Athea DiMae

I can't find Lucian.

I know he went this way, but of course the maze breaks into two different paths. How am I supposed to know which way he ran?

The cannon fire has been absent, which means the bloodbath is still going on. Lucian could be dead for all I know. My heart immediately sinks at the thought. I want to call his name, but I might be heard. There's no place to hide in this maze, if I run into someone I will either have to run fast or fight.

Maybe Lucian had to run also. Who else did I see leave through the bottom entrance? I didn't waste much time at the cornucopia, so most were fighting in the bloodbath. Then again that run-in with Jade certainly slowed me down. Who knows who ran through while I was messing around with her?

Speaking of which, I need to fix up this wound on my forehead. Blood keeps dripping into my eyes, and it burns. I wipe my hand across it. It's not terribly deep, but it's a long cut. I'm lucky she didn't poke my eye out.

I hear footsteps coming from the other side of the hedges. Someone is moving quickly and they're only way is towards me. I need to get out of here. Should I take the top path or the bottom path?

My feet are pulling me towards the top path. I have read thousands of books and from them I have acquired vast knowledge, but no knowledge is as strong as my gut instinct, and so I go.

I'll just keep searching around until I find Lucian. I need to by tonight, or at least find a safe place to camp out. I decide finding Lucian is more important. I cannot fathom how I will sleep without somebody to watch my back.

Shoal Creek

Mika's face is pale. She no longer looks like the vibrant girl I knew a few days ago, and I turn away. I don't want to remember this way.

David's words echo in my mind. 'You made your choice, and now you can live with it.'

What choice? My choice for Alice? How did David even know? I know he's her district partner, but I was very discreet when I went to see her. Of course David turned out to be a lot more cunning than I could have imagined. He's probably known for a while, and had this plan in his sick little head. I remember Mika telling me how he creeped her out. Of course I should've listened to her.

I can't rid myself of the imagine of the knife sliding through Mika's skin like it's butter, and it was all my fault. Twenty-three of us were destined to die here, but Mika never really had much of a chance to be that one who didn't. My will to live has depleted as quickly as Mika's life. I need a new drive, a new motivation. Kill David, and Jasten both. I will not be content to die until I see them both away with. It's the only thing I could do to repay Mika. The score needs to be settled.

I stand up to leave through the right entrance where I saw David and Jasten disappear through earlier, but I am stopped dead by the sound of a cannon.

One loud bang is followed by six consecutive others. Seven died today, seventeen remain. Mika was one of the seven, but who were the other six?

The sky answers my question as I see a projection of the words 'The Fallen'. Glitter Harison from District 1 appears first, and then I see Mika's face. My teeth clench involuntarily. As fast as her picture appears, it disappears, and is replaced by Stephanie Fox of District 6. That one is not terribly surprising, but the next one is. The big brute, Orion Kelsey, appears next. I blink a few times to be sure I am seeing the correct tribute. Who was able to bring him down? River Belaqua from District 10 is next, followed by Marilynn of District 11, and Daryl of District 12. The projection suddenly disappears, and the arena is casted into darkness. I wish I had a flashlight, but that'll have to wait.

First things first, I need to scavenge through the cornucopia and see if I can find any leftover supplies. If I am to survive in this maze I need food, water, and most importantly I need weapons if I am to extract my revenge.

I stumble around to the cornucopia; the moon glistens off the sleek metal lighting up the surrounding area. Is that even the real moon or is it some simulation made by the Capitol? It looks too real to be fake.

A shadowy figure suddenly darts in front of me, crashing into me, and dropping her backpack. She instantly reaches for it, and catches my eye. Is she going to kill me? She quickly gets on her feet, her breath coming out in quick bursts. She is unarmed, but so am I. I could kill her though; I am stronger and I could overpower her. She must realize that and as swiftly as she crashed into me she is up and dashing away.

I lost my chance. It could've been one more kill, one less tribute. I can't let this happen again I think as I rummage through the leftovers. There is nothing but empty backpacks, and shelves that once held knives and other weapons. That stupid girl probably took the rest, and I could've had it if I had just killed her.

I pick up a bright yellow backpack. No wonder why nobody wanted this. It could probably be seen from space by a partially blind man, but it could come in handy. I'll just throw some mud on it for camouflage. I hear a sound roaring though the silent night and I leap into the safety of the cornucopia. A hovercraft swings down to pick up the bodies strewn around. An idea suddenly strikes me at the wrong if they were carrying something? I just missed another chance at supplies!

