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~~(O)(O)(O)(O)(O)(O)(O)~~
Author's Notes:
Triage: This chapter was very emotional and meaningful to me. Hope you all enjoy it. Please read and review.
Zevoros: Special thanks to Evie Rose and Team Shadow! Additional thanks to CragmiteBlaster.
Penelope's Web
Chapter 8
Bleeding Threads
Gadget's heart pounded so hard against her chest. She could barely breathe.
He…he's…
Gadget swallowed her dry throat. Her legs felt like floppy disks and she had to fight to stabilize herself.
Gone.
She blinked away the brightness from the sun and her vision was quick to adjust as the elevator tube pushed her up and she was on a pedestal with no covering. She gazed around the surrounding area of the Cornucopia with scared, dead eyes.
The silver Cornucopia was at the center of the clearing, decorated with all kinds of weapons and materials. Backpacks were everywhere, and Gadget knew that the better packs were closer to the Cornucopia than to the pedestals.
But everything beyond the Cornucopia was forest. A treeline to disappear beyond.
Gadget felt any chance of survival dwindling by the second. She'd hoped for something urban. Like home. Something that could give her a higher chance.
But she had none.
"Ladies and gentlemen," the voice of Claudius Templesmith boomed, and Gadget squeaked and caught her scream. "Let the 74th Hunger Games begin!"
Above the Cornucopia, a number lit up. Sixty, it read. Then fifty-nine. Fifty-eight.
For one more minute, Gadget was safe.
For one more minute, she couldn't be touched.
For one minute only…
She felt her eyes water and she scrubbed them away with her arm. She couldn't afford to show that kind of weakness here.
It was like Syncis said. As soon as the countdown ended, the sparks will fly.
I can run, Gadget told herself. She glanced over her shoulder into the treeline. She could run and not look back. It was the only way she could guarantee her safety.
She looked back at the supplies ahead of her.
But those were the only way to guarantee she could survive off food and water. Gadget didn't know anything about the arena. Everything could be poisonous. It wasn't unheard of for the Gamemakers to do something like that.
Spears and swords. Bows and arrows. Food and water. And all kinds of other weapons. All kinds of useful, hopeful things to draw them in.
Forty seconds left.
Gadget took a deep breath and glanced to her right. Husk, fists clenched, and feet prepared into a sprint, stood, his stare focused on what was in front of him.
He had told her he wouldn't harm her in the Bloodbath, but seeing him now, she wasn't so sure. He could go back on his word so easily.
So easily.
Beyond him was Peeta, who she saw shake his head at Katniss, who looked to be frowning, but Gadget couldn't be sure at the distance.
Jason was right next to Cato, whose eyes were locked on him. He ardently refused to look back.
Gadget hoped he would be able to evade Cato. Maybe by running off into the woods. It would probably be his best chance.
Like I should.
Thirty seconds.
Gadget looked despairingly at the Cornucopia. Those supplies were her best chance. Her only chance. Nobody would want to help her or sponsor her otherwise.
Syncis told her to run away.
I can't, Gadget thought. She moved into position. It was the only thing she could do. I'm going to die anyway.
Gadget glanced longingly off the side of her pedestal. She could leave it. Let herself fall and it would all be over. A quick way to die. And one that wouldn't be torturous like what the Careers could do.
But Septimius, Beetee, and Wiress believed in her. They were the first people to ever believe in her. Will they be sad when I die? Gadget wondered.
Twenty seconds.
Oh no. Oh…
Closer and closer it was now. In a few minutes she would be dead. Among the Bloodbath's dead.
She hoped it would be painless. That was all she wanted.
The Careers looked so eager to begin the killing.
Her vision spun and she let out a shaky breath. Her dad. The Careers. Burgundy. Seneca Crane. Mortimer.
It was too much. It's too much.
To Gadget's left, she saw Binary. He glared daggers at her with such vitriolic hate that Gadget would've been surprised had it been anyone else.
What is he planning? Gadget wondered. He couldn't kill her himself. It was taboo for him to kill his district partner. Even if everyone hated her, Binary wouldn't be forgiven for it.
He would be left just like her.
Binary would have to manipulate someone else into killing her.
Gadget shivered and looked away. Was there any doubt at all about what was about to happen?
Ten.
Lace and Corduroy would be all alone without her. But Gadget just weighed them down.
Nine.
They could do better without her. They wouldn't miss her.
Eight.
And neither would her mentors or Septimius. Their words were pretty, but they were a waste of air.
Seven.
All Gadget amounted to was a pawn in the Games. In someone else's survival. She had nothing.
Six.
Nobody wanted her to win at home. No one except for Syncis, but she didn't think he particularly cared, either.
Five.
Gadget glanced down at where the landmines were one last time. She couldn't do it. She didn't have what it took.
Four.
The Cornucopia held everything she could use to survive. All except for safety, but what did that matter anymore?
Three.
Supplies and things to build. It would have everything she needed to impress sponsors. The only weapon she could wield.
Two.
She wouldn't last long. The Careers, or anyone else, would kill her without a second thought, which was less than she deserved.
One.
There, just a bit in front of her, was a loaf of bread. It wasn't enough, but it was a start.
Whatever smarts I have won't be enough.
The gong rang out, and the Hunger Games began.
Gadget flew off her pedestal into a sprint in the direction of the Cornucopia. Her mind screamed at her to turn around and go the other way, but she couldn't. She had no other option.
She could feel the ground dig into the soles of her feet. The other tributes were already moving along with her. Some faster than others, all towards the plentiful supplies.
Gadget had little time to check her surroundings, but she glanced behind her anyway. Relief flooded her as she saw Corduroy disappear past the treeline. He was safe. For now.
At least he wouldn't see what was going to happen to her.
But…Lace would.
Gadget skidded to a stop to pluck up the loaf of bread she'd spotted. She wrapped her hand around it and whipped herself about to quickly examine her surroundings.
One of the Careers, Marvel, had reached the Cornucopia center quickly, and obtained an oddly inverted medium knife, a kukri, if she remembered her weapons correctly. He was now looking around hungrily, but the smarter tributes gave him a wide berth.
He was looking over towards the woods, where Gadget had seen Corduroy disappear into. But a moment later, he wheeled around, and smiled when he saw Katniss sprinting past. She was trying to grab a pack from the farthest point of the Cornucopia, but she froze when she saw Marvel barreling right into her.
He tackled her hard, wrapping his left arm around her waist and knocking her down. Pinning her with his knee, he raised his right hand and slammed it down.
Katniss barely saved herself from death by grasping at his wrist. Her other hand was busy trying to dislodge his knee on her stomach.
Marvel pulled out his hand from under her waist and used it to add weight as he just pressed his attack, a manic gleam in his eyes.
The girl cried out furiously, and struggled to shift her body one way or another, and the kukri drew ever closer towards her chest, right over her heart. Marvel had her beat in weight and brute strength, and a few seconds later, the blade pierced her chest.
Her eyes went wide, her lips parted in a noiseless scream of terror, fury and finally, defeat.
She couldn't even gasp, and as her eyes slowly fell shut, Gadget saw Katniss' lips moving, seemingly saying a name that looked like it spelled "Prim."
She remembered Katniss volunteered on her sister's behalf. Prim was now bereft of her older sister, her act of volunteering a sacrifice that cost her her life.
Marvel shouted, "YES!" and stood up quickly, violently ranking his kukri free of the corpse, and was already looking around again.
This all happened in mere seconds. All around, similar scenes were playing out. Gadget almost saw it all in slow motion. Perhaps due to her own mortality catching up to her.
Into the fray of the Bloodbath. Gadget looked frantically for Lace, but she saw no trace of her. Wherever Lace was, it wasn't near the Cornucopia. At least, not anymore.
There!
A backpack, untouched by the other tributes, lay on the ground. It looked bulky enough.
Gadget scrambled into a mad dash for it and ducked her arm low to grab it into her hand.
She looked up just in time to see a fist hurtling towards her face.
"Ah!" Gadget screamed when it connected, and she collapsed on her back, the loaf of bread and backpack tumbling free.
Her cheek throbbed in pain. She had been foolish to not take the less painful out.
Above her stood Elm, his face morphed in manic insanity, and his eyes stared down at her impassively.
