On the first day of training, I follow Plush's instructions. I choose a spear, and I demonstrate how I can stab, advance, block and throw with false casualness, as often as I can. Tributes are forbidden from engaging each other in combat during this time, even for practice, so I give some live assistants a few bloody gashes. But I prefer to work on a dummy, so I can pay attention to what the other tributes are doing.
Most of them are wandering around like nearsighted gemcutters. The majority head directly for the various weapon stations, but manage little more than uncontrolled, highly optimistic swings. I am trying hard not to laugh out loud at them, but I have seen four-year-old Tiros attack with more conviction than these. I try to keep Plush's warning about not automatically discounting anyone in mind, but it seems obvious that there is not much to fear from them. The flirty girl from District 5, who I find out is named Lumen, is actually holding a baton by the wrong end and ferociously whacking at a dummy with the molded handle.
I introduce myself to Callida and Gaius from District 2, and Fia Sukho from District 4. Chrome joins us, and it is an unspoken agreement that we five will band together in the arena, at least in the beginning. Callida avoids spending too much time with any particular weapon, just demonstrating general skill with each. I suspect that she is letting us know that she is not weak, but making sure we can't discover her true strengths. Gaius, on the other hand, has no restraint on showing murderous talent with anything that falls into his hands. I doubt that he even needs a weapon. He could just choke an opponent in his bent elbow, or wrestle someone's legs into a decorative knot. The other tributes tend to give way when he passes anywhere near them, and even the others of our alliance have to conquer our reflexive urges to do the same. He gives every appearance of being primitive and brutal, but I catch a glimpse of concealed intellect as he observes Chrome's swordwork. I think that Gaius might be the most dangerous tribute in this Hunger Games.
The young woman with the curved spine from District 9 and Kier Cauley, the boy from Fia's District, are spending most of their time sitting together. I can understand why she would think it was pointless to go to any of the training stations, but there's nothing wrong with him. I ask Fia what she knows about him, and she shrugs. He comes from a family of deep-sea fishers and has had no training. The boy tribute who was supposed to volunteer was killed in an accident the morning of the Reaping. Kier is only 12 years old, and it was just an unlucky fluke that his name was drawn in his first Reaping. Kier is sitting on the floor with his arms crossed stubbornly over his chest, his lips pressed tightly together. The nearly grown girl from District 9 is speaking to him earnestly, making passionate gestures with both hands. He is not having any of whatever she is telling him. I lose interest, and wonder if I should move to another weapon station, or maybe switch things up with one of the survival skill stations, though they aren't really that interesting.
I am still considering my options when I hear someone shout. Kier is on his feet, yelling angrily at the girl. "No, Winnow! They can put me into an arena, but they can't make me play their stupid game! "
Winnow reaches up to touch his leg, gently beseeching him to listen. "You have to try to save yourself. You'll be killed for sure if you don't."
I snicker. Well, that's the truth.
"I'm dead anyway!" The boy rages, waving his arms. "I'm being sent into the arena to be killed, and no matter what I do, that's exactly what's going to happen! And even if I win, what then? Do you think they'll just let me retire to a house on Victor's Island?" He suddenly noticed that the room had gone silent, and turned to us, looking us over. "And all of you? What do you think is going to happen to any of you who might win, huh?"
I know about the Victory Tour, but something about the intensity in his voice makes me sure he's not talking about that. I look at Fia. She rolls her eyes, obviously having heard this before. "You might as well shut up, Kier, you know the viewers can't see anything in here. You've got a big mouth, just like your mother and father," she concludes in a loud voice, pointedly sneering.
Kier glares at her with fire in his eyes. He is probably half Fia's size, but I think that if they had been alone, he might have flung himself at her in spite of that. Very gradually, though, he seems to deflate, melting back into the child that he actually is. "They are both dead. Soon, I will be too." He turns away and walks slowly across the gymnasium, avoiding all of the other tributes, and disappears into the dining room.
Winnow is trying to hide them, but tears spill from her brown eyes and drop onto her twisted legs. She doesn't look at any of us.
At the end of the three days of training, the Gamemakers release their scores, and Chrome and I assemble with Bolgee Boh and Plush to watch the results. The television shows a scorecard for each tribute, with his or her name, District seal, and score. Chrome is given a 9. I know I did well during my blade demonstration this afternoon, but I let out a quick breath of relief when I see that I also have a 9. I know that I am as good with any weapon as Chrome, but the official score confirms it. I take a quick glance at him out of the corner of my eye. If my score worries Chrome at all, he isn't showing it. Callida earns a 9. It is no surprise to any of us when we see that Gaius is awarded a 10. Fia has an 8.
Bolgee Boh is almost overcome with excitement and Plush's eyes narrow when they announce that Kier Cauley was given an 11. "An eleven! Can you imagine?" Bolgee Boh gushes. "That boy doesn't look like much, but he must have been super impressive in front of the Gamemakers!"
"Indeed." Plush's forehead is deeply wrinkled with thought. "This changes our strategy. You will need to eliminate him first, as soon as you can, so he won't have time to construct a defense or get anything useful from sponsors. With a score like that, I'm sure he'll have plenty of them, too." She absently drums the table with her fingers, still doing her mental calculations. "I wonder what his mentor was thinking? Whatever his skills are, it was a mistake to show them to the Gamemakers like that."
We are quiet for a while, as we see that Lumen, the pretty girl from District 5, has been given a 4, about average for someone who has no pre-education. No one else has a meaningful score, except for Winnow. The stunted girl from District 9 is given a 2.