Chapter 38:

Glacia Westmann, District Two Victor

The screens cut to black before they showed what happened in District Two, but from the secure basement of her grandmother's house, Glacia could feel the ground shaking and the muffled sounds of the bombs dropping. And she just knew what the target was. It was the closest building to them that they would want to target, and it filled her with rage that they would do that to a building full of children.

"I can't stay here," Glacia says as she holds her daughter tightly in her arms, pacing the room as Darach watches her closely, sitting with her mother, grandmother, and Fox's kids they were babysitting during the Games. She presses her face into the top of her daughter's head, trying to remind herself that Anla is safe here, no one is going to hurt her baby girl. But she can't say that about so many other parents right now. "Oh God, the families that don't know what's happening."

"You know Kat had a plan for this kind of situation," Darach tries to reassure her, but there's not much he can do right now to make her feel calm. "You know as soon as she heard those sirens they would have started moving the kids to the bunker."

"But what if it wasn't enough time?" Glacia asks, giving him a look of dismay as she hugs her daughter a little tighter. But when she can feel herself starting to shake, she passes her over to her own mother to hold for a bit. She sits down slowly as she stares at Darach, shaking her head at him. "There were so many kids in there to watch the Games. How could they do this?"

"Because they're fucking horrible people, that's how!" Darach says, voice raising in his anger as he starts pacing, while Glacia's mother Isa tries to cover up Anla's ears at his swearing. "They say they want the Games to end to save the lives of children? Well shows they only care if it's children in their home! Forget about District Two, their children can just die!"

"We've never been children to them, we've been the monsters killing their kids," Glacia tells him, reaching up to grab his hand when he paces past her. She squeezes it and holds on tightly, needing him right now. "You've mentored enough and talked to other victors to know this."

"But they're just kids," Darach says quietly, his voice full of pain. "Kids that woke up today excited to go to the center and watch Chantelle and Vulcan while their favorite victor teaches them things. They didn't wake up expecting to be collateral damage in an unnecessary war."

"I know. First the victors, now this," Glacia says, putting her face in her hands to hide her dismay at all of this. Her stomach is a twisting pit thinking about all of her family that's at risk right now. Jory, the one who helped guide her through being a young victor being just two years older than her. Zephyr, the one they had practically taken in as a brother after their bad breakup. Odyssey and Misha, just trying to do what was right and help out the Capitol to prevent all of this. And Drazen, her own daughter's godfather! She isn't sure she'll ever get to see them again, and it's slowly killing her inside. "I feel so helpless and I hate it! People are out there dying and I'm sitting in here hiding! The victors – our family – could be dead or get killed by rebels and we're being fucking cowards!"

"Go," Sylvia finally speaks up and they all look over at her in surprise. She has a solemn look on her face as she holds Fox's oldest in her lap. But…she is one of the few victors left who made it through the Second Rebellion and saw just what the rebels could do. "When the war came to Two last time…none of us stayed put when there were people who needed us."

"Mom, you can't let them go-" Isa, Glacia's mother tries to protest but she's cut off by Sylvia.

"I can and I will," Sylvia says, fixing her daughter with a long look before she turns her attention back to Glacia. "If you don't, you'll regret not doing more to help."

"Thanks, Grandma," Glacia says quietly as she goes over to Sylvia and hugs her tightly, shutting her eyes tight for a moment in fear. She hasn't felt fear like this in over 25 years…but now it's worse because she's not just fearing for her own life, but her whole family. Sylvia returns the hug just as tightly, neither of them wanting to be the first one to let go.

"I'm going with you," Darach says as Glacia finally lets go of Sylvia. "That's my family in there. Well," he pauses to chuckle a little bit as he smiles at the women. "Second family, after you, of course."

She turns to face him, smiling at her husband with pride and love. "I knew you would," she tells him. "I wouldn't expect anything else from you."

"Let's go, we're wasting time," Darach tells her, taking her hand and holding it tightly. "We don't know what we're going to find in there."

"I love you all," Glacia tells her family, looking at each of them before letting go of Darach to go over to her daughter. She gently kisses the top of her head before smoothing her hair over, hating leaving her right now, but she knows she's lucky to have her child safe. So many others in the District can't say that. "Okay, let's go."

