To Die But Once Chapter 30: Tower or Dungeon - Day 2, a hunger games fanfic

Stony tower, airless dungeon

Author's Note: Hi y'all. Looks like some of the deaths in the last chapter may have been unexpected, since two of them were among the top choices for the final 8. I hope I'm keeping everything believable and continue to write all of your tributes well. Much like Brutus, my goal is to make sure all my tributes, whether they become victor or not, have a time to shine, and that they play their role in the plot. I also included my most recent poll results here and the blog has been updated and is current with the most recent chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Hunger Games or any of the universes therein.

Killian Odell (District 1)

4 8%

Raivel Aukins (District 3)

4 8%

Altiar Ellion (District 5)

4 8%

Jonas Tanner (District 7)

4 8%

Margery Kelta (District 8)

4 8%

Dane Vautier (District 2)

3 6%

Nero Taplin (District 2)

3 6%

Bailey Thermes (District 7)

3 6%

Mobie Calp (District 10)

3 6%

Ridge Therne (District 11)

3 6%

Tanner Amori (District 12)

3 6%

Ailis Neilan (District 3)

2 4%

Freida Vasey (District 4)

2 4%

Ibahima Abdulai (District 4)

2 4%

Elric Trace (District 5)

2 4%

Leoric Hughs (District 8)

2 4%

Saphyra Cullen (District 1)

1 2%

Candice Graham (District 9)

1 2%

Aphrodite Aurelius – District 12 Mentor

Aphrodite slumped in her seat, still not believing what had happened. How could district 12's last hope for a victor have disappeared so suddenly?

The had been so certain; not once had she doubted that Tanner was going to be the victor, even though she knew the odds. Now, as his body faded, disappearing into the darkness, she wasn't sure what to feel.

"It's amazing how fragile life is, isn't it?" Glade commented. She'd been trying to ignore the fact that he was sitting next to her, but his decision to finally speak to her after at least 10 minutes of silence had doomed that effort. "Maybe it's for the best. Now you don't have to hope anymore."

"How can you say that?" Aphrodite asked. "Now I've got to do this next year too. I have to watch the rest of this and look at the face of whoever wins, knowing that it should have been different."

"Believe me, Aphrodite, I understand, but you'll forgive me if I don't indulge your pity party," Glad commented. "You're still alive and you should at least be grateful for that."

Leoric Hughes – District 8

Leoric was running as fast as he could with an arrow in his leg. He was in agony; Nero's arrow had hit its mark well, but not fatally, at least he hoped.

It had all been stupid, he thought as the sunlight washed over him. He should have known! Every attempt they had made so far had been doomed and it was only the first day. The disaster at the bloodbath and now this. After Margery had told him to flee, that she would tend to Elric there had been three cannons. Was he on his own now?

Maybe he deserved it if he was, Leoric thought, still forcing his feet to fall one ahead of the other. Each step brought pain, pain like that he'd brought to his parents, to his allies, to so many lives that he'd touched.

Leoric took in his surroundings. His first inclination had been to get out of range of the Cornucopia before sunup and it seemed he had achieved that. The towering monument was now in the distance and Leoric was nearly at the abandoned city again. If any of his allies had survived, perhaps he could reunite with them there. And if they had been slain, well, he wouldn't know for certain until the sun went down and the faces appeared in the sky. That was a long time to wait, Leoric reflected, especially here, in such a vulnerable place as this.

It couldn't be helped, though, Leoric reflected, plopping down at the first pillar he saw. If worst came to worst, he had a good vantage point from which he could see all the way back to the Cornucopia.

It was a horrible situation, Leoric thought, finally succumbing to despair. Alone, weaponless and wounded, he would be easy prey now should anyone chose to take him out. At least he would be able to see them coming, he thought. Maybe he would be able to find the strength to defend himself. He ran his hands through his hair in frustration and exhaustion.

He didn't know how much time had passed, hours perhaps, maybe only minutes when he spotted someone. He had been looking beyond the pillar every couple of minutes, just to keep his guard up, no matter how futile it seemed. Then he saw her. Margery, covered in blood was coming towards him.

Leoric's heart skipped a beat. At least one of his allies was alive and, from the look of it, she had supplies. Her arms were full. He stood, favoring his left leg.

"Margery," he called out to her and her face lit up. She seemed just as happy to see him as he was to see her. He raced to her, but then had to stop. It seemed like resting hadn't done his leg any favors.

