That night, I slept in a tree. Well, I camped in a tree. I stared at the sky, dreading the moment when Cassandra's face appeared, followed by the boy frond District 3, Honeydew. I also dreaded the moment when it disappeared. Forever. Like a leaf in the wind, gone.
When the morning came, so did an announcement.
"Good morning tributes" A ladies voice said.
"My name is Beckii. I have one announcement."
I listened carefully. This must be Beckii Cruel, the monster creator. She creates all the animals for the games. She's quite talented, when it comes to killing people brutally.
"The previous rules for the games have been...changed. Two tributes may be crowned, if both originate from the same district. Good luck. And may the odds, be ever in your favour."
Two tributes. Two tributes could win.
Before I could stop myself, I shouted.
"Rythian!" Before clamping a hand over my mouth.
Stupid!
Now someone would have heard me. They're probably tramping through the bush. They'll appear any moment. I waited ten minutes, but not a rustle of undergrowth.
Maybe they didn't hear me. But I needed to find Rythian. We could win. But where was he? The last I saw, he was by that lake.
I should go back there, and look for clues.
Maybe he left a sign.
Maybe.
I tramped up to the lake without seeing anymore tributes. That's when I saw the blood trail, leading away from the lake.
I frowned, following it, but being cautious of being led into a trap. I chose my steps carefully, looking for any signs of unnatural movement.
I was led to a river, water flowing from up the hill. I walked up, following the smeared blood trail.
Something grabbed my ankle and I pulled out my knife, looking down to see what had grabbed me.
It was Rythian.
He was covered with leaves, mud and rocks, and camouflaged really well, but it was him.
"Oh my god! Rythian!" I cried, crouching down to brush away the undergrowth.
He sat up, wincing as he did.
My eyes widened at the sight of his wound. It was cut deep in his leg, probably to the bone. I could tell it hurt.
"Careers" Rythian mumbled. I spent the next few minutes trying to tidy up the wound, but the best I could do was a makeshift bandage.
"We have to get you out of the open" I said.
"How?" He asked.
I thought while looking around. He couldn't climb a tree, and he would be to exposed on the ground.
My eyes fell on a cave, a few hundred metres up.
"Come on" I said, helping Rythian to his feet. I supported him as he limped up.
"Where are we going?" He asked.
"There" I said, pointing to the cave.
"We'll be safe there"
I half carried him to the cave, quickly scanning it before entering. There were no traps, or signs that another tribute had been there.
I set him down against the wall, taking off my bag and setting up a makeshift camp.
I laid out the sleeping bag, and the weapons. I put the bag on the ground, and placed the food on top. Everything else was tucked away inside the bag.
I checked Rythian's wound again, doing the best I could to treat it, even though I did a bad job.
I lay next to him, resting my head on his shoulder. We talked about the games, ways we could win, or ways we could kill the other tributes, until we both finally fell asleep.
I awoke to the sound of the anthem, and looked out the entrance to the cave to see that the boy from District 4, Sjin, and the boy from District 2, Xephos, had both died.
I wonder what killed them.
I laid my head back on Rythians shoulder, falling asleep again to the sounds of the forest.
