Author's Note: It's all go as we move closer to the end of this story too. As with the Wednesday chapters, things will be finished next week. I really appreciate everyone who has followed this through to the end.

….

Insurgent

Despite the warning, the evacuation from District Twelve was chaotic. Cameron arrived, screeching into the Victors' Village at pace, moments after Peeta had been able to spread the word. There was an air of chaos and concern in Twelve and Peeta was anxious. He was not sure if everybody would leave on time and whether people would be left behind to face the Capitol's bombs.

Cameron gave them very little time to leave. He wanted to ensure that Peeta and other key figures were at the agreed points so Twelve's people knew they would be safe in their hands. They were going to take as many people as they could across the border into District Six and it was obvious people would be frightened.

There was no time to waste. Peeta, Katniss and Haymitch could leave quickly, with Haymitch only ensuring he had enough alcohol and seeking Cameron's reassurance that Poppy would have prepared for his arrival. Mrs Everdeen and Prim were ready to leave at short notice and had the supplies they would be taking to Six ready and waiting to go.

Persuading Daisy and her family to leave was more difficult. Her family were not active rebels. They did not believe the Capitol would destroy District Twelve despite the victors' best efforts at telling them what the Capitol was really like. Daisy was unnerved and frightened at every loud noise and Cameron's arrival had startled her.

Knowing they could not wait any longer, Peeta swept Daisy up and placed her in the seat next to his. Katniss had to physically force Daisy's family into the vehicle.

They joined Cameron's forces in other vehicles from Six to meet the first arrivals at the main meeting point. Much to Katniss' relief, Gale and his entire family had made it quickly and brought their neighbours with them. Gale had assured her that other families from the Seam were heading east to where vehicles from Thirteen should meet them. But there would be no time to check in on other meeting points. Peeta had the radio but could only confirm with Delly, who was waiting for Marshall to arrive, that people should be on their way. He received the same confirmation from Jonah Ashton who was waiting for Calico's people.

Peeta watched as the vehicles containing the earliest arrivals sped away under the cover of the trees to get as far away from Twelve as possible. Peeta wanted to stay visible, to ensure the later arrivals knew they were safe and could trust Six's volunteers. After all, this would be the first time they had met anybody from another district who was not a peacekeeper.

But soon, arrivals started to slow, and Cameron insisted they had to leave. It would be no good being in the range of the bombers when they arrived. But Peeta did not want to leave anybody behind. He took his responsibilities to Twelve's people seriously. Eventually, however, he had to relent. Haymitch became agitated, insisting that Peeta would be no good as a leader if he were dead and he was not about to die because Peeta wanted to be the hero. Anybody who made it out would owe their lives to Peeta's planning as it was.

They drove through the borderlands at speed. When they heard the bombs and the roar of the fire, Twelve's people who left with Peeta were clean away from what was left of their district. Peeta could only hope the others had been rescued at their meeting points.

The convoy arrived in District Six under fire. Peacekeepers had got wind of their arrival and tried to attack. But Cameron's men were armed. Fighters like Katniss and Gale returned fire immediately to see that they were protected. Peeta had his gun ready and found he did not care how many peacekeepers he injured or took down if it would see that their people could arrive safely.

Throughout their arrival, Daisy was screaming in the seat next to him. Peeta had to force her to lay against him to muffle the sounds of her cries. But as soon as Peeta could see Poppy in the distance, he knew they had made it.

Cameron wasted no time on their arrival in hauling Daisy from the vehicle and carrying her to another car where he would take her and her family to their hideout. Peeta had made him aware that they were reluctant rebels and given Six's experience with Bram's family, they knew they could not be too trusting. They would stay under their close supervision and not leave the hideout unaccompanied.

Poppy was firm, brisk and from what Peeta could tell, entirely in her element and energised by their arrival. People who had been injured during the journey were whisked away and Poppy introduced herself.

"Friends, welcome to District Six. You will hate it here. But you are alive and that is what matters."

Peeta turned to his people, realising that they were looking to him for reassurance.

"Twelve, this is Poppy. She's a good friend of Katniss, Haymitch and I. You can trust her. Do as she says," he laughed.

"Peeta's right. I'm in charge here. We're undercover for the minute, but we need to move out, quick. So, a brief rundown of Six before you settle in. The factories are lethal. You don't know them so stay out of them. If someone tells you to collect something for them, don't."

Poppy paused before continuing, "It stinks here, I know that and I'm sorry. If you need to cover your nose and mouth, I won't be offended."

