Don't Play Games

12

Oh my god guys I am so sorry. It's been months.

And thanks so much for 400 reads! I'm dying. Sorry this update has taken so long.

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Clora wakes me for second shift. I sit up, groaning slightly. I slept on my bag and now my neck is sore. Fantastic.

"Sleep well." I whisper to Clora sarcastically as she secures herself to the tree.

She rolls her eyes slightly and then closes them, leaning back against the tree's trunk.

I sit around nervously. We really aren't that far from the cornucopia, and what will the Careers do to Birch when the find some of their things missing? No matter how monstrous I seem to myself, they'll always be a part that cares about human life.

Hopefully.

I hear a rustle behind me and whip around, only to find Jason shifting in his sleep.

I turn back around, facing the trees ahead of me. Everything about this is horrible, and I feel stupid for just now realizing just how horrible it is.

I hear another rustle and turn around to see Jason, still shifting in his sleep.

"Quiet down." I mumble to him, not like he can even hear me.

I cross my legs and stick one of my knives in the tree branch, holding onto the handle so I don't fall off the branch.

Suddenly, I hear another rustle and then a sickening thud coming from below, then a few more. I slowly look down, seeing Jason crashing to the ground below.

"No!" I say out loud.

A cannon sounds throughout the arena. How could he die that easily? That isn't fair! No!

"Guys, wake up!" I say, shaking the others awake.

"Where's Jason?!" Ingrid asks.

I point downwards.

"Oh." Ingrid says, looking down at her dangling feet.

"What happened?" Coral asks. "You didn't shove him, did you?!"

"What? No!" I reply. "He kept shifting in his sleep, I didn't know he'd fall over the edge!"

"You should've known!" Coral says, her voice rising to almost a shout.

"Shh!" Clora hisses, pointing a speck of light bouncing along in the woods.

Another speck of light appears alongside the first, racing towards us at athlete speed.

"The Careers." Ingrid whispers, horrified.

"We have to go, right now." I whisper to them.

"What about Jason?" Coral asks.

"He's dead, we have to go!" I say, beginning to swing downwards onto lower branches. The others hesitate but follow suit.

"Find a small tree as soon as possible, one we can climb but they can't!" I shout-whisper to them as soon as we reach ground.

"I see one!" Electra says, pointing forwards a bit.

She leads us towards the tree. I climb up first, towards the top of the only 25 foot tree. I pull up Clora, then Electra, then Ingrid. Coral is the last one I reach for.

But the Careers beat me to it. Coral turns away and shoots an arrow, which apparently hits someone, because I hear a cry of pain and a few curses from the others. Then, they're surrounding her.

"We thought you'd like to join us until you shot your own District partner." Carter, the boy from 1 hisses.

A cannon sounds in response. I see Jenni cringe from my perch, high in the tree.

"Do something!" Clora whispers. "She's our ally!"

"Not yet." I respond, shifting lower and lower down on the branch, holding a throwing knife.

As the Careers continue to taunt Coral and cut patterns in her left cheek, I aim at Carter, who's doing the torture.

I wait a pause, then throw.

The knife sticks into his right shoulder, the hand he was using to torture Coral with, and he cries out in pain. A trail of curses follow.

They all run off. But not before sticking a knife into Coral's stomach.

As the light fades into the woods, I swing downwards with the first aid kit.

"Coral!" Electra says worriedly.

Blood pools around Coral, who is crumpled in the grass. It looks black in the darkness.

"Don't." Coral says weakly. "It's no use."

"No, you'll be okay." Clora says, taking the first aid kit from me and wrapping bandages around Coral frantically, who is too weak to fight back.

"You're all idiots." She says angrily. "I'm done for! Just leave." Tears slip down her cheeks.

"Guys, common." I grab the three girls and pull them up. "Listen to her."

Coral closes her eyes. "Thank you, Hazel."

The cannon sounds. I drag the three remaining girls through the woods.

So much death.

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Sorry the chapter is short and very overdue. I've honestly forgot and more honestly not really cared. Haha. Sorry.

-Zane