In the morning, we awake and continue on our way. Barley seems a bit subdued, and I assume that this is because we lost Seamus. He must be wondering what we're all wondering: who's next? I try not to focus on this. Since we've stayed on the border of the field, close to the open area that contains the Cornucopia, we are very close to the jungle area. I can see the trees on the far horizon. I can smell the strong, noisome scent of flowers. The jungle is close.

As we walk through the field, Barley finds plants with reddish purple berries and pulls the entire plants up by the roots. I realize what he's doing, and shout at him. "Barley, those are poke plants! Have you gone mad? You know those are poisonous."

Barley laughs. "I know, Wolfgang. I'm the one who used the berries to kill those other tributes, after all. The thing about poke is the berries are poisonous. However, you can boil the stalks of the plants and eat them. They're fine as long as they're cooked and their berries are left alone." As if to prove his point, he picks the clusters of berries off of the poke stalks and tosses the clusters to the ground. "We can do that now that we've got a pot," he explains.

We arrive at the tree line a little after noon, if the sun in this arena is to be trusted. As we walk into the jungle, a cannon sounds. Barley shouts as a body falls from one of the trees above us. It's the male tribute from District Seven. Alexander Parchment lies on the ground with a purple flower in his hand. The message is clear: don't touch the flowers.

We continue on through the jungle. There are vines and flowers everywhere. Strangely, there are no animals. There's not a single chirp from a bird, not a single buzz from an insect. It's eerie. What kind of place is this that not a single creature lives here? We came to find safety from the Careers, but what if this place is even more dangerous than those other tributes?

We have been walking non-stop for a long time, so we decide to take a rest. Coal goes off to search for firewood. Meanwhile, I hunt for water. Seamus had taken one of our canteens on his little walk last night, so we only have two left now. I bring them both. I also bring Lila's pot. It doesn't take me long to find a spring. As I look around, I hope to find an animal here. Living creatures always stay near water. It's a vital necessity of life, after all. As I fill the pot, it unnerves me that there are no animals here either. I frown while filling the canteens before heading back to our little camp.

When I arrive, I see that Barley has arranged some stones in a circle in preparation for the fire. Coal returns with the wood, and Barley strikes the match and starts the blaze. I sit the pot near the fire, and Barley puts the poke stalks inside. While we wait for the water to boil, I check and reorganize our inventory. We have one protein bar, three pairs of socks, our matches, some bandage and gauze, the night vision glasses that only Barley really needs, and eleven crackers. We have the tarp, the rope, and two canteens. We also have a pot, and the book.

"It's done," Barley says. Coal and I peer into the pot. The stalks still look the same. "The water and the pot are still really hot," Barley explains. "We might have to wait for them to cool down."

I get an idea and take those pairs of socks out of the backpack. Sliding three socks over my left hand, and three socks over my right, I return to the fireside. Sometimes engines are still hot when I work on them back home. I would always use gloves to ward off the heat. I am about to explain my logic when Coal picks up the pot by the handle.

"We need to put out the fire anyway," he says. "We should just pour the water onto the fire. If we angle the pot right, the food should still stay inside." Coal tilts the pot, and water flows out of it and into the fire, squelching most of the flames. He must have titled it too far, because the poke falls out of the pot too and gets burned by the remaining fire. "Oops," he looks embarrassed as he sits the pot down and runs his left hand through his hair.

"You dummy!" Barley shouts. "That was our lunch. We've done skipped breakfast this mornin', and now you just go and burn our lunch!"

"Sorry…" Coal mumbles.

I laugh. "Oh well. We still have some crackers and a protein bar. If you're hungry Barley, you can have some."

Barley nods and shuffles over to the backpack. He pulls out the package of crackers and eats the rest, following the food with a long swig from one of the canteens. I take the socks off of my hands and put them back into the bag. Barley dumps the rest of his canteens out onto the fire, and we gather our things and begin moving again. Coal gently swings his pick axe while we walk. I use my spear as a walking stick.

It's almost sunset when I smell it: the strong, sweet aroma of fruit. I hear the chirping of birds and the buzzing of insects. Still other sounds from strange animals that I've never heard before come echoing through the trees. I turn in the direction of the sounds and scents, and Coal and Barley follow me. Within five minutes, we are at the edge of paradise.

Fruit-bearing trees and bushes are everywhere. Birds call to one another from among the trees. Insects fly by and make annoying noises. Strange, furry creatures with long tails hang from the trees by these tails and screech at each other. There was something about them in the books during training. What were they called?

"Monkeys…" Coal whispers in awe.

Yes, that's what they are called. And besides monkeys, there are squirrels and rabbits and raccoons. There are also other tropical animals, the likes of which I have never seen. A deer walks past. A deer! This place is amazing. No wonder there are no animals in the rest of the jungle. All of the food is right here.

Barley wanders around and stares at the plant life with his mouth gaping open. "Wolfgang!" he turns to me and exclaims happily, "All of these fruits are edible!"

