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39
Rebirth and Destruction
"Beetee, are you here?" I ask. I'm sporting a new pair of pants and shirt and now all I want is to see this new trident. I have a horrible feeling in the back of my head that she was just lying to get me to go away. But to my relief I see him hobble up to me. "Finnick! Good to see you dear boy," he exclaims with a big smile, "Did Katniss send you?"
"She did," I say, a little taken aback by his enthusiasm.
"Right this way then." He leads me into the weaponry room that is packed with some of the most impressive guns and knives I've ever seen. And just as I'm studying the paint job on a strap-on canon, I feel a tap on my shoulder. "Here it is, Finnick."
I turn and see a shiny, menacing looking trident in his hand. At a glance it could be simple enough, but up close I can see several latches and screws and technology that just isn't in a regular trident used for fishing. Excitement fills me up. Finally! A real distraction.
And finally, something I can use.
"I know it's nothing too flashy on the outside," Beetee admits, pushing his glasses up the ridge of his nose, "But it's the inside that really counts. Put this on." He hands me a special cuff than attaches on my wrist. It nearly radiates with power. "Now, throw the trident at that target," he instructs. I do, rejoicing in the familiar feel of pulling my arm back, aiming, and throwing. I never thought I'd find as much comfort and return to normalcy as I did in that solid thwump sound as my weapon found home in the bull's eye. "Very good," Beetee remarks, "now press the button on your cuff."
I glance at him and then find the little button and push it down. Immediately the cuff vibrates and the trident comes whizzing back from the target and sailing straight into my hand. I stare down at it in disbelief. "And that's not even the half of it," Beetee says gleefully. For the next two hours I explore the wonders of my new weapon. It has an automatic blade sharpener of all things. There's also an electric effect that will begin on impact if I twist the middle prong before throwing. It will burn a foreigner's hand upon my command if for some reason someone tried to steal it. There's several combinations that Beetee walks me through allowing my to poison, burn, zap, and bomb whatever I like. For the first time in a long time I feel powerful again. It's dumb but I find a lot of hope in retrieving my old self simply through the excitement this trident has brought me. When we're done training, Beetee and I have lunch.
"I'm glad you like it," he says. I nod.
"It's incredible Beetee, you're a genius. I couldn't ask for more."
He chews on his sandwich and then gives me a meaningful look, "I know it's been hard for you. I know you've had a really difficult time pulling yourself back together. I just wanted to provide you with...some kind of distraction." He pauses and then adds, "In addition, it was fun."
I smile and let myself fully appreciate Beetee's effort. He, like most of the victors, knew I was being prostituted. He, unlike many here in Thirteen, understands what I've been through. How possibly I've been through more than most of the people here, and that's saying quite a lot.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
Katniss and I eat dinner in the hospital together one night to watch the new propo. I can't decide if the whole thing is exciting, impressive, or ridiculous. Nonetheless, it's nice having a friend around in the hospital so I'm not by myself.
This new one is pretty incredible too. Incredibly disturbing. They show a lot of clips of Katniss and then some interviews with her fight team. A team I wish I had been on. Beetee's trident was pretty incredible though. It's when the bombs start raining down and all the people in the hospital die that I start to really lose my appetite. People are suffering and dying and all these people are concerned about is getting a good show of Katniss looking really upset about it. But it tells the story.
