THE SIXTY THIRD ANNUAL HUNGER GAMES
"Under the Sea"
INTRODUCTION
In Hunger Games past, the vast majority of camera coverage featured the arenas themselves and the carnage within. However, when the sixty-third annual Hunger Games rolled around, it became apparent that the pre-games festivities and ceremonies could contribute just as much to a games' memorability factor as what happened within the games themselves. This year's entire scheme was water-based, and the Capitol couldn't get enough of it. The training center was decked out with shimmering blue walls. It was lit by a plethora of flashing and rotating blue lights on the ceiling, and most of the bladed weapons had ocean-colored hilts. The training center also had a dozen swimming pools, one for each district, and swimming was emphasized as one of the skills tributes should practice on before the games began. Much of the Capitol was curious to see how the water element would play into the arena, and they were surprised when Head Gamemaker Feodore Elliot released his trailer clip. The clip showed a path down a long, dark, underwater hallway. At the end of the hallway, a glowing golden trident was propped against the wall. Panem's Capitol was sent into a Hunger Games frenzy as enthusiasts speculated about the supplies and mutts of the underwater arena. President Coriolanus Snow cracked the whip over his domain called Panem for the thirty-ninth year. After his kidnapping escapade of the year before, the nation was sedated, and the year passed with virtually no rebellion or misconduct between the nation's twelve districts.
The career pack was nothing out of the ordinary this year. District 1's tributes were as beautiful as ever. The boy was a beautiful sight both because of how attractive he was, and also how swift and strong he appeared to be. The girl was the weakest this year, as she wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed and wasn't very good with weaponry. She was also the first tribute in history to have a hyphenated first name. District 2's tributes were the fiercest, but, ironically, they earned some of the lowest scores of the pack. The male was manipulative beyond belief and could convince almost anyone to do his bidding. The girl was rather relaxed and unconventional outside of the arena, but once in the games she would fight viciously until the very end. District 4 provided the strongest pair. The boy was strong and brutishly attractive and a stellar with tridents. He was also one of the fastest tributes the games had ever seen. This was guaranteed to give him the edge in the arena, and he was the early favorite. The female was a stunning, dark-skinned girl who was skilled with a variety of long-ranged weapons as well as daggers. Nobody could say for certain which of the tributes from 4 was stronger. Most people predicted that they would both go far, but only time would tell. Their training scores were average, with three tens, two nines, and a single eight.
The crop of outliers was one of the strongest in Hunger Games history up to that point; this games was sure to be a good one. Six of the strongest outliers banded together in what was the largest outlier alliance in history. The anti-careers earned some of the highest percentages of bets of the Capitol, and with a whopping six members it wasn't unlikely that one of them would take home the Victor's Crown. The anti-career pack consisted of Dartson from 5, Severa from 6, Robina from 7, Pike and Riza from 9, and Vine from 11. Dartson was a slender boy who was tall and thin and very handsome, and he used swords well enough to earn a respectable seven. Severa seemed very indecisive and not a very fast thinker, but she was still treated well because of how great she was with animal hunting. Robina from 7 took several days to reply to the others' invitation; previously, she had been planning on allying with her district partner. In the end, though, she joined the anti-careers. She was the smarts of the group, but she could get annoying because of how meticulously she planned everything out. Pike was a smaller boy, one of the greatest hiding advantages a tribute can have. He was unbelievably talented with sickles and spears, and Pike in fact was the highest-scoring outlier this year, walking home with an eight. Riza was tall and multi-talented and very pretty. She was also a great comedian, dropping one-liners in her interview and very playfully teasing some tributes and victors from past Hunger Games. The group recruited Vine simply because of his swimming skills. He could swim all the way across the swimming pool in the training center in less than ten seconds, owing mostly to his profession as a farmer of decorative underwater plants back in District 11. Two sixes, three sevens, and an eight were earned in their group. There were several outliers standouts that weren't anti-careers, however. Velnor from 8 was the half-sister of Cecelia Rieffel, the victor of the sixtieth annual Hunger Games. He was a very kind and well-mannered boy with a clear set of morals, though strangely he didn't seem to mind killing. District 12 provided a brother-sister pair; Cole and Jacqui Drinker, twelve and seventeen respectively, banded together before the games started, pledging to stick together as far into the games as possible. There was a single volunteer outside of the careers: Afton from 7. Afton was on death row for the kidnapping of two young girls. His execution was scheduled for the day after the reaping, and he volunteered into the games as a final card to play, hoping that becoming a victor would pardon him from his visit with the reaper for the time being. Here are the tributes:
District 1: Gloss Linden, 17, (10) 4-1 and Ruby-Gleam Zirman, 17, (8) 10-1
District 2: Kedian Propert, 16, (9) 7-1 and Wystelle Murphy, 15, (9) 8-1
District 3: Wumpus Movius, 14, (4) 35-1 and Techana Zhao, 13, (6) 22-1
District 4: Anchor Tranquilli, 18, (10) 3-1 and Mirror Oesterling, 18, (10) 3-1
District 5: Dartson Holoien, 17, (7) 16-1 and Thermis Abraham, 13, (3) 44-1
District 6: Arhianrhod Shappo, 12, (3) 48-1 and Severa Otis, 17, (7) 17-1
District 7: Afton Sandall, 18, (7) 15-1 and Robina Vane, 18, (6) 20-1
District 8: Velnor Ibes, 18, (5) 24-1 and Flossie Schulman, 12, (4) 40-1
District 9: Pike Skottak, 16, (8) 11-1 and Riza Spring, 15, (7) 18-1
District 10: Magpie Tullius, 15, (5) 20-1 and Pallas Crawford, 14, (4) 39-1
District 11: Vine Bluri, 18, (7) 15-1 and Cupcake Dippet, 13, (6) 24-1
District 12: Cole Drinker, 12, (4) 45-1 and Jacqui Drinker, 17, (4) 37-1
HGBO Bets: 9% on Anchor and Mirror, 7% on Gloss, Kedian, and Wystelle, 6% on Ruby-Gleam and Pike, 5% on Dartson, Severa, Afton, Riza, and Vine, 4% on Techana, Robina, and Cupcake, 3% on Velnor and Magpie, 2% on Wumpus, Pallas, Cole, and Jacqui, 1% or less on Thermis, Arianrhod, and Flossie.
