AUTHOR'S NOTES: I'm honestly a bit stoked for the next chapter, but we'll give this victor their limelight before I get into that. Weather patterns are totally a thing, and not every trick the Capitol pulls has to be wild or unrealistic to make a dynamic and intriguing game. Also note that there is a character named Cato in this story. He is not Cato from the books (he's not even from the same district); do you really think that there was no one that shared names with the 74th Hunger Games tributes in the 75 years the games went on? Just a thought. There are more characters like that which will appear in these stories, but don't worry; they won't pop up *too* frequently...
That said... Happy Reading!

The 34th Annual Hunger Games

Now that tributes were more ambitious about the games (at least in some districts), the idea that they would fight as well as try to survive was becoming a regular occurrence, and so the odds of food being as abundant in the cornucopia as it had been in earlier years (with a few notable exceptions) became gradually slimmer.

Often times the Gamemakers would use certain concepts again in back-to-back years, and one of these included the lack of food as the 34th Annual Hunger Games kicked off. After the events of the previous games, many of the tributes, including the careers, anticipated a lack of food and prepared themselves accordingly. District 2's Kurt Jordan and Leslie Massaro brought District 1's Jackie Hoang and Price Emerson into their ranks, also even dragging in Cato Terzic from District 3 after the boy scored a 9—a score that fit right up there with the 9s and 10s the career tributes had all acquired. There were no other really noteworthy alliances other than that a couple of districts such as 11, 7, and 8 had tributes that agreed not to kill each other too soon.

The arena was intriguing, at first glance. While it appeared to be forested, tributes noticed that north and south of the cornucopia in the distance were these enormous cliffs. Either this arena was very small, or extended a great deal east and west. The career pack did not linger long at the cornucopia due to the lack of supplies: it was almost entirely just weapons and backpacks, as well as gear that would help stave off the cold.

It was Cato who asserted that almost everything placed in the cornucopia served some sort of purpose, and when something like protective gear was a regular occurrence in almost everyone's backpack, he knew that the warm sunny weather they were experiencing was not here to stay.

The first couple of nights seemed normal, and as Kurt led the career pack west, and only two more tributes died, the cannon shots and hovercrafts coming from the eastern half of the arena. However, as the 4th morning kicked off, the sun that had painted the grass and trees vibrant shades of gold and green was replaced by a hazy, blue and grey fog. It was not some sort of artificial smoke concocted by the Capitol, but rather real haze that resulted from the cool air of the vast canyon-like arena getting trapped underneath warmer air from the skies above them.

"It's called an inversion," Cato explained to his allies, "so basically it's going to be freezing nuts down here and the air is going to get worse until it becomes a hazard or until it rains."
Kurt and Leslie were naturally a bit skeptical about this, but Price affirmed it.

"We get those a bit in District 1 actually," he assured his allies, "usually in the winter, but I guess anything goes in the arena."

The inversion continued for a few days, and while the survivalists from Districts 7 and 11 were faring better than usual, the ones from '11 could not handle the cold as well due to their district's southerly climate, and the pair from 7 died after risking crossing a frozen river. The ice cracked beneath them, and while the boy's instincts kicked in to try and save his partner before she got dragged downstream, he fell in as well, forcing them downstream. The girl drowned under the ice, but her partner survived a few hours longer before succumbing to hypothermia.

Three more days in, and Cato betrayed the career pack, giving their positions away to an alliance that had formed between the District 4 pair and a District 12 girl. This betrayal ended up causing Jackie's death, as well as injuring Kurt. However, the leader of the careers was not about to be fazed by Cato, or by the archer from District 12 who had killed one of his allies. The District 4 pair were the ones that they were worried about most.

This mindset was helpful, for Price was able to dispose of the girl from '12 fairly easily after an attempted ambush failed, which resulted in two casualties: the boy from '4, and Kurt succumbed to his injuries the District 4 boy's partner, a girl named Savannah, had escaped relatively unscathed, and she and Cato turned out to be fairly strong allies. His brains and her brawn kept both of them safe from the careers for the time being, and from the elements of the arena. Luckily for the last two careers, both Price and Leslie were still in well enough condition that they did not have to worry about the cold and the injuries yet.

Two more days passed, and the inversion ended with a ferocious rainstorm. Naturally, none of the 5 remaining tributes were out and about that day, and most of them instead were grateful for the clean air and clean water. The temperature of the arena soared, turning the climate to something more akin to a lightning storm. Only one tribute was killed that day: Cato's elusive partner—the girl from District 3, who had managed to avoid getting caught despite staking it out on her own. She died at Leslie's hand.

This humidity lingered even after the storm had subsided that evening, making the place feel more like a jungle—or even a sauna. Naturally, most tributes shed their protective gear, and began migrating to try and find cooler ground. The land around the cornucopia seemed to be the coolest, and it was clear that the Capitol was attempting to bring the remaining tributes together for a final battle.

However, this final battle never happened. Price and Leslie ambushed Cato, killing him immediately, although Leslie was fatally wounded by Savannah's retaliation. She and Price fled to the cornucopia, the former leading the latter to what might have been a trap. However, in one final moment of frenzy (perhaps brought on by the heat), Price threw his axe with enough force that it kept enough velocity to strike Savannah in the back, killing her. The final cannon had gone off, and the games were over. Price was now the 6th victor from District 1, and the 34th victor of the Games overall.

Price was remembered for his cool demeanour, his level head, and his appeal to those around him. He became a Capitol favorite during his victory tour, touting his Capitol loyalty to gain extra favour, and ultimately became a very friendly and popular mentor. District 1 would continue to produce quality tributes if he had anything to say about it—and he hoped to keep it that way.

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)
19HG: Zeruda Mezkiel (#2, District 6)
20HG: Muscida Lee (#2, District 4)
21HG: Kada Lahka (#4, District 2)
22HG: Gleam DiFronzo (#4, District 1)
23HG: Ivette Coronado (#3, District 5)
24HG: Olivia Thurman (#1, District 9)
25HG: Laurel Fox (#1, District 12)
26HG: Daron Armstrong (#5, District 2)
27HG: Cobalt Evans (#5, District 1)
28HG: Lyme Golding (#6, District 2)
29HG: Ash LosDias (#3, District 7)
30HG: Challis Worth (#2, District 8)
31HG: Beetee Latier (#3, District 3)
32HG: Fletch Crossley (#4, District 5)
33HG: Seeder Howell (#3, District 11)
34HG: Price Emerson (#6, District 1)