Chapter 32: The Legend Of Theseus
Author's Note: I would like to thank all of my readers for there continued support. Writing this story is a lot of hard work, but I like it.
To Guest reviewer 'hector' - This story is not about sex. I merely pointed out that it happened, and also in the story Amanda only did it to get sponsors.
To Guest reviewer 'No name' - Thank you for your support. And if you sign up with then you can be alerted on your e-mail whenever I update.
To Guest reviewer 'Bob' - I guess I'm just being modest, and thank you for your support.
To Guest reviewer 'Alex' - I will consider a story about Madge.
Day 16 of the Games, 9:31 am arena time, Caesar Flickerman's Talk-show:
Caesar Flickerman was on the stage on his talk show.
"Ladies and gentlemen. Katniss Everdeen has just made a very disturbing and controversial public address, saying that President Snow did not drop the silver parachute bombs on her sister and the children in his front yard, and that it was in fact President Coin who framed President Snow in order to expedite the end of the war." said Caesar Flickerman. "Some people are claiming that the Mockingjay was not in her right mind at the time and therefor her testimony on this claim is not accurate."
"There are others who think what the Mockingjay is saying is true as any smart person who can put two and two together would realize that President Snow had nothing to gain from what he did." argued Claudius Templesmith.
"I see your point of logic." said Caesar. "While at the same time President Paylor declared Martial Law less than an hour before Katniss made her statement. And all high ranking officials since then have been unavailable for comment to either confirm or deny the Mockingjay's claim."
"Some people in the Capitol feel that they have been betrayed by their new regime that now rules over them. While some of the disgruntled people in the Districts are feeling more sympathy to the Capitol." said Claudius.
"Obviously, there is much to discuss on the matter." said Caesar. "You the viewers may send in your opinions to our blog site on the 'Panem Digital Network', which we will read on the air. But now, let's get back to the Games. Ladies and gentlemen, as you just saw, Beverly O'Malley is now deceased. May she rest in peace." said Caesar.
He paused for a moment, and took a breath in.
"The arena has gotten very small. Duplicates of former tributes have been fought." Caesar said in a dramatic voice, building excitement. "And now we are down to the final two. But before you place your final bets on who will win, I have been informed that there has been some tampering with the Hunger Games by a saboteur, and the damage can't be undone, and Amanda Snow will face an impossible challenge and will die, and David Crane will be declared the winner by default." he sounded disappointed.
The people began an angry muttering.
Caesar then composed himself. "Let us see what happens."
And he directed everyone to the television screen.
Amanda's point of view:
'BOOM!' went the sound of the cannon indicating to me that another Tribute had died.
'And then there was two.' I thought to myself, referring to the remaining tributes.
Then a second later I saw a giant hologram in the sky of Beverly O'Malley's face. I guess they decided not to wait till midnight tonight to show her face in the sky. They probably have the rest of the Games planned out and that either me or David Crane will not make it to midnight tonight. Well, with only two of us left they might as well wrap these Games up.
I had retrieved my used throwing-knives, and I continued the search for my final opponent.
I had crossed a bridge onto the next island which was a desert. I felt that I had walked into ancient Egyptian ruins. There was a giant crumbling stone statue of a Sphinx. A large, wide, and oddly shaped crumbling stone building that was not a pyramid, but of what appeared to be... I believe it would be called a 'Ziggurat', (Look it up,) which I'm not entirely sure is Egyptian. As well as a few other crumbling stone pillar-like monuments that I think they are referred as 'spires' that looked more Greek, or Roman. I'm not quite sure. The air was dry and the temperature was sweltering hot.
Just then a little silver parachute floated down in front of me. I opened the box and found a very small squirt bottle. The label on the side said 'Blindness potion'. I heard about this product. Completely harmless to the skin or even if you drink it, but if you squirt it in someone's eyes they will become temporarily blind for about an hour. I don't know what it was for, though I suppose I could spray it in David Crane's face when I face him. I pocketed the bottle and carried on.
My curiosity made me want to examine this island a little bit more closely, I had plenty of time, and I figured that the Gamemakers would drive us towards each other soon.
