Day Twelve (Part One):
Mason Riley (D2 M 18)
A twig snaps, and my eyes shoot open. I sit up, looking around the forest. Was that a mutt? After a few more seconds, nothing appears through the trees, so I decide it was just a harmless forest critter. I lay my head down, and try to fall back asleep. I need to be well-rested for when the mutts actually do come.
Seconds later, I hear a low growling noise and jump to my feet. There's something out there, and I bet it's a mutt. I pull out my spear and stare through the trees at the spot where the growling came from. I don't see anything there now. I don't hear anything either. Maybe it really was all my imagination. I notice it's become oddly quiet- too quiet.
The mutt lunges through the trees. Before I even have time to register what it looks like, it attacks. I jab at it with my spear, noticing it has a green, metallic body. It stays low to the ground between its pounces, and it has a snout full of razor sharp teeth. I attempt to run my spear through the mutt, but its metallic body acts as armor. There's no way my spear will penetrate that. I decide it's time to find a new attack method.
The mutt pounces, jaws wide open, and I seize my opportunity. Without any hesitation, I throw my spear as hard as I can, right into the mutt's mouth. The mutt falls to the ground, the spear sticking through its throat. It begins to jerk uncontrollably, and a dark red liquid begins leaking out of its mouth. The mutt shudders one final time, and lies still.
One the mutt is "dead," I lean over it and begin examining it, just in case the Gamemakers send another one of these my way. The mutt's metallic green body, is long, skinny, and very scaly. It ends in a tail, covered in spikes. The mutt has four small, stubby, legs with sharp claws sticking out from the toes. Its face is also green and scaly, with two black, beady eyes that sit above its snout. Peeking into its mouth, I spot rows and rows of deadly-looking teeth. The Gamemakers must've had a lot of fun creating this guy. Thank goodness I woke up when I did, or this thing would've torn me to shreds.
I stand back up, and wonder what to do with myself now. My adrenaline is pumping, so I know I won't be able to fall back asleep. I wish I knew what time it is, but the Gamemakers have made that impossible to determine, thanks to their 'everlasting night' thing. Before I can come up with something to do, I hear another low growl. Well, I guess the Gamemakers have decided to throw another one of those mutts on me. Honestly, I don't mind fighting another one. It gives me something to do, and they aren't too difficult to defeat. I hold my spear up and prepare for the creature to lunge.
It takes a few seconds for the mutt to reveal itself, but when it does, it doesn't pounce. It simply slinks into a patch of moonlight, a menacing look on its face. Just before I'm about to attack it, I freeze as I hear more rustling in the bushes behind the mutt. My eyes widen in shock and my insides squirm around as another mutt steps into the moonlight, followed by another one, and another one. Seven mutts in total appear out of the bushes, and I realize just how screwed I am. I may be able to kill one, and I may even be able to kill two, but seven? There's no way I'll be able to defeat all of them.
I realize with a dull shock that this is the finale. The Gamemakers are in the process of forcing us together. I don't need to be able to defeat all of these mutts. I just have to be able to run from them. Most likely, the Gamemakers are trying to push us all to the clearing on the edge of the island, where the feast was held. That's where I need to go to. Leaving my backpacks behind, I turn around and start my run to the clearing.
Jessie Harte (D2 F 14)
Thud!
I wake up with a jolt. What was that noise? As I hear another thud, my tree jerks, and I hold on tightly to a branch. Something must be bumping into my tree. I look down, and gasp when I see what's surrounding me on the ground. Five or six long, scaly, green mutts are ramming into the tree, and it looks like they're trying to knock it down!
One of the mutts rams into the tree with tons of force, and a cracking sound fills the air. I need to get out of this tree fast, or I'll tumble to my death when it breaks. I climb down a few feet, and realize that I really don't have anywhere to escape to. I try throwing a knife at one of the mutts, but it simply bounces off of its metallic skin. How am I going to get down from this tree now? I can't just jump down into the circle of mutts. I'd be dead in a second. I need to come up with some way to avoid falling into them.
I notice a branch from a neighboring tree, sticking out a few inches above my head. I stare at it until I suddenly get an idea. I unzip my jacket, roll it up, and throw it over the branch so that a sleeve sticks down on each side of the branch. I grab a sleeve in each of my hands and push off of the branch I'm standing on. It takes a lot of upper body strength, but I manage to maneuver myself down the branch to the other tree, kind of like a really slow and bumpy zipline. Thankfully, the mutts aren't too bright. They don't realize that I've changed trees until I step down onto the forest floor.
