Finnick's POV
In the control room, where the Gamemakers monitor the vitals of the remaining tributes, three groups of screens remain lit and working. Garnet Karat, Mako Hydra, and Ariel Poseidon. Some of the more technologically advanced Gamemakers keep tabs on where in the bloodstream the tracking device is located in each tribute.
"So how are they doing?" I ask the staff member keeping track of my tributes.
"Mako is right as rain. Some pain receptors in Ariel's lower back," says the Gamemaker. "Energy level has plummeted below average for tributes this far into the Games. She also has a slightly rising temperature."
"So what," I say, leaning over the table of buttons and monitors. "You're saying she's sick?"
"We're not sure," she replies, typing some code into the computer. "Her health seems to be deteriorating, but… she has gained half a pound."
"And?"
"She should be losing weight with the amount of food she's consuming."
"You're computers must be faulty."
"No, Mr. Odair. I'm afraid I'll have to disagree with you on that. Our trackers and computers have never been wrong."
I roll my eyes at the arrogant Gamemaker, with her white lipstick and braided hair, sticking out everywhere from her scalp and dyed several different colors.
"Whatever, just figure out what's wrong with her," I say, and leave the room. Annie stands outside the control room. The beeping and buzzing of that room have always unnerved her. It probably reminds her of the time she spent hooked up to the Capitol's medical machines after they lifted her from the traumatizing arena.
"H-how are they?" she asks, looking up through her matted brown-ish red hair. I smile and kiss her.
"They're right as rain," I say.
"Liar."
Damn, how can she always tell that?
"Well, Mako's fine," I say. "There are a few things going on with Ariel that they're not sure why."
"What's wrong?" asks Annie. "Maybe I can figure it out."
I laugh to myself, but I humor her and name off Ariel's symptoms. Annie suddenly starts hysterically laughing and starts to walk away.
"What's wrong with her?" I ask, going after her. She merely waves me off and continues to walk away, shaking her head.
Mako's POV
The gem-lights project Aids face into the middle of the room. Her board straight, chin length platinum blond hair is perfectly kept as it frames her pale face with those cat-like green eyes and mischievous smile.
And then she disappears forever.
Then Cinna appears with his jet black hair that falls in waves over his bright blue eyes and soft caring expression. The kind of expression let's you know you could be friends with him.
And then he disappears forever.
Rue is the last to appear. Her curly blond hair is in a tight ponytail set high on her head. Her steely grey eyes that could cut through diamonds stare deeply into the camera lens, so seemingly at me. She doesn't smile. Her lips are pulled into a tight tense line as if to say, "Screw you, Capitol."
And then she disappears forever.
"I can't imagine what it must be like to watch your children die in the same day," Ariel says quietly. "I watched Garnet as Sapphire died. It was like as if I was watching a completely different person as he begged his daughter to live."
She leans her head against me shoulder as we sit up on the sleeping bag. I am so tired right now. The frantic swim back to our cave was exhausting despite the rigged propellers. Ariel seems to sense my weariness and tells me to lie down. I don't argue with her and I'm asleep before I know it.
The next morning, we finish off what food we have left. Ariel has obviously trying hard not to eat a lot, but her appetite seems to have increased.
"I miss pineapples," says Ariel, messing with a cracker wrapper. "I miss fruit in general; and squash, zucchini, green beans."
"I'll take the fruit," I reply. "You can keep the vegetables."
She rolls her eyes at me and tosses aside the wrapper. Her eyes abruptly glass over and her face contorts in discomfort as she leans over and puts her head between her knees.
"What's wrong?" I ask, rubbing her back. She is groaning a few things that sound like swear words and then mumbles, "I feel like I'm going to throw up."
"Oh." What else can I say to that? "I'm sorry."
The thing is, she can't really vomit anywhere. It would be disgusting if it got in the water. We could just move to another cave, but Garnet would find out we've been here. Thankfully, Ariel doesn't wretch. However, it does take a while for her to sit back up.
"Do you think there are any more oysters left in the tunnels?" she asks. I raise an eyebrow at her.
"You almost puked all over the cave and you want more food?" I ask. Ariel sticks out her lower lip and nods.
"I'm really hungry," she says. I shrug and pull the oxygen tank onto my back and secure the sword to my belt.
"Alright," I sigh. "Let's check it out."
Ariel secures her oxygen tank and her knife, which is useless against someone like Garnet. Hopefully I'll see him before he comes up on us. I still wonder how Rue got a hold of Ariels harpoon gun.
We double check our gear and then submerge ourselves into the cool, dark water. We both still have our flashlights, but again hers works better than mine. She did have better pickings at the Cornucopia than I did after all.
The oysters, crabs, all form of edible sea life seem to have disappeared. So this is the Gamemaker's way of coaxing us towards Garnet?
"I guess they're starving us out," says Ariel. "I would have expected us to run out of water first."