Then from the distance I heard an odd sort of roar. It happened again and again, and seemed it was getting closer. It sounded like a giant angry bull. And then I noticed it running at me. It turned out it was a giant bull, except this one was standing on its hind legs, and it's front legs were not hooves but were hands. It stood about 8 feet tall when it stood upright. In its hands was a chain with a giant spiked-ball on the end. The spiked-ball must weigh at least 200 pounds but this thing was swinging it around as though it was a beach-ball at the end of a tetherball post. A name for this creature then came to my mind, an ancient Greek mythical beast. A 'Minotaur'. Of course I immediately assumed that this was just a Gamemaker's laboratory grown cheap knockoff of some sort, but no less dangerous and no less frightening. And all I could think of was, 'YOU GOT TO BE FUCKING KIDDING ME!' How in the world was I supposed to defeat this thing!? What are the Gamemakers thinking? David Crane is all who's left. Do they want him to win by default? Ok, for the past 15 days I have been all for 'playing the Games' after all of the ridiculous perils that a weaker and less resourceful tribute would not have survived, but ultimately up to this point it has always been something winnable. Well, for this I just have to say, 'FUCK THIS!' Swords were no use against this thing!
I ran for it, but I knew I'd never out run it. I ran for the Ziggurat, hopefully I could get inside and take cover. But not before I sensed the spiked-ball about to come down on my head. I jumped sideways at the last second and I heard the muffled 'THUNK' of the spiked-ball impacting the desert sand right in the spot I was a moment ago. The Minotaur roared, and with a jerk of its muscular arms the spiked-ball was flung in my direction. I moved again. 'Keep moving!' I said to myself. That's the key. I drew my sword, and cut its leg and it roared in pain. I kept going for the Ziggurat. The Minotaur was behind me and swung the spiked-ball at me again but the ball went in front of me and the chain tripped my legs out from under me.
In that moment as I lay there, less then a second passed by, but it felt like an eternity. I thought of my family. My mother, so shallow, hating our step-down in lifestyle, a horrible cook, obsessed with fashion with her snow white hair, long black fingernails, and skin dyed a bright orange, it drove me crazy sometimes but her look was my mother's trade mark, and now I miss it so much. My father, a politician, greedy for money but no ambition for power, executed after the war for crimes against the Districts. My grandfather for all his evil treated me well, he loved me, and like any good grandfather who loved his granddaughter he made sure I never went hungry a day in my life.
Anyone who's watching and knows of the legend of Theseus would think that this is poetic justice.
The Gamemakers want me to know that there is nothing I can do to win, and that they have beaten me. And it makes for great television to see the granddaughter of President Snow get brutally slaughtered.
'No!' I thought defiantly. I will play the Games now on my own terms and prove to the Gamemakers that they won't defeat me! And what would make for better television is to see me actually kill this thing!
Less than a second had passed, but it had felt a lot longer. I quickly got out of the way but the Minotaur kept up easily. If only I had some kind of advantage over this thing, but it never takes its eyes off me. It never takes it's eyes off me? That's it!
It swung the spiked ball down on me again, and again I moved out of the way. At that moment, the Minotaur was bent over a little, and in a quick motion I pulled out the squirt bottle of Blindness Potion and sprayed its face up close.
The Minotaur roared with madness as I scurried away. I looked back at it. It was looking from side to side with wide blank eyes. It was swinging the spiked ball around, hitting random spots. I then wondered? If the Gamemakers were controlling it, then why didn't they just send it in my direction without it needing to see. I have no time to worry about that though. I could have ran for another island, but I felt that running was exactly what the Gamemakers that wanted to kill me wanted me to do, and so therefor if I did run then they would have beaten me; I wanted to show the Gamemakers up and beat them in a battle of wills at their own Game! I'm going to defeat this thing in the name of my fallen allies! But how? I looked around, and after an examination of my surroundings I got an idea.
"Hey ugly!" I called to it. "Over here!"
The Minotaur turned in my direction and ran toward the sound of my voice. I ran in the direction of one of the crumbling stone spires. I held my sword out in front of me in defense.
