Day Eleven:
Jessie Harte (D2 F 14)
Scratch! Scratch! Scratch!
I wake up with a jolt and fire my knife at the source of the noise. I guess sleeping with a knife in my hand wasn't such a bad idea. Squinting through the darkness, I try to spot what I hit, but I can't see through the blackness. I climb down the tree and shuffle around. Finally, I spot it- my gleaming silver knife sticking out of a small jaguar. I feel a jolt of sympathy for a second. This jaguar isn't fully grown yet; it's still a juvenile. I'll make good use of him, though. Since I wasn't able to grab most of my bags at the cornucopia, I don't have much food. Although, I do have matches, which is all I need to make this jaguar into a meal.
I decide to wait until morning to cook the jaguar. If I light a fire while it's dark out, Mason may figure out where I am. I hang the jaguar in a low branch, and climb back up to where I was sleeping earlier. Since I'm afraid of heights, I'm less than ten feet off of the ground, but that's better than sleeping on the ground. I decide I might as well get some more rest. It should be morning soon. I take one last look at the sky full of stars, close my eyes, and try to fall asleep.
Sleep doesn't come. I try to calm myself down and relax but I can't. For some reason, I'm wide awake, and it's not even morning. I abandon the thought of falling asleep and sit up against the tree. Looking around the rainforest, I discover that it's kind of creepy in the dark. The canopy blocks out almost all light, and the vines and exotic bushes cast weird shadows on the forest floor. Honestly, someone could sneak up right in front of me, and I'd never know they were there unless they made noise.
As the minutes tick on, I become more and more freaked out. Unless I'm loosing my head, the sun should be rising right about now. A breeze blows around some leaves, making me shiver. A bird caws in the distance, and I jump. A cold sweat covers my body. I know there's something weird going on. There has to be. This may be my first night in the rainforest, but I can tell that something is off.
I close my eyes tight and lie back down. I have to fall asleep now. Normally, the dark doesn't scare me, but there's something about this forest that's just plain spooky. If I fall asleep now, it'll be light when I wake up. Daytime has to come eventually. Somehow, I'm finally able to slow my heart rate down. Somehow, I manage to fall asleep.
Alexandrite Dazzle (D1 F 17)
I'm starting to think the sun's never going to rise. I've been sitting in the darkness for about two hours now, and the sky's still showing no sign of light. I decide I should probably visit the clearing on the edge of the island. It'll be easier to see more of the arena from there. Maybe I'll be able to figure out why the sun has refused to come up.
Thankfully, I didn't camp too far from the clearing, so it only takes me a few minutes to walk there. I continue walking until I'm only a foot or two away from the edge of the island. Then, I stare up into the starry sky. It looks just like it always does... during the night. I spot the moon, which is making it's way up the sky. I frown as I notice something coincidental about the moon. It's in the path the sun usually follows during the day...
I gasp when I make the connection. It seems like the Gamemakers decided to replace the days with night, and while doing so, put the moon in the sun's place. It would give us tributes a sense of time, which we otherwise wouldn't have in the darkness. If that's the case, the moon's somewhere in between the ten and eleven a.m. spots. That actually makes pretty good sense. I make a mental note to keep track of the moon over the next few hours as it travels through the sky.
I decide to head back to the trees for some cover, just in case either Mason or Jessie is near. I sit on the low branch of a tree and nibble on some crackers. I begin to wonder why the Gamemakers have decided to turn the days into everlasting night. I understand that the Games are coming to a close, but what's the point of getting rid of the sun? Are they trying to make us all go mad before the finale? There are easier methods of making an interesting final battle. Usually they just send out mutts or something. I'm sure the Gamemakers have mutts for later, but that still doesn't explain why they're darkening the arena now.
A twig snaps behind me and I whip around. I breath a sigh of relief when I realize it's just a lizard. Normally, I would shoot him, but he's not bothering me or trying to attack me. Besides, my arrow count is starting to run low. I don't want to waste any arrows. A few seconds later, the lizard scurries away, into the forest. I'm so glad that I'm near the outer edges of the island. It's got to be creepy, hidden deep in that forest with the canopy blocking out almost all the light. I almost feel bad for Jessie and Mason- almost. I really can't feel bad for them when my own life's on the line.
Mason Riley (D2 M 18)
Stupid Gamemakers! I can't believe they've taken away daytime and replaced it with night. What's the point of it? It's not like any of us are going to be scared. Jessie, Alexandrite, and I are all careers. It takes a little more than the dark to frighten us. Even Jessie, who's only fourteen, must be laughing at the Gamemakers' feeble attempts to make the Games exciting. There's really no point to this at all.
