THE NINETY FIRST ANNUAL HUNGER GAMES
"Island Getaway"


INTRODUCTION

The marble tower that was Panem was crumbling farther and farther each year. Death tolls were higher than ever before, particularly in District 3, where at least a fourth of the population was dead or dying from the mysterious new pathogen. Even some of the most loyal districts like District 1 and District 2 were beginning to lose faith in the Capitol. Capitol doctors kept promising that a magic cure was just on the horizon, but at the dawn of the tenth Hunger Games decade the citizens of Panem decided they had had enough. They didn't want explanations. They wanted answers. Riots were immeasurable, and citizens were felled like ducks. Finally, President Stinn Hawke declared a mandatory viewing for all Panem. Nobody was sure whether to feel hopeful or terrified as they tuned in to see what their president had to say. Stinn announced to all Panem that he had been spoken to by a god. He also declared that he had been seeking advice from this anonymous higher power for several years. His power came from the divine, and the plague was a punishment from God for defying him and failing to meet his labor quotas. Stinn also wrote a holy book laying out the optimal government: one where each of the twelve children districts provided goods to their Capitol in exchange for government and security. Finally, he authorized the building of worship houses in every district and ordered every citizen of Panem to worship him as a god or die. There were small rebel groups at first, but they quickly petered out and died when peacekeepers started shooting and killing anyone who failed to show up to prayers without mercy. The residents of the districts were torn between their religious beliefs and the lives of themselves and their families. Everybody ended up switching to the new official religion of Panem or they quickly faced the bitter consequences. The games team remained the same, with Maddox Courval steering the games ship. Titanius Lafayette and Dexter Malcolms remained the charismatic duo running the pre-games festivities, keeping the Capitol entertained and distracted with their clever humor. Bread and circuses never failed.

This year's career pack was a solid group of strong kids. District 1 provided their most beautiful and talented recruits, but they were the weakest duo. The boy was the youngest this year at only fourteen, and he was relatively laid-back and unconventional, while the girl was older and fiercely independent and zealous. District 2 stole the show, and they were by far the strongest tributes in these games. The boy, the third of the famous Talbot siblings, was handsome, charming, and extremely popular in the Capitol. The girl was the star of the show this year: fifteen-year-old Atasia stole the spotlight with her beauty and mastery of weaponry, particularly with swords and axes. District 4 had a stereotypical pair. The boy was a famous and heavily-tanned surfer, while the girl, his senior by one year, had wavy black hair and olive skin. The scores of the pack were admirable: two elevens, two tens, a nine, and an eight.

The pairs from 7 and 10 banded together to form the anti-career pack, and they all scored sevens or eights. Oakson and Ivy from 7 were neighbors and close family friends, and they were similar in many ways. They had the same dirty blond hair and blue eyes and they both liked hatchets. Lorian from 10 was talented, crafty, and likeable, while his district partner Rebecca was more quiet and reserved, and she could be awkward, but in a cute way. Oakson scored the only seven, while Ivy, Lorian, and Rebecca scored eights. The rest of the tributes scored between six and three in their private sessions. The only other standout this year was Julia Frost from District 12. She was a grandniece of Victor Haymitch Abernathy, and she was the last legacy tribute from District 12 to enter the games for decades. She only scored a four, but she was still one to be remembered. There were no volunteers outside of the careers. Here are the tributes:

District 1: Woah Thorbjorn, 14, (8) 11-1 and Fantastica Collen, 16, (10) 6-1

District 2: Mars Talbot, 18, (11) 4-1 and Atasia Leyce, 15, (11) 3-1

District 3: Graceo Bronte, 16, (4) 28-1 and Elise Shorrock, 17, (5) 24-1

District 4: Gulley Pierce, 17, (9) 8-1 and Aqua Handell, 18, (10) 5-1

District 5: Henry Garner, 14, (4) 31-1 and Sonya Lupton, 13, (4) 34-1

District 6: Ashton Rudnick, 16, (6) 20-1 and Lizzie Narvaez, 12, (3) 42-1

District 7: Oakson Iglesias, 18, (7) 13-1 and Ivy Braidon, 18, (8) 10-1

District 8: Weaver Lilli, 13, (5) 25-1 and Silky Barillo, 15, (5) 25-1

District 9: Wylie Niklaus, 16, (4) 30-1 and Reece Gasman, 17, (4) 28-1

District 10: Lorian Bridger, 17, (8) 9-1 and Rebecca Geralds, 18, (8) 10-1

District 11: Lemon Rutherford, 13, (3) 41-1 and Tulip Entler, 15, (5) 24-1

District 12: Abdi Chacko, 18, (5) 24-1 and Julia Frost, 18, (4) 31-1

HGBO Bets: 18% on Atasia, 16% on Mars, 13% on Fantastica, 10% on Aqua, 9% on Gulley, 7% on Woah, 5% on Ivy, Lorian, and Rebecca, 2% on Oakson and Ashton, 1% or less on Graceo, Elise, Henry, Sonya, Lizzie, Weaver, Silky, Wylie, Reece, Lemon, Tulip, Abdi, and Julia.


