NOTE: I published a few chapters close together. Please make sure you're caught up on Night 10 with Quinten before you read this one!


Damon Archer, 14, D7M:

I killed someone. In District Seven, this is what the Capitol would have defined as heinous, premeditated murder. In the arena, this is what it defines as entertainment. I used fire in a rainstorm to deliberately lure tributes to me in an effort to be more interesting, and it worked. I hadn't expected that an entire alliance would come after me, but it was a successful ruse. Killing the tribute wasn't as hard as I'd expected. It was the Twelve boy, only a year younger than me, and in practice it wasn't much different from hunting down prey to feed myself.

The humanity makes it harder. There was a moment right after I brought the axe down when I thought, "huh, that wasn't so bad." Then I remembered exactly what I was doing. The boy's allies came, and hidden in the tree, I looked down through the branches and watched the horrible farewell sequence. I find myself making excuses for it. At least I didn't drag it out. At least someone was there to hug him. It could have been so much worse. I could have avoided killing him, of course. It wasn't self defense. I made an active choice to kill someone, just like the choice that someone made fifteen years ago when they decided to kill my father in the Bloodbath.

I'd like to argue that there's a difference, since it was the Careers that got my father, but can I really fault them for doing the same thing as me, even if they trained deliberately to do it? There are only nine tributes left, and I really do want to live, so that means the other eight will have to die. Does it really matter who kills them? I'm sure my mother would have something to say about that distorted worldview, but I know she wants me to come back home regardless of what I have to do. I have to find a paradigm that justifies every them-or-me choice that the arena imposes on us. I've heard a saying floating around the rebels back home, that there are no winners, only survivors. We have no living Victors anymore, the last two died in a freak accident on their way to the Capitol, but if you passed close to Arden McAbee in the market, you could smell the alcohol on her.

Nothing has really changed since my kill. No sponsors have begun showering me with gifts, and I didn't collect any supplies. The animals have taken a dislike to the rain, so I've been eating a lot of pine nuts, but I'm still mostly alright in the way of food. Water isn't a problem, since I discovered a nearby lake. Moving across the arena was a good decision, one that's probably put me back in the running in the eyes of the audience. The Gamemakers haven't found cause to punish me yet, and I can only hope that my good fortune holds steady.

It feels like the deaths are on the upswing. They've been happening more frequently and closer together, and I can only assume that the people of the Capitol are tired of seeing us dance around one another. They want fatalities, and they're eager for a bloody finale. With one more death, we'll reach the Final Eight, when Jack Cannon travels around the districts to interview the finalists' loved ones. Who will be the next to go? The four remaining Careers seem relatively intact. The Twelve boy's allies are still alive, so that accounts for the Ten girl and the boys from Four and Eleven. Who's left? I'm struggling to remember. I hope the next death belongs to a Career, since they're the most dangerous, but mostly I hope that my mom's doing okay. I know she'll be so relieved if I make it to the interviews. I'm not sure how much more tragedy she can take.

Oscar Poudret, 17, D1M:

Yesterday, I was feeling guilty about Eliza. After the anthem, I learned that she was still alive, but today's cannon has me worrying again. Was it connected to Rafe's disappearance last night? In any case, Livi and I are representing the Career Pack all by ourselves. Livi's convinced that Rafe ran away because he was afraid of being outnumbered by us. "I wouldn't have ambushed him," Livi snorted, "but you can't expect a Two to understand respectability." With an oasis for water and a herd of bighorn sheep for food, we're feeling a little more confident in our position.

Now we've made it to the Final Eight, and our families are going to be interviewed soon. I'm sure Alise will have something to say about me, but when I mentioned this to Livi yesterday, I hadn't been expecting her to be so honest.

Surviving Alise was a feat of endurance, and if my unhealthy coping mechanism came in the form of murder schemes in my journal, it made sense at the time. For some reason, though, my brain has decided that this is a good time to angst about it. Something about Eliza prying into my family life got my wires crossed, and I felt like I was a bad person. I told Livi when we finally got some privacy from Rafe, bathing in the oasis, and I learned some things about her that I never wanted to know. "At least you're a better person than me," said. "Once upon a time, in a district far, far away, there was a girl named Livi who made the mistake of dating one of the male trainees at the Academy.

