AUTHOR'S NOTES: This story was kind of delayed while I worked on finishing "The 74th Annual Hunger Games", and then advancing "The 93rd Annual Hunger Games", but I expect it to still be achievable by my posted date. Fear not though, for the pace will continue and hopefully quicken.
Happy Reading!

The 18th Annual Hunger Games

The tributes of the 18th Annual Hunger Games proved to be a bit different from the usual rabble. Many of them, including the kids from the urban districts, seemed to be fairly competent survivalists, and the Capitol just tacked this up to being luck of the draw. The reapings had not been rigged that year, after all—even in rebellious districts like 12, 8, or 3.

Either way, the arena was simplistic and yet magnificent. Dense, redwood forests dominated the scene except for a small clearing where the cornucopia stood—at least as far as any of the tributes knew. District 1's John Trimble and Melissa Cuevas figured that they had the games in the bag, and with Zoe Rice and Brock Salazar from District 2 at their sides, they, like many career packs before them, were fairly confident in their abilities.

They did not, however, count on the presence of 16-year-old Leah Holden.

Known among her fellows from District 7 as a local hero, Leah was exactly the type of kid that made a powerful head-turning tribute.

She was lightning quick on her feet, and had a wicked pair of ambidextrous throwing arms. Snatching up an axe, she started the show by bringing Melissa the most painfully glorious type of humiliation possible—placing her 24th in the Hunger Games.

Her head detached from her body within 38 seconds as Leah's axe soared through her neck. By this point a few other tributes were fighting, and so while it was unclear to the tributes who else had died, District 1 was not happy this year.

Insult was added to injury was John engaged in battle against Leah, but the axe-wielding maniac was too much for the career. All it took was one fell swing from Leah's battleaxe to make him a double amputee below the waist, and a second swing split his head in two. At once it was clear that Leah Holden was not messing around.

The career pack of the 18th games was decimated, however, as Carlos Sotari, a scrawny boy form District 12, stole Leah's kill by shooting Zoe right through the head at the end of the bloodbath as the two tributes had been duking it out. He braced himself for Leah's wrath, only to find her extending her hand.

"Nice work, kid. You wanna team up for a while?"

Leah was fairly certain that these woods were not too far outside her home, and there was a part of her that wondered if she could leave the arena and escape back to District 7. Not that that was actually a possibility, but with her ferocity, she was determined to win it anyways.

The only oddity about this thick forest was a ring about midway between the cornucopia and the forcefields. Leah and Carlos came across a large, neatly paved road that carved its way through the forest in a neat, circular pattern. After nearly a day of following it, they realized that it was in fact a circle, that ran dully around the arena. It was an oddity for sure.

On the other hand, this arena did not seem to have any signs of life except the wind in the trees, and the occasional brooklet or pond for water, and so the tributes subsisted off of fruit and nuts, as well as sponsor gifts.

Leah was a proud recipient of many of these for her stellar performance in the bloodbath, and so she dominated the arena in an undeniably memorable manner. However, even her glorious talents did not answer the mystery of the road. Most tributes outside of Districts 2 and 6 had never even seen a properly paved road until they had reached the Capitol a few days ago, and so for it to be here in this otherwise dense but uninhabited forest struck many of them as odd.

As the days wore on though, there was still no sign of unusual activity, and the arena even still seemed devoid of any other fauna. Only the trees, plants, and the road remained. The 5 tributes that had lasted through the first eight days of the games were all fairly spread out.

Leah surprised District 12 and the Capitol by turning on Carlos, before singling out Brock shortly afterwards and killing him. It was clear that she was on the warpath.

The road had turned out to be little more than a red herring, but it didn't stop most tributes from being a little curious about it. On the other hand, that just enabled Leah to get better shots in on them and attack them as they gradually went down. With the careers gone, she pretty much had this thing in the bag, she was certain.

Her ferocity and willingness to put on a show earned her many sponsors, which was exactly what she had hoped for. Her cute charm also upped her appeal, and because of her talents and her sponsor gifts, Leah Holden soon ended the games by finishing off the remaining tributes and earning herself the title of victor. The local hero had become a national hero, becoming the 2nd victor from District 7, and the 18th victor of the Hunger Games overall.

Despite her vicious and ruthless approach in the games, Leah was actually very sweet and friendly, hiding her nightmares from the public of Panem fairly well. Every now and again she would cry herself to sleep, but for the most part, Leah had shelved her axe and gone back to her quiet old life in District 7. Like Woof before her, Leah was fairly mentally sound, but she had her moments. She managed to remain fairly sweet and sociable, which made people wonder just what happened in that forested arena. However, like many victors, Leah wouldn't ever tell…

VICTORS BY YEAR:
1HG: Fukaya Kerezaki (#1, District 5)
2HG: Lucy Takamatzu (#1, District 11)
3HG: Naseru Litzak (#1, District 3)
4HG: Naisha Szasz (#1, District 2)
5HG: Jade Prima (#1, District 1)
6HG: Cedar Hardin (#1, District 7)
7HG: Susan Jackman (#2, District 5)
8HG: Malcolm Reed (#1, District 6)
9HG: Mags Cohen (#1, District 4)
10HG: Faren Dragmire (#2, District 1)
11HG: Maius Karuha (#2, District 2)
12HG: Iunius Karuha (#3, District 2)
13HG: Hilda White (#1, District 10)
14HG: Minali Otoyome (#2, District 3)
15HG: Willow James (#3, District 1)
16HG: Lark Chandnea (#2, District 11)
17HG: Woof Casino (#1, District 8)
18HG: Leah Holden (#2, District 7)