OMG. I literally just realized that you were supposed to start a new paragraph when someone else speaks! XD Anyways, here's training day 1. Most of the POVs are going to be between 300 and 600 words long.
Also, sorry for this taking so long to be updated. I've actually had it done for a little while, I've just been too lazy to post it.
I've started a new SYOT, too, so please check it out if you haven't already! I'm not going to really start it up until I finish this one, but I wanted to get all the tributes in now.
District 8: Tom Shavel, Age 14
"Tom! Tom, wake up!"
I groan and roll over onto my side, glancing at the large clock on the stand beside me. 6:44, I read. You've got to be kidding me. We're going into an arena, where we're going to starve and fight and die and feel all sorts of pain. Can't the Capitol at least let us sleep in?
"TOM!" Miavi's voice grows louder, and I reluctantly stand, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. I slink to the door and open it. My escort stands in front of me, obviously very displeased. "It takes you so long to wake up." She complains. "Now, come on. Breakfast is ready."
I trudge behind Miavi as she struts down a long hall. She comes to a door and opens it, and I follow her as she steps inside. Inside the door is a huge dining hall. A large table has been laid out, taking up most of the room, with a golden chandelier gently swaying above it. Silky tablecloths and stacks of food are sitting on the table. As I look around, I see everyone else is already here, including Alyx. She waves at me and I sit down next to her.
"Are you nervous about today?" She asks me, shoveling a piece of bacon into her mouth. I shrug as I begin to fill my plate with sausages and waffles.
"There's nothing to be nervous about." I reply. "No matter how much we train, we're going to die either way." Alyx frowns slightly and turns back to her food.
I begin to stuff myself with breakfast, scarfing down biscuits and pancakes in mere seconds. Miavi stares at me in a mixture of disgust and confusion.
"Could you please eat like a normal human being, Tom?" Miava scolds. "You look like you've never had a full meal in your life!" At this, she laughs. If only you knew, I think. I ignore her and continue to eat until I feel as though I'm going to puke.
When I'm finished, I walk back into my room to change back into the outfits we've been assigned for the training days. I spot a pair of simple black pants and a white T-Shirt with a big number 8 sewn onto it lying on my bed and slip it on. It's actually somewhat comfortable and easy to move around in. As I walk towards the door, a random thought enters my mind about what we'll wear in the games. I hope they're as comfy as the clothes I have on now, but a piece of me doubts that it will.
I stroll towards the elevator, where I find Alyx waiting for me. I let out a sigh as I step onto the platform and the doors close around me.
Let's get this over with.
District 1: Blaze Hale, Age 17
The elevator begins descending slowly. I stare at the floor, nervousness building up behind my chest. Every training day matters here. If I want to come home to Platinum, I can't waste a single second of it.
"Are you ready?" Ariana asks me. I chew my lip.
"I'm not sure." I reply honestly. "I'm a bit worried, I guess." So far, Ariana and I have gotten along together pretty well. She's a fairly nice person, not a typical shallow District 1 girl. A few times, she's even hinted at the fact that she's against the Hunger Games, too. She hasn't outright told me so yet, though. I can't blame her. If I were to tell the other Careers about it, they would kill her for sure. I wouldn't tell anyone about it, of course, but she doesn't know that.
The metal doors beep and open, and Ariana and I step out into the huge auditorium in front of us. Many of the tributes have already arrived. They mill around, looking at the different stations. A few scurry away from us when we enter.
After everybody else has come, a trainer requests us to gather around her. She explains the rules. There aren't many- as long as we don't kill each other, anything is fair game. Soon after, she dismisses us to go off on our separate ways.
I see Octavian and Juno, the two tributes from District 2, meet up with each other. While I don't particularly like them- they're way too into the Hunger Games- they are my allies, so I figure I should probably meet with them. I walk over to where they're standing, Ariana following close behind. Soon after, the two from four join us.
Octavian begins speaking immediately. "Let's get right to it." He states. "Training's begun. We need a leader. Would anyone like to volunteer? Because if no one does, I will full heartedly take the position upon myself." He says this with a pointed look at the rest of us, as if he's daring us to challenge him.
"Actually," Juno speaks up with an evil smirk, "I'd like to be the leader."
"Oh, really?" Octavian asks, a little bit irritated but obviously not surprised. "Would anybody else like to volunteer?" I see Marine open her mouth, then after a small hesitation, close it again. Octavian looks around. "Well, then." He states. "I guess there's only one way to solve this. Juno, I challenge you to a duel."
District 2: Octavian Grimes, Age 18
I grab a rubber sword from the rack on the wall, swinging it back and forth a few times to get a feel for the weapon. I see Juno pick up two throwing knives made of plastic. The weapons aren't made to be deadly- after all, the Capitol doesn't want us killing each other before the games begin.
Juno and I face off against each other. I grin wickedly and charge at her. I know I can win this battle. Juno's strong, yes, but not strong enough to beat me.
I slash at Juno's waist, but she blocks me easily. I send flurries of blows towards her, hoping to land one, but she deflects them every time. I feel myself becoming frustrated. My blade moves faster and faster. I swipe and stab, but it does nothing to phase Juno. She simply smiles, dodging blow after blow after blow.
