𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐬 | 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟕𝟔𝐭𝐡 𝐠𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬 ✔️

𝕍

While Salacia takes Aurora to her room, Nereus takes me to mine. He doesn't speak a word to me until we reach the room.

"You did well in the Parade," he tells me matter-of-factly. "I think you have a good shot in the Arena. Get some rest tonight - tomorrow is your first day of Training."

I can't sleep all night. I toss and turn, thinking about all the other tributes who are here, and about what Nereus said. Do I really have a chance to win the Games? I'm only here to protect Aurora. But I also think about Clarissa and what she said before I left. I have my own family as well, and if I have a chance to see my family again, I should take that seriously.

In the morning, I reunite with Aurora, and we're sent down to the Training Center.

"How'd you sleep?" she says with a smile as we enter the elevator.

"I didn't," I tell her. "I couldn't stop thinking about everything."

She frowns at me. "You should have come and visited me. I missed you."

I smile. She knows me so well. "I wanted to. But you needed to sleep too."

The elevator doors open to the Training Center, and we step out. Most of the tributes are there already, gathered around a young woman in a black uniform. She looks to be in her mid-twenties, and she looks pretty plain considering she's from the Capitol.

After a few minutes, the last few tributes arrive, and the girl begins her speech.

"Tributes, welcome to the Training Center," she says with a small smile. "I'm Reina, and I'll be this year's Head Trainer."

Reina quickly explains the rules, which are pretty simple - just don't hurt the other tributes, and don't steal from the Training Center. Easy enough.

Aurora and I head over to Training stations. She decides to learn how to shoot a bow, while I go to the spear-throwing section. I figure that it'll be easier for me to throw heavier objects because of how strong I am. Finally, lifting all those heavy crates in District 4 has come to good use.

I'm not bad at throwing spears. I think I might stick to using the weapon in the Arena. After a while of throwing them at targets, I start using a spear to spar with a Trainer. Aurora joins me soon after, and we fight with swords a bit.

After a few hours of Training, I'm sweaty and out of breath. Aurora looks exhausted. I'm lucky that I'm used to manual labor. Most of the scrawny tributes are sitting at plant stations or trying to make fires.

At long last, lunch is called, and we head to the cafeteria to eat. Aurora grabs our plates quickly and we sit at a table by ourselves.

"You're not too bad with that sword," I tell her as she sits. "You should work on using it and you'll be able to defend yourself."

She nods. "I don't know if I'll be able to use it to kill anyone, though. The thought just makes me shudder."

I look up as a boy approaches our table. It's Axel, the boy from District 2.

"Hey," he says. "Do you mind if we sit with you?"

I look behind him to see Phoenix, Isabelle, and Vesta approaching the table.

Aurora and I glance at each other for a moment. I don't want to talk to the Careers, but we don't have much choice.

"Sure," Aurora says, and the group sits down.

"You both are strong competitors," Phoenix says after he sits. "I've been watching you both."

"Thank you," I say in return. "You guys are very skilled as well."

"We were wondering if you wanted to join our alliance," Isabelle says sweetly. She's pretty quiet compared to Phoenix. "Even though everyone calls us Careers, we actually weren't trained for this either, and we could use some allies like you guys."

I'm surprised by Isabelle's words, but then I realize - the District 1 and 2 tributes aren't actually Careers like they used to be. None of the four kids in front of me volunteered to be here. But, that doesn't mean they aren't dangerous.

Surprisingly, Aurora answers quickly. "Why not?" she says. "We could use some allies too."

"What are you guys in here for?" Phoenix asks us. Aurora explains that her dad was the mayor of District 4 before he was executed.

The others have interesting stories. Phoenix and Isabelle are dating as well, and Phoenix's dad was a leading general in the rebel army. Phoenix and Isabelle both fought in the war together as foot soldiers but returned to District 1 after the rebels lost the war. Their participation in the war, combined with Phoenix's dad's position, got the two of them Reaped.

Axel and Vesta, on the other hand, are brother and sister. Axel is 16, and Vesta is 18. The two of them are the children of the Head Peacekeeper of District 2. Their father worked to turn the Peacekeepers against the Capitol, leading to rebel Victory in District 2. However, neither of them have much fighting experience, just like Aurora and me.

At the end of the day, I'm left feeling uneasy. I don't know how to feel about my new allies. I'm glad that Phoenix and Isabelle have military experience, but what if they use it against us and we can't defend ourselves? Something makes me feel like I can't trust them, but I guess Aurora and I will have to take some risks to make it far in the Games. We may not be able to do this on our own.