Trouble by Coldplay

Oh, no, what's this?

A spider web, and I'm caught in the middle.

Jetta Willis, 15, District Six

"Tributes," a curvy woman with light purple hair piled high atop her head addresses the semi-circle formed around her. I stand near the back with my new allies, Braden is a few tributes ahead of me and to the left standing with the kid volunteer from District Four. I'm glad he found some friends here, even more glad that I found some as well. We're not a power alliance, but at least I can trust them and I hope they can trust me as well. "I am honored to introduce you to the Kill-Zone. A creation made at the time of the 76th Hunger Games and updated annually with each new batch of tributes. This year it has been made even more accurate, as I will explain in a short while."

I look over to Calic and she squeezes me gently on the shoulder. Definitely better to have friends in here. "The Kill-Zone is a chamber of perfectly positioned sensors and specially outfitted weapons created by technology developed by Panem's greatest minds. It has been made to give tributes a chance to develop combat skills against one another as well as deliver data to qualified sponsors."

"Each of you will be outfitted in a specially calibrated, full-body suit containing several dozen sensors made to respond specifically to the weapons we have created for our little activity." As the girl continues, several Avoxes follow a set of trainers out carrying black piles of fabric. One of them stops in front of Melinoe and she looks startled as the trainer grabs her arms and pulls the suit around to cover her from the top of her neck to the tips of her shoes. He then places a thin headband around her hair and presses a sequence into the side of the outfit causing her to flinch as if she has been shocked.

"The use of your hands or any weapon other than those set by the door of the mock-arena is strictly prohibited. The weapons are manufactured to deliver a mild shock to any body part through the suit's sensors before the affected area will become immobile. Any blows delivered to the head, neck, chest, or abdomen are consider to be lethal and will result in complete incapacitation of the affected tribute. Once your suit has deemed there to be lethal damage to your person you will be forcibly dragged to the nearest wall or floor where you will remain frozen until the completion of the exercise."

"You will be sent into the area in groups that have been randomly chosen. Before entering through one of three doors located behind me, you will be permitted to choose a single weapon to bring in with you. Each group will have one minute before the next group will be allowed to enter. Upon completion of the exercise, you will all be able to see your stats on the screen behind me. Are there any questions? Great, then we will begin."

The anxiety around me is contagious, and as the trainer pulls the suit around my body I feel as if it is suffocating me. I wish with everything I can muster that we were just allowed to do what we wanted like yesterday, then I could be safe with my allies and Livena. I didn't expect to be pulled into the chaos so soon, but it seems like that is exactly what is happening. I feel Calic squeeze my hand and I flash her the most confident smile I can spare. I guess there's no time like the present to start preparing to fight for my life. At least today it will be fake, three days from now I can't say it will be.

"There are four groups each containing six tributes. Your order of entry will not have a great impact on your placement, so do not worry if you are not called first. I welcome the following tributes to come forward and choose your weapons; Erin, District Nine, Braden, District Six, Kilin, District Two, Melinoe, District Eight, Arden, District Five, and Baye, District Four. Please claim your item and enter the Kill-Zone."

Melinoe looks at me and Calic with a worried look and then turns back to the front of the group. Calic breathes a quick wish of luck to her and then she is gone from our side. I don't allow Calic to let go of my hand as I watch Braden and Melinoe enter the ominous looking section through separate doors. My eyes immediately fly to the screen behind the trainers, hoping that I won't see their placements just yet. The Career that was called is already long inside the thing, and I can't help but worry for them even thought I should be worrying for myself.

"We are now ready for the second group," the trainer announces. A loud beep interrupts her and she turns to the screen behind her with a smile as the first name and picture take over the '24th' slot. Erin, the girl from District Nine. The first casualty of this mock-Games. "How the mighty will fall, children. Anyway, will the next six please claim a weapon and enter the arena."

She calls the next group and I am half-relieved and half-concerned not to hear my name called. The girl from Three and Braden's ally from District Four are the last two to enter the area and then we are once again left to listen to the beeping that accompanies each new face that appears on the screen. I don't know what to think when I see Braden take up the '23rd' slot, I can only hope that this will not mean his early placement a few days from now.

"We are ready now for the third group, will the following tributes please claim a remaining weapon and enter the Kill-Zone." The trainer reads out the next six names and I realize I didn't hear any of them properly, my eyes locked on the screen behind her that seems to fill up with every passing second.

"Come on, it's our turn," Calic says and pulls me towards the front of the weaponry rack. It is nearly bare by now, only holding a bunch of smaller weapons as well as a couple of archery bows. I feel Calic's grip on my hand loosen and watch as her red hair disappears through one of the far doors. A wave of panic washes over me and I grab the first weapon my hand lands on, a short knife that feels like it is made of thick rubber. I can't imagine it not hurting if I were to hit someone with it.