In his hands was a spear. The same weapon she'd seen Marvel's proficiency in during training.
This was it, then.
The end of her life.
"J-just make it q-q-quick," Gadget pleaded. Wasn't this what she wanted? She didn't have it in her to step off her platform when she had the opportunity, and now someone else would do it for her.
"Giving up, Three?" Elm asked as he hovered close. "Trying to take the coward's way out?"
Gadget stared at the spear as he stepped closer and closer. She'd been dead before the Games even began.
She was scared. So, so scared of dying.
But she welcomed it.
The agony would be short. It wouldn't last long. And then it would all be over.
Gadget knew she was a dead girl walking, anyway. She had known it the second she was reaped.
Nobody would miss her. Nobody except for Syncis, but he would learn to get over it. It wouldn't take long for him to forget her.
"I-I-" Gadget stuttered and Elm shook his head and raised the spear high.
Her heart spiked and Gadget shut her eyes heavily. She whimpered and prepared for the stabbing blow.
However, his spear didn't skewer her.
Elm screamed suddenly and Gadget blinked up at him.
His head was turned at an angle, trying to look behind himself, but Gadget could see what had happened to him.
Slowly, he gazed down in horror at the blade of a curved single-edged sword sticking out of his chest. Blood and ichor dripped down.
Just as suddenly as it had been thrust into him, it was wrenched out, causing Elm to let out a strangled gasp. His body jerked once, twice, his parted lips struggled to draw breath, and then his eyes rolled up and he was pitching forward, aided by the hard kick in the back by Thresh, his killer.
Gadget, so shocked by the turn of events, and her fate, did nothing except collapse back as Elm fell on top of her, already dead.
Her own dead eyes stared blankly to the sky, unblinking, mouth agape in perpetual horror. Thresh moved closer with a snarl, weapon held ready to strike again, but after seeing no reaction from the girl, he nodded, looked around quickly, and ran, holding his weapon in one hand and two packs in the other.
I should be dead!
Thresh was gone as quickly as he had come, and Gadget began to squirm under the dead body of the boy thrown on top of her.
Just a little bit further. Just a tiny bit away from her were all the good supplies. All the things she needed in order to survive.
Gadget stopped.
But the second she moved for them, somebody would kill her. Spill her guts over the grass.
She hesitated, and then winced as a scream filled the clearing.
Gadget looked to her side and watched in stupefied terror as Marina and Husk clashed blades. The former with a serrated sword and the latter with a sickle.
Gadget hoped Husk could win. One less Career meant just a little less danger. Which meant that she could come out alive.
But her hope was in vain.
Marina was better than Husk. She was a Career, after all. And Husk had a limp that slowed his movements down.
Marina feigned a dive to her left and Husk quickly moved to block the strike. But then Marina went right and slashed her sword down through Husk's leg.
"Agh!" Husk cried in distress, and fell to his back. But his sickle remained firmly in hand.
He swiped at Marina even from his back, though Marina dodged out of the way just in time.
"Just die, Ten!" Marina screamed, and she thrust her blade down into Husk's chest.
Husk screamed again and he swung his sickle again at her.
However, Marina was faster.
She'd withdrawn her blade, which made a sickening wet noise as it was wrenched free. She caught his hand with her foot, and his sickle finally loosened from his grip.
"Die!" Marina screamed again with a firm downward thrust of her sword into Husk's chest.
Husk howled in what Gadget only knew was pure agony. This was too much!
Marina pulled her blade out and stared down at her victim. But Husk hadn't stopped yet. He wriggled under her and Gadget watched as he tried in vain to crawl away.
"For Panem's sake…" Marina said, with a hint of weariness in her tone, Gadget noticed, despite her own fright.
Marina threw her blade into Husk's stomach, and Gadget had to swallow her scream as she watched Husk's intestines pull out with Marina's sword.
Husk groaned. He was too agonized to even make much of a sound anymore.
Gadget whimpered, but nobody heard it, to her relief.
"Won't you just die!" Marina said, but this time there was something Gadget hadn't expected. A plea.
Husk said something Gadget couldn't hear. His hands clutched desperately at himself, like he was trying to shove his intestines back inside his body.
But the blade slammed back down into Husk, and Gadget could do nothing but watch as it practically split him open.
At last, Husk's head fell back and his hands slackened against the ground.
He was dead.
Gadget wanted to retch.
Marina withdrew her sword, Husk's insides clutching to it tightly. She wasted no time in shaking them off before she twisted around in search of her next victim.
Right for Gadget.
Please…no…
She was going to get the same fate Husk had gotten. The same brutal fate that left him dead. Guts torn from his body.
Gadget didn't want that. How could anyone? She didn't want to die so painfully.
She wanted to die a painless death. Not…not like that.
But she would have no choice in the matter, and Gadget closed her eyes tightly.
She prepared for Marina's sword to pierce her.
Marina's footsteps drew closer and closer…
And then they stepped over her and faded into the screams of the other tributes. She was gone.
What?
Marina ignored her.
They must think I'm already dead.
Gadget had no inclination to correct them. Not here of all places.
The blood of Elm dribbled down onto her and Gadget realized that they must've thought it was her blood. That must've been what Thresh thought. Why he didn't kill her. So paralyzed by fear that he'd mistaken her for dead.
But the screams wouldn't stop. Gadget froze as she heard the sickening sound of something sharp tear through someone's body.
"Shit," someone cursed near her. A voice Gadget couldn't forget if she tried.
Binary was still here. Why? Why hadn't he run yet? There were fewer people here now, Gadget could tell. The screams had dimmed and were being replaced slowly with Marvel's whoops and cheers.
"There's one," Binary muttered, and she heard his frantic movements above her. Then the sound of something being picked up around her.
Give nothing away, Gadget thought furiously to herself. Whether or not the taboo was in place, she had no doubt in her mind that Binary wouldn't hesitate to kill her if he had the chance.
If he knew she was still alive.
"Wait…" she heard Binary say. Then his footsteps got closer. "Gadget. I thought that was you."
He doesn't know. Gadget had to remind herself. She was completely still. There shouldn't be any sign of her still being alive, surely.
But Binary seemed to be contemplating something. She heard a spear stick into the ground - the same spear Elm had used, she realized - and Binary crouched down beside her.
"I don't think you'll be needing this bread anymore. You're dead, after all."
He knows!
How could he have time to be cruel to her even here in the Bloodbath? Shouldn't he be running!?
Gadget didn't dare look. No matter how much she wanted to. But she heard him sling a pack over his shoulder, and the thud of a spear into the ground next to her.
He had two weapons now. Elm's spear and a spear of his own. She knew it just from listening intently as she was.
He couldn't kill her! He couldn't! He would be just like her if he did. Hated by everyone at home. An outcast, just like she was.
But after the things she said yesterday…
Someone screamed distantly.
"There you are!" Cato roared and Gadget hid her wince.
There were so many things happening all at once. Who was still here? How many people were there dead around her?
And…and…
"Don't!" Jason cried out and Gadget hid her frown. He hadn't run away after all.
"I told you what I was gonna do, Six," Cato snarled. Like an animal.
Gadget couldn't see it. But she heard it.
Jason screamed louder than before and Gadget heard a blade of some kind meet flesh and cut through it.
"No!" Jason screamed. He sounded like he was in tears.
"That could be you, Gadget," Binary whispered suddenly.
Gadget felt her heart stop.
He didn't have to kill her. He just had to alert the Careers to her presence. He just had to let them know that she was still alive.
Gadget shook her head minutely. Please don't.
"There you are," Binary said. The very same words Cato had just said.
"Crying, Jason?" Cato mocked. "Should've expected nothing else from a crybaby like you."
"I just want-" Jason started, but the sound of another slash cut him off. The terrible sound of skin tearing over a blade.
Jason made a horrible gurgling sound.
Binary leaned closer to Gadget. "You would deserve it after what you said last night. Wouldn't you?"
Gadget didn't say anything. She wouldn't move any more than she had to.
She heard Binary let out a sigh and his pointed part of his spear pressed into her side softly.
Gadget whimpered.
"Or I could do it myself for what you did."
"This is what happens when you steal something that doesn't belong to you!" Cato said, sounding to Gadget very much like he enjoyed whatever misery he was inflicting.
"Y-y-you can't," Gadget whispered softly.
