Chapter 5: Surviving the Games

I heard yelling behind us but kept going.
"My bow" Ivy complained.
"We have to keep moving" I insisted, continuing through the trees until I heard a canon. We stopped and looked behind us, expecting to see the District 5 tributes, but there was nobody behind us. "Reese? Grayson?" I hissed, hoping they were close. No response. I turned to Ivy, "up" I told her, giving her a boost to climb up the tree, then following her up. There was so much noise as the careers rushed past, dragging Reese along with them.
"At least we got one. She can tell us where the others went, and what they're planning" Ketra commented, grunting as she and Alice pulled Reese along behind them. I looked to Ivy and she met my gaze.
"We have to help her" Ivy whispered. I nodded my agreement, dying by the career tributes would be painful. Ketra was lethal with that knife.
"We'll go back for your bow, then maybe try and find the tributes from 7 to help us. We need more people to help us defeat the careers" I told her.
"What about the boy from 3 and the girl from 10?" Ivy suggested, "they could help us as well. Then there would be six of us against five of them" she continued as we climbed back down the tree.
"It's a smart idea. Let's get your bow and then find the others" I agreed.

Laurel was scary with her axe. When we found each other in the woods, Axel and Laurel were sticking to each other like glue. The twins clearly looking out for each other.
"We want to take down the careers and save Reese, will you help us?" I asked Laurel, her axe level against my neck, sharp and terrifying.
"The best way to win is to take down the career pack, there's too many of them to take down with just the two of you or the two of us" Ivy explained, trying to persuade the twins. Axel rested a hand on his sister's, and she lowered the axe.
"When the careers are defeated, I'm laying down my weapons, I'm not playing the Capitol's Games anymore" I told them.
"What do you mean?" Axel asked, confused.
"If we don't kill each other, it's no fun for them. They'll take us all out of here and we can end the annual murder of 23 children" I explained.
"Don't you want to make it out of here with your brother?" Ivy asked Laurel, who still seemed sceptical. Laurel looked to her brother and then back to me.
"We take down the career pack, and then that's it? We just sit around a campfire singing songs from 12?" Laurel asked doubtfully, playing with the handle of her axe.
"We don't have to sing, but yes. That's the plan, and Ivy agrees. Both of the tributes from 5 were in agreement, and I hope you both are too. We agreed to be allies in training, so lets be allies" I continued, trying to get my point across. We needed to team up to survive this, how could they not understand that? I tucked a strand of my braid back behind my ear and waited, not wanting to push too hard and make them distrustful. Finally, Laurel nodded.
"Okay, let's go save 5" Laurel said, motioning for me to lead the way.
"I'll be lookout, I have my bow and decent aim" Ivy suggested.
"Laurel and Axel, you two have my back while I free Reese and then we run" I planned.
"We can grab supplies if they aren't around, raid their camp" Axel suggested.
"That's the plan then: Ivy watches from the tree line, Axel and Laurel loot the camp while I free Reese" I nodded, leading them to an open field where Reese was lying unconscious.

"Go, now" Ivy hissed when we realised the camp was empty.
"It's gotta be a trap, I don't like this" Axel mumbled, following behind me as we ran through the field. I dropped down behind Reese and looked around before using my dagger to cut through the ropes on her wrists.
"Come on Reese, wake up" I pleaded as I cut through the bindings on her ankles. She was still groggy, but her eyes were drifting open and closed.
"Arrrgggg!" I glanced over my shoulder to see Laurel raise her axe to block Goldinia's spear.
"Reese!" I shouted, grabbing her arm and pulling her to a seated position. She groaned in protest but stayed seated. "Ivy!" I called out, hoping for an arrow to help Laurel. Meanwhile, Axel was trying to defend himself against Ketra using his backpack, and Archer was running right at me. I stood, trying to defend Reese, and ran at Archer, tackling him down.
"You're gonna die, 12" he snarled, swinging a knife at me. I jumped back and got to my knees before he was standing over me. I punched at his groin and he dropped like a sack of potatoes. Getting to my feet I had multiple options: run and save myself, help Laurel, help Axel or get Reese out of there. Laurel was holding her own against Goldie, but Axel was struggling, I had time to go help him before Archer would recover enough to try and hurt Reese. I ran at Ketra, who was straddling Axel, and tackled her off him. The two of us rolled around in the grass until she was above me, her dagger raised for the kill.
"No!" Axel shouted as he grabbed her arm, stopping her from killing me. She hissed at him and grabbed a dagger from her other side.
"Move, Axel!" I shouted, but the dagger was already embedded in his chest. The canon sounded and I bucked Kerta off me, running back toward Archer who was stumbling to his feet heading for Reese.
"Axel!" Laurel cried out, spotting her brother's unmoving body. I diverted toward Laurel, pulling her to her feet and running to the tree line. Where Ivy should have been waiting.
"Move" I hissed, shoving her forward until we passed Ivy's body. "Ivy" I breathed, my heart dropping to my stomach. Laurel started to drop to her knees, so I wrapped her arm around my shoulder and dragged her further into the woods.

