26
To our right, we spot the man in a watchtower as he readies his machine gun. "Turn around and return to the arena!" he commands. "The force field is temporarily down and you are entering a shoot to kill zone. Turn around now!" shouts the Peacekeeper.
Haymitch holds his arms out to his sides, hiding his drawn knife behind his wrist. "Haven't you heard? The games have been canceled," replies Haymitch.
I spot more Peacekeepers running towards us along the ridge on our right and additional Peacekeepers on top of the concrete wall to our left, all of them armed. "Haymitch?" I call out.
"I see them." Haymitch spurts out over his shoulder. He turns back to the watchtower. "Can you call your superior? I'm sure that you will find—"
The machine gun fires above our heads, spraying the trees directly behind us. As we crouch for cover, water rains down upon us from the ruptured trees.
"Last warning! I will kill all of you!" shouts the Peacekeeper. The newly arrived Peacekeepers assemble into formations with raised rifles.
"Alright! We're going!" calls out Haymitch with raised arms.
We move swiftly back into the jungle and gather at our previous resting spot.
Finnick rests against a tree and casually surveys the area for other dangers. "What's plan B?"
"It looks as if they could only cut the power to the arena. We could wait here until Plutarch Heavensbee can order them to stand down?"
"How long will that take?" asks Johanna.
Haymitch can only shrug with frustration.
"If it is going to take a while, we better return to the beach," continues Johanna. "It will be much easier to defend ourselves if the arena's muttations attack."
"Better yet, the Cornucopia will offer the best protection," adds Finnick.
With the jungle a major threat once again, we move swiftly towards the beach keeping our ears focused on muttations and our eyes for career tributes.
We pass half way and stop to tap a tree for water. The jungle has truly come alive with sounds. As Johanna quenches her thirst, Beetee calls to me to ready my bow when a large hiss comes from the shadows. Slithering out of the darkness, a six-foot lizard crawls out into the sunlight. Its red eyes making it clear that the Capitol had mutated it.
"What is it?" asks Johanna.
"I don't know," replies Haymitch. "Kill, it Katniss."
The creature is short legged with thick lizard skin that worries me. It moves its head in short rapid movements. As I try to focus on my one shot, I begin to worry about its unfamiliarity. The creature bursts forward with incredible speed and an open mouth towards Beetee. Instinct takes over and I land an arrow in its throat, dropping it before Beetee.
"Nice shot," he says nervously.
Johanna kicks it. "Do these things exist in the wild, not in muttation form?"
"I think they're called dragons," says Finnick.
I eye him. "Those only exist in bedtime stories, Finnick."
"No these are Komodo, or something. They come from the east."
Haymitch pats the thick skin of the creature. "Let's get out of here. We're lucky only one attacked us. If it was more, with that speed, we wouldn't have a chance."
More hisses come from sector nine and louder clicks from sector eleven. We make for the beach faster than before, for Brutus and Enobaria do not frighten us as much as the jungle.
When we reach the beach, we all pause to catch our breath. Beetee sits against a tree for its shade as the others survey the surroundings.
"Is there another way out of the arena?" Haymitch asks Beetee.
"Perhaps maintenance doors and hatches that are used to maintain the arena's traps, but I'm certain those all lie at the edges of the jungle," answers Beetee.
"How about the way we came in, the lift plates?" questions Haymitch.
Beetee begins to clean his glasses. "I'm sure they're locked, and without proper tools, we can't break through. These weapons won't be sufficient."
"Then there are the explosives," adds Johanna.
"Good point, Johanna. There no telling if they are still armed," Beetee says.
I sit at the same tree as Beetee, but face the jungle to keep an eye out for danger. Mostly, I just want a tiny bit of solitude as I worry for Peeta. Did the coup go smoothly? I think. Did war break out? Where did Effie take Peeta?
Finnick brings Johanna some water. "They surely have arrested Snow by now," says Finnick.
"Or killed him," adds Johanna before chugging some water. "It would be best if they just kill him."
"Wouldn't that make the new leaders just as bad as the old?" asks Finnick.
"We can't give him a show trial. That's what he wants. It's too dangerous," says Johanna between more gulps of water.
"The new government is supposed to be just," Beetee injects. "They've thought all this out before the coup. I have a good feeling about the future. What do you think, Katniss?"
I continue to stare out at the jungle. "I don't know. I didn't know about the coup until now. I can't even think of tomorrow." No one responds as I've killed the mood as usual, and everyone returns to his or her own affairs.
