Chapter 46:
One Day After The Quell Ended
Elias Pilkvist, 17, District Six
"We have them."
The Peacekeeper puts their radio away as she steps closer to them, looking around cautiously. Elias steps closer to Khaya, afraid of what they might do to him, the ingrained belief of his parents still finding a way to impact him. Khaya grabs his arm and gives it a squeeze, but it does not do much to diminish the growing fear in him. "What side are you on?" Khaya asks slowly once more.
The Head Peacekeeper stops in front of her, staring down with the blank mask, before reaching for the radio once more. "We need med evac asap, one is injured. We also have the rebel Khaya Christian."
The Peacekeepers step forward and quickly pull Khaya away from them, and Elias reaches out for her but she is pulled from his grasp. Khaya does not do anything to fight off the handcuffs being placed on her wrists, but Elias steps forward after her. "No, she helped us."
The Head Peacekeeper turns her blank stare towards Elias, sending him stepping back in fear and he bumps into Anastacia who puts a hand on his shoulder. "It's true," Anastacia speaks up, surprising Elias since she hesitated so much to follow Khaya. "She was supposed to bring us to the meeting but instead helped us escape."
The radio beeps before the Peacekeeper can respond, bringing a franctic voice to them. "The President is down, we need to evacuate immediately. All troops on guard!"
The Peacekeepers all immediately aim their guns at the rebel while closing in around them, making Elias whimper in fear. "What is happening? Answer, now!"
"I don't know!" Khaya answers, fear entering her voice as she holds up her hands defensively. "I swear, give me the truth serum again, whatever happened, I did not know!"
"We need to get out of here now," the Head Peacekeeper shouts as the Peacekeepers jump into action, each taking hold of a tribute or rebel, while two take Adam out of Fox's arms and start putting pressure on his bullet wound. The woman yells into her radio again, giving them their coordinates, looking around the clearing still and keeping her gun aimed at the forest surrounding them.
"What do they mean, the President is down?" Amelia asks quietly as the tributes huddle together, fear making them grab onto each other. It does not matter that they were in the arena just days before, Elias does not want anything happening to them. He did not want to fight them then and now…now he is afraid of what might happen. Elias lets out a whimper of fear and Anastacia uses the hand on his shoulder to pull him closer to her, pulling out the knife that she has hidden from the Peacekeepers.
"Elin, what the fuck did you do?" Khaya whispers to no one as the wind begins blowing around them and soon a hovercraft appears, landing a short distance ahead in an open space.
"Let's move!" The Head Peacekeeper shouts before letting out a whistle, bringing a few bird mutts swooping down and one lands on her outstretched arm as they run towards the hovercraft. Elias is pulled along, away from the other tributes in the rush to get out of Seven, and he cries out for the others and reaches out for the closest one, but Fox is kept out of reach. "We need to get them safe in the Capitol."
Soon they are brought onto the hovercraft and before the door even fully shuts, they are taking off into the air, with the Peacekeepers scattering around them, most focused on getting Adam stabilized, and Fox follows after them when they take Adam into another space. Elias wraps his arms around himself, desperately trying to hold on and not break down in terror from what is happening to them. His actions are noticed by Amelia and the girl steps towards him, pulling him into a hug and when she lets out her own sob, Elias can no longer keep his tears of fear in and soon they are pouring down his cheeks. "Oh God," Amelia whispers, desperately clutching him and Elias slowly puts his arms around her, unsure what to even do.
"What's happening?" Anastacia asks them, looking in their direction, and Amelia reaches out and pulls her into the hug, making the career let out of huff of surprise. "You know, I didn't think I would need a warning for hugs," Anastacia tells them, yet Elias feels her put her arm around him and tears silently falling down her cheeks.
"Are we safe?" Elias asks them, terrified of the possible answer, but needing to know. "I just want to be safe and not have to fight…"
The Head Peacekeeper steps over to them, taking off her helmet and shaking out her hair, "I should introduce myself, I'm Sergeant Apone, Capitol special agent. We're rushing back to the Capitol right now…so yes, you're safe now." Apone turns her focus to Khaya sitting calmly and watching them, seemingly surprising the agent. "As for this one…we'll let Kostas decide what happens to them."
Khaya nods her head in understanding, looking defeated by this. "I understand, but please know that I'm willing to cooperate with anything you need. I don't agree with what the rebels did with these tributes, which is why we got them out of there. They…they weren't going to keep their word about letting them live."
