Jonathan Colton, 15

District 12 Male

Losing both my allies in the bloodbath was a blow I wasn't sure I'd ever recover from. Jeff and Spruce were my friends, and watching them die would haunt me for the rest of my time on this planet. As soon as I saw the boy from 6 go after Jeff, I knew he was done for. Ronald had already proved himself to be a capable killer. But I hadn't expected my district partner to mercilessly bury her ax into Spruce's skull.

After their deaths, I fled. I had no supplies, but I knew I had to get away from the carnage. I went in a direction that I later identified as north, following the gentle incline higher and higher into the arena.

My days had been spent beneath a tree, using a long stick to poke down the delicious fruits. They were oblong and green, flecked with orange, and had a strange, tangy taste. The insides were filled with little black seeds, but the orange flesh was delicious. I vaguely remembered them from my time at the edible plants station. They were either papayas or mangos, and they were definitely safe to eat. Or at least they were so far. But the fruit wasn't a long-term substitute for water. I wasn't dangerously dehydrated, but I was getting thirstier. I had to find water soon.

I'd been spending my nights inside an old log. There were a few mushrooms growing in the old bark, but I didn't dare eat them. I had no idea if they were safe and it wasn't worth the risk. And as the sun grew higher in the sky, I knew water was more of a priority.

I emerged from the cramped log and brushed the dirt and bark from my clothes. I'd been tucking my vest beneath my head at night, so I shrugged it back on and zipped it up. It was time for my expedition.

I used the long stick I found to poke down two more fruits. I tucked one away in my log and carried the other to eat while I walked. They made me sticky, but the nutrition was worth it.

I hiked for a while, but the arena wasn't sweltering hot today. The humid air still hung thickly though and I found myself longing for water. 'Soon', I promised my parched throat.

Eventually, the thick trees cleared a little and the ground became sandier. As I continued, new trees began to take over. They looked like regular trees at the top, with dark bark and long green fronds. But the roots stuck out of the ground and looked like long spider legs. But there had to be at least thirty of them, all buried deep in the sand. It gave me the creeps.

I hurried past them, but they were getting denser. I couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief when I pushed past the treeline and onto the rocky shore of a lake. It was bigger than I could comprehend; the horizon was just clear blue water. Small waves lapped at the shore and the water was sparkling.

Smiling for the first time since I entered the arena, I stripped down to my underwear and waded into the water. It was cold, but it felt wonderful compared to the heavy, heated air. I walked in deeper and then let myself float, washing away the sweat and sticky fruit.

Once I was thoroughly clean, I swam for a bit and then gulped down mouthfuls of cool water. In the back of my mind I knew it wasn't the healthiest decision, but I was too thirsty to care.

Finally, I emerged from the water. The same sense of unease washed over me as I looked up at the trees. Were they closer than before? I hurriedly pulled on my clothes, even though my body was still wet. The trees and their legs were freaking me out. I wanted to get away from there.

I'd just wrestled my shoes and socks back on when something lashed against my back. I cried out, dropping to my knees as red-hot pain flickered across my skin. I struggled to my feet as another loud crack rained down, this time on my shoulder.

Gasping in pain, I frantically turned around and found myself facing five trees. They were using their roots like legs, walking across the sand with surprising speed. One of them had their branch poised like a whip.

I couldn't help the scream that escaped my mouth. I tried to turn and flee back into the water, but a coil of wood wrapped around my waist and jerked me back. Another blow to the back of my head stopped my screaming and rocked me to my core. My vision grew blurry and I could feel blood dripping down the back of my neck.

Another tree grabbed my arm around the elbow and began to pull. Another scream was wrenched from my throat as my shoulder was pulled from its socket. I heard it pop and nearly vomited.

My legs were grabbed, as well as my other arm. No matter how hard I thrashed, the trees maintained their grip. My arms and legs were pulled past their breaking points as tears tracked down my cheeks. But eventually a numbness began to take over and I let my eyes flicker closed. Tears still fell, but I barely noticed. I pictured my mom's gentle smile and I knew I'd be with her soon. By the time the tree dealt the final blow, I was already gone.

Ebony Chaste, 18

District 7 Female

We all flinched at the sound of a cannon firing. It echoed against the Cornucopia and rang throughout the clearing. Evelyne reached for her bow and Marino snatched up a baton. But everything seemed still, except for the plants stirred by the breeze.

Victor relaxed first. He slumped back against the crate behind him and tossed his cards down. We were all admittedly a little sick of card games at this point, but I had a feeling none of us wanted to go out hunting. Ronald may have been the only one up for that, and he'd abandoned us. Which was probably for the best.

