TW: Mention of drugs in Jokull's pov.

Day Eight of the Arena

July 10th, 2427

Jokull Askeli, 18

Agony - that's the only word that Jokull can think of at the moment.

He's had his ribs cracked before and his bones broken - but that doesn't make it any less painful.

Before, it would usually be while trying to protect his brother from bullies; although, he supposes, deep down, it is no different now.

He clutches his ribs and winces as Zora hands him a remedy that she concocted on the stove.

"It should kill most of the pain," Zora states.

Kill is an interesting choice of word for Zora - Jokull thinks.

"'Preciate it," Jokull groans as he takes the cup. Though, the only thing that he wishes for at the moment is a blunt - that would help dull the pain for sure.

Zora hasn't been the same since yesterday. All morning, she's tried to bury herself in her alchemy and avoid the subject of Fuma at all costs, but her shaking hands and quivering lips don't lie. She's not okay.

Jokull isn't so good at comforting people anymore, not since his brother passed. After that, he locked that part of himself deep down in a vault in his mind. Perhaps it's still there. He can only wonder, now.

Jokull soon finds that his alchemist friend is right - as he sips the remedy, the pain begins to ease. Of course, it doesn't unbreak his leg or fix his ribs, Zora can't work magic, but her skills are far beyond anything that he's seen before in his life, and he's seen a lot.

Her alchemy is both of their ace in the hole in this game. With it, Zora has a real chance of getting out of here, and Jokull has a real chance of not failing her, as he failed his brother.

"They're good, aren't they? I'll go make more," the Six Girl informs him as she heads back to her station, but then she turns back to Jokull, as she recalls an important piece of information. "... although, you can't take too many at a time. The mixture slows your heart, you see, and you can't slow it too much otherwise… yeah." She shifts back to her station.

Jokull tilts his head upwards, and strokes his chin as a new scheme begins formulating in his head; a top-secret scheme.

As his thoughts turn on the careers, mutts, and every other danger that awaits them, his stomach churns. The number of tributes is dwindling, and the Gamemakers are finding more ways to force the survivors to fight. He and Zora are going to have to turn to more desperate measures.

"I think we're gonna need more," Jokull mentions casually.

"More what?"

"Everything… potions to help us if we get sick or injured, and also potions to help us fight. It's the only way you-we might have a chance of getting outta here. I'll help you make them if you teach me how… but you're gonna have to use small words. I ain't no scientist or anything like that." He chuckles lightly, hoping Zora didn't notice his slip of words.

Zora places her mixing cup down and faces the injured boy on the sofa. "It's far easier to make potions that hurt people, but pointless, in my opinion," she explains. Then, she lets out a sigh. "Well… pointless outside of this place, anyway."

"You don't gotta be the one to use them on people, we can leave that to me, unless someone's got a knife to your throat and it's either you or them-"

"I know. I've accepted that I'm going to have to get my hands dirty. I already have," Zora says regretfully, dropping her gaze.

Jokull shares her regret. Back in Six, he wanted to help the other survivors of the fire at the orphanage make something of themselves… to not end up like him. That's what he always wanted for his brother, above all.

"What were you thinking? More poison?" Zora asks, staring down at her flask.

Jokull leans back on the sofa and stares at the tips of his fingers. "Maybe, but I was thinkin' we need something more direct this time… more fiery…"

Meilin Seacole, 15

Meilin wanders on and on through a silent, darkening alleyway. She clutches her alliance's bag tightly in both arms, whilst holding her head up high. She refuses to look back; she can't.

She does regret having to go behind Liz's back and taking most of their supplies, but, in the end, the girl left her with no choice; she wouldn't believe Meilin about the Two Boy. Or that kindness is the most powerful force in this world, and that it spreads like light across the land on a beautiful dawn.

If Liz won't believe her then she'll have to show her. She'll show the entire world.

Meilin took most of her alliance's supplies to distribute them among the other tributes, or as many tributes as she can find, while leaving enough for Liz to survive.