I immediately turn around and sprint as fast as I can, away from the mutts. They're probably trying to force me towards the other tributes, so I run in the direction of the clearing on the edge of the island. The feast took place there, so it makes sense that the finale might take place there too. After a few seconds of running, I risk a glance back at the mutts. There's a good fifteen feet of space in between us. They're not super fast, but they might have stamina. I need to keep this pace up until I reach the clearing.
About ten minutes later, my insides begin to burn, and my breathing becomes really heavy. I take a peek back at the mutts and realize that I've tripled the distance between us. I slow down my pace a little bit, but still continue at a fast jog. I should be about halfway to the clearing. I just have to keep up this pace for the rest of my run.
My exhaustion deepens immensely at around the fifteen minute mark. I glance behind me again and realize that the mutts are right on my tail! I run a little faster, my insides screaming in pain. I need to push through this. I can push through this. If not, these mutts will rip me to pieces. I've made it all the way to the final three. I can't let these stupid things kill me.
At last, I see it. I give one final push, and dash into the clearing. As the mutts reach the treeline, they stop. They must be prevented from entering the clearing by some sort of invisible barrier. I collapse to the ground, breathing extremely heavy. My lungs are on fire, and my whole body feels tired and sick. I manage to keep most of the vomit in, but I still litter the ground with a little bit of it. Finally, I manage to compose myself. I sit up, and realize that I'm alone in the clearing. Hopefully, Mason and Alexandrite will also be out of breath when they get here. If they are, I'll make sure to take advantage of it.
Alexandrite Dazzle (D1 F 17)
I look down in fear as the mutts surround my tree. There's got to be nearly ten of them. They look extremely deadly with their spiked tails, long claws, and razor sharp teeth. I realize I recognize this type of animal. I remember researching them during training back in District One. I think they're called... alligators. I can tell these are definitely mutts, because I don't think real alligators have metal bodies. I'm sure their claws and teeth have also been enhanced to be longer and sharper. Plus, their tails seem a little off. I don't think they're normally that spiky.
I pull my bow out, load it with an arrow, and fire it at one of the alligator mutts. The arrow bounces right off of its metal body. I look at the mutts, searching for any defects, any chinks in the armor, but I can't find anything. It seems like these mutts have one purpose, and one purpose only: to chase us until we reach the other tributes.
The mutts begin to simultaneously headbutt my tree. They must want me to get out of here now. I try to search for an escape route, but it seems like the only way I can get out of this tree is by going down- right into the mutts. I begin to climb down, hugging the trunk tightly as it continues to shake. I make it all the way down to the lowest branch. It's about five feet off the ground, and pretty sturdy. Maybe I can walk on it, a few feet away from the tree, and then jump to the ground, away from the mutts. It's the only plan I've got, so I decide to go for it.
I inch my way across the branch, hoping all of the dancing lessons I took as a little girl will pay off here. The mutts continue to shake the tree but I maintain my balance. Everything goes great until I'm about three feet away from the tree trunk. Without warning, disaster strikes, and the branch I'm standing on snaps. I tumble to the ground, right into the circle of the mutts.
The fall temporarily knocks the wind out of me. My backpack, my bow, and my sheath of arrows land a few feet to my right, just out of reach. I'm in too much pain to crawl over to them. I look around as the circle of mutts closes in. My heart drops as I realize that I'm done for. I'm weaponless; nothing can save me now.
As the mutts prepare to strike, I spot my backpack out of the corner of my eye. I do a double take when I see what's happening to it, and I decide I must be going crazy. The backpack seems to be... glowing. I blink, and realize that I'm not going crazy. My backpack is glowing, and it's becoming brighter and brighter very rapidly.
The backpack seems to explode with brightness, and a glowing white circle shoots out from it, expanding as it gets further away from the bag. The circle shoots past me, and slams right into the mutts. They fly a few feet back and land, looking dazed but not injured. I look around at the glowing white circle, which has stopped expanding. It's surrounding me, my bag, my bow, and my arrows like some sort of force field. As the mutts try to rush at me again, I realize that it is a force field. Every time a mutt tries to attack me, the glowing white wall pushes them back. What is going on here?
I walk over to my bag, which is still glowing a bit, and search around until I find what I'm looking for- the weight. Instead of being jet black, the weight is now the same white, glowing color as the force field walls. Also, a small button has appeared on it. I bet the button was activated when the mutts appeared, and then it got pushed when my bag hit the ground after falling out of the tree. Holding the weight in my hand, I walk a few feet to my left. The force field follows me. It continues to surround me, pushing mutts out of the way as it moves.
