A Game Of Justice ✭ Cato Hadley

Seven - New Perspective

"Shut the door." Lyme says without looking back as she leads Brutus and Enobaria into one of the unused rooms of the Academy main building. Enobaria has just finished her threat evaluation with the mayor and Lyme caught the both of them outside the instant the younger woman stepped outside the office. The room has newly been converted into an office fit with a dark wood desk brandished with multiple locks and a twin sized bed in the corner; so recently that neither of the younger two mentors had ever been invited into this room before. The door itself was heavily disguised and they had to enter underneath the District Two flag that hangs in the hallway, over the corner nearest the changing rooms. The desk itself is piled high with papers and blueprints and various weapons including unsheathed swords and knives alike. The room has no windows and none of the heavily monitored cameras like the other training rooms or the doors.

"What is this?" Brutus asks.

Lyme ignores his question, instead posing them with her own. "Where is your allegiance?"

"What do you mean by our allegiance?"

The tall woman gestures for the two other victors to take a seat on the bed in the corner and turns the chair placed underneath the desk around so that it faces them once they do so. "You're back from the Capitol and still breathing, which is a feat in itself after what happened, but before I can explain what this room is used for, I need to know what the president has promised you and whether you're willing to disobey."

Enobaria's head cocks to one side as she tries to get a read on Lyme. The other woman raises a brow in response and the gesture is enough to convince Enobaria, only because the taller woman doesn't seem the slightest bit worried about being overhead or tattled on. She concedes after sparing a glance at Brutus. "Nothing. We weren't promised anything."

Lyme looks at Brutus. He shakes his head. "I'm willing to disobey the affordances he didn't give us if it will help keep Cato's family safe."

The taller woman smiles. "If this all goes to plan then we won't have a problem with President Snow again."

"All this?"

"We're in the midst of a rebellion, a coordinated revolution led by District Thirteen to remove President Snow from power and restore Panem to a nation of democracy and justice. To remove the Hunger Games entirely." Lyme explains, hand moving to one of her blades just as a precaution.

"And?" Enobaria pries, not phased by Lyme's overt move towards her weapons.

"And I've been running our efforts from this very room for four years. The Quarter Quell was manufactured for the very purpose of breaking Katniss Everdeen out of the arena alive, half of the tributes were in on it."

"Half of them?" Brutus questions, his tone clipped and his brow furrowed. "You mean to tell me that we sent Clio and Cato into an arena with at least twelve known rebels with little more than blind hope that they could eliminate them."

A solemn smile crosses Lyme's features. "Ordinarily, I would've had complete faith in their abilities, but we selected our tributes carefully."

"And what of Mags? Luna? Cashmere and Gloss?" Enobaria bares her teeth slightly at the idea that her friends gave up their lives for a cause. "You were willing to sacrifice them?"

"Cashmere and Gloss were spearheading District One's efforts just as long as I have been." Lyme answers, removing her hand from her weapon. "If I had mentioned it to you first then word might have got out."

"You think we'd let that happen?" Brutus almost snarls before he realises his mistake and softens his next words. "We wouldn't have said a word but a warning would've been nice."