Get it together Shoal. If you don't get it together you'll be dead by tomorrow. I run off, hopefully I can find water in the corners of the maze.

Bullet Daniels

The maze intimidated me at first, but honestly it wasn't terrible to maneuver and find camp. There were two or three spots where the maze forked off, but we just kept heading towards the upper corners. The sun was just dropping below the horizon when we arrived on sand, the sea looming in the distance. It's wonderful scenery, but there's no places to hide. I'm not worried though. We are the team to beat, not the ones who cower and hide, so I decide we should stay here.

"I found coconuts!" I look up to see Aeron dangling from a palm tree. She drops them to the ground, before falling to her feet.

I don't understand why Aeron is putting herself in danger. Are pregnant woman supposed to be running around and climbing trees? "Don't you think you should be careful? I mean with your condition and everything…"

"Noah, I'm pregnant, not invalid." She says as she picks up her gatherings and marches back to the camp. Stubborn girl.

"Jade, where are you?" I hear her yell, and I note the frustration in her voice.

"Over here," she squeaks.

"You think you might save some food for the rest of us?"

Oh no.

I run over and grip her shoulder. "Aeron no need to get angry. We have plenty."

"I just don't like how we're out scavenging and setting up camp and she's stuffing her face."

"She's keeping watch," I say. "Besides she's injured. If you want something to eat, you can eat too."

Jade's thigh wound is small, but deep. It took a while to get the bleeding under control, and I had to carry her here. Her walk is not the best but she's doing okay. The only thing to watch out for now is infection.

She rolls her eyes at me and sits down. "I just think we should wait and divide up the supplies."

"We can do that." Jade says. "This is all I took anyways."

Aeron has a look that would kill enough tributes to win her the games. I decide the subject needs to be changed.

"So what's the plan for tonight?" I ask. "We can take turns on watch. Jade can finish her watch or…"

"I'll take first watch," Aeron snaps before I finish.

I shrug my shoulders. "Fine by me. Just wake one of us when you get tired."

I am afraid to sleep, not because of the other tributes, but because of the ones I'm already with. I wouldn't be surprised if I woke up with a bloody Jade, and Aeron gone, or maybe I won't wake up at all. I stare over at Aeron who sits with her arms lying on her knees. Her back is to me, and I see the knife dangling casually from her hand. Can I trust her? I guess I have no choice.

"Noah," I open my eyes to see Aeron rocking me back and forth. I immediately look over to Jade who lies next to me, still asleep.

"What's going on?"

"Shh…" her voice has a sense of urgency. She points in in the distance, and I squint my eyes and see movement across the sand. Somebody is here.

I fling myself up and we take off across the sand. Who is that? It's definitely a male. He turns and gets a look at us, and bolts off.

Aeron's feet fling sand behind her and I quicken my pace. We are almost to him. I watch as he runs straight towards the water. What is he doing? He dives in right before we reach him and Aeron stands on the coast and throws her knife. He dives down right before it hits him, and emerges holding the handle in his hand.

"Thanks!" He yells before swimming off. I take a good guess that it's District 4 by how good of a swimmer he is.

"Do you have anything?" Aeron looks at me, and I shake my head. Of course I'm carrying a knife with me, but I don't want her throwing another one into the ocean.

"Shit! That has to be the District 4 boy."

"We'll wait it out, he has to come back eventually." Aeron nods.

"I'm going to go back and grab another knife."

She runs off without another word.

"Don't kill Jade!" I yell and I hear her laugh.

Scout Calloway

"Should we take the top or bottom?"

"I say bottom."

"I'm fine with that. What about you Scout?"

Everything is fuzzy. I fight to keep my eyes open. How long have we been here? I think it must've been for days. Why aren't we moving? We need to move.

"Scout!" I blink the fog from my eyes. Dorien is staring me down.

"Huh?"

"Are you fine with the bottom path?" Dorien asks.

I nod my head. I don't know what I'm nodding for. I think somebody asked me a question. I follow the feet in front of me.

"Hey, you alright?" Kyra grabs my arm and holds me steady.

"I want to throw up." Kyra looks at me, and then to Dorien.

"Dor, do you know what's wrong with Scout?"

"Nothing." I say.

