Misty Wolfe POV
I felt my stomach churn violently as the platform beneath by feet lurched, moving upwards and towards the arena at a steady pace. I let out a deep breath and clenched my hands, shutting my eyes and mumbling words of encouragement to myself. I didn't believe a word of what was spewing from my mouth. It was all lies, I knew it, and no amount of self-encouragement would stop my impending doom.
Are you ready to die in exactly 60 seconds, Misty?
'Shut up,' I mumbled to no one in particular.
The platform finally broke the surface and light stabbed at my eyes, making me cringe and recoil from the sun. I recovered and looked around at my surroundings.
All the tributes were stood in a huge, vast grassland. It stretched out for miles and miles behind me, there was no end in sight. On either side of me, in the distance, I could see the shadowy, tall figures of trees. And across from me, behind the cornucopia, it looked much the same, however after a few hundred metres the earth suddenly dipped downwards. I could smell sea salt in the air.
I glanced to my left. Renee was stood on the platform, looking absolutely scared to death. To her left was Tatiana. To my right was Rudy, who had positioned himself into a running stance towards the cornucopia, and to his right was Victor. All the alliances seemed fairly spread out, it seemed to be random.
Now I looked to the cornucopia. I could see weapons and large supplies all stuffed into the mouth of the cornucopia, and spread out around it were less desirable items. The further out they were, the less use they were. Lying just a few metres from my feet was a watch, something that would be utterly useless in the games. Backpacks were all scattered around 10 or so metres away from the cornucopia, maybe 15. I nodded to myself. I'd get one pack, maybe one for Renee if she was being attacked or getting the useless items. I trusted Max to get his own quickly, he wasn't an idiot.
"Tributes, let the third installment of the 200th Hunger Games... begin!"
GONG!
All chaos broke loose as the various tributes stampeded forward, towards the cornucopia. I heard an ear-piercing scream to my right, and looked over to see Valentina chasing after Victor Soto, wielding a katana. Finally she leapt forward, grabbing the boy by the hair, then she brought her katana forward and slashed it across the boys throat. A scream tore from my chest as blood spurted from the boys neck wound and he crumpled forward to the floor, seeming to cave in on himself. I let out a shaky breath and continued to run.
As I ran I passed by a dark, forest green backpack, and I knelt down and scooped it up. I felt vulnerable, so vulnerable, without any weapons, and made a split second. I ran into the mouth of the cornucopia and quickly snatched up a hatchet. Having a weapon in my grip made me feel far safer.
"Pleeee"
I jumped, and looked downwards to see Jonathon Roy, blood gurgling from his mouth and a gaping wound in his stomach. Bile churned in my gut.
"Pleee... ill.... Me..."
I felt my fists curl into balls. This was sick. Disgusting. I hated the Capitol.
I nodded with a sob, then brought my hatchet upwards. Jonathon nodded slightly, and I could tell it was taking a lot out of him. I shut my eyes, and brought the hatchet downwards, onto his throat. I didn't even have to look at the body again to know that he was dead. The blood now splattered across my arms and weapon was a bloody witness of what I had done. Even though it was a mercy kill, I was still afraid to acknowledge what I had done.
I sprinted out of the cornucopia, my eyes scanning the area wildly for Renee and Max. My eyes fell upon a body and my stomach twisted, but when I ran closer I could tell it wasn't either of my allies, but Tim Martin. He had been beheaded, and I had no doubt in my mind that Jay was the killer. He seemed to have a penchant for beheading his victims. I moved away from the body.
"MISTY!"
I whipped around to see Max, waving at me wildly with panic in his eyes. He had a backpack in his grip, and looked to be on the verge of panic. I began to run towards him. All of a sudden, a figure began to creep behind Max, their long, white blonde hair a dead giveaway as to who it was. Valentina. I felt my gut twist. She wouldn't spare him.
"MAX, MOVE! FUCKING RUN!"
Max glanced at me, confused. And that was when Valentina attacked. She charged forward, entangling Max in a headlock. I sprinted towards him, screaming at her to let him go. But she didn't. She simply looked up at me with a cold, blank stare, and then twisted her arm roughly to the side. A horrifying crack went through the air, and then Max went down, crashing to the floor with his neck twisted at an inhumane angle.
No.
"YOU STUPID BITCH!" I roared. I charged forward, my hatchet raised above my head, and took a swipe at Valentina. She managed to dodge it, but the blade still scraped along her shoulder, making her shriek in pain. She whirled around and sent a punch flying my way, but I staggered backwards and away from it. Valentina looked like she wanted to keep attacking me, but she spied another tribute and instead went after them. I let out a sigh of relief, then doubled back and began to look around once more.