There could be a tribute dying of thirst and starvation, just waiting to be saved, and Meilin will come along with much-needed food and water. Then, her kindness will spread to that tribute, and they will spread it to the next tribute, and this will keep going until all the remaining tributes are consumed by kindness, and they all stop fighting. Then, the Capitol will lose.

Plus, with all the cameras on her, and with the whole country watching her, what better opportunity than this one to spread her message? Her message will live on even if she doesn't.

There's still hope for Meilin's plan. There always was. If she fails and it doesn't work then she'll die trying; she's come to terms with that now.

Meilin isn't going anywhere specifically, she's just travelling through this hellscape until she stumbles across the first tribute that she can help.

She's not afraid anymore. There's nothing more the Capitol can do to hurt her, and if she dies trying to help people, then… she's won.

She can't be scared; the Capitol survives off of people's fear.

Eventually, Meilin exits the dark alleyway and finds herself on a much wider road. She thinks she recognizes this place as being nearby where she and Liz left Ground Zero. Although, she can't know for certain where she is.

At the end of the road is a large building that towers over all the others. It must be the remains of a skyscraper, Meilin figures. Skyscrapers were commonplace back home in New Alexandria in District Three.

No. She can't think of home right now. She has to focus on her mission.

(If her family is watching, then she knows they will watch with pride as their daughter makes the world a better place.)

Suddenly, a smile spreads across Meilin's face as she spots someone sitting against the wall of the building - her chance has finally presented itself.

She springs forward, unable to contain her excitement.

As she gets closer, she's able to make out in more detail the tribute's appearance. It's a boy with bright red hair, wearing a neon green hazmat suit which is torn in multiple places. He's slumped against the side of the building, holding his knees against his chest. His face is red and drenched in tears, with many cuts and bruises - the largest is a deep gash on his forehead, which is still leaking blood.

The boy appears hopeless and defenseless, just like Meilin was a few days ago; that makes him the perfect first tribute to spread her kindness to.

Meilin crouches down in front of him and swings her bag off of her back.

When he notices her, panic spreads on his face, and he reaches for his bag to try to get something to protect himself with.

Meilin gently grabs his wrist to stop him. "It's okay," she smiles. "I'm not gonna hurt you."

Her soothing voice seems to calm the distressed tribute down, so she keeps talking. "What's your name?" She asks. "I don't think we've met yet."

"R-Reese… Haricot…"

"That's a nice name."

Then, Reese's eyes brighten slightly. "My surname means 'bean', true fact," he murmurs.

Meilin chuckles, and hands him some water from her bag, noticing his dry lips. "You look like you could use this."

Reese narrows his eyes at the water bottle distrustfully. So, Meilin takes a sip of it before handing it to him to ease his nerves.

"It's not a trick," Meilin reassures him. "Although, I get it if you don't trust me."

(The unwelcome memory of Day's last moments resurfaces.)

(The shock and look of betrayal in her eyes.)

(She failed Day. She won't fail Reese.)

Reese gratefully accepts it before gulping it down, as if he's never drank water before. "I-I lost someone, she had all my supplies," the boy stutters. His eyes fall down. "She gave her life for me. I-it's my fault she's gone."

"I lost people too," Meilin replies. "Sometimes you try your best, but there's nothing more you can do."

Reese nods sorrowfully.

Meilin then helps to clean the blood off of Reese's head, before leaving him some food and water, and then standing up to bid him farewell. "Well… it was nice meeting you, Reese." She gives him a warm smile. "I'd love to stick around, but I've got more people to help."

"B-bye," Reese mutters. "It was nice meeting you too. I-I wish I'd met you sooner, I think we could have been buddies. You'd have liked my friends too."

"Yeah, I think so. Take care, it's rough out there," Meilin says.

"You too."

Times are tough, but that is all the more reason to be kind - that's what Meilin always used to tell herself.

Never has it rang so true for her until now.

