Chapter Sixteen, The Countdown
Effie had brought everyone's supper in the living room, where the colossal television screen showed Caesar's incredible smile.
The group watched for the second time the District 1 team take the stage. Geneva had been beautiful in a crystal encrusted dark green gown; her whole leg had been peeking through a slit in the skirt, revealing her not so timid behavior. She told precise answers without a single touch of humor.
Speaking of humor, when Caskar appeared on the screen, even Effie could not have resisted the urge to laugh. His glittery eyebrows added to his jeweled metallic suit was a pure mockery, but as if to take his revenge on the laughing tributes, most of the sentences he spoke ended with a threat directed towards them.
"Once I will be in the arena," Caskar told the host, "the other tributes better run because I won't even need to get myself a weapon at the Cornucopia." He showed off his fists, which had been painted in silver.
"After having seen the other tributes, do you really think that victory is reachable?" Caesar asked him.
Caskar sneered. "I never tell people how confident I am, they would be too terrified. And combat would not be as amusing."
Artemis let out a snort. Never tell people how confident he was? "There would be no need for him to tell people about his self-esteem," commented the raven-haired boy. "It is shining out of his pores… Or that might just be the glitter."
Silyah laughed at his analysis of the Career. "So true!"
"Seems like your sense of humor is rubbing off on him," contemplated Beetee, laughing along. "Nevertheless, you must not underestimate Caskar. He is pretentious, but he seems dangerous."
Artemis nodded, "I think you're already mentioned it quite a few times, Beetee."
"Good, it means that it is to be well understood," he replied.
"Of course." Artemis had personally no urge to face Caskar in the arena.
On the screen, Crelin sat in the interview chair, dressed in a pretty strapless dress with crystals at the waist. Her skirt was above her knees at the front and sweeping the floor at the back. The camera closed up on her face as she answered the first question. Something about the District 2 girl's sea blue eyes seemed off to Artemis and he observed exactly the same phenomenon in Elon's when he took the stage.
The boy was wearing a more classical suit than the rest of the tributes, just a black outfit with a hint of grey shine. He looked really strong, but he seemed to avoid Caesar's stare. Instead, as he spoke, he constantly looked in the Gamemaker's balcony's direction.
"Why doesn't he look at the camera or at the audience?" wondered Effie, clearly displeased with Elon's attitude. "Talk about manners," she shook her head, making her wig's curls bounce around her face.
Artemis knew the reason behind the boy's look. He knew who the District 2 boy was looking at…
But his stream of thoughts was interrupted by Silyah, who hid her blushing face in her curls. "Here I come…" She peaked at the screen through her hair.
"Silyah, remove you hair from your eyes, trust me you want to see the look on your face when Caesar asked you about the lightbulbs on your dress," said Artemis.
She tossed her still-glowing curls back and looked at the screen.
"Oh my, you look like a techno clockwork angel!" said Caesar. Silyah contemplated her image on the television. Her illuminated dress did indeed give off an angelic aura. She turned to Xarone, then looked down on herself, her skirt still glowing bright. She played around with the fabric of the dress as her eyes darted back to the stylist. "I still can't believe that I got to wear this beautiful gown," she smiled. "I can't thank you enough, it's amazing!"
"My pleasure," replied the stylist. "Ilranor and I worked night and day to find the perfect attire." That would explain why Silyah and Artemis had once again matched with the other's outfit.
Effie took the mental note to call back those two designers to dress her up during her next Capitol party.
Silyah's attention went back to the screen. She looked as if an edge of shyness was still lingering in her, but she was mostly comfortable and sweet-looking when she spoke.
"You did well," commented Artemis. "Caesar seems to make you sound less shy."
"You think that I can't handle attention at this point in the Games?" asked Silyah in a joking tone. "That is just too cute of you."
Artemis was taken by surprise, which clearly showed through his mismatching eyes. Cute?
Silyah was extremely amused by the boy's look.
"I think that your interview went just according to plan," Beetee told Silyah. "You charmed the audience with your positive personality. Now it's your turn, Artemis."