That's when I stop and think: this is a bad place. There is plenty of food and a lot of animals. Our first impression tells us to trust this place. That's exactly why we shouldn't. The lake seemed trustworthy too, until the monster within it swallowed Millie alive. And to anyone that didn't have a "Myths, Legends, and Tales" book, the backpacks in the field would have appeared trustworthy too.

I glance at Coal, and he locks his eyes with mine. I know that we are thinking exactly the same thing.

Barley picks an apple from a nearby tree and bites into it. He smiles and moans, "It's so good."

"Don't talk with your mouth full," Coal admonishes. He walks over to a bush and plucks a berry. He pops it into his mouth, chews, and swallows. Then he looks at me. "It seems okay."

I nod and look at the tree to my right. It's a pear tree. I take a piece of its fruit and bite into it, leaning against the tree's trunk and sliding down it into a sitting position. I reach into my purple pack and pull out the book. I watch Coal for a moment as he takes the socks out of the backpack and stuffs them with fruit before tying them onto the belt loops of his pants. Then I open the book, and I read.

The Garden of Eden – Abridged Version

In the beginning of the world, when God had finished creating man and woman in His image, He placed them in a garden called Eden. The man's name was Adam, and the woman's name was Eve. He told them that they could eat from every tree in the garden, save one. The tree in the middle of the garden, the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, was the tree from which they could not eat. God told them, "If you eat from that tree, you will surely die."

In the garden, there was a crafty serpent. He said unto the woman, "Did God say that you could not eat of any tree in the garden?"

"No," Eve replied. "It is only of this tree which we may not eat: the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. If we eat of it, we will surely die."

"No," the serpent told her. "You will not surely die. You will become like God, and know what it is that God knows. You will know about good and evil."

When Eve saw the fruit on the tree, and noticed that it was pleasing to the eye, she took of the fruit and ate it. She gave it to Adam, and he ate it. It was then that sin and death first entered the world.

After reading this story, I bolt up in alarm. I knew that this place couldn't be trusted! I look up from the pages just in time to see Barley, sitting in a tree, bite into a strange fruit. It looks like a blue peach. Is there such a thing as a blue peach? I get my answer when Barley's eyes widen and a cannon sounds. His dead body falls from the tree and lands on the ground with a thud.

I run over to him. "Barley! Barley!" I shout. But it does no good. He is already gone. The sun slides beneath the horizon, and the world goes dark. I look up into the tree of the forbidden fruit, and there I see it: a snake coils itself around the branches of the tree.

Coal runs over. "Wolfgang, what happened?" He stares in shock at Barley's dead body.

I shake my head, close the book, and slide it back into my backpack. I take the empty canteen from Barley's corpse. "Don't eat the blue peaches," I say.

We walk through this Garden of Eden for a while longer. We find a stream and fill our canteens there. Of all of my allies, Coal and I are the only ones left. I feel like I've failed as a leader. A good alpha could keep his pack alive. I have to remind myself: this is the Hunger Games. We're supposed to die.

Coal and I are sitting on the edge of a terrible paradise when the Capitol anthem plays and the symbol for the Capitol lights up the sky. The first picture surprises us. It's Dream Arne of District Two. Was she the one to whom that other cannon belonged last night? She must have been. The next picture is of Alexander Parchment. He had been one of Octane's allies. He was the last one of that group, and he died earlier today. Next comes the picture of Seamus, and I can't suppress my growl. He died trying to betray us. Finally, Barley's picture appears in the sky. I shake my head and stare down into my lap.

"We're it," Coal voices my thoughts.

"No," I correct him. "The Careers are still here. They have that half-wit from District Ten carting around their stuff too."

"And… that's it?"

"Yup."

Coal lets out a tense sigh. "May the odds be ever in your favor."

"Our favor, Coal. May the odds be ever in our favor."

Coal looks at me with his black eyes. They glint with something unspoken, and for once, I don't understand what he's trying to say. "Yeah, sure Wolfgang," he whispers.

After a long pause, he speaks again. "We don't need to sleep tonight. Do you want to go finish this?"

I shrug and stand up. "Why not?" I morph, and the sounds coming from behind us in the garden grow louder.

Coal stands and morphs as well. His strong, purebred wolf-mutt form angles its face up toward the moon. Then, Coal Black lets out a long howl. I smile and follow his example. We will finish the one-hundred-and-seventy-fifth Hunger Games tonight.

Author: Please note that this chapter is not a comment on Christianity. Rather, it is a comment on the type of world that Suzanne Collins created in her book series. I am a Christian and do not believe that the Bible is merely a myth or legend as this chapter might imply. However, regardless of whether the Bible is true, the world that Suzanne Collins made is atheistic. A thing like the Hunger Games would not be allowed in a Christian world. Therefore, it is easy to conclude that Panem is not a set in a Christian world. If Panem, and thus the Capitol, are not Christian, none of the things that they make would be either. This is why the story of the Garden of Eden is in a book of myths: the book was made by the Capitol. Again, this chapter is not a comment on the validity of Christianity. Thank you.