The Mutant Games (DISCONTINUED)

Chapter 9

Aria's POV

The chariots descended into the darkness but soon enough bright lights blinded me for a few scary seconds. I found myself in a large room as big as a football field, with large lights beating down on me. Beads of sweat covered my temple as my chariot raced into the room. I followed the other tributes down into the center of the room to find that it really did represent a football stadium. 

Painful memories flashed in my mind of times with my dad, going to games, and cheering for random teams. We would always watch the Superbowl together every year on the couch and eat a huge bowl of popcorn together. I pushed the memories from my mind and focused on the task at hand. 

Bleachers stood on each side of the room, showcasing the exotic people of the Inner Country. They stood up giving us all standing ovations as I smiled, trying extremely hard not to glare at their make-up infested faces. 

At the far back of the room, two giant sliding doors opened up for the chariots to go through, which engulfed me in darkness for the second time. When my eyes adjusted to the light this time, Jace and my fashion team where standing around waiting for me, along with the other tribute's designers. 

I jumped off the back of the chariot and ran up to Jace. "Great job out there." He spoke calmly as the fashion team poked at my face fixing minor make-up details. "Hey slow down on the make-up will you." Jace said to the fashion team, annoyance creeping into his tone. I stiffled a laugh. He took in my features, making sure everything was just as he left it when I went to the parade. 

"Okay. So next up is one of the most crucial parts to your sponsoring. The interview." Jace said with a look of worry on his face. I bit my lip. I'm not the most likable person in the world, so I prayed that my acting skills were up to par. "Since you're Section 10, you'll be going last." I let that sink in. I would be the last person that the Inner Country would see on the show. 

Great. Just Great. 

I sat in one of the spinning chairs in front of a TV watching the other tributes go through their interviews. Close to the ending, a girl about my age from Section 9 stormed off the stage in an angry heap. She turned around, faced the crowd, and stuck two middle fingers up at everyone. I couldn't help it. I laughed out loud. She turned to me and spoke. 

"I hope they know who their dealing with now." She mumbled under her breath so only I could hear her. She reached her hand out to mine and I shook it tenderly. Her hands were rough, as if she had been working in the mines herself. "Sky Angel." 

Before I could reply, my name was called over a loud speaker giving me the cue to walk on the stage. "Aria Fitz!"

"Well then I'll see you around, Aria." Sky replied and walked away. Her black hair flowed behind her as she walked away, and her shimmery white dress left a trail of gold sparkles behind it, which she brushed off as fast as humanly possible. 

I took a deep breath before walking onto the stage, a blank stare plastered onto my face. Over the pounding of my heart beat in my ears I didn't even hear when Josh Davidson asked me the first question. 

"Excuse me? Aria?" He snapped his fingers in front of my face and I broke out of the daze. 

"Huh?" I replied stupidly as the whole room erupted into laughter. I faked a smile and sat down on the satin cushions next to Josh. 

"I asked you if you were happy to be here tonight." 

I looked at the camera before flashing a smile and answering. "Oh, I couldn't be happier!" 

The crowd clapped at my words and Josh started to ask another question. "Now Aria. You do look quite stunning in that beautiful dress tonight! Why don't you give it a spin?" 

Reluctantly, I stood up and spun around in the dress in front of the crowd as they broke into a chorus of claps again. "Where did the inspiration for that dress come from?" 

I glanced at Jace and he slowly nodded, giving me the go-ahead to tell them about my past. "Well you see Josh, when I was a little girl back before the games, my father and I would fantasize about Iron Man and all of the other Avengers. We would read comic books, and watch the news with my mother just to see them in action. I grew up with these heroes as a beacon of my hope." Without realizing it, I was twisting on the Iron Man necklace around my neck. It was an old habit I needed to break. 

"Your father must be proud to see you tonight!" Josh replied excitedly, but faltered when he saw the expression on my face. A stray tear had made it's way down my right cheek and I quickly wiped it away once I realized it was there. "What's wrong dear?" 

"My father is dead." I replied looking in the dead center of the camera, and the crowd. A shocked gasp went around the room at the word dead, and whispers started breaking out among the crowd. "He was killed before the games." I finished the last part quietly, not wanting to share anymore details about my father. 

Josh put his hand on my shoulder, and used the other to tilt my chin up, forcing me to look up at the crowd watching my every move. "I'm sure if your father could see you now, he would be very proud of you." I weakly smiled. "Isn't that right folks?" He said attempting lighten the mood. "Let's give Aria Fitz one last round of applause!" At that the room erupted into claps, shouts, and hollars as I walked out of the room, another tear escaping my eye.