"RENEE?" I shrieked. No reply. No answer amongst all the chaos. Finally, I caught sight of her - dark blonde hair flitting amongst the red that tainted my vision - and ran towards her. All of a sudden Will and Jay rose in my line of vision, attacking one another brutally. Cowering behind Will was Shay, staggering about. It was obvious that Will was desperately trying to protect the younger girl, despite not even being in the same alliance. Will had a sword and was slashing it violently at the career, whilst Jay was taking swings at the older boy with his mace. It ended quickly when Jay got the upper hand and sent his mace crashing into Will's skull, sending the blood and matter flying around the place like shrapnel. Shay screamed as a piece of Will's brains splattered onto her and she scuttled backwards before clambering to her feet, dashing from Jay as fast as her legs could carry her. I shivered, knowing that these memories would be forever trapped in my mind. My eyes latched back onto my sister, and I sprinted forward again.
"RENEE!" I screamed. I ran forward and grabbed my sister, my eyes wide, "WE HAVE TO GO!"
"What about Max?" she screamed. I ducked my head, and Renee whole's body shook.
"NO!" she wailed plaintively.
"I tried to kill her, I really did, Renee."
She didn't answer. Instead, she just grabbed her knife, and the two of us fled the bloodbath, heading towards the dip in the earth.
Phillip Gilbert POV
Earsplitting screams cut through the air as tributes went down, taking their last breaths. I stood in the middle of the chaos, holding onto my backpack with an iron grasp, fear trickling through my veins, and observing the chaos. I watched as Shay darted away from Jay's lunging grip, and as the boy fell to the floor she ran forward and viciously kicked him in the face before darting away, leaving her three dead allies at the scene of the bloodbath. I felt pity for her. She was all by herself now. For a moment I considered asking her to join our alliance, but by the time the thought occurred to me she had disappeared over a hill in the plain.
A little way away, Chris and Jeffrey were taking swings at one another with their bare fists. Judging by the way Chris was mostly using defensive hits and Jeffrey was being extremely aggressive, the younger boy had instigated this fight. Chris all of a sudden sent his fist flying forward, shattering Jeffrey's nose, and Jeffrey fell back with a scream. Chris stomped on the boy's leg and an earsplitting crack shattered the air. Chris quickly grabbed a backpack and then ran towards the forest with Doug. Perhaps 30 metres in front of them was Rudy and Camille, both armed. Jeffrey groaned on the grassy ground, holding his leg feebly, before Rosalie appeared and quickly slashed her knife across the boy's neck.
Suddenly, someone tackled me to the ground. I screamed in shock, twisting violently on the floor, then lurched upwards and knocked my attacker to the floor. They screamed and rolled away, and I staggered to my feet. They were gone, and they had taken my dagger with them. I still had my backpack, however. I cursed, and looked around for my allies. Will was lying near the mouth of the cornucopia, and I felt my gut churn as my eyes rested on what was left of his body. I continued to scan the area for the rest of my allies, and slowly it dawned on me that they weren't here.
They had ditched me.
A spiral of fear shot through my chest and I trembled, terror overcoming my senses. This couldn't be happening. This couldn't-
"PHILLIP!"
A small, short figure barreled into me, and I instinctively cried out, staggering backwards. It was Daphne. Her hair was a mess, and blood was smeared across her right cheek. Strapped around her waist was a belt with lots of empty pouches - capable of storing small containers - and strapped diagonally across her chest was an array of medical syringes. Medicines and poisons. Someone must have paid good money for those to be in the cornucopia.
"Tatiana and Amaya have already gone, we have to GO!" Daphne screamed at me. She grabbed my wrist and dragged me towards the forest to my right, her tiny body struggling to lug my weight across the grassland. Finally, my brain started to operate properly and I began to run alongside Daphne, my strides long and powerful. Every so often I glanced back to make sure Daphne was keeping up. The forest was a good way away, and everything between that and the bloodbath was grassland. It was an open field, with no shelter and no protection. Although we were vulnerable, I also knew that trying to sneak up on us in a barren field was like trying to survive without water. It just wasn't going to happen.
After about 30 solid minutes of running, and nothing but running, we reached the tree line. Daphne leapt into the shade gratefully, and I followed, heaving a deep sigh of relief.
"You get anything?" Daphne asked carefully. I nodded, and pointed to my backpack. She nodded feverishly.
"They said they would wait at the treeline..." Daphne murmured. She glanced down the tree line, then her face lit up. "They're down there, c'mon."
I followed Daphne as we travelled along the treeline. I glanced in front of us and saw Tatiana and Amaya leaning against a large tree trunk, both looking very nervous and very exhausted. Amaya saw us first and grinned, jumping to her feet.
"Tatiana, they're here!"
Tat looked up, her eyebrows raised. Her eyes fell upon Daphne and I, and her face softened.
"Hey," she mumbled. She rose to her feet and walked towards Daphne, engulfing the younger girl in a hug. Then she moved away and walked to me, and before I knew what was happened she had wrapped her arms around me. I returned the hug, resting my chin on the top of her head momentarily and shutting my eyes with a sigh, taking in the feeling of human company before pulling away.
"You guys alright?" Tat asked breathlessly. I nodded.
"I got attacked at the bloodbath, they took my weapon. Any of you have a spare?"
