Volunteers: A Hunger Games Story

Chapter 6: Happy Hunger Games

AN: Warning! Short chapter, but there's another one on the way. :)

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When we woke in the morning, we immediately had to head to our stylists. Before we went, I turned to Ben. "Promise me that I'll see you again. Please don't die during the blood bath."

"Good morning, Mila." Livia said once I arrived. I wanted to reply to her, but I really didn't have the energy. I gave her a half hearted smile and she nodded like she understood. I hope she did. "So, we really don't know what to expect this year. There's been no recurring theme at all in the last five years so..." she explained and I nodded like I was listening. I stared at the wall for what seemed like forever until Lyvia handed me what I was supposed to wear. All the material looked thick like it was fit for cold weather, but it still felt cool while wearing it. "The material is waterproof so that probably means that it's either going to rain a lot or that the majority of the arena will be water. We don't know exactly what it's going to be but we do know that..." she explained the tribute uniform for a long time, until a voice came over the speaker again.

"Please enter the launch tubes."

"Are you nervous?" Livia asks. Again, I don't say anything, but head towards the glass cylinders. I don't feel like I need to answer her. She should know the answer. "I'm so sorry..." she says and she genuinely looks sad.

"Thank you..." I respond before stepping into the tube even though I don't know whether she really means it or not. I want the countdown to feel like an eternity. All countdowns feel like an eternity. But not this one. Ten seconds feels like less than one. Almost immediately, the base of the tube starts to lift me up. I squat, as if the base will sink back to the ground, but of course, it doesn't. Once I reach the top, I'm nearly blinded. My eyes burn with whatever environment surrounds me. Finally my eyes adjust and I realize that there's ice everywhere. The metal plates holding the tributes form a circle. Between us is the golden cornucopia. The problem is that it's on an iceberg, with water surrounding it in every direction. Adrenaline courses through me. I have to get to the cornucopia but that requires swimming and swimming leaves you vulnerable to attack. Especially someone like me who has never done much swimming. "Welcome to the 49th annual Hunger Games." a voice booms. I look around desperately for Ben. Finally, I see him on the opposite end of the circle. I think we meet eyes but it's hard to tell as we're so far away from one other. The countdown begins again from ten and my mind is still swimming. I don't want to dive into the blood bath but I need something. If I don't get supplies now, I won't have them at all. That's how a lot of people die in the first day. "Five... four... three... two... one..." the gong sounds and everyone's sprinting at full speed. I'm sure to step off my plate so that I'm not killed instantly but hesitate when it comes to getting to the cornucopia. Immediately, a girl pounces on me. She's holding a knife to my throat while I thrash back and forth. I can't die yet. Not even a minute has passed. A blade rips through her and she falls on top of me. I push her off and see Ben there, holding a bloody sword. He ducks as a fist comes flying through the air. I kick the tribute's legs out from under them and they hit the ground. Ben finishes them while I grab the knife off of the girl and the book bag off of the boy. I lose track of Ben and find an open spot near the ice berg. I dive into the water and it feels like knives are ripping through my pants even though they're not. So close. I was so close to the other side when something grabbed my leg. It was fish. A lot of them. Their teeth were gnawing through my pants

"Mila!" I hear someone's voice, but I can't see them. I can't even open my eyes because when I try to, the water burns them. I flail my arms, trying to find land, but I can't. Suddenly, I'm dragged out of the water. I'm disoriented. I can't see anything. "Mila, in front of you. Go!" I finally recognize the voice. I thought it was Ben. It's Felix. I push myself forward even though I can't see. I land on something hard. I can finally see again and realize that it's the cornucopia. I see a bow but it's on the other side. I'll never get to it. I grab a bag that has a machete sticking out of it and sprint as fast as I can toward the edge of the ice berg. I don't want to go back into the water. I hear footsteps behind me and dive in. It's colder than it was before. I swim across the channel with all the force in my arms and climb out again. There weren't biting fish this time. Now that people are disappearing from sight, I'm able to size up my surroundings. There's ice everywhere and it's all flat for as far as I can see. People are starting to disappear at the horizon line. I can still see Ben. But he's probably five hundred feet away and facing the other direction. I sprint as hard as I can in no particular direction. I know that I'm going to wear myself out, but I just don't want to be within the sight of anyone else. I run until I can't anymore. When I stop and look around, I can't see anyone else. Good. That was the plan. Suddenly, I feel alone. Just like I did in my room at the training facility. I want to sit and catch my breath, but I know I can't. If I stop, someone will find me and kill me. I slow to a walk and continue on, checking behind me every half minute. Finally, things started to change. The ice started to slope downwards. I tried to keep my footing but it was impossible with how steep the hill was. I slipped on the ice and slid down the hill until until I eventually start to slow down. I'm on an edge. I look over to my left. It's a cliff. And it goes down for at least a hundred feet. I'll die. The Capitol anthem plays and a projection comes across the sky. My heart races, praying that Ben isn't on the list. Then I'll really be alone. Both tributes from district 10, the girl from district 8 and the twelve year old boy from District 5. My chest aches when I see the boy. He was only twelve and it was someone's first instinct to kill him out of everyone. My body starts to slide again and I try to grab on to something, but there's nothing but ice. I grab the machete from the bag and jam it into the ice as hard as I can. It sticks and I pull myself up until I'm standing. I grab another knife and stab it through the ice, pulling myself along, up the hill. When the silence is disturbed, I know that something's wrong. Just behind me, the ground is starting to break apart. An avalanche. I sprint as hard as I can, jamming the blades into the ice as I go, praying that I'm fast enough. No matter how hard I try, it's not enough. The ground disappears from beneath me. The air is sucked out of my lungs, making it impossible to breathe. Finally. I hit the ground and the ice lands all around me. I hold my arms up to protect my head but it's not enough. I'm hurt badly. But I'm not dead. And that's enough. I can't see anything. I push on the ice but it's not budging. I'm trapped here. There's no way out. This is how I'm going to die. I refuse this fate. If I'm going to die, I'm going to die fighting, not freezing. I slam my body against the ice in all directions, hoping something will budge- but it doesn't. There's more than enough room for me between the slabs of ice, but I can't break out of it. It's like a cave around me. I cut a piece of ice off closest to me and set it on my bag, hoping it will start to melt so I can at least be hydrated. It's so cold that it takes hours before it actually does anything, but sucking on it helps. Between a crack in the ice, I'm able to tell that the sky is dark now. It's night time. Which means it's only going to get colder. I could die of hypothermia. I dig through both of the back packs that I have and hope something will be enough to keep me warm. There's a foil blanket. I sigh in relief and wrap the blanket around me twice. I put the pack under my head and close my eyes. As long as I'm protected now, it's worth getting some sleep.