The Half-Blood Games | Percabeth

Chapter 18: Walking Through Wind Isn't Always A Breeze

When I awake the next morning, it's not for a good reason.

The wind is blowing through my hair, and almost bending the tree I'm strapped to. My eyes widen when I see why.

In the distance, a fully formed tornado is spinning, coming right this way. It's huge, ripping up the ground as it goes. I can see the trees in it from where I'm lying, at least a mile away

"LEO!" I yell, snapping my ally out of his sleep. "THERE'S A PROBLEM!"

"SHIT!" He proclaims loudly when he sees the problem.

We both quickly untie ourselves from out trees and drop to the ground. Just in time, as my tree falls to the ground seconds afterward, and I barely roll out of the way in time.

Leo shouts what we're both thinking. "RUN!"

And I do. The tornados trying to suck me back, and it takes twice as much energy to run as it normally does. To add to injury, sand and sticks are flying in my face, slowing me down.

I doubt that this is a naturally occurring tornado. 'Natural' isn't a thing in the Games. It's probably an intentional move by the Gamemakers to spice up the Games a bit.

My legs burn, but I keep running. If we get far enough away, it'll probably stop. That's how these things work. They're meant to add entertainment, maybe kill one or two of us. But chase us down until they intentionally kill us? No.

I hear a scream, and a blond-haired boy flys above us. I recognize him as Will Solace from District 8. A few seconds later, a cannon sounds.

I keep running, trying not to think about what's right behind me, trying it's very best to swallow me up and murder me like it just did to poor Will. I just focus on running, on ignoring the searing pain in my legs and on just getting forwards.

Eventually, I can see the edge of the forest, and the desert after it. I hope that the tornado will stop there, and use all the energy I have left to sprint there. I emerge from the foliage and am met with the blaring sun and sand underneath my feet, making it harder to run.

I keep running though, feeling like I'm dying. Leo's right behind me. When I stop feeling the pull of the tornado, I collapse face-first into the warm sand. Leo does the same.

"That," He pants. "Was not fun."

I can only nod in agreement.

We lay there like that for awhile, before I rolled over, and am met with the glaring sun in my eyes. I squint, and sit up.

"Water?" I ask Leo.

"Yes please," He replies, and I pull out one of my water bottles. That's when realization hit me.

I looked at the forest, only to see a mess of splintered trees and piles of dirt. There's absolutely no way we can go back in there, and even if we did, the river was probably destroyed by now, either filled in with dirt and torn-up trees or so muddy it's undrinkable. Which means we no longer have a water source.

"Make it last," I told him as I handed him the bottle. "I don't know how long it'll take us to find a new water source."

He nods, understanding, and take the water bottle from me. I pull out another one and take a few sips. It barely quenches my thirst, but it's all we can afford.

"Now what?" Leo asked me as he handed me back the water bottle.

It's a good question. What should be our next course of action? With the forest gone, I have absolutely no idea where we should go.

I found myself thinking about Holes, an old book I found in a box buried in the orphanage's back yard. It was about a kid who was in a prison in the desert. I remember them climbing a mountain later on in the book, trying to find food. I remember Stanley, the main character, saying it was colder up there. Coldness sounded nice.

"You want to climb a mountain?" I asked him.

Leo raised an eyebrow. "Are you crazy?"

I grinned. "Yes."

He smiled. "Let's do it."

We stood up. The mountains were on the other side of the arena, and we should get there in around two days.

We begin walking. I tie my jacket around my head, and Leo does the same. He also takes his shirt off. I envy him.

After an hour of walking, I had gotten a painful sunburn on my neck. Leo had one on his chest, but apparently, that was better than putting a shirt on.

When the sun starts to set, we stop walking. We're around 5 miles from the mountains, and would definitely get there the next day. Climbing it would be a whole other matter.

Seeing as there are no trees around, we have to sleep in the open. The idea unsettles me. What if the Careers find us?

Unfortunately, we have no choice. We polish off my second box of crackers, and start my third. With no sun out, the sand starts to cool. Soon, it's freezing.

"You want to sleep in my sleeping bag tonight?" I asked Leo.

His eyes lit up. "Do you mean it?"

I nod. "I'll trade you for your jacket."

He makes the trade immediately, and I pull my jacket off my head and put it on, along with his. It's a lot colder without my sleeping bag, but I manage. The anthem played. Will Solace was the only person that died tonight.

The next morning, we finish my third box of crackers and start my fourth. And this rate, we'll be starting my beef jerky by tonight.

Leo rolls up the sleeping bag and shoves it in the bag, before handing it to me. "Thanks for letting me use-"

His sentence is cut short. Soon, I see why.

"Oh," Leo says, staring at the knife jutting out from his stomach. Then he collapses, and I shriek.

My head shoots up, looking for whoever did this. My eyes lock with Octavian's, who is standing a few meters away, a knife in hand and murder in his eyes.