Dorien looks at me funny. "I don't know." She looks at my eyes. "Did you hit your head?" she asks.

Hit my head? Oh yes my head hurts. Why does it hurt? River. I wonder where he is.

"Concussion possibly?" Kyra asks. "Did you see her hit her head? Maybe she fell off the slide, they were narrow."

"I found her right before I was about to leave. So something happened to her that she got held up." Dorien waves her hand in front of me.

"What are you doing?" I ask.

"Nothing Scout." She turns to Kyra. "Let's go. We need to find somewhere to settle. Sleep will do her good."

"I agree," and Kyra grabs my arm holding me steady as we walk.

"We've been walking a long time," I say a while later. "I'm dizzy."

"It's only been about a half an hour," I hear.

It can't be. We've been here for days.

"I see something!" Kyra suddenly shouts.

I see it too. It's a farm. I guess I'm going home.

"We're almost there," Kyra says to me. "Just walk a little longer."

I step foot on the grass. I am back in District 10. Did I win? Why are Kyra and Dorien here then?

"Look, there's a cow," I point ahead of me. This cow is not like the ones back at home. The cows back home are docile. This one is stampeding towards us, it's snorting angrily.

"Muttation," Dorien says. She quickly pulls an arrow from her bag and sends it flowing towards the animal.

"That wasn't a cow," I say as it falls to the ground.

Kyra forces a laugh.

"Are there anymore?" She looks around.

"I don't see any," Dorien says.

She walks towards the animal, and leans down to expect it.

"Wonder if it has any meat on it," Dorien says as she yanks the arrow from it, and places it back her her bag.

"Even if it did we probably couldn't eat it. At least I wouldn't trust it."

Dorien looks at me. "If Scout was with it I'd ask her. She is from District 10."

"What are you talking about? I don't know anything about cows." I'm not from District 10. I just have to live there.

"You're from District 10. Don't you raise livestock?"

"Yes, but I'm from District 4 originally."

"Really? Well that's not helpful." Dorien takes her knife and rips through the skin. Red blood pours from it. Dorien pokes at it.

"It looks like a real cow, but you're right Kyra. Better to not risk our lives over some meat. We have food anyways from the cornucopia." Dorien stands up and scans the area.

"There," she points to the barn in front of us. "We could sleep in there."

"I have a bad feeling about it," Kyra says. "Why would they have a safe house here to hide?"

Dorien shrugs her shoulders, and places her hand on the handle.

"Wait," Kyra releases me and I feel the world sway. It rushes towards me. Dorien reaches her hand and I grab for it, but miss.

"Oh dear," Dorien says, and she places her hands under my arms and yanks me away from the Earth.

Kyra presses her ear against the door.

"There's something in there," she whispers. Suddenly the door pulses against her, and she jumps back.

"I don't know what's in there, and I'd rather keep it that way," Kyra says.

"Agreed," Dorien says, and she backs up from the door. "Thanks for stopping me. I would've opened the door without a second thought." She scans the land. "What about over there?" Dorien points to a small cornfield behind the barn.

"Sounds like our best option," Kyra says and she leads me to it.

"We'll keep the outside stalks intact and then clear out an area inside to sleep." Dorien says as she tilts the stalks aside gingerly and disappears.

"Careful Scout," Kyra says. We walk through the stalks trying to keep up with Dorien, but she's already gone.

"Over here!" Kyra pulls me towards the sound and we emerge to Dorien trampling the corn. Kyra sits me on the ground and helps her clear the area while plucking the corn free.

"I haven a few blankets, if anyone wants any." Dorien says reaching into the bag.

"No, it's too hot," Kyra says. "I was thinking of taking my jacket off and using it as a pillow actually."

"What about you Scout?" Dorien looks at me.

"Huh? I'm fine."

"Hopefully you're better in the morning," Dorien says before spreading a blanket out and laying down. "I don't think we can afford to take care of you for a long time."

"I'm fine," I say as I lay down. I lose consciousness almost immediately.

When I open my eyes again it is daylight. It's also blazing hot. I didn't take my coat off last night and now I'm soaked with sweat.

"Good morning sunshine," Dorien greets me and throws me a piece of fruit.

"What happened?" I ask as I rub my painful head. My brain feels swollen.

"You have a concussion. Don't you remember?"

"I remember being at home," I say. "Are we still…"

"In the Hunger Games? Yes unfortunately. And we're at a farm, which is why you thought you were at home. Are you feeling better?"