"Can't I?" Binary asked. The spear pressed into her harder and Gadget fought hard to contain herself. Because no matter how much she wanted to, she couldn't run away.
"Th-the taboo," Gadget said, and the spear pressed even harder. She let out a soft gasp.
"Enlighten me," Binary whispered coldly.
"You'll b-b-be jus-just li-like me," Gadget stuttered frantically. She didn't want to die like this. Not so painfully like Husk or…or Jason…
"Mom…I'm sorry…I'm sorry…" Jason repeated over and over. "I'll be okay…"
Blood pounded in Gadget's ears so heavily.
Cato ripped his blade into Jason again and again with sickening sounds as it sliced into him, tearing away at him and Gadget didn't need to look to know that his blood was thrown in every direction.
They both should have run.
The spear in Gadget's side left at last.
Binary's head ducked down close to Gadget's ear, and she shivered as he whispered, "You owe me."
Then, like all the others, Binary was gone. He left her all alone with the few tributes that remained alive in the Cornucopia.
Maybe someone had managed to kill one of the Careers? Gadget could only hope.
Her muscles begged for her to move. She was never comfortable staying still for too long. Every part of her wanted to move, if only slightly.
But Gadget couldn't do that. The slightest movement could and would give away to whoever was around her that she was still alive.
She could barely breathe as it was.
"You owe me."
What did that mean? What was Binary planning to do to her?
Gadget didn't know if she wanted to find out.
She couldn't hear much within the Cornucopia anymore. Everyone had fled in all sorts of different directions.
Gadget wished she had been one of them.
Would it ever end?
How many of them were still left?
"Wait! Wait!" Gadget heard Monkshood yell. She sounded so scared.
"'Wait!'" Glimmer mocked. Was that who had cornered Monkshood?
"Don'!" Monkshood yelled. "I can help you!"
"Oh, you can help us, can you?" Glimmer asked. "Well, look who's here on the ground, begging."
"You ain't listenin'," Monkshood said. Gadget heard her move desperately on the grass, scooting backwards.
"Oh, why would I need to listen to someone as weak as you?" Glimmer asked. "Why would I listen to what you have to say?"
"Jus' listen!" Monkshood begged and pleaded. She sounded truly scared. Gadget could relate.
Glimmer groaned. "Fine. We're all out of tributes anyway. So let's hear it, Ten."
"District Ten?" Marina's voice rang out. Gadget could hear her steps as she walked around the Cornucopia. "Guess what I did, District Ten."
Monkshood said nothing. Gadget could picture clearly in her head just how paralyzed by fear she was.
"I killed your partner," Marina said. "Think we should finish off the Tens?"
"Oh, I want to," Glimmer said. "But she is just so insistent we hear her out first."
"She's an outlier. What could she possibly offer?" That was Clove. "My knives are eager to claim another kill."
"Jus' hold on!" Monkshood said pleadingly. "I can help you!" she said again.
"You're boring me," Clove said flatly. "I think I'll kill you now."
"I know where Ridley is!" Monkshood said suddenly.
"What?"
How could one sound so displeased and eager at the same time? Gadget was unsure, but Marina managed it.
"Yeah," Monkshood said. "He's still 'ere. He never left. Was his plan."
"Was it now?" Marina sounded so very eager.
"Where?" Cato had joined them. His voice was demanding, menacing. The leader of the Pack.
"The Cornucopia," Monkshood told them.
How could someone sell out their ally so thoroughly? Would it happen to Gadget? She tried not to think about it, but it was hard.
Cato's steps were loud even against the grassy plain. His steps neared her, closer and closer.
Gadget held her breath. If he noticed even the slightest thing wrong, he would kill her without hesitation. And he would make her suffer.
She shouldn't have done this. She should've stepped off the platform. She didn't want to die like this.
Closer and closer Cato came.
I'm dead…he'll notice me. Binary noticed me and so will he!
Cato stopped suddenly. Right above her.
He notices me!
Gadget's mind screamed at her to run. She knew she wouldn't make it three steps, though, before she would be cut down. There was nothing she could do in the face of cruelty like this.
"If you're lying," Cato said, "then you're dead."
"You're gonna kill me anyway," Monkshood said back, and although Gadget could hear traces of fear in her voice, it had lessened dramatically.
Glimmer made a snort of derision. Gadget could only imagine the torturous pain that she wanted to put on Monkshood.
Or on Gadget.
Cato scoffed. He didn't move for a long moment.
This was where he killed her. This was where he dropped the charade and cut her to pieces like he did to Jason.
This was the end of her life.
But then Cato continued walking, and Gadget had to force down the sigh of relief.
Then two things happened at once.
The first was a sudden rush of footsteps from the Cornucopia, and Gadget knew then that Monkshood had told the truth. She'd completely sold out Ridley.
The second was the sound of someone's foot slamming hard into the chest of Glimmer, causing her to stumble as a loud gasp came through her lips.
Gadget listened intently as Monkshood rolled to her feet and broke into a sprint.
"Get her!" Clove shouted.
"Monkshood! You traitor!" Ridley yelled despairingly. And then Gadget heard that terrible sound again. The sound of steel cutting through flesh.
Gadget didn't need to look to know that Ridley collapsed. She heard him choke on his own blood, and his kicking movements against the crates inside the Cornucopia.
"Leave her!" Cato ordered.
"But Cato-" Glimmer whined, having gotten back up to her feet.
"She's a nobody. She won't last long," Cato said casually. Like he hadn't just cut Ridley's throat out. "And if she does, we kill her then."
Clove made a sound of annoyance. "You're lucky I like you, Cato. Anybody else I would have skinned alive."
Gadget suppressed her disgusted shiver.
"Is that how you Twos flirt?" Marvel asked. He had said nothing until that point and Gadget had hoped he had died in the Bloodbath.
Her hope was for naught.
Gadget heard Cato move around a bit more. Something clattered to the floor.
"This is perfect." Gadget heard Cato speak. "Nothing like these weapons for outliers. But a sword."
"You trying to say my spears are for outliers?" Marvel asked with faux offense.
"Yeah, that's what I'm saying," Cato said. "This is the perfect weapon to finish off a Bloodbath with."
"Hold on!" Marina said frantically.
Then the Careers quieted. The only sound to fill the clearing was Ridley's strangled choking.
"Let him suffer," Marina said viciously. "Let him bleed."
"Someone's not afraid of the taboo," Marvel commented.
Marina let out a single harsh laugh. "Ridley's already made my district hate me. I couldn't care anymore what they think of me."
Ridley makes a devastating choking sound, sucking in for breath that would never come.
"How many kills do you have?" Cato asked nonchalantly.
How could he be so normal when someone was dying because of him?
Gadget swallowed.
"Two," Marvel said proudly.
"One," Marina said neutrally.
"Just one," Glimmer said snootily.
Clove didn't say anything for a long while. Gadget could almost feel her annoyance from where she lied.
"One," Clove finally said in a clipped tone.
"Three," Cato said smugly. "You need to bring up your game."
How do they talk so casually about this?
"We have time," Marina said. "That assfish from Ten wouldn't die. Really slowed me down."
"Maybe you should've used one of these babies," Marvel said. "Better than that tiny thing you've been using."
"Is that what you're going with?" Clove asked, ignoring Marvel. "He 'slowed you down'?"
Cato made a tsk tsk sound. "Like you did any better, Clover."
"Don't call me that," Clove said dangerously, icily. "Unless you want to see your insides on the outside."
"You'll miss," Cato said, bored.
"I never miss," Clove countered.
Ridley gargled on his blood. Gadget hid her wince and grimace as she heard him spit out a wad of blood.
"Four is starting to really annoy me," Clove said lowly. "I think I'll add one more kill under my belt."
"I want him to suffer," Marina said sharply.
"And I want him dead. Now," Clove replied coldly. Gadget heard shallow footsteps. "Don't forget your place, Marina."
Clove said it so coldly. So scarily that Gadget had to suppress her shudder. Marina said nothing in response and Gadget wondered why she hated her district partner so much.
What had she meant that Ridley made her district hate her?
There was a wet crunch, accompanied by a gurgled protest, a second wet pierce, and complete silence.
"He still suffered." Clove said blandly. "Happy?"