Haymitch finally tells us that we have no choice but to wait for Plutarch Heavensbee to contact the Peacekeepers that guard the arena. We all agree that it would be safest to spend the night at the Cornucopia with all the dangers freely walking about. We tap another tree for water, followed by progressing down a spoke of sand to the center of the arena.
When we reach the Cornucopia, we spot a mass of white from the opposite spoke of sand. We quickly discern them to be Peacemakers.
"Looks as if Plutarch Heavensbee has come through after all," says Finnick.
I don't like it, for my instinct screams danger. The look Haymitch gives me confirms my suspicion. I notice an odd glint of light emanating from the group in white. Clear shields? The men are carrying large riot shields that will protect them nicely from arrows. "They have riot shields. Haymitch, they're not here to help us," I say.
"I think your right, sweetheart. They're marching in an odd formation, moving slow for Peacemakers," says Haymitch with focused eyes.
"I've never seen these goons march like this before," adds Johanna.
Finnick's eyes go from a squint to alarm. "Rifles! I see rifles."
"Dam!" curses Haymitch. "We have to run for the jungle. We'll go back the way we came since the Cornucopia will provide cover just in case they decide to shoot at us. Go!"
We make good time to the beach and discover that the Peacekeepers did not pick up their pace. We move into the jungle just far enough to stay out of sight. I small number of boulders and fallen trees offer cover from bullets should they fire their rifles. Haymitch instructs Finnick and Johanna to watch our backs for any dangers that could come from the jungle as the rest of watch for the Peacekeeper's next move.
"Now what?" I ask Haymitch.
"Wait and see. If they come towards us, we have no choice but to go deep into the jungle."
"I suggest we head towards sector one, the blood-rain." Beetee says. "With the power off, the rain and poison fog should not be a danger. They can't be released without power."
"And it will give us a large area to hide." says Haymitch.
"Won't the monkeys come our way from sector three?" I ask Beetee.
"They're probably dispersing in all directions." He replies.
"They'll be less of a danger thinned out like that." Haymitch says with his eyes sharply focused on the white mass. "I'm guessing that there are only a dozen Peacekeepers. If they don't send more in, we could easily hide in the jungle."
A voice calls out from the mass of white through a portable megaphone. "Miss Everdeen, I'm so disappointed." It's President Snow! "You still refuse to play the game, still refusing to play your role."
The shock of hearing President Snow strikes everyone. I can feel the blood drain from my face. Finnick and Johanna join us in search of the small white haired man in amongst the Peacekeepers.
"Haymitch, do you think the coup failed?" asks Finnick.
"I don't know. This could be a trick."
Halfway down the spoke of sand, the Peacekeepers stop to form a wall formation with their shields. The front row of men kneel with their shields up, and then we see President Snow. The small man waves his arm and two Peacekeepers move forward pushing a man in dark clothes.
"Miss Everdeen," Snow continues, "someone would like to speak to you."
Through the megaphone, my heart is ripped out when I hear him scream. "Katniss run!" It's Peeta! He doesn't get to say anything else as he is struck hard, the grunt reverberating through the megaphone.
"Peeta!" I wail. As soon as I step forward, Haymitch and Finnick drag me to the ground.
Haymitch takes hold of my chin to grab my attention. "Katniss, Katniss! If you go out there, he'll kill both of you. If he doesn't have you, he'll keep Peeta alive until he catches you."
"We have to save Peeta," I spew out with my panic.
"We will. We just need to keep our heads," Haymitch says in a calming voice as he helps me to my knees.
Johanna slams the butt of her axe into the ground out of frustration. "We can't attack them on the sand bar. They shoot us as soon as we exit the jungle."
"Miss Everdeen, I'm not going to wait much longer," says President Snow. "Don't make me kill him before you two can say your last words to each other." His voice has a sadistic hiss that tightens the grip on my bow.
"Finnick, how fast can you swim?" Haymitch points to our right. "I want you to get to the nine o'clock sector as fast as possible. You can use the strip of sand as cover. I want you to—"
I gasp from the cold steal slid below my neck from behind. At the same time, a second blade comes from around the other side to form a scissors hold on my neck. Enobaria has me locked in a fatal knife grip. As she pulls me away from the others, blood begins to trickle down my neck as the blades rub on my skin. Haymitch and the others quickly surround the two of us.
"I die, she dies!" barks Enobaria.
"She dies, you die... slowly," says Johanna scornfully.
Enobaria chuckles. "Well then, let's make sure nothing bad happens to the girl on fire."