THE GAMES

Hunger Games arenas were always terrifying for the district children unlucky enough to be sent inside, but that didn't mean they couldn't be stunningly beautiful in their own way. The tributes wore loose-fitting silk robes and flower necklaces. The girls all had pink blossoms woven in their hair, while the boys wore flower crowns made of purple and blue blossoms woven tightly together. Waves crashed onto the beach of the tropical island paradise, and the smell of sea foam was enough to calm their nerves even if it was only slightly. The cornucopia was situated on the beach, and it housed primal weapons like stone axes, crude hunting bows, and arrowhead spears. The rest of the island was a thick of dense jungle. Vines ran from tree to tree like the strands of spider webs, and the towering trunks curved and bent in an almost whimsical way. The air was strikingly hot and humid, but water was of no shortage of all. Dozens of lakes and streams were placed around the arena, and they all originated from the towering mountain at the center of the tropical island. The mountain was covered with lush greenery and scenic views, and a lazy flow of lava ran down its south face before pouring into the sea. The noises of chirping birds, croaking frogs, and rustling fronds were perpetually audible everywhere in the arena. At the arena's north end, opposite of the cornucopia, there was a small fishing village of grass huts where the island's native tribe lived. They were all dark-skinned and muscular and extremely violent when provoked. The remainder of the arena's mutts were terrifying hybrid creatures that had cost millions of dollars to create. A swarm of jaguar-shark hybrid mutts inhabited the arena's largest lake, and the remainder of the arena was filled with bird-spider mutts that had pristine feathery wings and beaks mounted terrifyingly on eight furry black legs. This year's arena also brought back the famous bird mutts of the second Quarter Quell that had been responsible for the death of Ms. Donner. They roosted in the highest peaks of the leafy palm trees. Due to the natural bounty of the arena, a number of tributes fled the bloodbath immediately. They were Elise from 3, Henry from 5, Weaver and Silky from 8, and Julia from 12. The bloodbath this year was to claim nine lives.

5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

Atasia sprinted at the head of the onrush, kicking up a cloud of sand behind her as she thundered toward the cornucopia. She snatched up one of the three stone swords in the cornucopia and then tackled the nearest boy, who was zigzagging to avoid attacks as he raced toward the cornucopia. Atasia cut open his torso with two heavy chops. His blood was the first to stain the pristine white sand.

Lemon Rutherford, District 11 Male: 24th, Killed by Atasia, Bloodbath

Atasia's district partner, the third of the Talbot siblings, was pleased to find that a sword had been placed conveniently at the halfway point of his pedestal and the cornucopia. He locked his fingers around the cumbersome stone hilt and thrust it into the upper leg of a nearby girl. Her knees buckled, and she fell to her elbows, screaming her head off before Mars thrust the point of his blade through her neck.

Sonya Lupton, District 5 Female: 23rd, Killed by Mars, Bloodbath

Atasia made her next strike. Lemon's ally, the willowy girl from District 9, was standing frozen several feet away, dumbfounded with shock and terror as she watched her friend be chopped open by the grinning girl from 2. Atasia pounced away from Lemon and tackled the girl to the ground, and she toppled like a domino. Her head hit a solid, sharp rock in her descent. She struggled hopelessly to fight back and blink back the spots in her vision while Atasia scored open her upper abdomen mercilessly with her weapon.

Reece Gasman, District 9 Female: 22nd, Killed by Atasia, Bloodbath

Gulley specialized in tridents, so he was disappointed to find that there were none in the cornucopia this year. The closest things were spears, so he grabbed one in each hand and shoved a dark-haired boy to the ground. The boy swung the pack he was carrying like a club, and it smacked Gulley straight in the mouth. He reeled, cursing. It took nearly twenty seconds for Gulley to corner the boy again, and this time there was no escaping his wrath. He was a mess of peppered holes and bleeding spots by the time he was finished.

Ashton Rudnick, District 6 Male: 21st, Killed by Gulley, Bloodbath

Fantastica liked a challenge, and she grinned fiercely as she scooped up one of the horn's crudely fashioned wooden bows. It took her nearly a minute of firing shots in arbitrary directions to get used to the feel of the primal weapon, but she eventually got the hang of things. The four anti-careers were nearby, and they all had their backs turned; they were busy fending off the boy from 3, who was carrying a spear and a weird spiked club-like weapon. Fantastica fired an arrow at the nearest tribute, and Ivy let out a shriek as the point of the arrow pierced her back. She fell to the sand and bled out swiftly, bringing the four anti-careers down to three.

Ivy Braidon, District 7 Female: 20th, Killed by Fantastica, Bloodbath

The anti-careers succeeded in their killing of the boy from 3 just as Ivy bled out fully. Lorian and Rebecca both had spears, and Oakson had a hatchet. Oakson heard the screams of his district partner and turned around to feud with his killer, whereas Lorian and Rebecca remained grounded and continued working on their original victim. Lorian eventually came close enough to grab him by the shoulders, and he dropped both of his weapons when he pushed him to the ground. Rebecca skewered her sword through his abdomen and then turned with Lorian to face Fantastica.

Graceo Bronte, District 3 Male: 19th, Killed by Lorian and Rebecca, Bloodbath

On the other side of the cornucopia field, Mars made his second kill. With a single thrusting motion of his sword, he sent a lithe girl toppling. She hit the sand with a loud noise, and Mars sealed her fate by thrusting his sword through her neck before galloping away to search for more victims.

