Ocean Eyes - Finnick Odair

Forty-eight

!! WARNING !! - it kind of goes without saying that this book handles some pretty gruesome subjects - it's a hunger games fic after all, but this chapter is a little graphic.

The move below ground is fairly easy and uneventful as Pollux had worked underground with other Avoxes; Castor tells the group it took them five years to buy his freedom, and he didn't see the light of day once during that time, so he knows his way around the tunnels. He knows when the Avoxes will be changing their shifts, where to avoid the cameras and how to avoid the rush of water that flows through the sewers periodically.

After six hours of moving under the city, Katniss finally suggests they should rest somewhere, and Marissa sighs in relief. She can barely keep up with the group now, exhausted after the day's events, and Finnick has to hold her up as they rush to find somewhere to sleep. Pollux finds them a small, warm room that hums with machines, and they all get as comfortable as they can on the floor.

Jackson sets up a guard schedule, leaving Marissa and Peeta off it, and they all quickly fall asleep, with Pollux and Gale taking the first watch. Marissa falls asleep instantly, her head resting on Finnick's shoulder, and he kisses her forehead before falling asleep beside her, his head leaning on top of hers. Unfortunately, they're woken almost four hours later, as they have to leave the area to avoid getting caught.

Finnick is helping a sleepy Marissa up from the floor when a hiss echoes through the tunnels, and the whole squad freezes, eyes wide, as they hear Katniss' name being repeated in harsh whispers.

They're getting closer now, and Katniss jumps as she loads her bow, peering out of the room in search of a target to hit. But it's Peeta that's hissing this time. His lips barely move as he sleeps, but he's clearly been programmed in the Capitol to respond to the chorus of hissing, and Katniss turns the bow on him. Suddenly, he jolts awake, his eyes wide and his chest heaving. "Katniss! Katniss! Get out of here!"

"Why? What's making that sound?" Katniss asks, her bow still drawn and aimed at his head.

"I don't know. Only that it has to kill you," Peeta answers. "Run! Get out! Go!"

Katniss lowers the bow, deciding that Peeta is sane enough not to attack her right now, and she glances around at the anxious faces of her squad. "Whatever it is, it's after me. It might be a good time to split up."

"But we're your guard," Jackson argues.

"And your crew," Cressida adds.

"I'm not leaving you," Gale speaks up. Katniss looks around at the squad again and suggests that Finnick gives Boggs' old gun to Castor. They take the empty gun from Peeta and, after loading it, give it to Pollux. Katniss and Gale, who both have bows, hand their guns over to Messalla and Cressida. Katniss and Gale quickly show everyone how to aim and pull the trigger. It's not very extensive training but should suffice in close-range fights. Peeta is the only one left defenceless, and Marissa, for once, agrees with them, as he clearly has some reaction to whatever it is that's after Katniss.

They leave the room free of everything but their scent, and away from the humming machines, they can get a better sense of the mutts' location. They're behind the group but still a fair distance away. Marissa doesn't really know how much of a lead they'll have on them because she's only encountered one type of mutt in real life, and they were incredibly fast and determined. She's seen quite a few mutts the Capitol have used in other Games, but she can't recall any mutts that hissed like these ones.

They move swiftly through the tunnels, following a plan that Katniss and Pollux devised earlier in the day, which thankfully happens to be leading them away from the hissing. They try their best to be quiet, but stealth and speed do not come hand in hand. Splashes as their boots come into contact with water, and clangs as their guns hit against metal pipework echoes through the pipes, revealing their location.