If Artemis had been pale before, the beaming spotlight on him added to the concealer he wore made him look almost see through, which was just a perfect metaphor considering that the interview was supposed to give the viewers a glimpse of the Ice Prince's mind.
"The Ice Prince…" pondered Effie, watching both the Artemis on screen and the one in the living room with her. "It truly does suit you," she added with a satisfied smile.
"Long like the Clockwork Angel and the Ice Prince!" said Ilranor, a huge bright white smile stretching on her face. Long live? Strange thing to say considering the tributes' eminent fate…
Artemis's interview answers pleased Beetee. He had this cold – halfway between sarcastic and ironic humor, which truly entranced the audience. Cold humor, perfect for the Ice Prince, thought the mentor, smiling.
"You know, now that you have mentioned it, it is true that Caesar's tie looked a bit odd at the beginning of the show," contemplated Effie.
"I really wish you will like to be Caesar's official tie-fixer," added Silyah with a small smirk. Artemis looked at the girl.
"Oh, Artemis, just look at your hair!" clapped Ilranor, proud of her new invention. "And look at how your features are accentuated by Izolt's work!"
"Maybe a sponsor could send you eyeliner in the arena. We never know, it might help to distract some of the female tributes' attention… And probably Kalheb's... He might want to steal it from you," joked Silyah.
Artemis suppressed a small chuckle and it was Effie's turn to be unamused.
Harbor and Aquilna Pearl from District 4 were then interviewed, showing no particular support for one another even though they were cousins.
The tributes from 5, Novia Imous and Lynick Reah, did not seem to be competitive, however, they looked well prepared and rather confident. The 15-years-old Novia looked like an elf in her silky, dark green dress.
The next ones were Silver and Jehl.
"Why did you volunteer for the Games? Did you know the girl whose name had been picked?" Caesar asked the young woman.
"Yes," nodded Silver. "I knew her and I volunteered because I thought she was way too young to die. I used to teach her and some other young children in my District when their parents could not afford school," she said, nostalgic and rather stunning in a blue gown that complimented her eyes.
"I will ally with her," announced Silyah to her mentor.
"She looked very… aggressive during training," mentioned Beetee.
"That's only if you are on her bad side," Silyah pointed out as Caesar asked the District 6 tribute about the thin ring on her left hand.
"Oh," Silver actually blushed, though that might have been a practiced move. "It's an engagement ring," she told to the audience.
"May we know who is the lucky person you will try to go back home for?"
"His name is Edan Yale… We teached together back in our District," she said, "and I will do everything in my power to make sure that I will reunite with him…"
"See; not that aggressive," Silyah replied to Beetee.
"That's only because she does not have a weapon in hand," said Artemis, still slightly bitter about how Silver constantly brought back the subject of Silyah and he.
The Caesar Flickerman's show progressed on the screen, the participants from 7 each taking their turn to be interviewed. Acassie Fretwer, twelve years old and Moss Alsevre, thirteen years of age, made up the duo with the youngest age ratio.
From District 8, Thea Garber looked like a flower made of sunshine in her frilly yellow dress.
When Kalheb, District 9, appeared on the screen, Effie let a smirk paint itself on her lips. The boy was clearly only relying on his looks. He was wearing a shirt with a deep collar that gave the viewers a peek at his muscular chest. Even the young Marellie Tabrett, the twelve-year-old from his District, could not keep her eyes off the slit in his shirt.
"You were whistled at only once, right?" asked Silyah to Artemis while rolling her eyes; annoyed with how Kalheb acted when he was in public. She had talked to him a few times, and he was far from being that much of a show, but when the audience was involved, he became a pure symbol of narcissism.
"One time was just enough."
Silyah raised both of her eyebrows and whistled at him. "Well, that's your second one," she chuckled.
Artemis rolled his eyes in disbelief.
On the screen, Kalheb took off the jacket that was over his shirt and reached for a flower in its pocket, showing off a well-built arm in the motion. Caesar asked him if the rose was meant for him, which amused the audience. Kalheb apologized to the master of ceremony and threw it somewhere in the audience to the pleasure of the girl who caught it.
Artemis lightly shook his head. "I really don't like him." Silyah agreed with him and Effie sighed.
