SONG: Scylla by Corpo-Mente
They had finished the last of their water. Iris was starting to feel desperate. They had eaten all the mangoes they'd taken from the oasis, sucked every last bit of moisture from the stones in the middle. It had somewhat helped, but before long the thirst had returned and Iris was left feeling sick from the sweetness of the fruit, and had no way to clean the stickiness off her hands.
Christopher's breath grew ragged - he had used the inhaler several times, but it only seemed to help for an hour or so before he needed to use it again. Without water, they were moving slower, which meant more time spent in the sun, which dehydrated them further. Iris' head felt like it was about to split in half. Kasia grew paranoid, and looked over her shoulder constantly.
The only thing that was working out for them was the decision to go east. After walking for half a day, the sand got flatter and flatter, and soon they left the sand dunes behind them. Iris had no doubt in her mind that if they had chosen to keep going north, they would be in far worse shape than they were now.
There was no longer any talk of keeping watch. In under a day without water, the three of them had dehydrated so severely that the only thing they could do when they got tired was collapse in a heap and hope nothing snuck up on them. Iris wasn't even sure how long it had been. Her mouth felt as dry as the desert itself, as though she had stuffed fistfuls of sand into her mouth. Talking felt like she was rubbing sandpaper against her vocal cords.
Only later, after she had rehydrated, did she wonder why none of their mentors sent any water. Maybe it had been a sign that they were close to water the whole time, maybe it was simply that there was not enough sponsor money to send even a single bottle down.
The further east they walked, the flatter it seemed to get. The landscape was so impossibly flat that it felt like they were circling an endless, yellow void. Iris almost missed the dunes - at least it sort of felt like they were going somewhere. Christopher's ragged breaths felt like daggers being driven into her head, again and again.
Still there were no cannons. The sky was empty again, for the second night in a row. Or was it the third? Iris didn't know. Sometimes, she forgot her allies were there.
She dreamt of water. The quiet music of a gushing stream, the ripples across the surface of the river they had left behind. She heard roaring thunderstorms, and the smell of rain haunted her. Taunted her. Kasia had the idea to pee in their water bottles, and drink that. Iris gagged and choked the first time she drank it, but it was better than nothing.
They managed to kill some sort of hare, and drank its blood. Iris felt her face flaking and peeling. Kasia and Christopher's faces swam in front of her eyes, their skin bubbling and blistering, and she couldn't be sure if they were real or not. Hares hopped in the sand around them, their thumping footsteps impossibly loud on the sand.
She thought she was hallucinating when she saw the boat. A ship, coming towards them on a sea of yellow and white. She was sure it was a dream. A mirage. And then Kasia croaked. "Do you see the ship?"
Christopher moaned. She and Kasia had taken to dragging him along behind them. He could no longer walk, couldn't talk to them. The lack of water had made him somewhat catatonic. Iris knew they wouldn't make it to the next day. He probably wouldn't make it another two hours, which didn't bode well for Kasia and herself.
And so she pushed away any feeling of doom she felt. They trudged towards the ships, half-crawling, dragging Christopher along as best they could.
The shade on her face felt more delicious than any mango Iris had ever eaten. Her cracked, blistering skin was soothed by the lack of sun, and for a moment all she could do was lie there, basking in the cold feeling on her face. And then Kasia kicked her.
"Look," she rasped, pointing. Iris rolled onto her stomach, propped her head on her hands. "There's boxes," Kasia said.
The inside of the ship was full of treasure. Not treasure in the fairy tale sense - but there were boxes of supplies, stacked higher than the Cornucopia. Iris let out a ragged cry of relief, and dragged herself to her feet. There was a pallet of water - a whole, beautiful pallet - and Iris had drunk three bottles before she stopped herself and looked around. Remembered Christopher, who had been in worse shape than she and Kasia combined.
She dragged the pallet over to him, and dumped an entire bottle of water on his face. He blinked slowly, waking for a moment. "Christopher," she said. "Water."
"S'not real," he croaked, closing his eyes. Iris forced his mouth open and poured water into it. Christopher's eyes flew open again and he sat up, choking and rasping on the water as though it were poison. He seemed to realise that it was, in fact, real, and lunged toward the bottle in Iris' hand, draining it in seconds before reaching for another.
Kasia rejoined them at some point, dragging another pellet with her, and the three of them worked their way through the pallets. A mountain of empty bottles grew next to them, and they had drank more than they had their entire time in the arena.