I run through the door that I think Calic went through, hoping to find my ally waiting for me on the other side but all I am met with is darkness. By the time my eyes adjust, I can the person ahead of me, the little boy from Three. I see the person ahead of him just a half a second later and have just enough time to part my lips to call out to him before the top of his suit lights up at the sudden blow and he is pulled violently to the side. I take off running into the darkness, trusting it to keep me safe just slightly more than the entranceway.

Cosmic McKee, 17, District Three

It takes too long for my eyes to adjust to the darkness that surround me as I walk in through the tunnel. I chose the closest one to the weapons rack after seeing the vast majority of the other tributes choose one of the two farther ones. Of course, they are probably connected fairly early into the area seeing as this is supposed to be a fast exercise, but I would appreciate all of the separation from the other tributes that I can get. I don't expect to win this particular activity, but then again this is not my game. My game comes later, and that one I am going to win for sure. No qualms about that one.

I hear heavy footsteps coming from behind me and I throw myself to one side, tripping over a box and flying over it, thankfully. I have to be more careful, but I would not even have to be this reckless if there was some way of seeing. I really hope that this gives no implications for the actual arena because it might be enough to make this just a little bit more challenging than it should be. For now I guess I will just have to wait and see what will greet me when I get there. I'm clever enough to handle anything the Gamemakers can throw at me.

When the person rounds the corner of the entranceway I realize that the suits have little lights on them just below eye level on each side so that tributes can differentiate each other. Too bad it doesn't give much in the way of light because maybe then I could detach it somehow and use it to actually see where I am going. The person that is running through the door is the girl from District One, Aquila- something. I mentally note that she is pretty fast, likely faster than me but I can't be certain. It's not like I could just go up to her and ask her to race. Perhaps I should pay more attention to her and the others like her in Training tomorrow. It would be interesting to note the differences physically of a trained body in comparison to one more natural in upbringing.

I crouch down further behind the boxes when I feel the difference in the room, there must be someone else in here. Yes, that is it. The difference is in the breathing pattern, mine and Aquila's are similar to stop her from hearing me but it seems as though whoever else is in here is not trying very hard to cover their presence. They're fairly far from me, but close enough to Aquila. Likely only a few feet from where she stands right now.

I am proven to be correct in all instances when two tiny blue lights seem to appear out of nowhere and a loud thud can be heard as Aquila is taken by surprise by a tall sword to the forehead. I am almost unable to stop myself from chuckling aloud when I see t is her own district partner who has attacked her. Perhaps a mistaken identity? By the way he laughs as she is pulled to the floor by his feet and the heat coming from Aquila's face so pungent I swear I can feel it from my side of the room I know it is in no way that. Hm, perhaps the Careers alliance is not as solid as I had previously thought. Dually noted.

"Cosmic!" I know the voice that belongs to the words as soon as they reach my ears. I curse myself even as I run towards the sound, not specifically because of how reckless I am being but because I am even bothering to respond to something likely to be so trivial. Dallon never has a true need for me, but he always calls anyway and for some reason I don't ignore him. I have never been needed so much in my life. I haven't had practice deterring people from me, it usually just happens naturally.

The area I enter is full of the little blue lights as well as several pairs of red ones which I assume to be of the tributes that have already been "killed". I look around, my eyes now better adjusted to the darkness that surrounds me, until I pick Dallon out of the bunch. I press myself into the wall and cover the areas of my suit that I know are lit up, trying to conceal myself at least well enough to not be visible to anyone not looking for me.

"Dallon, you're fine," I breathe when I am crouched beside him. I touch the side of his face to turn him towards me and when he finally sees me it is as if his face changes completely. The lights near his face make it look like he has been crying, or perhaps he has been.

"I can't move."

I can't help but smile, he really doesn't understand how this works. "It's just part of the game, it's for fun but when you lose you get frozen."

"It's not very fun, my nose itches," Dallon whines. My shoulders shake as I laugh as silently as I can and I reach up and scratch the tip of his nose for him. I will never understand why this kid is able to make me smile more than I ever have in my life, but I can't say it's a bad thing in all.

