Training Day 3
Vis Provo (16) D5M
Vis was certain that the servant was soon going to have something good coming in his life.
After all, what he was going to suffer was terrible. Positive forces had to balance those out. That was how nature worked. However, Vis wondered about the good things in life. As much as he raked his brains, he couldn't find any such event in his life that justified him going to the arena. He had lost his mother, and he was a tribute. He wondered what kind of good event would compensate for that.
But Vis was more worried right now about his training sessions. The Private Sessions were to begin after the lunch break and the boy was certain that his lack of skill in any particular weapon was going to result in something even worse. He had tried using a knife, and stuck with it. It was hard, but the rest of the weapons were harder.
And now the boy was busy getting any last-minute practice he could get, sweat dripping down his face as he told himself to calm down. Usually last-minute preparation didn't get the desired results, but Vis hoped that he would get at least a five. He was unimpressive in the parade because of Casper, and he came from a poor District, so most likely nobody was going to sponsor him at the moment. He was also certain that he wouldn't make a lasting impression in the interview tomorrow. So that left just the training session.
All around him tributes were training. He saw little Tapicca looking stressed as she tried to get things done, but the trainer was being harsh on her. He saw that Tapicca was working with a sickle, and her trainer was continuously yelling at her to do better. He saw his own District Partner, Liya, wanting to help the girl out, but restraining herself. The look of helplessness on Liya's face was enough to get Vis feel the burden of his principles. What was happening right now was wrong, blatantly wrong. Little Tapicca was already scared of everything that was happening, and bullying her, in Vis' opinion, was cowardly to say the least.
"Hey relax," Vis called out to the trainer, "Why don't you just try to help? Instead of, you know, scaring her?"
The big burly man turned to face Vis with a smirk on his face. Raising his brow, he regarded Vis closely.
"Will you teach me how to do my job?"
"No no! I didn't mean that! I'm just- look at her! She's just so scared!"
"For your own good, kid," the trainer replied, "Don't concern yourself with others. In the arena you can't really afford to make sure that nobody scares her."
Vis became silent at that, knowing he should not push the subject further. He met Liya's eyes who confirmed his thoughts by shaking her head very slightly and clenching her fists. Vis sighed as he lowered his eyes but then was astounded at the sudden voice, for Tapicca was speaking for herself.
"He's right!" she yelled at the trainer, "You have no business bullying me! Just tell me how to use this thing!"
"I don't feel like doing so," the trainer replied curtly, "I think you'll discover in the arena."
And before anyone could do anything, he snatched the sickle out of her hands only to replace it back on the shelf. The man turned towards her and sneered before going over to Maurice to teach him to set traps. The boy looked at him in horror before retreating into the washroom.
Vis sighed as he slowly approached Tapicca, who looked to be on the verge of tears. He patted her back lightly, not knowing how exactly to deal with the situation he was in. to his surprise, Tapicca smiled at him and suddenly gave him a hug.
This situation was so awkward for Vis that he wanted nothing more than to just disappear from the scene. He could just feel the tributes staring at him. He again patted her shoulder slightly as she released him. With a smile, she said, "Thank you."
Vis nodded before turning back and marching towards where his knife lay on the floor, hoping that this incident wouldn't affect him.
Emeline Grey (15) D4F
Emeline was not as stressed out as she thought she would be.
The Careers had all been more than accepting of her. Nobody other than Saunder questioned her 'Reaped' status, and she didn't really care about her District Partner's opinions. Right now, the Careers watched as Aryton and Jordan trained. Emeline had given the latter a few tips on how to handle a trident even better, and right now she was doing brilliant in the simulation exercise.
"Why the hell are we trying to help them out?" Siobhan asked, "Guys, remember that we need to off them before they get dangerous."
"You worry too much," Ivory retorted as her eyes moved back and forth, first observing Jordan then Aryton. The simulated tributes posed better challenge to the boy compared to the previous day, but it was Jordan who surprised Emeline- and scared her.