Meilin truly would have liked to hang out with Reese for longer, but she has achieved her goal; by the end of their conversation, his tears had cleared and hope had returned to his face.

Time to find the next tribute.

Meilin travels down the road, in the opposite direction of Reese. The darkness of night surrounds her in all directions, but she never breaks her stride.

The road ends at a grey, gothic building with jagged spires that Meilin guesses is supposed to be some kind of church.

Two tributes emerge from the front doors to meet her. Both are much taller than Meilin and armed - it's the careers, or what's left of them.

The careers trained their entire lives to kill kids like Meilin; by doing this they violate all of her principles and actively work to stop her mission. They are everything bad about the world.

(That is all the more reason to be kind to them, because if she can be kind to killers then anyone can be kind to anyone.)

Two Careers already tried to kill Meilin in these Games, but these two are not the ones who tried to kill her. She has no idea what to expect.

Whatever happens, she will do her best to spread her kindness even if it means she doesn't leave this place… which feels very likely.

Meilin recognizes the two careers as being the girl from One and the boy from Four. The girl is muscular with red, braided hair. She wears a light, grey hazmat suit. The boy is slender and has dark hair and eyes and wears a teal green hazmat suit, like the colour of a murky sea.

Both can kill Meilin in a split second if they choose to do so, but for now, they just stare at her in bemusement.

Meilin holds up her hands in surrender. "I have food and water and supplies," she offers. She tosses her bag down in front of her and unzips it. "Oh, and me and my ally did sort of steal from you guys before… sorry about that. It backfired pretty heavily on us, anyway," she admits.

The One Girl steps forward and peers inside the bag. "You really think we're gonna fall for this? It's the oldest trick in the book."

The One Girl is much more distrustful than Reese was, especially at the risk of poisoning. So, Meilin takes an extra large gulp of water and a mouthful of food from the bag.

"I remember you now," One recalls, raising an eyebrow. "You were the one that tried to convince everyone not to fight during the bloodbath."

"I haven't stopped trying," Meilin replies sternly. "I thought maybe if I show you all kindness rather than telling you about it, I might have a better shot."

"I respect your conviction. We'll make sure you and what you did here are remembered."

Meilin smiles up at them.

One then takes the bag and places it at the bottom of the church stairs. "But I'm afraid we can't let you go. You understand, right?" she asks, as she faces the resolute girl from Three.

A knot tightens in Meilin's stomach, but she holds her head up high and never breaks her posture.

(The Capitol won't break her. They won't destroy who she is. They came close, but they failed.)

(Meilin will go out on her own terms, doing what she loves most in the world - spreading kindness.)

(They won't take away who she is. She beat them.)

The One Girl nods to her alley, who has been remaining as silent as a shadow on the wall this entire time.

"It's your turn to do the deed," One states, shooting a glance at the blade in the Four Boy's hand.

While before, the Four Boy's eyes appeared cold and devoid of emotion, suddenly they appear woeful. He nods, facing Meilin, and taking a deep breath. "I-" he pauses. He was about to apologise, Meilin knows it. "I wish there was another way," the young man mutters.

"Me too," Meilin agrees, her throat tight.

"I'll make it fast."

The Four Boy raises his sword and then brings it down towards the Three Girl's throat.

Meilin closes her eyes.

She sees her house in front of her. It's a bright, sunny day.

Her parents are standing at an open door with their arms out and smiles on their faces. Their eyes are filled with pride. They are welcoming her home.

After that, she sees nothing.

Brizio Nardolillo, 18

The small, innocent girl from Three falls down at his feet.

A cannon fires in the distance.

Brizio snaps his head away and darts straight into the church, wiping his blade clean of the Three Girl's blood. He avoids Geneve's gaze at all costs.

He's… out of air.

He hurries inside the building par and presses his hand against the wall to try to recollect his breath.

Even all the way back during Brizio's first contract, when he was only fifteen, he never once remembers feeling regret.