"What happened? How did he die?" Laurel asked me, sobs wracking her body as she fell to her knees in the safety of the woods.
"He saved me. Ketra was about to kill me, but he stopped her and she stabbed him instead" I told her, dropping to my knees in front of her.
"We didn't even save Reese, it was all for nothing" Laurel cried. I wrapped her up in my arms, rubbing soothing circles on her back. Eventually her sobs died down and she started to doze off. I laid her down and looked around, making sure it was safe enough to leave her. We needed food and water. We needed our strength, especially with three less people to take down the careers. Maybe 3 and 10 were out here and could help? I scribbled a message in the dirt near Laurel, telling her I'd be back soon, and then grabbed my dagger and left.

The sound of canon had me racing back to Laurel, where she had her axe lined up against her stomach.
"Laurel, don't" I pleaded, taking slow steps toward her.
"There's no point" she whispered.
"Don't make your mother lose both her children today" I begged, kneeling in front of her. She hesitated for a moment and then let me take the axe from her.
"The canon?" she asked.
"I don't know, I didn't see anyone out there" I replied.
"It's getting dark, they'll put the pictures in the sky" Laurel pointed out. Sure enough, about an hour later we saw the faces of: Reese from 5, Axel from 7, Ivy from 8 and Jaden from 11. Laurel looked defeated after seeing her brother's face in the sky, but we had to keep going. There were only a few of us left: Roman and Goldie from 1, Archer and Ketra from 2, Isaac from 3, Alice from 4, Laurel from 7, Raylee from 10 and me from 12. Just 9 left out of 24. We had to find Isaac and Raylee if we had any chance to take down the careers now.

Day five was uneventful, Laurel and I spent the day searching for Isaac and Raylee, and also food and water, we lucked out when Haymitch sent me a spile. Day six had two deaths: Roman from 1 and Raylee from 10. That meant the careers pack was down to four, and there were only three of us to take them down. That night we came across Isaac, and formed an alliance to take down the careers, hoping they would turn against each other before we arrived.

Day 7, we woke to a canon. That was good, that meant the careers were fighting each other. Isaac, Laurel and I raced for the field, hoping to see the final 6. When we reached the clearing, we stayed out of sight enough to see Alice's body, and the careers arguing above her. Goldie had killed Alice, stabbed her in the back. Ketra was in Goldie's face, pointing out that she knew the girl from 1 would stab them in the back.
"We each take one?" Isaac suggested.
"I get Ketra, she killed my brother" Laurel snapped, racing forward from the bushes.
"I'll take Archer, and that leaves you with Goldie" Isaac told me, then raced forward after Laurel. I raced after them, ring dagger in hand, and tackled Goldie away from Laurel, who had her axe raised high over Ketra's prone form. Canon. Final 5. Goldie hit a hard punch to my face, knocking me down and my head spinning from impact. Canon. Final 4. Who died? I shook my head, feeling nauseous. Someone grabbed my hair, pulling my head back.
"Willow" Isaac called out. Did that mean he got Archer? Where was Laurel? Canon. Final 3.
"Let's get her" Archer's voice sounded. I was alone…I was completely alone with two trained killers. Goldie let go of my hair, kicked me in the ribs and then her shadow disappeared from view.
"She's mine" Goldie snarled, then another canon fired. Me vs. Goldie. This was it, the final two. I scrambled to my feet and ran for the woods, I needed to find a sturdy tree to climb. I was slow, too slow. My head felt heavy and my body was giving up. I was quickly shoved to the ground and then yanked back up hard by my arm.
"Please, don't" I begged, Goldie's hand against my throat. I was being choked against a tree. This was it. I was going to die. I clawed at Goldie's face and hands, trying to get her to let go, but I was fading fast, blackness dulling my vision. I had one last hope, and it was a long shot. I went lax in Goldie's hand. Believing she'd won, she let me fall to the ground.
"Where's the canon?" she called out, it sounded like she was smiling. "She's dead, I won! Where's the damn canon?" I opened my eyes, blinking my vision into focus. I'd dropped my dagger behind her when I tripped. I slowly and quietly crawled over and picked it up, getting to my feet and wrapping an arm around her chest to pull her backwards.
"I'm not dead yet" I hissed in her ear, then raised my dagger and stabbed her in the heart. Canon. I pulled the dagger out and dropped it to the ground before stumbling back a few steps and collapsing to my knees. I killed her. I looked to my hands, covered in the girl's blood, and tried to wipe the blood off.
"The winner of the 53rd Annual Hunger Games, Willow-Blue Baird from District 12!" the speaker announced. I looked to the sky as a claw dropped to collect Goldie's body. Nobody ever wins the Games…but I'd survived.