Tulip Entler, District 11 Female: 18th, Killed by Mars, Bloodbath

The anti-careers managed to dispatch Fantastica over the course of about a minute. She had outscored all of them, but she was still one up against three. Lorian ended up smacking her in the mouth, disorienting her long enough for himself and his two surviving allies to escape.

As Oakson, Lorian, and Rebecca disappeared into the jungle thick, Abdi from District 12 claimed a life. He'd been tussling over a pack with a smaller boy for several minutes. When Abdi finally tore the pack out of his hands, he grabbed the tin thermos inside and slammed it into his head. The boy screamed and tried to scuttle to safety, but Abdi leapt onto him and continued beating him to death with the tin canister. The sound it made as it bashed against his skull was like the most demented bell imaginable. When he was finally unconscious, Abdi threw the pack over his shoulder and ran. Moments afterward, a softly humming Mars came across the boy's unconscious, but still breathing, body. He was dead with only a slight prod from Mars' blade.

Wylie Niklaus, District 9 Male: 17th, Killed by Abdi and Mars, Bloodbath

The triumphant Abdi sprinted away from the cornucopia as quickly as his legs could carry him, trying not to vomit at the memory of Wylie's lifeless form. He was only a few hundred feet away from the horn when he was intercepted by Fantastica from District 1 and her district partner, Woah. Abdi hastily looked back and forth between the two 1s, and he wasn't fast enough to form a solid plan before he was tackled from both sides. Fantastica held the thrashing boy down while Woah sawed his knives back and forth across his chest. He was gone in moments.

Abdi Chacko, District 12 Male: 16th, Killed by Fantastica and Woah, Bloodbath

The careers paraded around the cornucopia, sifting through their supplies and quickly becoming bored with the task. All of their sights drifted toward the impressive mountain feature in the dead center of the arena, and they vowed to head toward its base at noon the following day. They chose not to hunt because both Woah and Gulley were significantly injured. Each of their district partners (Fantastica and Aqua) helped them out with cleaning up and bandaging their injuries, while Mars and Atasia from District 2 did a quick hunt of the nearby land. The audience was quick to notice how often they were stealing glances at one another; romantic feelings between careers had been unseen since Swordfish and Annie of the seventieth games. Mars and Atasia were sure to be an interesting pair as the games progressed.

The morning was veiled by a warm, thick mist stirred only by the occasional breeze. Elise from 3 had been one of the five tributes to make a quick retreat from the bloodbath. She sprinted south as quickly as her legs could carry her before she collapsed with exhaustion near one of the arena's widest streams. Elise slurped down a helping of the crystal clear river water and then started gathering fallen palm fronds and vines to fashion a shelter. Tiny Henry from 5 sprinted as far as he could carry himself for the first day, and he crinkled his eyebrows when the small fishing village came into sight. He was too tired to investigate, so he curled up behind a boulder-like rock and vowed to do his fair share of exploration the following day. Lizzie from 6, much like the careers, was entranced by the picturesque mountain towering over the rest of the arena. She sprinted up the slope for about ten minutes straight, carrying nothing but the clothes on her back. Drenched with sweat and panting from exhaustion, she stopped on a wide, rocky ledge overlooking the green island and tried to sleep. The anti-careers proceeded similarly. They thought the mountain's picturesque slopes would attract the most tributes, and they were eager to get exploring quickly. The alliance's three members, Oakson, Lorian, and Rebecca, trudged up the mountain's steep face for about half of the day. They stopped for the evening on a ledge covered with a carpet of vines and ferns, and they fell asleep quickly. Weaver and Silky from 8 had allied prior to the games. For the first few minutes, they had a somewhat simple journey away from the cornucopia, but a slope appeared out of nowhere and they both tumbled down it. They hadn't spotted it earlier because the solid green of the rainforest was like an optical illusion, robbing them of their depth perception. The small boy and girl came to a battered stop at the base of the slope and cried softly for the rest of the day, hoping their various cuts and bruises would heal as they were only capable of making slight movements without extreme pain. Julia from 12 sprinted onward for most of the day, kept hydrated by a tin spile sent to her by her rich sponsors. By nightfall, she had practically reached the opposite coast. Julia tied herself into a tree with a thick vine and hummed quietly to herself as she fell asleep. There was peace in the arena as day turned into night, but the peace did not last for long.

The dawn came in the form of a cannon shot. Elise was roused from sleep by a beam of sun that fell through a gap in the forest roof and landed on her face. She didn't know how much danger she was in, but two of the jaguar/shark mutts had been staying put at the bottom of the river for several hours, waiting to pounce at the gamemakers' command. Elise gorged herself on a handful of edible berries and then stepped slowly into the river. She instantly felt the sharp claws of the first mutt, and Elise stumbled out of the water, screaming as blood squirted down her ankles and pooled up around her feet. The ugly, unnatural creatures slowly rose out of the river. They had grey shark bodies with gills, but they had the heads of tan-colored jaguar cats with black spots. Each of the mutts had fins and legs, allowing them to move swiftly through both air and water. Elise screamed even louder as the nearest mutt closed its jaw around her leg, chomping the limb straight off of her body. She fell to one side like a three-legged stool with a leg removed, and she was helpless as the other hybrid mutt ensnared her with its jaguar tail and dragged her down into the river's watery depths.