Marina made a sound of something unpleasant, but she said nothing in return.
"You stole my kill," Cato said, but he didn't sound as angry as Gadget expected. He sounded…amused. "That puts me down to two."
"Should've been faster, Cato," Clove said. She almost sounded playful.
Was this how Careers bonded? Counting their kills? Comparing them?
"Nice," Marvel said. "You girls are gonna need to keep up with us. Think you can do that?"
"No doubt about it," Glimmer replied. "This was just a warm up."
"Oh yeah?" Marvel asked.
"Yeah," Glimmer responded. She made a pouting noise. "You doubt me, Marvel?"
Gadget could picture vividly in her head Glimmer throwing her blonde hair over her shoulder as she stared at her partner.
"Doubt you?" Marvel repeated with an exaggerated gasp. "Never!"
Glimmer giggled. "Good."
The Cornucopia went quiet for a moment.
Then it was Marvel that broke the silence.
"So what's the plan, Cato? When are we goin' hunting for the rest of the fodder?" he asked.
"After the cannons fire," Clove said coldly. "The best part of the Games is over, and I haven't killed enough of them yet."
Cato chuckled. "We'll go hunting soon. But we need to reorganize this stuff first." A pause. "Your kill count won't be as high as mine, Clove."
"We'll see." A light step. "May the best Career win."
It was all so casual. Remarkably casual in spite of the nature of their conversation.
Killing people.
Gadget stopped herself from swallowing. The opportunity to run away seemed to slowly dwindle before her eyes. The longer she stayed…the Careers would find out she was still alive soon.
She couldn't be here, unmoving, forever.
She needed to get to Corduroy and Lace. Gadget was confident they were still alive. They didn't make the same mistake she had.
There were so many dead people around here. Corpses of people she had known, if only briefly, in the past few days. They were alive just a day ago. And now they were dead.
Dead. Just like how she should be. And yet she still lived. Yet she remained alive.
How much longer do I have?
Someone stepped closer to Gadget and she fought to keep her expression neutral and blank.
The smallest sign would give her away.
"Which one of you killed this one?" Marvel asked. His voice took on a serious note. One that had been absent from him until that very moment.
"Who?" Glimmer asked.
"The District Three girl," Marvel said, and Gadget heard him bend down next to her. His presence right beside her.
The other Careers denied killing her. Gadget's heart thumped hard against her chest and she held her breath tightly. If Marvel checked her pulse, he would know. If he saw the rise and fall of her chest, he would know.
Elm's corpse slid off her body and Gadget did everything she could to give nothing away.
She forcefully pushed down the urge to shake in terror.
Burgundy…he told Marvel to keep her alive. And now she was 'dead'. What would happen if he figured it out? Would he ignore the order of his mentor?
Gadget felt a tug on her hair and swallowed her gasp of pain. Marvel pulled her up into a sitting position awkwardly. Her head lolled around on her shoulders.
He's going to notice! He's going to kill me!
"None of you?" Marvel asked. His voice was serious and booked no room for arguments of any kind. It was nothing like the carefree attitude from before.
"I think I would remember killing her," Clove said plainly.
They were all looking at her.
No movements, Gadget.
They would show her no mercy.
"Was probably one of those outliers," Cato said. "We're not the only ones that can kill."
"We're just better at it," Clove added callously.
"Exactly," Cato responded.
Do nothing, Gadget. Don't let them see you breathe!
A muscle twitch. That's all it would take.
Marvel didn't say anything for a long moment. And then, under his breath, "Fucking shit."
He did not sound pleased at all.
Gadget was thrown to the side with such suddenness she could have gasped. Her face met the grass hard. But she didn't dare make a sound, or movement.
He hasn't seen anything. He still thinks I'm dead.
"What's your problem?" Cato asked.
"Nothing," Marvel lied. "She's allied with that Eight bastard. Wanted to teach him a lesson."
"You'll get that chance," Cato said. "If I don't beat you to him first, anyway."
"Oho," Marvel said eagerly, his previous woes apparently forgotten. It could've given Gadget whiplash. "You're on!"
Gadget wanted to be sick. Not Corduroy…Corduroy doesn't deserve it.
Glimmer scoffed. "'Cheaters'," she spat with vitriolic hate.
Clove chuckled sinisterly. "I'm itching to stab someone. He's m-"
Boom!
The Careers quieted as the first cannon sounded. The Bloodbath was officially over.
Boom!
Boom!
Is Corduroy or…or Lace a part of those cannons?
Boom!
Gadget didn't have any real way of knowing. Not until that night and their faces would light up in the sky.
If she lived that long to see it.
Boom!
Which of those cannons belongs to Katniss? Elm or Husk? Or what about Jason and Ridley?
Boom!
Boom!
Who else was dead? Which ones of them-
Gadget stopped herself from throwing up. It was hard to think about. These Careers…they enjoyed killing all of these people.
Boom!
Just like how she was.
Boom!
The last cannon fired and silence returned to the Cornucopia.
Gadget's blood went cold. That was nine cannons. Nine. And the Careers had said that…they had managed to kill eight of them…
If they put the pieces together, they would know. They would know that someone here wasn't dead.
They would find her!
"Nine," Cato said. "Not bad. But it could've been better."
"Nice," Marina snarked. "If you'd let us kill that cowgirl then it would've been ten-"
Cato made a movement and Gadget could hear the swing of a sword cutting through air, and Marina went quiet.
"You're starting to really try my patience, Marina," Cato said. Gadget could hear the simmering rage just below the surface. "Remember that you're on the bottom rung of the Pack."
Marina mumbled something, and Cato's sneer could be heard through his tone, "What was that?"
"I said okay...I got it…" Marina bit out sullenly.
"Good." Cato said, and Gadget guessed he lowered his blade.
At that moment, Gadget idly remembered Marina calling her Longfin, and offering her mercy if she survived the Bloodbath.
Well…she was alive...though pretending to be dead.
How many tributes tried such a trick? Though they actually did so intentionally. For Gadget, it was a random stroke of luck. Something she'd rarely experienced in her life. Binary sparing her, Thresh not checking more closely after killing Elm to realize that she wasn't dead...Marvel, holding her limp body and not once thinking to check her pulse.
It was...terrifying.
There were so many different things that could go wrong. So many different things that could give her away.
Or this was just building up her hope unnecessarily just to give her a more devastating ending. She didn't put it past the Gamemakers to make tributes suffer to ramp up entertainment value.
What was it Seneca Crane said to her? And also in his interview? He talked about the story…
"So tell us, Ms. Trevelyan. Something that makes you interesting."
That was it. This was worse than just a game, worse even than mere entertainment value for the Capitolites. It was...they were all puppets. The playthings of the Gamemakers, in particular, Seneca Crane.
He knew quite well she was still alive. He could drop a hint to the Careers if he was so inclined.
She was glad the Careers had lost interest in her at this point, because she couldn't stop one or two tears from falling down. As long as she lived, and assuming she managed to win the Games...she'd forever be a puppet to the Capitol.
That was a bold assumption, of course. She wasn't going to survive.
Yes, she made it past the Bloodbath, a small miracle. Septimius and her mentors would be proud.
Yet, the only thing she could think of was doing all she could to help Lace and Corduroy survive this.
Maybe one of them would be the new victor. That would be wonderful.
The Careers continued to linger about the Cornucopia, holding low murmuring conversations with each other. Occasionally, Gadget could hear items being moved around. Bags or backpacks being stacked, metallic items or weapons clinking together. But most worrisome of all, she could hear Marina's mutterings and grumblings and they were getting nearer.
"You won't be needing this, I think, Longfin," she said, as she picked up something off of Elm's body, "wonder who did you in…"
She then moved away, muttering unpleasant things that she'd like to do to Cato.
Gadget realized one major headache: pretending to be a corpse out in the open meant she had to stay very still, take shallow breaths, and keep her eyes closed, meaning she had no way to tell if someone was watching her.
Now she understood why no one tried playing dead. Too many factors and ways things could go wrong.
And she had no idea how long it'd be before she could make her escape...if at all.
They were still there. The Careers still hovered around the Cornucopia, moving supplies around to reorganize them.
Gadget couldn't see them; she refused to open her eyes.
