Firecracker: The 99th Games Book One

Arena, Day 11 Part 2

Aoi woke later than usual that morning. She glanced at the mouth of the cave and saw Naoki was already up; curious, she sat up with a small wince, looking around for Cerys. Noticing she was awake, Cerys crawled over, lifted her into his arms, and carried her over to the mouth of the cave with Naoki.

Both of them immediately saw the smoke.

"What's going on?" Aoi asked. "Did someone forget to put out a fire?"

Naoki shrugged. "I've been watching it all morning. It isn't getting any bigger."

"Weird," Aoi muttered, staring out at the massive bonfire in the distance. It was oddly controlled, smokey, and deliberate. Why was someone lighting this big of a fire all of a sudden...?

...Fire...?

Curious, Aoi touched her necklaces, pulling Balthazar's memorial out from under her shirt. She stared at the flame symbol, thinking.

"Do you think it's a signal to someone?" Cerys asked. "Or did the Gamemakers set it up to draw everyone together?"

"No idea," Naoki murmured. "It is curious, isn't it?"

Who are the tributes still alive? Besides us and the three remaining Careers, there should be...

Aoi counted on her fingers, whispering names to herself as she sorted through the amount of deceased tributes. ...Eight tributes left. The ones who have died are...Cerys's district partner, Balthazar...the girl with the prostheses from District 6, the girl from District 7...Naoki's district partner, Madoka and Oni...both tributes from District 10, Otoshi, and...that's it. So the remaining tributes are me, Naoki, Cerys, Laurel and Levi, Adel...both tributes from Districts 3 and 4, Clare from District 5, the boy from District 6, the boy from District 7, the boy from 12...and that's it.

"Maybe people were just bored," Naoki suggested.

"Maybe, but...after the excitement we had a few days ago, I welcome the quiet," Cerys admitted.

Aoi turned her flame necklace over in her hands, deep in thought. On Kaiden and Nin's letter, they said Mentors from Districts 1, 3, 5, 6, and 8 were confirmed rebels. Kikue and Touma from 7 were also on their list, and Fuyuko Kawaguchi is the girl from 3, right...? The only Districts unaccounted for are 2, 4, and 12. We know 2 has the Careers, and 12 has one, but no one I've met seems to know what's up with the boys from 4. Have they been secretly aiding the rebellion...?

...Who killed Evan?

"...Guys," she whispered, gripping the flame necklace in her palm. "It is a signal. A signal to us. To the rebellion. It's fire."

Naoki perked up, alert. "...Balthie's necklace."

"Something is happening," Aoi said seriously. "And, boys...I have a feeling we want to be a part of it."

Cerys stood, dusting off his pants. "We should investigate," he muttered. "But...carefully. The Careers must be gathering there as we speak."

"If we confirm it has something to do with the rebellion, we reveal ourselves...?" Aoi said warily.

"Maybe," Naoki agreed, also rising. He crouched down, gesturing for Aoi to climb on his back. "I'll carry you, dear heart. We move with caution. Cerys, can you handle our things?"

Cerys nodded, going to retrieve their backpacks. Leaving her necklace visible, Aoi climbed onto Naoki's back, heart thumping.

If her hunch was right, this was the day their alliance would finally fulfill their kids' last wishes.