When I wake up, the golden leaves that coated the trees are gone.

I find my hand still clutching my knife, ready to attack if I need to. I slip down the trunk of the large tree that I was sleeping in, and let my feet fall to the ground with a soft crinkling sound that reminds me of aluminum foil being crunched. I look to the floor. I can no longer see the stone that was paved down; there are now leaves laying on the floor in perfect layers and there are so many that there is no way I could walk across them without touching them.

I stand there for a moment, fearing that someone might hear me, but I eventually feel a soft breeze come from nowhere, peel the leaves off the floor and sweep them away to another side of the room. They stir around me and almost lift me off my feet in a sort of graceful dance, then melt into the walls on the far side of the room. I turn to the tree behind me. It has turned silver and I see my reflection in it- rosy cheeks, still wearing the uniform I was given, and my hair is dappled with flecks of gold that got caught in it when the breeze came.

I turn away and walk to the far side of the room. As I reach the hole, I sink to the ground and realize that it's far too small for me to squeeze through. So how did I get in? Is this the wrong hole? Is someone in here with me?

I reach for my ponytail and pull out the small pearl that Regan gave me. I roll it between my fingers and put it back. Suddenly I realize that I'm crying. I wipe away the tears and look back to the hole. I can pull it back open.

I start to scratch at the rough sides of it, picking off bits of rock that fall in piles by my feet. After a few minutes, I still can't see any difference in the hole. It's the same size and still won't be big enough. I randomly shriek to the room, and roll on the ground screaming and crying. I can't control myself. As I give agonizing cries, the hole only gives the illusion of getting smaller and everything gets blurry. I fall onto the floor, not knowing what's going on, and the last thing I see is new golden leaves sprouting on the trees- like watching a flower grow, but sped up.

-Later-

I wrench my eyes open and roll onto my stomach, groaning. My whole body hurts, but mostly my head. I can't really remember anything. All I can see is gold around me. Immediately I sit up and scramble on my hands and knees until I accidentally ram my head into a tree and fall to the ground, writhing in pain. All I want to do is make it stop! I turn to the hole I made in the room. It's surely big enough for me now, but my head hurts too bad to leave. I lay on the ground, wishing with all my might that I knew what happened.

I remember seeing new leaves growing on the trees and having a huge roller coaster of emotions before blacking out. I touch my head gently, and even this soft gesture brings on a stinging pain. I squeeze my eyes shut, and force myself to check out the rest of my body. My arms are cut, my knives are gone, and my legs, head, and stomach are hurting intensely. I can't understand what's going on.

I crawl on my hands and knees until I find all five daggers that I lost, and slowly, painfully, make an agonizing trip back to the hole.

I pull myself through and try to find my way back to the Cornucopia. That will be my best chance at getting some medicine.

I soon find the large circular room that shelters the horn. I see the twisted golden candles casting dark shadows that look like deranged fingers across the room. I tentatively step in and catch a flash of silver before the knife cuts me.

I feel blood running into my eyes and the cut in my forehead as I sprint for the Cornucopia. I launch myself into what's left of the gifts that the Gamemakers have so graciously left for us tributes. I fumble around until I find a deep green backpack. I slash it open with my knife and snatch up a roll of gauze. I tear a piece off and turn just in time to see the figure charging me again.

I pull out one of my knives and throw it, adrenaline pumping through me. I watch as the knife sails to the pitch black outline of the figure, but as soon as I think it's about to hit the person, the knife just keeps flying until it hits the wall and clangs to the floor, useless.

Blinking again, the figure disappears and I realize it was just shadows. The person is already gone.

Illusions.

Shadows.

Gamemakers.

I grab the backpack and delve deeper into the horn, but realizing there is nothing useful left I just retreat. I circle to the back of it to keep looking for prizes, but all I get is the sound of feet slapping against the stone floor. I rush back farther behind the Cornucopia and press my back against it, the cool golden metal causing me to shiver.

"I don't care," a voice groaned. "I'm sick of our group pushing me around. Besides-" their voice lowered to a whisper, "There's no way to tell if they're right. So what? They think some dumb pipe in the Spiral will kill us all. All I wanted to know is where it leads..."

"Well," said a deep voice, "Now you know. Here. It leads here."

I hear a shuffling and a strange sound coming from one of the people. One of the people leaves and the other doesn't follow. I wait for at least ten minutes until I peek around the edge of the horn.

I stifle a scream and press my hand to my mouth. A motionless body lays on the ground, with their neck bent at an awkward angle. How were they killed? Their neck wasn't broken because I would've heard it. Maybe they were strangled. But there would be some other sort of sound. I'm confused as to what's going on.

