Impavid

“They’re gonna hang me in the morning,” I sang lightly, walking behind Katniss, “A’fore this night is done, they’re gonna hang me in the morning and I’ll never see the sun.”

“Cheerful,” she muttered back to me.

Thirst clawed at my throat. Walking along the side of the force field, all I could think about was water. In my own games, water hadn’t been a problem for me. It rained in the jungle in amazing amounts, and with the baskets I could weave from the vines and the fronds of the trees around me, keeping water in supply hadn’t been a difficulty. But as I walked through the trees, my throat dry, my skin sweating and my head feeling light, I couldn’t help but think that I would have killed for water.

Smiling, I stopped my singing, laughing a bit. The song was something that my father used to sing while doing the dishes in my house. For some reason it stuck with me, and in that moment I thought that it fit. The capitol would hang us all if they could have.

Walking through the forest, we were no closer to water. Finally we stopped walking. I instantly sat down, leaning against a tree. Finnick crouched next to me, giving me an encouraging smile before sighing and closing his eyes for a moment. Peeta rested against a tree while Katniss stood unsteadily on her feet, exhaustion weighing down on her.

“It’s going to be night soon,” Finnick pointed out, looking at the thick canopy of trees. Colorful birds jumped from tree to tree. Plums of feathers decorated each bird. They looked similar to the ones in my own games, but they were unidentifiable. Staring at the birds helped to avoid thinking about what happened when the night sky came. “We should set up camp, get some sleep. I can take the first watch.”

Katniss laughed. “Not a chance.”

Finnick stood up, rising to her challenge with an unhappy smirk. I put my hand on the hilt of a knife that was still sheathed in the bundle. “Honey, that thing I did for Peeta? That was called saving his life. If I wanted to kill either one of you, I would’ve done it by now and so would Lana.”

Everyone glanced at me. I let go of the hilt of my knife, knowing it did not make me look anymore approachable. Sweat ran down the side of my face as I stood. “If I’m going to kill anyone, it’s going to be Finnick.” He looked at me strangely as I cracked a grin. “He told me not to kiss any boys in the arena yet he’s the one locking lips with Peeta.”

Both Peeta and Finnick burst into laughter, the tension drifting out of the air. I grinned, picking up my trident and twirling it in my hand. I still had a total of three tridents and five knives, one of the knives having been lost with the man from nine. The thought made me think of the night sky again and what followed the setting of the sun. Once more I would be haunted by the anthem and watch as faces appeared above me. I hoped that our allies were not on the screen.

Finding a flat area, I threw my weapons down, telling Finnick to cover me. He stood poised behind me as I used a knife to cut long fronds and leaves, making them into almost even strips before quickly weaving the pieces together, over and under, braided and twisted until I had a full matt.

Tossing the first one to Peeta, I said, “Here. Sleep on this. It’ll keep the dirt out of your nose, at least.”

He looked at it and gave me a genuine smile. “Thanks. This is actually really cool.”

“We’re good with our hands.”

Peeta laid it out by a tree, laying down on it. Watching him, I realized how much damage the force field must have done. He almost went to sleep immediately, laying down and trying to fight it, his eyes watching Katniss who stood alone by a tree. But his exhaustion won out, the boy falling asleep in less than five minutes.

Continuing my work, I made a mat for myself, Finnick and Katniss, tossing hers to her. She didn’t thank me verbally, but she nodded her head. I could tell that she was grateful, but she didn’t know how to thank me, it seemed.

Sitting down on my own mat, I unfolded the back of knives. Finnick sat down on a tree root, spinning his trident to examine it as he did. They were fine weapons, made from a light but strong metal alloy. The forks were lethally sharp, all curving upwards towards one another. A long, sharp point protruded from the middle of them, perfect for spearing. The butt of the weapon had a sharp spear-tip on the end, making it possible to fight from both ends.

Each knife came with a tiny sheath and a Velcro strap, something I was thankful for. One knife went on the outside of each leg and each arm, the straps pulled tight to keep them from falling down my limbs when moving. The last one I put on my left forearm, a place where it would be easy to grip with my right hand and throw it.

