Day 2: Morning to Mid-afternoon

Ryan Yitch, D6

The boom of the cannon woke Ryan up an hour ago. He didn't know who it belonged to, but he'll find out by tonight. He stayed in place, just to make sure that the killer(s) wouldn't find him. He used his hands, now caked in dirt and mud, to build a burrow in the ground and he camouflaged it in leaves and fallen branches. It left him dirty and smelling like earth, but it hid him very well. He could even see the nightly death toll from his burrow; the only death he had any feeling for was the girl from 1. Careers don't die that easily. Oh well, one less threat to worry about.

A beeping noise was heard from the outside of his burrow. He moved the leaves and branches out of his face and he saw a parachute with a silver case attached to it. With every beep the case made, Ryan's arm tracker blinked. He crept slowly to the case, trying to stay hidden from anything in the arena. His fingers encircled the case, instantly cooling his warm fingers, and he cracked it open. A steel knife fell into his lap and a small container was in his fingers. He unscrewed the lid and was face-to-face with his new best friend: water. A note was also tucked away in the container. He grabbed the slim piece of paper and read the note.

Drink wisely and stay alive. ~A

He took a small sip of the pure water and let it consume him. He resealed the container and placed it in his jacket pocket. His sponsor only gave him about eight ounces of water, and he knew he needed to keep the water there for as long as he can. He picked up the steel knife and looked to the sky. Thank you. He mouthed to any camera that was watching him. He kicked branches and leaves over his burrow to conceal from any other tributes. He needed to gather food, now that he had a knife. Thank you sponsors.

Ian Strace, D1

"Clean this too, Eight!" Ian thrust a blood-soaked knife to Flim's face. Yeah, he knows her name, but he prefered that he didn't. She had the task of cleaning the bloody weapons for the upcoming tribute hunt tonight. No one wants to spill new blood on old blood. "We are going to find Seven tonight, I swear."

"I wouldn't be too sure, Ian." Kleo starts, biting off a piece of jerky. "That boy is very illusive. Think about it. He lives in Seven, meaning he's surrounded by trees all the time. He, and his district partner, have the upper hand in this arena."

"Let's not get technical." Predator speaks, taking the clean weapon from Flim's hands. "We can go tribute hunting after the death toll. How can we lure in that big of a guy?" Ian grabbed a clean spear from District 8 and began to twirl it.

Ian sat with his back to the horn, ignoring Predator's question. They have all day to think about it. While Predator thinks of a way to find the big 7 boy, Ian finds a way to torture him in the meanest, deadliest way possible. No one from a lower district earns a nine and gets off scott free. Ian knew exactly how he could kill him; strike him in the stomach, let him bleed out, and torture him about his baby brother. The Capitolites will eat that up. Who cares if Caden called the kill on the 7 boy? Ian needed to teach him a lesson.

Caden and Kleo were on the further side of the horn, whispering to each other. Ian stood up, inching his way to the siblings. He strained to hear, but he picked up part of the conversation. "Thanks for killing Diamond. I had a bad feeling about her since training." Ian's mouth dropped as he backed away slowly. He betrayed his own alliance. He killed my district partner!

Sheila Carwell, D7

Sheila's feet pounded the desert floor, running to get away from the place where she slept last night. The girl from 3 was killed underneath the tree where she bunkered down for the night, and she woke up to her shrill screams. The Careers were mumbling about trying to find 'the boy from Seven', meaning they were after Linden. And, as Sheila assumed, if they found her, they'd keep her until they found her district partner. After he dies, they'd most likely kill her. She distanced herself away from the lethal team as much as possible.

Her feet slowed down as the vegetation grew thicker. She glanced at her surroundings and noticed a clump of leaves and sticks. Was this a trap? Her mind raced as she used her foot to feel the unusual clump for a snare. Nothing grabbed a hold of her, so she kicked away the rest of the leaves. A burrow the size of a tribute was in the dirt. Someone has already been here.

Sheila looked to the sky and saw the sun in the middle of the sky. She gathered her thoughts and picked up speed. She didn't care if the burrow belonged to a twelve-year-old or an older tribute; she needed to get away before anything harmed her. She turned to the deeper part of the forest and continued to run. A figure whizzed by her and, before she knew it, she was on her back, head throbbing in pain.

She sat up, rubbing her temples, and saw a boy about her age looking at her. She knew this boy; he's the boy from 6. Her eyes met his and she was back on her feet, running in the opposite direction of him. She made a sharp left and headed straight for the mountains.

Assistant Gamemaker, Aphrodite McKennon

"Seven heading for the mountains." Felix, the Arena Manager, stated aloud so everyone could hear him. Aphrodite trained her eyes on the video feed, watching the female from 7 run towards the alliance of 11 and 12. She looked at the map in the middle of all the Gamemakers and saw thirteen dots on the map. Everyone was moving slightly while two groups were stationary. The alliance between 11 and 12 and the alliance between 1, 2, 4, and 8. "Miss McKennon, any actions you wish to take?"

Aphrodite put a finger to her lips, thinking before she said anything to Felix or Portia. The female from 7 did not look like she would kill the mini alliance between 11 and 12. If she could find a way to move the larger alliance towards the stationary alliance, maybe then she will get a show. The little 'torture' scene she got early this morning with the District 3 girl was wonderful, but the audience is expecting more. How could she get a better show than that?

"Not now, Felix." Aphrodite started. "The conversation between One and Two showed that they want the District Seven boy..."

"Linden." Ceaser, the Tribute Manager interrupts. Aphrodite shoots him a deadly glare and goes back to Felix.

"They want Linden dead. We need to find a subtle way to lure in the alliance to Linden without making it obvious we did it. What is Linden afraid of?"

A hush fell upon Felix and Aphrodite. What could this large, unstoppable tribute be afraid of? "His father."

"Huh?" Felix questioned.

"He has a little brother back home. His mother is nowhere to be found and his father died years ago. What if something happened behind closed doors? Portia! Bring in the birds and feed them a feed of Linden's father's voice. The odds won't be in his favor." Aphrodite crossed her arms over her chest as she saw Portia work her magic on the birds.

A/N: Aphrodite has a bit of a mean streak, huh? I know I wasn't going to update until Friday, but I was so excited to publish this chapter that I needed to do it now. :) SURPRISE! We have our first sponsor in the Games! I have kept the identity of that sponsor hidden. I would like to have more sponsors as time goes on. Once the tributes get to the top 10, the prices will raise. I have a poll (has nothing to do with the story) on my profile and I'd like you to take it. You don't need to, but I'll be posting a new poll over the weekend, so look forward to that. There will still be a new chapter on Friday. :)

MAY THE ODDS BE EVER IN YOUR FAVOR!