When I've exhausted myself, Juno goes on the offense. A knife comes swinging towards my head, and I just barely have time to dodge. I'm forced to step back as she stabs at my waist. I don't get it right now. How is Juno beating me? I should be destroying her!
When one of Juno's knives make contact with my leg, giving it a large bruise, I know that I'm going to lose if I keep fighting. Alright, I think. That's fine. I can play dirty. I fall the ground, clutching my leg.
"I'm hurt!" I scream. Juno rolls her eyes.
"I'm not falling for that." She tells me. I ignore her, continuing to whimper in pain. Nemo steps forward, looking worried.
"Do you need a medic?" He asks me. I nod with a fake grimace, and Nemo runs to a nearby trainer.
As a medic rushes towards me, Juno lowers her guard ever so slightly, and I see my chance. I spring up and thrust my sword into her chest. "I killed you." I say with a sneer.
Juno looks shocked for a moment, then exclaims, "That's not fair!"
"All's fair in love and war." I respond. "I believe the title of the leader of the Careers goes to me." She gives me a death glare, her eyes boring into my skull. Finally, her eyes drop.
"Fine." She spits. "Be the stupid leader. What do I care? I'll kill you either way." With that, she storms off to the swords station. I smile as she leaves and turns back to the stunned group behind me.
"Alright, everyone!" I exclaim. "We've only got three days of training. You guys had better make it count if you want any chance of winning!"
District 7: Carlina Trask, Age 15
I fling my last throwing knife at the target on the wall, and it hits just to the left of the bullseye. I smile at my work. All but one of the knives have implanted themselves very close to the center. It's not as good as a Career, but it's decent for an outer district kid like me. "Nice job." The trainer tells me, and I beam.
I walk away from the station and wander around for a moment before spying the shelter building station. I immediately head towards it. Having a good shelter can drastically help my odds (which aren't very good in the first place), especially if the arena's super cold.
When I reach the station, I notice someone already there. I recognize him as the boy from District 9, Albin. He looks up when he sees me and gives me a quick smile, then continues to work. I plop down beside him and begin to survey the station.
I spot a small booklet at the corner of the station and pick it up. Welcome, tribute. I read. To survive the Hunger Games, a shelter will be necessary for your survival. The booklet begins walking me through the steps I need to take. I grab some fake sticks and grass from the corner and begin to work.
When I'm finished, I step back to survey my creation. For my first time making one, it's not bad- it's fairly large, and when I crawl inside, I find that it's somewhat warm. It isn't perfect, of course, but it's something.
When I exit my shelter, I find Albin staring at me.
"That's really good." He remarks, nodding towards me work. I smile.
"Thanks." I say. "Yours is good too." The shelter he's made is smaller than mine, but it looks cozier and warmer.
"Allies?" I suddenly ask. It's a bit out of the blue, especially since we just met. But if I'm going to have an ally, I know that Albin's the one I want to spend the next few weeks with.
After a small hesitation, Albin smiles. "Allies." He agrees. "Do you want to go check out the climbing station?" I nod, and the two of us stand to leave.
District 11: Cole Cambridge, Age 13
I stare around the training center until my eyes land on a head of black hair that I immediately recognize as Angelica's. She's at the fire making station, bent over something. I begin to walk towards her, taking a deep breath as I go.
After a lot of thinking, I've decided that I'm going to try and ally with Angelica. When I told my mom, she advised against it. She told me it was pointless to fall in love in the Hunger Games. I know, deep down, that she's right. At least one of us has to die in the arena. But I don't care. I love Angelica. I'm going to ally with her, whether my mom likes it or not.
Angelica turns around when I reach her. "Hi." She says, looking a little surprised to see me. I've been trying to avoid her for most of my time in the Capitol because I'm worried I'll say something stupid and embarrass myself in front of her. Even now, I'm tempted to chicken out of asking her. What if she says no?
Angelica's bright blue eyes stare at me curiously. I squeeze my eyes shut, then blurt out, "Do you want to ally with me?"
Angelica looks shocked, but she nods immediately, saying, "Sure!" I breathe a sigh of relief. Angelica stands. "What should we do now?" She asks me. I see a station filled with axes and deadly looking swords and point to it. Angelica gulps. "I don't know…" She says. "I don't think I'm very good with weapons."
"We have to do some of the weapon stations at some point." I point out. "If we don't, there's almost no way we'll survive the Hunger Games." She sighs, but agrees with me and follows me to the station. There's a trainer, but she's currently occupied with the girl from 5.
I pick up an axe hanging from the wall. It's heavy, but it has a nice feel to it. I face the dummy that stands next to me and swing the axe into its side. The axe sticks. I yank it out, leaving a large gash in it. Next, I land a blow at its head and chop it clean off. I smile, glancing over at Angelica to see how she's doing. She appears to be struggling with the axe she's holding- it's so heavy she can barely lift it off the ground. "Cole…" She says, gasping as she tries to hold the weapon. "Can we maybe… try another station?" I want to stay right where I'm at, since I found that I'm not half bad with axes, but I feel bad for Angelica.
