I finished another chapter! I hope you enjoy it. Hopefully Day 4 will be up soon.

Also, thank you to the guest who reviewed this story! You're totally right, I don't do a very good job of mentioning water in the arena, oops. XD I will definitely keep your suggestion in mind, though, and try to do a better job in the future!

District 7: Verin Fleras, Age 18

I've only been in the arena for three days, and I'm already starting to feel lonely.

I miss Mom and Vera- how Mom always tried to look on the bright side of things, how Vera always smiled when she saw me. I miss Krane. I miss District 9. I miss going to bed at night without having to feel afraid, without knowing the possibility that I could never wake up again. I miss it all. I want to go home.

Well, the only way to get home is for everyone else in this arena to die, I remind myself begrudgingly. Which means that you have to try and survive. I notice that the rain from this morning has started up again, and it's not long before I'm completely drenched.

Currently, I'm sitting on the branch of a tall tree that I was able to climb. I take out the small pack that I grabbed from the bloodbath and rifle through it, looking for the empty bottle of water I got. I find it in the bottom of the backpack and pull it out before holding it out in front of me. The rain slowly and surely begins to fill the bottle up. Once my bottle is full, I take a big gulp of it, enjoying the sensation of the cool liquid as it splashes down my throat. I'm not totally sure if the rain the gamemakers have been sending is safe to drink, but I haven't been able to find any other source of water so far, so it's my only option.

Once my thirst has been quenched, I place the now-full bottle back into my bag and lay back against the tree trunk, sighing. I'm going to need to find some food pretty soon- I only have two small packages of dried fruit left in my bag. I'm not too worried about it, though. I'm sure I'll be able to find some edible plants in an arena like this. Besides, I've been paranoid about coming down from this tree ever since my near-death experience with the Careers on Day 2.

My mind begins to drift back to the last few terrifying days. I think back to the bloodbath, and I feel a stab of guilt when I remember the way I killed Maylie. No, no. I shake my head quickly and force the memory out of my brain. I don't want to think about her, or the way she screamed when I cut her open… Stop it! I can't afford to feel guilty right now. It'll only distract me from my goal to get home.

I'm ripped away from my thoughts when I hear the ding of a sponsor parachute. I grin, amazed at my luck. I reach up and grab the parachute, pulling it close to my chest, and open up the small package attached to it.

Inside is a note and nothing more.
I huff in frustration. What good is a stupid note? Irritably, I grab the note and read over it quickly.

WATCH OUT. Get down from that tree as quickly as you can and then slowly back away. ~Birchen

My eyes widen as I read the note, and I look around quickly, searching for a mutt or another tribute. For a moment, the pouring rain and the rising darkness makes it too hard for me to see anything. Then my eyes catch on something that makes my heart skip a beat. A set of glowing, hungry eyes stares out at me from the darkness. I begin to edge backwards along my tree branch when I notice something else, something that makes my body freeze up. There aren't just one pair of eyes- there are ten pairs.

I hear a distinct growling sound, and the figures start closing in on me. I can begin to make out their bodies, now- they look oddly human, and for a horrifying moment I think that 10 tributes are trying to gang up on me. Finally, I realize that they're not people at all. They're chimpanzees.

One chimp springs towards me out of the darkness. I fumble with my axe and slash at it a split second before its sharp claws dig into my skin. It whimpers and falls to the rainforest floor with a dull thud.

Before I can react, another chimpanzee is on top of me, biting into my chest. I scream and swing my axe out, hitting it square in the chest. As if on cue, the rest of the mutts let out a blood curdling shriek and launch themselves at me.

I scramble backwards, whipping my axe around to keep the creatures from getting too close to me. As quickly as I can, I start to scale down the tree, my pack thudding against my back rhythmically. The chimps quickly pursue me- I realize that there are even more of them than I originally thought.

I know that if I don't get off this tree soon, I'll be overtaken and eaten alive. I glance down at the ground, which looks painfully far away. I take a deep breath, and then I jump.

I hit the ground hard, which jars my legs, but I ignore the slight burst of pain and begin to sprint away from the scene. The monkeys follow me, but I knock them away with my weapon whenever one tries to attack me. After what feels like forever, they give up on me and stalk back into the trees, leaving me to slow down and catch my breath.

It takes my brain a minute to register everything that just happened. I thought for sure those chimpanzees were going to kill me. But they didn't. I'm still here, I'm still alive. The thought gives me a small boost of confidence. Those gamemakers can do whatever they want to try and kill me, but I won't let them win. I'm going to fight, and I'm going to survive.