I walk back to my bag, put the weight back in, and zip it up. Since the mutts were probably supposed to chase me to the clearing on the edge of the forest, I decide that that's where I should go. I'm sure the Gamemakers are more than capable of sending out mutts that can penetrate the force field, so I should get going. I hoist my bag onto my back, sling my sheath of arrows over my shoulder, and grasp my bow in my hand. This is already turning into a pretty interesting finale.
Mason Riley (D2 M 18)
Much to my relief, the clearing finally comes into view. I've been running for about thirty minutes now, and my body's beginning to ache. Hopefully, none of the other tributes have arrived. I may need a few minutes (or hours) to lie down and rest. Before I reach the clearing, however, I spot something on the ground. My eyes widen in shock as I realize that there's six or seven more mutts, blocking my path to the clearing.
Thankfully, the mutts haven't noticed me yet. All of them are facing the other direction and clawing at the air, as if there's some sort of border in between them and the clearing. I nearly slap myself for my stupidity when I realize that there probably is. Turning around, I see the seven mutts that have been chasing me for the past half hour. There's about twenty feet of space in between us, but that gap is closing as I stand here with no clue what to do. Facing forward again, I realize that I'm gonna have to sneak past these mutts.
I begin sprinting to my left. I keep sprinting until I make it past the last mutt. Now, all I have to do is run forward into the clearing and hope that the invisible wall stopping the mutts from passing doesn't stop me as well. Taking a deep breath, I dash forward. I haven't even gone three steps when I step on a twig. A loud crack sounds through the air, and the mutts turn around and face me.
I suddenly realize that I'm trapped. Mutts surround me on both sides. There's nowhere for me to run. I don't give up, though, because I know that there's one last thing I could try. Facing the mutts surrounding the clearing, I begin sprinting again. I build up speed, running faster and faster, until I'm a foot or two away from the closest mutt. I push off from the ground, and leap over the mutts. I soar over the mutts' snarling snouts and roll right into the clearing. A smile forms on my face. I can't believe that actually worked.
I don't have much time to celebrate, though. Not even a second later, a knife flies through the air and skims past my arm, drawing blood. I sit up and get a full view of my attacker: Jessie. She already has a second knife in her hand, and she launches it at me without a moment of hesitation. This time, I manage to roll out of the way. I quickly pull out my spear. Unfortunately, it's the only weapon I've got, so I can't risk throwing it. I need to get closer to Jessie. She may be pretty good at long distance weaponry, but soon as I get close enough, this spear is going right through her.
Jessie Harte (D2 F 14)
I throw my third knife as Mason stands up, hoping to catch him off guard. Unfortunately, he manages to block it with his spear, but it does rebound and slice open a nice cut on his hand. Blood drips down, sticking to his spear, but he charges forward as if nothing has happened. Quick as a flash, I release knife number four. Mason has to dive to the ground to dodge it, and his spear clatters out of his hand.
Seeing my change, I throw another knife, but Mason turns his back to me at the last second. The knife imbeds itself in his bag, and he manages to get ahold of his spear as I grab my sixth knife. As he stands up again, I release the knife, but he ducks and it flies over his head. I start to panic as he gets closer. He's much stronger than me, and will take me down easily if my knives don't do some major damage. I need to hit him now.
I throw another knife at Mason. This time, it finally hits home. It lands in his shoulder, which is unfortunately not a kill spot, but at least I've finally given him a nice wound. He hesitates for a second, but yanks the knife out quickly as blood pours down his chest. Another knife leaves my fingertips, but I miss, and it flies past Mason's left ear. I reach into my bag for my ninth knife as Mason continues to run at me. He's only about ten feet away. This next knife needs to hit him. However, a sinking feeling forms in the pit of my stomach as I realize something: my bag is empty. I'm all out of knives.
Mason rams into me and I fall to the ground. He pins me down with a menacing grin on his face. "Your time is up, Jessie," he whispers, holding his spear out in front of my face.
"Please," I plead as tears roll down my face. "M-make it quick. G-give my f-family a body to m-mourn over."
Mason looks at me, and the menacing grin disappears. Something in his eyes changes, and he looks at me with almost a look of sympathy. "Sorry, Jessie," he says. "But for me to win, you have to die."
