Sure is, pipsqueak!" the boy from One bellowed adjusting his grip on his axe. His district partner and the boy from Two quickly moved to circle the pair.

"They're surrounding us," Electra cautioned, taking a step back. "Stick close to me, okay?"

She really wished she'd been able to grasp a weapon during the bloodbath. As things were standing right now, they were open and exposed. Their lives were ripe for the picking.

She grit her teeth. She was going to need some speed, and some luck, to be able to get both her and Ash out alive.

Keeping her eyes on all the Careers and her head on a constant swivel, she grasped Ash's hand and took a deep breath. On the count of three.

One.

The One boy stalked towards them, brandishing his axe.

Two.

The two others had their weapons at the ready.

Three.

It was now or never.

Right as they closed in, Electra tightened her grip on Ash's hand and threw herself to the side, missing the arc of the axe by a few centimeters. The blade hit the rock with a loud metallic twang. The boy cursed.

Electra wasted no time in barreling right into the One girl, who had been momentarily distracted by the axe. She was knocked to the ground. Right behind her, a tunnel opened up with no obstacles. They were going to make it!

Electra's breath caught in her throat when she felt Ash's hand yank free from hers.

She spun around to see that the Two boy had gotten a hold of Ash, who was kicking and yelling.

"Ash!" she cried.

"Electra! Help me! Hel-" Ash never got to finish his sentence. The Two boy sunk a dagger into Ash's chest and dropped him to the ground, where he lay twitching for a few seconds until his cannon fired.

"NO!" Electra screamed louder than she ever had before. She wanted to rip all the Careers' throats out right then and there, but the way they leered at her as they reached for their weapons told her otherwise. She was hopelessly outnumbered. It was safer just to scram for now.

And that's exactly what she did. She fled down the tunnel, pumping her legs until her bones ached. Turning down tunnel after tunnel, trying to lose her pursuers. Those fucking Careers just wouldn't give up.

Through her night-vision goggles, she watched the rocky walls fly past her. She made a sharp right turn followed by a sharp left turn, then straight ahead until she made another right turn.

She found herself back at the cornucopia, glowing green through her goggles. Shit! The Careers' turf was precisely the last place she wanted to be.

But as she looked over the numerous tunnels branching off from the cornucopia, she realised that ending up back here was a blessing in disguise. She could pick any of the tunnels and the Careers would have no way of knowing which one it was!

A slow, grateful grin spread across her face as she jogged over to one on the far side of the room. She stopped in her tracks as she spied the supplies lying at the cornucopia's mouth.

Alright, time for a very quick detour.

Electra made her way over and immediately took several knives and hastily secured them in her trouser waistband, then grabbed a spear and a pack before turning on her heel and leaving. Her heart pounded all the while.

She couldn't help feeling smug. Those foolish Careers. They hadn't bothered leaving a guard. Lucky for her, though.

She was well into the tunnel when the Careers arrived, furious that they were unable to find her.


Electra wandered through the tunnels numbly, mindlessly meandering up and down and all around. What was she supposed to do now? Without someone around to suggest ideas, or to at least talk to, she may as well have been adrift at sea.

There was nothing to do. No action. Nowhere interesting to explore. That's something most people don't realise about the Hunger Games. They're so fucking boring.

She missed Ash terribly. She could have used one of his annoying quips and questions so that she wouldn't feel so empty. Maybe it had only been for a few days and didn't really count as a real relationship, but he was like a little brother to her.

They had been so close to both of them making it out alive. If it wasn't for that fucking Two boy…

Electra was going to kill him if she saw him again. That fucker-

Something leapt out at her from the shadows.

She was pinned to the ground by another person's body. Looking up into their face, she realised it was the girl from Eight.

Bitch.

Electra shot her hand up, grabbed a handful of her hair, then yanked hard. The bitch hissed in pain as Electra sat up with a surge of adrenaline and threw her off of her. Her head hit the wall hard.

Electra wasted no time in standing up but before she could grab the spear, the bitch got to it first and jabbed her in the leg with it. Hard. Electra recoiled in pain as the girl got to her knees.

Then Electra kicked the spear out of her hands, sending it skidding across the ground. She brought her knee up into the bitch's jaw. Her teeth slammed together with a twang.

Electra threw herself onto her and grasped her head with both hands. She reared back briefly, then threw forward. The bitch's head slammed into the ground, but before she could even cry out in pain, Electra did it again.