THE GAMES
This year's arena was entirely underwater, the first of its kind in Hunger Games history. Past arenas had had sections and pieces submerged, but never entirely. The tributes would find themselves with strange apparatuses bound to their mouths. They were man's newest invention in the field of technology. The contraptions worked like gills, quickly utilizing electrolysis to separate oxygen from water and allowing the tributes to breathe underwater indefinitely. To eat, a tribute would simply place a small piece of food in a compartment in the contraption. It then worked like an air-lock (or rather, water-lock) forcing out the water and then allowing the food to be eaten normally. But enough about those. It looked like Feodore was violating his policies of historical accuracy this year, as the games took place in a location that has been almost definitively proven to be nonexistent: the lost city of Atlantis. The terrain of the sea floor was rocky, and coral and other sea plants sprouted up like bushes. Fish swam in schools everywhere. There were brightly-colored and fast fish; slow, large fish will silly faces; and every other type of fish one could imagine. Temples with heavy marble columns were scattered around the city, acting as sources of shelter for the tributes. There were also strange stone statues, choked by moss and corroded by time. The eyes of the statues appeared to follow the tributes as they walked, and they seemed creepy to say the least. Even if the tributes couldn't swim, they could still clumsily prance along across the sea floor, though the ones who could swim well would certainly have an advantage.
The majority of this year's tributes were shocked beyond belief as they entered the arena. As the elevators rose, water started seeping in from the arena above. One tribute, Techana from 3, even screamed to her mentor far below that she thought something was wrong. Once their pods had completely filled with water, the tributes discovered that the little machines strapped to their mouths allowed them to breathe underwater indefinitely. Finally, the pods opened and sank downward, and the tributes were left standing on their stone pedestals surrounding the cornucopia.
The bloodbath was mostly a skirmish between the careers and the anti-careers. Most of the other tributes fled from the get-go, not wanting to get into the middle of the intense fight. These tributes were Wumpus and Techana from 3, Thermis from 5, Velnor and Flossie from 8, and Cole and Jacqui from 12. This lead to one of the smallest bloodbaths in history at the time.
Anchor sped at the head of the onrush; he was the fastest swimmer by a wide margin. Anchor picked up a glowing bronze trident that sat about twenty yards from his pedestal, tearing its prongs out of a small fissure in the earth. The 4 boy whirled around and spotted Riza, one of the weaker anti-careers, a few meters away. Anchor swam toward Riza, trying to thrust his trident toward her back. But Riza felt the waves of water caused by his movements, and she turned around just in time to deflect Anchor's blow with a blow of her own. The two tributes skirmished for almost thirty seconds, but one tribute triumphed in the end. Anchor had managed to cut a gash in Riza's waist, and she fell backward, dropping her trident and shaking violently as a dark cloud of blood spread around her. Anchor finished her off with one more heavy thrusting movement of his trident.
Riza Spring, District 9 Female: 24th, Killed by Anchor, Bloodbath
Less than ten feet away, Gloss was dueling with Severa from 6. It was a fight with bare hands, as neither tribute was armed with a weapon. Severa threw her fists at Gloss, but the 1 boy quickly retaliated, swirling like a top to gain extra momentum before punching Severa in the stomach. The girl reeled, turning around to flee to somewhere where she could recover safely. But Gloss picked up a harpoon that sat nearby and buried its tip into her back. Severa was dead in seconds.
Severa Otis, District 6 Female: 23rd, Killed by Gloss, Bloodbath
Two of the strongest anti-careers, Dartson and Pike, had teamed up to take down the strongest tribute in the games. Dartson had a silver sword, and Pike had a trident, and they raced toward Anchor. Anchor screamed as Dartson buried his sword into his back. Pike landed the prongs of his trident into his hip. Bubbles streamed from the career boy's mouth as his organs started failing him from the grievous wounds he had sustained.
Anchor Tranquilli, District 4 Male: 22nd, Killed by Dartson and Pike, Bloodbath
Despite the distance between them, Mirror recognized Anchor's screams as those of her district partner. Mirror swam in the direction of his calls, ringing with fury and desperate to avenge his death. Many suspected she fancied him, but this was never confirmed. Mirror arrived at the scene just as Dartson and Pike began swimming away. She bolted toward Pike and grabbed him by the scruff of his neck like a mother kitten. Pike swirled around with his trident. He started to thrust it toward the 4 girl's abdomen, but Mirror retaliated with a trident of her own. Roaring with rage, Mirror cast the end of her trident into Pike's neck. Blood flow to his brain stopped almost immediately.
Pike Skottak, District 9 Male: 21st, Killed by Mirror, Bloodbath
The two tributes from District 2, Kedian and Wystelle, were working together to corner a very young boy against the abalone cornucopia. Kedian hurled his harpoon. It buried itself into the boy's shoulder, and he turned to run, roaring in agony, just as Wystelle's knives entered his chest. Moaning, he slid slowly to the rocky sea floor, his last breaths bubbling out of his mouth.
Arhianrhod Shappo, District 6 Male: 20th, Killed by Kedian and Wystelle, Bloodbath
Gloss made the last kill of the bloodbath. He had caught a young boy and was struggling to restrain him so that he could kill him with his harpoon. The boy kicked and screamed, but Gloss was so strong that he couldn't escape. Finally, he managed to slip out of his arms. Enraged, Gloss tackled him. He punched the boy's upper abdomen with all the strength he could conjure up, crushing his windpipe and silencing his screams.