Hold on, Mom. Hold on, Vera. Hold on, District 9. I'm going to come home.

District 11: Angelica Broome, Age 13

"Oh, cool!"

We've been following the creek for about 2 hours, now. It began to grow wider as we walked, and now we've found that it ends in a waterfall that empties out into a large pool of water. The waterfall isn't super tall- it's probably only around a 40 foot drop from where we stand at its edge- but it's tall enough to make me feel weightless as I peer down into its depths.

"Don't you think it would be so much fun to just jump into the waterfall and let it wash you away?" Cole says from beside me. I wrinkle my nose.

"Fun?" I ask. "You'd probably break all your bones- or worse."

"Nah," Cole says. "I'd be fine." I giggle a little and scoot closer to him.

"Alright, enough of this," Beckett growls. "We're getting low on food. Cole, you come with me to find some more. Angelica, I think our water bottle is empty. You filter the creek water and fill it back up again." When Cole and I hesitate, he snaps, "Come on, hurry up!"

"Why have you been so moody lately?" I ask him as I crouch over our supplies, searching for the water bottle. Beckett scowls.

"Maybe it's because you two do nothing but sit around and talk to each other," He says back.

"We've helped out!" I exclaim indignantly. Beckett scoffs.

"Really? Because from the way I've seen it, I'm the only one who's doing any work! You two just laze around and complain all day."

"Hey, don't talk to her like that!" Cole shouts, coming to my defense. I give him a small, nervous smile. I turn back to Beckett and see that his eyes are narrowed. For a moment, the two boys have a silent staredown. Finally, Beckett sighs and turns away.

"Whatever," He says. "Come on, Cole, we have to go find some food." As he turns his back away from us, Cole glances at me and makes a face before following after him. I smirk.

Once the two are gone, I begin to scoop up the dirt next to the creek in my hand. I learned in training that you can filter water with mud and other earthy materials, so that's what I've been doing to our water to make it safer to drink. It still doesn't taste great, but it's better than nothing.

I squirm a little bit as I work. I don't like being alone, especially now with the sun going down and the night rising up. A tribute could easily sneak up on me and kill me right now. I remember when I used to rock Jaime to sleep at night when he had nightmares. He used to be afraid that we would be attacked while we were sleeping. I always cooed to him that that would never happen, that we were safe from harm. I wish somebody would do the same thing to me right now. But alas, Cole and Beckett are gone, and so I have only myself for comfort.

I realize that Jaime is probably going to go to bed pretty soon and decide that even if I can't be there with him, I should still sing him a lullaby to help him go to sleep. I clear my throat, hoping a camera is pointed at me, and sing to the sky:

"Hush, little child, let your fears slip away.

Soon you will fly to a bright summer day.

Where birds fill the skies, and darkness is gone.

Where laughter is heard, and the light shines on.

So hush, little child, can you hear that sound?

The sound of the voice that's calling you out.

Calling you to a land in the deep.

So lay down your head, and drift off to sleep.

Hush, little child…"

District 2: Juno Armstrong, Age 18

I really want to kill Octavian right now.

Every day he gets even more annoying than the day before. Ever since he killed Rois this morning- which was mostly because of me, by the way- he's been gloating about it to us. I'd love to just stab him in the back with my sword right now, but Marine and I had a quiet discussion and begrudgingly agreed that we should wait a little longer before killing him. After all, his death would probably mean the splitting of the Career pack, and we can't afford the alliance breaking up this early in the games.

Despite this, however, I can't help but lash out at him when he begins saying that he has the biggest kill count in the games. "That's not true," I snort. "You only have two kills, so you're tied with Marine. And I'm going to get my second kill pretty soon if you don't shut up."

Octavian rolls his eyes. "You're just jealous because you know that I'm a better Career than you are."

"Oh, my God," I whisper threateningly, "If you don't shut your mouth soon, I swear to God…"

"Oh, yeah, I'll stop talking now because I'm so scared of what you'll do to me if I don't," Octavian snickers. I open my mouth to fire a retort back at him when I stop in my tracks.

Standing before me is the biggest spider I've ever seen.

It's tall, spindly legs make it the size of a person, at least. It's millions of eyes gleam evilly, and its two giant fangs click together in anticipation. I raise my sword, ready to slash the mutt to bits, when I hear more clicking and turn my head around slowly.

Three more spiders, just as big as the first, have appeared, boxing us all into a small space. They close in on us, the fur on their legs rippling as they move.

We're surrounded.