"My head is killing me."

"Well you seem a little more with it. Do you remember why you got the concussion?"

Slides, being stuck, River saving me, River dying, Dorien killing River.

"I fell off the slide and banged my head."

I can't bring myself to reprimand Dorien for shooting him, but I feel so guilty.

Kyra suddenly appears from behind the stalks. She notices I'm awake.

"Oh good you're up. Feeling better?"

"I don't know," I laugh. "My brain feels like it's going to explode."

She turns to Dorien. "So I haven't seen anything since we switched watch last night. Looks cleared. I'm surprised nobody has found this place yet."

"Yet is the keyword." Dorien holds out an apple to Kyra. "Breakfast?"

Now I feel even guiltier. They let me sleep all night while they took turns on watch, all because I couldn't keep my balance on that stupid slide.

"The barn has a ladder on it to get to the roof. I think we should climb up and get a look around." Kyra says as she sits down and cuts into her apple. "I went up there last night, but it was too dark to see."

"Good idea," Dorien stands up and brushes the dirt off her pants. "It's so hot. I'm about to take these pants off."

Kyra laughs. "You know they zip off into shorts. I think they made it that way on purpose. It's only morning so I suspect it's going to get hotter."

"Is that even possible?" I ask. "I want to go for a swim."

"Speaking of swimming, we'll need to get out of here then and find some water. We're going to dehydrate fast." Kyra unzips the bottoms of her pants. "That's a little better."

"You know most farms have a water pump. All the ones at home do at least. They should have one here." I say.

"We should go out and look then. I'm glad your back Scout. Last night you couldn't even identify a real cow correctly." Dorien pushes through the stalks and Kyra follows. Guess I better get up.

I step out on the field and instantly I feel vulnerable. The space is open, and it's deadly silent. I look over my shoulders to make sure nobody is watching.

"I'll climb up the ladder to the roof. Maybe I'll be able to spot the pump." Dorien says as she runs off.

Kyra turns to me. "Let's stay together. You're still concussed and after that run-in with the mutts I don't think it's a good idea to wander around here alone."

I nod my agreement. Now where is the pump? I shade my eyes and try to get a good look around.

Dorien is already at the top and looking. "It's over here!" She shouts. "On this side of the barn towards the upper right corner!"

I'm about to take off, but Kyra stops me. "Don't run. It'll make your injury worse."

I feel like a cripple, but Kyra's right. If I wasn't with them last night I'd probably be dead by now.

When we get to the pump I reach for the handle. I pause and take a breath. Kyra notices my hesitation.

"Cross your fingers," she says, and I feel a pain in my stomach. River said that to me before he saved me.

I push down on the handle a few times. It's bone dry at first, but eventually liquid pours from the spout.

"Thank goodness," Kyra releases her backpack and pulls out the canteens and any container that can carry water.

"Do you think it's safe?" I ask.

Kyra purses her lips. "Let's drink a small amount for now, and see how we feel. We have to risk it though."

I nod as she fills the canteens. I look over at the barn. I remember Kyra leaning her head against the door, and how it violently was hit from the inside. I shudder, we could be next to our killers right now.

I see something moving in the distance. Did Dorien get off the barn? I look up and see her still scanning the area. She's not looking over there.

"Kyra…"

"I just need to fill one more."

"No there's somebody here."

The sound of rushing water ceases and she stares up after me.

"Boxer," she whispers.

"We need to warn Dorien," I say.

I glance up to her again, but she's not paying attention.

"Let's get out of here," Kyra says.

Boxer is between us and our way to Dorien.

"He'll see us. I'm surprised he can't see us now. Do you have any weapons?"

Kyra lifts up a knife.

"Can we sneak behind him and stab him?"

She nods. "We can try, besides he'll be outnumbered."

Boxer is moving towards the barn. Kyra saunters forward slowly and I follow her lead. Boxer is just standing in front of the barn examining the area. He's completely oblivious. This is it; we're going to get our first kill. One less tribute and one more cannon.

At least that's what would have happened if Boxer didn't decide to take off towards the barn door.

I see Dorien turn towards the sound of the footsteps. She senses the danger and quickly pulls an arrow out. Kyra darts towards him screaming at him to get away. It's too late though. Before Dorien can shoot and before Kyra's screams register, Boxer yanks the handle of the barn door open.