However, the telling sign was the grunts of Cato and Marvel as their sword and spear respectively collided as they sparred. The dull thwack of Clove's knives hitting something solid.
"You're good," Cato said eventually. "Not District Two good, but good. Makes sense. Wouldn't have let you here otherwise."
"I know," Marvel replied jokingly. "It's only natural."
Cato hummed. "And you're the one to get a nine compared to my ten," he said cockily.
"And here I am," Marvel said dramatically, almost like Cato hadn't spoken at all, "with my marvelous kill of the fire girl. The girl with an eleven." Gadget heard his clothing rustle as he moved his arms about. "Douser of flames!"
"She was nothing." Cato waved him off. "Probably sucked off-"
A terrible meaty sound of a blade meeting flesh interrupted him. Gadget froze in fear, utterly motionless as she heard a body near her getting stabbed.
Repeatedly.
"Ew, what the hell, Clove?" Glimmer exclaimed, revolted.
Another squelching of a knife cutting through a corpse.
"I'm bored," Clove said. "We're in the Hunger Games and all you're doing is talk."
"We'll go hunting soon, Clove," Cato said. But unlike Glimmer, there was no trace of disgust in his tone. He once again sounded like he was amused.
Another strike of blade into flesh.
"And none of you claimed this kill for yourselves," Clove continued.
Elm…
That's who she was stabbing and mutilating. And Gadget would be next!
"You should save your energy for a tribute that's still alive," Cato said.
A pause. And then one last stab.
"Fine," Clove said, and Gadget heard her stand up. She released a shallow, nervous breath.
"So," Glimmer began, distractedly, "why are we hunting at night? They'll be harder to see."
Cato chuckled. "No, they won't. They'll be asleep, and there's more of us than them. They won't get away." His hulking steps moved past Gadget and she had to stop herself from shaking in terror. "Besides, know what else we have?"
"What?" Glimmer asked, following Cato along with the other Careers.
"Night-vision goggles," Cato said, and Gadget heard a backpack open.
Marvel made a sound of giddy delight. "Marvelous," he said.
"Marvel," Glimmer said in exasperation, and then she giggled.
"There's only two of them," Marina pointed out.
"Yeah," Cato agreed. "Which is why me and Clove are gonna be the ones to use them."
Glimmer groaned and Marvel said in teasing exaggeration, "This is favoritism!"
"Score a ten next time, Marv," Cato reminded arrogantly.
"Fine, fine," Marvel relented.
Clove caught the goggles that Gadget presumed Cato tossed her.
"Sun's going down," Glimmer commented.
Cato made a noise of agreement. "Clove. You ready?"
"Obviously," Clove responded gleefully, her tone eager. "Are you?"
Gadget could feel Cato's smirk.
There's a slight chill in the air. How fast was the sun going to set in the arena? Seneca Crane could make it as fast or slow as he wanted.
Or never at all.
"Alright, grab whatever you want," Cato ordered. "We're moving out. We should be back by sunrise."
"Shouldn't we leave someone to guard the Cornucopia?" Marina questioned.
Cato scoffed. "Why would I do that?" he asked. "No outlier is going to dare try to steal anything from us on the first night. They've all scattered. They're too scared to even try."
Gadget hoped Corduroy and Lace were far, far away from here. Somewhere the Careers wouldn't find them.
If they were still alive.
"Besides," Cato continued, "I think the Gamemakers have gotten enough camera angles of the bodies. We should let them pick them up."
Oh…
Gadget had forgotten about that.
"And if they don't," Clove started casually, "then we'll know someone is trying to steal from us. And I'll give the Capitol a show it won't forget."
Gadget shivered. She had no doubt Clove would follow up on that threat.
"We're all volunteers here," Marvel said. "Does anyone wanna volunteer to stay behind?"
The silence that followed gave each of them a firm answer.
"Well, I guess we have our answer," Marvel remarked.
"That settles it, then," Cato said. His sword swung. "And if they steal from us…they'll suffer for it."
Clove gave a chilling chuckle. "I'll skin them alive," she said with emphasis.
And with that, the Careers began their march. They passed by where Gadget lied one by one, some of them grabbing a pack of supplies as they went.
Their loud, boastful chatter filtered away as they walked past the treeline. Gadget knew they had when the sound of ruffling leaves reached her ears.
Then they were gone, and for the first time since she'd entered the arena, Gadget was well and truly alone.
Alive among the corpses.
After so many hours of keeping still and not opening her eyes, she actually struggled to peel her eyes open by themselves. Her body was screaming in protest at her refusal to move for hours on end, now she actually couldn't.
Was it actually possible to die through lack of movement?
Start small, she instructed herself.
First, she tried moving her fingers. A small twitch, and she curled her right hand into a fist. The ache was phenomenal.
Her tears had dried and the crust sealed her eyes shut. With patient effort, she finally got her right arm moving. A soft groan escaped her, and she was now at the point she couldn't be bothered to determine first if anyone was around to look.
She slowly wiped off or rubbed away the crust and used her fingers to peel her eyelids open. She was alone, as her ears had told her. She struggled to her feet and wobbled unsteadily about.
The Capitol is watching, she thought bitterly. How many were laughing at her struggle to remain balanced? If anyone decided to come by now, she was a fried circuit board.
Her dad would probably be annoyed that she still lived.
The Careers really were arrogant enough to not bother with leaving a guard? Gadget was amazed.
But it was to her advantage. Before she could gather her thoughts though, the sight of the corpses finally caught up to her. Her body was slick with the blood of Elm, and much of the grass surrounding the Cornucopia was red instead of green. She lost any balance she'd had and toppled to her knees, a strange sound emanating from herself.
It was a whimper, and a cry, and a cough...then she was retching.
How did she survive when all of these people here died?
"H-h-HOW?!" she cried out, ignoring the danger of calling attention to herself. She could not believe that she, Gadget Trevelyan, was still alive, such as she was, when Jason died. Or Katniss. They all had so much greater aptitudes.
She glanced upwards at the artificial evening sky of the dome.
It doesn't make sense!
The only reason she was still alive was luck. Luck and nothing else.
Gadget couldn't take her eyes off of the corpses that were all sprawled around.
Surge from District Five had so many stab wounds all over his body. From his neck down to his chest. There was so much blood. So much blood. Gadget had no doubt that that had been Clove's work.
Serin from District Nine lay on the grassy floor, with eyes full of terror. A machete embedded in her skull. None of the Careers bothered to take it out.
Tamora from District Six looked the most peaceful out of all of them. Her eyes were shut and she had a neutral expression on her face in spite of the gaping stab wound through her heart.
And then Elm. The body closest to Gadget. His body was drenched in blood and stabs. He barely looked like the same person anymore. Gadget didn't recognize the boy that had tried to kill her earlier that day.
After a moment, Gadget gathered herself. She shivered against the horror of everything before her, but focused on her task. She had unrestricted access to the Cornucopia, and the Careers were nice enough to neatly arrange everything for her to easily peruse.
There was plenty of food, weaponry and supply packs. Once more she went against her instincts, which screamed at her to just run. But she knew that running blindly into the woods in an unnecessary panic would be sillier and worse than taking the risk of the Careers doubling back as she was picking things.
Gadget realized that there were packs with different colors, sizes and markings to indicate what each held.
There was a handy belt pack of tools, a pouch of utensils, and a backpack with practical supplies, including some first aid. Before long, she was set with two packs in case she found Corduroy and/or Lace, the belt pack cinched around her waist with the pouch, and other small pouches. She'd filled her pockets with whatever small items she thought were most useful, and grabbed a few knives and a stout staff.
She'd also stuffed both packs with as much consumables as she was able to carry without too much trouble.
Resolutely, Gadget set out from the Cornucopia, heading in the last direction she'd seen Corduroy going when she paused, looking towards the pedestal she'd been standing on.
Against her sensibilities, she found herself approaching it. Using a flashlight from her tool pack, she examined the pedestal, and found a panel that she prised open with her knife, and there she found all kinds of wires and other kinds of electronic parts. After a moment's thought, she removed them with delicate finesse, and put them in her pack, along with the components from the next pedestal, and the next.
She stopped once more on her way out as she spotted the horribly mutilated form of Jason, eyes staring lifelessly into the artificial sky.
She knelt down beside him, and gently closed his eyes.
