“I've
learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on
both hands; you need to be able to throw something back.” - Maya
Angelou
“All
you need is ignorance and confidence and the success is sure” -
Mark Twain
Chloe
tried to stifle her cough, not wanting it to draw attention her way.
Her throat was dry, as she hadn't had water for most of the day. She
had somehow gotten disoriented, and she could no longer find her way
to any of the water sources she'd been around earlier in the games.
At first, she'd been attempting to find an alternate source, as the
other tributes were likely around the ones she'd already found. But
with no such luck, she'd been discouraged after searching for the
well-known stream for hours. All she wanted was water. She was
desperate for it. Some berries she'd found had helped a bit, but they
weren't an adequate substitute. She couldn't be far from the stream.
At least, she hoped not.
XX
Coale
sighed as he looked at Ezra. “I guess this is it,” he said
somewhat reluctantly. “There are only seven of us left. Soon it
will all be over.”
Ezra
nodded before holding out a hand for Coale to shake. It briefly
struck Coale as odd considering where they were, but he took the
offered hand anyway and shook it firmly.
“I
really hope we don't see each other again,” Ezra said as they
stepped back from each other.
“Me
too, Ezra. I really do.”
XX
Jocelin
squinted as she opened her eyes. It was much brighter than it had
been when she closed them, and she realized that she must have been
sleeping for quite a while. It took several seconds for everything to
catch up with her and her horror to return. Then, she remembered her
blood covered hands and face and... everything.
Looking
down, Jocelin could see that the blood had dried. Only a vigorous
scrubbing would remove it now. The thought brought new tears to
Jocelin's already raw eyes. She felt calmer, as if she had somewhat
accepted that she was a murderer, but she was by no means okay. Every
part of her hurt, not physically but emotionally. It was as if
Jocelin's soul, if such a thing even existed, had been put through a
shredder.
Jocelin
knew that she'd been laying here for far too long, and the area
didn't provide much cover to hide. She was lucky, or unlucky rather,
that no tributes had stumbled upon her and finished her off. The
smart thing to do would be to move on, but Jocelin couldn't find the
strength to stand, let alone walk.
XX
Troy
had been alone for more than a day now, and he was quite enjoying his
solitude. As a career, he'd always envisioned his experience in the
games as being surrounded by a group. He knew he'd be alone
eventually, but he'd never given that part much thought. He liked
this separation though. The gamemakers had tried to herd him towards
the others several hours ago, and Troy had complied. He had no other
choice. The lightening would have gotten him if he'd disobeyed. As it
was, his clothes were soaked through, but dodging the small fires
that sprung up around him had been invigorating.
They'd
led him straight to Tiara though, and it had caused Troy to hesitate.
He'd been expecting one of the weaker tributes, not a fellow career,
but apparently the Capitol was really itching for some conflict if
the gamemakers wanted one of the remaining careers gone. Still, Troy
was hesitant. Of all the people in the arena, Tiara would be the
toughest to take. She'd proved just how strong she was when they were
in an alliance, and Troy wasn't looking forward to being in
opposition to that. So he pulled back and hid. He continued watching,
but he wouldn't make a move just yet.
XX
Demetrius
hadn't seen anyone since Etin's death. With two kills on his
shoulders, Demetrius figured he should be able to be alone for a
while before he was expected to confront anyone new. Things had to be
getting intense now amongst the others. There were only seven of them
left. Demetrius would have never dared hope that he'd get this far,
but he knew that it would be a stroke of luck if he got any further.
Demetrius
had no desire to kill again. He'd spent his entire life trying to be
kind to others only to enter the arena and become a killer. No more.
He wouldn't end another life. He couldn't live much longer with the
knowledge of what he had done. Demetrius had come to accept that he
would die. It was what he wanted.
It
was easy to find Ezra. The other tribute wasn't the sneakiest person
around. He also wasn't the best for the job Demetrius was about to
ask him to complete, but Demetrius wasn't about to be picky. Besides,
he'd come to like Ezra while they'd been aligned together. At least
he would die at the hands of a friend.
“You
want me to what?” Ezra asked in disbelief. He had been relieved
when Demetrius had raised no weapon, but now he found his heart
racing.
“You
heard me,” Demetrius answered. “You get a kill and get farther in
the games, and I get what I want too.”
He
added a quiet, “please,” when Ezra seemed hesitant.
“Please
forgive me,” Ezra murmured. Demetrius knew it wasn't directed
towards him, as Ezra already knew all to well how serious he was.
Instead, Ezra seemed to be speaking to the world as a whole. As if he
wanted everyone watching to forgive him, to not view him as a
murderer. Most importantly of all, however, Ezra seemed be be begging
himself to do the same thing.
Demetrius'
last thought before the world went black was a wish that sweet, pure
Ezra wouldn't die as ruined as Demetrius. It was a wish in vain.
XX
Tiara
smirked as the cannon sounded. Eighteen down. Five more to go. Soon
she would be the victor.
She
listened closely to the rustling in the distance and chuckled to
herself. Troy was following her. He was stupid to believe she didn't
notice. It was clear that the Capitol had herded him here, but he was
taking his time to confront her. Tiara figured that on some level he
must have known that he would lose.
She
was having a bit of fun making him follow her, but if he didn't
attack soon, she would have to lose him. She was getting tired, and
there was no way Tiara was staying up all night just to have fun
leading another tribute around the arena. She'd get around to killing
him soon, but if she could, she wanted to leave him for the big
finale. After all, what better way to end on a bang than killing a
fellow career?
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