A voice from the crowd shouted back, "Just like Twelve!"

"Well then, you'll do just fine," Poppy replied. "Stay with your families. There are people ready to let you stay with them. I can't promise anybody's survival. The Capitol hates us right now. But we're going to win."

With that, Six's people moved in and quickly divided Twelve's people into groups to take them further into the district. Poppy hurried undercover and directed Peeta, Katniss, Haymitch and Gale's family to follow her.

At the rear of the group, Madge stood with the peacekeepers who had chosen to follow them to Six. Some had decided to remain in Twelve, thinking the Capitol would show them mercy. The arrivals were handcuffed, shackled and surrounded by people Madge trusted to keep them in line.

"I'm not waiting here with this lot!" Madge shouted.

"Who are they?" Poppy shouted back.

"Prisoners. Peacekeepers who decided to bet that they'd have a better chance of survival here than waiting for the Capitol."

Poppy laughed, "They aren't stupid. They have twenty-four hours. Surrender or be executed. I treat my prisoners fairly. Those who won't surrender," she shrugged, "I really don't care. Choose wisely."

With that, Poppy hurried away with her fellow victors and was happy enough to let Madge follow when the prisoners had been escorted away from her. She arrived at her bunker, noted Daisy's arrival and expressed her sympathy for the girl's predicament before getting back to business.

Prim and her mother were directed towards the makeshift hospital where Bram awaited their arrival. Peeta, Haymitch and Gale's mother were directed to the main operations room where they would be put to best use before Poppy ensured the others had weapons.

"Good, you've got a bow too," Poppy said to Katniss before pulling her into a hug. "Pick a spot and get shooting, I trust your judgement. You too, Hawthornes. I've heard good things about you. Cameron will show you around. If he tells you something is stupid, don't do it. Otherwise, get as many of them as you can."

Later in the evening, it was just Poppy, Peeta, Haymitch and Cameron's mother in the control room.

"This is yours," Poppy said, looking at Peeta and handing him a silver armband. "With Finnick's approval. H, you can have one too, but I didn't think you'd care."

She looked to Cameron's mother and continued, "If I'm not here, she's in charge. If she's not here, you're in charge, Peeta. Everyone else in here knows Six but I know you. Use them to your advantage but it's your call."

Peeta looked shocked and did not know what to say.

"You don't have to say anything. Just know that I trust you. And I'm sorry that it's come to this. We all are. It's your home you've lost. I moan about this place, but it's home and I know how we'd all feel. You're welcome here as long as you need."

….

War moved quickly in District One. Confusion turned to chaos and chaos turned into all-out conflict. The peacekeepers saw themselves outgunned, outmanoeuvred and encircled. Entire battalions were surrendering and by the time the Capitol reacted with bombers, enough money had been moved in their direction, that they gave up. One always knew money talked.

Prisoners were held in favourable conditions and those senior enough to have taken bribes to be moved to Four, left under the cover of night to their open prison by the sea. District One still fought but they let what they knew work for them.

Only small groups of peacekeepers and loyalists held out. Fighting was still commonplace but One was not about to see its entire cityscape destroyed. Conflict moved to the villages and secondary towns where the Capitol held on for the sake of holding on.

The Goldsmith family, the rebels' largest supporters and leaders, took temporary control, shoring up stability in the centre and trying to rebuild what had been damaged. Gloss still led the charge in combatting the isolated uprisings and carried out intelligence operations on One's streets.

Their experiences in the Capitol meant that the victors were skilled at gathering intelligence. Even as she aged, Topaz moved around her home with ease and people stopped to talk to her. Former students from the Academy fed back information on Luxor's presence and increasing desperation to shore up any remaining support for the Capitol. Apparently, Gus knew the battle was over and had gone into hiding but had not convinced the older victor to do the same.

Gloss hated using his sister as a honey trap, but the siblings had to admit that the Capitol's tactics could be weaponised against them. Cashmere controlled the prisoners' accommodations and ensured she was a visible presence. She spoke to the prisoners, flaunted her looks and ensured her staff adequately provided for them. She gained their trust over time and checked the accommodation daily to make sure the bugs remained in place.

Comfortable, fed and safe, the peacekeepers talked. The highest-ranking officials were interviewed and presented with the items they wanted most. They opened up to each other with ease, not realising that their every word was listened to.

Cashmere knew all about what they had planned for One, where weapons reserves were positioned and when they expected the Capitol Guard to arrive in support. Information was fed back to Gloss, raids on weapon stores were carried out and their fighters prepared for the Guard's arrival. The intelligence operation was a resounding success, and they would work to keep it that way as more prisoners were taken.

