Die First

PART 6- THE WATERFALL

When I wake up the sun is rising. We must've fallen asleep talking since we are still at the rocks. I look around to make sure everyone is ok, we are lucky we are staying somewhere people wouldn't want to come to, nobody trusts anything at the waterfall. I don't want to wake anyone up yet, why should I? They are all lying there so peacefully, I have no idea how many more nights they will get to sleep. I'm about to go to our tree and check on our supplies when Achilles wakes up. He walks over to me and takes my hand to lift me up. We get our supplies from the tree and put them at the rocks. Achilles leads me on a walk along the strip of sand which acts as a path from our rocks,by the end of the waterfall, which is calm, more like a river, to the main fall. "Are you doing ok, Achilles? I know you are protective of me but over the past couple of days you've seemed really skittish. Did something happen? I'm really starting to worry about you. You've changed Achilles."

"I'm fine. Athena, I just don't want you to get hurt. You are the only person I care about. And ever since we've gotten closer with Demetrius and Oceania, you've had more people to protect than just me. You have more weaknesses now, not just me."

"Achilles. As long as you're alive I can't die. I won't, not until I can guarantee that you will be the victor. I promise you I won't let myself die until everyone else in the arena except the two of us is dead."

"You're telling me if you watched Demetrius die, one of your only friends, you wouldn't be vulnerable?"

"I won't let him die. Not until the 4 of us are the last ones standing. Then we can decide what to do." He's about to say something but I look at him with a warning look, telling him to just trust me.

"Ok, you know you have to keep your word now, if any of the four of us die before Cecelia, Rill or Matthias. You might actually have to admit you are wrong for once." He says as a smile overcomes the worried expression on both of our faces. Achilles takes my hand and twirls me in a dance. We run along the sand, constantly in eachothers arms, dancing, running, laughing, smiling. And for a moment the arena disappears, Achilles and I are the only two people in the world, swept in a kiss. But the moment that kiss is over I'm brought back to reality. I'm brought back to carnivourous fish in the water next to me, poisonous butterflies everywhere trying to lour me in, Demetrius and Oceania, sleeping, vulnerable. This is our reality, dancing, holding eachother, kissing, having a chance to just be kids in love. That will never be our reality. Any hope of that life left the second Achilles volunteered. 

As we are walking back to the rocks Demetrius is waking up and he gets Oceania up too, they both laugh, I'm assuming at the fact 4 trained killers were stupid enough to fall asleep on some rocks in plain sight. "Goodmorning lovebirds" Oceania shouts. Really? Demetrius has got her making fun of us now too? We all start laughing before we begin to make a plan for the day. 

"I'd say we were pretty successful yesterday when Demetrius and I killed 4 tributes. There are only 7 left now though, so if Demetrius and I go off hunting today, the two of you shouldn't wait here like you did yesterday, we are getting to the end so if one of us is going to be killed, it will be soon. None of us should be waiting with supplies like sitting ducks. But we also shouldn't all stick together, a group is a bigger target and harder to work with, so we will split in two again?" 

"Sounds good. So Oceania and I will go to the middle, then check the swamp up north. And then you two can look in the south of the forrest, then go to the main waterfall. Agreed?" Achilles says, he actually sounds like himself right now which is a relief, but he seems to be grabbing onto loose threads of his old self. The arena is making him crazy, me being in the arena is making him crazy. I can guarantee if I wasn't here, he would have won by now and vice versa. But he is here. And I am here, there is nothing we can do to change that. One of us will be dead within the next few days. And it can't be him.

Each of us takes supplies from our tree and put them in a bag. We leave some things, but take our most needed items, just incase someone gets past the trap and decides to rob us while we are gone. We walk together in a straight line at first, but Oceania and Achilles keep walking straight to get to the centre of the arena, where the cornucopia is, while Demetrius and I head to the main forrest, in the south. Each of us have a weapon we can use at close range and long distance if needed. I have my sword and axe, Demetrius has his bow and a bowie knife, Oceania has her trident and Achilles has his spear. It's basically impossible for any of us to die today. There's not a single person in this arena that's skilled enough to kill any of us, except ourselves. After walking through the main arena, we find nothing, not a single trace of anyone staying here. So we head to the main waterfall and sit on some rocks there. "So, Demetrius, what's your story? What landed you here?"

"Well I'm 18, and one of the only kids in my District that can use a bow and arrow and I'm almost as skilled as you with sword. I can kill from any distance basically. So because of that there was a lot of pressure on me to volunteer. You know, bring pride to my District. I mean that's all we know as careers isn't it. Killing to make our Districts proud. That's why you and your sister were meant to be volunteering, right?"

"Ye, it was. Thank you for making sure I was ok yesterday, Demetrius. I honestly don't know if I'd have had the heart to kill those 4 kids yesterday. I mean last night, when we were sitting on the rocks, did you not get de ja vu?" 

"Yeah, I couldn't help but worry 2 people were gonna kill me from behind, then kill the rest of you. Leave the rocks once filled with laughter, silent. Just like we did." And that's when I see it, although there isn't four of us like yesterday. We are still kids, smiling, laughing, sitting on the rocks. I push Demetrius to the right side of me before Rill, the boy from 4 manages to come up behind him and kill him. I stab Rill through the heart and then see someone behind me on the left. Must be Cecilia, I spin around, slashing my sword, not having enough time to see it wasn't Cecilia. It was Demetrius. Why was he behind me on my left? I made sure he was directly at my side on my right, why would he move? I had a plan I always have a plan. I catch him in my arms before he falls to the ground. I check where I hit him. There's a deep cut right across his chest, considering I thought he was Cecilia I wanted the hit to be fatal. This is the one time in the arena I pray I'm not as good with a sword as I'd thought, I pray I barely hit him. But prayers, wishes, regrets. They don't change what's already happened.

"Demetrius I'm so sorry, you were on my right, I know you were. I'm so sorry, please stay with me, a sponsor will send in medicine to help any minute now, please just hold on I'm begging you. I can't be the one that kills you. You can't die before me. Please, Demetrius." I say, sobbing, holding my best friend in my arms, my dying best friend. 

"Athena, it's not your fault, I moved I'm sorry. Don't you dare blame yourself for this, but you and I both know, medicine can't save me." He's trying, and failing to smile, lifeless tears are streaming down his face, his heavy arms, holding on to me. 

"I'm so sorr-" Demetrius cuts me off, 

"Don't be sorry, Athena. Just win. Athena, you have to win now, you can't have killed me for nothing" His arms let go of me, his false smile drops, his beautiful brown eyes, once filled with life are empty. He's dead. I've killed one of the only people left for me to care about in this world. I scream, cry, beg him to come back to life, while holding him in my arms. None of it works. His canon goes off and sponsors start sending me water, as if that will stop my heartbroken screams, my tears of guilt, my meaningless begs. Nothing except death is going to stop any of that. I'm about to end my own life, when I realise what Demetrius said. His last words, his final wish was for me to win. Winning means Achilles dying. I can't win because of Achilles, but I need to make it to the finale. For Demetrius. I can't have killed him for nothing. I grab his bow and arrows and his bag, slinging them both over my shoulder. I use the water the sponsors sent me to wash his blood off of me. I lay his body down gently. I don't want to let go of him because that would mean accepting that I killed him. But I did. He's now lying in a bush, flowers surrounding him, he's at peace now. I kiss his head, my tears falling from my face on to his. I clean his face and leave him, Demetrius Smith is free now. As I'm walking away, I have a realisation. The whole time I've been in the arena, I've told myself to never trust anything at the waterfall. And that whole time, I never considered I couldn't even trust myself here. I never considered that until now.