Author's Note (Dec. 27, 2013) - This story is the 72nd Hunger Games. Yes, it used to be the 71st, until I realized Johanna won the 71st, which I'm surprised no one ever pointed out. So, wherever you see it mention the 71st, it's actually the 72nd. Thanks a lot! PS, if you're reading this, I'm still here. Reviews are always appreciated, just keep in mind, this was my first story ever, so be gentle!

Off with your head
Dance 'til you're dead
Heads will roll
Heads will roll
Heads will roll
On the floor
Looking glass
Take the past
Shut your eyes
You realize

Hana Morale

"We need to leave, Harbor." I say in a hushed tone the second I am sure that Bravo is asleep. I've been feeling anxious every since I saw little Lucy's head roll down that slope. She didn't deserve to die that way, no one did. Except for maybe Bravo. Regardless, it terrified me. The maniacal brutality of my ally opened my eyes.

I came here to win. I have to win. For my sister. Forward will die without the medication the Capitol can provide her. I thought that teaming up with the Career pack would heighten my chances of winning, but now I can see that it might actually be crippling me.

Ariadne was the first death of the Games. The girl was gorgeous and quick with a spear, if she hadn't had the intelligence of a rock, she would have been useful. Bravo is proving himself to be even more idiotic, adding in the extra dose of testosterone and sheer insanity, he is a ticking time bomb. Crisis and Audrina are so far gone, I find myself seriously considering how I ever thought of them as strong allies. When they're not lusting over some poor tribute's spilt blood, they're either tearing each other's clothes off or searching for their next victims. Yes, a lot of help they were. We sent them off with the scrawny boy from Three ages ago and they had yet to return. We had heard two cannons since then though, one for sure being Lucy, we could only assume the other belonged to District Three.

I turn to Harbor again, he is looking between myself and Bravo. I vaguely wonder if he can hear us, but his snores are more than enough to drown out our whispered voices, and there is no way he would be smart enough to pretend to be asleep.

"Okay." Harbor finally agrees, nodding nervously. "How much stuff do you think we can take without waking him? We'll never make it without any supplies."

I look toward the tent that is filled with out weapons, supplies and food given to us by sponsors. He is right, of course. There is one benefit to joining the Career pack, we have received several generous gifts of food since the Games began. We have not, however, received anything since Lucy's death. I have a feeling that the decapitation of an innocent little girl was too much, even by Capitol standards. Another reason that we should leave, Harbor and I are the only Careers that aren't insane. We would be able to survive longer and rack up sponsors of our own.

I whisper all of this to Harbor, and he seems to be growing more and more confident in his decision as I speak. We quietly make our way to the supply tent and begin filling two backpacks with supplies and food. I am in the process of strapping knives to the inside of my jacket when I hear footsteps in the distance. To their credit, they are trying extremely hard to be quiet, but silence is an impossible feat in this cave. Every sound echoes off the stone walls. I nudge Harbor and tilt my head toward the opening of the tent, and we both move to peak our heads out.

I cannot see anyone directly, but there are four shadows on the floor, diminishing any hope that the intruders were only Audrina and Crisis returning to camp. No, these are our enemies. Harbor hands me a spear and a machete and arms himself with two daggers. We tiptoe out of the tent and toward the shadows, hoping that we can handle the situation with little violence, preferably without waking Bravo.

I glance toward his sleeping bag and gasp when I find it empty. I turn to tell Harbor, but I am interrupted by a series of ear splitting screams and a cannon. Something hits the toe of my boot. A bloody, mutilated head lays at my feet.

Oh, fuck.

Celeste DeWynter

The sound that escapes my mouth is not human.

Aurora's decapitated body lays lifeless before me, unmoving except for the steady flow of blood sputtering from her neck.

I knew it was risky sneaking into the Career camp. Only now does it cross my mind how completely and utterly suicidal it was. We had no time to react. The brute from District One seemed to vaporize from the darkness slicing his machete through Aurora's unsuspecting neck before we even had a chance to raise our weapons.

Vaguely I feel Daniel wrap his arm around my waist and shove me behind him. Hana and Harbor appear from the darkness and stare at the scene before them, conflicted. I briefly wonder why they are not fighting with Bravo, when I hear it for the second time tonight. The unmistakeable and unforgettable sound of blade meeting flesh and bone, of a skull smashing against the stone floor. A cannon sounds, pulling me back from my state of confusion. Holden is dead. I snap back to reality and notch an arrow on my bow, prepared to send it through Bravo's temple when I realize he is holding his machete against Daniel's throat.

Time freezes, and everything happens in slow motion.

