SPIETATO

CORNUCOPIA SLAUGHTER

I run faster than I thought I could.

Once I get to the cornucopia, I realize every other tribute must be here right now. I duck out of the way as district 7's male, Gray, almost hits me in the head. I quickly grab a random bag, and shove some food into it, grabbing whatever my hand touches. I dodge another hit from district 8's female, Jinx, and the one she's fighting with, district 2's female, Paylor. I look around quickly to see a set of knives and a bow and arrows. I dive for them, holding onto them tightly as I make a mad dash out of this bloody scene.

I run until my legs ache, and then I keep running. I run into a patch of forest surrounding the mountains. I finally stop after I find a cave. I carefully creep through just in case someone else is here. Once I figure it's safe, I sit down quietly and let the little bit of light shining through the entrance guide me through my bag. I look through it to see my haul. A bunch of fruit, some bread, a pack of crackers, a canteen of water, a first aid kit, and a few different sets of climbing gear.

"Jackpot," I whisper to myself. I put everything back in the bag. I wrap the knives belt around my waist and then I throw the arrows on my back. I place the bag on my back, so that the arrows are across it. I stand and decide that I should cover the cave better to make sure that I'm the only one to find it. I go out and grab some large branches and leaves to cover the entrance and surrounding bit. After shifting a few things I am satisfied with it. 

I go back inside to sleep for the night, ready to be up at the first noise. I hold a knife in my hand, ready to go if anything should happen. Then I hear the music. I move to see outside the cave at the sky. There the fallen tributes are shown. Ivory, male from district 5, Ena, female from district 9, Gray, from district 7, Jinx, female from district 8, Paylor, female from 2, Mitch, male from 9, Oda, female from 11. And the music ends and the sky goes black again.

7 dead, district 9 is done. So, 17 tributes left. I sigh deeply. "Where are you, Sea?" I mumble to myself. I press my lips together. I lean against the cave wall toward the back, so if someone were to stumble in, I wouldn't be seen. I slowly drift off as I stare into the darkness.

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.

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I wake up when I hear a loud twig snap. The sun now out and shining down, I still sit in a pool of darkness in the back. I hold my knife out, ready to off whoever it is. The cave entrance is opened to reveal Rory, Sea's district partner. I put the knife down and move slowly. "Rory, it's Dalton, I won't hurt you." I say loud enough for her to hear me. I move to be in front of her. She looks like she wants to cry. "I thought I was going to die," She whispers as tears roll down her cheeks.

I wrap my arms around her. "Your safe now, I was just about to go out to look for Sea, want to come?" I ask softly as I pull away. She nods as she wipes her face. "Alright then, stay close. Do you have any weapons?" I ask. She shakes her head in the negative but does have a bag on her back. "Alright, here. Just be careful and only use it when you have to." I say. She nods. I hand her the knife from my hand and grab a different one from my belt. I ignore her shaking figure as she looks at the knife.

I grab her hand and then squeeze it twice to try and comfort her. She smiles. I let go and walk ahead of her, ready for anything to come. We move rather slowly through the day, still in the forest when the sun goes down. I find a spot for us to sit and for Rory to sleep. I pull my bag off my back and hand her an apple and a piece of bread, I grab the same for myself. I take the canteen of water out and drink a small amount, she grabs her own from her bag. 

Once we finish, I tell her to get some sleep and that I'd watch for anything. She complies easily and shuts her eyes. I watch over her and around us. The sky never plays music, so that mean 17 of us still remain.