They quickly make their way upstairs and outside, with Glacia fully expecting to be stopped from leaving the house. But no one stops them and they start making their way out of the village, until Glacia looks ahead and stops suddenly at seeing the cloud of smoke and dust in the air where she knows the training center used to be. "Fuck," she mutters as her eyes start watering immediately. "They really did it…"

"Those bastards are going to pay for this," Darach replies, his voice low but Glacia knows he's just trying to keep it together. He holds her hand even tighter as they stare at the cloud of dust, both in a bit of disbelief.

"Diana!" a voice calls out and they look over down the street to find Glacia's cousin running out of Odyssey's house, her wife and oldest daughter standing in the open doorway. Odyssey's sister stops her younger sisters from trying to run out after Diana – and now Jules chasing after her. "You can't go there, it's not safe!"

"There's children in there!" Diana yells back at her and when she looks around and sees Glacia outside as well, she hurries over to her and grabs her arm. "You're going to the training center too?"

"Of course," Glacia replies immediately as she grabs Diana's arm back, sharing a look of understanding with her – an understanding as both of them are mothers that those kids need saving. "We gotta help."

"Agreed," Diana says, nodding her head once before turning back to her wife. "Jules, keep them all safe. Right now, they need you. And the training center needs us."

Jules is silent for a few seconds before she sighs and nods her head in understanding with a solemn look on her face. "Be safe," she tells Diana, before gently pushing their daughters back inside. "Go. You heard her, back to the bunker."

Diana waits to see that her children listen to Jules before nodding at Glacia and Darach. "Come on, let's go," she tells them before she starts leading the way at a jog. They leave the Victor's Village with no one to try to stop them, which just makes Glacia feel more unsettled about all of this. If there were no Peacekeepers stationed there…this is bad, really bad.

"How are you doing with everything?" Glacia asks after a bit of jogging in silence and looks over at Diana. The fact that she is still out here trying to rescue everyone in the training center when her own son is being held hostage in the Capitol right now…it spoke volumes about her.

"Trying to focus on things I can actually control," Diana replies curtly and Glacia can see the pinch of her brows as she presses her lips together tightly. "I can't help Odyssey right now, but I can help the kids and trainers here."

"We're here for you, whatever you need," Darach tells her and Glacia nods her head in agreement with him. "They're all going to be safe."

Neither of them responds to that, all of them knowing that really…they have no idea if any of them are going to be safe. And it hurt Glacia knowing there would be families tonight that wouldn't have a family member return to them…

As they arrive, they aren't the only ones running up to the training center. People of all ages – adults, grandparents, even kids – are running there to try to help. And the Peacekeepers are right there with them to help, not trying to send them back to their homes with the lockdown. Because chances are, all of them knows someone who is stuck in there right now, be it a family member, best friend, or neighbor.

Glacia slows to look over at Diana, who nods her head in understanding. "Whatever it takes to find them."

"Whatever it takes," Glacia echoes in agreement as Darach puts a hand on her back. But staring at the huge pile of smoking rubble that was once their District's pride and joy…she can't help but wonder how they are possibly going to reach the bunker down below…

Or how anyone could have survived this.


Ishani Kostas, Head of Security

The security room is a buzz of chaos, everyone having their assigned roles and going about it, all while Ishani stands at her desk and watches over them as she gets reports. Phones keep ringing non-stop as they get more news from the Districts, while the screens lining the circular room are full of various images in the Districts and Capitol. And projected on her desk is a holo of the arena, with the trackers for Seraphim and his group as they try to rescue the tributes. Each time they go back to the hovercraft gets her hopes up, but it's still so early to know how successful they will be. And she just wants her best friend to make it out of that arena alive.

She leans into the large thunderbird hovering at her back, getting some nuzzles on the top of her head in return. "I know buddy, it's scary," she tells him quietly, but having him there is a welcome presence. She knows she'll be safe with him, and surely Julian will be safe with all of his birds by his side in the arena.