Elise Shorrock, District 3 Female: 15th, Killed by Jaguar/Shark Muttations, Day 2

The rest of Day 2 was deathless. Weaver and Silky woke to find that their pains and aches had healed enough for them to stand up and move. They were both limping slightly, but miraculously they hadn't broken any bones. They also weren't punctured beyond minor cuts and scrapes. Their eyes were set on the large volcano in the center of the arena. They'd seen the second Quarter Quell more times than they could count, and they knew mountains in the Hunger Games weren't typically trustworthy, but they still decided it was their best bet because of the safety of its heights and hidden areas. They'd done themselves a disfavor the day prior by moving in an awkward curved path around the island, which added several miles to their journey. Halfway through the day, Weaver and Silky crouched down at the base of the mountain and wiggled under the thick layer of foliage before passing out.

At the same time, the anti-careers were slowly but surely winding their way up the slope. They had several scares in which one or more of them almost fell to their deaths, but they eventually found stable footing on a long, thin strip of rock that wound around the grand mountain. From the perch they established about a quarter of a mile up, they had a somewhat grandiose view of the island, the lava flow, and the sparkling blue ocean beyond. While Rebecca and Lorian quickly made a shelter out of vines and branches, Oakson ventured a few hundred meters away to gather food. His allies were scared when he didn't return within a few hours, but he eventually did return, drenched in sweat. He'd been attacked by two of the pink bird mutts, and he had been forced to abandon his basket of berries to keep them occupied while he ran for his life. The trio went to sleep with relatively empty stomachs that night.

The careers were hunting wildly still, making fast progress back and forth across the island as the sun arced across the sky. Gulley and Aqua from 4 were the expert navigators, and the others trusted their judgement to keep them from getting lost on the tropical island where pretty much every area looked the same. They faced a setback when Woah absentmindedly tore a few inky black berries from a small bush and shoved them into his mouth. He mistook them for common elder berries, but they were deadly poison. Fortunately, Woah hadn't ingested enough to kill him. Unfortunately, the pack had to quickly halt their travelling journey to let him heal. Fantastica, Mars, Atasia, Gulley, and Aqua quickly set up a shelter and waited impatiently for the poison to work its way out of the quietly moaning boy's body.

Day 3 was deathless. The careers were growing nearer and nearer to central volcano by the hour, but they took a slight detour to visit the small fishing village at the north end of the arena. Tables were upturned, boats were half-sunk, and buildings were collapsed. It looked as though a tornado had struck the place. The six careers split up into two groups to investigate. Woah, Fantastica, and Mars were in one group, whereas Atasia, Gulley, and Aqua were in the other. Gully softly opened the door of one of the cabins, and a spear hit him in the chest an instant later. As if on cue, the other tribespeople opened their doors and sprinted out into the narrow streets with weapons galore. Surprisingly, all six of the careers managed to escape with their lives. Gulley's spear injury was the most severe, but even that was expected to heal fully within days if not hours. The audience squealed with excitement when Mars sprinted into a slowly collapsing structure to save Atasia before she could be crushed to death. Having killed about half of the crowd, the careers fled for their lives. They ran straight past the large boulder behind which Henry was hiding, and the 5 boy just shivered slightly as the pack ran past him.

On Day 4, the careers set their sights back on the central mountain feature and resumed their long journey toward it. They thought that Gully's injury was minor, while in reality there was much more bleeding on the inside that none of them knew about. As the days passed, his body would slowly shut down for seemingly no reason.

By that point, Weaver and Silky had disembarked from the mountain, creeped out by the sheer height and instability of the slope. At eight in the morning, Silky slipped on a crumbling rock and fell straight off of the mountain face. Weaver hurriedly grabbed her by the wrists and tugged her back over, and Silky was crying too hard to talk for the next few hours. Throughout the day, the 8s moved farther and farther toward the ground, and they couldn't see the nearby career pack through the carpet-like forest ceiling. The settled near a stream about a quarter mile from the pack, and in seemingly no time at all they had been spotted. The bloodthirsty career pack burst out of the trees, roaring, and the 8s had both been pushed to the ground in moments. Woah, Fantastica, Gulley, and Aqua hung several meters back while Mars and Atasia circled slowly around the bound and gagged outliers, lunging forward from time to time just to make them groan louder. About fifteen minutes later, Mars went in for the kill for real. Weaver left out a squeal that was muffled by his cloth gag as the 2 boy planted his sword into his chest. He quickly fell still.

Weaver Lilli, District 8 Male: 14th, Killed by Mars, Day 4

Silky finally managed to dislodge her gag with the help of her strong jaw, and the slimy rag fell slowly to her chest with a squishing noise. Silky immediately screamed at the top of her lungs. Nearby Julia heard Silky's screams and briefly considered running to help her before returning to her perch in the lowest bough of the whimsically curved tree. Atasia scowled and thrust her spear into Silky's neck. Her screams swiftly decrescendoed to an ugly kind of gurgle as her lungs flooded with blood.