"Sit," Margery said, trying to extend her already stuffed hands to support him. She guided him back to the pillar, supporting most of his weight as he swayed back and forth. The world seemed to be spinning as he moved. She dropped some of the supplies on the way, but he could only hope that they weren't being pursued close enough to worry about that.

"Elric got medicine and we have a tourniquet. That arrow has to come out, though," she said, busying herself sterilizing the area. Leoric hissed as the liquid stung against the wound, but braced because he knew it would be necessary. Only as the world began to spin more slowly did he begin to put the pieces together.

"Margery, where is Elric?" she evaded his gaze not answering. "Where's Tanner?" Leoric could feel his voice trembling, fearing the worst had come true.

"We're all that's left," she answered simply, refusing to look him in the eye. "I'm pulling this out on three. Do you want to squeeze my hand?" Leoric shook his head. He couldn't show weakness, not when it was just the two of them.

"Why are you doing this?" he asked in frustration. "Wouldn't you stand a better chance by yourself?" He didn't know why he was saying this. He wanted Margery by his side, needed an ally now that everyone else had either turned against him or was dead, but what did he bring to the table for her?

"Don't talk like a fool," the girl scolded him, looking him in the eye as though she needed him just as much as he needed her. "One . . .three." She yanked and the arrow came out. Leoric nearly doubled over in pain, even more so as she tied the tourniquet so tight he thought it would cut off his circulation.

"You're sure that's right?" he asked. Margery's no nonsense look told him not to ask again.

"Let's look on the bright side," she said, shoving a bit of medicine down his throat. "We have food, water, weapons and medicine. I say no more attacks today. Rest up. I'll watch over you."

There was a small part of Leoric that protested, wondering if she would just get rid of him after his eyes were closed. If she were going to do that, though, she wouldn't have gone through so much trouble to keep him alive. He slumped against the pillar, a newly found large hammer in his hand, just in case.

Nero Taplin – District 2

"Here they come!" Jonas hollered, shaking Nero out of his melancholy. Dane's body had, mercifully, disappeared, just as all of the other bodies had, but the memory still remained. As sure as he had been, as sure as both Jonas Echo had been that Dane had to be dramatically eliminated he couldn't believe he had done it.

No, he kept correcting himself. Jonas was the hero. It was Jonas, not he who had driven the fatal blow through the heart. Nero had simply dittoed Jonas's opinion, helped expedite her passage into the world of the dead.

Now he just had to hope his other allies would be as accepting of the situation.

Saphyra and Killian came into view, both looking exhausted. Killian was leaning on the girl extensively as they climbed the stairs.

"Remain immobile," Jonas instructed as Saphyra helped him to the ground. Killian looked as though he wanted to do anything but follow Jonas's recommendation. "If you insisted on attacking a formidable alliance, the least you could have done would have been to bring medicinal supplies. If you had the foresight to bring them, you would not have endured such strenuous blood loss on your return journey."

"Yeah, next time we'll bring you along too," Killian mumbled sarcastically. "Just show us you're good for something besides talk talk talk."

"Did you get what you went for?" Nero inquired. From Saphyra's look, he doubted it. Neither of them responded immediately, but Killian growled.

"Well, there's one less tribute," the girl admitted. "It's not the one we'd hoped. He's got deadly aim, so look out."

"So do I," Nero said, confidently.

"Good luck getting him in range," Saphyra scoffed.

"Since he is aware of our strengths and weaknesses, it is unlikely he will stage an attack currently, particularly considering the state of his alliance. Strategically, they should recuperate, awaiting a strategical misstep on our part and then they may act," Jonas elaborated. Nero hoped he was right; he didn't want to face Ibrahima so soon, especially with Killian seemingly out of commission.

"When's Dane coming back?" Saphyra asked as Jonas finished up with Killian's wound. Nero froze. They thought she was only missing, certainly not dead. Did they tell them now, or later, when her face appeared in the sky? Would the other two ever trust them again given what they'd done? Or would they thank them, for having rid themselves of a dangerous acquaintance.

"She went off by herself," Nero offered. "Said she needed some quiet time and that she'd be back."

"We did our best to stop her," Jonas followed up, catching Nero's drift. "I insisted she would be safer if she remained with us. She's been gone, a couple hours."

"She missed the excitement here too," Nero tagged on again and Saphyra looked at him wide-eyed.