Magpie Tullius, District 10 Male: 19th, Killed by Gloss, Bloodbath
With the bloodbath at its conclusion, the careers set up their base at the cornucopia. Only one of their members had been killed, whereas they had killed two of the anti-careers, so they went about the day with their heads held high. Mirror was eager to get hunting, so she swam in circles around the cornucopia to "keep herself warmed up." She had underestimated the amount of time it would take for the others to prepare, and by the time they were ready Mirror was too exhausted to actually go hunting. Kedian and Wystelle, the close-knit pair from 2, sorted the supplies in the cornucopia. As all of the supplies were very heavy, it was a lot of effort. Gloss engaged in a small hunt around the cornucopia. As he hunted, he told stories to the audience to occupy himself. It was hard to hear him through the water, so the producers had to do a voice-over of what he was saying so that the audience could understand him more clearly. Ruby-Gleam, the weakest career, experimented with ways of lighting up the horn and the area around. She knew all of the tridents glowed, so she grabbed a few of them and scattered them here and there to act as light sources. The majority of the careers were too tired to do anything, and they decided not to go hunting, but vowed to leave the next morning. The three anti-careers fled east. A few of them had sustained minor injuries throughout the bloodbath, and they needed time to nurse the wounds before they could do any real hunting. Robina was the only one in tip-top condition; she hadn't engaged in nearly as much action thus far as the others had. She acted as the others' guide, swimming ahead of them and instructing them on where to go. Dartson was pretty traumatized after almost being killed by Mirror a few minutes earlier, and he followed Robina's directions quietly. When the trio stopped for dinner, Vine swam away to gather plants to eat. He was extremely knowledgeable about what was edible and what wasn't; he returned with several armfuls of green plants and fish that he had killed. The non-career and non-anti-career tributes spread across the arena. With so many, it was hard to cover them all. Wumpus found a patch of soft sand that was remarkably like a soft mattress. He settled down after knocking down a statue that would block him from sight. Young Techana, deathly afraid of the careers, dragged herself onward for nearly twelve hours before collapsing with exhaustion at the base of a small temple to a sun god. Techana swam inside and settled in the dark shadow of a tall statue, vowing to search for food and supplies the next morning. Thermis was scared. She had nothing, and she was alone in the middle of the ocean. Weeping softly, she slid down against a tall marble statue, burying her face in her hands. Afton, the rapist volunteer boy, amazed the audience with his ability to kill a whole swarm of fish. He had several jars of poison from the horn. When a school of vibrant-purple fish swam by, Afton uncorked the bottle and fled. He returned a minute later to find that all of the fish had died upon contact with the poison, and he stuffed his victims into his pack to eat later. Velnor drifted in one direction until the sun began to set, at which point he ducked into a shop selling strange colored stones and fell asleep. What Velnor didn't know was that these stones would transform into weapons when they were touched by human hands. Pallas found herself at a gate guarded on either side by fierce stone shark statues. She swam over the gate and settled against one of the statues after tearing open her pack and finding it filled with food and wire. Cupcake had a trident from the cornucopia, but she wasn't up to using it on another tribute just yet. The girl swam for several hours before walking into a peculiar glass building and falling asleep. Cole and Jacqui had allied prior to the games. Brother and sister swam beside one another until they came to a patch of boulders with strange inscriptions. The rocks glowed whenever the tributes drew near. They were creepy, to say the least.
Flossie from 8 was morbidly curious, and she wondered what she would find if she swam upward. She expected that the water would have a surface, but what would be above it, she couldn't tell for sure until she saw it with her own eyes. Flossie had swum upward for about a minute when she found her answer. There was a force field at the top of the water, and little Flossie's head knocked into it. Before she knew it, she was sent spiraling downward, the powerful electrical current of the force field coursing through her body. Her brain was fried in seconds, and she fell like a stone to the sea floor.
Flossie Schulman, District 8 Female: 18th, Killed by Force Field, Day 1
On Day 2, the first mutts of the arena were released. They were shark mutts: long, slender creatures with flat noses and smooth skin. They attacked the tributes in three groups, two of which would end in death and one of which would be fended off. Which group of sharks would not succeed in killing a tribute was anyone's guess, and only time would tell.
Bubble's streamed from Wumpus' mouth in a scream as he saw the dark shape of a shark coming toward him in the morning sun. He quickly ducked behind a rock and grabbed a few smaller stones to use as weapons. He hoped the shark hadn't seen him, but it had, and it was thirsty for his blood. Without warning, the first shark zoomed forward, and Wumpus barely had time to deflect. The boy used his rock like a bludgeon, slamming the shark in the nose. It curled backward, agitated, and Wumpus turned to flee. What he didn't know was that two additional shark mutts were waiting, unseen, in the shadows.
Wumpus recoiled at the feeling of another shark mutt's rough skin. As it came into the light, Wumpus realized that it was in fact two sharks, a mother and very young child. The boy went for the young shark first, thinking it would be the easiest prey. The small rocks were everywhere and not disposable in any sense of the phrase, so Wumpus had no problems with risking losing them. He hurled his first rock through the air, hitting the young shark between the eyes. It let out a growl, and Wumpus ran forward, slamming it in the nose. The blow hadn't killed the adult shark, but the child was weaker by a significant margin. As the matriarch comforted the dying child, the third and final shark zipped toward Wumpus and closed his torso in its teeth. Pain exploded through the boy as the shark tore out a hunk of flesh. He tried to stagger to safety, but he was losing blood too quickly, and he fell to his knees in death before he had travelled ten feet.
Wumpus Movius, District 3 Male: 17th, Killed by Shark Muttations, Day 2
The remaining two shark packs went for the careers and the anti-careers. The former had a significant journey to travel to get to the cornucopia, and the sharks kept getting distracted as they smelled blood across the way. It was a lot of work for the gamemakers to force them on the right path to the horn, but once they smelled a tiny taste of the blood of five humans there was no stopping them. Ruby-Gleam, who was guarding, saw the shape of the sharks coming near and screamed for her allies to wake. Only the nearest tribute, Wystelle, would wake up. Wystelle saw the sharks coming and knew trouble was ahead, and she shook awake Gloss, Kedian, and Mirror.
