Author Games: Vengeance (The Punished, #2)

District 4 Male - Corradhin Cole

"I always did have a soft spot for those with a death wish. A face as handsome as yours, it'll be disappointing to see it all scratched and marred in the end. Let me just say, I loved running Beckett ragged." -Wisteria Wiles, Host

NAME: Corradhin Cole

GENDER: Male

AGE: 17

DISTRICT: 4

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE: You wouldn't have been able to tell he was a Cole, if not for the dark brown eyes he possesses, right below a set of eyebrows that are, nowadays, always angled in such a way that he seems angry at the world. His skin has gone pale, an almost sickly shade of white. Dark circles hang low under his eyes from long nights with no sleep. Nothing that can't be fixed with a few Capitol magic tricks--other than the fact he won't let them wave their wands around. His hair is usually an unruly mass of dark brown atop his head. A few years of training have done him well, giving him a muscular build that might add to the intimidation his tall stature provides. Although, the expression he always holds is enough to make the others wet themselves...probably.

PERSONALITY: Corradhin has been the violent type for a while, but it has hit a spike in the past year. His aggression towards the Capitol has gotten his mouth in trouble before, but he's always been able to wiggle out of it. However, he's strong-willed, and it will take more than a few insults to deter him from his goal. He's extremely observant of his surroundings. Don't expect to get away with stabbing him in the back, because he will pick up on strange behavior. The death of Beckett Malen has made him closed off; he is almost positive he won't get attached to anyone in the arena like Beck did. Not only because he doesn't want to suffer the same fate, but because he will never find someone like Beck again. No friends, no love, no nothing. He won't put his own life on the line for anyone, he decided, not unless it can bring back the dead. And to his disappointment, it can't.

PAST: In childhood, he was the sweetest kid imaginable. But that was before he met Beckett, who, surprise surprise, was the complete opposite. Over time, he picked up on Beckett's ways, and the other way around, each developing a strong attachment to one another. They seemed to exchange personalities. All was going well, until the threat of execution found them.

Corradhin ending up luring the messenger away so that he could kill him cleanly. But it was anything but clean. As Corradhin hacked away at the man, Beckett found the scene. The boy then ran, the new killer was enraged, and he'd blamed the death on Beck. A Peacekeeper went after him, and as Corradhin watched from his window, Beckett was shot in the leg in the middle of the street before someone came and proved that it was all a mistake. They ceased contact for years (during which Corradhin would train).

Until Beckett was reaped into the 101st Hunger Games. Corradhin watched in stunned silence as he saw his former best friend make his way through trials, he watched the friend's mind crumble away. He watched as Beckett read the notes Corradhin was forced to write. He watched as Beckett unintentionally admitted his love for him. He watched as he made it to the very end and killed himself, letting a little boy go home instead.

This is what fueled the drive in Corradhin to volunteer.

WEAPON OF CHOICE: A trident or a machete. It's a family tradition, it seems.

STRENGTHS: Corradhin has had a few years of Career training, so he has a pretty definite idea of what he's doing in several areas. He is very good with words, and is a master at persuasion; it'll be easy for him to snag allies and sponsors. His observant behavior will also come in handy in the arena.

WEAKNESSES: His temper might end up throwing him directly into danger for the sake of retaining his pride. About the whole "easily-snagging-allies" bit: he doesn't want them. Because of his appearance through notes in the last Games, all of Panem will probably be expecting some pathetic excuse for a tribute, a weakling that won't carry their own weight; this might make others wary of sponsoring him. Every night he has terrible nightmares, and more often than not he ends up screaming in his sleep. Thus, most likely cause of death: being murdered in his sleep.

TOKEN: After the 101st Games, Beckett's token, the woven bracelet he'd ripped off his wrist, was recovered and sent back to Corradhin. This woven bracelet, originally a gift to his friend, will be his token.

FLOWER: A plant called henbane. (If ingested, it may cause visual hallucinations and a sensation of flight. Other common effects are dilated pupils, restlessness, and in rarer cases convulsions, vomiting, and others).