But, that won't keep the others safe, and right now she is a failure at running security. How could she have let this slip past her? First the attack on the arena and everything leading up to the start of the Games. Then the hostage situation with the mentors and escorts. The bombings in the Districts… And now Calisto out in the Capitol on his own and unprotected. She can't protect anyone, and it's taking everything in her to not want to quit and give up after all that failure.

But who would take over in her place? No one can, so she must accept her failures and move on.

"What's the status on the hostage situation?" Ishani calls out, turning her view to the screens in the Games Headquarters. The first thing her eyes are drawn to are the bodies laying in the floor, surrounded by pools of blood, that they haven't been allowed to move. Then she looks to the few that are helping those that were shot, and her frown deepens in concern. They have to get them out before the deadline Elin set, before any more of them die.

"We have a team approaching the door now, ready to strike when commanded," her officer replies, turning to look back at her. "And we have the gas ready to go, at your command."

"I don't want to use the gas if we don't have to, but I don't see another option," Ishani sighs, knowing they have to get it exactly right to knock out the rebels before they know what's going on. And…the victors and escorts were not going to be happy about it. "Do we know what will happen to the two shot if we pump the gas in?"

"No, ma'am," the officer replies with a frown. "The doctor is still figuring that out, but it's dependent on how much blood they lost… And there's no way for us to know that for sure."

"I don't want any more casualties in that group if we can avoid it," Ishani replies, but she doesn't see a way they can do this without casualties. And…if she has to risk two for the sake of the whole group's safety, she will. "Get the gas ready at my signal when the swat team arrives. Each minute means more blood loss for them and increases the risk. But I do not want those fucking rebels taking one more life in that room."

"Understood," the officer replies as Ishani turns her focus back to her holo of the arena, watching for a few seconds in worry.

But she has a job to do, so she turns to the team organizing resources for the Districts. "What's the status on the team going to the Districts?"

"Hovercrafts are loading up now and preparing to takeoff," the different officer tells her as he pulls up video feed of the underground launch area and she can see the Peacekeepers running towards the various hovercrafts – most of them heading to either Seven, or the career Districts. But he then switches to feeds of the Districts, showing the scale of the destruction from the bombings. "Reports are starting to come through on casualties. Most of the outer Districts were spared, but the careers…"

"The careers were in the centers, I know," Ishani sighs quietly as she sits down, feeling overwhelmed at the scope of the lives lost today. Innocent kids, truly. How many kids were in those training centers? Only two of them each year were responsible for going into the Games. The rest were innocent. She hopes they got some of the kids to safety…but she knows they didn't. It's foolish hope. "Any word from the bunkers?"

"District Two has been able to make communication with us, but they did mention that they are missing two victors who went after two kids," he replies, frowning at that as he focuses on the Two screens. Half the security cameras they had in the area were taken out by bombs, but from the distant ones, they can see people running to try and help. "Minimal casualties there, but no word from One or Four."

"They're dead, don't hold out hope," Ishani says, a little harshly, but mostly telling it to herself to start preparing herself for the confirmed news. "Let me know when the teams get sent out, I want the captains reporting back often on what they find."

"Yes ma'am," he replies diligently and goes to do as she asked right away.

Ishani can just stare at the screens in silence for a few minutes, trying to think what the next attack might be and where, and she knows it would be targeting them and the headquarters. But good fucking luck trying to take them down, not a chance. So she finds herself watching the trackers in the arena for Seraphim, Zephyr, and Julian, but mostly watching Julian…and she doesn't like the fact that he's moving slowly through the arena while the other two have already made trips back to the hovercraft. And…it's just easier to focus on the arena than all the death around them. Death she couldn't prevent.

"Ma'am?"

Ishani looks up at the voice addressing her and gestures for the commander to step up to her as she sits up straight. "What is it?"

"The swat team is in position outside the mentor room," the commander tells her, standing straight with arms behind her back. "And I've been advised by the doctor that the gas most likely won't kill the two shot, but waiting any longer to rescue them will likely result in low odds of their survival. However, I have been advised that the gas will likely knock them out first, potentially notifying the rebels of what is happening before they are knocked out."

Ishani sighs at that but nods her head in understanding. "Understood," she replies quietly, feeling the weight of the decision resting on her shoulders. She stares up at the screens with the security camera feed into the mentor room, and she knows what she has to do. At this point, it's the life of two up in the air versus however many rounds of bullets the rebels have in their guns. Probably enough to kill everyone in that room…

"Alert the team that we're sending in the gas."