"I'm s-s-sorry...y-you didn't g-get to be...a train op-opera-tive," she said.
There was a deep thrumming noise, and Gadget realized the transport carriers were coming for the bodies.
Not wanting to be seen for any reason, Gadget finally made her way into the woods. Disappearing from sight.
She felt like she'd been stalk-running for a long time, or perhaps it was the quickly approaching darkness. There were sounds of little animals, all mutts of some kind, all around. Some were going to sleep, following a diurnal pattern, whilst some were waking, following the nocturnal pattern.
Gadget gritted her teeth. The problem these creatures created for her was they masked other sounds.
Like the sounds of an approaching Career, or any other tribute for that matter.
Thresh didn't seem like he'd be able to sneak, but he didn't need to be stealthy. Rue on the other hand…
Given what that little girl did to Jason, Gadget wouldn't put it past her to stick a knife into her back whilst she slept. She needed to find a secure place to hide. This reminded her of her make-shift hovel in the junkyard after her dad threw her out onto the streets.
After a quick glance around her immediate surroundings, she leaned back against a tree, taking a moment to catch her breath and consider her next course of action. Finding Lace and Corduroy was a priority. She wouldn't last long on her own, no matter how cautious she was.
Unlike the junkyard, everyone here was liable to kill her, yes, even Lace and Corduroy. But they all promised. At least until they were the last remaining...assuming they lived that long.
Resolved, and her mind made up, she started to move again. The daytime creatures had quietened, and there were not as many night creatures about, fortunately.
This also meant that Gadget had to be quieter. The slight unfortunate circumstance of having a bit too much to carry was everything had a tendency to knock together and make noise.
It was also getting darker, and colder. While every instinct suggested she get a flashlight out to illuminate her path, her paranoia screamed at her that a Career could spot that.
If they were nearby, I'm already dead anyway, Gadget thought, two of them have night-vision goggles.
She sorely wished she'd been able to get her hands on that. It would prove extremely handy, and kept something so advantageous out of enemy hands.
Gadget lowered her profile and moved more cautiously, but still proceeded at an urgent pace. She kept glancing to and fro as she traveled, and that was how she failed to notice a portion of the tree suddenly split from the tree, and she crashed headlong into it.
"AH!" both cried at the same time.
With a frantic scramble, Gadget managed to get her knife and hold it to the figure's throat, both gasping for breath from an apparent panic attack.
Even in the darkness, Gadget had enough illumination to make out the features of the person she was lying on top of, and knew it was a boy, and she knew exactly who it was.
"P-Peeta?"
"Yeah?" he replied, still taking rapid breaths.
He was actually very well camouflaged, evidently he'd found enough resources to disguise himself as part of a tree. It was quite ingenious. But this also meant some sponsors were already sending in support. She'd never seen anyone receive support this quickly before.
She had the advantage. He's a tribute...from District Twelve! His score wasn't that bad, even when compared to Katniss, and she was dead! Gadget had the lowest score after Cedar. And she still had no idea why Cedar scored so epicly low.
GADGET! FOCUS! she screamed at herself internally.
She needed to end him now!
Just one quick slice with her knife, her very sharp knife, it'd be a quick end. Wasn't he in love with Katniss? He'd be despondent, maybe he'd welcome it.
She looked into his eyes.
Damn it. This was going to get her killed, she was sure. But she was more afraid of being alone in the night, and he seemed as frightened as she was. After all, wasn't he hiding against a tree? He probably hadn't meant to move, but both failed to notice each other, resulting in the collision moments ago.
"I-if...uhm...if I d-d-don't...k-kill you, will y-you promise not t-t-to do th-the same t-t-to me?" she asked.
Peeta blinked. He must have realized how close he was to joining Katniss, but the girl here, who had every opportunity to just end his life, was holding out an unexpected peace offering.
"O-okay…" he said, "...I promise."
Gadget peered at him for a long while. Long enough that Peeta looked like he was expecting her to change her mind after all.
But resolved, and putting her life into this boy's hands, to a degree, she nodded, and slowly let up her knife, then clambered off of him.
Gadget retreated just out of reach, her knife low at her side. Despite her cautions, she knew Peeta was strong. She'd seen him throw a weight of some kind during training.
The only advantage she had against him was the knife in her hand.
Peeta stood up slowly. He wiped at his eyes with his arm and Gadget wondered if it was to get the dirt and paint out…
Or if it was to get tears out.
Katniss was dead and it seemed that Peeta knew it. His eyes were as sad as her own. Despondent. Gadget hadn't known if he had been honest or if it was for the cameras. She hadn't seen his interview.
But now, Gadget was sure she could say for certain.
"I'm s-s-sorry ab-about Kat-Katniss," Gadget said softly. She held her knife aloft in her hand, if only just.
Peeta smiled sadly at Gadget. "Thanks," he said. "She was…uhm…she was something else."
Gadget glanced around. Corduroy and Lace could be anywhere in the forest.
Gadget didn't know how big the arena was, but she could imagine it. Which left so much room for them, even in the direction they had all chosen to go in.
Who knew how many of Seneca Crane's mutts were running around the forest? Them, mixed with the Careers…made it even more dangerous.
"Are you alright?" Peeta asked.
No.
"Y-yes," Gadget lied with a stutter, because the question had been anything but expected. What did Peeta care? They were enemies, even if Peeta agreed to a truce with her.
Peeta nodded awkwardly. He scratched the back of his neck and took a step back.
"Well, anyway, I should get going," he said with another step back. "Haymitch is probably screaming at me to run."
Peeta started to turn, but Gadget said quickly, "W-wait, no-o!"
Peeta stopped and looked at her. His face was hard to see from under whatever he'd put on it, but Gadget gathered that he was staring at her warily and wearily.
Gadget flushed and dropped her knife at her side completely. "Would you…uh…would y-you li-like to-to-to be al-allies?"
Gadget's fingers squeezed tightly around her knife. Her nerves flared. Would Peeta take offense to someone as weak as her even trying? Over her even bothering to ask such a question.
Because all Gadget had was Lace and Corduroy, and she didn't know where either of them were. What if the Careers find them first? she thought in panic.
And Peeta didn't want Gadget. He wanted Katniss. But now Katniss was dead. The person he came here with, the person he came here with from his home in District Twelve, and the person he confessed his love for in front of the entire nation was dead.
So…so where did that leave her?
Gadget retreated another few steps, mindful of the thick trees around her.
What were Beetee, Wiress, and Septimius thinking of her right now? Did they think she was a fool for trying for allies inside the arena? It's not like getting allies within the arena was unusual. It was a common thing that happened, but…
"There's only one victor, Gadget," Peeta reminded her, and she was almost taken aback by the fact that he'd remembered her name.
"I-I know," Gadget said quietly. She took another step back and prepared to take off through the trees.
"But, I did confess to being in love in the Hunger Games," Peeta said. He breathed a single laugh. "Haymitch is gonna kill me."
Gadget anxiously hopped from foot to foot. "D-do-does that mean…?"
"Yeah…allies," Peeta said. "It's not like I have much to lose anymore," he added with a pained smile.
Gadget frowned and shifted her knife from hand to hand. "If-if there's on-only one v-victor," Gadget stuttered, "th-then why haven-haven't you…" she trailed off.
A death by Peeta's hands would be far more merciful than one at the hands of the Careers.
"You'd…you'd b-be closer to go-going home," Gadget finished.
And Gadget wouldn't have to live through the misery of the arena.
Peeta looked at Gadget and she felt like he was contemplating on how to answer her question until, finally, he said, "Well…you haven't done anything wrong to me."
Gadget flushed and glanced at her knife. I almost did.
Why did he trust her after she almost killed him?
…Did he trust her? Or could he be waiting for her back to be turned before he struck?
But he'd been kind to her during training.
Though, kindness did not equate to someone's ability to kill someone else. He could've just said it to her face to lower her guard when they were together in the arena.
But something told Gadget that wasn't it. Her gut told her otherwise.
"So, uh…" Peeta wiped at his face with his sleeve again. "Where are we going?"
Gadget blinked. She hadn't expected that Peeta would be willing to follow her lead. She was prepared for it to be the other way around.
"I-I don't…rea-really know," Gadget admitted. Then she pointed. "I'm g-going that w-way."
