Candella Cartwright, District Seven Female, 15 years old
Before our evaluations in front of the Head Gamemaker we're allowed the morning to do some final training. Most people go to the stations they know most about - the Careers go to their stations and you can see how vicious some of them are. The siblings from Two are brutal when it comes to close combat with a trainer, the girl from One is lethal with a battleaxe, the girl from Four is quick with her rapier and her district partner is decent with a knife, from what I can see. The most harrowing thing is that the boy from One can throw a spear near perfectly from a long distance. He'll be deadly from afar. Brock from Eleven seems to have allied with them and he swings a sickle at the dummies as if it's nothing.
I, on the other hand, go to the climbing section. Being from Seven most would think that I'd be a good climber but, sadly, I'm not. I have a feeling there'll be trees in this year's arena - last year it was a desert and this year it'll probably be the stark opposite or there'd be something to climb. It's difficult, but the trainer at the station helps me, guiding my hands and feet to where they should be but I don't know how relevant this information will be in the arena; I think in a life or death situation I won't care where my hands and feet go as long as I can climb up something. As I try to climb up the equipment I can see the boy from Six annoying the Careers again. He's been annoying them since lunch yesterday, telling them how they're villains and he'll 'sort them out' and whatnot. Their yelling at him distracts me and I miss my footing, causing me to fall onto the floor. I hope they're too occupied with Kumple to notice me, but the girls from One and Two look over and laugh at me. I can feel my cheeks going a bright red as I look away, deciding that maybe I've done enough at the climbing station and should move on to something else.
I decide to go to the station that focuses on running, aware that the Careers are still watching me. I know I can run fast - I'm agile - so hopefully this'll show them that if they think they can prey on me, that they're wrong. The helper at the station signals me to go and I run the course, dodging the obstacles meant to trip me up and the sort. It's not my best run but it's enough, when I look over at them afterwards, for the Careers to look somewhat impressed. Maybe I won't be a target for them too early on in the Games.
Blake Eden, District Nine Male, 17 years old
During the final hours of training I decide to go with some sickle training. I focused on running yesterday but running can only get me so far. If I'm cornered and have no experience with a weapon, well, that's just a death wish. I don't intend to go kill without careful calculations but that'll be for nothing unless I know how to use one weapon decently. I choose a sickle because I'm used to seeing it - a sword is too alien for me and at least I've used a sickle once or twice back home. Laurel must've come here yesterday because the trainer mentions something about wondering how long it'd take the other one from Nine to show up - not that I care too much.
He teaches me some basic techniques and tells me how to use it in a high adrenaline situation. He explains that the curve is good for decapitating but, unlike a sword, you'd need to get closer to deal effective damage. Good thing I don't plan on doing any real fighting myself until later on in the Games.
As we engage in a fight it's obvious that I'm not as well versed in using the weapon as I could be, but he comments that I could be worse. At least I've got that going for me. He says I grasped the concept quicker than Laurel did and that's always a plus. It doesn't take him long to overpower me, however, and that makes me annoyed because if he can do it, imagine what a Career could do.
I grumble something about needing to try harder and the trainer only chuckles, saying that as long as I don't get cocky nor distracted, I should be okay. I nod, taking it seriously. Besides, there'll be bigger targets in the arena such as the boys from Three and Six and the girl from Eight - the smaller tributes who'll probably die in the Bloodbath, if not the early Games. I'd include the girl from Eleven into the mix, but she's shown yesterday that she's rather adept in using a knife. Maybe I should ally with her and get her to run into fights she can't win so I can try and kill people. Who knows.
Atala rounds us all up and we stand in a similar semicircle formation like the one from yesterday. By now we all have a decent idea on who's good at what and who'll ally with who. I won't lie and say it isn't somewhat nerve wrecking but I need to remember that anything can happen in the arena. The brute from Two could get too cocky and die in the Bloodbath. The girl from Ten's dreamy personality could be a facade and she could kill us all. That's the thrill of the Games, I guess - you don't know what'll happen.
Octavius Nightheart, Head Gamemaker, Capitol
It takes us a while to get settled, myself and the other Gamemakers, and I can only imagine that the tributes are getting restless. It's still surreal to me that what we give the tributes now can make them targets or have them disregarded as victor material, but what happens happens and we can't do anything to change some peoples' minds. It's always nice to start with the Career tributes - it's interesting to see if the quality of the training they receive at their academies have gone down or not and to see how big of a threat they'll be. This year we've got a few anomalies within the Careers which excites me - Diamond from One and Stellar from Four don't look like your typical Careers, but I'm sure they have surprises waiting for us. It'll be a long time to sit in these chairs but I always find it's worth it - sometimes you find a hidden gem that, if you weren't paying attention, you'd miss.