"Again, what happens with you is out of my hands." Apone stares at Khaya for a few long seconds, before nodding her head and turning back to the tributes. "Do either of you have any injuries?"
They all slowly shake their heads, even though Elias would not know if he was. Amelia releases them from the hug, but grabs onto both of their hands to keep them close. "What was that about the President…? And will Adam be okay?" Amelia asks, her voice wavering.
Apone sighs as she briefly pauses to listen to a quiet voice on the radio, muffled from Elias by the sounds of the hovercraft around them. "I don't know what happened to the President, my team was strictly on search duties. As for Adam…I haven't looked at the wound so I can't say…"
"Are we really heading to the Capitol?" Anastacia asks Apone, getting a reassuring nod of the head.
"But…" Elias frowns as he looks between the three of them, unsure what is going to happen. "Are we in trouble?"
Apone immediately gives him a look of confusion at this question. "Trouble? Why would you be in trouble?"
Elias shakes his head, struggling to put together his feelings about what has happened. "It has all happened so fast… We were taken from the Hunger Games, are we in trouble for that?"
Apone quickly shakes her head at him, starting to frown, "Of course not…why would you be punished for something that wasn't in your control?"
"I do not know," Elias answers quietly, but he does know. He knows it is from the years of abuse his family inflicted on him that still influences the way he thinks…
"Well I don't know what will happen once we get to the Capitol, but I know your safe rescue was deemed a very high priority so I doubt there will be any punishment for you," Apone reassures them and Elias nods his head at her. "It won't be too long until we reach there, but for now… Khaya, come with me," Apone tells Khaya, her voice demanding and Khaya obediently stands up and follow Apone out of the room. The rebel glances back at the three of them before Apone puts a hand on her shoulder, pushing her gently out of there.
The door slides shut behind them and Anastacia looks around, trying to get a sense of what is happening. "You know, Khaya doesn't seem like too bad of a person," Anastacia says in the silence, giving a shrug of her shoulders. "Some rebels aren't bad people…like my parents, they were just trying to protect me. Doesn't excuse them, but…people do a lot to protect people they love…" Anastacia trails off, turning her face down to her lap, but Elias can still see the way she scrunches her eyebrows together.
"But what happens to us now?" Amelia asks them and Elias shakes his head, having no idea what to answer her. "I…God, I shot someone."
"Is it that much different than killing in the arena?" Anastacia asks her and when Amelia lets out a whimper, Anastacia sighs as she reaches out to Amelia, patting her awkwardly on the arm. "You were surviving… I think that's different."
"I sure hope it is," Amelia whispers, shaking her head as she stares down at the floor of the hovercraft. The door to the next room over opens and Elias looks over to see Fox stumbling towards them, staring down at the floor as tears pour down his cheeks. "Fox?" Amelia asks, her voice full of concern for him as he takes a few steps into the room before his legs give out under him and he drops down to his knees. Amelia jumps up to run over to him, crouching down next to him to put an arm around him and he leans against her shoulder, letting out a sob as he clutches her shirt.
"I-" Fox tries to start, voice muffled by being pressed against Amelia and broken up by his sobs. Amelia rubs his back as she looks over at Anastacia and Elias, and Elias can feel his own eyes prickling from just seeing Fox upset. It does not matter that he does not know what has upset Fox, but seeing him sad… Elias lets out a whimper and Anastacia reaches over, grabbing his arm at first and using it to guide her to his hand that she takes and holds tightly. "Adam, he- he didn't-"
"Shh, it's okay," Amelia tells him as she wraps both arms around him, holding him tighter as his sobs get louder. Amelia looks over at Anastacia and Elias, tears falling down her cheeks too as she keeps trying to comfort Fox.
"He did not what?" Elias asks Fox, confusion filling him and also a bit of self-directed…he does not know, but he does not like the feeling in him that he should be able to know what he meant without asking.
"He didn't make it," Anastacia answers for Fox and Elias turns his attention to her, looking at her with wide eyes. "It could have been anyone of us that didn't make it out of there alive…"
That statement is enough to make the tears finally start to fall down Elias' cheeks as fear overwhelms him at just the thought that he could have died there. He could have died in the arena…he might have if he had to go into the finale as he is not sure he would have been able to fight Odyssey, Delta, and Demarcus…
But why does he deserve to be alive and not the others in the arena?