Blood drips from the blade of the machete, making tiny little splashes on the floor below us. Bravo's eyes, burning with bloodlust and madness, lock with mine. It is as if he is daring me to make a move, to attempt to kill him. I am aware at this moment that I have lost. He has killed two of my allies in a matter of seconds, and he is about to murder the boy I have grown to love. I am next, he has been saving me for last. Four heads will roll tonight, I am sure of it.

Suddenly, Bravo's eyes widen, and a strangled groan escapes his lips. He falls to the ground, screaming in pain. His arms reach frantically to his back and my eyes follow. There, lodged between his shoulder blades, is a dagger. I look up and see that Harbor, who had previously been holding two knives, is now holding only one.

Hana rushes toward us, and grabs Bravo by the hair, pulling him upward, leaving his chest in perfect access. She locks eyes with me and gives the slightest nod and I send an arrow through his heart. The cannon sounds instantaneously.

Hana lets Bravo's body fall and kicks it to the side, a metal claw will reach down and collect it any minute.

Harbor steps forward and offers his hand to Daniel.

"I couldn't stomach any more decapitations." Hana says, a sad smile crossing her face. "Allies?"

I narrow my eyes and look between her and Harbor, but I know my decision.

"If it hadn't been for you, neither of us would be alive right now." I say. I glance at Daniel and take his hand in mine, squeezing it tightly. I shudder inwardly at how close I came to losing him tonight.

Daniel nods and squeezes my hand in return.

"Allies."

Aphrodite Gleam

I feel the warmth of the sunlight and Lex's steady, strong heartbeat as I slowly drift back into consciousness. No wanting to open my eyes yet, I curl into Lex, pressing my cheek against his warm chest and wrapping my leg around his torso.

It is the beginning of the third day in the arena, and I must say, it is going much better than the previous one. I recall waking up yesterday, uncomfortable, cold and parched. Not to mention the pounding in my head and the hollow feeling of my stomach. It felt as if all hope was lost. We were in a strange place with hardly any means of survival, besides weapons. We walked and searched for half of the day, until we found a small stream of water. After we had quenched our thirst, we followed it, hoping to find it's source, when we found a large, open area. There was a small waterfall in the corner, pouring out into the stream, and a huge opening in the ceiling, looking out into the night sky. We curled up into our shared sleeping bag to watch the death recap. The boy from Three, little girl from Eleven, girl from Four, boy from Ten, and finally the massive boy from One were all dead. I wondered who managed to kill the boy from One, sending them a silent thank you as I watched his face fade from the sky. As the anthem drew to a close, a tiny silver parachute drifted down from the sky and into my lap. Inside was a package of wheat crackers, two apples and a generous serving of beef jerky.

It was small, but it was all we needed to hold on. We had sponsors, not all hope was lost.

Now, even though I wake up with the uncomfortable feeling of hunger, it is not as severe as before, and I have a feeling that today will be fine.

"Morning, beautiful." Lex mumbles, pressing a chaste kiss to the top of my head.

"Good morning yourself." I say, lifting my eyes to meet his. He is smiling back at me.

"How can you look at me like that when we're in such a horrible place?" I ask him, brushing his messy hair away from his eyes, but it is no use, it just falls back.

"It wouldn't matter where we are, Aph. I'm here with you. I can't hate this place, and I can't hate these Games, because they brought us together."

And it'll tear us apart, I think bitterly, before abolishing the thought from my mind.

"Me too." I agree. "I just wish we had been brought together under different circumstances."

Lex looks at me sadly, and I think I can almost see tears brimming in his dark eyes, but he blinks them away before I can be sure. He sits up and pulls me back against his chest.

"We can only play with the cards we've been given."

He is right, and I hate him for it.

We both sit up and split the remainder of our rations for breakfast. It is uncomfortable, and I chew on a piece of beef jerky reluctantly. We both know full well that this could be our last meal. We could die today. We could live and be unable to find food. There is no telling what the day has in store for us and I suddenly feel foolish for feeling hopeful when I woke up.

Just because yesterday had a happy ending does not mean that life is sunshine and rainbows from here on out. The only reason our sponsors sent us food was because we murdered Eliot and Phoebe in cold blood. Those actions should never get to be rewarded. We will receive no more free food unless we take more lives, and that is not something I want to have to do.

"Lex." I whisper hoarsely. "What are we going to do?"

He hears the desperation in my voice and for once, does not know how to respond. It feels like days before anyone speaks, or moves.

"I don't know, Aph. I wish I did, and I'm sorry." He kisses my head again and pulls me pack against his chest.