For Jordan was simply slaying every simulated tribute her way. Now, if she made it quick then at least Emeline could trick herself into thinking that the girl didn't think the simulations were human. However, Jordan made sure to do the exact opposite; she dragged out the killings in a way that disgusted Emeline. For example, at that very moment Jordan slammed a young female tribute to the floor and kicked her on the stomach, before burying the trident in her stomach. Jordan slowly twisted the weapon even as the simulated tribute screamed in a very human voice. It didn't matter to her attacker though, and soon Jordan pulled out the sword, along with the simulated tribute's intestines.
"That's *** gross!" Aryton exclaimed as he eyed the trident.
As for Emeline, she just felt like throwing up right there. Looking at her teammate's, she was glad that at least they thought the same way. Even her District Partner looked visibly disgusted, and that was saying something.
"Come on Ary!" Jordan retorted, "That's how you're going to get any sponsor!"
Aryton, unable to digest the way Jordan relished such thoughts, walked out of the simulation area, throwing his sabre away, before looking at Jordan straight in the eye.
"You're disgusting if that's what you think."
Emeline wouldn't have said that to a girl as crazy as Jordan had she been in Ary's place, but from the time she had known the boy, the one thing he had been unable to do was control his words. Sentences just poured out of his mouth without getting properly structured in his mind, resulting in him being a guy with just no filter at all. He didn't even feel scared voicing out his thoughts, not even here. Emeline was sure of thing; their Outer allies had to be killed as soon as it was possible to do so. Aryton was useful, but his mouth was definitely going to get on one of the Career's wrong side, and Jordan was just plain dangerous… and crazy.
"I think we should just take some rest," Siobhan whispered in my ear, and I knew what she was talking about. All the Careers other than Saunder caught the message, and with a slight nod, Ivory and Everette left the spot. The rest of them started leaving too as Saunder began talking to Aryton and Jordan, maybe not even noticing them.
All of them assembled at the water counter, and Emeline looked out at the other three tributes still talking. Ivory shook her head as she downed a glass of cool water, and slammed the glass on the counter.
"We first need to take out Jordan," Siobhan said as she leaned against the counter, "I thought she'd be useful but…"
"We don't want a psychopath with us, I know," Emeline replied.
"Right," Ivory added, "We can take care of Saunder later. Aryton can still be useful for a while. Jordan is our main target."
"Guys," Casper interjected, "Don't you think we shouldn't be planning Saunder's death before we're even in the Games?"
"I get your point," Emeline and Siobhan said together, only to look at each other in surprise.
"But," Ivory added, "Some things have to be pre-planned, Casper. I know you don't feel right about it, but he'll be the reason of our doom if he goes on for long. We don't want that to happen."
"Exactly," Emeline said, "But first, it's Jordan."
And Emeline just felt strange. They had, after all, asked Jordan so nicely that day to join them. And now…
But this was needed, for Emeline didn't trust the girl even one bit. And hence, she agreed to meet during the lunch to form a plan.
Siobhan Ripple (16) D2F
Siobhan was waiting patiently for her team members to show up. The table in the far right corner was secluded from the rest, and Siobhan thought that this might be the best place to have a conversation. It was loud enough for making it hard to overhear them, but quiet enough for them to listen to each other properly.
She watched in an almost bored way as Ivory and Emeline sat down in front of her, gently setting the plate on the table.
"Where are the boys?" Siobhan asked, looking around for a sign of Everette and Casper.
"Washroom."
Siobhan frowned at that. She had noticed that the two of them nearly always had to use the washroom at the same time, and needed to use it frequently. She wondered what could be the reason behind that. Coincidence? Or…?
"I know what you're thinking," Ivory said, and Siobhan could detect the sadness in her tone.
"What?"
"You think they'll betray us, don't you?"
