Mockingjay - Peeta Mellark (3)

}20{ - Special Orders

It was as if in an instant, a painted window shattered, revealing the ugly world behind it.

Laughter changed to screams, blood stained pastel stones, real smoke darkened the special effect stuff made for television.

A second explosion seemed to split the air and left Livia's ears ringing.

But she couldn't make out where it came from.

She reached Boggs first, tried to make sense of the torn flesh, missing limbs, to find something to stem the red flow from his body.

Homes pushed her aside, wrenching open a first-aid kit.

Boggs clutched Livia's wrist.

His face, gray with dying and ash, seemed to be receding.

But his next words were an order, "The Holo."

The Holo.

Livia scrambled around, digging through chunks of tile slick with blood, shuddering when she encountered bits of warm flesh.

Before finding it rammed into a stairwell with one of Boggs's boots.

She retrieved it, wiping it clean with bare hands as she returned it to her commander.

Homes had the stump of Boggs's left thigh cupped by some sort of compression bandage, but it was already soaked through.

He was trying to tourniquet the other above the existing knee.

The rest of the squad had gathered in a protective formation around the crew and them.

Finnick was attempting to revive Messalla, who was thrown into a wall by the explosion.

Jackson was barking into a field communicator, trying unsuccessfully to alert the camp to send medics, but Livia knew it was too late.

Livia learned at young age that once a pool of blood had reached a certain size, there was no going back.

She knelt beside Boggs, prepared to repeat the role she played with Rue, with the morphling from 6, giving him someone to hold on to as he was released from life.

But Boggs had both hands working the Holo.

He was typing in a command, pressing his thumb to the screen for print recognition, speaking a string of letters and numbers in response to a prompt.

A green shaft of light burst out of the Holo and illuminated his face.

He said, "Unfit for command. Transfer of prime security clearance to Squad Four-Five-One Soldier Livia Distefano."

It was all he could do to turn the Holo toward her face, "Say your name."

"Livia Distefano." Livia said into the green shaft.

Suddenly, it had her trapped in its light.

She couldn't move or even blink as images flicker rapidly before her.

Scanning her?

Recording her?

Blinding her?