Liberosis - The Hunger Games

44

"You're still sick?" Titan whispered fearfully.

"It doesn't matter," I coughed, it truly didn't, especially not to the people that hand sent us in here. I would spend the entirety of the games as a liability, it terrified me to my core that my friends had the potential to die because of me. Perhaps if I really wanted to protect Peeta, as Haymitch has asked of me, I should just let myself drown before I dived in.

Soon enough, the countdown had begun, and I bade my final goodbyes to the three members of my prep team that were present. Tentatively, I paced into the chute, letting a tear fall down my face. I wouldn't cry in the arena, not a single person in the Capitol deserved to see me vulnerable. I had spent all my last games caring too much for people, look where it had gotten me, protecting everyone except the one person I wanted to protect.

Finnick.

The glass casing of the shoot slid around my form, locking me inside the constricting space and sucking all the air out of my lungs. Only overwhelming nausea remained, and I dropped to a kneeling position in exhaustion. How I was fatigued already, I was unsure, but I knew I had to drain it from my system before that first cannon resounded. Gaia's lip trembled as I smiled at her, as optimistically as I could manage, I waved my hand tentatively as three Peacekeepers entered the room.

It all happened so fast.

Each member of my prep team was beaten in the back of the head by the end of their guns, I couldn't contain the scream that left my throat. I slammed my fists against the glass of the capsule, praying that the glass would break in enough time. Cries left the mouths of my friends as the barrel of the guns were placed on the backs of each of their heads and still, my efforts hadn't made so much as a crack.

Bang.

Bang.

Bang.

I couldn't suppress the bile escaping my throat, and the vomit covered the floor of the chute as the bodies of Gaia, Titan and Venus were dragged out of the room. Smears of blood trailed the grounds as they exited my line of sight. The chute jolted to life as soon as they left, moving me about the chaos and into the blinding light of the arena. These games would be sweltering, humid and foul, especially for someone as ill as myself.

Sunlight danced across the circular-shaped cornucopia; the 24 tributes dispersed evenly around the arena. I looked to my left, searching for any familiar faces. Johanna was on my left, Peeta to my right at least a hundred meters between us and the weaponry. My head snapped into determination as I search around for the rest of my allies, Katniss was nowhere in sight, but I noticed the tuft of bronze hair that belong to my fiancé, bent into a steady diving position in preparation to swim as fast as he could.

I doubted many of the competitors could swim as strongly as we could, the saltwater would surely bring a lot of grief to Atlas' tender flesh, the man wasn't the strongest swimmer at the best of times. I couldn't locate him anywhere; I could only pray that he identified the purple fastening on his belt as a flotation device.

The countdown began and I prepared to leap as far as I could into the water, my eyes flicked over to Peeta who was glancing around at the water tentatively. He caught my eyes and I pointed at the purple fastening, his eyes widened in recognition, and he nodded gratefully.

5

I swallowed the need to throw up for the third time today, instead, I took a deep breath, taking in the scent of saltwater, the familiar scent of home.

4

Home. Would the districts even exist when these games were through, what on earth was the President's plan?