Silky Barillo, District 8 Female: 13th, Killed by Atasia, Day 4

The anti-careers remained put on the side of the mountain. They thought the gamemakers would allow them a solid day of break time after three days of near-continuous movement, but they were wrong; due to the smaller arena, keeping everybody moving was paramount to keeping any aspect of the games from getting too boring. The sun was around its peak in the sky when the anti-careers were pulled from sleep by the chirping of the arena's demented bird hybrid mutts. Rebecca was the front of the group, and she let out a high-pitched scream when the first of the beaked, winged tarantulas landed on her face. Rebecca stumbled back into the shadows, where a terrified Oakson and Lorian were watching with sick fascination. The swarm descended like a black cloud, and the trio ran for their lives. They sprinted down the rocky slope carefully and therefore slowly. Minutes later, the swarm was drawn away by the gamemakers. Lorian was separated from the others, and it took a scary hour to find him again. Despite their minor injuries, they were all just fine. They returned to their camp to gather up their supplies and moved about a mile across the north slope, on a similar ledge with a slightly less grand view of the arena.

Julia had been moving somewhat aimlessly around the tropical island for much of the games, and she finally came to the shore. She pushed aside the last few vines and ferns and stepped out onto the sand. The ocean was stunningly clear and crystalline, and Julia was drawn to it as though by a magic spell. She filled her belly with a few edible oysters and then began exploring the shore. She eventually came to an inlet heavily veiled by vines and fronds. She took a quick wash and then curled up on the sands, willing sleep to come to her. The sand stick to her wet skin in a gross way, and it was rather uncomfortable, but she didn't have anywhere more comfortable so she just had to put up with it.

The fifth day passed swiftly. The careers had set up their camp in a small fissure at the base of the mountain the night prior. They broke camp and dawn and started their journey upward. It quickly became apparent that they had made a decision regarding Gulley. There was literally nothing they could do to help him but put him out of his suffering. The spear wound in his shoulder had grown increasingly gangrenous and infected over the past few days. They were about to do him a kindness, really.

Aqua moved several meters away, not wanting to watch the death of her district partner. Woah and Fantastica watched with blank-slate looks on their faces as Mars and Atasia approached the softly snoring boy. They thrust their blades into his torso in unison; his cannon promptly fired, and the pack left quickly.

Gulley Pierce, District 4 Male: 12th, Killed by Mars and Atasia, Day 5

Neither pack knew it, but the careers and the anti-careers were moving toward each other throughout the fifth day, albeit slowly. They were on relatively the same level of the tiered slope, and they were expected to meet late Day 5 or early Day 6, but not later. In fact, the lazily flowing volcano would soon become a burnt, hellish, uninhabitable land when the first true eruption was to occur the next day. That night, the careers and the anti-careers slept less than a quarter of a mile from each other.

The three other tributes weren't doing much. Henry abandoned his plan to investigate the fishing village when he saw the harm they'd done to the now-deceased Gulley from 4. He started a shelter made of palm leaves and vines about half a mile away from the village, and he was woken in the middle of the night by the rabid, dissonant squawking of the pink bird mutts. One of them nearly skewered its razor-sharp beak through his neck before he escaped. Screaming and shaking with terror, Henry ran toward the thicker areas of the tropical forest. He was panicking terribly, but Henry was a calculated boy despite his youth. He quickly reached a ditch covered with a net of fallen vines. Henry crawled into the safe ditch and watched with terror as the pink birds beat helplessly at the net of vines.

Julia continued relaxing in her veiled inlet. Despite her beauty, she was modest enough not to get any more naked than momentarily pulling up her shirt to scrub off the dirt that had built up underneath. At one point, a single jaguar-shark hybrid mutt came near. Julia fended it off for about fifteen minutes before it took the hint that she wasn't to be messed with and retreated into the jungle thick. Julia had fought awfully well for a girl with only a four in training; it was then clear she had not been showcasing her full potential during her private session.

After a day of alternating between walking and jogging, Lizzie lied down in a bed of vines and put her feet up on a scorching-hot boulder for a rest. With her ear pressed against the volcano's rocky surface, she heard something she hadn't been able to hear before. She heard the faint rumbling, churning noise of the volcano's fiery inner hell. Lizzie wasn't stupid. The moment the birds quieted down enough for Lizzie to hear the noise for real, she packed up her things and ran down the slope like a madman. She'd reached the ground level within an hour, and Lizzie sprinted an additional two miles away from the mountain before she collapsed in a bed of vines that drooped low like a hammock. Her sense of hearing had literally saved her life.

A loud pinging sound filled the gamemakers center in the Capitol as the dozens of sensors planted inside and outside of the volcano sensed that the first true eruption was about to occur. Unlike the volcano of the second quell, which blew its top much earlier than expected, this volcano was erupting right on schedule. Pleased, the gamemakers sat back and adjusted their cameras to get the best view of the carnage that was about to occur.

The careers awoke to loud, loud rumbles, far too loud to be pegged as figments of their imaginations this time. They looked uncomfortably at each other and then sprinted several hundred meters west to see what was making the sound, and when the side of the mountain began cracking and crumbling, the careers seized up with terror and sprinted downhill.

The first plume of lava that shot out of the volcano was mere feet from Aqua's face. She staggered backward, too petrified to scream, and the other careers froze in their tracks, dumbfounded with shock as the side of the mountain collapsed faster and faster. The ground was liquefying under her feet, and there was nothing she could do. Aqua quickly prayed that her allies would escape safely before the ground gave way and she fell like a stone into the volcano's inner hell.