"Finnick, go!" commands Haymitch, sending Finnick unquestioning off into the jungle. Haymitch calmly approaches Enobaria and me. "The games are over, Enobaria. There is no need to kill anyone. There has been a change in the government. This is why the power if off."
"They're going to kill all of you. It's certain." Enobaria's tight grip of sharp steel on my throat inevitably increases the flow of blood from my neck.
"And they'll kill you," says Johanna.
"Not if I hand over the Mockingjay," scorns Enobaria. The return to the arena has pushed her sanity over the edge. "Did you know that one of President Snow's men came to us careers? He told us that we would be rewarded for killing the Mockingjay."
"What do you mean?" asks Haymitch.
Enobaria slowly turns us in a circle, eyeing the others. "He said that once Katniss was dead and when only the careers remained, we could begin faking our own deaths. We would be removed from the arena and given new identities. We could even live in the Capitol if we wanted."
Haymitch sheaths his knife in an act of trust. "He was lying. They don't make deals. They only take what they want and silence anyone who causes trouble."
Enobaria thankfully stops turning. "You can't stop him. Even if you remove Snow, the next guy will be the same, if not worse."
"No," reasons Haymitch. Most of the districts are on board with this change. We are all working together."
"Shut up!" screams Enobaria. "I don't believe any of you."
"Miss Everdeen," calls out President Snow through the megaphone. "Wouldn't you like to speak to your husband, if we can call him that?"
"Come. Lover boy is waiting." Enobaria forces me out of the jungle into the sunlight. "Don't shoot! It's me, Enobaria. I captured Katniss for you."
"Ah, thank you, Enobaria. Bring her to me," commands Snow through the megaphone.
"Do we still have an arrangement, Mr. President?" asks Enobaria.
"Of course, the rebels have failed with their treasonous attempt to overthrow the Capitol. We are in your gratitude," says Snow warmly, but I still hear the hiss of a snake.
When Enobaria pushes me forward, the sky suddenly changes from blue, back into pink. The power has returned, and my heart sinks even further into despair as I interpret this as a failed coup.
Static briefly erupts from the overhead speakers, followed by the voice of Plutarch Heavensbee. "President Snow, you are under arrest. Your government has formally been deposed on order of the will of the people, those of the Capitol and of the districts."
Without amplification, I can hear Snow's laughter. When he does lift the megaphone, his tone has become more serious. "Bring her to me, Enobaria. We have a hovercraft waiting. You can come with us."
"No, Enobaria," broadcasts Plutarch. "If you stop now, you will be granted amnesty and will be allowed to return home a free woman."
Snow counters, "You'll always be a tribute under him. I want you to be on my security team."
Peeta calls out to me, but he's silenced again by the Peacemakers. I'm bleeding steadily, but I try to remain calm to reason with Enobaria. "Snow is no longer in charge, they've done it. There will be no more games, no more senseless killing."
The boom of the cannon jolts everyone. "Peeta!" I scream. He calls my name before he is struck silent again. Was it a distraction to trick Snow? I think.
"Let's go, Mockingjay." Enobaria pushes me forward, but I resist, realizing that if they capture me, Peeta and I will certainly die.
I push back until the sting of the knives at my throat becomes unbearable. "No! Listen to them. Snow is finished." I nearly trip when Enobaria shoves me to the water's edge near the spoke of sand.
Plutarch Heavensbee comes over the area sound system sounding more urgent. "The cameras and microphones have been activated for all of Panem to see. Any act of violence will be recorded and used against you at trial. The Peacemakers assigned to the arena are receiving their new orders as I speak. Everyone inside the arena drop you weapons and stand down. The new authorities will arrive shortly to lead everyone out of the arena safely."
Enobaria holds me in place and calls out down the strip of sand. "Can you send a couple Peacekeepers? She's resisting, and I don't want to accidentally kill her so close to her friends."
Peeta screams my name and then grunts from their blows. I peculiarly notice that the sounds from the rifles reach my ears a split second after the bullets. Enobaria and I drop to the ground, shot by Snow's peacekeepers.
I lay on the ground as the scent of blood fills my nostrils. I turn my head to see the formation of Peacekeepers now approaching. They carry a battered Peeta, his toes dragging in the sand. I want to reach out to Peeta, but I can barely move through the pain and exhaustion. Multiple bullet wounds have left me unable to sit up or roll over. I turn my head to see that Enobaria's fatal wounds are worse than mine."
"I'm sorry," chokes out Enobaria. The gurgling of blood escaping from her lungs make it clear that she doesn't have long. She extends her hand towards me.