District 1: Blaze Hale, Age 17

I hold my spear out in front of me in a defensive stance, my eyes swiveling to take in the four enormous spiders standing on all four sides of my allies and I. Juno and Octavian ready their swords; Marine's hand tightens around her knife; Ariana nocks an arrow. I force myself to take big, deep breaths, force myself to keep from panicking. The gamemakers wouldn't want to kill off all of the Careers so soon- would they?

Without warning, all four of the spiders attack at once. One springs toward me and I jab at it with my spear. My aim is off, though, and I only manage to poke a hole in one of its enormous legs. The spider reels back, but the damage is minimal, and before long it's on me again, hissing and spitting.

I twist my weapon around and slam the shaft of my spear into the mutt. It's fairly effective, and the spider is thrown backwards. It scuttles away to a safe distance from me, trying to recover from the blow. This gives me the time to glance around and see how the others are faring.

Juno and Marine have teamed up on a spider, and before long, they've mutilated the thing. Meanwhile, Octavian is locked in a fierce showdown with one of the mutts, while Ariana struggles to get the upper hand on her spider.

I hear the sound of clicking pincers and turn around; the spider is coming at me again. I duck and slide under its stomach, jamming my spear up as I do so. This time, my aim is perfect, and the spider shrieks as I pull it out and roll away from its legs. It staggers around for a bit, and to make sure it dies I stab it a few more times. After a moment, the spider's legs buckle and it crashes to the ground, dead.

My triumph doesn't last long; I hear a scream and see that Ariana's spider is on top of her, its pointed fangs about to dig into her chest. In an instant, I send my spear sailing towards the mutt. It strikes it in the head, and the creature stumbles back before falling over.

Ariana gets shakily to her feet, staring at me with wide eyes. "Th-thanks," She whispers.

I shrug nonchalantly. "No problem," I reply, grinning. I look over and see that Octavian killed the last spider mutt. He smirks and wipes his hands off on his shirt casually.

"Easy," He says. "No mutt can kill the great Octavian. Come on, let's keep moving." Juno rolls her eyes but complies, whispering with Marine, leaving Ariana and I to walk behind them.

Ariana leans over to me. "Hey. Seriously, thanks for saving me back there. That thing might've killed me if you hadn't helped."

I smile. "It's not a big deal. After all, you would've done the same for me." And with that, we walk on through the jungle.

District 12: Beckett Roy, Age 17

Cole and I are silent as we trek back to our camp. We were able to find some weird-looking fruits hanging off of a clump of trees, and after Cole determined they were edible, we filled our bag up with as many of the fruits as we could carry. I wanted to look and see if we could find anything else to eat, but Cole pleaded that we go back to Angelica and after a bit of arguing, I relented. He didn't say it, but I could tell Cole was extremely worried about his district partner. I couldn't blame him- in a fight against a tribute or a mutt, Angelica wouldn't stand a chance.

I know that I've been kind of a jerk to my allies in the arena. I feel guilty about it- I know they haven't really done anything wrong. I'm just… angry. At myself. I wish I had never agreed to join their alliance. I wish, when they asked me about it, I had just told them, "No," and walked away. That way, I would never have risked becoming attached to them.

That's what I'm worried about. Getting attached. Because I know, at some point, they're both going to have to die for me to go home. And I know that if I let down my guard, if I let myself grow too close with them, then I'll begin to do everything I can to protect them. I might even give up my life to help them get back to District 11. And the arena is no place for sacrifices. If I want to win these games, then I'm going to have to let them get killed. It hurts, but it's the only way I'll be able to see my family again. To see Sasha again.

See, that's another problem. Angelica and Cole remind me too much of my little brother. Watching one of them die would be like watching Sasha die. It could drive me crazy with grief. And the arena is also no place for lunatics. So to solve the problem, I've purposefully been as cold and distant as I can be towards my allies. It's not fair to them, but it's the only way I'm going to have a chance of coming out of this arena victorious instead of dead in a wooden box. I can't start caring about Angelica and Cole. Because I know, deep down, that doing so would be a death wish.

District 12: Erin Arden, Age 15

"Ugghhhhh."

I bury my face in my hands angrily. Albin and I have been strategizing on a way to get revenge on the Careers for hours now, and we've come up with nothing that would actually work and not result in us getting killed. This seems like an impossible task. After all, they're the freaking Careers- how are we supposed to kill six well-supplied killers that have been trained to fight in these games since they could walk?

"It's hopeless," Albin decides. He plops down on the ground next to me and takes a sip of water from our cantina. "The only reasonable way to take out the Careers would be by building a bomb, and we don't have the materials to do that, nor do I know how to assemble something like that."

