RUINATION | FINNICK ODAIR

CONSTANTLY APART

"Lara, wake up!"

They'd only fallen asleep for a few minutes. But Katniss, being the watch guard for the second part of the night, heard a suspicious noise down the tunnel. Peeta confirmed hearing it too, causing him to frightfully wake up the others.

"They're mutts! They released mutts!"

Gale swatted at him to keep his voice down. Finnick shook Lara awake from her slumber, completely throwing her into a frenzy as she realized panic was around them. Her pulse rose and she searched for Finnick to explain.

"We have to go," he said hurriedly.

She didn't question it and simply got up and crawled out of the service nook they rested in. Finnick went first and got her out quickly while the others checked the path ahead.

Gale sent a flaming arrow from his crossbow into the darkness. The tunnel was illuminated by the flames, showing no signs of danger in that direction. Pollux motioned to keep doing down until they reached a fork.

Everyone's weapons were at the ready. Lara held her gun up, knowing it was better to keep the danger at a farther distance. With her batons, she'd need to get close.

They turned down a path where the water got slightly deeper again. They tried to move quietly but it was difficult.

Every opening they came across, they searched intensely. They beamed their flashlights into each crevice for an evidence of danger. They continued to find none.

At the very end of the tunnel before them was a small horizontal opening in the wall. It was barely a foot tall and just wide enough to squeeze through.

Pollux went through first before disappearing around the corner to check their path. Lara held her breath as he took a longer time than expected. But he soon emerged and gestured for them to follow.

Gale was first, then Katniss, then Peeta. Finnick stepped to the side and let Lara go through before him. She warily set her batons in front of her in the opening as she crawled on her elbows to get through. Katniss helped get her feet planted back down on the ground.

Lara turned back to see that Finnick also let Elias go in front of him. She found it to be very courteous of him. Maybe he wanted to make peace considering they'd be brother-in-law's eventually.

Elias made it through, motioning for Finnick to go. Him, Holmes, and Castor were the last to go, leaving only Jackson to bring up the back of the group.

But as soon as she turned to set her weapon down, she heard a noise. She snapped around with her flashlight, catching only a brief glimpse of the monsters that attacked her.

She went down shrieking as the human-like creatures tore her apart. Katniss was quick to fire an incendiary arrow, which was large enough to nearly knock them off their feet.

Finnick and Lara instantly latched onto each other as the unit began to run away.

"Pollux, get us out of here!" Holmes shouted.

As they ran, the water was kicked up and sprayed in their faces. The taste of it was metallic, which left a sour impression in their mouths. It should've been the least of her worries, but Lara couldn't help but scrunch her face up at it.

They twisted and turned down the dark tunnels, running into dangers they couldn't even see. The mutts chased them relentlessly, catching up with remarkable speed.

Castor was at the back of the group. He didn't make a turn fast enough and his leg got snatched by the mutts. All it took was one pull to knock him down.