Aqua Handell, District 4 Female: 11th, Killed by Volcanic Eruption, Day 6

Oakson, Lorian, and Rebecca started their quick sprint down the slope as soon as they were awoken by the loud rumbles. Unfortunately, they were all heavy sleepers, and they hadn't awoken until it was too late. A plume of lava and ash shot through a large rock and engulfed Rebecca's left arm. Oakson and Lorian kept running while Rebecca stumbled sideways, struggling to stay on her feet despite the excruciating pain.

The nearby career pack heard her screams and slowed down slightly when her staggering form came into focus. Always the good career, Woah nocked an arrow in his bow and fired in Rebecca's direction. Rebecca screamed at the top of her lungs and kept on running, but she quickly realized she was trapped between the pack and the undulating lava flow. Woah broke away from the others and tackled Rebecca, shoving her to the vine-laden mountain face with a loud noise. The lava quickly engulfed Rebecca, killing her with its death-bringing hands in due time.

Rebecca Geralds, District 10 Female: 10th, Killed by Woah and Volcanic Eruption, Day 6

Woah swiftly caught up with the rest of the pack. They were several precious strides ahead of the lava, but it was gaining on them dangerously quickly. They'd abandoned all forms of coherent strategy several minutes prior and were now leaping and sprinting down the steep face like madmen. Suddenly, a stressed, almost insane Fantastica grabbed her district partner Woah by the shoulders and shoved him sideways into the lava flow in an almost archaic sacrifice to the gamemaker gods, as though that could somehow slow its flow. Woah was dead before he even knew what had happened.

Woah Thorbjorn, District 1 Male: 9th, Killed by Fantastica and Volcanic Eruption, Day 6

That left the final eight: Fantastica Collen from District 1, Mars Talbot and Atasia Leyce from District 2, Henry Garner from District 5, Lizzie Narvaez from District 6, Oakson Iglesias from District 7, Lorian Bridger from District 10, and Julia Frost from District 12.

Karma's a bitch, especially in the arena. Fantastica couldn't take five more steps before she tripped on her untied shoelace and toppled onto her front. She nearly took down Mars in his descent, but Atasia tugged him away before he could fall. Fantastica let out a gasp of horror as she felt the quickly moving lava flow consume her feet and legs. She made a desperate effort to drag herself away; of course, she was a goner.

Fantastica Collen, District 1 Female: 8th, Killed by Volcanic Eruption, Day 6

The four tributes left on the volcano managed to survive the eruption. This was yet another contrast to the second Quarter Quell, where every one of the twelve tributes on the face of the volcano was incinerated. Oakson and Lorian were not only fast, they were also very agile. They managed to make it all the way to the base of the mountain without tripping or stumbling. Sweating profusely and taking breaths so loud they sounded like screams, Oakson and Lorian dashed into the moist jungle. They were far too exhausted to set up a shelter. They just laid down on the ground when their knees buckled, and they were asleep almost instantly.

The two other tributes left on the mountain, Mars and Atasia, held hands as they sprinted downward. With lava crashing behind them, it would have made for a somewhat cinematic kissing scene, but they were far too focused on not being sizzled alive to think about kissing. The lava was less than two meters behind them by the time they reached the base, and the intense heat of the eruption was so intense on their backs that their shirts had begun to smolder slightly. Now on solid ground, Mars and Atasia thundered toward safety. Much like Oakson and Lorian, they were far too exhausted to do anything but sleep like rocks once their legs gave in.

Mars and Atasia returned to the cornucopia on Day 7. They clearly still liked each other, but they were evidently trying to suppress their romantic feelings because they knew that at least one of them would have to die sooner than later. Just to make sure their relationship didn't progress any further than it already had, they split apart. Atasia shoved everything she could carry into a number of camouflaged packs and then sprinted off into the jungle. She found a clearing veiled by vines that she decided to make her new home. Atasia dumped all of her supplies there before stalking off, carrying only a thermos of water and her two weapons, her sword and a stone machete with a jagged edge.

Early in the morning, Lizzie from 6 met her end. She abandoned her small shelter two miles away from the mountain and continued her trek through the dense, hot jungle, avoiding beaches and steering clear of the fiery mountain at the center of the arena. She was one of the few tributes who hadn't seen the people of the small fishing village out of their homes. Curious, she approached the wooden village to investigate. She only had to come an eighth of a mile from the first house when the first tribesperson burst out of the trees, brandishing a spear. Little Lizzie screamed and grabbed a large stick, praying it would be good enough to fend off the tall man and his friends, if he had any. She was swiftly overwhelmed. Less than a minute later, a spear pierced her side, and Lizzie staggered backward, screaming her head off as blood drizzled down her leg and into her right shoe. The rest quickly got to work. When Lizzie's cannon fired, they grunted with satisfaction before returning to their homes to wait for another defenseless victim.

Lizzie Narvaez, District 6 Female: 7th, Killed by Tribe Muttations, Day 7

Henry was by the far the least popular of the remaining tributes, but the gamemakers didn't want to kill him off, at least not yet. The ninety-first Hunger Games hadn't seen actual blood since the deaths of Weaver and Silky on Day 4, and Henry would be great for that purpose if he made it any farther into the games on his own. Making sure to stay as far away from the fishing village and the volcano spewing liquid fire, he moved quietly through the trees and eventually settled down with his back against a broad-trunked palm tree.