The first tribute to come in is the boy from One, Diamond. He introduces himself and says he'll be using spears. We watch as he throws three spears at targets, each from different ranges which get further and further each time. As expected, he hits centre each time. What's impressive, however, is his age. Out of curiosity, we ask him to throw two more from even further distances, to which he complies and again hits centre. Clearly this is someone who shouldn't be messed with. His district partner, Buckingham, enters shortly after and says she'd like to do axe combat with a trainer. After sending down one of our best battleaxe trainers, they engage in a combat to which she puts up a good fight. The trainer we sent rarely loses and usually overpowers tributes - even Careers - within a matter of seconds, however she continues to fight, going strong. The engagement does end with her being overpowered, but she gave up a good enough fight where, near the end, the trainer was close to losing to her. It seems as if both District One tributes are going to be tough to beat.
The boy from Two, Calloway, enters next and asks to have some hand to hand combat. Why he doesn't want to show us a weapon, I don't know, but he looks formidable enough that we don't ask him to show us a weapon and instead send down our best combat trainer - one he hasn't practised with. Of course to ensure that no tribute gets injured they wear gloves that prevent massive injuries before fighting. The fight is intense and does end up with the trainer losing to Calloway. I thank him, clearly showing how impressed I am. That trainer had yet to be defeated so to see such a spectacle is amazing indeed. Hopefully he'll use his combat in the arena. His sister, Calamity, comes in next and says she'll be using a whip - something, judging form my notes, she's shown no interest in throughout the two days. Dummies are promptly set up and we watch her intently. She's rather impressive - strangling one dummy and whipping another in a way, according to the whip trainer, that would kill extremely quickly. As expected, both District Two tributes are shaping up to be the ones to beat.
The boy from Three, Melvin, enters and it's clear he doesn't know what he's doing. It takes him a while to figure out that he'd like to have a go with a sword seeing as, judging from my notes again, poison isn't something we can test. Instead he goes with a sword and it's extremely obvious he's not used to wielding it nor is he any good at it. We send the easiest trainer for him to spar with and, even then, he's overpowered easily. There were times, however, when he could've done down but instead persevered and was able to pull through. That, for what we had seen of him, is impressive. We thank him and Delta follows in succession. She asks for a sword and we send the same trainer but it's clear that she's practised with the sword. She's not at the Career standard by any means but she's able to overpower our trainer and be victorious. We send in another trainer to whom she is overpowered by but even then she gives it a good shot. We thank her for her time and myself and the other Gamemakers decide that Delta is more of a threat than Melvin.
Shelldon from Four enters not too long after and chooses a utility knife to fight with. We choose to give him dummies, seeing as that'll be the best way for him to showcase what he knows. We watch as he hacks the dummies with ease, using the knife with skill and precision - every move is calculated and, if the dummy were a real person, damaging. It's clear that he knows what he's doing with the knife and it takes him no time at all to destroy all of the dummies to a point of no return. Diamond's oddity counterpart, Stellar, comes into the room and announces she'll be using a rapier. She spars with a trainer and is decently good, given her age and smaller size, but she's eventually overpowered. We don't hold it against her though because she gave it her best. It's a consensus that District Four this year is lacking compared to other years but are definitely still threats.
From my notes, the District Five tributes are a pair that threaten the Careers - apparently the Careers ignored most on the first day but watched as these two practised. Hopefully that means we'll get an interesting show out of them both here and in the Games. Tesla enters first, saying he'll be using spears. We give him the same criteria as Diamond and watch as he hits the targets near perfectly. It's clear he struggles from the longer distances and that he hasn't been practising with them for all his life but he still hits the targets and in the Games you'd rather hit them in general rather than miss. We thank him, most of the Gamemakers impressed, before Victoria walks in. She says she'll be using a bow and arrow and fires from different distances. She's a little more precise in her aiming and our bow and arrow trainer looks somewhat proud because Victoria hits them all near enough perfectly. Her technique is something a little less desired for, but she knows what she's doing and that's just as dangerous. We thank her for her time, deciding that District Five can give the Careers a run for their money.
The District Six tributes are next and one look at them tells you that they'll be dead within the first week, as nicely as I can phrase that. Kumple comes in and says he'll be showing us the camouflage skills he's picked up and, for a few seconds, we're quite intrigued because maybe he might show us all up. But that's wishful thinking. No, instead he draws a shoddy symbol and calls it his emblem before attempting to berate us for being villains. Peacekeepers promptly escort him out and, if we could give a 0, he'd be getting it. Kaiya enters next and she's a bit more respectful compared to her district partner, not that that's hard. She chooses hand to hand combat as her way of showcasing her talents and she does put up a good fight, in all fairness to her. It's nowhere near the standard of Calloway from Two's fight but we can tell she's not the worst fighter in the world. I don't know how she'll fare under adrenaline-fuelled situations but, as shown to us, she's not afraid to throw the punches or take them. Although Kaiya lifts up the hopelessness we had for District Six, albeit not a lot, our original perception still remains.
