District 2: Jaehaera Blackfyre (17) Pov-

Pixel Watt rushes closer and closer to the cornucopia, followed by the enormous mutt and the pulsating tide of water at her heels. As she grows closer and her appearance clearer, I take a quick check of her body to see if she's severely injured in any way. A few bruises here and there. Some cuts and scrapes. But nothing major.

Then I look down at myself. For the last few minutes I've been wiping the blood off of my leg and chest. It leaks in small rivers from the gash that Jaro gave me just before he let out his last breath. I finally decide it's too late to do any more healing. I quickly bind a thick bandage over the cut, slide on my plastic-y body armor, and hold my sword at the ready.

The shine on Pixel's skin tells me she's wearing body armor too. Crap. That won't make it impossible to kill her, just much, much harder. And there's the issue of the elephant-sized canine behind her. But for now I need to take things one at a time.

District 3: Pixel Watt (12) Pov-

When I finally reach the cornucopia I jump onto the roof, where Jaehaera also stands. My final opponent. The girl I'm either going to kill or be killed by. The mutt barrels closer and closer, teeth bared, snarling.

I don't even have time to breathe. Jaehaera lunges forward and swipes at me with her sword. She has a kind of dangerous grace in her movements that makes my stomach twist in terror.

With a yelp I stumble backward, narrowly dodging the blade of her sword.

I quickly unstrap the crossbow from my back and fire at Jaehaera. The 2 girl quickly leaps out from the path of the dart. Now to my right, I have to turn to face her, and in that moment Jaehaera makes another blow. Before I know it the blade of her sword is buried into my waist, one of the few parts of my body the armor doesn't cover. A terrible, fiery agony erupts through my body. More excruciating than anything I've ever felt before. Period.

Suddenly a weird realization strikes me. Unless the mutt suddenly broke a leg or something, it should have reached the cornucopia by now. I quickly look up and can't believe my eyes. The mutt is being kept a certain distance away by some kind of electrical pulse inflicted by the gamemakers.

The message is clear. We'll keep this ugly thing away from you as long as you keep drawing each other's blood.

District 2: Jaehaera Blackfyre (17) Pov-

Suddenly a crashing sound roars up around us, and the cornucopia rumbles so much it threatens to throw me off. The floodwaters have reached the cornucopia, and the rising water is slowly climbing upward. Dozens of packs of supplies bob on the surface of water. Carts tip over. Silverware floats off of tables.

I immediately curse myself for getting so distracted. Two sharp pinches in my abdomen tell me Pixel has landed two more darts in me with her crossbow. They haven't gone too deep, stopped from doing so by my armor. My first instinct is to pull them out, but I know from my training that's the last thing I want to do. Despite the pain I keep on fighting like a career. And a career never gives up fighting. Ever.

Momentarily abandoning all forms of caution, I lunge forward, nearly tackling Pixel. But she slips out of my arms in no time. With such a tiny, lithe body she's as swift as an arrow.

District 3: Pixel Watt (12) Pov-

A cold wave of panic washes through my body. The floodwaters are rising impossibly fast. In the blink of an eye Jaehaera and I are standing ankle-deep in the cold water, and for the first time I realize the terror of drowning. The water threatens to rob me of all my energy as it rises, higher and higher and higher. In seconds it's up to my waist.

Then it's impossible to stand on the roof any longer and we're both swimming. I'm not the universe's best swimmer but I know the basics pretty well. I spot Jaehaera swimming toward a floating crate a few yards away from her, and I realize I'll have to do the same. I find an empty barrel and crawl inside. I fit rather nicely.

Then a growl pierces the air. We've gone too long without inflicting harm on each other's bodies. The mutt's electric constraints are slowly dissipating. In moments it's swinging its paws. I make a desperate attempt to paddle away, but it's useless. It's so hard to move around with my torso jammed into the wooden barrel.

Then I remember something.

I reach for my pocket.

I pull out the bundle of grass stained with Jaehaera's blood.

I tie the grass onto a floating stick.

Then I hurl it at the mutt like the world's most demented game of fetch.

The mutt instinctively opens its maw and the grass-coated stick lands straight in its mouth. The mutt releases a growl of pleasure, tasting Jaehaera's blood.

Then its constraints are gone. And it paddles toward the 2 girl for a second helping.

Jaehaera's screams pierce the morning. I can avert my eyes but I can't block out her desperate cries for help.

You know the sound your shirt makes when you bend over and it rips a little bit? Take that sound but multiply it by fifty. That's what it sounds like as the creature digs its teeth into Jaehaera's body and tears her straight in half.

Then I finally break. The blood and the stress and everything that's been weighing down on me ever since I was reaped hits me in one punch and I'm bawling. My eyes feel like they're on fire from how much they sting.

Before I can correct the barrel, a number of strong waves knock it over and plunge me into the water. Then I see something I know I'll never forget. Never as long as I live. Jaehaera's body, torn into a billion pieces, floating here and there. A long string of guts floats on to my right. An entire eye drifts within a foot of my abdomen. The water is dyed an ugly pink. There's an entire hand, completely intact. A leg. Part of an ear.

I kick back to the surface just in time to hear Jaehaera Blackfyre's cannon shot roll over the arena. My mind is hardly processing what my eyes are seeing as I feel myself being lifted upward out of my prison.

I am a victor.

Deaths this Chapter:

2nd: Jaehaera Blackfyre, District 2 Female – Mauled to death, by dog muttation

Jaehaera's always had a soft spot in my heart and I know she always will. She was the first tribute submitted to this SYOT. That was one of the biggest moments that I realized that somebody cared about my writing. The moment that I realized somebody liked my writing enough to dedicate some of their time and creative energy into a story of mine, which made me happier than a kid on 24 December. As for the character herself, she had a backstory which I thought was interesting, a reaping chapter a lot of you seemed to enjoy, and a plotline in the games I thought was intriguing. I know this is pretty twisted to say about the Hunger Games, but she fought bravely to the very end. Happy trails. You will not be forgotten.

The Victor:

District 3: Pixel Watt (12)

A/N: And so our victor emerges. Next chapter is the epilogue, and then this story has earned its wings. Please consider reviewing if you're able :D