Yay! We've reached the 50th chapter! For perspective, the 50th chapter of Flames was the first epilogue. This is a pretty short chapter, but it's about the intended length when I decided to split each day into two chapters. And it's got a bit of action, so hopefully, that will make up for its pitiful size!
District 2
Glorian Stafford
"Are we seriously lost?" I ask, beginning to grow angry. The sun shines brightly through the canopy of leaves; there's no rain today. Trajan slumps against a tree, allowing his bloody spear to fall to the ground.
"It appears that way," he sighs. "But, if it makes you feel better… this is all your fault."
"Why would that make me feel better?"
"It makes me feel better," he shrugs. I glare at him and drop the leopard carcass at my feet. My shoulder are aching, and my shirt is soaked in its blood. Fortunately, my jacket is red, so it isn't too visible, but the coppery scent sickens me. I'm trying to ignore it, but it's difficult when it's right next to my face.
"It's not my fault. I told you to watch the compass," I hiss. Frustrated, I slam the blade of my sword into the tree.
"I didn't hear you, then," Trajan replies.
"That's not my fault -"
"Besides, you have the compass. Even if I did hear, how would I watch it?" Trajan asks. He's annoyingly calm.
"I don't have the compass. I gave it to you," I say, but immediately after speaking, my compass falters. Did I really give it to him? I thought I did, but now I can't recall. I reach into my pocket to check, and sure enough, my fingers clasp around the metal compass. Trajan smirks, knowing I've been proven wrong. I feel my face turn red.
"Care to admit something?" he asks. I glare at him, not responding. I slump against the tree. This sucks. We finally get food and a lot of it, and then we get lost in the jungle. I was looking forward to bringing the leopard back to camp and feasting on it, tonight. It would really perk everyone up.
"How are we supposed to get back?" I question.
"Just wait until nightfall, when the fallen tributes show. It appears over the Cornucopia, so we can just walk toward that."
"That's actually a really good suggestion," I sigh.
"I know. And until then, we can just chill and relax. How great would that be?"
"I rested all of yesterday."
"I didn't," he reminds me. "I'd like to just sit here and do absolutely nothing."
"How's your arm?" I ask.
"Fine. It hurts, but I don't think it's infected or anything."
"Good."
"Will you allow me to give you some advice on leading the Career pack?"
"No."
Trajan continues talking as if he didn't hear me.
"Don't allow Cecelia and Noelani to be by themselves anymore, especially when guarding the supplies. We both know they have an inner alliance, and now that's we're venturing deeper into the Hunger Games, it's only a matter of time before they split off."
"Why are you so sure of that?" I ask him. I'm no idiot - I know for sure that Cecelia and Noelani have an inner alliance going on, but I don't think they'll betray me. I trust them, even more after yesterday. I'd truly be surprised if they betrayed me without warning.
"How are you not sure of that?"
"Well, I trust them. And it's not like they can both win…"
They can both win.
I suddenly remember the gem Cecelia and I found a few days ago - the one that allows someone to survive along with the Victor. Would it truly be so crazy if Cecelia mentioned it to Noelani and they decided to return home together? With the knowledge that they can both survive, their loyalty to each other will strengthen considerably.
"Maybe you're right…" I admit. But I want to give them the benefit of the doubt - I might just keep one eye on them, now.
District 3
Lennox Porter
I've made it.
I had to take many breaks over the climb to rest my arm, but I've made it. I've reached the top of the cliff, and now I'm more relaxed. I doubt any other tributes are up here, and I'll be at an advantage if any try to get up here. I have a good view of the arena below, though the treetops don't allow me to see down into the jungle.
One surprise is the line. There's a wire leading over my head down to the center of the arena, likely near the Cornucopia. I can't see where it begins, but I think it might be a zipline. Only an idiot would use it, though, so I haven't been paying too much attention to it.
It's surprising to think that I've almost been in the Hunger Games for a week. Hopefully, they won't last much longer. I want to go home.
I'm going home to Ada. And no one can stop me. Lennox Porter will be the Victor of the 248th Hunger Games, because she needs to. People underestimate determination. I will never give up.
District 5
Dennis Fielder
The girl from District 10 leaps to her feet and takes off, running away from me. I silently curse, knowing she'll likely be able to outrun me. Sure enough, she runs quickly through the jungle. She's very fast on her feet, and jumps over logs and roots with ease.
It's very lucky (for me, at least) that she happens to be running directly toward the cliff. That could trap her, or at least give me a chance to catch up. I have very good knowledge of this area because I've been searching for tributes all day.
I did die in the acid storm, but it did disfigure me a bit. I can't see out of my right eye anymore, and my skin feels scarred when I'm certain. I've never been too pretty, but I bet I've hit an all-time low right now. I don't have any need for good looks, though. My face still stings a bit, especially when I touch it, but it's not too bad. It's nothing compared to the pain I'll inflict on others.
I chase the girl to the very edge of the jungle. She's running so quick, she almost skids off the edge. However, she manages to stop herself at the last moment. She breathes a sigh of relief after her brush with death, but looks up and sees me only a few feet away from her. She gasps, and begins trying to run to the side, but I've closed in.