The Minotaur charged right at me, its horns sticking out in front, and I jumped out of the way slashing at its side as it rammed right into the stone pillar. The stone spire crumbled at the base and began to topple over, however it didn't fall at the right angle and landed beside the Minotaur rather than on top of it like i had intended.
The Minotaur roared the sound of an angry bull again. I threw a volley of throwing knives, they lodged in the torso of the beast, but it did not seem to have weakened him, it only became maddened with rage which seem to just make it stronger.
Okay, the toppling spire idea didn't work. Now it's time for plan B. I eyed a very precarious crumbling stone ledge on the upper level of the Ziggurat.
"Over here stinky!" I shouted.
The blind Mutt roared in my direction and swung the spiked-ball down on top of me again. I dodged out of the way and ran towards a staircase on the Ziggurat. I kept making lots of noise and the Minotaur kept coming in my direction. I lured it up the stone staircase to the edge of a stone ledge. It kept swinging its ball knocking huge shards of rock out of the staircase and the walls and ledges around it of the crumbling stone. I walked along a ledge off the side edge of the stone stairs and then had it follow me. Above me was another ledge that I very quietly climbed onto. I was now a few feet higher than the top of its head. I waited until it walked right under a stone gargoyle that I was hiding behind.
"Hey, up here!" I called to it.
It look upwards in the direction of my voice, roared, and swung the spiked-ball, and hit the gargoyle. The gargoyle didn't shatter but it's support under its feet on the ledge had significantly weakened.
"You're nothing but an over grown cow!" I said in defiance at the Minotaur, "And I'm hungry for some good quality beef right now! Because I eat Minotaurs for breakfast!"
I then threw a throwing-knife at the Minotaur's neck and then threw my longer heavier sword like a javelin and speared it through its heart. I then body slammed the stone gargoyle with all of my body weight, the gargoyle then fell over the edge and landed right on top of the Minotaur. The Minotaur roared with pain as it fell and then the ledge that it was standing on collapsed. The Minotaur fell two stories down to the ground and landed on its back, buried in a pile of stone. It continued to flail its arms and head while it roared, but it seemed to have lost the strength to get back up. I then slid down the steep wall of the side of the Ziggurat like a slide until the soles my boots hit the desert sand at the bottom.
I then spoke into the camera.
"Hey Gamemakers?" I said with a tone of voice of maniacal gloating. I then drew my titanium sword from the sheath on my back. "I don't know whose idea this was, but do any of you know a Greek legend of another Minotaur?"
I paused to allow them to think about it for a moment.
"Because in the Athenian legend of Theseus, in punishment to the people for past crimes they were to select seven young men and seven young women and send them into the labyrinth to be eaten alive by the dreaded Minotaur." I said dramatically. "In the legend, Theseus who was the son of the king, volunteered to take the place of one of the seven young men that was selected. Are you familiar with what happened in the legend when Theseus finally faced the Minotaur? ... He killed it… with his bare hands!" I said dramatically.
I then walked up behind the Minotaur's head.
"Gamemakers, this is your punishment from me for sending a Minotaur to kill me." I said in a tone of voice of disapproval reprimand.
I then impaled my sword through the forehead of the giant Mutt and the Mutt went still and quiet in an instant.
I withdrew the bloody sword and looked up at the camera.
"IS THAT THE BEST YOU CAN DO!?" I shouted angrily in challenge, referring to the Minotaur being sent to kill me.
Third person point of view:
Every person in the entire country looked at their television screens with jaw agape. And then they cheered at the top of their lungs in celebration that the Hunger Games tribute accomplished this amazing feat.
In the Gamemakers Control Room Plutarch Heavensbee was in a state of confusion as he witnessed what he just saw.
"What just happened?" he said in confusion, directing his question to the room at large but to no one in particular.
"Well... she won the fight with the Minotaur, sir." replied one of the Gamemakers matter-of-factly stating the obvious.
"But... how?" said Plutarch in disbelief. "It was blinded by the potion that was sent by her mentor and sponsors, but that was only supposed to help her escape."