And again.

And again.

By the time she was finished, the back of the bitch's head had caved in, leaving blood and brain matter to pool around her. Electra's lip curled downwards in disgust.

She had blood on her hands and it was all slimy and gross.

But at least she didn't die.

And at least that was one more opponent down.


The sixth and seventh days passed with no incident. Yet another two slow, boring, deathless days.

But on the eighth day, Electra encountered the one person she'd been hoping she wouldn't.

They ran into each other at a spot where the tunnel vended into a corner, so they couldn't see the other until it was too late.

Electra jerked back immediately, staring into Pietro's hideous face, partially covered by his night-vision goggles. It couldn't cover up the leer he made when he realised who he had just bumped into.

"Well, hello there," he said lowly, "we meet again!"

Electra grimaced. She tightened her grip on her spear and brought it up to chest level, ready to stab this fucker right in the heart if he tried anything.

Pietro's smug grin grew wider. "Now come on. Be reasonable. I'm not going to hurt you."

"Sure." Electra rolled her eyes.

"I just wanna have a little fun with you."

"Fat chance," Electra snorted. "I'd rather be skinned and gutted by the Careers."

Pietro sighed as if he was a frustrated parent trying to discipline their child. "You're being incredibly rude, you know."

"Am I just?"

"Yes." Pietro's smirk dropped suddenly off his face. "All this time, I've been nothing but nice to you, and this is how you thank me? By pointing a spear at my chest and threatening to kill me? Just for asking a small favour of you? You're so pretty, don't you understand that? Any guy would be lucky to have you. I come to you with open arms and you spit in my face. What's the matter with you? How could you turn down such an offer? How could you reject me so cruelly?"

He stalked towards Electra, hands balled into fists, voice rising quickly and menacingly. Electra's earlier sarcasm dissipated as her hands began to shake.

"I know your type very well. You sit there on your high horse and look down on me for getting some action? Meanwhile you've never even had a boyfriend. You have no right to judge me! I bet you're just scared. You're scared because any man you have after me won't even be half as good as me! You're scared and you're unfairly taking it out on me! After I was so nice to you! This always fucking happens! A girl shows herself off to me, tells me she wants me, flirts with me, but then she turns around and says I took advantage of her! I hoped you'd be different, but you're just the same! You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen, but you won't even put out! You're so selfish; don't you think I deserve someone like you? Well, after today, you'll see! You'll see how wrong you were about me!"

By the last sentence, Pietro was screaming at her, strings of spit flying from his mouth.

Oh my fucking god, Electra thought. He's fucking delusional. I'm so fucked. He's gonna fuck me up. Fuck my life.

As Pietro strided towards her, maliciousness in every step, Electra thrust the spear at him. He dodged to the side, the tip barely grazing his chest. He grabbed hold of it and yanked it right out of Electra's hands.

Electra's stomach dropped.

Pietro bared his teeth at her and growled, "Seriously, bitch? You think you can just kill me? You fucking frigid cunt, I'll show you how to respect a man!"

He threw the spear to the side and took Electra's head in both hands. Before Electra could wrestle her way out of it, he threw her to the ground, as carelessly as he had the spear. The contact with the rock made Electra's go a little blurry, and it wasn't the night-vision goggles.

Electra stretched her arms out behind her, attempting to crawl away, but Pietro was on her again. He picked her up by the shoulders and slammed her against the wall. When she fell back, he stood her up and did it again. And again.

The glass of her goggles smashed, rendering them almost completely useless. She couldn't see him continue his assault on her. She felt it, though. All three wall slams, followed by a fourth one. Her fingernails broke. Her skin split. Her head felt lighter and emptier. Blood poured from the multiple wounds her body had sustained. She could taste blood on her tongue.

She tried to reach for the knives in her waistband but her fingers were barely functioning. Her whole body began to shake. She felt as if she would pass out at any moment.

The end was coming, she knew. What a fucking shitty way to die: at the hands of a rapist who had finally lost his cool…

Her final thought before the world slipped into blackness, as Pietro picked her up for one final wall slam, was: I fucking hate this place.


Hi! It's me!

Yes, I know, I left the story on a cliffhanger because I love torturing you all, lol.

Anyway, I have some news: I'm on discord! In fact, this whole series has a channel! I am moon_unit#2685. If you go onto the SYOT server and scroll down, you'll find the channel titled 23-faces-verse. And that's my channel! Hope to see you there!