Magnus Casper

Age 18

District Two Male


The Hunger Games were good for several things. They punished the districts for their rebellion, ensuring that they'd never forget how badly they had wronged the Capitol. They separated the loyalists from the rebels, elevating the former and crushing the latter to dust. They served as a stark reminder of the war and the consequences of another one.

If you asked Dr. Volumnia Gaul, however, they simply proved her right.

One could only punish their enemies so many times before it felt like less of a punishment and more of a way of life. Loyalists and rebels could be taken care of in other ways, politically and legally. History books and lessons would ensure the war was taught.

The most important part about the Hunger Games was that it demonstrated humanity at its core. If children were capable of becoming predators when faced with becoming prey, what did that say about the rest of humanity? The world was an arena, and only the strongest, the victors were capable of thriving. The sooner Panem realized that, the better.

The inaugural Hunger Games was a success in Volumnia's eyes. Yes, the children required a little encouragement, but in the end, it produced a strong, loyal victor in the form of Theon Aspen. It was sad how loyal he was, given that he was betrayed by the government he fought for in the end.

It was unfortunate to see that potential being wasted in District Seven, but Seven needed all of the loyalists it could get. It turned out that unleashing tracker jackers in the district, while an effective weapon, was bad for morale, and the people in Seven needed someone to aspire to.

District Two, however, was as loyal as they came during the war until they were taken over by rebels. President Ravinstill considered absorbing District Two into the Capitol to reward them for said "loyalty" but Volumnia was quick to remind him that they too fell in the end, and that sort of weakness would not be rewarded.

Besides, a loyalist district would produce strong, loyal victors, victors who were worthy of existing in the new Panem.

When Volumnia saw Magnus Casper for the first time during the Reaping, she was glad Ravinstill listened to her.

She saw a strong boy, someone who had to fight for his life and win. She could see the haunted look in his eyes and knew he had seen the worst humanity had to offer. Volumnia knew he would understand her worldview.

Now, he just had to prove it in the arena.

Fewer people attended the Games this year, which was worrying, but a bridge that could be crossed later. Thankfully, there were no issues getting the children to start fighting this year, though one girl got a little too eager and ran early. Thankfully, a peacekeeper was there to put her down. Trial and error. They would learn timing one day.

The moment the bell rang, some tributes tried to stand still out of defiance, but several learned their lesson from last year and ran for the weapons, enough to where those that stood would just be killed on the spot. Volumnia still had one shot anyway, just to show that cowardice would not be tolerated in her new Panem.

Magnus Casper did not disappoint. He picked up a spear and hurled it at the girl from District Eight. Volumnia remembered her screaming and cursing the Capitol as she was dragged to the stage during the Reaping. That kind of poetic justice made Volumnia smile.

The girl dropped like a stone, and Magnus immediately had his hands on a sword, and he cut down the boy from Ten with ease.

An impressive performance, and the performer was a boy from a loyal district.

Volumnia smiled. She turned to her assistant, Dorothea Breen. "Get me every bit of information we have on Magnus Casper."

Dorothea nodded and immediately left.

Volumnia's smile widened when she saw Magnus salute the Capitol when he cut down the boy from Twelve, a known rebel. It would seem that she was right about him. Loyal, strong, and most importantly, she just knew he saw the world the way he did.

Later, when Magnus was the last one standing and was pulled from the arena, Dorothea returned to Volumnia with the news that Magnus was the only son of two peacekeepers. Neither of them survived the war, which prompted Magnus to fight for the Capitol himself.

He had no family. He had nobody to miss and nobody to miss him, not that it mattered.

She immediately had Magnus brought to her, and the more they spoke, the more Volumnia knew she was right about him. He was the perfect specimen, a young man in the right mindset. He just needed perfecting.

Magnus accepted without a second thought, and just like that, Volumnia had a new apprentice.

So much potential in this young man.

Volumnia could only hope it wouldn't go to waste.


I hit a bit of a roadblock on ASM, so I thought I'd add something to this in an attempt to get the creative juices flowing. We don't see a lot of Magnus in this one, since I decided to tell his story through Dr. Gaul's eyes. I had the idea of Gaul taking an early victor under her wind, and since we have another eight years until she takes a certain future president under her wing, I figured it was now or never. We haven't seen the last of either him or Theon. Things are going well so far, but it won't be long before things start going south, and the Hunger Games are in the state they are in around BOSAS.