He was strong, but I didn't trust him. I appreciated his gumption, but he was the most likely to kill us all in our sleep. What a lame way to die.

Marino and Evelyne finally relaxed as well and I turned to look at where Ronald had vanished into the jungle. Each and every one of us were throwing everything at winning. That meant killing. And if I was truly honest with myself, I felt ready. I wasn't going to curl up and accept death.

Shaking the morbid thoughts away, I stretched my legs out in front of me and glanced at Marino. They'd proven to be a fun and useful ally, and I was glad they'd joined us.

"Now what?" I asked. 'I'm getting bored."

We all thought for a moment.

"I might do some archery practice," Evelyne said. She grabbed a quiver of arrows and went to the edge of the clearing, where she began to fire arrow after arrow into the bark.

"Well?" I asked, glancing at everyone else.

"We could dance," Marino suddenly suggested.

"We have no music," I pointed out. But I was already climbing to my feet, excited by the suggestion.

"I don't know how to dance," Jackson said. He stood up too. His ribs were improving day by day, and he said breathing was easier. But he still had a giant bruise on his side that was sensitive to the touch.

"It's easier with music," Marino admitted. "But there are some fun basic steps I could show you."

"Look!" Victor suddenly said. He pointed up, where two silver parachutes were descending from the sky. As they got closer, we heard the light pinging music of a sponsor gift.

Evelyne migrated back over as the boxes landed. One was lower and wider and the other was a nearly-perfect cube. That one had a '4' on it. The wider one had my name, which we opened first.

To our delight, it was filled with cupcakes. Five vanilla, three chocolate, and two that appeared to be red velvet. They smelled absolutely delicious and I felt my mouth water.

"Nice!" Jackson said excitedly. Even Victor had a smile on his face.

Before we dug in, Marino opened his gift. Inside was a black cube that appeared to be a stereo. The buttons on the front cycled through a series of popular Capitol pop songs. Marino laughed with delight and picked a song with a fun beat and silly lyrics. And as Victor and Evelyne ate their cupcakes and watched, Marino and I taught Jackson to dance.

Rain Barton, 13

District 5 Male

So far, the jungle was hot, humid, and boring. Nothing had happened except for my encounter with a large beetle that crawled onto my leg. It didn't do anything, but it wasn't pleasant.

I'd spent the last two days practicing with knots. I was already decent to begin with, but it was worth practicing and improving. Especially after what happened at the Cornucopia. My ego had taken a hit then, but I was recovering.

I'd also decided not to stay in one place. It was too easy to find me if I wasn't on the move. And there were always trees to climb when I was ready to sleep. Food was proving to be a bit of an issue though. I was getting hungrier and hungrier.

The stream I drank from earlier in the day was far behind me now, but at least I wasn't dehydrated. Now my stomach was starting to grumble.

"I know," I told it irritably. "I'm trying."

I was so caught up in my thoughts that I almost didn't notice the ledge I was approaching. I stopped just in time to avoid walking over a cliff. My mouth dropped open as I looked down the side. That would have been a deadly fall.

A small stream wound along the bottom of the ravine, and through the tall trees I could see the top of a stone structure. It would be a tough climb, but I'd spotted some bright fruits on the trees near the water.

Carefully, I began to pick my way down the cliffside. If I wasn't a skilled cat-climber, I would have fallen. But my thieving talents paid off and I reached the bottom unscathed. The nearest fruit tree had a sharp smell and its boughs were dropping with heavy oranges. I picked a few and wolfed them down, enjoying the burst of flavor on my tongue.

Once I'd eaten my fill, I put a few more in my bag of fishing hooks for later and began to walk upstream, towards the stone structure. It seemed to be a step pyramid of some kind, made from large blocks of gray stone.

I approached the base and stared up at it. It was almost as tall as the cliffside. This would be an excellent place to camp. But as I began my climb, I noticed a dusty footprint on the stone. Someone was already here.

It was larger than mine, so it was presumably an older tribute. And the only person I saw go this direction during the bloodbath was Beria. She had an ax and clearly wasn't afraid to kill, based on what she did to poor Spruce. She wasn't a threat to be taken lightly. But she also had a plethora of supplies…

Mind made up, I started to climb. I moved slowly and quietly, keeping my body low against the rocks. As I began to near the top, I heard a shout of rage. I increased my speed and poked my head over the final step.