This whole rant about the Gamemakers is starting to get old, so I decide to go hunting for Jessie. She's the one who deserves to die next. She tried to kill me when my back was turned, which is one of the most dishonorable things you can do. Besides, she hasn't been training for as long as Alexandrite and I have. She didn't even volunteer! Jessie doesn't want this as badly as Alexandrite and I do. She can't be the victor.
I pick up my spear, throw my bags onto my back, and begin walking through the forest. I'm not going to let the current state of the arena darken my mood. I really hope I'll manage to find Jessie. If she dies today, Alexandrite and I will definitely be forced together tomorrow, and this whole thing will finally be over. Even if I don't defeat Alexandrite, at least I'll be put out of my misery. I try not to think of that, though. If I want to win, I need to be confident in my abilities. I know I can beat Alexandrite. I just have to fight with all of my heart.
As I continue to stumble through the dark forest, I start to get bored. I never thought that I'd get bored out here in the arena. While training, I always thought the Games would be nothing but fighting and hanging out with the other careers. I've been very surprised by the amount of time I've had to think. Most of stuff I've done out here hasn't involved extreme mental concentration, which has allowed my brain to wander a lot. For example, tribute hunting is so much slower than I thought it would be. On t.v., they only show when the career actually catches someone, not the hours and hours they spend hiking around aimlessly. Also, they tend to show a lot of the careers' exciting and interesting conversations on t.v, which makes you think they spend the whole time at their camp talking and having fun with each other. In truth, though, we rarely talked. Most of the time, all we did at the cornucopia was nibble on beef jerky, drink cold soup, and stare into the misty landscape that surrounded us.
Jessie Harte (D2 F 14)
I nearly gasp aloud when I spot Mason trampling through the forest. Thank goodness he's loud, or I probably wouldn't have noticed him through the dark. My insides turn ice-cold. What if he notices me? I'm pretty close to the ground, so I'm in his range of vision. All I can do is hold my breath, stay silent, and hope he passes by.
As Mason gets closer to my tree, I realize that my branch is only a foot or two higher than his head. If he passes under me, he'll see me for sure. Panicking a little, I carefully cut a nut off of the branch I'm on. Focusing hard, I throw the nut at a tree twenty feet to my left. It hits the tree with a satisfying thud. Mason's head swivels to the noise, and he jogs over to investigate. I let out my breath and watch as he circles around the tree, trying to determine the source of the sound. After about a minute, he gives up, and continues to walk further away from me.
Mason's bobbing head disappears into the shadows, and I'm left alone once again. Even though I'm still slightly terrified by the darkness, Mason terrifies me much more. After what happened at the feast, there's no doubt he's out for blood. I may be a little smarter than Mason, but he's much, much stronger than I am. Honestly, if I want to win the Games, Mason's going to have to get into a fight with either a mutt or Alexandrite- preferably both. If he's injured, I may have a shot at victory.
I look down and realize, with a jolt, that the jaguar I killed earlier is still hanging from the branch I placed it on. I can't believe Mason didn't see it when he passed by. It's only about five feet off the ground, hanging in plain sight. This everlasting darkness is messing with everyone. The Gamemakers should have given out night vision goggles at the feast. That would make this situation a whole lot more bearable. I nearly laugh when I realize that that's the reason why they didn't include night vision goggles. The Gamemakers live to make us miserable.
I stare back down at the dead jaguar, wondering what to do with it. I decide that I can't leave it hanging there. If Mason comes back this way, chances are he'll notice it his second time through. Not to mention, the dead jaguar could attract even bigger predators than Mason. I'd rather not have to deal with those. I zip up my bag and carefully climb down my tree. Once I've pulled the jaguar down from its branch, I begin to jog through the forest, the body slung over my back. I make sure to move quickly; I don't want to spend any more time out in the open than I have to. After running for fifteen minutes, I decide I've gone far enough. I set down the jaguar on the ground, turn around, and head back towards my tree. Once again, I run quickly. After all, my tree is the closest thing I have to comfort out here.
Alexandrite Dazzle (D1 F 17)
I stare up at into the night sky, the moon shining like a big, silver orb. If my theory about it taking over for the sun was correct, it's about five or six o'clock. The moon will be disappearing into the mist soon. When it does, the anthem should begin as well. I've decided to wait to hear it before dozing off. Even though I haven't heard any cannons, there's always the chance that I could have missed one as I was sleeping. Also, the Gamemakers seem to like making announcements at that time. I need to stay up to make sure I'm not missing anything important.
