The 23 Cannons Trilogy

Up in Smoke

Hunter Ruiz, 17, District 10 Tribute

Remaining crouched, both me and the girl from 2 engage in a stare-down. She has dark skin, and flowing dark hair that reaches below her waist. She's rather pretty, and almost innocent looking, if it weren't for her grey eyes. They're similar to April's, only these eyes hold something far more sinister than April's eyes.

Of course, I should have realised that by charging out during the daytime would end in us being caught. But we managed to get here without seeing anyone else. In fact, I was about to burn the whole place down, when the fight between the boys from 1 and 2 took place. And then, the girl from 2 noticed April's gasps in surprise. Not that I'm blaming April or anything, it's just that this girl is obviously highly observant; she would have probably found us regardless.

I grit my teeth, and once again look over the situation. There are two of us, and three of them. But one of them's injured, so we're roughly equal in terms of numbers. Judging from appearances, the girl from 2 seems to be the most dangerous Career left alive. But looks can be deceiving.

"April-" I begin, but I'm cut off by the sudden appearance of a golden arrow striking into a tree. I whip my head around, and see that the girl from 2 has inched closer to me.

"Something I can help you with?" She asks, her tone completely flat, and almost bored. Well, yeah; she sees two outliers with mediocre weapons at best. I just prey she doesn't know about our explosive, otherwise we're doomed to die here and now. "Pretty good weapons," She says, looking at me and April, "The rapier is small, but equally as deadly as any sword in the right hands, and, don't call me biased, but the bow may be the best weapon in the Games. Light, ranged, and one hundred percent deadly."

"I can see that." I spit back at her, trying to think of a way out of this situation. Since right now, if I make any sudden moves, it's game over, and they'll kill us right away.

A slight rustling sound catches my attention, and I glance back at April. She lightly taps a finger on her bow, and this form of communication is enough to know what she wants; me to keep the attention away from her as she loads the bow. It'll be a pretty risky move, but it could pay off.

"Hey, what are you doing?" I snap my head around, and face the girl from 2 again. Her eyes seem more dangerous this time, and I know I'll have to play it just right.

"Oh, just making sure that my ally is still there." I say to her calmly, as if we're simply having a regular everyday conversation. After all, if I let my fear show here, they'll perceive me as weak, and begin to open fire. But if I appear to be a somewhat formidable opponent, it keeps them on their toes, and their attention on me, most importantly. "You know, to make sure she hasn't fled, or that one of you has killed her. The usual reasons."

"Stop playing funny." She snaps, her tone severe, "I've had enough of false joking over the past few days." Perfect. She's playing right into my hands.

"Oh, I'm sorry," I reply, in the most condescending tone I can muster, "I didn't know. But you should realise a laugh a day keeps you healthy, happy, and sane. It's a thing the local apothecary told us when we were suffering from psychological traumas, and we couldn't afford medicine." Of course, anyone from a poorer district would know that's a blatant lie, but perhaps the richer districts might find it plausible.

"Really?" She says, trying to sound flat, but it can't mask her intrigue. Bingo.

I glance briefly at the other two Careers, from District 1. The girl's too busy dealing with her injured district partner to pay any attention, and likewise with the boy.

"Yes, really," I reply to the girl from 2, "It works all the time with people. Victors of the Games, especially, love to do it." I let a slight cocky grin show, but the girl isn't interested. She now seems to be thinking about something, trapped in an inner turmoil. Maybe she's actually thinking about it. I look back at April; she's managed to get her bow in a decent grip, and she's now trying to get an arrow. Just a little longer.