Anastacia Astoria, 18, District One
Anastacia can only cling to the others as they are brought into the Games Headquarters, letting them guide her in since she can't see where they are. It takes so much in her to trust that these people are being truthful with her and if it wasn't for Amelia beside her and explaining everything going on, she wouldn't believe them.
Amelia gently pulls her to a stop and Anastacia stumbles, grabbing Elias' hand tighter to keep her balance. "They're taking us into rooms to get checked over… And Adam's body…"
"I'm not leaving you guys. If the rebels couldn't separate us, a bunch of know it all doctors sure as hell won't," Anastacia says resolutely, fixing a glare in the direction she thinks the doctors are standing. Yet she knows the brash attitude and sass is part of her putting up a front, not wanting the others to know just how shaken up she is right now from what has happened… Elias and Amelia are both looking to her to be strong while poor Fox is just trying to hold it all together after losing Adam. She has to be strong for them…
Yet she did just get out of a rebel kidnapping and being held as a bargaining chip. She thinks she is allowed to have a little bit of time to feel…she doesn't even know. Unsettled. Yeah, unsettled…by how close she came to death once more. It was different in the arena where she knew exactly how it worked. She would kill or be killed and her allies could have turned on her at any time. But the motives were all the same there. They were all trying to make it out of the arena alive.
But in Seven with the rebels? There was no certainty there despite what they said about her parents helping them. Anastacia didn't know the motives of the rebels and that's a dangerous thing. And for one of them to have died in their escape, all while protecting the rest of them… Yeah, safe to say that Anastacia is a little shaken by everything that's happened.
Elias needs her, even Amelia – though Anastacia suspects the girl doesn't want to admit it either that she's shaken – and so she'll keep up the mood that everything is just fine, throw in some sass until she's alone eventually and can process everything that has happened. They are all victims of the rebels and they need help, and Anastacia has no problem being that person for them. After all, that's why she volunteered in the first place.
"Very well," the head doctor finally says after a few long moments of consideration. Amelia starts to guide Anastacia into a room after the doctor and she's met with the gross smell of the hospital. "Everyone can take a seat and we'll look over all of you individually. And as long as none of you need any major surgery, once we're done you are free to move around the floor and we can set up rooms for you."
Anastacia bumps into a chair and lets out a huff of annoyance, followed by a quick apology from Amelia. She tries to keep holding onto Elias when he lets out a whimper of fear, but a doctor gently tries to pry her arm away, making Anastacia slap their hand away and glare at them. "Anastacia, I need your arm to give you some fluids. All of you need an IV after being in the Games and then imprisoned. Please."
Anastacia lets out a loud sigh before holding out her arm, staring blankly at the doctor – at least she really hopes she's staring at them – as there's the prick of the needle into her arm followed by rustling next to her as they get the bag set up. "Are you okay, Elias?" Anastacia asks as the doctor lets go of her arm, turning in his direction.
"I think so," Elias answers slowly, his voice hoarse from all the crying he did on the hovercraft on the way back to the Capitol. "The needle did not hurt."
"Good," Anastacia gives him a smile before turning in the direction of Amelia and Fox, hating that she can't hear them as well as she should be able to. Hey, maybe they can fix that now. "Amelia? Fox?"
"We'll be alright," Amelia answers quietly, but her voice wavers and Anastacia doesn't need to see to tell that they will not, in fact, be alright.
"Yeah, me too," Anastacia says under her breath, dropping all her stubborn sass for a moment. But she shakes her head, turning back to the doctor that is looking over her for injuries. "Hey aren't you going to do something about my sight? Or their senses lost?"
There's a long silence filled only with the sounds of the doctors as they move around, cleaning out some wounds on her and bandaging them. Finally, after a few minutes of silence, the head doctor speaks up once more, "They damaged your trackers when they took you and the trackers were what controlled the nanobots that blocked the receptors for your senses… At this time, we don't have a way to reverse it, but Head Gamemaker Lukianas has already put his science team to work on looking at alternatives. So I won't say it's not a possibility in the future, but for now…"
Anastacia is tense as the doctor trails off, taking in everything she just said… "Fuck," Anastacia whispers under her breath, blinking rapidly to fight back the stupid tears that want to fall down her face. She can't let any of them see her reacting this way, not when she's the one needing to be strong for them. And if she reacts poorly to it, they will do the same. She has to protect them. Anastacia crosses her arms as best as she can with the IV in it and leans back, shutting her eyes to stop the traitorous tears. "Well you all better give me every accommodation you can to learn to live with being blind. I want the best service dog the Capitol can provide me."