On One's streets, people spoke to Topaz and Theo with ease. With so much activity and instability, it was difficult to decipher what was rumour and what was of consequence. But they could feed back to each other and decide if messages corroborated. Usually, any information they received was small fry, but gradually they picked up information which led them to a circle of Capitol loyalists ready to attempt a fightback in the centre.

It was bound to fail but the rebels did not want to be caught off-guard. The victors were also concerned about who they might find in that group. They had no doubts that Luxor was desperately clinging on in vain to the hope of a Capitol resurgence and that there were people who admired him and would listen to him. One was also home to some of the richest people across the districts who had been served well by the Capitol regime. They had remained quiet so far. But the time would come when they had to come clean about their loyalties.

Topaz and Theo could ensure the rebels were prepared on that front, but rumours were still abounded on the streets of District One. As she was returning to base one evening, Topaz heard whispers about the whereabouts of their location and someone once close to the victors being prepared to strike. Topaz had not heard anything else to suggest they had been discovered and so far, neither had Theodore. But this struck at their heart, and she could not ignore it. She had to consider that someone may be willing them to panic and reveal their location. It could be a ploy to do just that, but her instinct told her it was a real threat.

The victors had lots of former associates. They had trained thousands of One's young people after all. But Topaz could not shake the suspicion that Ermine, Gloss' ex-wife was the one behind it. Gloss had never been able to shake her off completely. The victors were always aware of her shadow. Topaz thought she had seen her moving through One, trying to be discreet, but could never be certain it was her. She knew from Gem that she had long been in contact with Luxor and her suspicions were just enough to make her concerned. They would have to move quickly. If there was any evidence Ermine was moving against them or targeting Gloss, she would have to be dealt with.

Topaz knew what she needed to do. She also had to address the risk Amethyst continued to pose. Nobody thought she was loyal to the Capitol, but she was not loyal to the rebel cause either. That was a risk in itself as her position could be swayed. Any hint that their strength was compromised could make Amethyst a real danger. Topaz could not fault her for looking out solely for herself. It was what she did for years, but this was not the time. She needed to think of something so she could keep them all safe. She was now the oldest and she felt responsible for their survival.

….

Luckily for Topaz, Lyme also had a loose cannon on her hands. Antigone was in the field but lacked the discipline for sustained fighting and wanted quick results. She would venture out on reckless missions, not caring who saw her or whether she could be captured as she fully believed she could fight off anybody who confronted her. This led to Malachite chasing after his victor and finding himself in danger and Lyme was furious.

She needed order and control, not vengeance-driven missions that would get her victor killed. When Gloss told her of One's nervousness over Amethyst, Lyme landed on the ideal solution. They just needed District Four on board.

Antigone, Amethyst and Aquaria were close. They were lethal, prone to overconfidence and thought little of killing people who got in their way. The Capitol had presented them as a dynamic, deadly trio. What better way of using that than sending them into the Capitol as operatives with the permission to kill anyone who got in their way?

The victors had lists of people they would happily see the end of. Lyme knew they could get Plutarch to add his own names. It would give the three women plenty to work on.

Aria was also in the Capitol and news of missing jewellery and break-ins at the homes of the most well-known Capitol celebrities, Gamemakers and politicians was reaching the news. District Two had found a way to pick up internal Capitol networks and Lyme had been able to piece together Aria's successes. She was sure One's woman could find a home for them if required.

Aquaria instantly agreed and Song gave her blessing, so it was set. The three victors would meet at the border nearest Two and enter the Capitol to add to the chaos. The effects of war were being felt most harshly on the poorest in the Capitol and it was about time the fears of the richest extended beyond their belonging and fancy jewellery to their lives. Antigone, Amethyst and Aquaria would eagerly involve themselves in the chaos and seek swift results. Lyme knew she would be hearing about their adventures on the news shortly.

….

It was Dora's voice that Poppy and Halley heard over their radios that night. Finnick had joined the fighting on Four's seas. The Capitol Guard were advancing towards Four's border in huge numbers, a bombing campaign had started, and the navy had made their presence known in Four's waters.

Missiles remained aimed in Four's direction but Thirteen had come through, pointed their missiles back at the Capitol and their air force was circling Four. A battle for the skies above Four had commenced with the district looking on.

The drones supplied by Three were able to bring Four into play. But they could only do so much damage to the Capitol's aircraft. The heavy damage was done by Thirteen's fighter planes and every day, planes from both sides were shot down into the sea, or rocks in the borderlands.