Mason plunges the spear into my chest as I continue to sob. I can't believe it's over. My dismal life is over, but I don't want it to be. "I'm sorry, Mom and Dad," I choke out, just before everything goes black.
Alexandrite Dazzle (D1 F 17)
My force field keeps surrounding me as I walk through the rainforest. I've got to be nearing the clearing by now. My tree was only about a five minute's walk from it. Sure enough, within another minute, I start to see gaps between the trees. I also spot something else: a line of about fifteen alligator mutts surrounding the clearing. Normally, I would be worried, but my force field will protect me. Honestly, this force field is my lifeline right now. If I didn't keep that weight from the feast, I'd be dead.
"Boom."
I freeze as the sound of a cannon echoes throughout the arena. My head fills with a weird, numbing shock. I can't believe that either Mason or Jessie just died. I've been allied with the two of then since day one. It's hard to accept the fact that one of them is no longer living. If I had to guess, I'd say Jessie died, but I can't be certain. The mutts are pretty vicious, so I wouldn't be surprised if they managed to take out Mason.
Once I've regained my composure, I walk forward again, right at the clearing. The mutts I'm walking towards turn to face me, but as soon as they try to charge me, my force field knocks them out of the way. At last, I step into the clearing, but as I do this, something odd happens: my force field disappears. I panic for a second, wondering if the mutts are all going to rush at me. However, I quickly realize that they can't. Some sort of invisible barrier is preventing them from entering the clearing. I pull out my weight, which has returned to its normal black color, and drop it onto the ground. I don't need it anymore. I've made it to the site of the finale, and all I need to focus on now is my final battle in the arena.
I look up and scan the clearing, soon noticing that I'm not alone. Mason is sitting on the ground, about fifty feet away from me, wiping his bloody spear in the grass. There's a body on the ground next to him- a body that can only be Jessie's. Mason looks up at me and grins. "I guess this is it," he shouts over at me. "I always knew it would come down to the two of us."
"Me too," I say. Mason stands up, and I can't help but notice that he's bleeding in a few places; his shoulder, his arm, and his hand have all been noticeably wounded. It looks like Jessie went down swinging. Mason also seems pretty tired. He's breathing kind of heavily, and every step he takes is slower than the last. I think the playing field has finally become even. Right now, he may be more injured than I am, but Mason was certainly the front-runner at the beginning of the Games.
Mason pulls his bloody spear out of the grass. I drop my bag and grab my bow and arrows. Just like Mason said, this is it. In a matter of minutes, maybe even seconds, the Games will be over. I could make it back home, but first, I have to defeat one last enemy. I load an arrow onto my bow, and the battle begins.
The Fallen (1):
Jessie Harte (D2 F 14)
Killed by Mason. After she ran out of knives to throw, Mason tackled her to the ground and eventually put a spear through her chest.
Remaining Tributes (2):
D1:
Alexandrite Dazzle (D1 F 17)
{Annabeth-TheTributeThatLived}
D2:
Mason Riley (D2 M 18)
{Jms2}
Kills:
Mason: Ryland, Peter, Nylah, Eridan, Harvest, Jessie
Glint: Misty, Cobalt, Tadalynn, Lukas
Jessie: Jarvis, Aria, Cherry, Swirl
Alexandrite: Jennette, Rory, Mapelle
Sheldon: Marina, Osborn
Harvest: Sheldon, Glint
Swirl: Peyton
Alliances:
Alexandrite
Mason
It's hard to believe, but this fanfic has officially turned one year old! It's taken a lot longer than I expected to complete, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Next chapter will be the finale, and after two or three more wrap-up chapters, this fanfic will be over and the next one will finally begin!
Just a short(-ish) note on Jessie:
I had a lot of fun writing for Jessie, and in my opinion, she was a great tribute. Even though she received a lot of hate in the reviews, she actually scored pretty well in the polls, which is one of the reasons why she remained in the Games so long. She may have been a little Mary Sue-ish, but I didn't mind because it was really fun having a tribute who was either really loved or strongly hated by each individual reader; there was honestly no in between.
Even though we've finally made it to the final two, I still haven't decided on a victor! Seriously, I love both of these tributes, and this decision is kind of killing me. So, much to everyone's surprise, I'm sure, I've created another poll to aid in the decision-making. Also, heartfelt reviews don't hurt either, especially if you're a guest since the polls don't allow guest votes. Whatever you do, just make sure you hurry up because I plan to have the finale written as soon as possible. After all, the 127th Hunger Games are approaching.
As always, thanks for reading! :-)