"Well, as far as I can tell Sir, according to my instruments here at my console, when she stuck her sword through its forehead, by mere luck the blade pierced right through the Mutt's brain implant, triggering its failsafe." said one of the Gamemakers sitting at his own terminal.
Plutarch paused to take in the words he had just heard.
"Son of a bitch! She did it!" Plutarch said with a delighted voice half disbelief half acceptance. "Against all odds, with it set to kill on the maximum difficulty level, she pulled it off. Amanda Snow 'The Minotaur Slayer'. Now that is what I am talking about! THAT IS UNPLANNED TELEVISION ENTERTAINMENT!" he shouted the last sentence with unrestrained enthusiasm.
Plutarch had never been more delighted in his entire life.
Then there were some beeping sounds coming from Beetee's terminal that he was working at.
"I did it," said Beetee, "I undid all of Tray Wilson's reprogramming."
"Excellent," said Plutarch as he watched Amanda Snow on the television trying to retrieve her second sword from under some fallen rocks. "The last two remaining tributes have both had enough. Let's wrap these Games up right now. Sink all remaining islands except for the center island F6." Plutarch ordered.
The stage of Caesar Flickerman's TV studio:
Caesar Flickerman and Claudius Templesmith sat across from each other on armchairs.
"Ladies and gentlemen." said Caesar Flickerman. "What we have just witnessed is unprecedented. A corrupt Gamemaker tried to murder Amanda Snow with a killer monster, and against all odds she kills it. WE HAVE NEVER CONCIEVED ANYTHING LIKE THIS!" Caesar shouted the last part in excitement.
The crowd cheered.
"I agree Caesar," said Claudius, "I mean we have seen exciting moments on the Hunger Games over the years, but she killed a Minotaur on live television after making a reference to the legend of Theseus... 'Amanda Snow The Minotaur Slayer'."
"I like that name Claudius," said Caesar, "I mean I have watched her on the edge of my seat at several tense moments of the last two weeks hoping that she would survive and overcome it. But this time, I will say this time I was on the edge of my seat waiting for her to die, not for her to live."
"Well Caesar I will say that Amanda Snow has outdone herself." said Claudius. "And when I say that she has outdone herself, what I mean is, is that if she kills David Crane and wins the Games, that would pale in comparison to this."
"Now Claudius let's not get ahead of ourselves." said Caesar in a voice of affectionate reprimand. "Any number of things can happen from now until the end of the Games."
All across the country in celebration while watching the giant screens in the street corners, people were stamping their feet, pumping their fists, and chanting Amanda Snow's name. Also all across the country several hundred different people came up with the exact same name that Plutarch and Claudius did. 'Amanda Snow The Minotaur Slayer'. Some people thought it was kind of silly and stupid, while at the exact same time it was also more than perfectly fitting.
After the crowd died down a little Claudius Templesmith continued.
"And now ladies and gentlemen." said Claudius. "It comes down to this, David Crane versus Amanda Snow!"
"Both are strong, physically fit, and the Gamemakers are driving them towards each other!" said Caesar.
"It's battle of the sexes, boy against girl!" said Claudius.
"A Head Gamemaker's son versus a President's granddaughter! Both are out to win, both are out for vengeance! Who do you think will win? Who do you think will lose?" said Caesar.
"If you haven't made a bet yet and you would like to, just a reminder that bets can be made with cash to vendors across the country or you can make them through phone call or electronically to a computer." said Claudius.
"Ladies and gentlemen, me and my co-host are going to take a little break, but we will be back in time for the fight between our last two tributes." said Caesar. "In the meantime, we would like to invite our studio audience to go back stage where we have hot beverages and an all you can eat dessert buffet."
And then the show went to a live-feed of the inside of the arena.
In the desert, Amanda had with great difficulty managed to retrieve her second sword. Several of her throwing-knives had been lost to her but she still had plenty. She looked at the dead Minotaur laying at her feet, then she turned in the direction of the cornucopia and thought of who killed Blaze Trenton.
"YOU'RE NEXT, DAVID CRANE!" she said defiantly in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.
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