"Someone attacked? Who was stupid enough to do that?"

"Doesn't matter now. At least two of them are dead," Nero reported. "We almost eliminated the entire so dubbed "bro-lliance" in one day. The boy from 8 and the one from 11 are the only ones remaining."

"The boy from 11 wouldn't be around if you'd hit your mark," Killian groaned. The medicine was having its effect, healing him, but also making him groggy and grouchy.

"He wasn't worth it," Nero recovered, pretending he'd meant to strike the little girl instead. "He ran from his alliance. He was a coward. I don't doubt the boy from 8 will want to finish him off if they ever cross paths. Or maybe Ibrahima will take care of him for us before we get rid of him. In any case, someone will take care of him for us."

"Damn Ibrahima and everything to do with him," Killian cursed. "We've got to get him here, where we've got the advantage."

"I would wholly support any such endeavor. Ibrahima left this alliance on my account, spurned our company and my person. For this he must pay the price," Jonas agreed.

Nero stepped back, toying with an object he had found in his pocket. He must have picked it up from the Cornucopia, but didn't recall doing any such thing. He lifted it out, revealing a shiny crystal ball. Even as he held it, some sort of fog seemed to emit from it.

"What the hell is that?" Saphyra demanded.

"I don't know," Nero admitted, but he could almost hear Echo's voice in the back of his head chanting, "figure it out, figure it out," just as she had when he had been training. Nero smirked. He thought he might have it.

Mobie Calp – District 10

They had everything they needed, Mobie reflected as he and his two allies sat down to yet another meal. They really didn't have any concept of the passage of time. Had they been here a day, two? Maybe only a couple hours. In a place where time was measured by hunger, thirst and fatigue, Mobie couldn't imagine that just outside other tributes were dying.

"I could stay here forever," Mobie reflected, skipping a pebble in the pond.

"I wish you wouldn't say that," Bailey whispered. "Whenever someone says that the Gamemakers look at us and are going to make our lives interesting."

"Well, then maybe we beat them to the punch," Raivel suggested mischievously.

"What do you mean?" Bailey asked in alarm.

"If we're too safe here, why don't we do something unexpected? Go venture out."

"Are you crazy?" Mobie asked in alarm. He couldn't believe anyone in their alliance was suggesting striking out. "Take a look at us. Do you really think we're going to stand a chance against anyone? We'd be dead the second we pop out of here."

"Not if we stay in the tunnels. Do you really think anyone has ventured around there yet?" Raivel proposed.

"Maybe you're right, but I don't want to go out yet. We haven't been there long enough to attract unwanted attention."

"And you'd rather wait until we're forced out?" Raivel asked. It seemed like an innocent question, but beneath the surface, Mobie sensed resentment, or maybe that was just impatience. It did almost feel as though they'd been lead here, manipulated by something beyond their control. But hey, if something was working in their favor, why ruin it, he thought.

"Tell you what," Mobie proposed. "Let's wait until we see how many are already dead and then make our decision. They play that every night, so only one night has passed. If a lot has happened, they'll leave us alone a little longer."

"I guess you're right," Raivel answered. "I just don't like staying still."

"Then climb a tree or something. Burn off energy. Maybe go for a swim." Even though the voice was his own, Mobie could almost hear Steric's voice saying "wait. Just wait."

Altair Ellion – District 5

It had been a full day, Altair reflected. As the sun descended, it felt as though she and Ridge had traversed the entirety of the arena. And for what? Now they stood at the foot of an enormous mountain, wondering what to do.

"We climb it," Ridge declared.

"Yes, without food, water, or any rest all day we will surmount this mountain. We'll grow wings and fly."

"Exactly," Ridge said enthusiastically, clearly missing her sarcasm.

"Wake up!" she ordered, bonking him on the head. "We'll never make it up that thing, especially not before dark. The sun's going down and it's going to be steep going. Much as I don't want to be on the ground, it's best to wait until daybreak to go up this thing."

"Why?" Ridge gave her a blank look.

"You saw that thing returning to its nest at dawn. It's nocturnal. Now, I don't know what it was, but that shadow was enormous. Do you really think approaching an enormous mutt just as its waking up is the soundest approach?"

"Well, maybe not," Ridge faltered. "But there's got to be food and water up there and I don't see anything down here."

"Let's venture to the other side," Altair suggested. She had no way of knowing if the other side was any more vibrant than this side, but motion certainly beat staying still.