I use my arm to try and punch her, but she dodges it quickly. I realize that it's probably for the best, since I don't want to knock her off the edge. I need to be a bit more careful with my hits, because I want to the opportunity to torture her. If she goes tumbling down the side of the canyon, it's a loss for both of us.
I'm going to back up, and allow her to move closer to the tree line so the threat of falling off the edge isn't as imminent, but she unsheathes a dagger from her belt and lunges at me. It's surprising, and I don't get the chance to jump away. Her dagger sinks into the side of my stomach. I don't think she hit any organs, but it hurts like hell. However, this gives me the chance to disarm her.
I grab onto her wrist and tighten my grip painfully. She squeals and her dagger clatters to the ground, soaked with my blood. However, I don't let go until I hear a snap in her wrist.
The girl cries out in pain, and kicks my shin. I don't release her, but my grip slackens and she starts to slip away. I try to re-tighten it, but she slides free and takes off, nursing her broken wrist.
I see the blood-soaked dagger on the ground. I've never been great with distance weapons, but one throw won't hurt. I chuck the dagger at her just as she's about to run back into the jungle.
I was aiming for her head, but the throw is slightly low. It embeds itself in her thigh. Luckily, this makes her fall flat on her stomach. I rush over before she can try to escape. There's a decent-sized rock on the ground which I grab in one hand. She's trying to crawl away, but I grab a chunk of her brown hair and yank her head back.
"Please don't kill me," is all she can manage to say. I let out a low chuckle.
"Kill you? I'm not going to do that right now!" I say. I see hope flicker in her eyes.
"You're not?"
"No. But by the time I'm done with you, you'll wish you were dead."
With that, I smash the rock into her skull. She slumps to the ground immediately, unconscious. There's a trickle of blood on her forehead, but I know she's not dead. I can still have my fun.
I grab ahold of her ankles, and begin dragging her into the jungle. A smile has formed on my face.
This is going to be fun...
District 7
Vincent Elm
The bridge doesn't look too steady, I think with concern as I look across the canyon. It's a simple rope bridge, with wooden planks placed inconsistently along the ropes. The rope also looks frayed in some parts, likely from the acid rain.
Although my concerns are valid, I decide to risk crossing the bridge anyway. I sheath my sword into my belt. To my disappointment, a few flakes of dry blood are scraped off the blade. I wanted proof of having defeated both Glitter and Trajan Seth in battle. But I quickly shake it off. There are worse things.
I hold onto the ropes tightly as I attempt to cross, but while they creak and bend, they don't look too close snapping. I'm slightly concerned, but I think I can make it. I speed up my pace, so I cross the bridge rather quickly.
I'm almost fully across when I hear a gunshot. I jump, but it doesn't seem to be too close to me. It definitely wasn't at me, so I continue on with some reassurance.
I reach the other side without issue. It looks similar to the jungle on the opposite side, but who knows what dangers lurk in this new forest?
"There's only one way to find out," I mutter as I step into the dense, green jungle.
District 10
Arabella Cantros
My head aches painfully as I blink my bleary eyes awake. Everything's blurry at first, but I quickly regain my senses. I try to lift my arms to feel the bump on my head, but I can't move them. That's when I realize I'm trapped.
My arm and torso are bound to a log, and I can't move away from it. They're tied down with leather, and it takes me a few minutes to recognize my restraints as a whip, and the copper wire that was in my bag. I struggle to break out of the bonds, but it's tied well and I can't even wiggle.
I try looking around at my surroundings, but I don't see Dennis. Unfortunately, I can't move my head enough to see behind me, so he might be right there. Then, I look down, and almost burst into tears.
I'm sitting in a giant firepit. Unlit sticks lay around me, but there's no question to what they'll be used for. I hope I'm wrong, but I know I'm not. I try to use my legs to walk away, but they're held down with copper wire chained to rocks, and the wire cuts my ankles when I try to move them. Besides, the log is too heavy to allow me to go anywhere.
"Oh, are you awake?"
I shiver at the sound of his voice. I look to my right just as he walks into my vision. Dennis is holding my dagger in one hand, and two sticks in another. I'm guessing he doesn't have matches, which comforts me. If he's stuck with creating a friction fire, it might buy me some time. If he can't create a fire with friction, maybe he'll put me out of my misery quickly. I only hope sponsors aren't looking forward to seeing me burned alive, because matches aren't too expensive.
"I was the best with fire-making in training," Dennis informs me. "I got smoke, but not an actual fire. Friction-wise, in case you were wondering." I feel a bit of hope in my chest. If he didn't actually get fire, maybe I'll be okay. "I was a bit hesitant when it came to creating fire in the Hunger Games, but I got it on my first try, after only half an hour. I've had much more practice, and now it comes very naturally to me."
I feel my heart plummet. Dennis grins widely at my fear.
"Don't you want to see me make a fire?" he asks. I shake my head, and he laughs. Dennis kneels down directly in front of me, so that I have no choice but watch him create flame. Dennis gets his two sticks and begins rubbing them together at a quick pace. Almost immediately, smoke begins to rise.