Chandler from Seven decides to show us his skills with an axe. As expected from someone from Seven, he's good at wielding axes however his lack of physical strength means that, at times, he struggles to swing the axe when he has a decent amount of momentum. He's not the worst axe wielder we've seen, in fact he's above average, but his lack of strength is something unmissable and imperative when in the arena. We thank him and Candella promptly replaces him. Unlike most, she tells us she'll be showing us her ability to run. Not my most favourite thing to watch but I can't not say I'm not impressed. She's quick and agile and the obstacle course we use did look easy when she did it but that doesn't mean much to me. No, to me, running is only useful if you have other ways to defend yourself with. I ask her to use a weapon and she picks a knife, though she's extremely inexperienced in it. It's a shame, really, that the District Seven tributes aren't nearly as vicious as the ones last year were.
My notes on Phantom from Eight are pretty harrowing; like the cannibal from last year, creepy, doesn't speak to anyone, stares at some, and the list goes on. It's clear we've got the trademark creep of the Games standing before us. It's a shame because it seems as if he's going for the charming angle - the Capitol wouldn't be too impressed if their charming boy crush turns out to be a weirdo. He asks to be in a knife fight with our best trainer, which is just asking for a low score but nonetheless we comply and soon we're watching a fight between them. It seems as if he functions well under high adrenaline situations and does give our trainer a run for her money and the fight has to be forcefully ended because they're taking so long. Maybe he has a reason to appear creepy - not letting the tributes know how much of a threat he is. There's a stark contrast when Bobbin enters the room. Her twelve-year-old presence is a world apart from Phantom's aura and some of the Gamemakers coo at her. She tries to use blowguns and hits maybe two out of the five targets lined up for her and that's all she manages. It's upsetting to see her struggle and it'll be sad to give her a low score, but what has to be done has to happen. We thank her for her time and she leaves. District Eight seems to be sending us up their weirdest kids lately - is it rigged over there?
District Nine is next and I'm not too optimistic about them. The notes before me point to no obvious strength that either of them has which doesn't look promising. Blake comes in first and tries to use a sickle. I'm being nice when I say try because it's clear he has no experience with them and probably went with it to show us something that would appear somewhat presentable. He does show some perseverance, however, and that indicates towards a strong-willed tribute. Maybe he might be the leader of an alliance? We'll just have to find out. Laurel's not too much better either but at least her scythe wielding skills are better than her partner's sickle skills. Like Chandler from Seven, she's not the strongest and struggles a little to wield the scythe with ease, but it's enough to show that she's not completely useless. There's some murmurs as she leaves, indicating that we'll have to have a discussion about her score. The tributes from Nine seem like any other token tribute, which is a shame really.
I for one was anticipating the District Ten tributes, seeing as they've got larger frames, but I think I might be disappointed. Dion enters first and I had thought he'd show us his own combat and potentially be a rival to Calloway but, instead, he says he'll be showing his strength off in a different way - throwing things. It's an abnormal request - not one we get too often - but we line out five things for him to throw, each getting progressively heavier. Surprisingly, he clears them with ease but that's all he can show us. It's impressive no doubt about it, but it's only useful if he can find something in the arena to throw. Illea enters next and, like Dion, I had expected her to do something physical and show us that she'll be Calamity's rival but, sadly, she opts to use a scimitar and try to show us her skills with that. Except, there are barely any skills there. She gives it her best shot but it's not up to a standard where it'd be useful in the arena.
District Eleven comes up next and, as expected, their tributes are full of resilience and determination. Brock enters first and says he'll be using the heavy scythe. We're not surprised - he's definitely go the build and the strength for it and, as expected, he wields it with ease. He knows what he's doing with the weapon and, quite honestly, looks to be a threat just from afar. One can only imagine what it'd be like to be in a fight with him. We thank him and Ellie enters soon afterwards. She's not as initially intimidating as Brock is but, when she gets a hold of a knife and spars with a trainer, it's clear that she too is not to be messed with. We watch them fight for a while before I ask her to throw the knife at a target, curious as to whether or not she'll be any good with such a thing. She complies, throwing it at the target. It's nowhere near the centre but still on the target and she seems to be just as proud of herself as we are intrigued. We thank her for her time and decide that District Eleven, like most years, are gonna be a hard duo to beat.