When I meet her eyes, I realize that I don't hate her. She had no choice when it came to being tribute. For all the people of Panem, hate is taught, forced upon all with the instinct fear to fuel the resulting flames. Had we grown up together in a different time, we may have been friends. I reach out and take her hand. "I'm sorry too."
Enobaria looks past me at the approaching Peacekeepers. I turn my head to see them clearly for the first time, their faces old and hard, men with forgotten morals and past crimes that make efficient killing machines, binding them to President Snow and his fate.
President Snow's face comes into view. When he stares down at me, his puffy lips twist into a smile. "Miss Everdeen, all you had to do from the very beginning was to die in the arena, to be a proper sacrifice. And here you are after being shot, still living, still being difficult."
"I live to disappoint you, Mr. President."
My insolence gives Snow reason to laugh. "That you have. Thanks to you, I need to leave the country for a short while." Snow kneels next to me to whisper. "But don't worry, I'll be back and in control in time for your sister's senior year reaping."
I reach for my knife, but my hand moves so shakily slow that it causes Snow to smile once again as he stands. When I pull the knife, my fingers fumble, dropping it in the sand. I let my hand drop.
"Fighting to the end. How admirable, Katniss," comments Snow. "And what about Enobaria?"
This is when I notice that Enobaria's grip had long loosened. Her eyes now show an endless stare. Just as I let go of her hand, the cannon sounds for her.
"I see," says Snow as he steps away from me. "We need to get to the hovercraft. Kill them both."
I choke out Peeta's name as the last remaining fear wells up in me. A Peacekeeper readies his gun on me as I stare at the unconscious body of the boy who gave me bread. I say my last words. "I love you, Peeta."
As I take my last breath, a loud angry scream comes from the jungle. Chaff emerges with a dead Brutus slung over his shoulder as a shield. He is running directly towards us screaming a war cry to his certain death.
The startled Peacekeepers drop their shields and ready their rifles when Peeta suddenly jumps to life. His hands remain tied behind his back, but he uses his strength to bowl over many of the guards, knocking some into the water. I hear gun shots erupt as chaos breaks out around me.
An arrow lands in the leg of the Peacekeeper above me, causing him to fall backward. Their body armor only protects them from the waist up. Arrow after arrow finds a home in a leg or in the sand. I turn my head in search of Snow, hoping that an arrow finds a home in his chest, but I see two dedicated Peacekeepers protecting him with their riot shields from projectiles.
This is when I spot Finnick emerging from the water. He had used the sandy spoke and his swimming skills to sneak in from behind. He is about to kill Snow with his trident when one of the Peacekeepers turns and deflects the deathblow with his shield. The guard pulls his handgun, but Finnick knocks it free from his hand.
More battle cries sound from the jungle, and I turn my head to see Haymitch, Johanna, and Beetee rush out onto the sands. Beetee stops promptly to shoot an arrow into the leg of a Peacekeeper. Johanna's axe bounces off the helmet of a Peacekeeper with such force that he falls unconscious from the blow.
Haymitch sprints towards me and leaps into the air, flying over me, crashing into the Peacekeeper who had intended to shoot me before he was shot in the leg by an arrow.
My fingers search for my dropped knife in the sand when I feel a hand on my wrist. President Snow has rushed in, retrieved my knife, and now holds the blade above me. The rage in his eyes is palpable, and saliva spatters from his mouth when he calls out. "I will have my sacrifice if it's the—" Snow inhales sharply unmoving for a moment before falling away from my view.
I see Haymitch standing before me with a knife covered in the President's blood. He leans over Snow, showing him his bloody knife. "For Maysilee, for all of them."
The arena suddenly becomes quiet, and Haymitch kneels next to me. He surveys the scene quickly. "They are surrendering! Don't kill them if they surrender!" yells Haymitch. He takes my hand and eyes my wounds before looking into my eyes. "Hang on, Katniss. We'll get you to a doctor immediately."
"Save Peeta," I say softly.
Johanna kneels near me opposite of Haymitch. Her reaction to the sight of my wounds speaks volumes. "You have more strength than anyone else I know, Katniss. Don't give up."
Plutarch's voice comes over the arena's speakers. "A hovercraft will arrive shortly for the wounded."
Several hands begin to press against my body. As the sky returns to a brilliant blue, the realization comes to me that I feel no pain. Voices continue to call to me, but I pay no attention. Knowing that my nightmares won't be able to follow me, I smile and willfully drift unconscious.