"Of course," the head doctor responds quietly as they get back to work, and one tries to pry Anastacia's arm away and she slaps their hand away.
"And I want surgery to fix my hearing," Anastacia tells them, at least wanting that one selfish thing for herself, despite feeling a little guilty for just wanting to do something selfish. But how is she supposed to help the others if she can't see and can't hear properly?
Anastacia holds in a sigh as she sits there, struggling to put together the mess of thoughts and feelings to this news. The others will be fine, but Anastacia? She has to learn to live while being fucking blind. They were promised going into the Games that their sense would be restored after it was all over, but that was a lie. Of course it was a fucking lie. All because her parents had to fucking interfere in the Games and get her caught up in this bullshit rebel stuff. She could have won the Games if they would have left her in that arena. She knows she could have done it…
But is it better to know for sure she'll live while blind than have the uncertainty of the Games?
Anastacia has no idea and she probably won't ever know the answer to that.
"Anastacia?" Elias asks quietly and Anastacia turns her head in his direction, keeping her eyes shut because she still doesn't trust that tears won't fall down her cheeks. Hey, one plus side to being blind is she can't see pity on anyone's faces as they look at her. "Are you okay?"
Anastacia gives a shrug at this, really not knowing the answer to that right now. "I'll be fine," Anastacia answers him, feeling it's the closest to not being a lie that she can say without really telling him how she's doing. She doesn't want to lie to him, not with the innocence to him that has been broken by the people who have hurt him in the past…
One thing Anastacia knows for sure is that she can't sit around here doing nothing once the doctors are done. She can't be left to her thoughts as she deals with the knowledge that she'll never be able to see again. She'll procrastinate those thoughts until she's alone and can let out the anger and frustration, cry and get it all out of her system before pulling herself back together and moving on since she can't change it. But she sure as hell will never let Seraphim Lukianas live it down that he did this to her.
"What do you say that we bail from this place when we're done?" Anastacia asks them, hearing a huff of disagreement from one of the doctors, making Anastacia roll her eyes. They were the ones that told them they could in the first place. "I want to go see the victor."
Odyssey Gunderson, Victor of the Sixth Quarter Quell
Odyssey has yet to take up the doctors on the offer to move around within the hospital to keep up his strength, too afraid of facing other people just yet. Misha had been sent away by the doctors and to the District Two floor, all of them insisting that they both need rest and that won't happen if they're together, but Odyssey slept like shit after Misha left. And now as the day progresses without even anything on the TV to watch – he couldn't spend another minute watching Kora analyze every aspect of his Games – Odyssey is starting to contemplate the freedom to move around even more.
It's not until the doctors fail to do their hourly check in that Odyssey finally gets up, deciding for himself to go investigate what is going on. He slowly stands up from the bed, testing out his legs for a few seconds before taking a deep breath and standing up fully – his ass thankfully not exposed by the hospital gown – gripping the side table for support for a moment. But his legs don't give out and he lets out a breath of relief before grapping the metal poll on wheels holding his IV drip and begins slowly pushing it towards the door, still a little worried about seeing people. Yet the doctors have all been kind to him, giving him no reason to fear them.
It's the people outside of the hospital he's worried about, including Misha. A nasty part of his brain can't help but assume that after seeing how broken he is and having time away, Misha is going to realize Odyssey is too much for him to handle. He keeps trying to push that thought away whenever it rears its nasty head, but it's hard when there's nothing else for him to think about. He knows it isn't true…Misha reassured him that many times before they ended up sleeping away most of the day together.
Odyssey hesitates at the door, before sighing and pushing it open, needing to get out of this room before it starts feeling claustrophobic, and that is going to happen very quickly. Odyssey sticks his head out the door, glancing up and down the hallway, but finding no one around. "Hello?" he calls out as he steps out into the hallway, waiting to see if there will be any response, but he's met only with silence.
Weird…
Odyssey steps out of his room, slowly starting to walk up the hallway, carefully pulling the stand full of tubes connected to him, not wanting to create another injury by ripping anything out. He thought there would be more people around, at least a doctor or nurse walking around, but it's empty… Only making him feel even more isolated and terrible towards himself. Are people avoiding him, afraid of what he might do? They all saw what he did in the arena and surely they have seen the bruise on the Head Gamemaker's face…
"Odyssey?"