The careers sped out of the cornucopia and sank backward as much as possible. Ruby-Gleam was naturally at the front, and she was the first to face the sharks. The largest shark mutt swam forth in a very stately manner, and Ruby-Gleam used her glowing golden trident to cut several holes in its side. Black muttation blood spread around the shark in a dark cloud. The 1 girl suddenly remembered something horrible. Muttation blood was highly acidic and could kill upon contact. Past games had shown her that. Ruby-Gleam dove sideways, and the others didn't realize the severity of the situation until it was too late. Wystelle fell to the sandy and rocky floor, screaming, as the highly acidic solution ate away at her face and neck. The careers swam quickly out of the way of the spreading blood, and Wystelle kept screaming until her death. After she was dead, the shark mutts retreated. They hadn't given the careers much strife at all, but they would face many terrors as the games continued. They would see…
Wystelle Murphy, District 2 Female: 16th, Killed by Shark Muttation Blood, Day 2
While Dartson, Robina, and Vine weren't the strongest tributes in these games, they did have a lot going for them, and they were prepared when the three shadowy sharks swam into sight. A few minutes earlier, Vine's mentor Seeder had sent him a note warning him of the coming shark mutts. The notes this year had to be written on plastic, as paper wouldn't sink and would likely tear and dissolve in the water. Vine had shared the note with Dartson and Robina, and they had grabbed their weapons in time for the shark's arrival.
The monster swam toward Dartson, and Dartson lashed out, cutting through the water with his sword. The blade clanged into the monster's sharp scales, doing no damage and just angering it further. Dartson scrambled away, and the monster turned to Robina. Robina distracted the beast with her trident. While it was distracted, Vine, who also had a trident, barged into the scene and gored its shining prongs through the shark's eye. The shark roared and wobbled back and forth. Vine and Robina turned tail and fled, leaving the shark to die behind them. They found Dartson in a minute or two, and they returned to their camp where the body of the dead shark lay.
As the sun rose fully on Day 2 and the day began for real, the tributes got out and about. The careers went hunting instantly, leaving Ruby-Gleam behind to guard the cornucopia. As they hunted, Kedian formed a plan in his mind. He wasn't the strongest career, and he knew he couldn't win if he didn't cut his way out of the pack somehow. So he planned to split away from his allies and band together with a group of strong outliers. He wasn't ready to split away just yet, as he was looking forward to a full day of hunting with Gloss and Mirror, but given how quickly the tributes were dropping he would have to do it soon.
The pack of Gloss, Kedian, and Mirror was treading through the sunken Atlantis arena when they spotted a glint about twenty feet to their right. It was Thermis. She had seen the careers coming her way, and, right before ducking behind a rock, her eyes had caught a ray of the sun's light and reflected it. Her location revealed, the three careers lunged toward her. Thermis screamed and paddled the other direction, tearing off a piece of coral to use as a weapon. Mirror lunged toward her, and Thermis roared to motivate herself as she brought down the coral onto her head. The coral just cracked, and Mirror wasn't hurt or injured in the slightest. Mirror's trident entered Thermis' chest, and she spun away through the water, hoping desperately to escape, but Gloss caught up to her and she was toast. Gloss hurled his harpoon into her chest, and her eyes rolled back into her head. She was the careers' first kill since the bloodbath.
Thermis Abraham, District 5 Female: 15th, Killed by Mirror and Gloss, Day 2
Velnor from 8 was a heavy sleeper, but Thermis' cannon shot was able to rouse him from his slumber nonetheless. He got to his feet and looked around, remembering he was in the strange shop. Deciding to investigate what the shop was selling to occupy himself, he starting walking. Velnor shut the door and covered the windows so that nobody could see him. Enough sunlight was coming in through gaps in the ceiling for him to make his way around, however. The shop had many strange artifacts in store; strips of stone, slabs of red rock. However, his eyes were constantly drawn to the line of colored and polished stones sitting on the front desk. The rocks glowed and pulsed, and they radiated warmth. Curiously, Velnor grabbed one of the stones. Immediately, it broke open, unfolding and expanding. Before Velnor knew it, he was holding a trident about half the length of his arm. Velnor dropped the trident, and in seconds it had collapsed back down into a stone. Each of the five stones turned into a different weapon; besides the trident, there was a red sword, a strange tool for cutting coral, an awl, a harpoon, and a javelin. Knowing that a little bit of intentional killing would make these games end faster, Velnor took the trident and the javelin and went hunting.
Luckily, since there were so many outliers, it didn't take Velnor long to find another. He had hunted for less than an hour when he saw a stream of bubbles floating upward from a gate guarded by stone models of sharks. Velnor swam over the gate and saw Pallas of 10 snoozing contentedly against one of the statues. Steeling himself for the task ahead, Velnor rammed his trident into Pallas' chest. She bolted awake, screaming, and swam in random directions, spasming and going berserk from the agony. Velnor hurled his javelin. It skewered itself through the disoriented girl's heart, and she was dead in seconds. She didn't even flinch.
Pallas Crawford, District 10 Female: 14th, Killed by Velnor, Day 2
Two more deaths would occur before Day 2 finally came to a close. The siblings Cole and Jacqui slept through the cannon shots of Wumpus, Wystelle, Thermis, and Pallas and woke on their own accord at noon. They broke camp and made breakfast, chatting about what foods they hoped would be supplied at parcel day back in District 12. Little did they know that that parcel day would never come, and their deaths would transpire sooner than later. Cole kept wanting to check out the glowing blue rocks they had slept near, but Jacqui warned against it. That was probably a smart choice. Who knew what the rocks could do? It simply wasn't worth the risk. But Cole was too curious to listen to Jacqui, and as soon as his sister was looking away he paddled toward the glowing rocks.
Eyes wide with fascination, Cole ran his finger along the ancient-looking runes carved into the stone. Someone must have gone over the carvings with shining blue ink afterward, and the perfectly spherical shape of the rocks seemed to be done by yet another party. Then, Cole traced his finger over the faint spiral that ran across the whole rock. Immediately, the currents of the water began to pick up. Nearby, Jacqui swam toward him and grabbed onto him.
"I told you not to touch those!" Jacqui scolded.
But the lost city of Atlantis really was mystical, and the force of the water kept growing stronger and stronger. Jacqui and Cole held onto each other as they clung to the ground, trying desperately not to be swept away. Finally, the current was just too strong. Powerful Jacqui was able to keep her firm grip, but the weaker Cole was torn away from his sister. Cole was crushed against the ground, and the water kept picking him and throwing him back down as if it had hands. Before long, the breathing mechanism had been knocked off of his face. He tried to swim toward it to put it back on, but it too was swept away in the storm of currents. Jacqui's screams rang in his ears as he died. Curiosity really did kill the cat.
