Chapter Seven:
The 14th Annual Hunger Games
Willow
The peacekeepers shove me into a dark van with the rest of the tributes. We sit in complete silence as the vehicle rumbles to life and begins driving us to the arena.
I take some time to think about what the arena could be. Since the 11th Hunger games, all the arenas have been outside rather than an enclosed space like the previous ones. The capitol spends months preparing the arenas and closing them off so that none of the tributes can escape.
Last year's arena was a rocky mountain range. Most of the tributes died because of the terrain. I can only hope the arena doesn't make surviving even more difficult for me.
The van rolls to a stop but we can't possibly be there yet. Peacekeepers are pacing outside, occasionally bumping things into the side of blacked out windows.
It takes a loud rumbling and a few panicked exclamations for me to realize we are in an aircraft. The take off is violent, sending everyone flying. We don't have the luxury of seatbelts I guess. My body is slammed into a cold wall, but I quickly recover and drag myself back to a seat.
The flight is long. It spans over a few hours, but I can't be sure how many. The other tributes talk in hushed voices, but I stay quiet. I can't let myself humanize them. It would destroy me. Trying to cope with my reaping has been difficult.
My heart aches when I think about it for too long. All of us except one, wiped from existence. For what? No good reason. Just a cruel one.
That's why I can't bring myself to learn their names. Some of them are as young as twelve. I just can't bear it.
I can joke about my rapidly approaching death all I want; but that doesn't make me any less scared. Despite my fear, I'm prepared. My desire to survive isn't strong enough to make me kill. I've come to terms with that.
The violent shake of the van is what lets me know we have arrived. I groan as my eyes are assaulted with daylight. Peacekeepers shout orders for us to vacate the van.
A blindfold is tied tightly around my head, obscuring my vision. A peacekeeper grabs me by the arm and drags me forward. I struggle to keep up with his pace.
With my sight gone, I rely on my other senses. The first thing I notice is the smell. It smells like mildew and plants. The air is warm and heavy with moisture. I can't hear anything over the loud hum of the aircraft.
I notice when the ground below me changes. The peacekeeper and I are walking in wooden planks now. He walks behind me, still keeping firm grip on my arm. Our pace is painfully slow. We are probably walking on something thin, maybe a bridge of some kind.
When I'm finally standing where I am supposed to be, the blindfold is ripped off. It takes my eyes several seconds to adjust to the light. By the time they do, the peacekeeper is already climbing into the aircraft.
I take in my surroundings. The wooden plank bridge I was walking on connects my podium to the cornucopia. It's suspended several feet above the water.
The cornucopia is in the center of a large body of water. It's a small island with an assortment of weapons. The long green grass sways in the wind as the countdown begins.
10
I look around me. All the tributes are standing on tree stumps that are protruding about 4 feet from the water.
9
The closest land beside the cornucopia is behind me. Large trees are growing out of the murky water. There's algae everywhere.
8
The land seems to very disordered. There's some grasslands untouched by the water, and some completely submerged. It's a swamp. I know nothing about swamps.
7
I can't tell when the land behind me begins. The tree line seems about 70 ft away. That's far, but an easy swim for me.
6
I don't know what's in this water. It's a murky brown color. There are patches of algae and all kinds of grass breaching the surface.
5
I won't go to the cornucopia, there's no use. I'm better off heading the tree line. Then I can either climb one, or swim to the land.
4
Shit. This is actually happening right now.
3
I get into position to dive into the water.
2
I take a deep breath.
1
Let's hope a good majority of these people can't swim.
Go
I dive into the water, feeling the coolness against my damp skin. Without wasting time, I immediately begin to swim towards the trees.
I swim with my eyes closed tight, I don't know what kind of bacteria is in the water. The second my face is out, sweat forms on my temples due to the unbearable humidity. I gauge my surroundings, searching for the tree line a few feet away.
Reaching the trees, I dig my hands into the bark, grabbing a strong hold of a branch. It's slippery, but the tree has many branches, making it easy to climb. The highest I can climb is about 40 feet from the water. I settle on a thick branch, holding on tight so I don't fall.
A loud canon startles me, and I turn towards the cornucopia. The water surrounding it seems empty, with four blurry blobs looting the center, probably tributes from districts one and two. Five lifeless bodies litter the cornucopia's ground.
Behind me, solid land is about 30 feet away, and the water gets shallower. Many patches of land are above water level, but everything is damp. Starting a fire seems impossible.
As the sun sets, I stay in the tree, planning to wait until the cornucopia pack leaves. They set up camp, and I realize my plan won't work. They can stay there for days. I won't survive up here for more than a night.
Under nightfall, I make my way down the tree and through slimy water, finally reaching solid ground. My boots make a squishing sound with every step. They're heavy, chunky, steel-toed rubber boots, waterproof but not much else.
Suddenly, music plays, and the sky lights up with a projection of fallen tributes. The girl from 7, both from 8, both from 9, and the girl from 12. This is the first time I've seen anything like this in the games.
The hunger in my stomach grows, but I push through. I consider catching a fish, but that wouldn't work. I have no fire to cook it. My first priority is fresh water.
suddenly, a guttural scream pierces my ear drums. it sounds like a young boy, but i won't give myself too much time to think it over. I climb the nearest tree was quickly as I can.