"Alright. Alright, yeah," Peeta said with a nod, following her finger. "I'm not really going anywhere, either."
Gadget put her knife in her pocket slowly. "I-I want t-to…fin-find my…" Allies. Friends. "M-my friends."
"Friends in the arena," Peeta commented. "I think then I'll have seen everything."
Again, Gadget flushed. She took a few steps back and watched as Peeta started to follow her. Then she turned and continued on the path she'd set out for herself.
Corduroy and Lace could be anywhere. But…but at least now she had help.
"Do you have any extra weapons?" Peeta asked from behind her.
The knife in her pocket burned. A quarterstaff strapped to her back, not to mention all the spare knives in both packs. The less Clove would have to throw at people, the better. They were Gadget's only lines of defense. She should have taken more, but she wasn't sure if she had the time.
She had already spent far too much time in the Cornucopia as it was.
"Y-yes…" Gadget stuttered. She pulled her knife out from her pocket. It wouldn't be very useful if she couldn't bring it out to defend herself.
"Okay," Peeta said. "And if you don't wanna give me one, uh…" Peeta stopped, and then continued, "probably a good idea not to trust me."
Gadget bit her lip. Did she trust Peeta? She'd only just met him. She didn't know him at all.
She opened her mouth to say…something, when the sky lit up above them and Gadget stopped.
Peeta almost walked into her, but he, too, stopped.
Up at the top of the arena, was the Capitol seal. And around them the Panem national anthem blared proudly. It hid away the sound of the animals around them.
And any sounds people could make while they stalked them.
Gadget shuddered.
Beneath the seal read 'The Fallen' in blocky, capital letters.
Then, it changed to a picture of Ridley, with 'District Four' labeled under him.
And just like that, it was out in the open. The Careers would know she was still alive, if they hadn't put the pieces together by then. By any luck, they would cut their hunting short and rush back to the Cornucopia.
Surge's face appeared next. Like most of the tributes, Gadget knew little about him. She'd only seen glimpses of him since he hadn't popped up on her radar. But he looked vicious.
Tamora appeared in the sky next. Gadget hadn't known anything about her. She'd seemed quiet in training, and Gadget couldn't remember much of her beyond that.
Jason, after her, and Gadget felt a pang of sorrow. He didn't deserve what happened to him. He deserved to see his dreams of working on trains come true.
District Seven came next. Cedar was first. Gadget supposed that wasn't too much of a surprise. The first ever person to score a one in training. Gadget wondered if she ever really intended on trying to win. Her dad was killed and…
She shook away the thought. Whatever happened wasn't important now. Elm took Cedar's place, but Gadget didn't think she could find it in her to spare sympathy for him. Not when it seemed like he'd been so eager to kill her.
Isn't that what I wanted? a traitorous thought asked.
I don't…I don't!
Serin was after the duo from Seven. Which meant that Lace and Corduroy were still alive. Gadget knew they were, the math of the cannons and the Careers kills wouldn't have checked out if they had been. But that didn't change the immense amount of relief Gadget felt at knowing for certain that they were still alive.
None of that, however, changed that Serin was still dead. Another girl Gadget hadn't known beyond her district number.
She hoped her death had been merciful.
Husk appeared next and Gadget felt a sudden burst of sadness. He had been kind to her, and he had warned her of Monkshood. And…when she considered what Monkshood had done to Ridley…
His death had not been merciful. It had been painful. Long and painful. Gadget could still hear Husk's gasps and cries of pain in her ears.
Finally, the last face of the night came up and Gadget glanced at Peeta from the corner of her eye. He had looked away from Katniss' neutral expression. Peeta's face morphed in sorrow even as he stared down at his shoes.
It wasn't an act. He truly, really loved Katniss.
Katniss, just like the rest of the dead, was someone Gadget would never know.
The anthem faded out, and the Capitol seal was swallowed by the dark sky. Twinkling stars took its place and silence returned to the arena once more.
Neither seemed inclined to move for a while, but eventually Gadget said, "Uhm…we…we should g-go."
"Yeah, okay," Peeta agreed distractedly.
The Careers knew! Gadget was now frantic, but not for herself. There was only a small chance they'd decide not to hunt her down in vengeance. But given the sadistic nature of that lot, Gadget concluded it was more likely they'd hunt and torture those close to her first.
Corduroy! Lace!
"W-we n-n-need to…!" Gadget spoke as she started moving. "We n-need to find C-Corduroy, and Lace!"
She didn't even consider the risks anymore. Shucking off one pack, she just shoved it at Peeta, entrusting him with some of the supplies.
"District Eight?" Peeta asked. "Right...Corduroy, he defended you, didn't he?"
"They're my friends!" was Gadget's way of answering.
They reached a clearing, with the night fully upon them, they'd need a flashlight to avoid tripping over undergrowth and roots with the pace Gadget was keeping. For reasons beyond her comprehension, Peeta was following her.
She withdrew a spare knife from her own pack and handed it to Peeta handle-first. "D-don't kill m-me."
Her brain said she was being superbly stupid, but her heart said she needed all the help she could get, and Peeta was choosing to stay by her side so far. He could have overpowered her anytime and looted her corpse, but he didn't. That deserved some trust on her part.
"Gadget…I…" Peeta hadn't even reached out for the knife yet.
The girl pressed it against him now, her eyes more desperate. "P-please! I-I-I've angered the C-Careers! Th-they'll punish my friends!"
To hurt me.
Peeta stared at her in the dark. "...what did you do?"
He finally took hold of the weapon. Gadget nodded, let go and turned to continue walking. She drew out her quarterstaff from its baldric, and used it to feel the path ahead of her, navigating through the dark without illumination. Only the starlight that filtered through the trees gave any light.
Probably for the best. If there were bioluminescent flora or fireflies, it'd be good for visibility, but it worked both ways, since other people would be able to see them too.
"I p-played dead ne-ar th-the Cornucopia," Gadget admitted quietly.
Her staff clicked softly against a large root and her free hand guided Peeta over it.
"For how long?!" Peeta asked, amazed.
"Six h-hours…or more."
"Oh…oh crap." Peeta had a good idea where this was going.
"Th-they saw me, even ex-amined me...they thought I was d-d-dead...but now they know…"
"Right. They're going to be burning mad," Peeta concluded.
"Pl-please h-help me find m-my friends," Gadget begged Peeta suddenly, looking at him, "I d-d-don't care wh-what happens to me...bu-but Lace and C-Cord-...they don't deserve what-whatever the Careers-"
"Nobody deserves what they do to anyone," Peeta said sorrowfully. "I'll help you."
Gadget felt her heart lighten a little, and she smiled at him.
The boy was still half-coated by his camouflage, though his constant wiping had erased a fair bit of it from his face.
The two traveled in silence after that, quietly deciding that stealth was advisable after all this. Every rustle or breeze had them freezing and looking about in alarm, clutching their weapons fearfully. After some time, Peeta whispered, "Hey."
She spotted it soon as he called, and she nodded.
The light of a campfire.
Down beneath the edge of the slope. Gadget couldn't see who it belonged to. Not from their higher position.
Gadget took a rushed step forward. The owner of that fire could be Lace or Corduroy!
"Wait!" Peeta hissed quietly, but he followed Gadget regardless. "It could be a trap!"
It could be. A fire at night screamed that something was wrong. It alerted everyone nearby to them.
It alerted the Careers.
The murmuring of voices came closer and closer with her every step.
And then someone screamed and Gadget froze. She felt Peeta almost run into her, but he was the very last thing on her mind at that moment.
"Lace…" Gadget whispered in horror.
"Oh, no!" Lace screamed. "Please don't kill me!"
Someone laughed mockingly. Cato.
Gadget was too late. The Careers had gotten to Lace first. Was Corduroy there, too?
Gadget crept forward over the top of the slope she and Peeta resided on. Peeta copied her movement and Gadget felt her heart sink.
Down on the ground, at the foot of the campfire, Lace was cornered. Cato, Clove, and Marina blocked her escape, each of them holding scary looking weapons.
"Y-you don't ha-have to do this!" Lace pleaded. "I-I-I can be useful!"
"Yeah, so, you see," Cato said with horrific casualness, "I don't think you can."
"Lace…" Gadget muttered. "No…"
She had to escape. She had to. Lace couldn't die. She couldn't!