Cole Drinker, District 12 Male: 13th, Killed by Drowning, Day 2
When the storm finally calmed down, Cole's cannon shot boomed across the arena. Jacqui was horrified. She shouldn't have let Cole out of her sight! She had failed as a sister. If she could do anything to honor Cole's death, it was destroy the strange stones that seemed to have magical powers. She approached the field of boulders.
"What are you? How do you work?" she demanded. Jacqui wasn't really expecting a response, and she didn't get one. The stones just kept flickering and pulsing.
Infuriated, Jacqui picked up a rock and slammed it down into the nearest magical stone. It didn't crack at all, and the rock in her hands split in half. One of the halves drove itself deep into her wrist, and Jacqui screamed, falling backward, as the blood made a cloud around her. Infuriated and sobbing heavily, the girl sprung forward and slammed the rock with her wrist. The central spiral glowed bright, and the currents around her began to pick up…
"No! No!" But all of the noes in Panem couldn't change what was about to happen. The first pulsation of water threw her against the sea floor, and she was sent unconscious as her head slammed into a block of coral and stone. Over the course of the next five minutes, she was beaten to death, and she died from head trauma. At least she was with Cole again.
Jacqui Drinker, District 12 Female: 12th, Killed by Head Trauma, Day 2
By the end of Day 2, the games were going just as Feodore had planned. After several long and drawn-out games in a row, he was experimenting with short games, choosing brief duration at the expense of length. After being brutally attacked by the group of shark mutts earlier in the day, Gloss, Kedian, and Mirror returned to the horn. Ruby-Gleam was there, and the careers filled each other in on what had happened. Kedian continued developing his plan to break away from the pack. Wanting advice from his mentor, he swam away from the others and quietly whispered his plan. Little did Kedian know, however, that Ruby-Gleam had followed him and was listening to every word he said. Ruby-Gleam covered her mouth to keep from screaming as the information sank into her. Kedian was a traitor. The 1 girl sped back to the cornucopia and yelled for her district partner, Gloss. Ruby-Gleam tried to convince Gloss that they should band together to kill Kedian in the night, but he was unconvinced. She was going to have to do it herself.
Ruby-Gleam stayed up long after the others were asleep. Finally, once she heard the soft snores that she recognized as Kedian's, she slithered out of her sleeping bag and swam toward the 2 boy. Ruby-Gleam grabbed a trident from nearby, and, before she could stop herself, plunged the prongs into Kedian's chest. He woke with a start, coughing up blood, and Ruby Gleam thrust her trident into his neck, finishing him off. His screams woke the others up, and Gloss and Mirror had reached the scene of the crime by the time Kedian's cannon shot fired.
Kedian Propert, District 2 Male: 11th, Killed by Ruby-Gleam, Day 3
"Hey. What are you doing?" Gloss shouted. Ruby-Gleam was standing with a bloodstained trident beside the bleeding body of another career. He and Mirror both assumed she was a traitor.
"I can explain!" Ruby-Gleam stopped them. "He was the traitor! He..."
But her fate was already sealed. Mirror dove toward Ruby-Gleam with her trident, and Gloss with his harpoon at the exact same moment. Ruby-Gleam was too shocked to move, and the weapons killed her almost instantaneously.
Ruby-Gleam Zirman, District 1 Female: 10th, Killed by Mirror and Gloss, Day 3
The remainder of the first half of Day 3 was filled with a lot of movement, but very little action. Gloss and Mirror stayed close together everywhere they went. They were the final two careers in the games. They didn't hunt that day and instead stayed at the cornucopia for a break. Moving around took a lot more effort in the entirely submerged arena than in an aboveground arena, and they spent the day on a much-needed rest. The three anti-careers nursed their wounds from the shark attack of the day prior. While none of them were mortally injured, they were in intense pain and needed a rest. Dartson, the tribute in the best physical condition, helped out the others with nursing their wounds. When he wasn't doing that, he was swimming in laps and telling stories about his life in District 5. Robina, however witty and crafty, had literally no idea of how to care for the wound that was on her arm. The shark had torn off a chunk of flesh about a centimeter long. Robina's sponsors had sent her a bandage to staunch the bleeding, but other than that there was nothing to do but wait for the wound to heal. Vine was the anti-careers' food. Not literally, of course, but he regularly swam away and brought back plants and animals for him and Robina and Dartson to eat. Much of the Capitol was anticipating a clash between the careers and the anti-careers, and Feodore was sure to make sure that fight happened before the games ended. Techana had promised herself she's start hunting for food on Day 1, but two days later she had been too scared to move and felt a raging hunger. If Techana didn't start hunting soon, she might die. Afton had been sustaining himself off of fish for several days. The sponsors often sent him new jars of poison, which he dropped into schools of fish to watch them all die. He only ate the ones that were edible, according to a handbook sent to him early the day prior. Afton rested in a temple to a sea god, but he felt a little dirty trespassing on land that was once sacred to somebody. Velnor returned to the shop with the stones in it and stayed behind the counter, amusing himself by touching the stones to watch them expand into huge weapons and then releasing them to watch them shrink back into mere rocks. The Capitol was growing bored with the outliers' inactivity, but this didn't matter much as most of the focus was on the career and anti-career packs. Cupcake had a bit of a scare around eleven in the morning. She accidentally knocked her face against a rock, and her breathing apparatus was shoved off of her face. Cupcake panicked and inhaled a big gulp of water. It took her nearly thirty seconds to put the mask back on, and hours to cough up all the water that was in her lungs. Too tired to do anything for the rest of the day, the girl settled between two hills and hid in a seaweed-like plant.
As Day 3 wore on, Velnor was becoming increasingly antsy. Nervous as to how quickly the final eight was arriving, he anxiously fidgeted with the stones. Once, he turned a bright-red stone in hand, and when he touched it, the blade of the sword expanded, puncturing his chest and driving at least an inch down into his flesh. Velnor let go of the sword, but it wouldn't shrink back down because it was lodged into his chest. He tore it out after half a minute of struggle. Velnor fell back as blood poured from the wound, and he wept quietly to himself as he bled out over the course of about five hours.
