The MCYT Hunger Games

Chapter 11

PoV: Grian

'FIRE!' I wake at Keralis's yell, scrambling up. In my tiredness, I think Scar's caused it but then I realise it's too big.

By this point Mumbo's pulled me to my feet, grabbing a bag of stuff and running. Iskall and Keralis are close behind. We exit the base, and I note with mixed disappointment and relief that my trap didn't work, and try to think over what failed.

And then Keralis yells something.

I turn, and horror fills me. The trap's activated on him, and's lying there, bleeding. Iskall falls next to him, cutting furiously at the ropes that tightened, stopping any quick escape. The fire is just behind, closer, and closer.

'GO!' He yells. I step away. Mumbo doesn't move.

'Iskall, no...'

'Just go!'

Flames fill what used to be the south lands. Keralis is still screaming. I know then that If I survive, I'll never forget the sound.

'Mumbo, we should go.' I note the childish terror of my own voice, stepping away, not helping, not doing anything. Even if Keralis makes it out he'll be too slow to outrun the fire. But Mumbo ignores me and keep watching, until-

'ISKALL WATCH OUT!' Mumbo runs forwards, but I grab his arm, holding him back as a burning tree creaks, leans, cracks and falls, right where Iskall was.

Cannon shot.

'ISKALL!'

'We need to go.'

'Just...' Keralis coughs, unseen. 'Just go, sweetfaces. Just go.' Tears blur my eyes as another cannon fires and I can't tell if they're from the ash or my growing emotion. This time Mumbo accepts, and we run.

I feel the fire right behind us as we race away. He's taller, but I'm still faster, stumbling around trees, cutting branches away with my trident. My brain is still numb, and I barely feel conscious in the escape. Autopilot runs my body forwards. The fire still roars behind us, a couple times trees fall just behind or to the side of us. I barely jump at every one, ears ringing with the cannon shots, the crash, the yells, Mumbo's howl of pain. I can't hear else die. They must be sensible, near the centre of the arena. My vision blurs from tears, legs protest from pain. The unpleasant warmth of the fire fades, but not much, as everything gets in our way.

'We... we... must be... Getting away from it...' Mumbo insists. 'We can't... we can't let it...let it kill us.' I don't reply, glancing over. He's holding everything.

'Throw me one of the bags.' He does. I catch, then regret it as I realise it's my bad hand, dropping the stuff. In a moment that almost risks my life, I crouch to grab it again, flinging it onto my back and continuing, stumbling but catching up with Mumbo again.

'That was too close...' I mumble, running on, unable to stop. The fire is seconds behind us. Any stumble and we'll be gone.

'Are you alright?'

'Yeah... I'm fine... you?' I lie without thinking.

'I'm alright...' we continue further, until the forest suddenly grows dark.

The gamemakers removed the fire.

We survived.

Mumbo collapses beside a tree, gasping for breath. I join him a second later. We're alive. We're both alive. Iskall and Keralis aren't.

'Oh my goodness.' Is all I say, 'Oh- oh my goodness.'

'They're dead. They're actually dead.'

'And we're not.'

'We're not dead... goodness gracious how did we survive?'

I barely comprehend Mumbo's question as Keralis's yells run through my head again. The cannon. The tree...

'...And all because we defended our base too well.' I murmur. Mumbo frowns.

'What?'

'The only reason they're dead is because my trap worked. I killed them.' I stare at the ground, but only see the fire.

'You didn't know this would happen...'

'I should've figured we'd actually need to leave the base too! Instead of defending it too well that we get trapped inside ourselves...' I look away, wiping away the tears as I sob. A hand on my shoulder. I realise it's Mumbo and shake it off.

'I... I need time alone.' I stand, still shaking. I need to cool down, knowing how achy I'd be if I just crash now.

'Grian...'

'Alone.'

He doesn't follow as I walk away. It's easy to tell which way it is, since everything to my left is burnt and gone. Smoke lingers in the air, an unnerving silence falls. It's then that I realise what's been missing this whole time. There are no animals here. It's only the tributes... I catch a glimpse of a person, standing, facing where the fire was. Blond hair, a bandana.

'Hey!' He looks over. It's Martyn. I hold my trident tighter.

'What do you want?'

'You get caught by the fire too?'

'Almost.'

'Did you hear those cannon shots?'

'Yeah.' My throat constricts, and I can barely talk. 'Yeah, my allies died.'

'S***.'

'I know.' I step away. Martyn looks at the ground. This is the first time we've spoken.

'Well... I don't think the odds are in your favour...'

'They're not.'

A pause.

'You have a trident?'

'Yeah.' I grin. 'Doc's. I stole it. He threw it at me and I decided not to return it.' Martyn laughs.

'Nice work.'

'Thanks.'

'Do you think they'd let me join them?'

'The careers? They'd just send you to do all their dirty work, the stuff they don't want to do. That's what happened to Jevin.'

'They sent him after you?'

'I... pushed him out of a tree. And... he hit the ground hard.'

'You killed one of the careers?' Martyn's eyes widen. I look away.

'I didn't want to. I panicked.' The memory repeats in my mind. Neither of us speak for a moment.

'Wow.'

'Yeah.'

He steps away, turning.

'Well, may the odds be ever in your favour...'

'You too.'

And he walks away.

'Grian? Who was that?'

'Martyn. District... 10?' I turn as Mumbo appears again, hiding my shock.

'Are you alright?'

'Yeah... we just talked. He'd just escaped the fire too. Didn't attack, just spoke. I told him I'd killed Jevin, and about Iskall and Keralis.'

Silence follows. It's still morning, the sun's up, but I feel exhausted.

'I'm going to sleep.' I decide. Mumbo nods back.

'Alright. I'll stay on watch.'

We return to where we were before. I lie down next to a tree, trying to get comfortable. Every time I close my eyes I see the tree falling on Iskall and Keralis. Nothing stops it.

I lie awake through the whole day.