Sloan Sonnino, Escort for District Five

For the last few months of training, Sloan didn't understand how some nurses had the ability to just shut off their emotions and do what needed to be done. To see the worst car accidents come in, people bleeding out, and just stay calm and treat them.

But now they get it. Something flipped in them once Roo was shot, and they just needed to do what was necessary to keep him safe and stop the bleeding. Keep him from being killed by the rebels. They couldn't have the rebels kill another person they cared about. Not again.

"I think that's all I can do right now," Sloan finally tells him with a sigh, sitting back and looking at their work. They were fortunate to always keep a basic first aid kit in their bag, but…a gunshot isn't a basic wound! Roo needs to be in a hospital right now, not trapped in this room by fucking rebels. And Sloan just feels guilty that they can't do more for him. "I'm sorry it's not more. It's my fault."

"No, you did so much," Roo says right away and grabs their arm, keeping them from getting up. He gives them a pleading scared look and Sloan settles right down next to him, holding his hand tightly. "I-I don't blame you. You helped! I…I don't wanna think about what would have happened if you weren't here. I-I…"

"Shh, that didn't happen," Sloan reassures him quietly and gently puts their arm around his shoulders to pull him close, being careful of the bandaged wound on his arm. He still needs to get to a hospital and they're really fucking scared of the blood loss, or if they fucked up somehow stitching him up. "I was here, thank fucking God I was here for you." They don't even want to think about what would have happened if they weren't there…

"Yeah," Roo says quietly and Sloan takes a good look at him, just checking that he isn't quiet from passing out or something. He sits there quietly for a few seconds, his arm hanging limply by his side, before he turns to look at them with teary eyes. "I'm scared of what will happen, but…less so with you here."

"Then I will stay right here," Sloan reassures him with a smile before looking around the room, keeping track of the rebels and more importantly, their guns. They don't want anyone else getting shot… The air is still filled with that metallic smell of blood mixed with gunpowder – and vomit from someone – and it's a smell they wish they never had to smell. Suddenly they wished to be like Elias and have their smell wiped away completely. "I'm not leaving you."

"Okay," Roo says softly and Sloan can just tell from his voice that he doesn't believe them. "If you get a chance to escape…"

"I won't be escaping without you," Sloan says firmly before he can tell them to leave him behind. "You deserve to live too. And you will, I'll make sure. I swear, okay?"

Roo gives them a look at that for a few seconds, clearly wanting to protest before finally letting out a sigh and nodding his head. "Okay," he agrees weakly – from not wanting to argue or blood loss, Sloan isn't really sure, so they put a hand on his forehead as they check the bandage to see how quickly it's soaking through. "I'm fine."

"How many times have you told people that and gotten away with it?" Sloan asks him, finally ready to address the fact that he is not healthy with his eating and weight. They raise an eyebrow at him before bringing a glass of water to his lips. "Drink some water. And when we can, you need to eat something to keep up your strength."

"I don't need to-" Roo cuts himself off with a sigh at the look Sloan gives him and just quietly drinks the water instead of protesting them. Which…they don't take as a great sign, if he doesn't even have the energy to protest that. "Will it keep me alive?"

"Yes," Sloan says right away, which Roo sighs at but nods his head. They set the glass aside and take a good look at his face, watching for any signs that he is getting worse. He is a bit paler than normal, which definitely isn't a great sign… "How are you feeling?" they ask when they see him staring a little bit out of focus.

"I…I don't know," Roo says quietly and Sloan starts panicking a little inside at him getting clammy. "I-I think I feel lightheaded."

"Okay whatever you do, you have to stay awake," Sloan says immediately as they move to sit right in front of him. They grab his cheeks, making him keep looking at him even though they can see his eyes struggling to stay open. "Roo! Stay awake, please, you can't leave me!"

"What's happening?" Mord says as he comes rushing over at the panic in Sloan's voice, but seeing Roo like that just makes him start grabbing his hair in a panic. "Is he okay? Oh God, is he dying?!"