I think back to the conversation. I know now that there is a pipe leading into this very room that is rumored to be a weapon that will kill us. I know that someone has a very powerful weapon of some sort.

Breathing hard, I jog to the exit of the room and turn around, scanning the area. Where is the pipe? My eyes drift to the ceiling and I see something that just doesn't make sense.

I see the stars in a night sky. I lift my hand up as if to touch it, then bring it back down. And, stranger, there are cuts in the walls on top that water flow through. They are small, steady streams that puddle in a sort of moat that rings the room. I'm guessing it's only a few feet deep, but I didn't think it was being fed. Sure, I noticed it, but it's being filled?

I bend down on my knees and cup my hands, submerging them into the water. It feels good and looks good to drink, so I put a drop on my tongue, hoping that it's not poisonous.

I wait a few minutes and nothing happens, so I take a larger drink.

It's good.

I get back up. I guess I found the pipes they were talking about. This pool. If the water is good to drink, then how can it kill us? I'm only getting more curious. Slowly I walk back out the exit, heaving the backpack over my shoulder and picking up my knife that I dropped before leaving. As I travel, I wrap the gauze around my forehead and think about the Games. I found the pipes. I need to find out what that "Spiral" they mentioned is. The only way I can think of doing this is by walking, so I start out through the pitch black hallway, and when the last of the candlelight leaves me I know I'm in trouble.

-Later-

I've been traveling for a few hours now. My forehead doesn't feel great and my legs are aching but I haven't run into anyone so I keep going.

-Later-

I've woken up from sleep now. From what I know, there are six tributes dead and somehow I've managed to stay alive. I don't know where the action is happening, but I'm guessing it's at the end of this tunnel. I travel for about twenty more minutes before an eerie blue light starts to illuminate the hallway. I walk into it mindlessly, forgetting any danger when I trip over something.

I look down, startled. Stairs. Large, metal, spiral stairs. I glance up, but the light is coming from on top of them and it's too bright to look at so I just start up.

Or down.

There's another set of spiral stairs going down, but I go up. This is the Spiral. I've found it. I carefully hold on to a rail that surrounds the stairs, and start up.

When I reach the top I see a stone room like all the others I've seen, but this one has nothing in it. The only strange thing about it is that when I walk to the far side of it, I see the pools below me that ran into the Cornucopia room. I even see the horn itself, which doesn't make sense because I walked through that tunnel all the way here. How can I be back at the Cornucopia?

I feel something touch my shoulder and whirl around, gripping the edge of the balcony that overlooks the horn. Gasping, I struggle not to fall over the edge. He holds a bow and arrow, and is aiming it at me. I can't quite understand what is going on. Blond hair, very green eyes. He must be from District 4. I know I have to think fast or he'll kill me. I pull out a dagger and hold it up, wondering if I can kill him as I tried to kill the Shadow earlier.

As if reading my mind, he says, "Like you could kill me." I pant heavily.

"I'll do my best," I growl and raise my knife higher, aiming for his throat. I scan his entire body, looking at the poison darts that are tucked into his belt, the backpack that holds his bow, arrows, and who knows what else. He has so many weapons, so why doesn't he just get this over with?

I grip my knife tightly and try to hide my fear. I can't stand this. I can't stay here. I have to run. Can I slide down the stairs somehow? They're all the way across the room.

I glance under his arms and see someone behind him. I can't comprehend what is happening before the blonde boy whirls around and fires the arrow at the new person. I move without thinking and stab my knife into the back of the District 4 boy.

As he falls, he snatches up a poison dart from his belt and pierces my leg with it. I don't feel anything but I know that it will take effect soon. I sprint past him after pulling the dart out, but the arrow that District 4 fired missed him and all I can do is pray that this will be over soon. I try to run past him, but I stop when I realize that he won't let me. His face is masked and he is wearing the same blue and black full-body suit as I am. I slowly back away, realizing that I've been stupid. I walked right where everyone else was- the last place I should have gone.

I feel the cool stone of the balcony ledge against my back and turn to glance down at the water, the Cornucopia, below. Everything about him is familiar, from the breathtaking blue eyes to the olive skin. I don't want to believe it though; I don't want to know him, but the problem is, I already do.

"I see you kept your promise," I say to Corvin as he stares at me.

"I guess," I wait for him to take off the mask, but he doesn't.

"Where have you been all this time?" I ask, wondering if he's encountered any Gamemaker's appearances like my little show with the golden trees.

"Places." He answers blankly.