Oakson and Lorian woke up on the morning of Day 7 and rubbed their eyes groggily. It felt like they had only been asleep for a few seconds, but it really had been nearly thirteen hours. They broke camp and then ate breakfast, and Lorian froze mid-bite, eyes agape with horror. In explanation, he raised his finger and pointed at the bush bearing deadly nightlock berries that had been mere feet from his head the night prior. Oakson slowly approached the bush and put on the rubber gloves he'd grabbed from the cornucopia. A sponsor sent him a small paper bowl, and Oakson mashed up the black berries of death into a thick paste. He nodded once to Lorian, and then they were off.

The anti-careers didn't take long to find their victim. They entered the veiled inlet where Julia was hiding and saw the 12 girl starting nervously back and forth, humming to herself. Oakson and Lorian hid behind a large rock and watched as she ate breakfast before sprinting off to search for victims. The moment she was away, Oakson charged forward and emptied the entire contents of the bowl into Julia's thermos. He gave Lorian the clear, and then they sprinted away.

Julia returned to the camp about half an hour later. She'd been attacked by three of the pink birds, and she had narrowly escaped with her life. Exhausted, she knelt in front of her thermos and splashed the cold liquid onto her mouth and face. She immediately started screaming as the highly potent, toxic solution ate away at her face and throat, and Julia collapsed onto her back, retching, gasping, and shaking. Her cannon shot was almost immediate.

Julia Frost, District 12 Female: 6th, Killed by Oakson, Day 7

Mars left the cornucopia as soon as the sun was in the sky on Day 8. He'd gotten the furthest of the three Talbot siblings thus far, and he was determined to keep up his stride and make it to the victor's throne. When he woke up, many of the horn's supplies were destroyed or missing; Maddox was a head gamemaker who liked messing with his tributes, even the most popular ones. Trying not to imagine he may have been going crazy, Mars picked a few berries for breakfast and then galloped away to search for victims.

Oakson and Lorian were barreling through the jungle at top speed, their packs bouncing against their backs as one of the jaguar-shark mutts chased after them. The mutt was fast, but the terrified boys were faster. Once, Lorian stumbled, and the mutt opened a long gash in his back. Lorian almost collapsed from the agony, but Oakson tugged him along. Their movements were making quite a bit of noise, and this attracted the attention of the two nearest tributes; the disjoined 2s, Mars Talbot and Atasia Leyce.

When the 2s spotted the anti-careers from opposite directions, the hybrid mutt withdrew into the shadows. Atasia charged, and she tackled the nearest tribute to her, Oakson from 7. At the other end of the clearing, Mars wrinkled his eyebrows in confusion. He didn't know another tribute had been nearby except for himself and the anti-careers. Atasia dug the point of her sword into Oakson's chest and dragged it down like a knife being dragged through butter, and Oakson screams could be heard for miles around. His ally Lorian froze dead in his tracks at the sight of his dying ally. He made the decision to run for his life as soon as Oakson's cannon fired.

Oakson Iglesias, District 7 Male: 5th, Killed by Atasia, Day 8

When Lorian turned, he was immediately met by the bite of Mars' sword in his gut. Lorian let out a choked gasp and then fell limp, slowly sliding off of the blade over the course of about five seconds. He landed on the jungle floor with a loud thumping sound, and Mars turned his sword around in his grasp, grinning.

Lorian Bridger, District 10 Male: 4th, Killed by Mars, Day 8

Mars and Atasia, who didn't recognize each other, pointed their weapons at each other's chests, snarling. When they recognized one another, they slowly lowered their weapons and stood in awkward silence for several seconds. At least one of them was going to have to die in the immediate future and there was nothing they could do about it. But suppressing romantic feelings is far from easy, and Atasia couldn't help herself. She grabbed Mars by the shoulders and drew in for a kiss. Mars just pulled away, mumbling under his breath. He really did like Atasia back, and he really did want to let her kiss him, but his critical thinking skills demanded he resist. Mars just shook his head, the slightest hint of sadness in his eyes, and thundered away.

Henry had miraculously slept through the cannon shots of both Oakson and Lorian. He only realized he was the only outlier left in the arena when the death recap was shown that night. When he saw the faces of the two boys in the sky, an intense stroke of panic hit him in the chest and he burst into tears. He was up against both Mars and Atasia, the strongest and most popular tributes out of the original twenty-four. He was fourteen years old and only had a four in training. He had no chance. He was doomed.

A cannon shot fired moments afterward. The infrared cameras zoomed in to show Henry's dead body. He had once been sitting down his back against a tree, but had since fallen sideways, his arms falling in front of him as he did so. Two heavy lines were carved into his flesh, running from his wrists to his elbows, and he held a sharp stone in each hand. He'd taken the initiative of ending his own life, without the drawn-out agony of letting himself die at the hands of the vicious careers.

Henry Garner, District 5 Male: 3rd, Killed by Himself, Day 9

The remainder of Day 9 was deathless. Mars and Atasia were now at opposite ends of the arena, at least a full day's journey apart. The day prior, Mars had sprinted along a path of at least four miles. In a weird way, it seemed as though he was trying to place as much distance between himself and Atasia as possible. Henry's cannon shot was his signal to get moving, and Mars groaned slightly as he got to his feet and sprinted back into the mist-laden jungle thick.