Odyssey stops right away at the hesitant voice calling out to him, having to take a moment to place the voice to the face. And when he does…he quickly turns around to look at them, in disbelief that they are actually here after the awful broadcast that was made yesterday. He stares at them for a few seconds as they keep walking towards him, Amelia clutching Fox as he hobbles along with his head down, while Anastacia and Elias walk together, hands held as the boy guides Odyssey's former ally. The sight immediately confuses him at their closeness but he soon starts walking towards them, shaking his head in disbelief at seeing them here. "You're alive…"
"Wait, Odyssey won?" Anastacia asks, looking around and not exactly meeting his gaze, stopping him in his tracks, reminding him of the way she would talk to him in the arena.
"I did…" Odyssey hesitantly answers, realizing that Anastacia is still blind. He looks down at his prosthetic hand, a confusing mix of feelings swirling in his stomach at the sight of his former ally. The last time he saw her…well, it wasn't the best ending for him.
"Huh," Anastacia says as the group slows in front of him, Amelia looking him over and noticing his hand, making Odyssey move his hand behind his back. "No one told us who actually won, guess they didn't care about which career won. Sorry about the hand, you know, I realized after that maybe it wasn't a good idea to have the blind one pour the metal."
"Yeah, neither of us was thinking clearly… It's fine," Odyssey tells her, even if it's most definitely not fine. He stops in front of them, looking at Anastacia for a moment before reaching out and putting a hand on her arm, trying to ignore the way she flinches in surprise at his touch at first. "I'm glad you're safe… I have so many questions… What happened? Where's Adam?"
"Adam…" Amelia starts to say, her lips quivering as her eyes start to water. "He didn't…"
"He took a bullet for me," Fox says, finally picking up his head to look at Odyssey. Tears are pouring down his cheeks as he slowly takes a few steps towards him, before his legs give out and he drops down to his knees, letting out a sob, "I got him back and lost him…"
Odyssey starts frowning at this, unsure what to say to him… He knows what it's like to lose a friend and he can see Adam's death is hurting him as much as Bell's death hurt him. And he knows that no amount of words of comfort are going to soothe him right now. Instead, Odyssey takes a few hesitant steps forward and Fox watches him carefully, trying to wipe his tears away but they're quickly replaced. Odyssey slowly reaches out, slow enough to give Fox time to step away from him if he wants to – and Odyssey fully expects him to for a few seconds, before realizing that Fox might not know what Odyssey has done and have no reason to fear him. Odyssey puts his good hand on Fox's shoulder, giving it a squeeze to try and comfort him, knowing a hug from a career might be too much for him. "I'm so sorry… I lost my friend too so I guess, I just…I know what you're feeling."
Fox nods his head and puts his hand over Odyssey's, patting it a couple times as he tries to force a smile at Odyssey. "He died for me…I don't deserve that…"
Odyssey moves his hand away and takes a step back at this, turning away from Fox before he can see the tears threatening to fall. Little does Fox know just how close his words hit home for Odyssey. Does he deserve Bell dying for him to be here? He doesn't know the answer and it terrifies him… "At least you weren't the one that killed your friend…" Odyssey whispers to himself before taking a deep breath and turning to the ceiling, trying to blink back his tears. After a few seconds pass and he thinks he can hold back the tears, he turns back to them and tries his best to ignore the concerned looks on some of their faces. "It sucks and I have no idea how to even move on myself…"
Someone clears their throat and Amelia helps Fox stand back up as they all turn to look, finding the two remaining Council Members approaching them, along with a woman he does not recognize, and Odyssey can tell the bad news is just going to continue. He saw the broadcast and what Luciano did, explaining why there are only two Council Members. But…
The woman he doesn't know clears her throat, stepping forward to shake all of their hands. "Ishani Kostas, Head of Security. Apone debriefed me on what happened in District Seven. I…it's good to see most of you safe back in the Capitol."
Odyssey doesn't miss her saying most and glances back at Fox, finding the man silently crying as he nods his head. Amelia is staring at the three people, pulling Anastacia and Elias a little closer to her protectively. "What happened in the meeting? Where's the President?" Amelia asks them, making Odyssey look between the two groups in confusion. "Is he safe?"