District Twelve rounds up the evaluations and I wish I could say that they stood out but, unfortunately, they don't. Cadin shows us how agile he can be too and proves to us that he's not completely terrible with a knife but he could be better. Alys is similar - we give her a sword to use because there's no other obvious weapon she goes for and she's not the worst at using it, but definitely not the best. Both tributes are like the District Twelve standard - okay, but nothing to write home about which is a shame considering they both look promising.
Nobody's POV, Capitol
The tributes wait on baited breath for the scores to be revealed, as do their mentors. With revealed scores the angles for the interviews can be finalised and that'll determine what the lasting image for the Capitolites are. An image of Caesar Flickerman appears on the screen and it doesn't take long for everyone to become settled and to wait on the edge of their seats for the scores.
"From District One, Diamond Gold with a score of 8 and Buckingham Shine with a score of 10."
Both tributes from District One look satisfied with their scores. It proves they're dangerous enough where tributes will be constantly fearing them. And, more so Buckingham than Diamond, proves that they're contenders for leadership in the Career pack.
"From District Two, Calloway Haldor with a score of 11 and Calamity Haldor with a score of 11."
Whatever achievements District One had are blown out of the water by the double 11 scored by the Two siblings. Both Calamity and Calloway cheer in approval and the District Two team already get to work with planning how their tributes will remain the strongest.
"From District Three, Melvin Morris with a score of 2 and Delta Mono with a score of 7."
Both tributes are surprised with their scores; Melvin because he thought he did better than a 2, and Delta because she never thought she'd get a 7. It proves to the Careers that the weak girl from Three, who they had ignored, was more of a contender than originally thought.
"From District Four, Shelldon Flanders with a score of 9 and Stellar Madison with a score of 7."
Stellar's undoubtedly annoyed that Shelldon, the undeserving Career, got higher than her. Shelldon sits smugly and says only one thing to Stellar - "Seems like I'm a better Career than you are."
"From District Five, Tesla Mason with a score of 9 and Victoria Benson with a score of 8."
Both District Five tributes are in shock - they're more of a threat than they had thought to be. They turn to one another and smile uneasily; their scores make their pact a little harder now because it's clear neither is going to go down without a fight.
"From District Six, Kumple Figburns with a score of 1 and Kaiya Geargrind with a score of 5."
Kumple immediately starts to go off at how the villains are clearly discriminating against him for being the only true hero out of Panem and Kaiya can only roll her eyes. It's clear neither tribute are over the moon with their scores, but Kaiya's glad she's at least seen as more of a threat than Kumple.
"From District Seven, Chandler Figgs with a score of 6 and Candella Cartwright with a score of 2."
Chandler's happy with his score - it's a happy middle whereas Candella is somewhat shocked. She knows she's not the best of tributes but always thought that she'd be better than a 2. Thus far she's seen as comparable to the boy from Three and not much better than the boy from Six, neither of whom seem to have the best chances.
"From District Eight, Phandom Spinarid with a score of 8 and Bobbin Taper with a score of 2."
Phantom reclines back contently, a devious smile appearing on his face. Bobbin, on the other hand, watches him intently, scared that she's seen even more as a weakling to him and makes a mental note to ally with anyone in the arena who can protect her from him.
"From District Nine, Blake Eden with a score of 4 and Laurel Eresong with a score of 3."
Neither tribute is exactly thrilled with their score but both decide that they're not the lowest scores so hopefully people'll remember that when sponsoring them or when the Bloodbath happens they won't be seen as the weakest tributes.
"From District Ten, Dion Ouyang with a score of of 5 and Illea Augustine with a score of 4."
Admittedly both tributes were expecting lower scores given what they did in the evaluation. Dion is slightly more optimistic than Illea is due to his higher score but he is by no means boasting about it.
"From District Eleven, Brock Ushums with a score of 10 and Ellie Rosebush with a score of 7."
Both tributes are extremely pleased with their scores. Brock's score puts him on par with the Careers, even beating some of them and Ellie's score shows that, despite her age, she's a threat and a contender - a thing she aimed to achieve.
"And from District Twelve, Cadin James with a score of 4 and Alys Lofric with a score of 3."
Like District Ten, both tributes were expecting less than desired scores but both are in shock at how low they actually are, especially Alys. Their mentor and escort try to cheer them up by telling them that these can work in their favour in terms of getting sponsors.
Now with the training scores revealed, each district team and every sponsor in the Capitol are gearing up for the interviews and the Games themselves. With a large number of tributes getting scores that were unexpected, many are anticipating the Games more and more.
Just the Interviews to go! I'm super hyped!
I hope I did all the tributes justice :)
Both Cadin and Phantom'll get a POV in the next chapter! I was going to do one at the end of this chapter but it felt forced and out of place, so both of them'll get the pre-interview povs!
As always, reviews make me happy~!
-Oli