Siobhan regarded the girl in front of her carefully as she tilted her head. She knew Ivory was friendly with Everette, and the two got along really well. She herself admired Casper for his strength and the efforts he had put in, even if she first met him on the train. However, she was certain that Ivory would be unable to kill Everette, at lest during the initial phase.
Siobhan sighed to herself, because Ivory had guessed it correctly.
"Yes Ivory, I'm afraid that's the thing. They have most probably formed their own group."
"Who has formed their own group?"
Siobhan looked up sharply to see Everette and Casper approaching them. Her District Partner sat down beside her, and repeated his question in concern.
"So, what have you guys discussed till now?" Everette asked as he stuffed a spoonful of porridge in his mouth.
Ivory and Emeline exchanged looks, and Siobhan knew it was up to her to divert the topic.
"We were just discussing that Saunder might form his own group, with Aryton and Jordan. I mean, none of them bothered to show up right now."
"You're right," Casper agreed with a frown, "It's weird he isn't looking for us. He usually just appears out of nowhere."
"He's weird," Emeline muttered, "He might be trying to demonstrate control over Jordan and Ary. So that they know who 'their leader is'."
Everette laughed at Emeline's mimicry of the boy from Four, before adding that he was sure the boy wasn't there because they hadn't told him to meet them. Siobhan already knew where Saunder was; getting some last minute training in order to get something in the Private Sessions in order to avoid humiliation. For this, the boy hadn't even shown up for lunch, which Siobhan considered was a good thing.
"Anyway," she said, "There are a few people that just need to go during the bloodbath, you know?"
"Like?"
"Jordan," everyone replied together to Everette.
"Tybal," Emeline added.
"Ari."
"Saunder."
"Wesley and Lily."
"Teddy," Siobhan added finally, "These people have to be our targets. Anyone else who comes in our way can go too."
"I wouldn't want to hurt that Maurice guy. Or Tapicca. Or any of those small little ones."
"They don't need to worry in the bloodbath as long as they steer clear."
"But how do we get Jordan and Saunder? We've already seen Jordan isn't scared of anything, and is as brutal as one can be. As for Saunder, I believe he'll just… I don't know."
"I get you Emeline," Siobhan replied, as her eyes scouted for any potential entry of the said tribute. She didn't trust Saunder one bit. He was such a trouble-maker that she wouldn't be surprised that he escaped all their plans. Plans… they needed to discuss how to eliminate two of their allies.
"How do we tackle this?" Casper asked, "Jordan especially needs to be out."
"Let's just throw something at her when she's on the platform itself," Ivory joked, "Nobody needs to get their hands dirty."
"I don't think that will be as beneficial as you believe it will be."
"I was joking…"
Even as Emeline and Ivory continued with their conversation, Siobhan quietly studied the two boys. Eating slowly, she kept her eyes on them, and knew that she had the right feeling about them. Casper and Everette's eyes met once, and she noticed her District Partner blink twice at the other boy. Siobhan knew those two were planning something, something against them. Against her. And Siobhan couldn't afford to let that happen.
Not at all.
Mickayla Kennedy (15) D3F
It would be an understatement to say that Mickayla was nervous.
However, a large part of this nervousness was contributed by the boy sitting in front of her, tapping his feet. Andrei looked lost right now, unable to control his nervous, and was constantly pacing the waiting room. It was when a Peacekeeper told him off that he finally sat down, but even then, his feet moved on the shiny floor in a rhythm as he tapped them.
"Are you okay?" Mickayla asked, because she was honestly worried for the boy in front of her.
He looked up at her and smiled lightly, nodding.
"Yeah, just fine. Slightly nervous, but otherwise all good."
Mickayla felt like letting him know that his nervousness was making her feel nervous as well. But looking at the fear etched on his face, she decided against it. After all, how would that help anyway? Canon had just left to show his skills to the Gamemakers, and she wondered how he was doing. She was worried about her own performance; should she hope for a high score, a low score, or a medium score? Definitely not a low score, as that would get her no sponsor. Too high, and everyone would be after her. Medium, then fewer sponsors, but also less danger for a while.