Wet, squelching foot steps are barreling in the direction of my tree. As the tribute gets closer I can hear his frantic breaths. He finally comes into my line of sight, making my breath catch in my throat.
Short brown hair drenched in sweat and a missing arm. It's Cedar. His foot catches on the root of a tree and he's sent crashing into the wet ground. The person hot on his trail catches up, weapon in hand.
I recognize his attacker by his size alone. Spark grabs cedar by his hair as he begins to beg for his life.
"PLEASE! please-" His pleading is cut short as Spark drives a dagger through his neck.
i want to call out for the boy. I want to jump down and save him. but I can't move. I can't do anything but watch in horror.
A canon booms throughout the arena and Spark smiles, satisfied. He takes a quick look around before whistling. His three teammates whistle back, obviously in close proximity. He takes off in the direction of their whistles, leaving Cedar face down in the mud.
I don't come down from that tree for the rest of the night. I stay awake, watching, listening. Another canon goes off a few hours later, but I don't flinch this time.
-
As soon as the sun rises, I'm on the move again. If I don't find any water today, I don't think I'll make it to tomorrow. My throat burns with every breath I take.
I venture deep into the swamp, wading through the warm mud and water. The sun beats down against the back of my neck, and my whole body is drenched in sweat.
The more solid parts of the swamp are easier to forage. I find a few chokeberry bushes. Despite their concerning name, I remember them being safe to eat. The plant identification book Sejanus made me read seems to pay off. I eat them until my stomach ache dulls down and shove the rest in my pockets.
I walk for another 20 minutes before reaching a steep drop. This terrain seems unusual for a swamp, but I don't think about it too much. I walk around the edge of the decline, trying to find a section where I can safely walk down.
There's a wet squelching behind me, getting louder and louder. By the time I turn around, it's too late to run. Spark charges at me, dagger glinting in his hand. I dive out of the way and scramble to get back on my feet.
He launches himself at me again, but I dodge. He roars in anger. The third time, I'm not fast enough.
Spark's arms wrap around my waist, and we go barreling to the ground. He's much larger and stronger than me, but the ground is wet, and we are both covered in mud and sweat. I squirm out of his grip and try to crawl away.
He grabs me by my ankle and drags me back towards him. A terrified scream leaves my throat, getting the attention of his pack, struggling to find him. I can hear them calling his name from three different directions.
Spark climbs on top of me, dagger still in hand. I wrap my legs around him, managing to flip us over. Unfortunately for us, I flip us right over the edge of the drop.
We both tumble down the hill at a rapid pace. When we reach the bottom, I'm winded. I force myself onto my hands and knees, trying to recover before Spark does. I can see the dagger a few feet away from me. Spark notices it too.
We lock eyes for a moment, and neither of us moves.
Fuck it.
I lunge for the dagger, and Spark lunges for me. His weight pushes me away from the weapon before I can reach it. He gets on top of me and puts his hands around my neck.
He squeezes tight, cutting off my airflow completely. I reach for the dagger, but my fingertips just barely graze the hilt.
I give up on the blade as my vision starts to blur. My lungs ache and scream for air.
I can't die like this.
I dig my fingernails into Spark's face, drawing blood. I try to go for his eyes, and he panics. He releases my throat to restrain my hands, but I'm quicker. I reach the dagger without him holding me in place.
My sweaty hand curls around the hilt. I don't waste a moment. I drive the dagger straight into his neck, just like what he did to Cedar.
Spark chokes on his own blood, eyes wide in shock. His blood drips down the dagger and on to my hands. I rip the dagger out of his neck, and he falls on top of me. I yelp, struggling under his weight. His thick, hot blood pours out onto my face and neck.
I use all my strength to roll his body off of me.
I sit up, wiping his blood from my mouth and eyes. It's no use; my hands are drenched in blood. It's everywhere.
My eyes settle on Spark's lifeless body.
Fuck.
I just killed him.
My heart beats so fast that I can hear it. I feel like Spark is choking me again. No matter how hard I try to breathe, it's never enough.
That's someone's son.
I fight back the urge to vomit. Not being able to look at his body, I turn away. I can hear the other tributes who teamed up with Spark calling for him.
I just killed somebody.
I look around, trying my best to calm down and figure out how to get out of here. I almost laugh at the sight before me. It's a small river. A freshwater river. There's a waterfall a few feet away. In the chaos of the fight, I didn't hear the loud rushing water.
I drag myself into the river, washing the thick blood off of me. It's refreshingly cold.
I wade over to the waterfall to drink, not wanting to accidentally drink any blood that's in the water. I'll never take cold water for granted ever again.
I swim back to the opposite edge of the river, away from Spark's body. Just looking at him made me sick.
I climb out of the water, stumbling over to a large patch of shade.
The sight before me makes me laugh out loud. I swear this is some type of joke.
A huge weeping willow tree looms over me, casting a large shadow.
What the fuck is happening to me?
a/n- sorry i didn't update for 2 months. nothing comically horrible happened LMFAOOOO i just got busy w the holidays and school. this also just took weeks to write.
word count is like 2.2k im cray for that.