He recalls that day vividly. It started off as a simple courier job to a rival organization, but Brizio's employers soon decided that he would make a much better hitman than a simple messenger. It was more dangerous, but the pay offered was much better, and he and Tancred desperately needed the money.

Brizio's employers demanded the life of the rival crime lord's brother, and Brizio fulfilled the contract like it was just another mundane task to complete. He never hesitated; not if it meant that Tancred could go another night with a full stomach.

The night after his first kill, he arrived home, and quickly washed the blood off of his hands before he greeted Tancred. The only thing that felt strange to Brizio was hugging his brother with the same hands that he used to take someone else's brother. However, it slowly became a new norm, and before he knew it, he stopped giving it a second thought, like a persistent pain that he learned to ignore.

During his time as a mercenary, he's taken countless lives, crossing off other terrible people who had bounties on their heads, but he always refused to apologise for it. Why should he apologize for doing what he had to do for him and Tancred to survive?

But the life he just took was different from any other he's taken before. He came the closest he ever has to saying sorry. He's not sure who to, exactly. The Three Girl? Her family? His brother? Everyone he's ever known?

He spared Romulus, only for his blade to fall on a girl who was only giving them food and water.

(Romulus was personal, the girl from Three wasn't.

Brizio doesn't do personal; it's just business - that's how he justified it in his mind, anyway.)

Without warning, Geneve re-enters the church. Brizio's eyes dart to her, giving her a cold, empty stare.

"Are you alright, Mr. Nardolillo?" The One Girl asks. The crimson, dusk light from the church windows illuminates her sea-green eyes.

"I'm fine," Brizio shoots back, as though the question was an attack. "I know what I signed up for."

It's just another contract, and the Capitol is his employer. They will be his employers until he breaks free from this place, and there's only one way to do that.

"Are you alright?" He hits back.

Geneve nods, but her face is still questioning his answer.

"It's just a contract," Brizio says. "And we still have seven other contracts left, by my count."

Geneve nods again. She then places two empty bottles of anti-rads on one of the church benches. "I found these at the bottom of that girl's bag," she murmurs.

Brizio had hoped he wouldn't have to see one of those again. He holds up one of the bottles in front of the windows' light to examine it. "But you don't think she was behind it, do you?" he deduces, eyes scanning the bottle in his hand.

The detective career shakes her head. "She said she stole them from us, which must have been unfortunate for whoever she gave them to." Then, she begins recounting the seven contracts left - "The Sixes, the Nines, the boy from Eleven, the girl from Eight and-"

"That boy with the burnt face who was standing on the other side of the glass… Ozias. He's the biggest threat. You think it was him, don't you?"

"I'm about 80 percent sure."

"Only one way to find out," Brizio adds.

Geneve grins. "A confession." She places her hand under her chin. "Corner him? Like he did with Rom?" She asks.

"Exactly."

After Geneve has left to pack her bag for the pair's hunting trip, Brizio reaches into his pocket for an anklet made of shark's teeth and seashells - he collected it from his first contract all those years ago, as part of his spoils for the job well done.

"Just seven more contracts," he mutters to himself, staring at his token.

Reese Haricot, 15

Earlier, something very surreal happened - a small girl wandered towards Reese from out of the darkness.

The girl looked especially tiny compared to the wide road, so much so that Reese thought he wouldn't have spotted her at all, if not for her bright, yellow arena suit.

At first, he was scared, but he soon realised that she had nothing more than good intentions. She gave him water, which Reese was in dire need of as Briar and Auren had been keeping the alliance's water.

The girl in yellow then tended to Reese's wound on his forehead before bidding him goodbye.

Reese isn't sure whether the entire event was a dream, or if the girl in yellow was a hallucination or some kind of trick by the Gamemakers. What he does know is he's no longer thirsty and he's no longer bleeding, and it's all because of that girl.

He wasn't exactly sure what to make of the fact he might have perished if that girl hadn't turned up, but then he heard a cannon, and about an hour ago he saw the girl's face in the sky.

