Battle Scars

Chapter 19: Allies

Chapter nineteen: Allies
The two cannons I had heard the day before were for the male from England, and the female from Europe. I didn't know either of their names, and since it only showed their photo and district number in the death toll each night, I had no way of knowing.
As for the remaining tributes, there was myself, the six guys in PMS, (including Mitch) Ebony, the youngest tribute from Africa, Ellie, from Canada, and the girl from India. Ten remaining tributes. Exactly half of us were dead.
I continued to trek through the forest, hoping that Mitch was leading his team in the opposite direction. After quite some time, I came to the edge of the forest. For practically two and a half days, all I had seen was forest, but now I was met with sparse scrublands, which reminded me very much of the Australian outback. Feeling bored, I decided it would be fun to make a memorial to my country. I sat for some time, and drew intricate pictures in the sandy ground of the scrubland, and arranged rocks and sticks in patterns. The homesickness had chosen that particular morning to hit me hard, and the drawings helped me to cope a little. It gave me something to concentrate on. Something that vaguely resembled my home.
As the sun rose high in the sky's, I decided to head back into the forest a little way, not wanting to be caught out in the scrublands overnight and have nowhere to hide. At least in the forest I could hide in a tree, although I didn't think my back would take another night in that position. As I reentered the forest, I noticed for the first time since the start of the games another tribute that was not a PMS member. I recognised her as Ellie, the female Canadian tribute. The girl from Mitch's country. Wanting to avoid conflict when I only had a sword to fight with I attempted to creep past her, but although I had been almost totally quiet, she somehow noticed I was there. She jumped up suddenly, and ran at me. I prepared to fight, when I noticed the fear in her eyes. This girl was afraid of me.
"Ellie, stop!" I yelled. She paused, ready to strike at any point. "Don't make me kill you. Make an alliance with me." She hesitated, obviously doubting the benefits of this. "I know that we could potentially end up killing each other, but we don't have to right now. Let's survive for a little longer." She was still wary of me. I put down my pack, and opening it, I took out some meat.
"Here," I said, handing it to her. She relaxed her guard, and took the offering instantly. I realised she was very hungry.
"How did you get meat?" She asked, when she had finished.
"There's these stupid birds that fly pretty low in the denser parts of the forest. They're not too fast, I speared them with some rock I sharpened into spear heads. It's not enough to kill them, but it stops them from escaping." She looked impressed. "When was the last time you ate?" I asked suspiciously.
"Before we came into the arena," she replied. "I can't hunt, and I got nothing at corn. Well, except for this pack," she said, gesturing to a smaller version of my own. "It had nothing but a blanket and a water bottle in it. And the water ran out this morning."
"You need more food?" I asked. She looked at me.
"How much do you have?" She asked, incredulously.
"I got quite a few birds the other day, when I was just wandering around. I got a rabbit the first night, but he's long gone. Oh, and I've got this little thermos of soup, which is pretty much my last resort. Plus one water bottle."
"You did alright off spawn then," she commented jealously. I pulled a face.
"I didn't get the weapon I wanted."
"At least you got a weapon," she laughed dryly. "What did I get? A sleeping bag? I guess I could suffocate a sleeping tribute if I was desperate." I chuckled a little.
"I think you'd have to be pretty desperate for that one. What weapon did you want?"
"A spear would be fantastic," she sighed.
"I wonder if there's anything left at corn," I commented.
"There's not, I checked. The usual suspects looted it." I rolled my eyes. Of course they did. They probably had fifty water bottles with them. But it was apparently necessary to have that particular one as well. Just to prove that they could.
"Well, you need a weapon incase we're separated, so let's try and make you a spear."
"I did have an attempt at that, but it didn't come to much," she sighed.
"I've got a sword though, so it will be easier. We can make a rock spearhead, and shove some wood through it for a handle. It will be better than nothing."
We spent the remainder of the day making a spear. Both of us were more than grateful for the company, and we chattered away as we worked. The spear was very much a peace offering on my part. I would have to be serious about making an alliance if I was prepared to arm the person.