Chapter Six - Beetee Latier

"No. No. NO! He can't do that. He can't. It's not possible. No!" I yell as I watch the events unfold in front of me.

Beetee Latier, the weak, small nobody, 17 year old tribute from District 3 has just won the 41st Hunger Games.

My colleagues are all frantically scrambling around me. No one expected this. He wasn't supposed to win. The girl from 1, she was supposed to win. She was the fan-favorite. Stunningly beautiful, strong and cunning. She killed 5 tributes alone in the bloodbath, a record for her District. Now she's gone. They're all gone. Only two of the other tributes still have somewhat good vitals. The boy from 4 is doing better than the girl from 7 but not by much. The other four's canons have already gone off. They're all goners. Except for Beetee. He's standing alone basking in the glory of what he's done. He's just expectantly waiting for Claudius' voice to fill the arena and announce him the winner. He knows he's won.

"Adericuss, President Snow wishes to speak with you. Immediately." says Mariska, my assistant.

I get up and head to Snow's private viewing quarters. I tell Mariska to do whatever she can to keep Connor from 4 and Renee from 7 alive.

"President Snow, how lovely to see you." I begin.

"Adericuss. Do you remember our deal?" he questions.

"Yes."

"Is that so? It seems you have forgotten. You have allowed for Jewel to be killed by the low life from 3. Jewel was supposed to win. "

"Yes sir. I remember. We ran into some unexpected circumstances."

"Unexpected circumstances. I see."

"Yes well we still have two very promising tributes that could be revived and win. We'd have to prolong the Games of course but nothing too difficult. We'd.."

"These Games will end today. And the boy from 3 will win them. We can't revive the other tributes. They're barely holding on. If you try to revive them, it will look like the Games are rigged. And we can't have that."

"Yes sir."

"The boy from 3 is smart. How he managed to electrocute the remaining six tributes at once is incredible. He'll become very useful in the coming years. You, Adericuss, you however do not seem so useful to me anymore."

"Sir, I am very.."

"I don't want excuses. You me the girl from 1 would win. She is now dead. And the boy from 3 will win. I can't make money off of him Adericuss. The girl would've brought in a fortune. We are dipping dangerously low into out soon to be non-existent funds for the Games. We don't have the money anymore. And if we stop the Games, the districts will think they've won. And if they've won, then the Capitol will cease to exist. And we can't have that now can we?"

"No sir, we can't."

"Now this is what you're going to do. Because you broke your deal to me, I should have you executed. Right now. But you have one remaining chance left. I like you Adericuss. I do. You have a mind that is almost too cunning to let go."

"Thank you sir."

"I said almost. Now go back in there and announce the boy as the winner. The girl has died and the boy is very close to death as well. Then you have the week while he is in recovery to make him a star. Make the citizens of the Capitol want him. He needs to become a true victor, someone the citizens will want to spend time with. Make up stories do whatever you have to do. If you can do that, I won't execute you. No, but you will become my personal Avox. However, if you do not deliver I will execute you and your family."

"I won't disappoint sir."

"I hope so. You are dismissed."

I leave and walk back to the Games headquarters. My colleagues report that the girl from 7 has died and the boy from 4 could make a weak recovery.

"We'd have to kill Beetee in some way, but the boy from 4 could make it. It wouldn't look good, but I already have my assistants spinning his new story." says Mariska.

"No, kill him. Beetee will win. Zeus, go inform Claudius of the winner and Yvette, get a canon ready." I reply.

"Yes sir." they reply and run to their stations.

The next week is filled with interviews. I appear of Caesar's show twice, proclaiming how amazing Beetee is. How smart he is. How he will be the Victor to beat in terms of cunning smarts. I generate a bit of interest. I give numerous magazine interviews. But by the time Saturday rolls around, the day of Beetee's Victor interview, I know I'm a goner. I have a few pledges from his sponsors but the amount of money pledged could maybe buy two tributes outfits for the next Games.

That night after the interview, I take my wife on a walk. We walk through the Capitol, through gardens strolling on the Avenues until we finally reach the old abandoned liquor store at the end of 47th street. It burned down years ago and no one comes to this part of town anymore. I quickly check for bugs and find none.

"Adericuss, you're scaring me. Please tell me what's going on." Gwendalyn pleads.

"Gwendalyn, honey, I'm in trouble with the President. I messed up during these last Games. I don't know what will happen to me. I want you to run away. Take the children and run to a district. Go to 12, they won't suspect you there. Or 1 or 2, you will fit in. Find a new man to marry and take on a new name."

"Adericuss, darling, you're overeacting. President Snow is a good kind man. He won't do anything to hurt you. Try reasoning with him." she says.

"You don't know the real President Snow." I mutter.

"Adericuss, I've been married to you for 6 years and you've always been nervous when it comes to the President. I don't know why. He will never do anything wrong. I'm sure you're just overthinking it."

"No darling. I'm serious. Please.."

"You're just overeacting. Lets go home darling." she says and heads towards the door.

The next two days go on as normal. Nothing happens. Maybe I was wrong. I think as I crawl into bed.

The door crashes open. I throw Gwendalyn off the bed and onto the floor. Peacekeepers rush in with their guns pointed. Gwendalyn is screaming with fear and one of the Peacekeepers runs up and grabs her. He takes her to the wall and handcuffs her. She still screams.

"What's going on?" I ask.