"Good thing we haven't," I reply. Ariel skims along the bottom of the tunnel and I keep my flashlight on her to provide extra light. At first, I think I'm seeing things, or my flashlight is dying, but I'm sure it's getting darker. The light is clashing with a black cloud-like darkness that is cutting me off from Ariel.
It's only when she screams that I know where she is. Something long and slimy has latched onto her ankle. There's no doubt about it.
A squid tentacle.
I hack it off and rip the severed tentacle tip from her ankle and then I see them: At least a dozen tentacles, including the shortened one that I cut off. The enormous squid squeezes through the tunnel effortlessly, right towards us.
"Come on!" I yell, taking Ariel's arm. I switch on my propellers and we go speeding through the cave. The squid is right on our tails, chasing us down. Wait, no, not chasing us.
It's herding us. It is trying to drive us right towards Garnet. The audience wants a show after all. They always want a show. I didn't realize how far back we were until my legs start to hurt from swimming. I am well off with my propeller, but Ariel is starting to tire out. She's a fantastic swimmer, but when you're starving, there's only so much energy you can burn.
"Keep swimming, Ariel," I say, trying to pull her along. "Come on, just a little further!"
I don't dare look back to see how close the squid is, neither does Ariel. I can see the end of the tunnel, and this is probably the last time I will actually go towards the light. Just as Scurry and I escaped the boiling water, Ariel and I burst from the cave into the open water. Behind us, the squid banks and shoots downward. We watch in confusion as it disappears into the trench.
"I'm starting to hate fish more and more," I say bitterly. Irony, huh?
I'm not looking at Ariel. I'm still staring down at the trench, trying to see if there is any sort of door or latch that the jellyfish, shark, and squid have come from and gone to. But there is only darkness. Darkness and silence.
Until Ariel's scream breaks through the water, and her arm is wrenched from my grasp.
I whirl around and Garnet has one arm wrapped around Ariel's neck and the other grasping the shaft of Sapphire's trident that he has just thrust into Ariel's back. Ariel claws at his arm and he shoves it further into her back. Bubbles start spewing from her oxygen tank and blood fills the water, but no canon has sounded.
"That's for my daughter, bitch," he says through gritted teeth. He viciously pulls the trident from her back, Ariel screams, and he shoves her way.
Still no canon, but Ariel can't be far from death.
Bubbles are spewing from her tank and I can barely hear her ragged breath. I don't have time to help her because Garnet is right on top of me, casting Sapphire's trident aside and pulling out two long, edged machetes. It is so hard to fight back knowing Ariel's canon could go off any second.
But that just makes me fight back harder.
"You should have joined the careers, Mako," says Garnet, pinning me up against the rocky wall. "You would have had a chance, unlike your little harlot over there."
I struggle against Garnet's strong arms. He's a good fighter, but he's predictable. I can already see his move before he makes it: The black blade of his larger machete gleams in the water bent light as he raises it to drive it into my chest.
Quicker than he can react, I switch on my propeller, pull out my sword, slicing his arm in the process, and skyrocket upward, leaving nothing but solid rock for Garnet to stab. His machete is good and stuck into the wall and won't budge. It doesn't look like it will be coming out anytime soon.
Good, we're even now.
Garnet swears like a fiend as he tries to catch back up to me. The edge of his second blade catches my foot and I slow down for a second as my brain registers the pain. That's all the time he needs to grab my leg and pull me back down towards him, ready to run me through.
But like I said, he's predictable.
Just as he pulls me back, I use the momentum to take my sword and thrust it down into Garnet's chest, all the way through his rib cage. I twist the sword to be thorough and blood spurts into the water. Garnet screams and then his eyes roll back into his head.
A canon goes off and I hope with all my heart that it is Garnet's. I immediately propel towards Ariel, lifelessly floating away in the water. I can still hear her ragged breathing. The trident must have gotten one of her lungs. I cradle her in my arms, trying to keep her awake. Her face is so pale, the life draining from her eyes as death seeps into the white, iris, all the way to the pupil.
"I-I'm sorry, I didn't-," she rasps. I put a finger to her mouth to stop her.
"Shh," I whisper. "Don't speak, Ariel. Just relax. Save your energy. Take slow breaths."
"I c-can't." She gasps for air, clinging to my arm in a death grip. Her oxygen is almost completely leaked out of the tank. Her wound is deep, but I don't dare to move her around to look at it. As I watch the love of my life struggle to stay alive, a sickening reality falls over me and hits me hard.
I am about to win.
I can't do anything. I'm no doctor. There's no way I can save Ariel at this point. She's dying and I'm winning with every precious second that passes.
"Mako," she says weakly. "I love you."
"Stop it," I say, quietly, but harshly. "Don't you dare say good-bye!" Tears are springing to my eyes, lightly fogging up my scuba mask. "But, I-I love you too."
Ariel is starting to fade; her eyes droop more and more with every second. I don't know what to do.
Impulsively, I take my mask off, and then hers. As her eyes droop closed, I pull her close and kiss her one last time, her sweet taste cutting through the salty water.
A/N: I'm not going to say anything about this chapter. Just... what did you think? *evil smile*