Deep in the Meadow

|24| escape (part 1)

Blackness.

All I see is blackness. Somewhere in the distance I can hear crying. Maybe Asher? Maybe Rye? Maybe Willow? No. Rye and Willow suffocated along with the rest of us.

Am I dead? I have to be dead.

My body feels like it's floating on a cloud. Like I'm hovering above air.

I can't see anything but darkness. Hollow, empty darkness.
I must be dead.

•

"Hatniss." I hear a faded echo-like voice say.
"Hatniss!" The soothing voice gets louder.
"Katniss!!!" Then I snap awake. My eyes open fully as if I'm suddenly shaken awake from a deep slumber. And I realize I am being shaken awake. Selena is standing beside my table shaking my shoulders and yelling my name at me. It still sounds lullaby-like even when she is yelling.

"S-Selena?" I ask in disbelief. It's not until I slowly sit up, that I realize that she is sweating and an anxious expression is plastered on her face.

"Wait.. What's happening?" I ask her trying to stand. Suddenly all the memories of the torture come flooding back in my brain.

"Katniss, we have to go! West is inside the training room with Will and Kennedy! Earlier he told us workers that he knew you and your family are planning to escape. He told all of us to keep a close eye on you and make sure you don't escape. He went on to tell us to remind you that the Capitol citizens are as mad as he is and the citizens won't let you out of the Capitol without a fight. And trust me, the citizens are indeed as mad as he is at you. Trust me." She is telling me. I can hear the truth in her voice.
It takes me a minuet to process before a dazed Peeta steps behind Selena. He is holding Willow in one arm and Rye in the other. I'm confused. What's happening?
Then I hear a groan and realize that Johanna just woke up.

Before I can talk or question anything, Selena forces me to stand and then she continues talking, looking past me to the training room making sure West doesn't come out.
"He also said that if he realizes that your plan, which he doesn't know how your going to pull off, works somehow. He will release the mutts just as he planned. He told all of us workers that he had planned all along to keep training the mutts for combat so that if you escape somehow, he could release them on you to kill off the districts until they found you and bring you guys back to him so he could kill you for killing his daughter. But either way, he somehow knew that you were planning something and were going to try to escape. That's why he kept training the mutts constantly. It also explains why he has been spending lots more time in the training room with them." She says. I take in all that she told me and surprisingly it all makes sense. West was onto our plan but just doesn't know how we are going to pull it off. He decided to keep the mutts so that if our escape plan worked, he had a leverage on us. He knows that we don't want the district citizens dead, so we would be forced to retreat back to West to save the lives of many.

I am still confused as to why we are out of our cells, and to why the torture gym is overly loud all the sudden. I turn to face the training room and realize that the door is closed. West, Will, and Kennedy are in it according to Selena.
And a crowd of workers, dozens more than usual, are filed in the right side of the gym. It's hard to even see the elevator and training room door because all of the workers inside the gym. Most likely every single person that works here is in this very room.

Selena speaks up hurried before I can say anything.
"Katniss listen to me.
You and the rest of your family, plus Johanna, fell unconscious from the torture yesterday. You all slept through the night and now it's the next day. It's the escape day and we have to hurry!
Every worker is inside this gym. What West doesn't know is that exactly 89% of the workers are from the Capitol alliance. I ordered them to capture the employees not with the alliance and sedate them, then lock them inside a cell." She points to the far left cell and I see a group of men and woman cramped in the cell. Around 18 people. That's all. Only 18 people sided with West that work for him.

"Everyone else who is working here is with the Capitol alliance." Selena goes on.
"No one inside the Capitol city, except for a few, are loyal to you. They literally hate your guts.
While West is still inside the training room, we have to go. It's now of never. He will get suspicious when he registers all the extra noise out side the door.
Now let's go! We have to get out now!" She yells stumbling out of my cell and running to where the very large group of Capitol alliance members stand. I see Oden among them.

I hug Peeta immediately when I get out of my cell and we kiss. Then I take Rye from him so he can carry Willow. Johanna gasps which makes me turn my head to look at her. She gets out of her cell and looks around frantically.

"Where's my baby?! We can't escape without him!" She asks frantically. She runs to join Selena and we follow moving as fast as we can to stand in front of the Capitol alliance.
Johanna asks Selena about her baby and Selena tells her that they are going to make a stop in the elevator to get him.
"Don't worry" Selena says still sweating.
"We will get him on our way up. I just have to tell the alliance this one last thing." Then Selena turns to face the crowd again quickly.
She clears her voice to grab the attention of the large group.
"I need you all to remember that West is the enemy! Do not kill the mutts when you charge in that training room when Katniss, her family, and Johanna and I enter the elevator! Only and ONLY kill West, Kennedy, and Will when you charge in! The mutts are harmless without their leader! Once you eliminate West, we will be free! Killing Will and Kennedy is a bonus! The rein of the Snow family's rule will end forever! West Snow and Cornelious Snow's rule will finally end!
Your mission is to kill West and his other commanders! If you fail, things could go horribly wrong! But we have nothing to worry about!" She finishes out of breath. But I understand her worry. This could all fall apart if we don't hurry and escape before West knows what going on.
"Are you guys ready to end the Snow family's rein?" She yells at the Capitol alliance.
Then in unison, as if answering, they all pull out a golden Mockingjay coin that matches Selena's, and raise it in the air. Selena pulls hers out too and then the talking starts again. Selena tucks her coin back inside her pocket as if dismissing the crowd's attention, and grabs my arm.
"We are already behind schedule. West will be out soon." She rushes. Then is ushering us to the elevator. We don't hesitate and get to the elevator door as quickly as possible. It's already opened and ready.
Selena gets in first and then Johanna and Peeta follow. I get in last, still holding Rye, and look back at the crowd. All of them are willing to risk their lives and fight West to help me escape and help Panem be saved. It's a huge sacrifice that they are making. For all I know they could all die if West uses the mutts against them. I almost want to stay back and fight with them, but I know that Selena wouldn't let me. They are doing this for my family. They don't want me to risk my life when they are doing this to save me.

Before Selena can press the button to the nursery to go get Asher, a chorus of yelling sounds. I squint to see the few people right in front of the training room door, yelling for us to get in the elevator. Then I see them pushing to keep the training room door shut. It's no use though, because it swings open enough for a head to see through, and none to my surprise West is there staring at the workers confused.

"What in the world do you think you are doi-!!!" He screams, but then stops when his eyes land on us in the elevator.

"DONT YOU DARE KATNISS! DONT DO IT!" He screams at me knowing what we are doing now, but the Capitol alliance is true to their word and isn't letting West into the gym and isn't charging him yet because we aren't in the elevator. The door hasn't closed yet.

"YOU WONT SURVIVE ESCAPING THE CAPITOL! MY CITIZENS HATE YOU! THEY WONT LET YOU OUT OF THE CAPITOL WITHOUT A FIGHT!" He continues still pushing his way out of the door. His neck and chest are out but the alliance is still blocking him from getting the whole way out.

"Selena! Press the button!" I hear Peeta yell.

"It's jammed!" She yells back irritated and stressed. I hear her banging on the button.

"I WILL RELEASE MY MUTTS ON YOU! I WILL KILL YOU MYSELF! THEY WILL KILL OF THE DISTR-" he gets cut off as the elevator door slides shut and the last sound that comes through is the yelling of the Capitol alliance as they rush in on West trying to fulfill their duty of killing him since we are finally inside and enclosed in the elevator now.

I realize my hands are shaking as the elevator slowly begins to ascend to the nursery floor for Asher.