Beria was fending off a small army of humanoid creatures. They looked like little people with dark hair and eyes. They were dressed in colorful robes and had fancy hats and sharp weapons. Beria was stomping and swinging her ax, but they just kept coming. They seemed to be pouring from a small hole in the rocks.

My eyes narrowed in on Beria's backpack. It was on the other side of the room, leaning against the wall under an open hole that served as a window. Perfect. I began to skirt around the base of the building, still keeping low so Beria wouldn't spot me. Once I reached the window, I leaned up and over and peered into the unzipped bag.

To my surprise, two of the creatures were crushing up crackers inside the bag. When I appeared, they looked at me in shock.

"Hi," I whispered. "I'm just here to steal some stuff. Don't mind me."

"We were here first," one of them said. "We've got dibs."

I looked up. Beria was making solid progress and I was worried she'd turn around. Without thinking, I scooped up the two little figures and crouched down outside the window.

"Look," I said, placing them gently on the ground. "I don't have very many supplies and I need to win the Hunger Games. So I have to steal from Beria." The two little women looked at each other.

"We will allow your theft… if you present a suitable offering."

I narrowed my eyes at them, but they didn't seem intimidated.

"I have fish hooks and some oranges," I told them. Their eyes widened.

"An orange will be acceptable," the other one said.

"Really? There are orange trees right over there!"

"We cannot leave the temple. We long for the fruits of the peninsula. Present us this gift, and we will assist you in your thievery."

"Oh," I said, surprised. "Okay." I grabbed two oranges from my bag and put them down. The women began to roll them back towards the temple entrance.

"Take from the bag," one called over her shoulder. "We shall provide a distraction."

"Don't mind if I do," I said with a smirk. Then I leaned back through the window and began to snatch some supplies.

Ronald Jones, 18

District 6 Male

Leaving my alliance was definitely the right decision. I was confident in that. I was the Conductor of Aggression. And I couldn't win the Games tied to those cowards. For the past few days, I'd been prowling through the jungle, looking for other tributes. But so far, my efforts were unsuccessful.

I was itching for a fight. Nothing interesting had happened for days. Earlier this morning, a cannon fired, which was the first sign of anything in ages. I figured I could search for food, but I had plenty in my backpack. My spears were sharpened. My water bottles were full… mostly. Maybe that was something I could do.

Searching for water wasn't really necessary, but I was bored out of my mind. I might as well do something. Heaving myself up from the rock where I was sitting, I grabbed my spears and set off.

I stomped through the undergrowth, not caring if I made noise. If someone spotted me, I'd kill them. As I hiked, sweat dripping down the back of my neck, I was growing more and more irritated. Maybe I should return to the Cornucopia, just to start a fight and maybe kill some of them. But Evelyne was good with a bow. Maybe it wasn't the best idea…

I continued charging through the jungle, but paused suddenly when I heard voices. They sounded feminine, and they were arguing. I slowed my pace and crept forward, gripping a spear tightly.

Peeking over a rock, I saw Lumine and Mira sitting beside a small pond. Lumine was just getting up, arms crossed. She looked annoyed, but took off in a different direction. Leaving Mira alone… I quietly set my backpack down and got into a throwing stance. If I got a spear into her, I'd immediately gain the upper hand in the fight.

Once Lumine had fully disappeared, I stood up and threw my weapon. Mira gasped as it sank deep into her upper arm. I rolled my eyes. That was a terrible throw. But I grabbed my next spear and vaulted over the rock as Mira ripped the weapon out of her arm.

I slashed deep into her chest as she tried to stand, leaning against the spear for support. She grit her teeth but didn't cry out, sweeping her leg and kicking my ankles. I stumbled back, managing to stay on my feet as she lunged.

Her spear pierced my arm this time, tearing through the tissue and muscle. She let out a fierce cry as she struck and alarm bells went off in my head. Lumine might come back. I kicked Mira in the knee and she staggered away, nearly falling.

We dueled back and forth for a bit longer, each trying to one-up the other. But Mira's strikes were slow and she looked dizzy. Finally, I hit her in the chest with the blunt end of the spear and knocked her back. She hit the rocks hard and propped herself up on her elbows, glaring at me. I raised my arm to deal the killing blow.

Suddenly, a heavy weight slammed into me from behind. I nearly fell on top of Mira, but managed to keep my footing. I spun around awkwardly and came face-to-face with Lumine, who was holding a large tree branch like a club. She swung it again and I blocked the blow with the shaft of the spear, but the force nearly knocked the weapon from my hand. She was stronger than she looked.