"Adericuss Debuntant. You have been charged with treason against the Capitol." the head Peacekeeper says.

"Treason? He hasn't committed treason. We're innocent. We've done nothing wrong." pleads Gwendalyn.

"Shut up." says Gwendalyn's captor.

"Don't speak to my wife that way!" I yell. I charge towards him ready to strike.

"One more step and she dies." says her captor. "I have orders to kill you both if you step out of line. I suggest you don't."

I stop. "What do you want?" I ask.

"Just come with us. " says the head peacekeeper.

I begin to scream again, but before I can the world goes black.

When I wake up, I'm lying on the floor. My hands are chained above my head to the floor. My forehead hurts. My arms hurt. Everything hurts. I'm not wearing anything but my underclothes and I can see blood. Lots of it. Dried on the floor around me. Dried on me. I try to talk but it hurts too much.

The metal door opens and the man begins to speak.

"Well Debuntant. You're awake. Just in time. Let's go."

He unchains me and yanks me up from the floor. I yelp in pain. He pushes me into a new room where 3 of the Games stylists are waiting for me.

"They're gonna fix you up. Sit down and stay quiet. No complaining. They're gonna make you nice and pretty for your date with the law." says the man. He shoves me down and leaves.

The stylists set to work. They don't speak except for the occasional "That won't go with your skintone" or "Maybe this shade instead.". Its silent from my end though.

After a few hours, they decide I'm presentable. They escort me to a small room with a stage at the back end. Its dark. They show me to my seat and I sit down. Then they leave the room and I'm left alone. After a few minutes, I hear footsteps. President Snow enters and walks towards me.

I rise to greet him, to beg for mercy but he stops me.

"No sit back down Adericuss."

I do as I'm told and he sits next to me. The lights come on stage and I see my wife trapped behind a glass wall of some sort. I can hear her but I know she's trying to scream.

"Gwendalyn! Gwendalyn!" I yell.

"She can't hear you Adericuss. Be quiet." the President says.

Some doctors begin to walk into the room behind the glass wall. They're bringing medical equipment and I suddenly know what they're planning to do to my wife.

"We talked to her and she knew nothing. She kept saying how sorry she was even though she didn't know what she had done. But I couldn't let her go home free of punishment. She was considered an accomplice. So she'll become an Avox."

"NO! YOU CAN'T DO THAT! SHE'S DONE NOTHING WRONG!" I yell.

"That's how the world works, Adericuss." and he gets up and leaves. I try to jump up and follow but he's sent his peacekeepers on me and they sit me down and restrain me and force me to watch my wife become a slave to Snow.

It takes 7 hours before the surgery is complete. I have to watch all of it. I'm sure that they dragged it out to make it more painful for the both of us.

When they finally finish, Gwendalyn looks as though she's about to lose consciousness. My peacekeeper releases me and I rush to the glass wall. It suddenly dissolves into thin air. I reach my wife and hold her.

"You have five minutes. Make it quick." says the peacekeeper. And he leaves to go stand gaurd at the back of the room.

"Gwendalyn, I'm so sorry. I made a deal with Snow. If I rigged the Games so the girl from 1 to win this year, then he'd allow me to keep my position as Head Gamemaker for three more years. And we needed the money so I took it. But I messed up. That Beetee kid somehow worked his way around the system and won. I'm so sorry."

I begin to cry and so does Gwendalyn. She hugs me and slips me a note. I look at her and she holds her finger to her lips in a shushing motion. I can hear the peacekeeper returning and I stuff the note in my pocket. He grabs me a drags me out of the room to a new room. It looks like the District One suite in the Tribute Center. I'm thrown in the room and I hear the door lock. I sit down on the couch and open the note.

"Dear Adericuss,

I don't know what is going to happen to you.. I know that you took a deal from Snow. I don't know the details but I know you did it to save our family. I love you Adericuss. I really truly do.

They took the children and put them in the room next to me. Then the next morning they took them and they never came back. They took our children and I think they killed them. They killed them! They've already told me that I'm to become an Avox. I know my fate now, and I've accepted it. My surgery is scheduled for tomorrow morning. I'm so sorry that I didn't listen to you that last night. I'm so so sorry.

I'll fight for our children and our freedom. I'll fight until I die. I see the Capitol and Snow they way you see it now. I understand.

Love, Gwendalyn."

I quickly stuff the note into my pocket again and wander around the room. I wander for days. They don't bring me food, just a glass of water each day. I don't sleep. I just wander around aimlessly. After the 72 hours of solitude, the guard comes back and grabs me.

He takes me to the same room where I saw Gwendalyn become an Avox. Only this time, I'm on the other side of the wall and Gwendalyn is sitting in the audience next to Snow.

They stand me in the center of the stage and a new peacekeeper comes out. He holds a gun. The reads out a list of my crimes against the Capitol and then kicks me to the floor.

"Any last words?" he asks.

I shake my head no.

"Fine." and he lifts his gun.

A/N: So, this chapter doesn't really tell Beetee's story per se, because I feel like since he's such a pivotal character in the books, and since his Games tactics are mentioned frequently, I thought I'd write about the Capitol. How the Games can destroy them too, just in a completely different way. I'm thinking I may continue Adericuss' story as a whole book by itself, but I'm not sure yet. Anyway, please review review review! I love hearing them! And be sure to vote in the poll on my profile as well! I added Beetee since his chapter is now up! :)