"No…" I whisper, feeling tears roll down my cheeks. My heart is pounding so much, I feel as though it might break out of my chest. I squirm around some more for escape, but the wire cuts into my ankles and draws a bit of blood.
"There's a flame," Dennis announces, and I automatically look to see if he's bluffing. He's not. What was just a bit of fire quickly lights one of the sticks up, and he throws it at my feet. The heat is immediately evident, even before it catches onto the other branches.
"No!" I shout, try to get away. The wire digs deeper into my ankles, but I no longer care. I manage to move the rocks holding me down a bit, but my torso is still stuck to the log. To my terror, I look down and see that the flames have quickly caught onto the other sticks. Smoke and fire cloud my vision, and it isn't long before the log I'm tied to catches fire.
"Hadley!" I scream, but intake a lot of smoke into my lungs and begin coughing. Flames begin licking up my body, and suddenly the pain's unbearable. I'm no longer surrounded by fire - I am on fire. "Hadley!" I scream again.
I think I hear shouting for a second. It's difficult to recognize through my sobbing. I think it's Hadley. Is Hadley hear? Will he save me?
But it's just Dennis laughing. Through the flames that are climbing around me, I can see him watching me and laughing with glee. The last thing I see before everything goes dark is his smile. The wide, evil smile.
District 1
Trajan Seth
Glorian and I have arrived back at camp. The fallen tributes didn't show anyone tonight, since no one has died, but the emblem was shown long enough for us to get a basic idea of how to get back. It turns out, we were only about fifteen minutes away from the Cornucopia.
Now, we're feasting on the leopard. Cecelia built a giant fire, and we cooked the leopard very fast. We have a lot of meat tonight, and it has put us all in a good mood.
For some of us, it's a suspiciously good mood.
Noelani and Cecelia have been very happy all day, which leads me to one conclusion - they're scheming to betray us. Glorian said he wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt, but I think he's being stupid. I'm sleeping with one eye open tonight.
As we sit around the fire, everyone's silent. We're all busy stuffing our mouths with cooked leopard. It's not delicious by any means, but we're all so hungry, we're satisfied with it. The fire flickers brightly - it's a big fire, probably the biggest we've had since today was dry. There wasn't any rain, so we have more dry firewood than we've had in a while.
A cannon booms for the first time today. I jump, slightly startled by the sudden noise. Immediately following the cannon, the Capitol anthem begins to play again. They do that when someone dies during the night - they quickly show their picture.
I look up and see the little girl from District 10 in the sky. I'm honestly not too surprised. Twelve-year-olds rarely last long in the Hunger Games.
When her picture fades, we all return to eating. I glance across the fire and see Cecelia and Noelani sitting very close to one another. Cecelia whispers something in Noelani's ear, and she laughs.
Were they talking about me? I wouldn't be surprised… I glance at Glorian, but he's ignoring the obvious signs that they're scheming to betray us any day now. Oh well. If he doesn't listen to me, it will be his own damn fault. He can never say I didn't warn him.
I feel like my chapters are declining in length, which might be due to fewer tributes. This is the length I initially intended, though, so I'm not upset. However, I'm considered when we get down to the Final 8 or so, the chapters will be really short.
Please answer this in the reviews - should I switch to two chapters per day now that the tributes are dwindling down (including Capitol chapters; so one in the Hunger Games and one with the Capitol or other out-of-Games characters)? If so, at what point?
GEM CARRIERS:
Emerald - Axel Woodleigh (D6M)
Ruby - Rachel Ivy (D12F)
Sapphire - Nobody
DAY 1:
24th: Zaira Quentin (D7F)
23rd: Nikola Allegra (D3M)
22nd: Savanna Davison (D9F)
21st: Kade Anderson (D11M)
20th: Macey Aderyn (D5F)
20th: Tracey Aderyn (D5F)
19th: Quinten Fredericus (D12M)
18th: Felix Camacho (D8M)
17th: Buck Hayford (D10M)
DAY 2:
None.
DAY 3:
16th: Linen Baird (D8F)
DAY 4:
15th: Lucretius Marlo (D4M)
14th: Glitter Monique (D5F)
DAY 5:
None.
DAY 6:
13th: Arabella Cantros (D10F)
ALLIANCES:
Cecelia/Trajan/Glitter/Glorian/Noelani/Vincent
Tristana/Yael/Rachel
Axel/Hadley
SOLO:
Lennox
Dennis
KILL LIST/REMAINING TRIBUTES:
Cecelia Hart (D1F) - 1
Trajan Seth (D1M) - 2
Glitter Monique (D2F) - 1
Glorian Stafford (D2M) - 1
Lennox Porter (D3F) - 0
Noelani King (D4F) - 0
Dennis Fielder (D5M) - 2
Tristana Rockett (D6F) - 0
Axel Woodleigh (D6M) - 0
Vincent Elm (D7M) - 0
Hadley Moreau (D9M) - 1
Yael Harident (D11F) - 0
Rachel Ivy (D12F) - 1
- Lilah