Gamble of Wits || Finnick Odair

Chapter 2: Fight or Flight

But there was nothing. The sound faded and Sera was left in the safety of silence yet again. Sighing in relief, she carefully pulled her backpack into her lap and unzipped it. It was almost morning and she needed to eat before sunrise. The snowy landscape meant the days were brighter than usual and allowed one to be spotted more easily.

Saying a quick prayer, she rummaged through her backpack for any leftover rations or even game from last night. But there was nothing. She cursed under her breath and looked up.

A brown bird stared down at her innocently. It was a mutt. It had to be. What she knew from her aunt was that most birds couldn't survive the harshness of winter.

Thinking about it now, it didn't matter. She was hungry. Her stomach gnawed and growled quietly as she stared at the large bird.

Carefully she took out a set of knives she kept tucked in the covers near her trousers. She watched the bird intently as it blissfully hopped from one branch to another. Breathing in, she watched as it jumped another and now sat on a thin branch just above her head. Perfect.

She sucked in a breath and closed one eye, aiming for the head of the bird. Bringing her left hand back, she held a small throwing knife in it. The smooth but sharp metal was freezing in her hands but she persevered.

Before the bird could flap its wing once more, Sera's blade flew through the air and landed straight on the bird's head with a soft thud and squeak. The bird was now nailed to the trunk of the tree just above her head. She watched as it spent its last seconds flapping around, trying to get free before it stopped.

"I'm sorry." She muttered under her breath. She didn't mean it but she knew they were watching. Swallowing her hunger, she carefully got up from her seat and reached over to pull out the knife and grab the carcass of the unknown bird.

Grabbing the bird by its throat, she cleaned the blade with its feathers before she put the blade away. Then she looked down the tree. She would have to go down if she wanted to eat. First, she drained the blood off the carcass by holding its neck on a thick branch nearby.

She watched with bated breath as the warm blood took some time to freeze. Then, she tied the carcass securely around her bag and started packing up her sleeping bag. The sun was rising soon. She would have to hurry.

With a deep breath, she climbed down the tree while keeping a hand on her throwing knives near her thighs. She couldn't afford to let her guard down just yet. Using the fleeting cover of darkness she made a break for the snowy town. She reminded herself to avoid the town center where the Cornucopia this year was set. She knew that the careers would be camping out there.

That left her with two options; the abandoned coal mines or the 'San-orium'-which she presumed was an old hospital. Both were terrible options. The mines were unstable and in these heavy snow conditions, there was no warning of a cave-in, she could get trapped there and die of starvation or thirst if whatever lurked in those mines didn't get to her first.

As for the 'Sanorium', she feared going near it simply because of the ominous moaning she heard while trudging past it a few days ago. There could be some unaccounted mutts lurking around there. A risk she didn't want to take at all.

Sera paused in her tracks. There was one place she could try. The abandoned lodge on the east mountain. It wasn't that far. The closeness of the lodge and mine did scare her but dying was scarier. Without a moment to waste Sera started marching toward one of the mountains surrounding the little town.

Jumping over the fallen snow-covered trees, she jumped over boulders and was careful to avoid frozen streams along the way. All the while, she kept an eye out for a sign of any other tributes. She would pause and go for her blades any time she heard a creak, rustle, or rumble in the distance, only to be met with nothing.