"Cosmic!" I barely hear him finish my name as I turn to face the same boy that I saw attack his district partner back in the other area. His face is almost perfectly concealed into the floor except for the lights, but they blend in with the few that have been placed to give us some way of seeing where not to step. My lips part in surprise but it's too late to shuffle away. He touches the tip of his sword to my ankle and I immediately feel the shock the trainer told us about followed by a numbing feeling that spreads from my toes to the base of my knee. I curse in my head when I realize I can't move and my eyes throw daggers at the boy on the floor. He chuckles softly and bops me on the nose with the edge of the sword and another shock goes through my body, this one feeling a lot harsher than the first. My body is pulled close to the ground and I find myself nearly buried in Dallon's foot. He looks down at me and smiles softly, like he always does.

"I guess we lost together."

Kilin Shicts, 18, District Two

As I jog around the corner I don't even pause to think about wiping the smile off of my face. I remember this part of Training being briefly mentioned during the final week of my volunteer orientation, but I never really thought about what this thing actually was. A simulation that proves who the best fighters are, in a close up and personal setting where everyone's emotions are high and people are playing on instincts. It is the perfect way to gage who the real competition is before the actual Games begin. Not to mention it is a hell of a lot of fun.

I hear a sharp grunt near the corner of the room, amidst the heavy breathing of the rest of the competitors are well as those already 'killed'. I swivel around and see the girl from Five, I can't remember anyone's name for the life of me. She holds a long instrument that kind of looks like a spear, but it's hard to tell in the dim light. The fallen tributes act like lights once they've been numbed or frozen or whatever, so it is a lot brighter in here than it was when we first entered, but it's by no means bright enough to see more than the face of the ones not incapacitated.

I rush at her knowing that she won't expect such an aggressive play in this sort of setting. For the most part, at least after the initial frenzy of fake swords and knives flying at random, the tributes still able to do so have been trying to hide in the corners and cover their lights in hope of being able to swing at someone who passes by. Cowardly if you ask me, but no one has. At least I have strength and integrity on my side, basically meaning as soon as I find everyone else I will win for sure. Just stay away from the corners and look for the small lights, those are the ones I still must kill.

As I approach the Five girl, another light comes into my view and I swing myself around in that direction instead. It's a boy, the one from District Ten if I am correct and I am unsure whether or not I am. He has a sort of faked focus on his face, given away fairly easily by the wild look of panic in his eyes. The knife in his hand is short, as long as I don't get within a metre or so of the guy I won't even risk an injury. He lunges at me and I swipe the knife back towards him, his hands fly to his face and even in the dim light I can tell something is bleeding. I bring my sword down on his head and he is down for the count.

"Three tributes remaining."

The light on my face from my suit burns brighter and I have to squint to keep my eyes open. Then I remember the District Five girl and turn to see that she has not even moved from where I saw her last. I bound over towards her end of the room and it looks as though she doesn't even see me until I am swiping my sword towards her head. She reaches out with her spear but it doesn't matter. My sword hits her and she is pulled to the floor before it leaves her side.

"Two tributes remaining."

"Come on out you coward!" I call with a smirk on my face. I'm not sure who it is that is still playing with me, but I'm not worried. If I haven't even seen the person that probably means they're just hiding. I scan the room again, just look for the small light. Something taps me on the ankle and I wince as the shock goes up my body. Before I can even look down to understand what just happened I am pulled to the floor and set nose to nose with Amstel. I growl, lunging towards him with my sword but it hardly matters.

"Game over," he whispers with a dopey smile on his face. He already has his weapon up and taps me on the forehead playfully. The shock is worse the second time and I clench my teeth and close my eyes to keep from crying out in pain. When I open my eyes the lights have already come back on and the trainers are filing in to release us. The room isn't nearly as big as it felt a few minutes ago, and the other tributes are much closer than I originally thought.

One of the trainers comes over to me and I feel him push on the side of my suit a few times and the tense feeling in my body slips away. I sit up and crack my neck, man I could not imagine being stuck in that position for any longer. It almost makes me feel bad for the tributes that lost right away, almost, if they didn't deserve it for being so useless.

I stand and follow behind the girl from District Seven towards the exit. Amstel is already waiting outside for me, standing in front of the screen that was empty the last time I saw it. Now it is filled with twenty-four pictures, each with two numbers beside it. A placement number from one to twenty-four and a number to show how many tributes we 'killed'. I scowl when I see my picture below Amstel's. "I got more kills than you."

"Ah, but would that matter in the real Games, Kilin? At this point I would be alive and you would not, seems like I have won this round," Amstel smiles. I am taken aback, nothing to say in return. I never thought of it like that. If this was real... I would be dead.

Baye Darlucan, 17, District Four

"Looks like I beat you."

I turn around to see Brett standing behind me, a shy smile on his face that looks as unsure as I feel about my placement in the exercise. He steps forward so he is standing beside me more and he glances up at the scoreboard again. I too look back up, seeing the fourteenth place spot next to my picture along with a two for kill number. I am proud of the kill count, if not a little bit frightened that I was able to do it so easily. It's just a game this time though, I remind myself. It is not like the tributes I 'killed' actually died. It was only a game.