“Try and sleep.” I looked up at Finnick. He was watching me as I tossed the folded bag, empty, to the side. I picked up one of the tridents and handed it to him, making our weapons even. “You didn’t do much of it last night. You might as well try and sleep now.”

“I’m not arguing.”

Laying on my side with a trident tucked into my chest, my grip tight on it, I closed my eyes. The sounds of the jungle were loud, but as I lay there they were drowned out by my thinking of thirst and wondering how many were dead already. But somehow I fell asleep.

*

The sound of the capitols anthem launched me awake. I sat up on my mat, breathing hard and looking at the sky. Finnick was next to me in a second, crouching down and touching my shoulder. I gave him a nod, telling him I was fine. I had just been startled.

Silently, we all looked at the sky. Even Peeta cracked his eyes open at the sound, looking up. Doc that Finnick had killed. The man from six. Cecelia and Woof from eight, which makes my heart heavy. Both from nine, one of them being my kills. The woman from district ten. It ended with Seeder, the woman from eleven. Four members of our alliance dead. Finnick, Chaff, district seven, district three and myself were the only ones left.

“Eight,” Katniss announced at the final strain of the anthem. The forest fell silent, none of us wanting to say a word about the fallen. Guilt crept into my chest, seeing my knife hit the man from nine. My justification washed it out. “Eight people.”

Blowing out hot air, I laid on my back, staring at the dark canopy. Though I knew I could stay up, sleep was in the back of my mind. I almost fell back asleep when the distinct sound of a parachute chiming opened up my senses, causing me to sit up as it crashed to the ground, Katniss on it in seconds.

Rolling to my feet, I followed her as she took out the small silver device, rolling it over in her hands. It was long and slender tube, made out of metal with a strange lip on one end. Nothing I had ever seen before related to what it was that Katniss held in her hands, so I examined it from over her shoulder.

“I think it’s a spile.”

“A what?” Finnick and I asked her at the same time. But she was already moving, walking up hill to a tree, bending to pick up a rock on the way. What a rock had to do with a metal tube, I had no idea. But I followed anyways, watching Katniss hammer the metal piece into the tree with the rock. For a few moments, nothing happened. Then, water came spilling out of it. “No way!”

Katniss took the first drinking, opening her mouth and gulping as the water poured down her throat. Turning around, I offered Peeta a hand, pulling him up the slope with ease and balancing him as he went to the spile, bending low and taking long draughts. When he was done, Finnick gestured for me. I quickly bent low, tilting my head to the side and opening my mouth, the water splashing down my throat.

The water was warm and somewhat tangy, but I didn’t care. Instantly every ounce of my body felt better, my muscles uncoiling and a sigh heaving throughout my shoulders as I gulped down water. Stepping away, I let Finnick go next. He took long gulps before cupping it and washing his face.

Pretty soon we were all taking turns washing ourselves. The water on the back of my neck felt like the greatest treasure of all, and I couldn’t help but feel like somehow, things were looking up.

Together, Finnick and I used vines and leaves to create tightly wound bowls, filling them with water and removing the spile. Katniss used a strong vine to tie it around her waste, keeping it safe and tight.

Sitting back down on my mat, I felt exhausted again. I opened my mouth to insist that I could take watch when a sound of deep, metallic peeling echoed through the arena. I was on my feet in seconds, trident in hand as I looked around for danger, waiting for whatever it was the game makers were going to send our way.

The sound continued, all of us facing opposite directions, our weapons handy. The sound stopped then, but I still felt chilled to the bone. It was a sound like none I had ever heard, and that usually meant something bad.

Out of the corner of my eye, a bright light startled me. Turning my head, I could see through a gap in the trees as lightning bolts like I’ve never seen before hit a tree, thunder ringing out over that section of the arena as the lightning continued to strike the same tree.