The bandits had swiftly relocated due to the danger and had remained on the lookout for the approaching Capitol Guard, but soon it would be time for them to engage. Rowan and Song had led forces into the borderlands to halt the advance and fierce fighting had broken out. Four were not going to give up their freedom.

….

District Three had also briefly seen the arrival of the Capitol Guard. They moved straight from the train station to the Victors' Village, having been told the houses had been abandoned. Beetee, Wiress and Halley looked on from the bunker in glee. The Capitol Guard were about to have quite the surprise.

At first, the invaders were smart, moving into the houses that had never been occupied, thinking correctly, that the victors could have booby-trapped their homes. But the victors had allowed them to be complacent. They had not rigged the first house.

The second the Guard entered the second, it collapsed around them. Halley had wired the whole house to be triggered as soon as a door was opened. The next house was Beetee's trap. The front door opened without issue. Whoever opened the kitchen and bathroom doors would be electrocuted, even through the peacekeeper uniform. Some of the stairs were rigged too, as were half of the bedroom doors, most of the wardrobe and cupboard doors, and the appliances. Making it through the house alive was a game of roulette.

Most of the houses contained Wiress' mutts, combined with smaller explosions set up by Halley, creating a lethal combination for anyone to make it through.

By the time the remaining Capitol Guard members reached the victors' homes, they were paranoid, mindful of every step and everything they touched. They were met with Orion's defences, some of which Halley had added her touch to and in reaching Stella's house, they activated a series of drones which dropped many horrors on the Guard standing outside.

Some were desperate enough to seek refuge inside, but that proved a mistake. The victors did not care for material possessions and certainly not those provided by the Capitol, so their houses had become entirely inhospitable. Stella continued with drone attacks, Orion created a lethal obstacle course, and every wrong touch in Halley's house led to an explosion. Wiress lived with Beetee so she did not care that the mutts which crawled out from under sofas and beds destroyed everything and everyone in their path. Beetee had done his best to protect some living space in the Village. Nobody would survive opening doors, windows, cupboards or drawers. He had recreated the trap he used in his arena to further lethal success.

The victors looked on and laughed. Between them, they had created an arena which destroyed a Capitol Guard unit. They were not surprised to see a peacekeeper retaliation and further bombs on the district, but they could all cope. Their faces were plastered over national and district news with bounties on each of their heads but none of the victors cared. Three liked them and trusted them. The victors were vital to their success. Nobody was about to betray them.

The Capitol Guard would return with a second attempt at attacking the district but Three had already drawn a significant victory and an embarrassing loss for the Capitol. They had the upper hand.

….

Fighting in District Seven was brutal, and their losses were starting to mount. Linden and Blight had retreated to the cover of their base to ready more weapons whilst the younger victors remained in the field to galvanise their people.

It was time for Seven to make their biggest push forward. They knew there would be repercussions, but the Capitol was spread so thinly, that it might not be what they had imagined. They were already being bombed almost every day and the paper mills had been destroyed, leaking chemicals into the air.

An entire lumber crew had been taken hostage and it was time for them to fight back. Linden and Seven's leaders had managed to make contact. The older victor reluctantly allowed his victor to lead a unit to smuggle weapons and explosive devices to the group.

Fern's group were met under the cover of darkness by a steady flow of individuals brave enough to try to escape watch. They heard sporadic shooting and knew there was a risk of discovery, but freeing the group and sending a message to the rest of the peacekeepers that their time was up was a risk worth taking.

The next morning, the lumber crew were led out to work as usual, under heavy peacekeeper guard. But with a shout from one of their leaders, they turned on the peacekeepers. They shot them and swung with their axes before scrambling into the trees as the ground fell from under the peacekeepers and anyone who remained on the forest floor.

Fern's group stayed behind the workers, providing backup to fight the off-duty peacekeepers who had become aware of what was happening and to escort the crew back to Seven's centre. They had all suffered losses. Fern was feeling a little worse for wear, but they were victorious.

At the same time, Seven's central cell pushed forward to take over the Justice Building. The Capitol-supporting Mayor was taken prisoner, and the rebel leader took control. The main city was breaking free and almost the entire district was united. There were very few people reluctant to contribute to Seven's efforts. They were hardy people, proud of their home and willing to fight for what they believed in. District Seven's time had come.

….

Poppy had tuned in her radio for her evening briefing alongside Twelve's victors who were desperate to hear from the other districts who had rescued their people.

