Broken - A Hunger Games Story

Chapter Seven - Time to Train

The next two days go by pretty quickly. It's just sit down sessions with Johanna either talking about the games, or watching video's of other games from previous years. We see a District Eleven boy be killed by snakes, a small girl form Six be killed by Sinking Sand and a victor who won their games by hiding in a tree the whole time. There are endless amounts of weapons. Blowguns, Shurikens, Katanas, Scythes, Spears! The list goes on. Fallen tribute, after fallen tribute. Cannon booms every ten minutes.

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It's training day. Me and Ash are equipped with the same clothing. Black and red shirt with dark jeans. I put my hands into my pockets as we travel down the elevator because they are filling with sweat. We go beneath the ground and the lift comes to a standstill. The door slides open and we are immediately in the training centre. There are only half the tributes here. The careers from One and Two are throwing knives and the two careers from Four are weaving nets. A tribute from District Ten lashes out a whip. A small girl from Six is desperatley trying to hit a target with a shuriken, but it's no use. The two from Three desperately try to make fire, with no success.

We have to do this strategiccaly and I also have to act quite vicious, to make the careers fear me. There are various stations set up around the huge hall. They have signs above them such as KNOTS or THROWING KNIVES. There is a huge climbing wall on the left side of the centre and a fake cornucopia with twenty-four pedestals surrounding it. Weapons are piled high in the horn's mouth.

I head over to a knot station where I see District Four's tributes. I don't make conversation. I follow the instructions and after about half an hour I am just about to give up when somebody speaks up.

"Hey. Let me give you a hand." Says the tall career from Four. "I am Troye and this is Oasis." Oasis giggles and asks "Whats your name?"

"Willow Hope Thorne" I say sternly. It feels strange to say my full name, but I like the feeling. I have a sense their dating. I can tell by the way they look at each other. Troye helps me finish the knot and we chat about the games. They seem like nice people so I break the vicious look with them.

I then head over to the Edible Plants station where I meet Iris.

"Hi Iris" I say and she jumps back.

"God. You scared me. Hey" She says wiping sweat from her forehead. We study plants for while and a huge screen. I store the pisonous ones in the bck of my mind. Nightlock, Bequay, Celina, Lorrine... that's all I remember. I think there are a few more but I have no clue what their names are.

I ask Iris and Ash if they want to have a go at the model cornucopia. We traveldown the stairs and arrive in a circular room filled with galss tubes. The underbelly of the fake cornucopia. We each step into a glass tube and we rise slowly. When we reach the arena I nearly scream. The forcefield around us has a mirror effect making it seem like we are in the middle of a jungle. I tell myself we are not. That we are in the training centre. The countdown reaches. 10, 9, 8.

I see Iris looking alarmed but then realising we are just in a hologramic effect. Ash is ready to sprint. the going sounds and I lunge form my pedestal .This feels just like my dream. I reach the horn befoire Iris and Ash and manage to grab two throwing axes and a large rucksack and begin to sprint away. I stop and see that the forcefield has became transparent once more and three tributes are watching us. The two with glasses form District Three applaud us.

I turn around and see that Ash has a rucksack on his back. I'm about to look for what Iris has retrieved when our weapons discintergrate into thin air. They felt real. Heavy. We exit through a small hatch that leads us back underground. We take the steps back up to the training hall.

"Where to next?" I ask. "I think we have about half of the day left." I add.

"I wanna try the climbing wall" Says Iris. I nod and we head over. We get harnassed up and then clipped onto a rope.

"You're safe to climb!" Beams the man running the station. A pearly white smile between curved lips.

I put my foot on a rock near the base of the wall and pull my right leg up onto a small platform. I stand and reach out for a rocky ledge. I almost slip but regain my balance. Before I know it I am at the top. I repeat this trying all the routes available. Iris is also very good but Ash is a bit shaky on his legs. This results in him falling of and cursing under his breath as the beaming man says "Don't worry! Just try again. Practice makes perfect afterall"

The man applauds me and Iris and smiles at Ash when he falls from the wall again. I have spent so much time at this station.

A voice booms throughout the training centre. "You have one hour left"

I rush over to the axe station. These are much more advanced than my axe back home. They have black handles, dark chrome blades and a red coated tip. I choose one with a spike at the back of the axe too. I step into a small glass room and the holographic figures begin to run after me. I throw my axe around my head and fling it in the direction of the figure. They fall in a heap and I retrieve my axe. I smash it into a dark figures skull and quickly yank it out before I jump out the way of a spear and throw my axe at my competitors heart. A figure jumps out from the wall and I through my axe into their leg. They collpase and begin crawling on the floor. I pull it out and smash in their skull.

The simulatuion shuts down and I notice a crowd has gathered. The careers look at each other in shock. My intimidation has worked. The two from District Three applaud and Iris just smiles at me. My axe clatters to the ground and I go to look at some of the other tributes weapon skills.

I know everyones names now as there is a huge billboard at the centre of the hall with the tributes names written in bold writing on it. From District One, Sapphire is powerful with throwing knives and Blaze hasn't given anything away. From two theres Slate and Alana. He's fantastic with a mace and she has fantastic aim with shurikens. Oasis has a hand for spears and Iris uses a curvewd blade she calls a scythe. Another strong competitor is Bonnie from 10 who has great talent with a whip. This years competition is tough. I'm going to have to kill every last one of them.