"Something happened to him?" Odyssey asks, but no one answers him, instead staring at each other. "What did I miss? It wasn't broadcast on TV… I swear I've been watching the news."
"It wasn't shown to the country yet," Rosabella answers him, the frown deepening on her face. Theodosius puts a hand on her shoulder, silently comforting her to continue, "But it will be…the country needs to know what the rebels did. They…"
Theodosius continues for her when she cuts off, unable to finish the sentence. "They used a mutt to attack him with a deadly neurotoxin. They let a child make demands for their group of renegades and this is what happened. Damn it, we never should have gone there!"
Theodosius slams his fist into the wall, making all of them jump at the sudden burst of anger, and Odyssey eyes the indent he made before taking a small step back from him. He doesn't doubt what the man from Two can do, knowing who he is related to.
Odyssey doesn't know what to think about this news, just having a slowly sinking feeling forming in his stomach. How…they killed the President? He turns to look at his fellow tributes to see how they're reacting, finding a mix of emotions in their group. Anastacia has a slight frown on her face, a similar reaction to Odyssey. Elias has a blank look on his face, the only sign of his internal swirling emotions being the slight furrow of his brow. But Amelia and Fox…Amelia has started crying at the news and Fox steps towards her, pulling her into a hug as he also keeps crying.
Kostas steps forward, hands behind her back and face the calmest of the group to address the group. And what a group they are… "We knew the risk of going to District Seven and did our best to prevent this outcome. However, we did not anticipate the rebels having their own muttation research. President Xavier knew the risk, yet insisted on going to them to show he was willing to do whatever it took to not only get the tributes back, but reduce the rebel threat." Kostas turns to face Theodosius, lowering her head in defeat, "Sir, I understand this is my fault as Head of Security for not anticipating this and accounting for it. I will take whatever disciplinary action you deem necessary and would like to offer my resignation."
"I deny it," Theodosius answers immediately, making Kostas bring her head up to stare at him. "I didn't anticipate it either, none of us did. You've done good work and we are going to need you moving forward."
"Very well, sir," Kostas stands up straighter once more, a bit of pride mixing in to the turmoil on her face. "I will begin working on a strategy for protecting our surviving tributes and victor."
"Yes," Theodosius agrees quietly, turning his attention over to the group and reminding Odyssey so much of being under the sharp looks of the trainers in Two. "We got the tributes back…but was the cost worth it?" Theodosius asks Rosabella, but as he looks around at them, Odyssey knows the question is directed towards them, silently asking if their lives were worth the life of the President.
"Absolutely," Rosabella answers, her voice filled with surprising resolution given the tears still falling down her cheeks. "Mendalius wanted nothing more than to protect the country and its citizens… I have no doubt that he would be happy knowing that by meeting with the rebels, he distracted them long enough for them to get out to safety."
A somber silence falls over them and Odyssey looks at the four survivors, finding various amounts of guilt on their faces. "But what happens now?" Odyssey asks when it seems like no one else is going to speak up. "Is there still a threat? And…who takes over as President?"
Rosabella shares a look with Theodosius, who gestures to her. "In the event of the President's death, the Council will decide which one amongst themselves will lead until there can be an election. And I know we have discussed this before, I just never thought I'd ever see this day… We move forward with the plan that President Xavier had been about to execute."
"And what is that?" Amelia asks, finding a bit of bravery and speaking for their ragtag group of survivors.
Rosabella takes a long moment to look at each of them in turn before finally answering Amelia. "We will need you help moving forward, all of you, not just Odyssey. The country needs to know what the rebels have done to band them together on the side of the Capitol so they will stick by us for the plan to change the Hunger Games and ultimately end them."
And we have the resolution of the double cliffhangers and have our answer to who survived the subplot and who has not... One final time, a eulogy to do:
Adam Vignola [7], Official Ranked 20th, Killed by Rebels:
I debated for a long time if Adama was going to live or not through the rebel kidnapping. But ultimately, I felt it was right for his character that he went out sacrificing his life so his friend can live and be a father for his family. He never wanted violence and just wanted to be a good father for his baby, yet got caught up in a whole lot of rebel bullshit for something he didn't even know he was part of. Even though he will never get to be a father to Cain, he still died happy knowing he saved Fox and trusts him and the others to care for Cain. Thank you Goldie for sending Adam! RIP Adam.