"Sure." I finally say. "Why don't we try the edible plants?"
District 6: Livia Fleet, Age 15
I frown and place the spear I'm holding back in the rack. I was only able to hit the target one time. That's not good.
I decide that I've done enough weaponry for now and walk towards the survival stations. After all, more tributes are killed by the elements than they are by other tributes. I see the edible plants section and make my way over to it. If I don't have food in the arena, I'll die without a doubt. The two kids from District 11 are already there, but they leave when I come close.
At the station, there's a large screen. It turns on when I come close, and a recording begins to talk to me. It walks me through which plants are edible and which are poisonous. At the end of the recording, I'm instructed to take a test. I find a stack of notecards on a table. Each one has a picture of a plant on it. I begin sorting the notecards into two separate piles. Edible, poisonous, edible, poisonous, poisonous, edible…
"That's poisonous." Someone says from behind me, talking about a small violet berry I had just placed in the edible section. I spin around. Alyxandra, the girl from District 8, stands over me. I talked to her a little bit at the chariot rides. "It's a Pitcherberry." She explains. "The juice has poison in it that can kill you within an hour." Alyxandra kneels beside me. She begins sorting out the rest of the cards. When she finishes, she checks her score. Her score is perfect.
"How did you know all of that?" I ask breathlessly. Alyxandra shrugs.
"My dad is a doctor." She says. "I like to help him out at the hospital. We use a lot of these plants on patients."
"Wow." I say. I think for a moment, then ask, "Do you think you'd like to be my ally?" Alyxandra beams.
"Yes!" She says. I smile.
"Cool." Alyxandra and I stand together.
"Where now?" She asks. "Maybe the knives?" I suggest. Alyxandra happily agrees, and we walk away.
I'm not going to be alone in the next few weeks. I'm going to have an ally.
Thank God.
District 7: Verin Fleras, Age 18
I scale the fake tree at the climbing station, reaching the top in a matter of moments. Glancing below me, I spot my district partner and the boy from nine. Carlina can climb up pretty easily, but she has to keep falling back to help out her ally, who seems to be struggling. I suppress a smile as he tumbles to the ground from the spot he hung from.
I climb back down the tree and figure that I should try out the axes. I wander over to the station but find that the 2 boy, Octavian, is already there. "Move." He grunts as he swings an axe into a dummy's forehead, leaving a large gash. I smile and bow.
"Yes, your majesty." I say sarcastically. Octavian glares at me.
"If you have any sense at all, you'll take that comment back." He threatens. I just roll my eyes. Octavian takes a step towards me, but before he can do anything, the bell rings for lunch. I brush past him and walk towards the hall where the tributes eat.
Grabbing a plate, I follow the line of kids grabbing food. I choose a thick piece of steak, a delicacy we rarely eat back in District 7, and a buttered roll, as well as some mashed potatoes. I look around the room, searching for a place to sit. The Careers are all together (Octavian is still glaring viciously at me), as well as a few newly formed alliances. I would sit by Carlina, but she's already with Albin. Finally, I take my spot next to Rois, the girl from District 9. She doesn't pay me much attention and continues to eat the giant sandwich on her plate.
For a brief second, I consider asking her if she wants to be in alliance. I wipe away the thought immediately, though. I don't even know her. Besides, I've known for a long time that I don't want allies in the Hunger Games. After all, what if we were in the finale together? What would happen then?
Could I kill an ally, and a friend, of mine just to come home to my family?
District 6: Nathan Hayes, Age 13
The elevator beeps, then begins to ascend, bringing Livia and I with it. I breathe a happy sigh and lean back against the wall. For knowing that I'm going to be going into a death games in just a few days, today was fun. It gave me hope, too- not only did I meet the District 5 girl that I'm considering proposing an alliance to, but I also learned that I have a decent aim. Maybe I have a chance, as small as it is, after all.
"How was training?" I ask Livia as the elevator stops and its doors open. She looks slightly wary talking to me, seeing as we're going to be killing each other in just a few days, but she responds anyway.
"It was okay, I guess." She says. "I realized that I'm pretty good at using a bow. I made an ally, too."
"Cool." I respond. We haven't taken more than two steps down the hallway before our escort and mentors stop us.
"So?" Raeka asks excitedly. "How did it go?"
"It went well." I reply. Her face lights up.
"Great!" She exclaims. "One of you have got to win this thing. We haven't had a victor in a while."
For some reason, these words scare me. People back in my district are routing for me, counting on me. They want me to come home. They need me to come home. The thing is, though… I don't think I can do it. I can't. I watched the Careers in training, the way they destroyed the dummies with a swipe of their sword. There's no way I can compete with that. I'm going to die in the Hunger Games. I'm never going back home to my district in one piece. It's as simple as that. The thought I had earlier that maybe I can win is wiped away with the wind.
But I guess I can always hope, right?
I'm only doing two questions for sponsoring. Also, it took me a long, long time for me to decide on the Career leader. I could see the position going to Juno, Octavian, or Marine, but I decided that the plot would work the best if it was Octavian, so I chose him.
1. What weapon is Livia good at?
2. What did Cole's mom advise him about allying with Angelica?