"He wasn't like you, he wasn't good at combat, just a sweet little charm factory. But one of the older trainees took a compromising picture of us and blackmailed me with it. He wanted me to get rid of his competition for the volunteer slot. And I did. If I hadn't, that picture was going to be sent to the Academy heads, and I would have been kicked out in disgrace. It's a dog-eat-dog world, and I wanted to be the queen bitch. I've always regretted it. You never actually murdered anyone."

"Do you think they're censoring this?" I asked her, astonished.

"They never show the tributes bathing. I'm sure we'll be fine. It's just that there's no point in chewing yourself up inside about the Alise thing. You think she regrets abusing you?"

"I want her to," I replied, feeling small.

"No, you don't. You don't want a terrible mother who feels bad about torturing you, you want a mother who would never have tortured you in the first place. Don't waste energy on regret. It's bad for the complexion."

Livi and I are in a strange place. I wouldn't say it's healthy, but this has been the closest thing to a friendship that I've had since the Games began, and Livi's considerably nicer if you're loyal to her. I understand that she's allying with me for her own benefit, but if she gets me closer to Victory, it's worth it. Livi says she hopes the cannon was Eliza, and I have to say I agree. Eliza feels more deliberate than Rafe. I'm sure he would try to kill me if I stood in the way of his Victory, but Eliza won't forget our treachery anytime soon, and surviving Livi's attempt at killing her might have earned her even more sponsors.

I'm holding on for dear life to Livi, and if she falls, so will I. We both know that we're not supposed to hunt until after the Final Eight family interviews, but Livi says she has a plan that will put us on offense again once we're in the clear to go hunting. She describes it as a calculated risk, which I'm taking to mean a risk that, if it pays off, will earn District One a Victor. I don't even want to think about what'll happen if it doesn't work out how she intends.

Emily Parker, 12, D10F:

As we eat lunch, I consider the facts. Chip's death took us all by surprise, but it's a valuable reminder that we can't afford to be complacent. All of us were so focused on the threats posed by Eliza and the other Careers that we failed to consider the dangers of other outer district tributes. Ardledge has been beating himself up about it, Griffin's feeling terrible about the whole situation, and I'm feeling strangely conflicted about the whole thing. On the one hand, I'm going to miss Chip and I'm obviously sad that he's dead. On the other hand, I've been worrying so much about the prospect of having to face down my allies in the finale. That's one friend I won't have to worry about hurting.

Is it better like this? Who's to say. We were as careful as possible investigating that firepit, but Ardledge's warnings about Eliza turned out to be eerily prescient. He refused to let us fight her, arguing that even though all four of us could have worked together to take her out, it would cost one or more of us our lives. We decided that mounting a group attack on a lone outlying tribute would be less dangerous, but Ardedge's worst fears came to fruition anyway.

There's about a fifty-fifty chance that the Victor will be a Career, if we leave it up to random chance. They make up four of the nine living tributes. The thought of the Final Eight weighs on us all. That's the benchmark signifying that two-thirds of the tributes are dead, Sorrel and Chip among them. We need one more other tribute to die, but who? We were assuming that it would be Eliza, but after Chip, we're all reevaluating who the threats are. Maybe someone we thought would be significantly impaired because of her injured leg has enough sponsors—or enough programmed Career endurance—to power through?

If I make it to the Final Eight, my family will breathe a sigh of relief. In general, tributes are safe during the interviews. If a tribute's in a precarious position, the Capitol holds off until the Final Six. If they're summoned to the district square to meet with the Master of Ceremonies, my mother and father will be secure in the knowledge that I'll have at least a few hours of respite before the threat ramps up again. The interviews add to the drama for the Capitol audience, but they're one of the few altruistic elements of the Games. It's a comfort for the tributes' loved ones to be preemptively consoled by Jack Cannon. Jack's nice; he looks out for us in our pre-Games interviews, and he tries to be realistic and reassuring at the same time when he talks with families about their children's chances of Victory.