And so...we have our victor and survivors. I have loved writing Anastacia, Amelia, Elias, and Fox so much and just knew that I couldn't kill them and had to save them through the subplot. Each of them has such great qualities to them and I can't wait to keep writing them in this verse. You know what? I'll do some short acknowledgements for them like I did with Odyssey.
Anastacia Astoria [1], Survivor of the Quarter Quell:
Anastacia has been one I knew for a long time that I loved and wanted to live through the subplot, probably since around writing the D1 intro. Her history with Pad and Major was so complex and I loved the entire dynamic of the D1 pair and Anastacia working towards her goal, and ultimately getting it because she is able to help the other survivors. Sometimes, you can do a whole lot just by helping out a few people and Anastacia is slowly realizing that, and also realizing that she will have some friends now for the first time in five years. She did get a bit of the short end of the stick here being blind still, but she certainly is not going to let that slow her down and she will totally master glaring at people. Thank you Legend for sending me Anastacia! I can't wait to keep writing her and allow her to live our her dream T.T
Amelia Fensa [3], Survivor of the Quarter Quell:
Did you really think I was going to kill Amelia after everything she went through with losing Aero the previous year? Come on, I'm not THAT mean...(okay, maybe I can be a bit masochistic but not this time lol). Just like with Anastacia, I knew for a long time that Amelia was going to live through the subplot. I've loved writing her since I wrote her back in Overlooked. It's been so much fun developing her and writing her struggles as she tries to piece herself back together and figure out just who she is after losing Aero and starting a new life for herself in D3 - and will continue to do so. She's become brave and willing to fight when necessary, yet still hurting after everything she's gone through. Thank you Glader for being masochistic like me and sending Amelia! Looking forward to her future!
Elias Pilkvist [6], Survivor of the Quarter Quell:
Of the four survivors, Elias is the only one that was not originally in my plans way at the start of the story. But as I wrote him, I just fell in love with him more and more each time I wrote him and just couldn't kill him. And so the poor boy got wrapped up in the subplot and here he is! I think we all know that if he had stayed in the Games, he wouldn't have been able to fight in the finale, or he would have and felt immense guilt for following what his parents tried to force him to do. I've absolutely loved writing his internal conflict as he fought against his parents and doing what was necessary to survive. And now, he does get to survive while not doing exactly what his parents were training him to do and he now has found someone who cares for him. We still have a lot to see with the resolution of what will happen to his parents and where he will go next. Thank you Mik for sending Elias! Finally one of your boys has made it out alive from one of my stories haha XD I can't wait for you to see what I have planned for him!
Fox Durham [10], Survivor of the Quarter Quell:
And finally we have Fox. What a valid boy he is. Yeah, Fox is another one I've loved for a long time and he is one who really just deserves happiness with his family. He's been part of this plan for a long time too. He's just...so good and never wanted to fight, yet he managed to get out of that arena alive without ever hurting anyone. His friendship with Adam and then the unexpected one with Amelia have shown how good, albeit naive, of a person he is, trusting people and wanting to see them live. But his trust was needed in the escape from the rebels. Unfortunately he was unable to save Adam and that will take a big toll on him moving forward, but he luckily has support from the unexpected group of friends he now has and his family. I know a lot of people have loved Fox too and just wanted to see him be happy, but didn't think he would win the Games (you weren't wrong there lol), and now you will get to see him live his life and be a dad. Thank you Paper for sending Fox! I can't wait to keep writing this father and to see what's in store with his family!
What can I say, there were a lot of tributes that I've loved from the very start XD I just couldn't bring myself to kill all of them. Hmm, maybe I'm going a little soft and need to up the angst for the sequel. But on the topic of the sequel...next chapter we will get some much needed information on how the Games are going to get changed up for the 151st Hunger Games! And then the chapter after that will be when subs officially open for both tributes and escorts!
Also I know what you might be thinking: 'Lauren, you just doomed a whole bunch of tributes in other stories!' Well, you would be right there if I was following the same rule as I do with victors. For the tributes subbed by submitters of one of the survivors, I'm not going to outright doom them, but I am instead going to consider other tributes first as options for victors. So Sissel and Grey are still in the running for Legacy (although maybe people would want Grey out of the running lol), and any potential tributes in 151st will still be eligible for winning!
This is quite the lengthy A/N on top of a lengthy chapter, so I'm going to stop now. We only have five more updates left of this story and it's wild how close we are to the end! I'll see you next week!