They had apparently drank too much, because the three of them spent the rest of the evening in pain, their stomachs cramping. Before she fell asleep, Iris realised that she hadn't even considered the possibility the water was poisoned, but reasoned that they would have died without water anyway, poison or not.
When she awoke the next morning, Iris felt better than she had in a long time. The previous day was foggy in her mind, and she couldn't be sure how long they had been trudging through the desert, dehydrated and delirious. She had, apparently, been hallucinating the blisters she had seen on her allies' faces. They were all pink and peeling, but that was the worst of it. She remembered the desert hares, how loud they had been - the blood caked under her nails suggested that the one they killed had been real, but the stampede had obviously been a hallucination, too. She didn't like not being able to trust her own memories.
Kasia and Christopher were still asleep, so Iris decided to look around. They had walked into a veritable goldmine. The stacks of supplies went up to the roof. More food and water they'd ever be able to consume. Weapons that would give those at the Cornucopia a run for their money. Still no flail, Iris thought, but she did get her hands on a mace - the end resembled a peach pit, with divots in the cool steel. She shuddered to imagine what it might do to someone's head, but she felt better having it in her hand.
She turned, hearing someone behind her. Kasia smiled. "I can't believe we found this place."
"I know," Iris replied. "We would have died if we spent another hour out there." No sooner had the words left her mouth, a cannon fired somewhere in the distance. They both winced. In the haze of the last few days, Iris had almost forgotten where she was. Forgot that she had killed people and would have to kill more. At least one good thing could be said about dehydration - it had taken away her guilt.
Kasia nodded over to where Christopher was still asleep. "We should check that cannon wasn't for him."
Iris grimaced - Christopher certainly looked dead. He hadn't moved from where she had given him water the night before, and from the angle she couldn't be completely sure that he was breathing. She rested two fingers on his neck and, to her relief, found a pulse. "Wasn't him."
Kasia smiled. "I didn't think so. That cannon sounded far away. Good to be sure though."
Iris, suddenly exhausted from the effort of walking five metres, collapsed onto the sand next to Kasia. "We're going to have to stay here for at least another day. We aren't in any condition to keep walking."
Kasia frowned. "The longer we stay here, the more dangerous it'll get. You and I will be fine by tomorrow. But if he's not…" Kasia looked over towards their unconscious ally. "Well, we might have to consider leaving him behind."
Iris' first instinct was to protest, but she knew that Kasia was right. They couldn't keep dragging Christopher along, and if they stayed in the ship for longer than a day or two the Gamemakers would definitely send an array of mutts to them. "Well, we'll give him the day to rest. We need it anyway." She sighed. "I guess if he's not alright by tomorrow, we'll go on without him."
Kasia nodded. She dragged her finger through the sand, drawing a smiley face. "I never thought the arena would change me this much. I never thought I would be the kind of person to abandon my injured ally." She swept her hand through the smiley face, sending up a cloud of sand.
"We haven't abandoned him yet," Iris said firmly. "He's still got a day. We can't spend today worrying about whether or not he'll be with us tomorrow."
"Yeah, you're right." Kasia yawned and stretched like a cat, slender arms above her head. "We should explore this place when he wakes up."
Iris nodded. They hadn't had a good look at their newfound shelter - they hadn't really been in any condition to look when they had found it. She still could hardly believe what they'd found; the massive wooden vessel, a gaping hole of splintered wood in the side, sand spilling into it. She didn't know much about ships, but she knew that the part she was currently sitting in was called the hull. It was massive, like a wooden cave, full of more supplies than had been at the Cornucopia.
The ship resembled the pirate ships in the picture books she and Jordie read when they were kids, with a tall mast and the tattered remains of sails. Instead of a skull and crossbones flag, however, a flag bearing the Capitol seal flew high, in perfect condition.
Although the ship had saved them, it made Iris uneasy. They had their own little goldmine, full of more supplies they'd be able to use, and it had been all too easy. The feeling of danger buzzed through Iris' veins, and though she didn't like the idea of leaving, she also wanted nothing more than to put the ship behind them.
There was a noise from somewhere in the ship - a grating noise of some sort, like metal scraping against metal. It echoed around the hull, and Kasia and Iris looked at each other. "We should check it out," Iris said.