Velnor Ibes, District 8 Male: 9th, Killed by Bleeding Out, Day 3
That left the final eight: Gloss Linden from District 1, Techana Zhao from District 3, Mirror Oesterling from District 4, Dartson Holoien from District 5, Afton Sandall and Robina Vane from District 7, and Vine Bluri and Cupcake Dippet from District 11.
Three deaths had already occurred on Day 3, and it was on a roll. Wanting to have plenty of tributes left when the endgame threats came about, Feodore made sure that no more deaths occurred before the day was over. What he did do, however, was begin moving the anti-careers toward the careers. Feodore waited until they were asleep and then sent them several strong water currents, spurred on by himself. The anti-careers floated in the direction of the cornucopia, and they would be likely to meet the next day.
The artificial sun could be seen through the rippling water as Day 4 arrived. Dartson, Robina, and Vine were extremely confused as to why they were several miles away from where they had gone to sleep. Vine's mentor sent them a note saying that the gamemakers wanted to see a fight between them and the careers. They all got nervous, but, knowing that Feodore would sent some threat to drive them to the cornucopia if they didn't do it themselves, began their journey. Dartson, Robina, and Vine arrived at the cornucopia a few minutes before noon on Day 3, tightly grasping their weapons. Gloss and Mirror, having been sent a notice the night before, were waiting for them. The three anti-careers curiously walked toward the horn. Suddenly, Gloss and Mirror burst out of nowhere, tackling them to the ground.
Robina let out a shrill scream and rolled out from underneath Gloss, running to help tear out Dartson from underneath Mirror. Gloss got up to chase after her, and she knew that she had to fight him alone. Gloss and Robina danced around each other, Gloss occasionally lashing out with harpoon just to scare her and Robina doing the same with her sword. Suddenly, Robina gathered the courage to lunge. She tried to hit Gloss in the torso, but he swam out of the way, causing Robina to fly past him and smack against a nearby rock with a loud noise. Robina couldn't get back up fast enough before Gloss cast his harpoon into her back. Screaming, Robina swam away. She lost all ability to move after less than a minute, and she died about seventy seconds after her horrid wound was inflicted by the boy from District 1.
Robina Vane, District 7 Female: 8th, Killed by Gloss, Day 4
While the cameras were distracted focusing on the duel between Robina and Gloss, they had completely forgotten about the other career and two anti-careers. Dartson and Vine were trying to corner Mirror against whatever they could find, but the 4 girl was a slippery one and she refused to be trapped. Suddenly, Dartson lunged forward with a surprising and unexpected burst of energy and planted his sword into Mirror's stomach. She staggered backward, her movements slowed and exaggerated by the water, and she fell right onto Gloss, dying on top of him. Gloss managed to shove her off of him, and by the time he could see Dartson and Vine had escaped. Mirror's cannon proved that Gloss was the only remaining career in the games.
Mirror Oesterling, District 4 Female: 7th, Killed by Dartson and Vine, Day 4
The rest of Day 4 passed with no loss of life nor limb, nor conflict, nor interaction between the remaining tributes whatsoever. Many of the outliers were shocked as to how quickly these games were going, but the Capitol couldn't have enough of it. They loved the fast-paced nature, but it wasn't something that could really become regular or else it would be boring. They had to savor the short games while it lasted. Techana finally got out to search for food, and she was very surprised by just how easy it was. She had gathered a bit of soft coral when she decided to head back to the temple to eat. Afton's poison tactics were growing a bit old; the Capitol was getting tired of them and Afton spent the day in a sandy ditch trying to think of something else. Cupcake had finally coughed up all of the water in her lungs by the time nightfall arrived, but she was in too much pain to keep moving, instead resting against a statue and watching the schools of colorful fish swim around her.
On the morning of Day 4, Cupcake woke up gradually. She'd fallen asleep leaning against the statue with bits of coral scattered around her, which she had knocked apart in her reckless sleep. What she didn't know, however, was that something else was waking nearby. It was a deadly mutt that had been asleep since the start of the games and was finally awakening from its slumber. It had been used only once before in the thirty-seventh Hunger Games, but it had been re-programmed with new behaviors so that it wouldn't be too predictable. Cupcake got to her feet, interesting, and pranced toward the strange rumbling sound that was going on to her left. After about a hundred feet, she spotted a strange curled-up mass resting on the sea floor. It was surrounded by a pile of spaghetti-like noodles of flesh…
Cupcake didn't have time to breathe before the kraken shot out a slimy tentacle and grabbed her around the ankle. She screamed bloody murder as the kraken mutt drew her inward, opening its hideous beak-like mouth for all to see. The girl grabbed a rock and smashed the tentacle that was gripped around her. Roaring in pain, it loosened its grip, and Cupcake was free. Adrenaline forced her to swim faster than she had ever swum before, and she dropped into a nearby temple with a small entrance. She was hoping the kraken wouldn't be able to fit through the entrance. However, it was slippery and slimy, and it popped into the temple where Cupcake was trapped. She crouched into the shadows, hoping for the best, but she knew her life was over as soon as two of its blue undulating tendrils bound themselves around her abdomen. Screaming, the kraken squeezed her. It squeezed her tighter and tighter as it brought her toward its mouth, shattering her ribs and killing her before she even got to see the chunks of bad meat stowed away in its mouth.
Cupcake Dippet, District 11 Female: 6th, Killed by Kraken Muttation, Day 4
Techana had set out from her field of sand earlier in the day to explore. As she swam down a lane of anemone-like plants, she heard a nearby rumble and Cupcake's screams. She drew a sponsor gift she'd received a few minutes earlier, a knife, ready to face whatever was running her way. The moment she saw the slimy mess of a kraken mutt surging toward her, she had a sudden change of heart, turning tail to flee and hiding in a small astronomy building with a ceiling open to the sky high above. The tentacles of the mutt separated from each other and started feeling around, searching for Techana. Finally, Techana reached a dead end, and she could do nothing but wait for the worst as the tendrils of the mutt felt toward her.