"It's not that I'm going to get a high score anyway?" she muttered, looking down at her hands.
Maybe she didn't think anyone would hear her, but Andrei looked up at her in surprise.
"Why would you want a high score?" he whispered to her, "High scorers are the first to die."
It was honestly the casual way he spoke that caught Mickayla's attention. Her brows furrowed as she regarded the boy in front of her, trying to understand him. One moment he was worried to the point of spreading the panic like a disease, and the next moment he was not only calm but also talking about death in a casual way. No Outer used the word 'die' deliberately; they preferred the word 'go'. it just made going on easier, it made trying easier. But Andrei, who had completely stopped shaking, smiled at her and then pointed towards the Peacekeeper.
Mickayla looked up at the man when he repeated her name. This was it. It was her turn now.
The girl from Three stood up shakily as Andrei wished her luck. She tried to smile at him, but was sure that it must have looked like a grimace. Clenching her fists, hoping she looked half presentable, she walked through the glass doors, and through a corridor to enter a large round hall.
Mickayla gasped as she took in the vastness of the room, the beautiful decoration on the walls that depicted… human death. It was so disgusting and attractive at the same time that the girl felt that something was certainly wrong with her.
"Miss Kennedy."
Mickayla jumped at the sound, looking around in fright to see who had spoken. It was then that she was something in the likeness of a raised balcony, with Head Gamemaker Atlas and Head Trainer Agatha on it, along with other Gamemakers.
"Miss Kennedy," Atlas spoke smoothly as he tilted his head to one side and looked at her kindly. Kindly?!
"Yes sir?"
"What are you going to show us?"
"I have practiced some archery, sir."
"Very well, please show us what you've learnt."
Mickayla nodded and then started towards the table with the bow. To her utter surprise, the bow was much heavier than the one she had used during the training. Now was not the time to react on it though, and she forced herself to lift it. pulling an arrow, she nocked it, and took aim at the steady dummy in front of her. There was another section with moving targets, but she knew she had a better chance to score something here.
Mickayla took aim and let the arrow fly, which it did, only to ram hard into the dummy's neck.
Mickayla felt relieved at that, and she put the bow back on the table, trying to make sure nobody understood that her hands were aching by just lifting it.
"Good," Atlas said, "Is there anything else, Miss Kennedy?"
"No sir…"
"It's alright. Thank you. You may now leave through the exit on the left."
Mickayla thanked the Gamemakers and then hurried out, looking forward to some rest before the big interview day.
Saunder Kilkenny (18) D4M
It was a tedious day for Saunder, with worthless tributes trying to get away from him, the training going well and the sessions being even better.
Saunder, who was now relaxing on the very comfortable leather couch in his air-conditioned room, thought about all the times the other Careers had 'given him a slip'. Did they really think that he wouldn't notice? In fact, Saunder noticed it every time, but let them be. He could understand how painful it must be to live under the shadow of a person as capable and skilled as him, and he could understand their envy, and the wish to get away. He just expected them to be more… subtle about them. Of course, they were insecure, but why show it? Their continuous hiding had made Saunder see them as lesser beings than him, which they already were. He wondered why they were so proud, five of them couldn't beat the power of one of him.
His private session had been well, and Atlas was struggling to not jump to his feet. Sure, he scored a little less, but that was not a problem. He was certain that this was only because they didn't want to give him attention that could get him in trouble. Maybe Atlas knew that other Careers were scared of him, and so he wanted them to relax. Yeah, that had to be it.
Right now though, Saunder was awaiting the arrival of his two allies. Jordan's performance had been outstanding, and Saunder wanted her on his side when the time was ripe. As for Aryton, he was a pretty solid guy too. They had both done well in their private sessions, and Saunder was sure they would do well the next day in the interviews too, although not as well as him, of course.