That's what you get for being selfless, I guess, was the first thought that came to Reese's head. He can't be blamed for thinking that; he risked his life to distract those mutts so that Briar could be with Chaney, and now he's cold and alone. Then, Auren saved him from the same mutts, and the next thing he knew, she was on her knees, bleeding to death. Finally, the girl in yellow prevented him from dying of thirst - now she's gone too. What's worse, is the last two events wouldn't have happened if not for the first.

There has to be some meaning to it, but Reese cannot think of what it is right now.

Perhaps, the girl who saved him was already dead. So, by the time he met her she was a ghost, and helping him was her last act before her soul passed on to the other world - that's the only solace that Reese can get from it.

It's pitch-black all around Reese now; another tribute could easily sneak up to him and stab him in the dark, and he'd barely know it. Yet, he stays in the same place, and in the same position - curled up against the wall in the middle of the road.

Suddenly, there are footsteps and faint whispers coming from the shadows - they are close, very close, but he can't see who they belong to because of the darkness.

He doesn't think he'll have enough time to get away, but he has to try.

Come on, Reese!

He pushes himself up from the tarmac, ready to shoot off into the shadows. Hopefully, they haven't seen him yet.

But then, he is calmed by a familiar voice: "Reese?"

It's Briar.

"I told ya, all you have to do is look for the bright, red hair," a second, more jovial voice says - Chaney's voice.

"Shut up," Briar responds with a sigh.

Reese smiles softly. Yeah, it's them, alright. They found each other!

Briar steps out of the darkness first and pulls Reese into a tight hug. Reese does not expect it; it's not something the stern, guarded girl that he knew in the Capitol would have done. "I'm so sorry, I should never have left you," she exclaims.

"No, it's… it's okay… you found each other. Everything's okay," Reese mutters.

There was a meaning behind it all.

"I knew you'd make it, dude," Chaney chimes in. He gives Reese a light punch on the shoulder. "We looked everywhere for you. How did you get out?"

"To be honest… I don't really remember."

After Reese was shoved down that chute by Auren, he found himself at the very deepest, darkest part of that forsaken facility, amongst all the waste from the upper levels. His memory from there is hazy, but he does remember crawling his way out of the waste until he reached the surface, crying as he did. Then, finally, he collapsed down against the building behind him.

"We're just glad you're okay," Briar offers as she begins to check on his injury and hand him food and water from her bag.

"We… need you to do one last thing for us, buddy," Chaney adds. "It's only a little thing- well, it might just be the most important thing in the history of the universe but we ain't got anyone else to ask here. So, no pressure."

Briar shoots her district partner an irritated look.

"Oh?" Reese murmurs, glancing between the Nines inquisitively. He then notices a black ornate ring fitted snugly on her ring finger.

Little bit of a shorter chapter today. I can confirm that the chapter after next is the final 8 family interviews. Hope you're enjoying, let me know what you've thought so far - Jay.

Thank you Ama for beta reading this!

Deaths

10th: Meilin Seacole: Killed by Brizio Nardolillo - throat slashed. I always really enjoyed writing Meilin's povs. I think she was a really interesting character in this because of her struggle with trying to reconcile who she was and her goal of spreading kindness to the world with the hunger games. I had a few different ideas of what I wanted to do with her character, in fact her journey through the games probably changed the most out of everyone from my original plans. Originally, the tragedies that she went through in the arena, especially with Day, led her to lose it and spiral and become an antagonist, but I the end I thought her character would be better served if she managed to stick to who she was despite everything and went out doing what she loved which was spreading kindness and leave the spiralling to the others :DD. She was also the first submission I got for the story I believe so this is the end of an era. Thanks for the submission Jade, I really enjoyed writing your daughter.

Kill counter:

Geneve: 2

Romulus: 2

Aida: 1

Ren: 4

Chaney: 1

Auren: 1

Jokull: 4

Ozias: 2

Emery: 1

Zora: 1

Alizka: 1

Brizio: 1