Chapter 11
Somewhere around two in the morning there was heavy rain. I drank down the last of my water and filled the bottle up again and again, drinking as much as I could hold. I am ashamed to say that I didn't exactly bother to remove my suit when I needed to use the bathroom, but I was surrounded by water and I wasn't going to let everyone see me naked.
As I filled up my bottle for the last time, I tried to see if anyone else was doing the same thing as me. No one near me was, maybe I had the only access to fresh water in the whole arena. An excited chill spread through me, it took people about three days to die from dehydration. It had already been two, surely I could outlast them for one more day. And then I could go home.
The next morning dawned a beautiful orange colour. I knew that by now I must be in pretty much the best condition of all the tributes and the thought gave me hope.
After an early breakfast, I was startled to see something floating not far from me and heading closer. I strained my eyes to make it out. It was a tribute sitting on top of a wooden slab that was still somehow floating. He had fashioned a paddle-like thing to push him along and I was terrified to see that he had a long sword across his back. He was heading straight for me.
I immediately knew that staying on my floating island was a bad move. It made me an obvious target on the horizon. I swung myself off and back into the water, surprised again by its chill. I swam about twenty metres from my floating safety net, as the District 3 boy seemed to spot me.
He started paddling over. He meant business. Then with a rush and splash of foaming white water I saw Jasper and Slade rush towards the District 3 boy.
They had teamed up again.
They came within reaching distance and grabbed the boat he had made. They pulled themselves onto it with surprising strength as the District 3 boy drew his sword clumsily off his back. He obviously wasn't good with weapons.
I swam back softly to my boat, watching the fight. Slade pulled up a long dagger and Jasper pulled out a bow and arrow. My bow and arrow! I felt anger surge through me. How had he gotten it? I fought the overpowering urge to swim right up there and grab it straight off him.
Instead, I arrived back at the boat and hid behind in, still in the water, peeking around the side. Jasper loosed the bow on the boy and Slade thrust his dagger into his simultaneously. The District 3 boy didn't stand a chance. He flailed with his sword, striking Slade's hand and giving him a small cut, but it was too late. Even with the faulty, wet bow, even with the short blade, the boy fell into a pool of his own blood in the water and sank immediately. The cannon sounded.
I snuck back behind the floating boat, hoping that it would shield me from the remaining careers.
They were so close that I could hear them.
"Two to go." Slade shouted out happily. Jasper shushed him.
"What?" Slade asked angrily.
"Over there." Jasper said quietly. I could imagine him pointing straight at me.
"It's just a floating thing, we have the boat, we don't need it." Slade said, still refusing to keep his voice down.
"I'm not so sure." Jasper said. "Let's go take a look."
I heard them start paddling and started to breathe heavily. I couldn't take on Slade and Jasper, not a chance. I heard them get closer and closer. There was nothing for it.
I took a deep breath and went under. I swam under the boat and pushed up hesitantly with my hands. Yes! It gave way a little. I held it up just enough to give me some breathing room and keep an ear clear. I pressed my ear to the side of the material.
"There's no one here." Slade said dismissively.
"There are two more girls out here somewhere, would you stop complaining when I try to find them?" Jasper said angrily.
"I'll complain whenever you do anything that is pointless." Slade muttered. After a moment Jasper seemed satisfied.
"Come on let's go." He said to Slade. I breathed a sigh of relief.
"Gimme a minute." Said Slade and I heard the sound of him drawing his dagger again. I stayed still and then, out of nowhere, a dagger shot down through the fabric, passing straight past my ear. I bit down on my hand to stop from screaming as what had once been a floating, life saving boat hissed out the air I had blown into it and became deadened fabric.
I let the material settle around me as I heard Jasper and Slade paddle away. "Don't want anyone else to use it." I heard Slade say as they went away.
When the material started to weigh too heavily on me, I ducked back out of it. As I came up for fresh air I silently thanked Slade for being an idiot. Whilst he had punctured one of the floating things, the other was still in tact. I climbed back up on it, watching in the distance as Jasper and Slade settled down for a moment, the blood from the District 3 boy still trailing and sticking to the boat they had claimed.
I had barely caught my breath when an alarm went off across the arena. It was the same siren that had happened when the dam had cracked. The capitol was certainly laying it on thick.
I looked around, waiting for the next horror. I didn't have long to wait.
I felt something brush against my leg and only just managed not to scream. I pulled my legs up, managing just to keep all of my body on top of the floating device.
I looked around, trying to figure out what it was. Then I saw it, a huge fin.
It was a shark.
I had never seen sharks in real like, but some of the stories I had been read as a child had mentioned them. This was one over seven metres long, smooth and sleek. Its fin cut through the water as it, thankfully, passed me and headed for the blood stained boat that the boys were occupying. I smiled to myself. Clearly, the capitol wasn't as much on the side of the boys as district one had been.
I heard Slade scream and Jasper tell him to stay still. The shark came close and bumped the boat. Standing next to it, both boys looked tiny… and terrified. Slade picked up a paddle and started hitting the shark with it whenever it came close. He was aiming for the eyes. That was clever, but not clever enough.
As Slade fought with the shark, I saw Jasper moving back. He was cool and calm. I don't know how he managed it. He looked completely in control and it was too late when I realised why.
As the shark came up again, pushing against the boat, playing really, Jasper took two quick steps and pushed Slade into the water. Slade got back to the top of the water in surprise, spluttering. He shouted angrily at Jasper and waved his hand. It was a hand, I now saw, that was still weeping blood from where the district 3 boy had cut him.
Before he could curse Jasper more, the giant shark took him under. Neither came back up. The cannon sounded.
I peered over the edge of my boat. Through the clear water, I saw the shark retreat back into an open wall of the dam. It had definitely been released by the capitol and now that it had given the viewers a bit of blood, it was retired.
I leapt back into the water, having to use every ounce of discipline I had to get back into the water where a shark had been only moments before. I peeked back around to see if Jasper had noticed me. He was paddling in the opposite direction from me. I breathed a sigh of relief.
I momentarily felt sorry for the mysterious District 4 girl who seemed so very tenacious; she wouldn't last long against Jasper. But, then again, would I?
I settled back onto my raft and waited. It wouldn't be long now. The games would come to a head. It would be me against Jasper. And I was determined that District 1 would not get the victor they wanted.