unforgivable ➸ finnick odair

T H I R T Y N I N E

She woke up to Katniss's agonised screams.

Her eyes flew open immediately and she jumped to her feet, pulled her belt of knives over her head. She raised a blade and scanned the surroundings, blinking the sleep from her eyes. There was some sort of mist or fog slithering between the trees and enveloping the jungle in front of them in its cloudy haze.

"RUN! RUN, THE FOG IS POISONOUS!" Katniss staggered to her feet, hands covered in large, pale welts. Electra paused to make sure Finnick had Mags secured before running away. Long vines were suspended from the ceiling, and she used them to ensure she didn't slip over as she ran, grass and leaves crunching under her feet. The fog seemed to draw ever nearer, creeping closer every time she turned her head back to check.

She skidded to a stop, heartbeat thundering in her ears, as the fog crept in through the jungle, blocking the path they were intending to take. It surged in from all sides, swallowing the trees and bushes, and it seemed like every direction was blocked by a looming cloud of poisonous mist.

In front of her, Katniss tripped and fell to the ground, whipping her head back with fear filling her grey eyes as the fog swooped in. Peeta turned around at the thump of her body hitting the ground, but Electra made a shooing motion with her hands as she skidded to a stop and bent down to help Katniss. He looked hesitant, but nodded and continued running, though at a slower pace as he constantly looked back.

She looped her hands under Katniss's arms and pulled her up, but the fog was faster. There was a searing sound as it hit her back and legs, and she screamed through gritted teeth, hauling Katniss to her feet even as her arms shook. It felt like someone had set her on fire - as if her flesh was burning away, being eaten up by the mist.

Electra ran, but her limbs were twitching and shaking, and the border of her vision seemed to blur. Her quivering hand latched onto Katniss's forearm and she pulled the other girl along, trying to ignore the burning feeling in her legs. Her foot hit a ridge in the dirt and she tumbled to the ground, releasing her hold on Katniss.

"Keep going," she told her, words punctuated with heavy breathing as she planted her palms in the dirt and tried to push herself up. "I'll be - I'll be fine." The fog swallowed her foot and she screamed again, tasting blood in her mouth as she bit down on her tongue. Katniss looked worried, but one look at the encroaching mist had her running away, limbs spasming. She thought she could hear someone distinctly male scream and drop to the ground, and worry flared in her heart for Peeta, but her arms kept shaking and she couldn't get herself halfway off the ground before dropping again.

She heard Finnick let out a pain-filled shriek to her right, having split off from them, and a burst of energy filled her body as she got to her feet and sprinted over to where he had fallen, Mags tumbling off his back. He screamed again, face contorting in anguish as wisps of the mist rose from his back, welts rising on his exposed skin.

"Mags," Electra said, extending a shaking hand and hooking it under her arm. The older woman was shaking, having been touched by the fog as well, but stumbled to her feet. Finnick grabbed his trident where he had dropped it and secured Mags's other arm, and the three of them lurched forward, the mist following them every step of the way.

With every step, she felt like she would collapse, but somehow she found the strength to keep going. Her arms shook and she felt the cool air sting the raw skin and fresh blisters, but she focused on the path ahead of her, on escaping the fog.

Just a little bit more. Just a little bit more. Keep going. You're almost there.

Then the fog jumped.

One second it had been behind them, slowly creeping closer, the next a tendril of mist leapt towards her, lashing against the back of her calves. She screamed, letting go of Mags as she tumbled to the ground, cheek slamming against the dirt as her legs gave way.