Just as they rounded the other side, Altair heard a pinging noise. A parachute. Ridge reached up and grabbed it, bringing it down to his hands.

"A loaf of bread!" he exclaimed, eagerly. He looked it over as Altair grabbed a hunk of it.

"Not too much," he said, glancing up. "We'll need some to tame whatever's up there. I think that's why this came now."

"I hope that thing likes day old bread," Altair commented, settling down. Sure enough, within a couple of moments they heard a sound coming from above, as though some enormous creature were waking up. Just as the sun slipped below the horizon a shadow spread above them.

"Wow!" Ridge exclaimed beside her. Altair only nodded in agreement.

Ibrahima Abdulai – District 4

"I don't like this place," Candice whined. Ibrahima couldn't say he blamed her, but right now they didn't have much choice. They wanted to be on the chasing end of the chase, but given their status, it was safe to assume that the Career pack would be chasing them instead of the other way around, at least for now. As far as he could tell, Saphyra didn't know where they had gone, he barely knew himself.

All he had known at first was they had gone underground. Then the tunnels became clearer and clearer and the surroundings revealed themselves. They were in a series of catacombs, with tomb-shaped objects on each and every side.

"It's not like there are actually any real corpses in those," Ailis encouraged, putting her arm around Candice.

"You're probably right," Ibrahima said, his mood improving a little. They could rest here the night, recuperate and figure out their strategy further from here. During the day he had been restlessly poking his head out of the tunnel entrance about 500 meters down the way, but in the dark the path was so convoluted that he didn't dare. Besides, in the darkness outside, the likelihood of seeing any enemies before they were upon him weren't terribly good.

Candice didn't seem encouraged by his statement. She was still staring off into the darkness.

"Let's get a fire going before we completely lose any light." A faint light was coming from somewhere, so the sun must have not completely set yet. Ibrahima took the flint and began setting the fire. Candice immediately cheered when its light illuminated the chamber.

"There, see. Nothing to be afraid of. Besides, you'll always know when a ghost is going to appear," he baited the joke, half-heartedly, hoping Candice would take the bait.

"How?" she asked.

"They show up right before someone screams. You don't feel like you're going to scream, do you?" Candice shook her head, smiling.

At that same instant the Capitol anthem sounded. How would they be able to see the faces in the sky from here, Ibrahima wondered? In answer to his question, the Capitol anthem shone on the cave wall. They must have been projecting it especially down here for their eyes.

The Capitol emblem was followed by the girl from 2's face. At least one of the Career alliance was gone. If they were lucky, maybe the boy from 7 had joined her too. Freida's face followed Dane's and Ibrahima looked into her eyes one last time. It wasn't her, though, he reminded himself as his eyes watered, nothing more than an echo. She was followed by the boy from 5. The two from 6 were already gone, nothing further until the boy from 12. Four more down. Fifteen of them remained. And most of them Careers.

"There won't be any more tonight," Ibrahima said. "If the Careers have lost one and at least Killian is injured. They'll be taking time to recuperate, but I bet all of them will be at the Cornucopia. There will be four of them, so we can't take them on yet. I just wish I could get inside their heads," he muttered, allowing himself a moment to pace.

"It'll be quiet tonight. I'll take first watch if you want," Ailis announced.

"I can stay up a while longer," Ibrahima objected as Candice's eyes drooped.

"So can I," she said. They'd talked strategy all day when they hadn't been finding their way around the twists and turns of the catacombs, but hadn't said anything substantial. She was probably staying up, like a girl, so she could talk feelings with him.

"I wish there was something I could do to take it back," Ailis whispered, her hand rubbing Candice's back as the younger girl dozed off. "If we'd gone in all together she would still be here. I couldn't get down any faster than that, not with Candice in front of me."

"I know," Ibrahima said. This wasn't anything new; this recording had been playing on her face all day.

"We were counting on her for everything. Now we're outnumbered. I'm going to miss her spunk, her spark. The way she fought for you, for us. She was fearless."

"That she was," Ibrahima replied.

Ping, ping, ping. Another parachute came down, this time with a 4 on it. Attached was what looked like a mirror.

"Why would she send this? Why now?" Ibrahima demanded. Part of him wanted to shatter the mirror into a million pieces, but there must have been some reason for Excelcia to bother to get this to him. And then he saw it. The reflection changed from being his own face to showing the four Career tributes. They were still at the Cornucopia, settling down for the night. Wait, three, he observed. Saphyra was missing, leaving only Jonas, Killian and Nero.

