Chapter 2

Paige’s POV

My mentor, Brittney, came and woke me up this morning, being careful not to wake up Azzi. We walk out of the room and head towards the elevator, talking while we walk.

“Are you nervous?” Britney says to me. I think to myself for a moment before answering.

“Who wouldn’t be?” I respond. “We are being sent out to die, and even if we win at what cost do we win? 20 other people must die, and some are just little kids they haven’t even gotten to live their lives yet!”

Brittney sighs. “You can’t go into this with that mindset. You need to do anything to survive.” The elevator opens, and Brittney leads me into it, the doors open on the first floor. “Come with me. I have someone I think you should talk to.”

“Okay?” I say unsure while following her to the dining hall. There is another contestant sitting at a table, Jasmine, from district 12. Brittney has me sit down at the table and excuses herself, letting us chat.

The girl looks at me with excitement in her eyes before speaking up,”Hi! I’m Jasmine, district 12, and your Paige, right?”

“Yeah, I am. Nice to meet you. So what are we here to talk about?”
I reply to the hyper girl, who looks my age.

She smiles. She takes a moment before responding repeatedly, glancing behind me, looking for something. I ignore it and wait for her response.

“Oh, right! That… My mentor and your mentor thought it would be in good interest for both of us to have an alliance!”

I listen to the girls’ words, taking them in. I stare at her, confused. “Alliance? I’m sorry I’m only in alliance with one person.”

She rolls her eyes slightly annoyed. “Let me guess, Azzi? What if you two have a falling out? You’ll need someone else.” She says as if it’s obvious, still checking behind me.

“I’m not going to have a falling out with her. And even if I did, how do I know I can trust you! You could betray me the second we step in the arena.”

I can see the annoyance growing within her, but she stays stubborn and insists again. “You just have to take my word for it!”

“I think we are done here,” I reply. I start to stand up, but the girl pulls my arms close to her and grabs my face, connecting our lips. I hear a gasp behind me and pull away from Jasmine. I turn to find the source and see Azzi.

“What the fuck Paige!” Azzi says walking up to me in disbelief.
“This isn’t what you think it is baby I swear” I reply, trying to explain to the girl.

“I’m done listening to your excuses! This is the third fucking time Paige! In less then a week!” Azzi says angrily with tears slowly falling down her face.

I put my head in my hands to cover my face wiping my tears away before lowering my hands and responding. “She kissed me Azzi! I was trying to walk away I swear!”

I hear Jasmine giggling behind me a few seconds later, which visibly irritates Azzi. “Did you kiss her back.” Azzi mutters out and I respond with a guilty look on my face staring down at my shoes.

She takes in a deep breath gathering her thoughts before responding her voice raw and full of tears, “We need some time apart. This is for the best anyway. It was always going to come down to one of us.” My eyes shoot up to her, tears running down my face.

“No, no, no, no. You can’t do this not now! We were supposed to have a few more days together! We can’t end this, this early over a mistake!” I say pleading with her.

She turns her back to me, trying to hide her face, still firmly standing with her previous words. “I’ll see you in the arena Paige.”

She walks away out of the dining hall and leaves me alone with Jasmine, tears still falling from my eyes. My legs give out and I fall to my knees resting my head in my hands on the floor. When I hear a familiar voice behind me, Jasmine.

“I told you, this is why we need an aliance!” She says unbothered by the previous conversation between Azzi and I.

I lift my head and turn it to her with disbelief on my face. “You think I’m going to form an alliance with you after that bullshit? Fuck off” I say walking away from the girl.

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We have an hour before we enter the arena. I immediately throw myself into training to take my mind off of everything. I practice with a sword and, bow n arrow.

I have mastered the skills pretty well I should be able to take on my fellow competitors. I have seen Azzi around she has been training on the opposite side of the room.

Avoiding my gaze the entire time, she’s getting good at throwing daggers, she must be practicing both types because she’s been shooting me daggers with her eyes the whole time we’ve been here.

Some time goes by and a tall man comes to gather everyone from the training room we follow him down a long tunnel that leads to the arena. He postions me on one end of the circle, and I watch him settle everyone else into their spots.
he walks Azzi down and around the circle, placing her…. across from me. Of course he did.

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Azzi’s POV

I can sense Paige watching me from across the circle trying to lure my gaze but I refuse. I’m focused on what’s going on infront of me. I watch as weapons get placed in the center looking for one of my mastered weapons.

I spot both and keep my eyes marked on them refusing to waver my gaze. I hear numbers start to count down filling the previously silent arena.