She can't!
"You were allied with that bent rifle from Three," Clove said as she squatted down close to Lace, who scooted back. "You know where she is, don't you?"
"No!" Lace said pleadingly. "I don't know where Gadget is!"
Clove pushed herself closer to Lace. "I don't believe you."
Lace whimpered. "Pl-pl-please don't h-hurt me…"
"You're lucky the rest of us aren't here," Clove sneered. "If only your ally had died like a good little Bloodbath victim, then you wouldn't be about to receive a painful death."
"NO!" Lace screamed in absolute fear. Gadget could hear how she was wrought with tears and sobs.
"Maybe if you experience what I want her to feel," Clove began with sadistic thoughtfulness, "she'll feel it from you!"
Lace screamed again and Gadget crawled forward against the slope. She had to save Lace. She deserved to live where Gadget did not.
I…I need to do something!
She readied her quarterstaff as best as she could and prepared to leap down. Even if it would kill her.
She was ready to die if it meant her friend would live.
"No, don't!" Peeta whisper-yelled, and Gadget was tugged back, a hand over her mouth.
But he didn't stop a few pebbles from rolling down the slope.
"If you go down there," Peeta said quietly in Gadget's ear, "you'll both die."
But wasn't that a risk worth taking? If it meant Lace had a chance to survive?
Peeta was strong, though. He held her down firmly. He wouldn't give.
"What's that?" Marina asked and she pointed her flashlight up at the slope.
At where Gadget had been looking over from just a moment before.
Gadget stopped squirming. Who was she kidding? She was no hero.
And now she had just given herself and Peeta away.
Clove hummed in deadly contemplation. "You hiding something from us, District Eight?" She dropped her voice to a quieter level, but still loud enough for Gadget to hear. "Have you been lying all this time and your ally is here?"
"G-Gadget isn't here…" Lace whispered tearfully.
"So you tell us," Clove said. "Why don't we just take a little peek, hmm?"
Clove stood up and Gadget's blood went cold. They were going to find them.
They couldn't sneak away, the Careers would hear. Gadget was certain. And-
Lace made a grunting sound and Clove made one of pained annoyance.
"Hey!" Cato snapped.
"Relax, Cato," Clove said warningly. "Barely hurt." Gadget listened carefully as Clove stepped closer to Lace.
And Lace…she could hear every breath Lace took. Her scared nervousness flooded the campsite.
"You're starting to really annoy me," Clove said dangerously. Gadget heard a knife unsheath and Lace's breath hitched.
"We need her to find the Three girl," Cato said. His heavy steps crunched leaves and branches under his boots.
"She doesn't know anything," Clove replied. "And she's starting to bore me." Gadget heard her bend down and whisper, just loud enough for Gadget and Peeta to hear, "I can think of another thing to do with you."
A pause. The only sound to emerge was the crackling of the fire.
And then Gadget heard the telltale sound of a knife sinking into flesh.
Lace screamed.
A tear rolled down Gadget's cheek. When had she started crying?
"You're just going to keep crying, aren't you?" Clove asked calmly.
"PLEASE!" Lace begged.
Gadget couldn't save her. She couldn't do anything but hide away and listen.
Clove groaned. "You people always say that."
Another horrible stabbing sound and Lace shrieked.
"Do you do anything other than plead for…mercy?" Clove asked mockingly. Gadget could hear as she twisted her knife, only to be drowned out by the sickening sound of Lace's screams.
I can't save anyone…
"I-I-I do-don't want-want to d-d-d-die…" Lace said quietly, even as Clove thrust a second knife into her.
"I'm sorry," Peeta whispered in Gadget's ear lowly. "I'm so, so sorry."
Stab. Stab. Stab. It went on and on. Gadget wondered if it would ever stop, but the horrible sounds of flesh parting around Clove's knives continued on and on.
Peeta's arms loosened from around Gadget and she crumpled against the ground uselessly, muffling her sobbing with her hands as best as she could.
She wouldn't be overheard from Lace's screams of agony.
"I know every part of you that I can stab," Clove said as she ripped her knife loose, "that will keep you alive."
"Don-don't-" Lace tried to say, but the sickening squelch of a knife ripping through her chest interrupted whatever she was trying to say.
I'm sorry, Lace…I'm sorry…
Gadget buried her face into her hands ever harder. She didn't deserve to be Lace's friend, not after she had failed to save her.
Clove wrenched a knife free. And then another. Lace's cries echoed around the forest.
"Alright. She's boring me," Clove said. "There's only so many times they can beg me before it ruins the kill."
Clove's soft steps walked away.
"Let's leave her," Cato said. "She'll die any minute now and that thief from Three deserves whatever pain her allies get."
Clove snickered and Gadget heard her pick up a backpack. "She'll get everything she deserves. Maybe she'll be less boring than her ally."
Cato and Clove walked off with Marina close behind, quiet and without a word.
Gadget didn't move. She was paralyzed in shock, horror, and shame. She was so useless! Why did Corduroy and Lace care about her? Why did they try to make friends with her? It was just going to get them killed!
Lace coughed and whimpered. She was dying, and it was all Gadget's fault.
She felt Peeta's large hand on her shoulder, gently squeezing and giving some comfort. Comfort she didn't deserve.
Gadget clenched her fist and resolutely pushed herself off the ground. If the Careers were waiting around, which was entirely possible, they'd spot her easily soon.
"St-stay he-re," Gadget said, "th-they might b-b-be waiting."
She took the spare pack from Peeta, and dashed down the slope on which she and Peeta had been hiding.
She didn't slow down or turn to look when she heard Peeta's unsubtle footsteps trudging hurriedly after her. It didn't occur to her how she knew for certain it was Peeta and not a Career or anyone else.
Her thoughts were centered on the bloody form lying in a fetal position near her campfire.
Gadget fell to her knees beside her friend. She fumbled through the bags for the first aid kits. There was a chance. A slim chance.
Please let there be a chance!
"G-Gadge-" Lace smiled up at her.
How could Lace smile at her?! She caused this suffering.
"Sh-shh…" Gadget hushed her urgently. "I-I-I n-need t-to stop th-the bleedin-EEK!"
She squeaked in surprise when Peeta rested a hand on hers, and he shook his head. "Gadget...it's too late…look."
Gadget's eyes blazed furiously as she shook her head. "N-no! It's n-not! I-it-it ca-can't!"
Lace coughed and spat blood, but she continued smiling. "It's oka-y, G-Gadget…"
A shaky hand reached out to grasp Gadget's, and the girl gripped back frantically, doing nothing to stave the flow of tears.
"J-just h-h-happy...I'm n-not alone…l-lost track…Cordy…"
Gadget's heart leaped even despite Lace clearly getting weaker. But now she knew Corduroy was still alive somewhere.
"H-h-hhh! So c-collld!" Lace complained, and laughed despite herself. "Heyyy...n-none of that…"
Lace had tilted her body a little so she was half lying on her back, and her free hand wiped some of Gadget's tears away, leaving bloody trails on her face. Peeta just watched on helplessly, but he also glanced left and right every now and then.
Why on Earth was Lace comforting her?!
It should be the other way around.
"P-please d-don't die…" Gadget pleaded hopelessly. She was holding Lace's hand, and she could tell, this plea was in vain. Peeta was right. Again.
Lace let out several wet coughs, each one spitting up more and more blood. She'd lost too much already. "W-wish I c-could...s-s-sorry...Gadget…Gadget?"
"Y-yes?" Gadget noticed Lace's eyes were glazed, like she couldn't see anymore.
"P-please help C-Cordy...yea…?"
With nothing else to do, Gadget tearfully and frantically nodded. "Yes…I p-promise."
Lace's chest stopped moving. Her smile had faltered and frozen in a lost expression.
"No…no…no…no…" Gadget gently shook her friend, but she knew it was too late.
She was always going to be too late.
"No-no-no-no-no-no-no-no…" The sobs came right after, and no more coherent words came out of her for the rest of that night.
She didn't know when, but Peeta had pulled her into a hug against himself and she clutched desperately to him as he gently rubbed her back. He said nothing, but it didn't matter. Nothing would comfort Gadget over the loss of one of her first friends.
In the distance, a cannon fired. Lace Feathermont was dead.