𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐅𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐍 𝐏𝐄𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐒 | hunger games ✓

chapter 35

━━･❪ 🌸 ❫ ･━━

Daphne didn't waste a millisecond. She lunged forward, her knife glistening in the afternoon sun filtering through the trees. Sylla rolled aside at the last minute, popping onto her feet. She unsheathed her own knife from her belt–Daphne noticed with some relief that she only had one left–and parried Daphne's attack.

Daphne swung once again, catching Sylla across the cheek. Daphne barked a deranged laugh as she felt the knife tear through delicate flesh, scraping the bone beneath. Sylla yelled out in pain, blood gushing down the side of her face. Her blade slipped out of her hand.

One of the worst ways to die is to have a lung punctured. Theia's voice echoed in the back of Daphne's mind. Your body will be doing the act of breathing, yet no air can be contained. You die panicked and confused.

Daphne pinpointed the spot on Sylla's chest that would grant her just that. It seemed only fair to repay District Three after one of them had ripped Aedon's stomach open five years ago. She was about to strike when behind them, Lua gave a screech, and Caelum suddenly hollered, "Daphne, throw!"

Daphne whirled around. Caelum had Lua in a chokehold, one arm wrapped tightly around her throat and the other pressing her hands behind her back. She screamed and writhed. Caelum did not let go. Lua was completely defenseless, but Caelum didn't have a practical weapon in hand to finish her off. His arrows were spilled and his bow lay out of reach on the side.

His green eyes were frantic. "Throw it!"

Daphne hurled her knife, aiming straight for Lua's exposed chest. Sylla dived forward, knocking Daphne's arm astray just as the knife left her grasp. It ended up bouncing harmlessly on the grass. Daphne, her body electrified with rage and adrenaline, punched Sylla in the face hard enough she felt her own knuckles crack.

Lua suddenly broke free of Caelum's grasp. She charged for Daphne, who jolted out of the way and snatched up her fallen knife. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Sylla spring for Caelum, who was currently unarmed. Within a blink of an eye, Daphne tossed Caelum the blade. He snatched it out of the air with ease and countered Sylla's attack.

In the same movement, Daphne swiveled around and lashed out with a second knife, slicing Lua across the lower torso. Theia had told her that in the heat of battle, people usually expect to be hit higher on their body and protect themselves accordingly. Therefore, aim low.

Lua fell backwards with a shriek. Blood blossomed in a line across the plane of her stomach, but thanks to her vest, the cut wasn't as deep as Daphne had hoped. Lua seized a fallen tree branch from the ground. She swung it in an arc, wielded like a baseball bat, bashing Daphne with enough force to send her wheeling to the ground. Blood sprayed from a new gash on her cheek.

Daphne cried out as she struck the grass, her vision momentarily blinded. She managed to whip her knife across Lua's face, slashing clean across her left eye, but Lua brought the branch down against Daphne's throat, pinning her tight. The knife tumbled from her grasp.

The pain was worse than anything Daphne ever felt, like exploding fireworks in her skull. She fought to cling on to consciousness as Lua pressed her entire weight onto the branch, crushing Daphne's collarbones. Daphne gave an animalistic hiss, baring her teeth and pushing against Lua with all her might. Lua just slammed her back down with every inch Daphne managed to push. Daphne's entire body was beginning to burn with exhaustion.

She spat in Lua's face, mixing with the dirt and blood already there. Lua merely smirked, her slashed eye not seeming to slow her down the slightest. She lowered herself to whisper in Daphne's ear.