For the past few hours, I've been hanging out right at the edge of the clearing. I've been lying on my back, staring up into the black sky and thinking about a lot of things. Strategy has been buzzing around my head non-stop like an annoying wasp, and I keep trying to swat it down. Thoughts of my family also continue to cross my mind. Now that I'm so close to the end, I've realized that seeing them again might not be such a far-fetched fantasy. I've done a lot of thinking about my district too. Even though I'm not the typical dumb blond beauty queen that District One has, I hope they're still supporting me. I take a deep breath. I can't worry about things like that right now. I need to be completely focused on figuring out a way to get out of this arena alive.
I start to get bored, so I decide to fiddle around with my weight again. Pulling it out, I realize that I dented it a lot yesterday while trying to figure out if it held anything inside. I'm still hoping that it does something- other than make my bag really heavy of course. I don't think Mason or Jessie grabbed a weight, so I'd be at an immediate advantage if it turned out to have superpowers. Not to mention, I'd look like a pretty big idiot if I carried this thing around for days and it turned out to be worthless. So for now, I think I'll keep playing around with it.
My head turns to the forest as I hear a loud cracking noise, followed by a thud. It sounds like Mason knocked down a tree in frustration. He must be seeking revenge on Jessie. I'm completely fine with that. It takes the target off of my back. If I'm lucky, maybe the two of them will get into a giant fight and take out each other. Unfortunately, Mason's stronger than Jessie, so she probably won't be able to severely injure him. You never know, though. One of the most important things I've learned out here is that anything can happen.
Mason Riley (D2 M 18)
My head shoots upward as the sound of the Panem Anthem echoes through the arena. Apparently, the Gamemakers have decided that it's nighttime. I'm a bit surprised. I thought there were a few more hours of "daytime," but I must've just slept late. Looking up into the sky, I see nothing but the Panem Seal. No surprises there. Today was kind of "the calm before the storm." I'm not too disappointed, since that means the finale will be tomorrow.
The anthem ends and the sound of twittering birds fills the rainforest again. I'm not too tired, so I decide to keep hikking around, looking for Jessie. I'm upset that I haven't managed to find her yet, but I know that we'll come face to face tomorrow. She won't be able to run from me then; the Gamemakers will make sure of that. They'll send out some sort of mutt to keep us together. They always do.
For the next hour or so, I walk along without much excitement. Eventually, though, exhaustion starts to take over. My eyelids begin to droop, and I decide it's time to get some shut eye. I look around, trying to find a place to crash. There's plenty of trees and plants, but nothing that could conceal my seven and a half foot tall self. I continue to search, becoming more tired with every footstep.
Twenty minutes later, I decide I've had enough. I'm ready to sleep, and I don't care where. I find a patch of clear, flat ground and set my blanket down. After taking off my bags, I lie down on my blanket. I'm not super comfortable, but thankfully, the rainforest floor isn't too solid. And besides, this will probably be my last night in the arena. I can handle sleeping on the ground for one more night.
Before drifting off, one last thought crosses my mind: the Gamemakers will be sending out mutts soon, and I'm lying on the ground in plain sight. What if the mutts are sent out tonight? They'd easily be able to maim my sleeping body. After weighing the options, I decide that I'm too tired to get up. I need sleep, and I don't want to spend another hour looking for a hiding spot. I'll think I'll just stay here and sleep.
No Deaths
Remaining Tributes (3):
D1:
Alexandrite Dazzle (D1 F 17)
{Annabeth-TheTributeThatLived}
D2:
Jessie Harte (D2 F 14)
{ImSoCutee00}
Mason Riley (D2 M 18)
{Jms2}
Kills:
Mason: Ryland, Peter, Nylah, Eridan, Harvest
Glint: Misty, Cobalt, Tadalynn, Lukas
Jessie: Jarvis, Aria, Cherry, Swirl
Alexandrite: Jennette, Rory, Mapelle
Sheldon: Marina, Osborn
Harvest: Sheldon, Glint
Swirl: Peyton
Alliances:
Alexandrite
Jessie
Mason
It's almost midnight, but I finally managed to finish this chapter. Yay! Sorry for the lack of excitement, but like Mason said, this day was sort of "the calm before the storm." I haven't decided how I'm going to break up "the storm" yet, but I think I'm gonna split day twelve into two parts.
So my week in Tennessee was awesome, but I'm also glad to be writing again (and for all you Percy Jackson fans, if you ever find yourself near Nashville, you need to take a visit to the Parthenon cause it's pretty cool). However, I'm going to be going away again next week. :-( I'm going on a mission trip with my church, and we're not aloud to bring any electronics, so it's going to be another writing-free week. I'll have lots of time to think about what I'm going to do for the finale, though, so hopefully, the next chapter will be worth the wait.
And, like always, make sure you've voted in the poll if you haven't already done so. I really mean it this time because there's currently a tie going on between two of the tributes. So seriously, go vote!
Thanks for reading! :-)