My parents will have an idea of whether or not they can expect me to win. I'm certainly not an ideal choice, but I've been playing by the Gamemakers' rules. Last year's Games were a disaster, and Langston Arquette ended up crowning a rebel-inclined twelve year old Victor. It would be a bad look for the new Head Gamemaker to let that happen two years in a row, but I've kept my anti-Capitol views quiet. I haven't said a bad word about the Games since I was Reaped, and if they see me as willing to toe the line, it might work in the loyalists' favor if I win. It could make the Capitol look sympathetic, but that all depends on how well the Games have been going overall.

I lick the groosling bone clean. Food can never be wasted in the arena. We've continued to head away from Eliza, but in retrospect, I think we stopped way too long for lunch. Since Chip's death, I've been a little jumpier, more mindful of our every action. Will it be fatal? There's a rustling in the trees, and Ardledge pricks up a little. A patch of teal appears through the leaves. It has to be another tribute. It's too late to hide, so I heft the chainsaw up in front of me, and Ardledge draws his dagger.

Sure enough, it's Eliza. Face contorted with either hatred or pain, she lurches into the other end of the clearing, leg stiff. She holds a sparkling throwing knife in each hand.

The first launches into Griffin's neck before he has a chance to duck. Someone screams, and I realize that it's me. Eliza looks a wreck, stumbling forward towards us. Her piercing stare lands on me, and she flicks her second knife at the exact same moment Ardledge hurls himself at her.

Launching forward with an impossibly long stride, he throws his weight at her, and she goes down hard on the wounded leg, howling, as her knife embeds itself in my stomach. My instinct is to pull it out immediately, but just in time, I remember that removal increases blood loss. I try to stagger to my feet and find that I feel as though I'm underwater. The degree of effort is so high that I don't think I could bear the weight of the chainsaw.

Eliza struggles under Ardledge. He's burlier than her, and she's injured, but she's a Career for a reason. She slides another knife from her bandolier. "Ardledge!" I yell, but it's too late. She's already driven it through his wrist, and the dagger falls from his hand. Eliza frees herself, but having lost his weapon, he's in no mood to stick around. Taking one last look at Griffin's prone body, he jumps to his feet and sprints towards me, scooping me up.

We leave our supplies behind and run.

Livi Carnelian, 18, D1F:

I figured it was time to tell Oscar the truth. After Rafe left, I wanted to be very clear that I understand if Oscar's ready to go too. I wouldn't hold it against him. I've kept him by my side for our entire time in the arena, but with the Career Pack almost totally dissolved, it made sense to be forthcoming about just what kind of person I am. The Final Eight is generally when a healthy Pack decides to go its separate ways, not that this year's Careers have been healthy whatsoever, but I thought it was worth a shot.

He's staying. I don't know why I'm surprised, but it's less daunting to do this together. I'm going to win, but if something happened and I didn't, I'd want him to take home the crown, and not just because we're district partners. The deaths have been piling up these last few days, and I'm feeling antsy about Eliza and Rafe. I'm not worried about the outliers in the slightest, and they're dwindling in number anyway. Eliza and Rafe are the people that could stand in the way of my Victory. I may have beaten their training scores, but they've had plenty of time in the arena to figure out how I think, and therefore, how I'm likely to approach the finale.

I have a plan. It'll only work if the Games end quickly, and it'll only work if we're willing to sacrifice warmth and comfort in exchange for kills. We need to go on the hunt together, and that means we need mobility. This oasis has been a blessing, but by tomorrow, we'll have gotten our strength up enough to leave. We're going to abandon our supplies. The winter wear, the sleeping bags, anything nonessential. We'll need to rough it, but we can't possibly go running after tributes if Oscar's managing a blanket roll. We need to live out of my backpack, and I want to pack as lightly as possible. This can bite us back if the Games continue for much longer, but I really don't think they will. After what happened to the last Head Gamemaker that dragged things out for too long, I don't think Lucent Saccharyn wants to prolong this.