"Is this real, or is this a trap?" he wondered aloud, showing Ailis.

"There's a note," she said, flipping the mirror so that he could see the handle, a place perhaps only a girl would think to look. 'For Freida. Go avenge her.' So she did approve of this plan. Good, Ibrahima thought. He would make both of them proud. Very soon, he promised, he would make them both proud.

Saphyra Cullen – District 1

She wouldn't go far, she thought as she found herself at the base of the statue. Already she seemed far enough away from the rest of her pack to cause her a bit of trepidation, but she needed to be alone, if only for a little while. She needed to escape Killian's whining, Jonas's prattle and Nero's deception. More than anything she needed to clear her head.

After two days without drugs, her body was beginning to feel the effects, effects she certainly didn't want to let on to anyone, least of all her allies. With her closest ally injured, she didn't know how much she could trust the other two. Jonas, after all, had most likely figured out her addiction during their training days. Why else would he have joined her at the plant station, burning things that could substitute for drugs? And Nero, well his betrayal of Dane might not have been obvious to Killian, but it was to her. Fine, betrayal was part of the Games, but why lie about it. She'd suspected it before the faces had shone in the sky, but when Dane's face appeared that had only confirmed it. Nero's face had shone with guilt. No matter how it had gone down, Dane's death had been his fault. Had it been later in the Games it wouldn't have mattered so much, but now, with Ibrahima still out there taking away from their own number was just stupid.

"Damn," she cursed as she scoured the area. A barren wasteland as far as she could see in any direction. No plants, nothing to assuage her dependency on the drug. She breathed in the fresh air and it tasted musty, like stale air.

Her stomach grumbled, reminding her that she should eat. But she didn't want to eat. She wanted her fill of blood and drugs and everything that could give her energy that food could not. She looked back up at the tower, longing to climb it, to return to safety. A shiver ran down her spine, as if in warning and then a howl came from above in the sky. She couldn't tell where it came from, but felt a strong brush of wind beside her, as though something large had just dive-bombed right beside her. Without a second thought, she sprinted up the steps to the Cornucopia.

Rolath Dornel – District 9 Mentor

Rolath sighed and looked around the room as the Mentors planned to settle down for the night. Would it be a quiet night, though, he wondered. The way Ibrahima was eyeing that mirror, the way the beast, whatever it had been, had just started its nightly prowl, would the darkness really bring peace or more death?

Glade had withdrawn to the side of the room, passively watching after Dane's death, but the other Career mentors seemed to think the evening was going to settle down. Blake had even tried to engage Aeden a while ago, after Killian had returned, complementing him on Jonas's medical abilities, but Aeden seemed to have barely heard him. His hands still clutched his glass in terror, as though he were more afraid than even the tributes.

"I hope they don't move tonight," Iris said, coming up beside Rolath, echoing his thoughts. They had been bonding ever since their tributes had made an alliance, but she had left for a little while, probably to talk with Leunam. With the two of them as mentors, Rolath wasn't surprised District three still had both tributes standing.

"So I'm not the only one who thinks the shadows are creepy?" Rolath asked.

"Clearly not," Iris answered him, gesturing to Aeden, her eyes were full of pity. "There are things that have more power over the mind than we could possibly imagine; I fear memory is one of them. So many people have terrible memories of nightmares and I fear the Gamemakers are using them against all of us." Rolath nodded, understanding. His arena had been bright, too bright and fiery, but Iris's had been within the confines of a pyramid. She had good reason to fear the darkness.

Yet, somehow Candice had managed to not go insane after a day in the catacombs, surrounded by shadows that almost seemed to be alive. Both she and her companions were made of sterner stuff than he would have supposed just from looking at them. There was something about that darkness, about the shadows that he detested, something that was even darker than usual. Could darkness itself be evil?

He didn't think he wanted to know the answer to that, he thought. He glanced over his shoulder at Steric. Ever since she'd returned from her talk with Brutus her eyes had flashed with fury, but she'd said very little. In fact, the look in her eyes almost matched that in Excelcia's. That was almost as terrifying as the darkness, he thought, almost feeling as though he himself were back in the arena.

"Nor stony tower, nor walls of beaten brass,
Nor airless dungeon, nor strong links of iron
Can be retentive to the strength of spirit"