Courage, Compassion, and Capital

Chapter 14

Jack

"Whoa..." I look around the room, at the racks of weapons, and and everything from small little robots to huge metal machines. I glance over to Johanna, trying to gauge her reaction. She seems bored. She's glancing at her nails, her foot tapping. I roll my eyes, and turn back to Beetee.

"C-Can I touch one?" I ask hesitantly, pointing at a weapon. I have no idea what it is, but it looks cool.

He sighs, but nods. "If you must..."

I practically squeal. I wheel over to it, but realize it is a trident. I bite my lip, remembering how Finnick Odair had been killed only a few months ago. Instead I wheel over to a sword, which Beetee obviously notices. I choose to ignore him for now, but I know that he'll come after me later. Well, just have a very deep conversation in my room. Bleh.

Once I reach the sword, I poke it, and shift in my seat so I can see the different angles. It seems that the blade has never been used, but somehow, there's no dust or anything on it. It's still sharp. But sadly, as far as I can see, there's nothing different about this sword. I sigh, rolling backwards. I turn to Johanna, but do a double-take. She disappeared, along with Beetee. I raise my eyebrows, taking in the rest of the lab. Things that look like windows divide the different sections, and the floors and ceilings are made of white marble. Everywhere surrounding me are different weapons and gadgets. I wheel over to another section, which has a desk and a couple blueprints on it. I look at them, but can't really tell what they are. For now, I'm content with just looking around.

In another section, there are a couple machines lining the walls, with different ID's with each one. I skip over them. Maybe I'll check those out later.

I continue looking around, checking out section after section. But there's still no trace of Beetee or Johanna to my surprise. If I'm honest, I'm starting to get frustrated. The lab is cool and all, but, I don't really like being here by myself.

"Beetee? Johanna?" I call. I wait a few moments. No response. What could they be doing to take that long?! Well, might as well keep looking around. In the next section, it seems to be covered from head to toe with blueprints. Weapons, assorted gadgets, etc. But one catches my eye. It's a huge blueprint, that stretches over the top of a large table. I have this feeling that I shouldn't be looking at it, but never the less, I roll closer. There is no label on this blueprint, unlike many of the others. In the center, it depicts a large volcano, with different dots all over it. Over to the left, there is a label for 'Ruins - Mags'. I have no idea what that means. On the opposite side, there is a large lake, and a couple caves by the edge. I look closer, and there is a label that says 'Day 3 - Toxic'. What the heck is this? There is also a jungle, with different sections labeled off, and another blueprint is attached. Apparently it's some underground tunnels. Scratch that, it's a Labyrinth. That's cool! I look at the volcano, and surrounding it are some stands. Then it clicks. This is the blueprint for this year's Arena. The Arena that Hazel is going to. Then another realization. Beetee is making this year's Arena.

My thoughts are inturrupted however, when I hear is some noise behind me, the sound of footsteps. But they aren't human. They're loud and clanking. I spin around, and I see a robot, one that I saw before. I stare at it for a moment, and I swear that it's staring back at me.

"Security Protocol 81," the robot says, taking a step towards me. I try to wheel backwards, away from this thing, but I hit the table instead. The robot continues approaching.

"Wh-What is Security Protocol 81?" I say, disappointed when my voice shakes. The robot doesn't answer, it only holds its hand out, fingers pointing towards me. A latch on its finger opens, and there is a hiss. I feel a sting in my arm, and look down. It's a dart. The world starts to blur, and I slowly slide from the chair.

"Sorry kid..." Someone says.

The world goes black.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

I'm awoken by the sound of someone eating.

Wait.

Nooooooooooooo! Not againnnnn! I sit upright.

"JOHANNA WHY ARE YOU ALWAYS EATING WHEN I'M UNCONCIOUS?!" I screech.

She grins at me. "Because."

"Oh my god. I hate you."

She just grins. And continues eating.