There are six other tributes in the arena, and I think the Gamemakers will be happy to nudge us back on course if we're heading in the wrong direction. Careers exist for a reason, and if we can cut things down to the Final Six, we'll look like even better potential Victors. A tribute cull is exactly what we need to provide an exciting finale for the viewership. As long as Oscar's still game, we're going to start back for the Cornucopia tomorrow, since it's the standard location for the final showdown. Since we won't know who's dead until tonight, I have to consider all of the others. Between Rafe and Eliza, one or both are probably out there somewhere, and I have to assume that they're armed and dangerous. Ardledge isn't trained, so he shouldn't be much of a problem, and his allies are harmless. That leaves the boys from Six and Seven.

I can't see any of them impeding my road to Victory very much. The question is of what supplies to bring along. Are night vision goggles worth it? Are binoculars? We should really only bring one. We haven't used the walkie-talkies at all, because I know that if anyone else has a walkie-talkie, they can listen in on our conversations. That would put the Career Pack at a disadvantage. Much as I hate to give them up, they won't be of any use. The scuba mask? I'm willing to assume that the finale's not going to be underwater. No matter what happens, I'm going to win. Now I just get to kick back and wait for Jack Cannon to talk to my family on national television about how wonderful I am, and that's not much of a chore at all.

I'm feeling prepared.


Kill Tracker:

Livi Carnelian: IIIII

Oscar Poudret: II

Eliza Maddox: II

Rafe McClellan: I

Lyra-Rose Ripley (DECEASED): I

Quinten Aramdale: I

Soya Orlando (DECEASED): I

Alliance Tracker:

Career Pack: Oscar, Livi

Protective Older Brother: Ardledge, Emily

Loners: Quinten, Damon, Eliza, Rafe

Supplies Tracker:

Career Pack: Binoculars, Blanket (x2), Collapsible Lightweight Ladder, Compass, Firestarter, Map of the Arena, Night Vision Goggles, Rope, Scuba Mask (x1), Sleeping Bag (x2), Special Bonus 3, Sunblock, Walkie-Talkies, Warm Earmuffs, Warm Gloves (x2), Warm Scarf, Water (x2), Water Purification Capsules

Protective Older Brothers: Water

Quinten: Basic Injury Medicine, Blanket, Bread, Camouflage Set, Collapsible Shovel, First Aid Kit (x2), Insect Repellant, Map of the Arena, Mesh Sheet, Multitool, Night Vision Goggles, Note of Advice, Special Bonus 1, Special Bonus 5, Sunblock, Tarp, Warm Hat, Warm Scarf, Water, Water Purification Capsules

Damon: Antiseptic Wipes, Compass, Grappling Hook, Multitool, Scuba Mask, Sleeping Bag, Net (x3), Spool of Wire, Sunblock, Turbo Umbrella, Warm Gloves, Water, Water Purification Capsules

Eliza: Antiseptic Wipes, First Aid Kit (x2), Note of Advice, Rope, Severe Infection Medicine, Severe Injury Medicine, Small Meal, Water Purification Capsules, Waterproof and Temperature Insulated Tent

Rafe: Antiseptic Wipes, Blanket, Firestarter, Night Vision Goggles, Sleeping Bag, Trowel, Water, Water Purification Capsules

Weapons Tracker:

Career Pack: Bandolier of Shurikens, Bandolier of Throwing Knives, Dagger, Spear (x4)

Protective Older Brother: Chainsaw

Quinten: Spear

Damon: Axe, Bow and Quiver of Arrows, Dagger

Eliza: Bandolier of Throwing Knives

Rafe: Dagger

Death Tracker/Eulogies:

9th Place: Griffin Jagger, killed by Eliza Maddox

Griffin was such a fun addition to the cast! The Protective Older Bros alliance wouldn't have worked out nearly so well without a second older kid around. Griff was a really smart tribute, and the only one who figured out the cave system, but he didn't have a weapon at this point in the Games and ultimately just got unlucky with Eliza. I enjoyed writing him and I'll miss his interactions with Ardledge! Thank you for submitting him.


Hey y'all!

Final Eight, huh? Next chapter will be a Capitol Focus for the interviews, and then we'll pick it back up on Night 11 with Eliza's POV. Thank you for reading! Expect another update tomorrow.

–LC :)