“Ten.” I start to squat down closer to the water. “Nine” I ready myself taking in a deep breath. “Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. Let the odds forever be in your favor. “

I take off flying into the water swimming as fast as I can. I make it to the ledge of the middle circle trying to pull myself up. I spot Paige already grabbing her weapon and grabs another one also I can’t see.

She looks down in the water and spots me reaching her hand out to me. I refuse and push her hand away and she looks at me irritated. “Just take my fucking hand.”

I sigh grabbing her hand letting her pull me up onto the platform. She hands me the daggers and whispers in my ear. “There is a bag of hidden items under a rock that way” She says pointing. “Go get them, I don’t need it.”

I nod slightly confused. “Thank you.” She nods in response running the opposite direction. I run to the rock sneakily grabbing the bag

I run deep into the Forrest with my small pouch and daggers, on a hunt for somewhere to sleep. I open the bag to find a sleeping bag, first aid kit, food and water. Jackpot. I found a tall tree with a good amount of shelter within the leaves. I climb the tree settling my self in decinding this is where I’ll stay the night.

A few hours go by and I’m starting to drift to sleep, I stare up at the sky and all I can think about is Paige. “She should be the last thing on my mind right now!” I mutter to myself. As I mutter I instantly hear a tree branch break on the ground.

I tense up unsure of how to react and slowly climb down the tree holding my dagger in front of me. I reach the bottom and see a squirrel.

“Oh it was just you. You won’t hurt me.” I say picking up the squirrel. Turning around to go back up the tree.

“But I will.” I hear someone mutter from infront of me stabbing me with a spear. I scream out in pain falling to the ground. My hands grab my stomach as I lay helplessly. Realizing this is the end.

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Paige’s POV

I was gathering berries when I heard it. Her scream. I immediately dropped the berries running towards the source. “Azzi!” I shout searching for her.

No response. I hear the scream again, I push through some leaves and bushes finally seeing it. I spot a smaller boy no older then 15 stabbing Azzi with a spear.

He hasn’t spotted me yet and I use it to my advantage sneaking up behind him. Azzi tries to get a few jabs at him with her daggers but he doesn’t react.

I walk closer with my sword in front of me, taking small steps so he can’t hear me. Jab. My sword goes through his body, leaving blood running down it, closing in near my hands. I set the sword down and immediately ran to Azzi.

“Baby, are you okay?” I ask her urgently and fearful.

Azzi’s eyes dart up to me, and she nods. “I’m fine, thank you.” She says, grabbing my hand to stand up. “And don’t call me that,” She says firmly.

“Why not? It’s your favorite pet name.” I say, trying to convince her.

“We are over, Paige. You need to accept that. We should be fighting right now!”

“But we aren’t! And you don’t want to!” I say, opening her bag and finding bandages to wrap her cut in.

She glares at me. “I can do it myself”

I roll my eyes sitting down and motioning for her to sit on my lap so I can wrap her up.

She has a stubborn look on her face but complied and sits down letting me bandage her. “Where have you been? I heard a cannon a while ago. Thought it might’ve been you” She says with a mix of sadness and curiously.

“It wasn’t me obviously, but I did cause it,” I say with less care than I should.

“Why are you saying it like that?” The beautiful girl on my lap says.

“Like what?” I chuckle awkwardly.

“Like you don’t care. Now that i think about it, you didn’t even react to killing that kid!” She says, slightly accusing. “I did what I had to do to protect myself. To protect you also.”

She scoffs, standing from my lap. “Hey, where are you going?” I whisper shout. “You’re really feeding into what they want, aren’t you.” She says in disbelief

I look at her confused, “what? I’m not! I just think that if I have to do… that, to protect myself and the people I love, then I shouldn’t have to feel guility about it!”

“Don’t you see that’s what they want everyone to think?” The girl shouts slightly too loud. She takes a moment to compose herself. “They want us to be seen as numbers, purely a statistic in a system a number constantly falling. You’re giving into that! Your killing without guilt can eventually turn into killing without reason. They want us to become like them. And you’re not even trying to resist.” I listen to her spit out the harsh words realizing she is right.

I bow my head down in my lap with a mix of shame and guilt. “You’re right. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“You’ve been saying that a lot lately.”

“Can we please not talk about that right now? When we could die at any moment.” I reply.

Azzi rolls her eyes, “I set up a sleeping spot in the tree. We should head up there now. Try to fall asleep. ”

“I don’t think I’ll be doing much sleeping it’s gotta be so uncomfortable,” I say.

I climb the tree first, resting on a branch, and Azzi follows settling on the branch with me. “Good night.” I whisper

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Authors note

This is my first story, so please be patient with me. I’m not good at pacing yet or writing in this format.