As such there were no rules against tributes meeting each other after training. And so Saunder expected the two of them to be there and was getting irritated already. His patience was answered, and soon there was a knock on the door.
"Come in," he said lazily.
As Jordan and Aryton entered, Saunder could see that the two kept a respectable distance from each other. He sighed and then gestured at them to take a seat. As Aryton settled himself beside him, Jordan sat across him, looking at him in amusement.
"You guys have done really well," Saunder began but was cut off.
"You didn't," Aryton muttered, "We expected much more from you, Saunder."
"Ah my boy!" Saunder scoffed, "I didn't get a very high score because Atlas was worried about the other Careers!"
The two exchanged looks at that, and Saunder could feel his cheeks heating. What did they think?! That he was goofing around? How dare they?!
"That is possible," Jordan said, "Certainly."
"I agree."
Saunder leaned back in his couch before eyeing them once again carefully. He wanted one of them to ask a question and was surprised nobody did so. However, at that very moment Aryton spoke up.
"Where are the others?"
"Exactly!" Saunder exclaimed in excitement, "They're not here! Do you know why?"
"No…" Jordan muttered.
"It's because they aren't including the rest of us in their plans and stuff. They're scared of us. Let's not worry them too much."
The other two tributes frowned at that. They had most probably not noticed this behaviour of the other Careers. Why weren't they being included? Was there…? Aryton's eyes widened at that, and Jordan had the same thought. Aryton opened his mouth to speak, but Jordan shook her head firmly. Usually the boy wouldn't heed such gestures, but this time he understood, and decided to remain silent.
"You want to say something?"
"Oh no, Saunder. Just wondering why you invited Jordan and me."
"Good question boy! We need to discuss how to go about from here!"
"Without the others?"
"I'll let them know tomorrow. For now, we first need to work on your interviews."
"Our mentors can deal with that."
"Not as well as I can!"
Jordan's shoulders slumped as she sighed, and Saunder felt bad for her. The poor girl must be feeling tired after putting in so much effort. She needed a rest, and Saunder himself felt tired.
"Well, alright, your mentors can handle that. So for now, just listen to the plan…"
And that ends the pre-games. Let me know what you think of this. There is a lot of politics going on among the Careers. What's your take? The next chapter happens to be the bloodbath, and I'll be honest I'm looking forward to it.
Careers [all-inclusive]: Ivory, Everette, Siobhan, Casper, Emeline, Saunder, Jordan, Aryton
Careers 1: Ivory, Siobhan, Emeline
Careers 2: Everette, Casper
Careers 3 (who don't know they're a team): Saunder, Jordan, Aryton
Team 1: Dwayne, Shama, Canon, Lanai
Team 3: Lily, Wesley, Tybal
Here are the training scores:
D1M: Everette Hastings - 10
D1F: Ivory Borg - 9
D2M: Casper Cavette - 10
D2F: Siobhan Ripple - 9
D3M: Canon Tadashi - 4
D3F: Mickayla Kennedy - 5
D4M: Saunder Kilkenny - 7
D4F: Emeline Grey - 8
D5M: Vis Provo - 4
D5F: Liya Chiaro - 6
D6M: Aryton Masserats - 8
D6F: Lanai Mitsubishi - 5
D7M: Dwayne Wildflower - 7
D7F: Shama Grasswhistle - 4
D8M: Andrei Altair - 4
D8F: Jordan Arroyo - 8
D9M: Tybal Marran - 8
D9F: Tapicca Shrone - 5
D10M: Wesley Elster - 6
D10F: Lily Angler -7
D11M: Maurice Toussaint - 3
D11F: Ari Bell - 7
D12M: Horatio Aravani - 4
D12F: Teddy Formico - 7
So here are the scores. What do you think? Also, for the next chapter, who do you believe will be the victims?
Have a great day!