The 53rd Hunger Games- Two Words

44.Useless

The birds annoy me. They dart in and out of foliage, screeching. More than once I mistake them for a tribute.

Of course, the two other tributes shouldn’t be anywhere near me, considering the vast arena.

I still haven’t reached what encloses us; a force-field, presumably. Nor have I made it the whole way around the lake.

This arena is built to conceal tributes with its expanse. At the same time, it is built to reveal them. The only water source is the lake, and the easiest way to retrieve water from it is to head down the grass slopes. Unless you want to climb down a cliff face, the majority of which are almost completely smooth. Saraya is clever.

Waiting for Argus to head down to collect water is unrealistic, and I might not even be able to see him; for all I know, he could be on the other side of the arena, miles out of my vision.

I can guess that he won’t be travelling far after that wound I gave him. The price of medicine needed to heal that is extravagant even for the Capitol.

The fact that I have no idea where he is, even though I try to make myself believe I do, frustrates me. What I really need is for him to send up a flare.

Or kill the girl from Nine. The hovercraft would come, float right over the spot where he killed her. Then I might have an inkling of his location.

This plan is flawed in dozens of way. The biggest fault is the fact that it may be a mutt, or something else of the Gamemaker’s creation that ends up killing the girl.

What if the girl finds me? I will have to avoid her somehow, I suppose, but what if she decides to take me on in combat? What if the hovercraft picks up her body, and Argus has murdered her so far away from where I am now that I have no hope of reaching him?  

This plot involving the girl from Nine revealing his location has so many flaws that I dismiss it. It will be down to the Gamemakers. They will have to drive us together, as they have in previous years.

I don’t think the earthquake was meant to do that. No, I feel that whatever it is that brings us all together will be far more drastic. Something that could cover a huge region. Whatever weapon they chose would have to be entertaining. An anticlimactic ending to the Hunger Games is the last thing the Gamemakers want. The Games must be dramatic; they must have flair.

It is later that day I reach the Cornucopia. Not the golden horn itself, but the stretch of forest that meets the water. Where I came ashore after the bloodbath.

I remember seeing bodies. That was when the reality of the Games sunk in.

I dangle my legs in the lake. I used to be scared of what mutts the waters could conceal. There are far worse things to be scared of.

I stare at the Cornucopia. It radiates golden light. There are darkly-coloured shapes on the platform. I cannot make them out properly, but they must be supplies. So there is something left.

It was difficult to swim to shore, despite being pumped full of adrenaline, and having only just entered the arena. What must be around three weeks into the Games, the swim will be much harder.

I make sure that my pack will not slip off, tightening the straps. As for my axe; I will have to hold onto it while I swim.

I slip into the water.

Pulling myself up onto the platform is difficult. I am slippery, and there is nothing to cling to. In my attempt to lift myself up, I send supplies into the water. There is a sound of metal on metal; the tip of a spear has just hit the side of the platform.