"I bet the District 3 boy would know how to make one," I sigh. "I heard he's really good with mechanical stuff like that. If only we were allied with him. What was his name?"
"Scorpius, I think," Albin says. "Maybe we could go and look for him, convince him to help us out."

"But even if we did find him, he probably wouldn't have the supplies to make a bomb anyway," I respond dejectedly. "We should just give up."

Right on cue, the ding of a sponsor parachute sounds from the sky. Albin and I look at each other and grin, looking upwards. The package lands on the ground a few feet from us, and I eagerly run and pick it up. I'm disappointed, though- the only thing inside is a pack of dried fruit and a note.

"What does the note say?" Albin asks, peering over my shoulder at the gift. I read it out loud: "The District 3 boy has the parts to make a bomb. Find him. He could help you on your quest to take down the Careers."

My mouth drops open and I let out an excited shout before falling silent, remembering that other tributes could hear me. Albin and I exchange a quick high five before we both stand up and start to pack up our supplies. This plan is obviously a stretch, but it seems to be the best option at the moment. If we're going to kill the Career pack, we're going to need a bomb. And to get a bomb, we'll need Scorpius.

District 3: Scorpius Herin, Age 16

I walk slowly through the jungle, not really having a set destination in mind. I've been traveling for hours, now; after my near-death experience with the Careers yesterday, I haven't been eager to settle down.

It feels as though I've been in the arena for weeks, not just three days. It's hard to imagine that just a few days ago was the bloodbath, when eight tributes kissed their life goodbye. I know that I should feel sad about their deaths, but I can't help but feel glad that I wasn't one of those tributes.

I hear the anthem play and look up to the sky expectantly, remembering the cannon that fired earlier today. The Capitol seal is replaced by the District 9 girl. I sigh in disappointment. I had hoped that it could've been one of the stronger tributes. Oh, well. At least I'm a little bit closer to heading home. The girl's death means that only 15 tributes remain. Who all is left again? I know that all of the Careers are still alive. Besides them, I believe the girl from 6, the boy from 7, the girl from 8, the boy from 9, the pair from 11, and the pair from 12 are still in the games.

I look up when I hear the ringing of a parachute. The gift falls into my hands, and a grin spreads across my face when I open it up and see some mechanical parts lying in the box. A note goes along with them. It reads, You're doing great, Scorpius! You can assemble these parts to make a small bomb. Use it wisely. ~Lighter

I rub my hands together and take out the pieces, examining each one as I do so. This is going to be extremely useful in the arena. I don't hesitate and immediately begin to work on making my new gift.

District 4: Marine Gray, Age 16

Octavian is giving me a headache. He's been purposefully aggravating Juno and I all day, and it's starting to seriously get on my nerves. Juno and I agreed not to kill him yet, but I'm beginning to consider breaking this agreement. It would be so easy to just stick my knife in his back right now…

Juno grips my arm, and I glance at her. She silently shakes her head, as if sensing what I was considering doing. I sigh but take my hand away from my knife.

"Hey, I think we're getting close to the Cornucopia," Ariana states, peering ahead. It's extremely dark out, so we've been relying on flashlights to lead us back to our supplies. I realize she's right, however. Not too far away from us, the Cornucopia gleams from the dull light of our flashlights. My pace speeds up a little- don't get me wrong, I love hunting, but everybody needs to sleep, and I was wiped out from the events of the day.

As we enter the clearing, I see that Nemo is perched against the wall of the golden horn. He grins at us and waves, and I'm surprised to see that his arm is doing much better- it no longer looks quite as green and nasty.

"I got a sponsor gift," Nemo explains when I ask him about it. "I should be ready to hunt in a day or two."

"Cool," I say, smiling. I feel a little relieved. Sure, Nemo's one of my competitors and he needs to die at some point, but he's my district partner, too, and so I feel a little more loyalty to him than I do the other Careers, besides Juno. After all, he's someone I can trust. And in the midst of an arena where everybody's your enemy and tension and betrayals run high, it's nice to know that at least one person there has got your back.

Ok, so I've decided that I'm not going to be doing sponsoring after all, at least not officially. Sorry to everyone who answered the questions and whatnot, but it's just too hard to keep track of points. If you want to sponsor, however, just send me a PM of what you want to give a tribute, and depending on how much you review, I'll consider the request. :)

3 days have now gone by in the arena, and 15 tributes remain. Who will be the next to fall? We'll find out next chapter. ;)