Atasia had finally managed to fall asleep after tossing and turning for several hours, and she woke up on the tenth morning to the raspy, high-pitched squawking of the pink bird mutt. Atasia whipped her head around and searched for the source of the noise, and the bird swooped down from the highest bough of a nearby tree. It was the same bird mutt that had killed Maysilee Donner all the way back in the second Quarter Quell. When victor Haymitch Abernathy saw the exact mutt that he had been trying so hard to forget for forty-one years, still missing the feathers a terrified Maysilee had torn out of its skin in her last moments, he fled to his apartment screaming. He was found on his sofa an hour later an inch from alcohol poisoning, but the medical teams of the Capitol did manage to save him. He was in hospital for weeks.

The bird mutts chased Atasia toward Mars, and the 2s spotted each other from about fifty yards away in a clearing crisscrossed from above by rope-like, bright-green vines. Mars made the first move, slashing his sword in Atasia's direction. Atasia deflected the blow with a blow of her own, and the scream of metal against metal ran around the clearing as Mars spun around and hit Atasia's blade from the other direction.

They truly were the best recruits out of all of 2's students, and they had one of the most entertaining final fights in history. After so many years of seeing them training alongside each other at the academy, it was interesting to see them pitted against each other. About fifteen minutes later, the gamemakers sent torrential rainfall onto the arena. Atasia twitched slightly when the first drop landed on her forehead, and she hesitated for just long enough for Mars to bury the blade of his sword into her side. Atasia howled, and Mars leapt out of the trajectory of her sword before she could hurt him back.

The victor was determined roughly thirty minutes after the start of the fight. They were ankle-deep in water when Mars sent Atasia reeling with a well-placed thrusting motion of his sword. Atasia tripped over her own feet in her stumble, and she fell onto her back, groaning. She blinked back her vision to see Mars towering over her with his sword held high, and her world quickly cut to black.

Atasia Leyce, District 2 Female: 2nd, Killed by Mars, Day 10

"Mars Talbot of District 2, you are the victor of the ninety-first annual Hunger Games!" Titanus shouted.

Mars just smiled warmly. He'd had a great time since his arrival in the Capitol and the arena, but he was ready to go home.

Mars Talbot, District 2 Male: Victor of the Ninety-First Hunger Games, Day 10


AFTERMATH

Mars had brought the first victory to the historically famous Talbot family, and his victory rekindled the flames of his younger brothers. They were more than a little discouraged after watching the deaths of Mercury and Venus before him, and Mars showed them that if they played their cards right they could absolutely come home and make their other siblings proud. District 2 would praise the Talbot name for many years to come, and Mars had brought the quarrying district its twenty-first victor, placing it a stellar six victors ahead of District 1 and seven ahead of 4. Mars was just happy to be home, and he was one of the most prime examples of district pride. He flew the emblem of District 2 over his house seven days a week and always put it at half-mast when one of the other victors died. President Stinn Hawke would enroll him in the sex industry, but Mars didn't mind. He might have even enjoyed it.

The payouts on his victory were pretty meager, as just over 16% bet on him.

His victory tour served its intended purpose, scaring and placating the outlying districts into silence and compliance. His voice cracked ever-so-slightly when he read Atasia's eulogy at his final stop in 2.

Mars would live to age ninety-four, dying from unspecified medical causes five weeks before the one-hundred sixty-seventh annual Hunger Games. He would marry and have three children. He would take up alcohol shortly after his victory, but it wasn't to wipe away the memories of his games; he just liked to drink.


NEWS

Mars moves into the Victor's Village of District 2, the twentieth to do so.

Woof Dozier, the victor of the thirteenth Hunger Games, dies from heart disease.

Odius Ruttler, the victor of the nineteenth Hunger Games, dies from respiratory failure.


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)
64HG: Cashmere Linden (#10, District 1)
65HG: Finnick Odair (#10, District 4)
66HG: Victor Xhang (#17, District 2)
67HG: Augustus Braun (#11, District 1)
68HG: Iuna Mosier (#12, District 1)
69HG: Alexander Westlake (#2, District 10)
70HG: Annie Cresta (#11, District 4)
71HG: Johanna Mason (#3, District 7)
72HG: Remus Daley (#18, District 2)
73HG: Apollo Reinold (#4, District 6)
74HG: Meredith Powell (#4, District 7)
75HG: Struve Lockman (#19, District 2)
76HG: Porcelain Wing (#13, District 1)
77HG: Router Lowell (#9, District 3)
78HG: Surge Upsdell (#7, District 5)
79HG: Kasey Slosser (#5, District 6)
80HG: Tarquinius Orfe (#20, District 2)
81HG: Talisa Plummer (#12, District 4)
82HG: Poplin Amsden (#3, District 8)
83HG: Pixel Watt (#10, District 3)
84HG: Dock Elizabeth (#13, District 4)
85HG: Sycamora Bromley (#5, District 7)
86HG: Bobbin Chern (#4, District 8)
87HG: Organdy Karat (#14, District 1)
88HG: Sickle Salgato (#3, District 9)
89HG: Admired Thompson (#15, District 1)
90HG: Chipson Harris (#11, District 3)
91HG: Mars Talbot (#21, District 2)