"Would you shut the fuck up?!" Sloan asks harshly and knows from the look on his face that they were too mean, but they don't have time to be nice right now! They slap Roo's cheek a little bit, trying to keep him awake. "Hey, stay with me. You have to, I can't lose you. Please, Roo."

But not even slapping his cheek seemed to be working, which seemed to usually work in the hospital! And the alarm coming from the other side of the room with Amelia immediately sent Sloan into an alarmed state, trying to figure out what is going on. "Amelia, stay awake!"

"Everyone shut up!" Larisa shouts over everyone and holds her gun up in the air to fire a warning shot that makes a few mentors and escorts cry out and crouch down at. "Next one who yells gets a bullet through their head."

Sloan tries to slip back into that calm state, but seeing Roo struggling to keep his eyes open makes it damn impossible to stay calm. "Roo, please," they quietly beg him as they put a hand on his neck, feeling his pulse. And…it's still there, not as strong as a healthy person, but consistent and there, even as his eyes close and his head falls back. They grab him and get him better situated in the chair, before giving Mord a confused and concerned look. "Something's happening," they say softly, looking around the room nervously. And sure enough, Amelia has also passed out, and a couple others are starting to look a little lightheaded. Sure, to the trained eye it isn't super noticeable, but they've seen plenty of classmates pass out in the first rotation through the ER. "Oh fuck, this isn't gonna be good," they mutter, glancing at the rebels and just praying none of them figured it out.

But Rona is leaning her hand on the wall to keep steading, blinking a few times before rubbing her eyes. "What's happening?" she asks out loud, looking over at Larisa.

And a few people seem to realize what's happening at the same time that Larisa is figuring it out. And some of those are some very angry careers who had to watch their friend get killed right in front of them. All it takes is a shared look between Emilio and Jory without any words, before they both jump to tackle Larisa to the ground quickly. Right behind them, Misha pushes Odyssey to the floor to cover him, and Drazen chucks a bottle at Rona's head, knocking her to the ground as the other rebels try to start moving into action.

People start dropping to the ground, passing out, but not all the rebels immediately. And Sloan did say that they were going to get Roo out of this room alive. And they meant it. So they quickly jump up to tackle the nearest guard as several gunshots go off again.


Calisto Flowers, Rescued Tribute

Calisto is forced to decide where he wants to go as he stands there in the busy Capitol streets, people full of panic as they try to hurry home to safety. On the one hand, he has to get to Mendalius to try and keep him safe. He's the only father figure he's ever had, and if anything happens because he wasn't there…he doesn't know what he would do.

But on the other hand… He knows at this point there is only one person that Elin might listen to, and that's himself. But how are they going to believe him? The person they knew him as has been dead for over a decade. Probably the same can be said about the Elin that he knew back then…

And yet, he still can't help but hope that maybe deep down, somewhere…the half-sibling he once knew is still there.

"Fuck, what do I do?" Calisto mutters as he paces a little bit in the alleyway he tucked himself into while he decides. Does he go to the family he had or his chosen family? But he knows deep down what he has to do, even if it hurts him. He could waste the whole day trying to hunt down where in the city Elin made their message from, but he can walk down the street and get into the President's Mansion right now. The Elin he grew up with is long gone, surely, and if he goes after them, he's probably just risking himself by being associated with them.

So as much as it pains him…he steps out of the alleyway and turns right, continuing on towards the mansion. It's just what he has to do. As much as he wants to save Elin, they're too far gone, and it's probably his fault for not trying to sneak out and get back to them sooner. Could he have saved them if he found them years ago? Before their evil mother had time to corrupt them? Maybe…or he would have gotten shot by the rebels before even making it to them. What happened to all of them? They used to be such a tight inseparable group as kids, not caring about war and overthrowing the Capitol. And he missed all of them, they were the only source of light in his life and they validated him as he figured himself out. And he yearned for years to be back with them, to have some friends

And now that friendship is gone, and they'll probably be gone too if the Capitol catches them. For surely there's no way they'll let them live after everything they've done.

"Halt, no one is allowed in without security clearance," the Peacekeeper at the gate says at Calisto's approach, bringing him out of his thoughts and he stops suddenly.