"Me," Amaya said. She reached into her pack and pulled out a dagger, passing it over to me with a reassuring grin on her face. I noticed she wasn't quite as bubbly as normal. It was almost unnerving.
"We should get moving," Daphne spoke up. Tat murmured her assent, and the four of us began to trek further away from the treeline. None of us dared to acknowledge what was on all our minds, the thing that was plaguing our thoughts. Will. He was now nothing more than a corpse at the cornucopia, and I that terrified us. One of us was already gone.
How long until someone else was gone?
Caitlin Sharp POV
Eric and I trekked in silence through the grasslands, sweaty faced and droopy eyed. I wiped the back of my hand across my forehead and continued to walk, my feet seeming to drag on behind me. I could barely even think properly, everything seemed to be a huge effort.
"You okay?" Eric turned around and asked, his face an expression of worry. I waved him off, nodding yes.
"I'm alright," I mumbled back. Eric nodded slowly then turned back around, continuing to trek forward. The absence of a backpack on either of our backs continued to itch at the back of my mind, and the lack of weapons in Eric's hands made that less than tolerable. We hadn't managed to get a damn thing from the Cornucopia, I had managed to snag a knife from Phillip when I had tackled him, but it was in bad shape. The blade was blunt, it would be difficult to kill someone with, but it was all we had.
"Cate, look!"
Eric came to a stop, taking a few steps backwards as he pointed forwards. Ahead of us, munching on the grass in the open plain, were a pack of rabbits. There were about 20 of them. Relief coursed through me. Food.
"I'll try get some," I mumbled to Eric. I crouched down and began to creep along the dirt, my eyes trained on the pack of rabbits. I was a few metres away, and dread began to coil through my chest as I realized what I was about to do. I was about to kill an innocent animal. This was awful.
The grumbling from my stomach thought differently. I needed food, and whether I liked it or not, that was what these animals were to me.
The rabbits were now only a matter of steps away from me, and my grip on the knife tightened. Then, I leapt forward.
The rabbits squeaked in alarm as my left arm scooped around in front of me, drawing in about 3 rabbits close to my chest. One managed to wriggle away, crying out pitifully, but I managed to tighten my grip on the other two. The rest of the pack scattered, and with a small whimper I held my knife and plunged it into the neck of one of the rabbits. It immediately went still, blood coating his white fur red, and I reluctantly did the same to the other rabbit. I tried to ignore the horrific squishing sound that my knife made as I pulled it from the body and stood up, still holding the rabbits close to my chest. I felt my cheeks moisten and turned to Eric, staring down at the rabbits in my arms. He quickly took the rabbits, then glanced at me with an odd look on his face.
"You wanna clean the blood off or something?"
"No," I murmured, "C'mon, we need to find a place to sleep."
Eric nodded and we continued to trek forward, silence hanging over us like a cloak. Crickets had begun to chirp loudly, and the sun was starting to slip below the horizon. The other tributes would have found a place to settle down for sleep by now.
"How far ahead do you think shelter is?" I asked softly. Eric shrugged, looking up at the horizon with squinting eyes.
"I think I can see forest up there, c'mon," he replied.
After about an hour or so of walking, a thin belt of trees and shrubs were before us. As we walked through them, the grassland terrain reappeared, but about 20 metres away with a cliff face. Atop the cliffs appeared to be grass and trees, and I immediately knew that would be safer than being down here. For one, we would be up higher than the other tributes.
"Up there," I said, pointing up to the top of the cliff. Eric groaned.
"Can we try get up tomorrow? I'm exhausted, plus we need to cook these rabbits before they start to go off."
I sighed, glancing back up at the cliff. We hadn't seen anyone else since leaving the bloodbath, there probably weren't other tributes around nearby.
"Fine. Get a fire going and I'll look for some kind of way to make beds. No sleeping bags are gonna be a problem for us."
Eric nodded and began to walk around, and I walked over to a patch of long grass, beginning to pull them from the ground. I knew that sleeping on the bare ground would kill us, we needed bedding.
Suddenly, the anthem began to blare. I looked up at the sky as the faces of the dead began to appear.
First was Jonathon Roy, the 12 year old from District 9. I felt bad for the little guy, he was one of the youngest in the competition and he was one of the first to fall.
Next was Victor Soto, also from District 9. I didn't know him that well.
Next was Will Stevenson from District 10. He was nice, it was a shame he had to go so soon.
The next face to appear was Tim Martin, also from District 10.
The next face was that of Max Fisher, the 15 year old from District 11. He had been dating Renee, and both her and her twin were still alive. Dating in the Hunger Games had always seemed incredibly stupid to me, at least one of the couple is definitely going to die. It just ends in heartbreak. Pointless.
And the final face was none other than Jeffrey Attwell. Anger stirred in my chest at his picture. He had been quite arrogant and unnecessarily rude, I was half glad Chris and Rosalie had killed him.
Then, the capitol seal appeared, and the sky was plunged into darkness.