"I can't believe you're going through with this." says Gale as we walk towards the hanger that holds Thirteen's hovercrafts. "You can say no."
"I need to see it for myself." I repeat determinately.
As we near the landing pad, a trap door opens in the belly of the hovercraft in front of us. Boggs guides us in and helps me buckle into my seat. Gale on the other hand, having been in one of these hovercrafts before, swiftly seats himself.
I look around as Boggs exits the trap door and it silently beings to close. The interior of this craft is wide and empty. I presume its normally for carrying cargo, not passengers even though there are a few seats near the windows. The sight of those seats sends me back to the Capitol hovercrafts that took us into the area, but I will my mind not to go there. I can't, I need to be myself for this trip back to Twelve. The pilots sit at the front of the plane in a small section closed off by sound-proof sliding glass doors.
I hear a whirring sound followed by a jolt as the hovercraft lifts up and starts to glide smoothly through the air.
I can't help myself but look out the window. It's been a long time since I have seen the outdoors and I was mesmerized by the green wilderness that now surrounds us as we fly. I look over to Gale and realize that I wasn't the only one wishing to be down in the forest.
The flight to Twelve doesn't take long, about twenty minutes, of which Gale and I spent staring, silently, out the window. I thought about how much game and other plants that could be down there. What would I do if I got my hands on a bow and arrow and found myself in this wilderness? I probably would get enough game in one day to trade for a good loaf of bread a the hob and -
"Katniss." I look up to see Gale standing above me. I attempt to get up but am pulled right back into my seat. I forgot that I was buckled in. Gale helps me get out before continuing.
"Thirteen swept everything top to bottom so you'd be safe. The hovercraft is going to be scanning the area while we are here. Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?"
"Yeah, I'm sure."
I descend slowly down the trapdoor. My eyes, used to the dim light of the hovercraft find it hard to adjust to his sudden brightness. I'm squinting as I walk a safe distance away from the hovercraft before it takes off. The hovercraft hums to life and ascends slowly blowing up the dust from the ground.
A thin sheet of dust covers the tops of my boots after the hovercraft leaves and as my eyes adjust I begin to take it in.
The Capitol destroyed everything. There is no question of that. The hovercraft had landed in the Justice Building, or what was left of it at least. All that remained was a pile if rubble, with here and there a few cement bricks of wall that had managed to stay together. A few piles of rubble still smoked from the bombs that the Capitol had dropped, letting of an unpleasant smell. I rubbed my sweaty palms against my shirt, and realized that they were shaking. District Twelve, my home, no longer exists, blown to bits by explosions similar to the one that killed my father in the mines.
As I walk up a pile of rubble towards where I instinctively know is the hob, I hear a crack. Startled, I jump back and realized that right where my foot had been, mostly buried in the dust and rubble, is a skull.
I gasp, my shaking hands flying up to my mouth. I close my eyes in an effort to stop myself from screaming.
Breathing heavily, I manage to make it to the top of the mound, before falling to my knees. This time I couldn't suppress the cry that welled up from my stomach when I saw the graveyard of bones.