"Are you insane?" Kasia hissed at her. "Oh, yeah! Let's investigate the scary arena noise! Nothing bad will happen!"
"I don't appreciate the sarcasm," Iris scowled, knowing full well that she was the most sarcastic person she knew.
"Well, you should. Sarcasm won't get you killed. Walking into the unknown looking for the source of a scary noise definitely will."
Iris crossed her arms. Although she could see Kasia's point, she wasn't willing to budge on this. If they were going to stay in the ship - which they needed to - then they needed to know that no-one else was in there with them. "Kasia, it could be another tribute. They could be sneaking up on us right now. We can't let them get the jump on us."
"The hell we can't! They don't know we're here and there's plenty of places to hide. Besides, you think the two of us can take down a Career right now? It's not like Christopher's going to be any help."
"Say that again," came Christopher's voice behind them.
Iris and Kasia whirled around. "Christopher! I didn't know you were awake," Kasia said.
He gave a wry grin. "Obviously not, or you wouldn't be talkin' about me."
"We weren't talking about you -" Kasia started to protest.
He held up a hand. "Save it, I heard everythin'. For the record, I think Iris is right. If we're gonna stay here for the day, we can't just sit around waitin' for someone or somethin' to sneak up on us."
"Christopher, you looked like you were dead ten minutes ago," Iris said drily. "I don't think you're in the best shape to go wandering."
"I'm fine," he insisted. "Just needed a good rest, is all." He looked at their unbelieving faces, and raised an eyebrow. "Really, I feel fine! Want me to do pushups or somethin' to prove it?"
Iris sighed. "Fine. Whatever. Let's go."
"You're not serious, right?" Kasia exclaimed. "I don't want to die today."
"You won't. If you're that worried, just stay here, keep guard."
"As if," Kasia scoffed. "Splitting up is even more stupid than walking into the dark to find monsters."
"The hell is this place, anyway?" Christopher asked, examining a pile of weapons. He picked up a sword and tested its weight, shifting it from hand to hand.
"A ship," Iris said. "We found it yesterday, when you were unconscious and we were all about to die from dehydration."
Christopher frowned. "Seems awful risky, don't it?"
"What do you mean?"
He gestured around. "This place is better stocked than the Cornucopia, and we didn't even have to fight for this stuff. Call me crazy, but the Gamemakers ain't the kind of people who give stuff away for free."
Iris agreed with him - she wasn't one to bite the hand that fed her, but she'd bite it if she knew the hand was about to strangle her. Like the Capitol. That being said, they didn't have any choice but to stay in the ship; they were still weak from their time without water, and leaving would mean almost certain death. The idea of going back to the way they had been the day before made Iris shiver.
Kasia scoffed, kicking a pile of sand. "And yet we're still about to wander into a likely death trap."
"Death trap or not, I still agree that we ain't in any condition to leave. And we can't stay if we don't know exactly what's in here."
"I guess you're right," Kasia said with a sigh. "I just feel like there's something waiting for the perfect chance to strike."
As if on cue, the ground began to rumble. Sand drifted down from the ceiling, and the allies instinctively huddled closer together. "Let's make a circle," Iris said, and the three of them pressed their backs together, gripping their weapons tightly. Iris scrabbled for her machete, before remembering she'd left it next to her backpack. She only had her mace and knife on hand.
There was a clatter to her left, and Iris watched as swords and knives began to tumble from a pile that was stacked up to the ceiling. "What the fuck is going on?" Kasia said from behind her, but Iris didn't reply - she didn't want to look away from the pile for even a second.
There was a crash as something large burst out of the pile, sending knives flying out in every direction. Iris knocked one away with her mace, and was about to ask her allies if they were alright before something else caught her attention.
A strange, spidery creature, with a huge, arched tail and vicious looking spikes was watching them, its many eyes glittering cruelly. It was easily as large as a small car, and its bright green body reminded Iris of the bugs she had learnt about in training - anything brightly coloured was likely to be poisonous. With only one look at this strange creature she knew they were in for a hard time. Its pincers looked as sharp as knives, and at the end of its tail was some sort of glistening stinger.
"Scorpions!" Christopher shouted. Iris didn't know what the hell a scorpion was, but the fact that Christopher hadn't said 'scorpion' alarmed her. She glanced over her shoulder and saw that two identical lime-green creatures were staring down her allies, and 'shit' seemed to be the only thing she could think. "We have 'em' back home!"
