| Day 10 in the Arena |
5... 4... 3... 2...
The ground shakes, the sky rumbling and causing Shewolf to snap awake. Her eyes are wide as she leaps to her feet and looks around to see the cause of the noise. Her heart pounds in her chest as the earth shifts beneath her feet, splitting open only a few feet away from her. There’s a sudden explosion and the air is filled with a heavy fog shooting up from the ground. It leaves her no time to gather up her supplies before taking off. She rushes through the forest dodging trees and anything else that jumps out in an attempt to get as far away from the fog as possible. She isn’t sure what it is, but coming from the Gamekeeper, it definitely can't be good. Just a few more weeks, she thinks to herself. Without warning, Styx bursts out in front of her, their bodies colliding and sending them both crashing to the ground. They struggle for air, eyes watering from the fog around them. They finally sit up and glare at each other, reaching for weapons that neither of them have when a tree cracks and descends right behind them. Both diving out the way, they scowl at each other over the disintegrating tree before running in separate directions to safety.
Ember is been sleeping in a tree when the earth starts to shake. Removing her restraints, she packs her supplies quickly and she watched the pores of the green earth open a good ways away. The fault in the ground roars and steams and it abruptly detonates, sending massive pieces of molten rock and a dark cloud of the mist into the air. She knows what it is. She’s watched enough of the Games to know if she caught herself in the fog, she’d be as good as dead within a second’s time. Gasping, she scrambles down the tree and takes off, her eyes on the sky as rock pieces start to rain down behind her. She runs faster and heads towards the only thing she knows that can save her. Seeing the large body of water, she dives in only to have a boulder crash down next to her. The fog disperses around her and pieces of red hot rock shoot into the side of her face and neck. Screaming in pain, Ember drops to the ground and swats away the hot pebbles before rolling into the cool water to nurse her wounds.
Haylinn Iris is one of the lucky ones. She spends the day fishing instead of deep in the forest hunting. Being far enough away from the fog and out of range of the flying rock, all she merely needs to do is climb the nearest tree and peer over the bushes to wear, on the other side of the arena, the fog crept slowly, taking life easily. The fog never reachs her and she smils ruefully, lounging in an open stream as she looks up in the sky and waits to see the next tribute's face flash across the sky.
Because she is so exhausted, Valk manages to sleep through the first shake of the ground. In fact, much to the Gamekeepers' amusement, she sleeps right up until a fog covers the hills right next to her and melt her sleeping bag to a plastic mess. Screaming, she frantically tries to shake off the fog before abandoning the sleeping bag and taking off into the forest. She constantly looks over her shoulder, trying to keep an eye out on the fog, but comes to a slamming halt when she runs face first into a tree and knocks herself unconscious.
Neona rushes through the forest at top speed, but only manages to stay a little ahead of the fog. She screams and yelling, crying and dodging every hinderance in her way. But she can feel the fog at her back, singing the hairs at her nape. The grey sky tumbles with thunder, flashes with lightening, and Neona bellows out to the Gmekeeper, cursing her and the people watching. She pants hard, her head becoming dizzy from inhaling the fog, but still she presses on. Her arms shake from the weight of her pack. Neona blinks, trying to see through the tears, when suddenly a figure appears in front of her. Moving as fast as a whip, Larkspur jump from the shadows and attacks. Neona gasps and tires to dodge her, but is too slow. Her eyes grow wide as she’s kicked backwards into the storming cloud of mist. Her hands grasped for a tree, a leaf, a stump—anything. But, seemingly moving in slow motion, Neona knew this was her imminent end.
Larkspur doesn’t waste a moment before running off, Neona’s screams echoing through the air until they faded away to nothing. There is nothing for the captiol to pick up that night and all remains of Neona are melted away in seconds.
The cannon shot goes off.
The capitol tune plays.
Neona's face flashes across the sky...
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