Cassio Marony, D1

"Kari?" Cassio sprinted through the undergrowth of the forest, trying to catch his sister. He'd seen her run by up ahead. He wasn't going crazy. He'd actually seen her. But what was she doing here? "Kari?" he yelled again. "Kari!" And then he was pulled to the ground, a stinger's hand slapped over his mouth.

"Do you really want to alert every other tribute to your location?" asked Kari, hissing her words at him. She released him, and Cassio spun on the spot to hug her.

"I've missed you." He said. It was al he could manage.

"Don't. I'm here, and I'm going to make sure you don't get killed off like Luxe, or his sister." Cassio was shocked. Before he could ask what had happened, Kari informed him.

"Cubic lost it when she saw Coral and Luxe together. I don't know what set her off, maybe she just didn't like the girl, but she killed them both. The gamemakers sent a loved one of each tribute. I don't know what happened to Cubic's loved one. Maybe they're dead too. I saw her murder the Cressas and that's when I took off to find you."

"She's dangerous."

"That she is. Cassio, she can't win. You can't let her win. Promise me that."

"I promise."

Paxton Luke, D2

"Where's your friend, Elle?" asked Jaclyn, looking around for her. Paxton just shook his head.

"I…I accidentally shot her brother. He's dead." He had to choke out those last words. Paxton still couldn't believe what he had done to Elle. And her brother had been married. Now his wife, here in the Capitol, hated him too.

"Oh. Well, do you know where she is? Even angry, she's still better off with us." Paxton caught the surprise in her tone she she realized he'd killed Royce. Not so much shock, more like, she'd been expecting him.

"No, I don't know where she is," he lied. There was something in his gut telling him that Jaclyn couldn't know where Elle was. She smiled and accepted his lie, and dragged him along to look for food.

Ronan Sonnaville, D4

"C'mon. We have to find him. He's got a mutt out there that could kill him, and he has no idea." Ronan led the way back towards the river. He knew Ruben wouldn't take too kindly to seeing them, but he would be thankful when they took out his personalized mutt. Thalassa wasn't completely on board with the plan, though.

"Both he, and his mutt, will attack us. And those mutts back there were strong. He's going to have to die eventually, Ronan. You know that."

"He doesn't deserve to die like this. Ruben has a girlfriend back home. What if his mutt looks like her, and he dies thinking she betrayed him? Would you want that death, thinking it came at the hands of Netta? Or me?" That got her.

"Fine, you win. But if he attacks me, don't think I won't kill him."

"I wouldn't expect you to do anything different."

Elle Lester, D2

Elle just kept walking. She didn't know where she was going, but she knew she couldn't go back to Royce. Just seeing his body sent her into hysterics. And Paxton was gone. She wouldn't go back to him either.

She had her bow in hand, arrow loaded and dripping in poison. She wondered if Paxton had thought to take his weapons with him, if he'd even passed the tree at all. No, I don't care what he does. I can't care about him anymore.

There was a rustle in the trees just down the hill. Elle crouched into place, arrow ready to hit it target. She thought about how, before she come her, and before she'd met Paxton, there was no way in hell she'd be doing this. She probably wouldn't have even heard the noise if he hadn't helped her train her ears for it. She owed him her life. Was Royce's life the trade?

Elle saw a tribute step from behind a tree. And then another. Dark blue; that meant District Four. Careers. And Elle knew she take out at least one of them. She aimed her bow on the boy, mainly because he was larger and looked like the bigger threat. She inhaled, steadied her arm, and let the arrow fly. It caught him in the shoulder blade, on the right. He screamed out, and fell. Not dead, yet. The poison would take care of him. The girl was looking around desperately for the source. Unless Elle could manage a kill shot on her, they both could probably manage to find her. She just stayed low, until the girl gave up on looking, and helped the boy get away. Elle decided not to follow. One kill was enough for today.

Again, she'd have never thought something like that before Paxton.

Sloan Nyval, D9

Sloan looked over at Russell. He hadn't been the same since she'd begged him to let go of Damien. He was constantly on edge, and always tensed to run, or fight. This wasn't like him. Whenever she tried talking to him, the conversation always went back to how she should have let him kill Damien.

"What do you think will happen when we get home? I mean, with us?" She asked him, putting a hand on his shoulder as she sat down.

"I'm not sure, right now I just want to think about the present. About things that will keep us alive. About how to take out the other tributes so we can go home."

"Russell, I - "

"We should be out, right now, hunting. There's only fourteen of you left. Let's make it thirteen, or twelve. It's what needs to happen."

"I don't want to, today."

"That's what will get you killed, Sloan."

"Excuse me?"

"You're not playing by the gamemakers' rules." Sloan noticed the sinister turn in the tone of his voice, and she didn't like it. "Yo'ure not doing what you were brought here to do." He said in a raised voice.

"And what's that? Die? I was brought her to die, after all." Now she was yelling, too.

"No! You were brought here to kill! And you're not doing your job."

"It's not my job to be a 's not my job to take the lives of other people, who've done nothing to deserve it."

"Yes, it is. It has been ever since your name came out of that ball. And if you don't do your job, the gamemakers 'fire' you." Sloan noticed the knife in his hand. And suddenly it hit her. This wasn't Russell.

"And I guess that means your here to 'fire' me? Because I won't kill?" Sloan dove for her sword, lying a few feet away on the ground. She drew it on him. "I guess I'll have to start working harder then." She lunged at him, and he dodged.

"Figured it out, have you? Well done, Tribute Nyval." He said, mocking her. It wasn't even Russell's voice anymore that taunted her. Good, this would make it easier to kill him. It was an evenly matched duel. She got a swipe at his arm, He left her a nice gash on the cheek. But Sloan would win this battle. She managed a kick to his temple, and then drove her sword though his stomach. That when the fake Russell growled at her. A deep, guttural snarl, and she saw his teeth. This was a mutt. And now it was a dead mutt.

Here's the chapter. No tribute deaths here, but it seems Ronan has the poison in his system. Will the mentors share the secret of the antidote? And how about the arguments that went down between Sloan and "Russell"? Is that a direct message from the gamemakers? And is Elle just now noticing how different she's become, now that Paxton's not there? hmmm.

Please review. Almost at 300, hahaha. The poll's still up on my profile, so please vote.