"Nice mask," I say, hoping to get some information. Just a trace of... anything. Now that there's no denying that it's Corvin, I at least want to know that his personality is still there.

"You should leave," he says. "I've found things here, things that just don't make sense. These are like no Games that have ever been hosted before."

"Like what?" I ask curiously.

"Like Gamemakers. Lots of them. Lots of plans. Lots of deaths."

"How many tributes are left?" I ask.

"We need to help your leg," He says, examining the wound that the dart made. He snatches up a medical kit from a backpack that he has, like the one I picked up at the Cornucopia, and gets a little can of something from it. "This should get out any bacteria or poison," He says, and hands it to me. I rub it on my leg and thank him.

"About the tributes, ten have died," he says. "There's fourteen left." He puts away the medical kit, pulls out a map, and spreads it out on the floor. It has a drawing of the horn with a ring around it and then a long tunnel leading to a staircase. Around the tunnel are many separate rooms and halls that twist and wind through the edges of his map. I stare at them and try to navigate all kinds of routes, but each one leads to a dead end.

"This is the main level of the arena." He flips the map over and says, "This is where we are." I look at it and see a picture of the balcony we are on, and a tunnel leading off to the left side of the balcony. Glancing over to where the map says the tunnel should be, I find a doorway that is filled with nothing but darkness.

Corvin traces his finger over the picture of the tunnel, then points to a line that is parallel to the tunnel and looks at me.

"That is the first pipe. It holds the water that is going into the Cornucopia room. The supply of water is never-ending. Eventually, it's going to flood the Main Level of the arena. For now, we're safe. But once Pipe One has flooded the Main Level, Pipe Two will come into play." He gives me a moment to let that sink in. If the golden trees hadn't been poisonous, I might have stayed in that room and drowned. The thought gave me a shudder.

"What's Pipe Two?" I ask.

"That," he says, "Is the pipe that is attached to this level of the Arena. When the Main Level is flooded, Pipe Two will start to flood this level. Slowly, the Arena is filling up with water. And if we don't get out soon, we're going to drown."

I stare at him, wondering where he got the map and the information. He rolls up the map and carefully sets it back into his backpack. I watch suspiciously as he pulls something else out of a little pocket in the pack and hands it to me.

A tiny green square, with tiny gold and red wires running across it. Raised bumps on the surface and miniature slots that hold whatever. I hold it in my hands and examine it, recognizing the petite item.

"This was your token," I announce. "You chose to bring this to the arena as your item. I brought my pearl." I pull it out of my ponytail, which seems to be the only safe place to keep it. Holding them both in my palm, I can't stop staring at them. My pearl was from the dress that Regan designed me, but Corvin never really explained the "chip," as he calls it.

"Yes, it is," he says. He's speaking in a sort of way that makes me think he's holding out on me. The mask, the unanswered questions, it feels like the only thing he has told me so far is that I'm going to die.

"You still haven't told me what it is," I reply. I want to know. I'm sick of not knowing.

"And I don't plan on telling you any time soon," he says grimly. "We should get going." I follow him into the tunnel off to the left of the room and I glance at the walls as we walk through the dimly lit hallway. These walls contain the pipes, the dark secrets that the gamemakers think are so clever and entertaining. I highly doubt, though, that we were being filmed when Corvin explained it to me, because their plan is probably old news to the audience right now.

I fidget as we walk, trying to figure out something to say. Every time I turn to him his expression is the same- focused and serious. We walk for a long time and I wonder what will be on the other side of the tunnel. My fingers are clenched into a fist that contains our two tokens. When I unfurl my fingers, there are nail marks dug deep into my skin that sting once I look at them.

Eventually Corvin turns to me and stops walking.

"Are you getting tired?" He asks with a little concern. I feel a hint of sadness in his voice.

"Me? No," I say, but he leans against the wall anyway. I follow him, and slide down until I'm sitting on the floor.

"I want to stop and rest. Just for an hour or so," He says, checking the watch that is built in to his uniform.

I know it has been an emotionless evening and he hasn't said anything lately, but it makes me feel a bit better when he comes and sits next to me on the floor.

Leaning my head on his shoulder, I say, "I missed you."

He strokes my hair and talks to me. We talk about whatever we can- our families, troubles from home, even little pointless things like our favorite foods and colors. Anything to avoid the Games.

I hand him the tokens and he stares at them, taking in every feature. Both items are important to both of us and we are sure to take care of them. They are our only links to home. Before I know it, I'm dozing off with my head on his chest. He just sits and lets me sleep and doesn't make a sound.