"How do we kill them?" Kasia asked, her voice scorpions seemed agitated by the noise of their conversation, and moved closer. Iris could feel Kasia trembling, and could hear Christopher's laboured breathing - he wasn't ready, he wasn't healthy, he wouldn't be able to fight. If Kasia didn't calm down, Iris realised that there was a possibility she'd have to take down the three scorpions by herself.
"They've got exoskeletons," Christopher said. "Armour, on the outside of their bodies. Aim for their bellies."
"And how the hell are we meant to do that?" Kasia exclaimed. "I don't want to get close to these things."
"They've got bad eyesight. At least, the ones at home do. The little ones. I ain't ever seen one like this before."
"Well, now you've seen three," Iris said. "If they've got bad eyesight, we might be able to take them one at a time. If we can distract the other two long enough." She scanned the ground, looking for something large enough to throw, but there was only sand.
"Iris, throw your mace!" Kasia said. "You can't bludgeon these things to death, not if they've got armour."
Iris looked at the mace in her hand, and knew Kasia was right. She would be left with only a knife to kill the scorpions with, but maybe if the mutts were distracted she'd be able to grab a sword or something.
"Okay," Iris said. "Kasia, we're going to get yours first." Taking aim, Iris threw the mace as hard as she could into the pile of weapons between the scorpions facing down her and Christopher. As hoped, the creatures turned and skittered over to investigate the noise.
"Let's get it!" Christopher exclaimed. The three of them charged at the scorpion. It probably wasn't the best plan, but it wasn't like they'd had a lot of time to prepare.
Iris stabbed the beast with as much force she could muster, but her knife simply bounced off the surface uselessly. "Its stomach, aim for its stomach!" Christopher had rolled beneath the creature, seemingly looking for an angle to stab it with, but his sword was awkward and seemed to get in its way. The scorpion made an ominous chittering noise, and Iris couldn't help but think that they had only succeeded in making it angry.
"They're coming!" Kasia shrieked.
"Christopher, here!" Iris tossed Christopher her knife, and it landed on the sand next to him. He snatched it up and with a swipe, cut open the scorpion's stomach. The creature's legs trembled, and Christopher rolled out from under its stomach just as the creature collapsed with a thud onto the ground.
Iris helped him to his feet, and they turned to see the other two scorpions gaining on Kasia, who stood, trembling, facing down the mutts on her own. He was severely out of breath. "That," he said, "seemed way too easy."
"Well, the Gamemakers don't want to kill us all at once," Iris said bitterly. "It wouldn't be good for television." The scorpions both raised their stingers in a perfect, synchronised movement, and Iris wondered if her dig at the Gamemakers had anything to do with their aggression.
The scorpions stared at them, and Iris couldn't help but think that they were studying them, judging which moves to make. "I need a weapon," Iris said. Her knife was, presumably, somewhere under the dead scorpion. "H-here," Kasia said, handing Iris her machete. "I've got knives."
The scorpion to the right suddenly charged at them, its pincers quivering. The allies jumped to the side - straight into the path of the other scorpion. It spat at them, and Iris raised her arms out of instinct to protect her face. There was an instantaneous burning feeling and she realised that it had spat acid at her. Iris' stomach dropped - evidently, the pincers and the stingers were not the only thing to look out for.
The scorpion to the right clicked its claws, and seemed to be communicating with the other scorpion somehow. They didn't seem to be able to see them, but from the way they reacted at even the smallest noise, Iris got the impression that their hearing was far more advanced than hers was. Slowly, quietly, she shuffled forward, and the sand which annoyed her so much muffled her footsteps. Christopher and Kasia followed her head. She vaguely gestured towards the other scorpion, hoping her allies would understand - Christopher nodded, breathing heavily, and walked slowly towards the left scorpion, the knife she had given him raised.
Iris had just rolled underneath the belly of the right scorpion when there was a muffled thud. She looked over - Christopher had tripped over a fallen backpack. Kasia helped him up, but the noise had distracted the scorpion Iris was about to kill. The left scorpion bore down on him, and the scorpion over her made a sudden move, advancing on her allies. In one clean strike, Iris tore through the scorpion's stomach with Kasia's machete. Thick, viscous green liquid splattered down, coating her from head to toe - she grimaced, and rolled out from underneath it.
She looked up just in time to see the remaining scorpion knock Christopher to the sand and chop his head off with its pincers.