"I do have security clearance," Calisto replies, a little nervous about it because if they input his info in the device, Kostas will know where he is immediately. He lifts up the visor of his helmet for the retina scan, anxiously waiting the few seconds before it beeps and flashes the green light. "See? I told you."

The Peacekeeper is silent for a few seconds, making Calisto nervous that they flagged his clearance or something, before stepping aside and waving him in. "Alright, go."

"Thanks," Calisto replies as he's already taking off quickly down the long pathway leading up to the mansion. And he gets about halfway there before he hears the Peacekeeper calling after him and he takes off running the rest of the way, throwing open the door and running down the familiar hallways and taking a confusing path to try and throw them off. Because they're not going to know the mansion like he does, only a very small handful knows every detail of it! He spent years growing up here, barely getting allowed outside of the walls.

He ducks into a spare bedroom and leans against the closed door, waiting for the running to go past and stay quiet for a few minutes. He's never seen the mansion in this state before, and it's alarming and sets his heart racing. He takes off his helmet, sweating like crazy under it, and slides down to sit for a few minutes. Fuck, war is scary, he hates this. He never should have left here in the first place to be part of the Games, it wasn't worth the little bit of freedom he got to now be separated from Mendalius.

He sighs as he puts his ear to the door, not hearing anyone, before getting up and poking his head out the door. He hurries out into the hallway, heading towards the secret pathway that leads down to the secure basement Mendalius is in. And when he reaches it, and doesn't see the usual guard stationed at the bottom of the stairs, he swears as he runs to the door and throws it open, stepping inside and immediately stopping at the horrifying sight in front of him.

"I wondered who was going to show up first for our beloved president," Elin says, voice dripping in sarcasm as they hold a knife at Mendalius's throat. The former president just sits there, not making any attempt to move, but gives Calisto a pleading look as someone comes up behind Calisto and puts a gun to the back of his head. "Give your gun to Josefine, slowly!"

Calisto does as they say, slowly holding his gun up to the side which Josefine grabs quickly before stepping back from him, still keeping her gun pointed at him. "You lying bitch," he tells her, shaking his head in disappointment. "Of course you betrayed them. Even your own brother? Or is he still with the Capitol?"

Josefine laughs at that as she moves to stand closer to Elin. "That dumbass doesn't have two brain cells on a good day," she says with a scowl. "And when he does, he'd rather use it to get laid than for good."

"Yeah, sounds about right for him," Calisto says under his breath with a chuckle before clearing his throat as he keeps his hands raised up in the air and looks at Elin. He didn't expect to see them here, but maybe this is what he needs, a chance to get to both of them. "I wanted to find you to talk."

"You? I don't want to talk to some Capitol lackey," Elin says, giving him a disgusted look that makes Calisto just laugh. "What's so funny?!" they ask, offended at his behavior and pulling the knife tighter around Mendalius's neck, making him wince as a small line of blood forms. "Stop laughing or I'll kill him! I'm serious!"

"I know you're serious, Elin," Calisto says, taking a couple steps closer to them before stopping at Josefine coming closer to him with her gun aimed at his chest. "And I'm not a Capitol lackey. I know I may look it, but that's because for fourteen years…I couldn't tell anyone the truth about who I am. But I've wanted to go find you all these years, and I'm sorry I couldn't."

"Fourteen years?" Elin asks, giving him a confused look. "I-I don't know who the fuck you are!"

"But you do," Calisto says, taking a deep breath as he shares a look with Mendalius, who gives him the smallest nod. "You don't even recognize your half-brother anymore? It's me…Pascal."


Well, well, well, look who actually got another update out within three months! Much better than last time. Started thinking about this earlier in the day, and thankfully had motivation once home from work and realized past me had actually written most of it already so go past me lol. And now you get a nice little subplot (or is it just Plot now?) chapter before we go back into the arena.

Not too much else update wise to discuss. Adulting is still exhausting, I'm ready for it to be fall and to stop roasting every time I step outside, and I'm still here (barely lol, by that I mean I'll see this through to the end still).

We'll see if I can get the next update out in less than three months. And I'll probably plan out how many chapters are left by that point, just so we can start wrapping this up. See ya when I see ya!