"At least we tied for kills," I say back. My eyes flying over the scoreboard to look for Maynor and his ally's placements. When I see them I feel nauseous all over again, like when they first announced the activity for the morning. Maynor came in twenty-first place while his little ally, Braden, only managed twenty-third. I should have joined him, I knew it. It's not really too late yet, there are still two or three days until the Games actually start. I could still help them and make sure these predicted placements don't come true.

But then where would that leave me. Where would that leave Brett?

I look back at him and consider just asking him outright, but part of me knows that to sign up for an alliance with two of the youngest tributes would be suicide. It would be selfish of me to ask Brett to allow me to drag him into this. It feels like I should be trying harder to help Maynor, even though he did technically ask for this. I don't think he meant it, what he said at the Reaping. I don't think he truly believes he can do this and I bet that by now he is regretting ever raising his hand. I still haven't had the confidence to ask him why he thought this was a good idea; maybe I just don't have the confidence that I could deal with his answer if it doesn't live up to my image of him. I see Maynor as someone so small and needing to be protected, but everyone tells me he isn't because he volunteered for this. I just don't know what to do, parts of me say one thing and other parts say another; but most of me just says I am way too confused.

If I leave Brett I wouldn't be putting him into the danger of having to protect the younger boys, but where would that leave him? Where would that leave me, if I don't really want to make him do this by himself either? Where would that leave either of us if maybe we don't want to be apart.

What am I saying?

I shake my head and motion towards the door. Training is over for the day, I guess the Kill-Zone thing took longer than it felt like it did. The elevator dings as I press the 'up' button and wait for the doors to open. Brett steps up beside me and we don't say anything as we step into the doors. They close behind us and we are left facing each other. I look at him and I can't help but realize that I could never leave him to be by himself. I realize how much it kills me not to be touching him right now even though my skin crawls at the mere thought still. I don't let people touch me, and I do not touch anyone. It is just part of who I am.

He leans in towards me, the small elevator feeling like a million degrees and my face heating up to match. His fingers press into the '10' and the '4' buttons and he leans back towards his wall. I bite the edge of my lip. "Baye, I was just thinking-"

I don't give him the chance to say anything else, as the elevator zooms up and dings to let us know that it has stopped on the fourth floor. One wide step closes the gap between us and I smash my lips into his. For a second we just stand there like that, then I feel him wrap both his hands around my waist. I remember myself and push him away, my eyes wide and my hands clenched into ready fists.

"I-I-" Brett stutters, watching me and I can tell that he is shaking. What was I thinking?

The doors of the elevator slide open and I am through the crack in the doors as soon as I can fit through them. The suite is quiet, the only one in it sitting at the dining room table starring at me as I press myself against the wall near the elevators. This room feels like it is the same temperature as the elevator. I right myself and begin towards my bedroom, not wanting to stop and talk to anyone about anything. Just wanting to collapse in my bed and stay there for the rest of my life.

Ahem?" Delta coughs as I pass by the dining table where she is seated. "How did it go?"

"Fine," I squeak and then cough to cover the break in my voice. "It went fine."

"Do you want to discuss it?" She asks and I shake my head quickly. I hear the elevator doors sliding open and I know it must be Maynor, probably one of the last people besides maybe Brett that I want to see right now. Delta turns to greet Maynor and I take the escape, rushing towards the door to my room and slamming it shut behind me.

I press my body against the inside of the door and slide down until I am sitting on the floor. My hands brush against my sides, the places where Brett's hands just minutes ago were. The spots still feel warm, as if he were still holding me. I shake my head to snap out of it. No one touches me and I don't touch anyone, that has always been my rule. Is it even possible there could be an exception?

The artist theme for this story will be Coldplay

Song: Trouble

The blog for this story can be found on my profile. Kill-Zone placements have been updated.

A question or two will be asked at the end of each chapter and I would be very grateful if you could answer them for me as well as giving me a general review on my writing, your thoughts on plot and development, etc.

As always, your thoughts on these four (possibly in relation to the others that you have seen?).

I always like to know, so, how do you all like my creation, The Kill-Zone?

Exams are finally over, but this next semester isn't looking like it will be too much fun for me so I don't really know what my update schedule will be for this story or Streets I Know. It's my last year so I actually should start doing some work with school. I will try not to take too long, especially since these chapters aren't that long. Anyway, next up is sessions and scores, which means only three more Capitol chapters left until the Bloodbath!