Unfortunately – or fortunately on a matter of perspective – the District 10 tributes, Trinicia Jestov and Jethro Mellrit, were interviewed in front of a crowd which was still under the effects of Kalheb's physical appearance.
Delise Novo and Zinque Chart, the dark-skinned tributes from the agriculture district show through their questions and answers and they were probably the ones with the most endurance in the whole competition, only followed by Quartz Dahlai and Scpenser Ross from the poorest of the District, District 12.
"Do you think that this year's Hunger Games may get another winner from you District?" asked Caesar to the tall boy from the Seam.
"Maybe… Who knows? What I know is that I am strong and that I have been trained by very strong victors, so I just might have my chances," answered Scpenser.
And on that last note, Caesar closed off this year's Tributes Interviews and requested from the audience to go vote for their favorite participants as soon as the show would end.
Beetee lowered the volume of the television. "What did you think?" he asked his tributes.
"This year has some very interesting participants… I think that if we want to survive, we will have to stay smart," replied Silyah.
"Smart and likable!" added Effie.
Artemis took a deep breath and nodded. "Seems like that was all for the evening, mind helping me out of this outfit Ilranor?"
"Of course, Artemis," the stylist answered. The woman in gold got up and followed Artemis in his room.
Silyah sighed. "I'll have to get some sleep too," she said, disappointed to have to let go of the dress she loved so much. "Good night everyone." She got up, still playing with her glowing skirt and left the living room with her own stylist.
Effie lowered her voice. "Do you think that they stand a chance for tomorrow?"
Beetee adjusted his glasses over his nose. "Truth to be told, if you had asked me the question just after the Reaping, I would have replied that they bond to die right away…" He looked at the screen, which was showing the faces of the twenty-four tributes and their training scores. "But now, I have trust in them… If only they were not so easy-going with one another…"
Before Silyah got the chance to fall asleep, a soft knock came through the door of her room. She wrapped a warm blanket around her shoulders as she got up to let her mentor in. She was hoping to get some final words of advice from the man, but she was also praying that this time they would not cause her horrible nightmares.
Beetee went to the small desk beside Silyah's bed, opening his notebook to the page dedicated to the girl tribute. "How do you feel?" she asked her.
"Mostly tired… And there is something really strange going on in my throat and stomach," she said, unable to completely express her fears.
"Stress is kicking in, right?"
Silyah nodded. "And it's not just stress. It's worry and panic laced together… But we can't really do anything about that."
"Well, I came here to review the strategy we came up with," Beetee told her. "Tomorrow, you will directly be sent to the preparation area as you wake up, so here we go…" He recited her the plan they had prepared through the course of the week, making a few adjustment at Silyah's request of teaming up with Silver and Novia. The mentor then asked her a few questions to put her to the test.
At one point, Beetee asked her the question that had been worrying him since the early days after the Reaping; he questioned her on what she would do if she ever came to find Artemis on the brink of death. Silyah frowned. Would she leave him there so that she would not have to kill him, or save him to pay back for the horrors her twisted imagination might have envisioned for her future in the arena? She brushed the question away, saying that if a situation as such was to present itself, she would act by instinct and by considering the impacts of her choice on the spot. The girl then let out a yawn and blinked, as if the prove him that she was really tired. Beetee judged best to let his tribute rest and wishing her good luck and good night, he headed for Artemis's room.
The boy was not yet asleep either, though he would also need the precious seconds night would offer him. Instead, he was sitting on his bed; writing down notes in a small notebook Beetee had given him.
"Strategies?" wondered Beetee as he saw the book in Artemis's hands.
"Yes," nodded the boy, closing it and putting his pen aside. "And I believe that you are here to discuss that very topic."
The mentor took a seat in a chair beside the teenager. "Exaclty… You remember what we established already, right?"
"Of course I remember," even those you did not possess the intellect of Artemis Fowl II were sure to recall the things that would possibly save their lives.
"Good, so just to recap, do not stop directly at the Cornucopia, you are a fast thinker and I believe that you have the creative spirit to help you, therefore see what you can get from the nature around you and only then see if there is something reachable that comes from the Gamemakers, take the chance if you want to."
