Author Games Compilation [Cycle 1]

Final Note on Percy Cole

AN ENDING BEFOREHAND

All Percy could see outside the window of the train was a blur of green and brown, sometimes blue here and there, maybe some white dotted here and there. The train was rocketing across Panem too fast for him to get a good look at where exactly they were. It didn't matter, of course. He just needed something to focus on other than twiddling his thumbs. He needed a distraction. He needed something to think of other than the Games he'd just left. The Games he'd just won.

It still hadn't entirely processed. Instead, it came in little spurts of some feeling he couldn't understand, with the lone thought saying "I've won." But it didn't feel like he won. He only survived. At a cost, though, just like everything in the world. In order for him to keep his life, he had to kill, and in doing so he became what he most despised: a killer. I should've died back there. I thought I died, too. Imagine the near heart attack I had when I found out I wasn't in hell. Although, this isn't any better.

A head doused in blue and green popped around the corner. "We're almost at District Four!" the woman tittered. "Best come to the doors before they open!"

"Got it," Percy replied, hatred in his tone. The escort scowled for a moment before remembering she was staring at a victor. She replaced her frown with a smile, and disappeared to another train car, probably to stuff her face for the fifth time that day.

Percy slammed his hands on the table in front of him and pushed himself up. Pain shot through his still-healing abdomen, and he bit down hard on his lip to avoid screaming. I can do this. I can do this small thing. Blood trickled down his chin. He didn't care. Eventually he stood, and used the wall of the train as support as he walked to the other side of the train.

When the others onboard saw him struggling, they rushed over to help him. When the first hand touched his elbow, he swung it around, nearly punching one of the Capitol nimrods. "Don't touch me!"

They backed away. One of them mumbled, "What happened to the content guy that came into this?"

You killed him, that's what happened.

He felt the train slowing down and positioned himself in front of the train doors. Through the windows he could see the shore, the waves lapping against the beach. He saw shacks and boats out in the distance. The tops of heads came into view once the train stopped.

For a moment, a small voice echoed through his thoughts, the last words he'd heard before heading to the Capitol in the first place.

"I'll be the first person you see when you come back, you hear? Don't disappoint me!"

The doors opened with a whoosh, and hot air blasted him in the face. It took a moment for him to adjust to the bright light and the flash of cameras. When he did, the innocent face of a fourteen year old stared back at him. Chocolate brown eyes. Freckles on his nose. Awestruck gaze. Gaping jaw. Percy bet he looked the exact same.

He crossed the short distance in four long strides so that the boy's face was inches from his chest. "I knew you wouldn't disappoint me," his brother said.

Any hostility he had before was gone. Percy pulled Nigel into a suffocating hug. The one thing he truly lived for was right in front of him. Maybe he'd have the chance to live for more later on, but for now, his brother was all that mattered.

"What can I say?" Percy said. He could hear the smile in his own voice. "I never fail to disappoint, do I?"

Maybe victory can change the fact that nothing will change the fact we're screwed.

Oh, how wrong he was.

~~~~~

PERCY COLE OVERALL

Author speaking! I'd just like to start off by saying, holy cow, I can't believe I did this. Out of 26 contestants and absolutely amazing characters, Percy came out the lone survivor. Damn, I squealed when I found out. I could fill an ocean with my tears of joy. But throughout this contest, I felt I grew as a writer, which is the most important part for me. Not only that, but I ended up with a few hopefully long-lasting friends/acquaintances. Thank you to LSBeddes for making such an amazing and fun contest, and I hope you enjoy your church mission. Good luck!

Percy Cole was my first tribute, which will probably automatically make him my favorite. Out of all the characters I've ever made, he was the most developed and dynamic, and I'm proud of how he turned out. Characterization is extremely important in my opinion, so I'm glad I was able to create someone I could relate with in some aspects. I hope others felt the same way.

(Now this below portion I got the idea to do from lostwithmyfriends , the author of the Cedar character who I absolutely loved. "Tedar on the tightropes." Excuse me while I weep).

Task Impressions

Task One: While writing this, I had this clear train of thought like, okay, he needs to be exactly how he is in the form. But that's not how he turned out. And I'm glad. He wasn't the calm, collected guy I initially planned him to be. On the outside he may seem content, but his thoughts said differently. There were a few instances where he thought before taking action, but I don't think he did that again throughout the rest of the game. Nothing is set in stone.

Task Two: This was one of my favorites. Having had experience with action sequences before, it came easily, although there were a few things I could've improved on. This was also where I decided Percy would think in bunches of three (Ex. Calm, calm, calm.). This may not seem like it's too important, but I thought it was a neat little quirk. One thing I could've done better is heighten his reaction to killing. There's not much other than an, "oh no, you died, crap, sorry?" I've always had trouble with this, so I hope I can learn from this next time I kill someone off.

Task Three: This was where I realized I love writing about creatures. This was the first time I've dealt with something not human, which posed a writing challenge I had fun overcoming. It was like a midget dragon, okay? Those are cool!
Behind the scenes>> I was listening to a badass song while writing, and I was thinking of the directions it could take. When it hit the chorus it was like I was smacked with a wet fish: LET'S MAKE PERCY FLIP OUT AND HAVE A GRADUAL DESCENT TO INSANITY, WHY DON'T WE?
That didn't work out too well in the end, but I tried slipping in little bits to show how he was being affected. The furthest I got with that fiasco was him flipping out on a mutt.

Task Four: And so, Nigel is mentioned. For being two-dimensional, he's one of my best characters as well. (Honestly I got the idea from a movie with this guy that looked kinda like Percy, whose name was, you guessed it, Nigel). Percy's goal changed entirely at this point: to protect his brother. I like this goal way better than the initial one. I felt it gave him more depth, somehow...actually having someone to care for.

Task Five: Possibly my favorite out of all the tasks. As soon as I found out the fairytale I was assigned, planning hard-drive was activated, and Nigel made an appearance. The concern the Cole's had for each other seemed natural. I'll be honest, while I was writing the shark attack, I had no clue what was gonna happen, and was satisfied with the end. However, several parts dragged on with pointless details, and I thought the writing was bogged up by that.

Task Six: This one was just about a living hell. 1200 words. Two days. Four rewrites. The beginning of the first one was way more entertaining than what I went with but was difficult to follow, the flashback took up too many words and dragged on, the end was rushed and cramped together. The beginning of the second one was more polished, easy to follow, the second flashback was way better in comparison, and the end was still rushed. But the second one seemed more boring than the first. There was this constant back and forth between the two, and in the end I went with the second one, but it wasn't my best work.

I still think it was something to be proud of, story-wise. Not everyone can have a happy ending. In the end, Percy was dependent on painkillers to move, and miserable. The only thing that made it worthwhile was Nigel, who, as you may know, got taken away from him as well.

Overall, this contest brought out some of my best work, and I'm glad I was able to participate and grow throughout. I'll without a doubt bring Percy back in future works of mine.

As for Nigel, the end of this story sets up the beginning of his own, doesn't it?

Percy Cole - Tribute #1