The mutt eeked in triumph as it felt her flesh. Not two seconds later, three tentacles were binding themselves around her. She kicked and screamed with all of the strength she could muster like a little kid. At last, she remembered—her knife! Techana grabbed the blade and buried it into the tentacle that was closing around her the tightest. The kraken mutt let out a cry of pain and pulled back its tentacle, stowing it away underneath its ugly center while it healed. Only two tentacles were holding her now, but reinforcements were coming—and, was it just her imagination, or was its mouth coming closer and closer? She managed to put another tentacle out of action, but the kraken shook her violently like a matchbox, knocking her knife away. She reached for it, crying, but it was lost. She was now disoriented and without a weapon, while the kraken's grip was tightening around her. The actual killing process was quick, as she died soon after the monster's grip became too tight for her bones to stay strong.
Techana Zhao, District 3 Female: 5th, Killed by Kraken Muttation, Day 4
Dartson and Vine were still camped-out in an area heavily populated by colorful fish and lobster-like creatures. Dartson was sharpening a sword he'd been practicing with out of boredom when she heard the rumble. Vine was getting a little shuteye about fifteen feet away, and his soft snores drifted up to Dartson's ears. He knew the noise was not something good. He was brave, but also smart, and he knew that something that could make that loud of sound from so far away was not something he could take down alone. Dartson packed up his supplies, and, trying to be quiet, snuck away. He felt horrible leaving Vine behind. He had made great friends with Vine over the games, but in the end he had to stick true to the Hunger Games strategy of kill or be killed.
Vine woke up too late to be saved. He sat up, stretching his arms, just as a cloud of dust was kicked up in the distance. The kraken was pummeling the sand with its tentacles, wanting to make him even more scared before he died. Many suspect it thought he would taste better if he died scared, though the thought is quite macabre and not scientifically accepted. By the time he turned around, he saw the vicious mutt raging toward him. He made out the way it flicked its blue tentacles. There was no way he could take down that thing himself. Vine stood up to run, thundering away toward a safer area.
But the kraken moved much faster than he did. Vine hadn't gone ten steps before one of the tentacles wrapped around his neck. He was tugged back, and for a scary second he couldn't breathe or think. With a thrusting motion of his spear, he managed to send one tentacle away, though two others were grasping him tightly by each ankle. Holding the spear toward the tail-end so he would have more space for stabbing, he tried to damage the tentacles enough that the kraken would be forced to retrieve them. But he was shaking with fear, and he accidentally stabbed himself in the foreleg. He screamed as blood spread out around him, and he was the kraken's next meal. The crunching of bone could be heard for a great ways around.
Vine Bluri, District 11 Male: 4th, Killed by Kraken Muttation, Day 4
Having made three kills, the kraken recalled itself into the shadows to go back to sleep. It was quite possibly the most expensive mutt in games history, costing just short of a million dollars to create from scratch. Several parts were re-used from the mutt utilized in the thirty-seventh games, the better to save on costs. The only mutt that could have come close in cost was the dragon mutt of the forty-second Hunger Games, though even that never needed to be built to survive underwater.
The rest of Day 4 passed with only one more death. The final three tributes stayed mostly still, all of them male coincidentally. Gloss had been out hunting when he'd heard Vine's screams. Staying low to the ground so he wouldn't be seen, Gloss had spectated every second of Vine's death. He had also seen the way his blood spread out around him like a cloud, temporarily blocking him from sight. The imagery game him a stroke of inspiration. Gloss swam back to the horn and asked for a sack of ink from the sponsors. They were confused, but granted him his wish. In a minute, he held a sack filled with deep black ink in his hands.
Gloss' mentor sent him a note that the kraken was gone and there wasn't any more danger. He grabbed his harpoon and quickly went hunting. The gamemakers were curious to see what Gloss was doing. Only two outliers remained, Dartson and Afton. Because of his involvement in the anti-career pack, Dartson was more beloved, while Afton hadn't done much throughout the games. Feodore used water currents to drive Afton toward Gloss. They spotted each other around six that evening, ready for a fight.
The fight was over in less than thirty seconds. Gloss used the point of his harpoon to pop the bag of ink. The ink spread around Afton's face, and he was rendered blind. Gloss was using the ink like a squid's ink, to blind his opponent from sight. Gloss hurled his harpoon toward Afton. The 7 boy couldn't tell which direction the weapon was coming from. He was helpless as Gloss kept drawing back his harpoon for more blows. The cloud of ink didn't dissipate fully until several minutes until the boy's cannon shot faded away.
Afton Sandall, District 7 Male: 3rd, Killed by Gloss, Day 4
By the looks of things, this was going to be the third shortest games in history. Only the seventeenth Hunger Games and the fortieth Hunger Games would be shorter than this one. Feodore promised the nation that the games would be wrapped up the next morning, and much of the Capitol went to bed heavily anticipating the coming finale.
Feodore stayed true to his promise, and Day 5 was the final day in the arena. The two finalists were up bright and early to prepare for the finale. Dartson practiced with his sword. In any normal-length games, the sword would probably be too damaged from water exposure to be used in the finale. However, this games had been so short that it was virtually unscathed, save for a few dents and pieces of dried blood that Dartson scraped off. Gloss stayed at the cornucopia. His sponsors sent him two more ink sacks. He held one in his hand and tucked the other one into his shirt as a reinforcement in case something went wrong with the other one. Figuring he might as well have a backup weapon, he grabbed a trident in addition to his harpoon. He strapped the harpoon to his side and held the trident in hand, waiting for Dartson's arrival. It was career versus anti-career.
Far away, Dartson began his journey toward the horn. At times, he was procrastinating the duel and moving slowly. Whenever this happened, Feodore sent him a shark mutt or two to keep him on his toes. At noon, Dartson allowed himself a thirty-minute rest against a statue. After the power nap, he was up and feeling alert for the finale. An hour later, Dartson spotted the cornucopia and ducked behind a rock. Quickly, he leapt toward another rock. He moved with small spurts of energy, zigzagging back and forth toward the horn. He was a quick one, and Gloss, who was waiting in front of the cornucopia, didn't notice him until he burst out of nowhere and raced toward him.
