The Hanging Tree Games Tasks

Task Six: Jamie's Game

Here is my entry for task six. We were paired with tributes for this task, and I was paired with Mia Swift, who was written by WhovianHorseLover. It was a lot of fun writing together! We earned a score of 12! :) 

Mia stumbled through the maze, her leg throbbing, in and around corners as quickly as she could. Already the effects of whatever poison was coursing through her veins, and she knew she didn't have much time. The Gamemakers had prepared a feast.

One that she desperately needed to get to.

The bottles with the antidote were at the Cornucopia, so all she had to do was reach it.

As she was running, her feet tripped over something hard. She fell to the ground in a heap, and gasped when she realized it was a body.

Sartan, the boy from district one, was lying on the ground. His entire body was covered in sweat, and he trembled violently. Though his eyes stared up at nothing, he was panting and gasping so she knew he was alive.

"Stop..." he murmured softly. "Please... make it... stop..." The words were barely a whisper.

Biting her lip, Mia stared at him. Should I help him? He's... he's a killer... She had never talked to him herself, but she had seen firsthand how dangerous he could be.

Should I help him, or leave him to die?

Biting her lip, Mia started to move on, until something stopped her. What would Fiona say?

"Right," she muttered to herself as she knelt down beside him, decision made. She slipped a dagger out of her belt and looked him over. What's wrong with him? she wondered to herself.

When her eyes landed on two puncture holes in the center of his right arm, she knew the worst had happened:

He'd been bitten by a snake.

The wound itself made her gag. His entire arm was red and swollen. The puncture marks were large—quarter size. Puss oozed from them, a light cream color.

"I've never done this before, but it's simple right? Let all the venom drain out?" she asked herself, trying to calm her beating heart.

Shakily, she sliced the dagger across his skin in-between the two puncture holes. Almost immediately, clear liquid poured out of the wound, mixing with the puss, which pulsed as it dripped down his arm and onto the ground below. It wasn't long before blood covered the entire wound. Crimson joined with the cream-colored puss to form a burnt orange that blanketed his entire arm. Mia gagged and averted her eyes, unable to stand the sight.

Once she was sure the venom had all drained out, she wrapped up the wound, hoping that she had done everything right.

***

Sartan's eyes peeled open. He winced, expecting the burning pain to return, but it was faint.

He sat up.

"Hey, hey, take it easy. I think you were bitten by a snake. I think I got all the venom out, but I'm not sure," a girl's voice said.

Sartan frowned, trying to orientate himself. "Wh.. Who are you?"

"I'm Mia, from district four."

Flicking his thumb and forefinger together, he listened carefully to his surroundings. The sound echoed and bounced away, telling him he was inside a narrow hallway of sorts. It was quickly absorbed, so he guessed he was still in the maze.

"I need to get to the Cornucopia," Mia said. Her voice was thick with something Sartan could only guess at—Desperation?

"Why?"