Artemis nodded. "I had already decided to do as such; I have absolutely no intention of dying in the bloodbath."
"You will not know what the arena will look like, so be ready to face anything, by the way. Now, there is something I want you to do; first, observe the settings and second, you must pick an ally according to their strengths. Do not make many allies; just make sure to keep a good one around. In order to lure one in, simply show them what an advantage you could be."
"Understood," nodded the boy. It was an alien feeling to have someone tell him how he should act, but he was not going to question a man who actually had survived those murderous Games; knowledge was still a valuable thing after all.
Beetee then gave the boy some other quick survival tricks he had used during his own stay in the Hunger Games and allowed him to share his own tactics. Afterwards, just out of curiosity, he asked Artemis the same question he had asked Silyah… "If you were to find her on the verge of death somewhere in the arena, how would you react?" he asked.
Artemis frowned. "Sadly, it is most likely that I will be on the brink of death before her, but if this situation was to occur, I would help her. Our chances of surviving would definitely improve together depending on how bad her injury might be," said Artemis with as little emotion as possible. Holly crossed his mind… Through their friendship, the elf had proven to him that allies were always the difference between life and death.
Beetee looked at his watch as he closed his notebook. "Well, Artemis… May the odds be ever in your favor… Good night," Beetee closed Artemis's door behind him, hoping and wishing for his tributes' success.
Artemis laid down on his bed, thinking. He wondered if Beetee had asked Silyah what would she do if he were about to die. It was likely… What could she have answered? Hopefully nothing too worrying…
As Artemis brought his covers over his shoulders, one of the Avoxes closed his room's light for the boy's final night in the Capitol…
The next morning, a gloomy mood was hovering over the twenty-four tributes residing in the Training Center.
Ilranor woke Artemis up at soon as dawn shined through the sky and gave the boy a black T-Shirt and a pair of cargo pants similar to the training attire, but slightly warmer.
"Thank you," Artemis said faintly. It was already amazing for the designer to notice that he voice was not trembling.
The lady who always seemed to wear gold led the District 3 tribute to the glass elevator. From the corner of his eye, Artemis saw Effie and Beetee waving goodbye to him. Effie's eyes somehow looked vaguely puffier than they had the night before…
Artemis drew a deep breath as his stylist and he got to the roof of the building. Instead of the colorful decorations and overall good mood that had previously filled the place a few nights earlier, a hovercraft awaited and greeted the pair. A ladder descended from the machine as Artemis walked to the vehicle, followed by Ilranor. He grabbed the ladder and suddenly, he was frozen in place. During the time it took him to be lifted inside of the futuristic plane, Artemis wondered what kind of technology caused his hands to lock over the ladder.
A woman in a white coat then appeared into view, a thick syringe in her hand. "This is called a tracker, Artemis. Stay still and it will be placed in your arm more easily," she told him in a cold tone.
Artemis could praise himself lucky that he was not afraid of needles… Nevertheless, Artemis let out a gasp. That needle had hurt even more than the first time Holly had hit him. A sharp pain had filled his entire arm as the woman inserted his tracking device under his skin.
From then on, he officially appeared on the Gamemaker's screens.
Ilranor climbed on board shortly after Artemis and guided him to a place where a breakfast had been served. The stylist told Artemis to eat anything his stomach could hold, just in case he might not have a quick access to food in the arena.
The young man nodded. "I will…" he said, even if he did not exactly feel hungry due to the circumstances.
A good healthy breakfast and half an hour later, every window the tributes might have had access to within the hovercraft darkened.
"To keep the location of the arena a secret, I assume," said Artemis.
Ilranor nodded.
"You will be watching the Games," then commented Artemis, matter-of-factly.
"Yes, I will," answered Ilranor though she knew that Artemis's statement had not been a question. "And believe me, I will always be on District 3's side no matter what could happen."
"Thank you for the support…"
"I would never leave the Ice Prince and the Clockwork Angel down," she smiled at him.
Artemis replied to her smile with a genuine one; and those were rare coming from him.