Gloss immediately deflected, using his trident to knock away Dartson's sword. The blow caused the long blade to fly out of the boy's hand, but he quickly grabbed it back. Dartson retaliated with a blow of his own, landing his sword into Gloss' elbow. He yelled in agony, and Dartson took the opportunity to pick up a nearby trident, discarding his sword in favor of the better weapon.
As soon as Dartson got to his feet, Gloss held out his first bag of ink. The 5 boy absorbed the information just as Gloss popped the bag. Ink exploded outward, blinding Dartson completely. Gloss swam backward, and, grabbing his trident, back forward, thrusting the bronze prongs into the back of his final competitor. Dartson gasped, and the next second he was underneath Gloss, his cannon firing.
Dartson Holoien, District 5 Male: 2nd, Killed by Gloss, Day 5
"Gloss Linden of District 1, you are the victor of the sixty-third annual Hunger Games!" Caesar chimed.
The first thing Gloss did was peer down at his horribly wrinkled fingers, thinking about how ready he was to go back to the district he loved.
Gloss Linden, District 1 Male: Victor of the Sixty-Third Hunger Games, Day 5
AFTERMATH
Gloss brought District 1 to nine victors, bringing them equal to District 4. Spending on the academies in these districts increased by incredible amounts, as each district wanted to be the one that produced the next victor. Which district would be superior as the games continued was anyone's guess, even if District 2 was objectively superior to both of them. Gloss was rather crafty and very creative, and also quite intelligent despite the stereotype of stupid and ditzy District 1 tributes. His strategy of utilizing ink like a squid to blind his prey was not one to forget, and this strategy would be used many times by tributes in future Hunger Games, with varying degrees of success. He was also one of the more good-looking District 1 tributes, and this meant that Snow started selling him like the best candy in the candy shop as soon as he was of age.
Gloss moved into the Victor's Village of District 1, the ninth victor to do so.
Nothing spectacular could be said about his victory tour, though both Districts 5 and 7 showered him with ill-will.
Gloss would live to the age of seventy-nine, dying from cancer the day before the start of the fifth Quarter Quell. Throughout his life, he would dabble in many arts, like painting, writing, and sculpting. He would marry a model from the Capitol, and they would have twin daughters before getting divorced five years later. After that, he would date but never remarry.
NEWS
Gloss moves into the Victor's Village of District 1, the ninth to do so.
Ruby Rayfuse adopts two baby boys, Salazar and Gleam.
Lily Eckel gives birth to twin girls, whom she calls Honey and Lady.
Valerie Easton marries a rich Capitolite business tycoon named Chester Tidewaters.
Enobaria Rigatti has her teeth cosmetically filed into fangs and inlaid with gold.
LIST OF VICTORS
1HG: Cordin Frey (#1, District 3)
2HG: Sapphire Waber (#1, District 1)
3HG: Molly Toliday (#1, District 4)
4HG: Amelia Spangler (#1, District 2)
5HG: Misty Sablone (#1, District 12)
6HG: Olivia Seager (#2, District 2)
7HG: Flux Stafford (#2, District 3)
8HG: Brandi Coyne (#2, District 1)
9HG: Isaac Crandall (#1, District 5)
10HG: Velvet Farrow (#3, District 1)
11HG: Mags Flanagan (#2, District 4)
12HG: Slate Ogston (#3, District 2)
13HG: Woof Dozier (#1, District 8)
14HG: Blaze Skalnik (#4, District 2)
15HG: Dina Wilmarth (#2, District 5)
16HG: Beatrice Toland (#1, District 6)
17HG: Amelia Bankston (#5, District 2)
18HG: Markus Gardd (#2, District 6)
19HG: Odius Ruttler (#6, District 2)
20HG: Seeder Kaiser (#1, District 11)
21HG: Freya Digard (#7, District 2)
22HG: Gold Carson (#4, District 1)
23HG: Ashlyn Breston (#3, District 6)
24HG: Dayta Albrand (#3, District 3)
25HG: Diamond Griego (#5, District 1)
26HG: Thor Rosner (#8, District 2)
27HG: Magnet Lisagor (#4, District 3)
28HG: Maria Dutra (#3, District 4)
29HG: Discordia Komine (#9, District 2)
30HG: Barley Chisolm (#1, District 9)
31HG: Marlin Coppi (#4, District 4)
32HG: Wyatt Kerdler (#5, District 3)
33HG: Molly Soltan (#5, District 4)
34HG: Grover Handa (#1, District 7)
35HG: Troy Stiles (#6, District 4)
36HG: Lana Voltaire (#10, District 2)
37HG: Lucy Said (#7, District 4)
38HG: Porter Tripp (#3, District 5)
39HG: Penelope Turek (#8, District 4)
40HG: Beetee Latier (#6, District 3)
41HG: Radiance Clinton (#6, District 1)
42HG: Technik Hartline (#7, District 3)
43HG: Dylan Levitt (#9, District 4)
44HG: Rye Boyum (#2, District 9)
45HG: Chaff Korsmun (#2, District 11)
46HG: Nolan Wrack (#11, District 2)
47HG: Klink Byrae (#4, District 5)
48HG: Brutus Cordley (#12, District 2)
49HG: Wiress Freid (#8, District 3)
50HG: Haymitch Abernathy (#2, District 12)
51HG: Lyme Mabbett (#13, District 2)
52HG: Ruby Rayfuse (#7, District 1)
53HG: Lily Eckel (#3, District 11)
54HG: Blight Holzer (#2, District 7)
55HG: Emily Pollick (#5, District 5)
56HG: Sally Vasilia (#6, District 5)
57HG: Mason Kittridge (#14, District 2)
58HG: Margaret Cartmill (#1, District 10)
59HG: Tiger Sterne (#8, District 1)
60HG: Cecelia Rieffel (#2, District 8)
61HG: Valerie Easton (#15, District 2)
62HG: Enobaria Rigatti (#16, District 2)
63HG: Gloss Linden (#9, District 1)
A/N: Another chapter!
We'll be seeing another familiar face next year, Cashmere, and then Finnick the year after. Some of you guys have been commenting about the games that Katniss mentions in the first book, like the games with only spiked maces and the games where the victor only scores a three. Don't worry—I have all of those games planned to at least some extent :D
