Stefan Roberts, 18
District Two Male, Pair 2
Paired with Violet Hardgrove, District Nine Female
Endless hills and meadows for as far as the eye could see. Small pockets of forest within the valleys. All around me, the world was full of singing birds that darted through the grey clouds. Swift black things, almost like bats, flying close to the ground, catching small flies.
In front of me, where the podiums faced, was a large lake that seemed endless from where I stood. About a 100 meters away from the podiums was a small, circular island, being eaten away by years of water against the limestone foundations (After living in Two, knowledge on erosion became second nature). Upon the island was a three story, old stone castle with no windows or roof. A ruin of the grand structure that should have been there.
However, what was most unsettling was the lack of weapons scattered around. Even through the small windows there was no crates or weapons in sight.
"This doesn't look right," I whispered to Violet who was stood next to me on the podium. She gave a nod of her head as she looked around.
"Whatever is up, we have to swim," she said, gesturing to the body of water that surrounded us.
I gave a small laugh. "It's a good job I can swim, huh?" Violet didn't share in my amusement. Instead, she looked terrified.
"I can't."
June Briony, 17
District Eleven Female, Pair 9
Paired with Mikeo Nunez, District 8 Male
"Look!" Mikeo called to me, hanging off the side of the podium, I crouched down next to him, remembering the year the girl was blown sky high for a single slip. I followed his shaking finger to three slots, varying in size. They were just above the water's surface and unreachable from the top of the platform.
"Tributes!" Zircon's voice called causing us all to jump into a standing position once more. "As you can see, this year is...different from other bloodbaths. For the next twenty-four hours, no killing will take place, and murder will be punishable, however, injuries are permitted." The group of Tributes muttered among themselves some, like the Careers, seemed angered by this development where the rest looked relieved they might survive one more day.
"The differences do not stop there. As you have most likely guessed, there are no supplies within the castle, only Capitol coins. There are three different ones to collect, each offering life-saving supplies. However, there are no weapons and the more valuable the coin is, the harder it will be to obtain. In your pairs, you must collect as many coins as you can within ten minutes and place them in the correct slot on your podium. Any collected after these ten minutes will not count."
Linden Hunter, 18
District Seven Male, Pair 8
Paired with Laura Hope, District Twelve Female
"Let the 75th Hunger Games begin...and may the odds be ever in your favor!" Zircon snarled.
Twenty, Nineteen, Eighteen
"The important ones will be on the top floor...judging by the slots, they will be bigger too," Laura whispered, her breathing rapid.
I gave a nod. "Just focus on what you can get...anything will be useful."
Rory James, 18
District Three Male, Pair 3
Paired with Psyche Wells, District Six Female
Fifteen, fourteen, thirteen
I was from three, I was meant to be born smart, a sly fox when it came to games. However, like Psyche, I was completely lost. No doubt we had floatation devices so we wouldn't all drown yet the fear of the Bloodbath had not vanished. The Tributes could do everything but kill me. Just a broken leg could seal my fate.
Psyche jumped, grabbing my arm when a shriek broke through Zircon's countdown. I whipped my head around to Ellie who yelled in fear as her backpack showered her in a thick, red liquid.
"Don't open your pack," I mumbled, kicking our backpacks behind us. It was clear we wouldn't be using them to carry the coins.
"It looks like blood," Psyche said, her voice trembling.
"Don't focus on them. Focus on us."
Paisley Delacor, 18
District One Female, Pair 1
Paired with Ezra Arlington, District One
Ten
"What a joke," I growled as I pivoted on the edge of the platform. "Aim for the best, injure who you can, make sure as few people as possible get their supplies," I whispered to Ezra.
Qanom Harklee, 18
District Five Male, Pair 6
Paired with Hyacinth Rogers, District Twelve Male
Nine
"This isn't going to be a normal game, Hy," I sighed, trying my best to hide my fear.
"It never was," he replied.
Niko Davenport, 16
District Four Male, Pair 4
Paired with Akhal Breker, District Ten Female
Eight
"I can't swim...I'm frightened of water," Akhal said, her body shivering. For a fish out of the water like me, it was hard to believe but I could see the fear in her eyes.
"Just follow my lead."
Chrisjen Dalteir, 17
District Seven Female, Pair 12
Paired with Andrew Strauss, District Eleven Male
Seven
I should have been thinking about the coins or the deathless bloodbath but my mind could only stray to my siblings back home. Huddled around the TV, maybe cheering me on. No food for days, dirty clothes, empty cupboards and no parent figure. It was far more terrifying than anything the Game could throw at me.
Frederick Loophole, 16
District Ten Male, Pair 11
Paired with Althea Falen, District Five Female
Six
"I know you don't like me," Althea said through gritted teeth. "But if we want to survive this, we have to work together."
I bit my tongue, holding back any sarcastic comment. "Fine."
Gary Winslow, 18
District Six Male, Pair 7
Paired with Cerulean Westwood, District Eight Female
Five
"You need to be brave," I said to Cerulean. She didn't answer, eyes trained on the water below. I took her hand in mine. "We can do this together."
Violet Hardgrove, 17
District Nine Female, Pair 2
Paired with Stefan Roberts, District Two Male
Four
"You wait here, I'll get the coins-"
"Won't you need help?" I asked Stefan. He offered a smirk.
"Of course not, I can do it by myself."
Three
As the Tributes waited, a bone-shaking growl erupted from below the waves, followed shortly by a large creature in the distance.
Two
A leather-like creature, the size of a large truck. It's long, slender neck and blunt teeth giving the animal a prehistoric look.
One...let the Games begin.
Authors Notes:
I'm intrigued what the reaction to this will be. The Bloodbath was always going to involve no deaths. However, the game aspect of it only recently came into play. It's based around a British show called I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here! Because I enjoy watching trash TV while working XD
So yeah, the reason there are no deaths is down to a few reasons. One, I doubt the Capitol would throw away almost half of the Tributes and most pairs in the first hour. I think eleven died in the 74th? Two, I want to explore dynamics more. After introducing the band twist two chapters ago, I wasn't going to just let that fade. Three, I'm attached and I'm holding off killing anyone! However, this doesn't mean Tributes won't get severely injured in the coming chapter.
The aim of the game is simple. The pairs (who are on the same podiums) must swim 100 meters to the "Cornucopia" where they must find coins. There are three types. The harder to find they are, the better supplies they will give. The Tributes must then swim back to their podiums to place the coin in the right slot. Only then will it count. The supplies will be chosen randomly by the Capitol (me) then gifted to them. Say that Andrew gets an easy coin, he could get anything from matches to nail clippers. All supplies will be useful in some way but there will be no weapons. (You can start sponsoring after the next chapter, I'll have the list up in that chapter too).
And for the Arena? Well, it's Scotland. No place in particular just generic Scotland. I've always found it to be beautiful and romantic. I didn't expect anyone to get it. Knowing this, I'm sure you can guess who the Mutt is. Oh, it's summertime in this Arena too, hence the swallows in Stefan's POV. It will still be cold though XD