In typical fashion, District Thirteen arrived early and wasted no time in announcing their progress.

"1,148 people successfully escaped District Twelve via our rendezvous point. They have all been processed and will start settling into Thirteen tomorrow," the voice came.

Peeta winced slightly whilst Haymitch muttered his concerns about what 'processing' meant in the context of District Thirteen.

"Twelve here," Peeta introduced himself. "We thank you for your efforts and appreciate what you have done for our people."

"Tell me, Twelve. How many people were you? We were expecting more. We saw that some did not make it beyond the border. The Capitol bombers caught them, and it was too late. But still, we were expecting more than just short of 1,200."

"Twelve's population has shrunk to just over 6,000. Life expectancy remains short, and my generation chose to have fewer children or none at all."

"We didn't think that was an option in Twelve?"

"We made it one," Peeta replied. "Do you know if there are signs anyone near the border survived the attack?"

"Our final hovercraft circled the area before departing and we have surveillance in the vicinity now. Of course, it is too dark to attempt a possible rescue, but we think survivors are unlikely."

"Understood."

Peeta was visibly upset, but Katniss took hold of his hand. They knew that losing some people was inevitable. Not everyone believed that the Capitol would do what they had and were reluctant to leave their homes. Others would have been too slow. They could not control everything.

Thirteen's voice continued, "After our successful joint effort, united with the other districts, we think it is time for us to publicly confirm to Panem, and the Capitol of course, that District Thirteen is alive and well."

"Twelve gets to tell its story first. And then you can sweep in as a heroic part of the rescue effort," Poppy said quickly.

They were then joined by Calico, who confirmed the return of her part of the rescue mission, led by Cecelia's oldest son. They too had rescued over 1,000 people but had not been able to carry out a final count, such was the chaos in Eight.

"I don't think they're happy here," Calico said. "From what Merino has told me, you had played your part rather quietly and overran your peacekeepers."

"There weren't many of them and we had guns," Peeta laughed.

"Well done all the same. I am pleased we have rescued some of your brave people. I only hope we can keep them alive in Eight. We are under almost constant bombardment now."

Another female voice interrupted the conversation and immediately called for Peeta.

Twelve's victor recognised the voice immediately, "Delly! Thank goodness you're okay. How is Eleven."

"Different. Hot. Lots of fighting, lots more peacekeepers. But we've made it, as many of us as we could."

Peeta noticed his friend's voice crack, "Delly, tell me what happened."

Before she could reply, Chaff responded, "She's too upset and I don't blame her. It seems the hovercrafts swept past our pick-up point, the fire managed to catch the stragglers and quite a few of them too. Your friend here went back to try to save people and narrowly escaped them on her return. Marshall and I went in and picked up the few we could. But hell, it was horrible, I'm sorry. My boy has filmed some of it though, none of your people, we wanted to protect them. But we'll send it via Three. People need to see it."

Nobody responded for a while before Haymitch spoke, "Thank you, Chaff. I don't normally get all sincere, but I mean it this time."

"They're your people, H."

The group spoke back and forth before Halley signed in to confirm she had had another busy day in District Three routing peacekeepers and preparing for a second attempted arrival from the Capitol Guard. Given they were being deployed everywhere, nobody knew how many troops would arrive or what state they were in. But it made sense to prepare for the worst, even though all evidence pointed to the contrary given the shambolic nature of the Capitol's defences.

They all knew that fighting had picked up in Four too, so it was no surprise that their representative was the last to sign in. Usually, they waited for Finnick to speak, but today a woman they had not heard before joined them.

"I shall get straight to the point," the voice began, and the victors knew it was Dora instantly.

"The Capitol Guard has arrived and overwhelmed our initial defences. The navy has attacked from the sea, so we are fighting on two fronts. We remain confident we will win despite suffering losses. We have not heard from Rowan, Song or Ozzie so we are not sure quite how bad the situation is on our first front."

"We hear you Dora, and welcome," Halley replied. "It's good to hear from you but I'm sorry you've brought unwelcome news."

"The fighting at sea?" Poppy asked.

"Too early to say."

Suddenly, the connection shut off and nobody could hear the voices from Eight, Eleven or Thirteen.

But Dora did not seem phased and started speaking again, "I have only Three and Six, am I correct?"

"I have Twelve with me, but otherwise, I hear you in Six."

"I hear you in Three too. Two of mine are with me but whatever it is, you can say it in front of them."

Dora waited to ensure nobody else could be heard before continuing.

"I needed to tell you first, before any news spreads. Finnick has been shot."