TWISTED // Clato | ✓

Chapter 9: This Is How It Starts

CLOVE'S POV:

"Let the Seventy-Fourth Hunger Games begin," says Claudius Templesmith in his washed-out voice.

I take a deep gulp of breath and squint as my eyes adjust to my surroundings. My pedestal is in the middle of a wide field. The other twenty-three tributes on their pedestals surround me. I can just make out Cato across the field, over next to Jason, the District 6 male. He'll probably go for him first, like he warned him.

My eyes scan the bounty flowing out of the Cornucopia: swords, axes, machetes, bows, arrow quivers, knives! I spot a huge rack of knives just against the wall of the horn-shaped building. I'm going to get those knives, and anyone who gets in my way will find one in their back rather than in their hand!

Besides weaponry, I also spot large storage boxes and tent kits. Around the Cornucopia, the loot is thickest. Out here, over by our pedestals, backpacks are scattered sparsely. Some of the dumber tributes will target these, or even venture toward the Cornucopia, where the best stuff is. As a Career, I will ignore these backpacks and find weapons first. Then Cato and I and the others from District One will fight the tributes who are silly enough to stick around.

The numbers are counting down: 7... 6... 5... 4... 3... 2... 1!

I leap off my pedestal and sprint across the field right past the backpacks. I have eyes only for the beautiful array of knives on the rack beside the Cornucopia wall. Until something distracts me in the crates around the horn.

Before I can investigate, I'm temporarily sidetracked as I see the District 8 male hop Marvel. That kid's asking for it. Marvel turns, knocks him off, and stabs him repeatedly with a knife.

I seize the object that caught my eye: a black vest lined with pockets. Perfect for knives. I spin around, my ponytail swinging around behind me.

CATO'S POV:

Jason runs alongside me. I haven't forgotten my need for revenge. I turn and punch him over the head. He topples backward into the grass. I need a weapon.

Sprinting to the Cornucopia, I seize a machete from the wall. The tall kid from District 10 appears nearby. Jason is on his feet again, and he and the boy from Ten begin to fight over a backpack. Marvel dashes over, hurling his axe at the boy from Ten, knocking him backward. Marvel charges away after the boy from Three while the boy from District 10 struggles to a sitting position. He sees me, and I can see the fear in his eyes before he leaps to his feet and tries to run. I cleave his chest with the machete, and he falls down with a groan.

The girl from District 7 runs by with an axe. I'm about to attack her, but the boy from 3 gets there first, pushing her over and stealing her axe. The girl struggles to her feet while the the boy sprints away, colliding with Marvel. They begin to grapple over the axe. The boy pulls unrelentingly on the axe, and Marvel finally hurls a backpack at him, winning his axe.

Clove is nearby, rummaging through a pack. I want to yell at her to get out of here, but my throat is dry. I'm distracted instantly as Ember, the girl from Four, charges by, knocking the girl from Six to the ground and snatching her sword. The girl from Six gets to her feet and stumbles backward--straight into Glimmer. Big mistake. Glimmer grabs her hair and shoves her roughly into a crate. When the girl won't let go of her backpack, Glimmer seizes a knife and stabs her multiple times.

Horrified, the girl from 7 leaps behind a crate to hide. Oh, no you don't, I think, seizing my machete and stalking over to where she is crouching. Suddenly, Ember charges in front of me, waving her sword. I easily dodge the blow. Is she really this stupid? Does she expect me to accept her as a fellow Career? Not a chance. I thrust my fist out, sending her tumbling over a crate. She half runs, half crawls over to a red backpack and dashes away at top speed.