The Hunger Games - Done

Ivan Istor -- Since I started this thing, I should finish then, eh?

"Fine," I said, "why don't we just kill each other then. No honour. I fight now, because I just don't like you."

I did a salute with my foil and assumed my fighting stance. It was something I seem to always do in duels that I wasn't able to do much in the games due to the fact that I never really fought someone on equal ground. I held my foil out with my good arm and raised my bloody bad arm above my head. I struggled to keep it there, but it was important to me that I at least try. I waited for Chase to get to her feet and draw her dagger and then I jumped forward jabbing the foil. Chase parried with her dagger and retreated a few steps. She had a bad limp like she had sprained something from a bad jump or tripping. I felt a pang of guilt at this realization because I realized that I wouldn't be able to really fight her on equal ground while she was injured.

Chase quickly proved that my hesitation could easily lead to my death. She jumped forward with the speed and agility that I thought she didn't have and almost got past my defence. I reacted by jumping backwards into the middle of the hall. What was I thinking. Sure she was injured, we all were. She had a sprained ankle or something, I had bad cuts on my side and arm and Acacia had a bad cut on her thigh. We all were in bad shape. This was equal.

"I was hoping for more from the great Ivan Istor" Chase said.

"Be careful of what you wish for," I said, "you might just get more than you bargained for." With that I jumped forward with another jab. Chase parried again, but I didn't let up. I swung my foil around whipping her side making her double over. I jumped forward again, but she quickly swung her knife up at me knocking my foil out of my hand. She jumped up and slashed again. I rolled back and tried to grab my foil, but Chas was too fast. She quickly moved in between me and my weapon and slashed at me again.

She wasn't trying to kill me just yet, she was trying to move me against a wall. And it was working. I tried to move out of the way, but she kept on blocking my path with her dagger. She was way too fast. I was going to have to change my tactics. I ran straight towards Chase catching her by surprise and tackling her to the ground. She held onto the dagger however and drove it into my shoulder. I cringed in pain, but my years of training started to kick in and I was able to keep conscious.

I punched Chase's arm making her let go of the dagger and I sprung to my feet. As she struggled to her feet, I took the time to pull the dagger out of my shoulder. The pain was immense, but again my training paid off and I was able to withstand it. Barely. The world seemed to fade around me. I shook it off and reminded myself that I was in a fight. Chase was at her feet now and figureing out how to take me without a weapon. It was my chance. I jumped forward and drove her own dagger into her heart.

It was over. She fell to the ground, dead. I took the dagger out and threw it away. Acacia was stunned. Probably at the fact that I was still conscious. I grabbed my foil swung it as a test. Both of my arms were in bad shape, but I would be able to fight one more battle. I glanced out of the windows overlooking the park and saw that the sun was rising. The golden glow was shining in and giving the room a more golden colour. We had made it to the final two. We must fight at the dawn of a new day. The war was almost over.

"I'm sorry it has to come to this." I said.

"Me too." Acacia replied.

"Whatever the outcome, know that I am very grateful to have known you. If only our circumstances were better."

"I agree." Acacia said. We each drew our weapons and got ready for the final fight.

Chase is dead. Ultra, I say we each give one last post before we end it.

Why do I have to keep telling you guys to post? :'(

Sorry, I haven't been at home much for the past 2 days. I will post tomorrow for sure!

Thanks a bunch! I am hoping to get the next one started a week after this one ends, but yeah that probably isn't going to happen.

Ultra, POST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Acacia Lane

No more outsmarting, no more clever tactics, no more manipulation or fake outs or alliances. It was one on one, brains against brawn. It ended here, it ended now. We would fight and only one would make it out. I was tired of running and tired of hiding behind people. Here we separated the victors from the tributes. And then, Games over.

I had my pocket knife, and my dart gun and poison. Ironic; I never used it once. No good for hunting, and Ryan and Ivan did all the killing. I'd only done in one or two. I didn't remember them, though. Things like that are usually best forgotten, buried in layers upon layers of memories, good and bad, while I sifted the choice ones to the top as a cover over the gore.

Now, I withdrew my gun. Ivan knew I had it, though, and knew what I was doing, so I didn't have time to dip it into the poison before he lunged. I jerked back, and the edge of the blade only grazed my arm, adding blood to my upper body, where my torn-open thigh had failed to soak.

His foil lodged in the woodwork of he wall behind me, but he quickly tugged it out, swinging it around at my neck. Last second, I ducked. As cliche as it sounded, I could feel it pull on my hair, whacking the edged from my head. This sent a shot of pain up my thigh and arm. Still, I kicked at Ivan's kneecaps, knocking him over. I could see the pain written on his face as he landed on his arms. I felt bad. I had actually grown to like him. Bad move.