When it stopped, we all looked at one another. It became evident that nothing was going to attack us, so I sat back down, relief flooding my system. “I counted twelve sounds,” Katniss said.

“As in midnight?”

She looked at Finnick and shrugged. “Or twelve districts.”

“Oh the motifs of the number twelve.” Finnick stood up. “If you’re not going to sleep, I certainly am.” I opened my mouth to state I would take over but he silenced me with a look. “Alright?”

Nodding, Katniss turned away from him. Finnick walked over to me, pulling his mat next to my own. It wasn’t like when we had shared a bed in his room. He laid down a few inches away from me, so that we weren’t touching. He put his back to me, and I lay on my side facing his back. He put his arm behind him, though, finding my hand and linking our fingers. I smiled and closed my eyes.


I had gone deadly. There was no redemption for me. Using a two sticks, I manage to start a fire. Blowing lightly on the tiny flame, giving it oxygen and air to breathe, I watch as it catches on the dry leaves first, then moves on to the green leaves. Thick, grey smoke began curling up into the sky. Hurrying, I moved to a tree, slinging my trident onto my back with a vine I’ve fashioned as a strap.

Climbing trees is new to me, but I imagine that they’re the rocks back home that we have against the beach. Whenever we dove off of the rocks or the cliffs, we always had to climb back up them, scrapping our palms and our hands. Getting up was hard at first, but I quickly learn that trees were like the rocks.

Perching quietly on a limb, I hold out my rope in hand. My entire plan is fashioned from Finnick’s games, and though I know the other tributes are probably aware of what he’s done, they don’t think anything of it. It’s been three and a half days and they want it to end as much as I do. It’s the career pack and me now. I intend to win.

Already I have killed both tributes from nine, the girl from two, the girl from three, the boy from eight and my allies from seven. I try not to feel guilty about killing the two from seven, but it was me or them, after Max attacked. Trying to console Farrow was impossible, because though I thought I would be able to, she was more enraged than I would have calculated. So I killed her too.

All that matters is the money. At first it seems like a stupid concept, but I know it’s not. The money at the end of this the only thing I care about. And it isn’t because it’s a means of living, but a means of helping Cain. And Cain is the only person in the world who means a thing to me at this point. My parents are at the back of my mind, and Finnick… Finnick is something that pushes against my consciousness.

It only takes thirty minutes for them to enter the trap I’ve snared. The there is only two of them, though. I had hoped that it would be them all, but they’re smart, and they’ve sent the boy from two and the girl from one- Edge and Holland. They’re both pretty faces and I know that Edge can crush me if I let him get too close. But I don’t.

It’s Holland who steps in the foot snare. The minute she steps on it, she triggers it, the net yanking upwards and causing her to scream in surprise. Before Edge can do anything, my net escapes my hands, tossed with precision. The rocks that are tied on the edges as weight bring it down too fast for him to escape, a tangle of limbs and grunts.

Jumping down from the tree, I’m on him in seconds, savagely spearing him with the trident. Holland manages to cut herself free with a knife, and she throws the knife at me, catching my in the left arm. I don’t care as I duck another, going to one knee as I threw the trident, catching her in the stomach and knocking her backwards. Two cannons go off.

I didn’t gasp when I woke up like I normally did, but my body trembled. For a moment there was a knife of terror that sliced through me; I was unable to be sure if I was awake or asleep. It was the same jungle all over again, like I was right back in the spot where I had killed Edge and Holland. But one look at Katniss and I realized that I wasn’t there. That it was a dream. There was also Finnick who was asleep next to me, his hand having let go of my own to hold my waist. Somehow in our sleep, he pulled me to him.

Knowing it could have negative effects on Peeta and Katniss as a romantic couple, I carefully pried his hand off of me. But a last minute thought caused me to toss my worry aside, leaning down and pressing a kiss to the top of his head before I stood up, walking over to Katniss who had been watching me.

My sense of time was gone. Looking up, the moon looked like it was in the same place as it had been earlier that day. “It’s been an hour since the sounds,” Katniss supplied, seeing my curiosity. I nodded, picking up both my tridents. “I’m not going to sleep if you want to keep sleeping.”