Lumine attacked again and I ducked under the swipe. I rammed my shoulder into her gut, knocking her back, and sank my spear into her thigh. She screamed, but managed to swing her makeshift club against my knee. Something inside shifted out of place and I groaned in pain.

Mira was getting up again, spear at the ready. Growling in frustration, I began to limp away. Mira threw her spear but it whistled past me, landing somewhere in the bushes. I managed to grab my backpack and rush off into the jungle, away from the Careers.

I was absolutely fuming! How could I have messed that up so terribly. They were injured, yes, but they should be dead! I was slipping. A mistake like this could never happen again.

Mira Marlina, 17

District 4 Female

I stared at the place where Ronald disappeared, a scowl on my face. I desperately wanted to follow him into the jungle and sink a spear into his back. But dizziness was already sweeping over me and I had to sit down or risk falling.

Sinking to my hands and knees, I braced myself against the stones and took deep breaths until the dizziness passed. Only then did Lumine's whimpers reach my ears, and I looked up at my ally.

She had a deep gash in her thigh and her pants and palms were red with blood. I awkwardly crawled over, slumping down beside her.

"How bad is it," I finally asked.

"I don't think he hit anything vital," Lumine replied, her voice small and scared. "But there's a lot of blood."

I examined her for a moment. Her cheeks were pale and her eyes were wide. Her breathing was coming too fast. If we didn't do something about her injury, I suspected she'd bleed out.

An annoying sense of responsibility came over me. Lumine saved my life. I owed her. So now I had to do something in return. So, with a loud groan, I hauled myself to my feet and went to find the spear I'd thrown. When I finally fished it out of a bush, I returned to Lumine.

"Take off your vest," I told her. "I need to cut it."

Lumine glanced at me out of the corner of her eye but complied. Using the spear, I awkwardly cut strips of cloth from the thick fabric and then tied the makeshift bandages around her leg wound.

When I was done, Lumine gripped my shoulder.

"Thank you," she said. Her voice was still soft, but there was a kinder element to it. I huffed.

"Don't get used to it," I snapped. Lumine sighed.

"You have a tough exterior," she commented. "But there is kindness in you. There is kindness in everyone. The Holy One knows that." She spoke the last sentence with a quieter voice.

"The Holy One?" I asked quietly, picking up on her subtlety.

"The Lord my religious sect believes in," she explained.

"You're religious? Is that even allowed?"

"As far as I know, yes. But there are only a few of us. We stay close because we are not always welcome."

"I know that feeling," I commented. "I doubt my parents even want me living with them."

"Why?" Lumine asked, her dark eyes wide with curiosity. I sighed. I'd opened this can of worms.

"I left to live with my boyfriend a little over a year ago. My parents felt betrayed by that. But he wasn't a good guy and so I came back home. I guess they were still hurt though."

"I'm sorry," Lumine said. "You didn't deserve that."

"Thanks."

Hi everyone! Yup, I'm back with another chapter. I have a lot of stressful stuff going on in my life right now so I'm writing a lot as a distraction. I'm also avoiding writing the Hopeless finale, since it'll be really sad... But anyways, here is a very eventful chapter! I hope you enjoy it, since there was a lot of action and some longer POVs (and some shorter ones... oops).

And to those of you who guessed the structure Beria found was a Mayan temple - you were correct! I set the arena in southern Mexico. I have a lot of fun mutts planned that are based on Mayan myths, which Rain and Beria have encountered. Would you guys like it if I told you what creatures the mutts are based on as they show up? Or would you rather it remain a secret?

Questions

1) Were you expecting Jonathan to be the next to go? If not, who?

2) Will Rain's "alliance" with the small people last?

3) Did Ronald make the right decision in retreating?

4) Who do you think will die next?

5) Who would you like to hear from next chapter?

Eulogies

15th: Jonathan Colton (killed by walking tree mutts)

RIP Jonathan. You were a good, friendly guy and a hard worker, but the Games were not your place to shine. I knew you wouldn't last long after losing both your allies, and I'm sorry your death was so painful. You're with your mom now. Thank you AmericanPi (and I promise Jackson will be around for a while longer!)

Alliances

Save Me:
- Lumine
- Mira

Cornucopia Gang:
- Evelyne
- Marino
- Jackson
- Ebony
- Victor

Manipulation Station:
- Hugo
- Zeppelina
- Vasir

Loners:
- Rain
- Ronald
- Ada
- Beria

Have a nice day, be kind to each other, and never stop reading!

- Fiona