We are both lying on our backs, staring up at the cloudless blue sky. My eyes travel from the sky, downward to the opening in the ceiling. It seems to be only about thirty feet above us. The rocks around the edge jut out just enough for one to place their feet. The idea consumes my mind and I sit up immediately.

"What's wrong?" Lex asks frantically, reaching for his knife.

I point upward to the sky, my eyes wide and shining brightly with this new discovery.

"We can climb out. The land above us, all the grass? We weren't given enough time to get a good look at it, but I would bet anything there's animals up there. We hunt them, grab enough grass to kindle a fire bring it back down here. We'll have food!"

Lex looks doubtful at first, glancing from me to the steep walls of the cave. I grab his hand and squeeze it tightly, giving him a small smile.

"It's worth a shot, isn't it?"

He can't argue with that. Glancing up at the sky one more time, he finally nods.

"Okay. Up we go."

Audrina Prescott

I immediately become aware of three things as my mind drifts back into consciousness. One, my head feels ready to explode. Two, there is a burning sensation on my left forearm, which I immediately recognize as the familiar feeling of a mild knife cut. Three, Crisis's heavy, muscular body is sprawled across mine, making it impossible to move.

"Crisis." I say, intending it to sound intimidating, but it comes out as a weak whisper. I clear my throat and muster up enough strength to shove Crisis off of me. He awakes with a start and an instinctual growl escapes his throat.

"Easy, tiger. It's me."

He exhales in relief and sits up, running his fingers through his hair.

"You okay?" He asks, looking toward me with concern.

"I've been better. You?"

"Same. Where the fuck are we?"

"Like I know. District Seven pushed us in."

I rub my eyes and stand up, trying to ignore the nausea I feel. I look around, seeing nothing but darkness, until my eyes stop on a dim light in the distance.

"Crisis" I whisper, helping him to his feet and pointing in the direction of the light. I look into his eyes, silently asking if we should go. He nods in agreement and we grab our backpacks and walk in the direction of the light. I never let go of Crisis's hand, gripping it tightly in fear of the nausea and dizziness overcoming me. He doesn't question it.

As we approach the light, we find ourselves standing in a metal doorway facing a long hallway, there are the same dim lightbulbs on the ceiling spaced out every six feet or so. It stretches for what seems like miles.

"Left or right?" Crisis asks me.

"Left." I say, and he doesn't argue. We set off in that direction, but it doesn't take long until we come across another fork in the road. We alternate between left and right turns, and we have been walking for well over an hour when a door appears in front of us.

My eyebrows draw together in confusion as I study the door. It is metal, like the one we originally stood in, with a small metal slot near the top, about a foot wide. Before I can act, Crisis's hand is on the doorknob and he twists it open.

Nothing can prepare me for the sight before us. There are boxes upon boxes, filled to the brim with food, cans of soup and vegetables, dried fruit, beef jerky, crackers and several types of bread and biscuits. There are bottles of water, flashlights, medication and other supplies, more than we have ever seen in one place.

Without a word or a second thought, Crisis steps over the threshold and into the room. Instantaneously, there is an explosion, fire and smoke erupt from the center of the room and force me backwards, slamming me into the opposite wall.

The last thing I hear before blacking out once more is an inhuman scream coming from the burning room, and my own terrified voice, screaming out the name of the only person who has ever cared for me.

Happy Hunger Games! Are you guys all excited to see the movie! I'm so beyond ecstatic! Who's going to see it at midnight? :) Also, thanks for being so patient with me, I know it's been awhile since the last update!

For those who's tributes have died, please message me if you would like to transfer his/her points. You may only transfer them to one person, and you must PM me. I will delete the points if you send it in a review.

Aurora Spring, District 4

Holden Rancocas, District 10

Bravo Poise, District 1

Go vote on the new poll!

Same thing goes for voting this time around!

This time you may only vote for two tributes, and they will both receive 50 points. Only one may be your own.

Make sure that you write in your review/message which chapter your votes are for since you get one vote per chapter.

Also, make sure to go to www . seventyoneyears . blogspot . com (with no spaces of course!) to see pictures and bios of all the tributes! I updated and changed some since writing this!

*I've decided to give 5 bonus points to each of your tributes if you leave a review! A constructive review, not a review with your votes and that's it. :)

**For more bonus points, go check out these two lovely stories:

The 124th Hunger Games: A Lost Cause by The Silver Panda (My tributes are Scarlet and Arrow, also vote in his poll!)

The 1st Annual Hunger Games! by 73Years (My tribute is Ruby)

Go read and leave them reviews and I'll give your tribute(s) 5 points for each one! Neither of them asked me to promote them, nor will my tributes be receiving points for your reviews, I just think that they deserve some more reads!

-Becca