I shook my head. “I’m going to go for a walk.” She looked at me suspiciously and I looked at her and in that moment, I decided that if I wanted her to trust me, I had to more than just protect her. I had to get to know her. “I have nightmares. Whenever I have them, I can’t sleep so I walk until they go away.”

She hesitated. “I have them too.”

“Of killing them?” She nodded. “It’s not fun. I’ll be back shortly. If you get worried…” I was about to tell her to whistle, but I instantly realize that was a bad idea, thinking back to her games. “If you get worried, shout the safe word.”

“What’s the safe word?”

“Finnick is ugly.”

"That's a phrase. I'll remember it." She grinned at that and I turned around, quietly making my way away from the group. In order to assure I didn’t get lost, I put notches in the tree as I walked. It was more of a habit than anything. By now I knew that I could navigate anything but I did it just in case.

Unknown bugs make sounds as I move past them. Not wanting to know what they were, I didn’t look in the trees, knowing that if I did, I would freak out. Bugs were the one thing in my games that had caused me strife. Back at home, bugs weren’t a thing. Sometimes there were small silverfish by the water, but as far as I could remember, that was it.

Every tree matched the other. There was almost no distinction between types of plants, the leaves and vines blurring them all together. As I walked, I realized that I had no way of identifying the force field. Picking up a hand full of rocks, I threw one in front of me, throwing it hard to see how far away the force field was. Unfortunately, it wasn’t far, the force field a foot away. The rock hit the wall and bounced back, pegging me right between the eyes so hard that it brought tears to my eyes.

Cursing and trying not to howl in pain, I doubled over, clutching my forehead. Already, a welt was forming on my head. When I could open my eyes again, I stood up, blinking to clear myself of the blurry vision that came with my tears. For a moment, I thought surely I had gone blind. A fog had crept into my vision. But rubbing my eyes with the back of my hand, I realized that there really was a thick fog rolling in.

Unlike the mist that clung to the surface of the ocean during the winter, the mist was thick, unfurling like it had fingers stretching out to meet me. My curiosity was piqued, but I also knew that if there was fog, there had to be a reason. Suddenly I wondered if there were tributes approaching and if the game makers were attempting to make it harder for us to fight.

Switching attacking arms, I put my trident in my left hand and took out a knife with my right hand; I could throw a trident with my left, but I could not throw a knife with my left. Poising for attack, I waited. The fog curled to me and finally reached me at one point.

Searing pain burned my ankle. A scream worked it’s way up my throat as I realized the purpose of the fog wasn’t to blind me from other tributes, but to poison me. Shoving my knife in it’s sheath, I began running full speed towards camp, tripping over vines and slipping in the dirt. But the fog followed.

Half way back, the fog curved, blocking my path from my group. Cursing, I ran away from it, trying my best not to run into it, now that it seemed to have broken from a solid line and turned into swells of smoke and poison. Against my every will, the fog drove me at the opposite angle of the beach and in a different direction than my group.

Several times I slid and altered my course. But try as I might, I could not get back to where the others were. Stumbling, I caught myself on the branches of a tree. I turned around, breathing hard, knowing I couldn’t run through the jungle forever. If I was on flat land, I could’ve out run it. But with the jungle fighting my every move, and the forest floor not giving me traction, I knew my chances of running were futile. Looking up, I wondered if I could climb. But the fog tapped out at the top of the trees.

Just as I was deciding I would have to run, the fog stopped. I watched in amazement as it hit an invisible barrier, moving upwards and filling and entire area with white. It was peculiar and I panicked, wondering if Finnick and the others had gotten out. There was no sound of a canon, confirming that they had to be alive.

Movement caught my eye. A creature of some sort moved high up in the branches above me. Not wanting to stick around, I turned and continued to walk, deciding it was in my best interest to get far away from the fog as I could and slowly head to the beach to see if I could find the others.

Just like my previous games, I was alone.