Eventually, the stylist and the tribute were directed towards the ladder of the hovercraft once again. They were dropped into a dark tunnel, which led into catacombs. A Peacekeeper waited for them at the bottom of the tunnel, the man in white taking them to a door on which was written "MALE 3."
"This is it; your final stop…" Ilranor spoke quietly, putting a gentle hand on Artemis's shoulder.
"My final stop," Artemis repeated, his voice not so steady anymore. He looked at his stylist with something that could only be fright shining through his mismatching eyes.
Ilranor brought Artemis in the room and instructed him to go take a quick shower before the Games.
The teen nodded, heading for the small bathroom in the dim-lighted room.
After he got out, Ilranor handed him some undergarments and the same clothes she had given him in the morning and combed his raven black hair. After she was done, she opened a bag of clothes and looked through it. She pulled out a navy blue coat with multiple removable layers. "There is a small backpack directly sewed on the back of the coat, that way you will be able to put the layers you don't use in there."
"Smart," commented Artemis.
"And quite fashionable it you want my opinion," she pointed to the seams of the garment, which were of an icy blue color. "Very suiting," she winked, revealing that she had been the one requesting the color of the District 3 team. She helped to boy to get in his coat and gave him the boots that went along with it. They went slightly higher than his ankles and were made of a black material, which seemed very sturdy yet, extremely light. Ilranor then reached for one last thing in the pocket of her dress… It was Artemis's coin. She gave it to him, an encouraging smile on her lips.
Artemis took it between his fingers and threw the chain around his neck.
"Do you want some time alone before you are called?"
"No, I will get enough time alone in the arena…"
The woman offered him a glass of water and a bowl of fruit to snack on. Ilranor then told him to go brush his teeth; there was very little time left before the call.
When the inevitable time came, Ilranor took Artemis's hand and led him to a circular plate in the corner of the small room. "Best of luck, Artemis Fowl," she said as a countdown appeared on a screen on the wall.
5… 4… 3…
"Make us proud, Ice Prince!" called out Ilranor, her head high.
2… A glass tube circled Artemis. The boy took a deep breath. Make us proud… He would sure try.
1…
The tube was raised above the ground and led Artemis, as well as the other twenty-three tributes into the heart of the arena.
The light of day blinded the tributes when they emerged from the ground.
Once he got his own sight back, Artemis looked around, seeing Silver to his right and the small girl from District 8, Thea, on the other side.
A sixty seconds countdown began.
Silyah tried to locate everyone around her. At her sides were Elon and Zinque from 11. She could not see Artemis… Perhaps he had been placed right in front of her, hidden by the golden Cornucopia…
The girl took in the settings. The Cornucopia was located in the center of a huge circular meadow, which was surrounded by walls of water. Three enormous waterfalls, each segregated by three different paths, were trapping the tributes in the bloodbath… They would have to hike in order to get out of the meadow and get to a safer place… The air smelled of fresh grass, water and forest and the weather was temperate; warm with a sweet and cool breeze coming from the falls.
The major supplies, such as weapons and provisions were gathered at the mouth of the Cornucopia, while some other things such as bed sheets, small water bottles and nearly empty backpacks were scattered around the circle formed by the platforms.
Drawing one collective breath, the tributes waited for the countdown to end.
As he breathed, Artemis could feel that he was trembling… So, this is how Silyah felt like during the Reaping, he thought. His legs were shaking underneath the fabric of his black cargo pants.
Four seconds remained. While nervous hearts were beating loud, Caskar threw on a victorious smirk.
Artemis, on the other side, kept his face stern. Don't let them see the fear. Two seconds were left.
Claudius Templesmith activated his microphone. "Let the 80th Annual Hunger Games begin!"
As long as the first sixty seconds had been, the next ones passed in a distorted flash. Many tributes headed straight for the Cornucopia. Either they killed, either they died.
«It seems like like this chapter was the last one of the first part of Artemis Fowl and the Games of Hunger. Stay tuned for Part II.»
«Also, please notify that you may proceed at voting for your favorite tributes by leaving a review; the authors of this story intend on making a poll similar to the Capitol's with you, readers, as the Panem audience. Thank you, and may the odds be ever in your favor.»