I scrambled away, fumbling for the poison. Ivan scampered up, regaining his footing as I sat on the ground frantically untwisting the cap on the little glass jar. He came at me and fell flat, rolled, and got up, crawling away as fast as I could, still trying to get the lethal cream from the jar. Ivan came at me and while he couldn't stick me with his foil - I was too fast - he managed to kick the poison down one of the huge stairwells.

I jumped onto the railing and slid down fast, flying off at the bottom. My thigh screamed and collapsed on me and I tried to stay afoot. Ivan came down the railing after me, zooming along, and I just leaped out of the way in time not to be crushed under his superior weight.

This whole time we said nothing; no taunts, no jabs, no last regrets or heartfelt goodbyes. Nothing. We had nothing to say. Anything trash talk-ish would seem like betrayal, and anything about how our time together was good, nice, had brought us closer than just tolerating allies would seem even more wrong. How could we say something like that right before slaying the other? We couldn't. It was better to go in silence, almost a time of respect, like at a funeral. A time of remembrance of the dead. Because that was what one of us was soon to be.

I looked back to find the glass jar shattered, cream splattered about. I tried to get to it, tried to scramble and scamper, frantic to find a way of survival, all the things we had been doing, but I couldn't. Between the two of us was Ivan and his foil, a little shaky, but better off than I. It seemed hopeless.

I was still on the ground, and despite my efforts, my thigh wouldn't carry weight, and I was getting nowhere fast. Soon Ivan was upon me, foil at my throat.

"Any last words?" he asked, almost genuinely sincere, as though wanting last words, not as a show of triumph, but rather that he wanted one last thing to remember me by. And suddenly, I was glad I wasn't going to win. It must've been hell. How could someone live with themself after murdering someone they could consider a friend? I supposed that most wouldn't have made such a foolish mistake, getting to know tributes, but I was stupid. No amount of Games had prepared me for the emotional turmoil. Most victors seemed to deal with it, but who knew what was going on behind the scenes?

"I'm glad I'm going to die, and I'm glad it's because of you." I would've fought harder, longer with anyone else, but he had to win. I couldn't take it. And I was glad he was going to win, even if it was District 1. Sometimes - not often - they brought out a tribute that really, truly deserved to win.

"And goodbye."

Ivan can kill Acacia. I give my full approval.

Ivan Istor

Acacia's last goodbye was the one hit I was not prepared for. I had been trained my entire life to endure physical pain and work through it, but nothing prepared me for the emotional pain. Acacia had been defeated and she had given her life to me. The funny thing was that I had no clue what to do with it. I knew what I had to do, what the Capitol wanted me to do, but I just didn't want to believe it. If this is what surviving would entail, I almost didn't want to live. But that was selfish. If I didn't live, Acacia would and she would have to deal with the same thing. If there was one thing I knew, it was that death is a release from pain. At that point, it may have been the best thing to do for Acacia.

I nodded to her goodbye and gave her one final salute. It wasn't much, but it was the best thing I could offer.

"Goodbye." I said and I made the kill quick and painless. After it was done, I collapsed to my knees and started to sob uncontrollably, "Are you happy now!?" I yelled to the Capitol, "I killed her, are you happy!?"

I hated them. I hated them, and the games. It just took me being a part of them for me to know that the Capitol was evil. I immediately regretted all the years I put into training for the games. All the money I spent to get into the games. If I hadn't done so much to be a part of the games, Acacia could have been the one to win and live. They bring you to the games with promises of wealth and fame, and when all is said and done, they make you kill the one person that meant the most to you in the games. They make it impossible not to make a strong alliance based on trust, then when you succeed you have to kill the people that kept you alive.

As the hovercar came to pick me up, I remembered the other tributes that I had contact with.

There was Andi, my first ally and the one that kept me going with a purpose.

Izzy who was with Chase. I had only seen her once, but she was reason we had Ryan.

Samantha, my rival. She was to be my ally. I knew her in my district. She had a family and a life like every single one of us.

Leon. He went crazy because of the games and almost succeeded in taking me out. Another victim of the games rather than of the other tributes.

Ryan. The man I took pity on and took with me and Acacia in our alliance. He was the reason why Acacia and I made it to the final two.

Chase. As much as I hated her, she played the game better than even I. She never made alliances and if Acacia and I didn't make it together, I had no trouble believing that she would have won.

And finally Acacia. Just the thought of her made me sob again. I wanted. No, I needed to talk to her family and tell them how much she meant to me. How she is the reason I am alive.

Of course, those were just the people I knew by name. There were others as well. I swore to myself as the hovercar brought me back to the Capitol that I would live to see their downfall. And I always fulfill my promises.

Acacia is dead. The games are over.

Awesome ending guys thanks a bunch. It was actually one of the first time in a story book I couldn't tear my eyes away. I have gotten way to close to your characters by just reading. Gah I sound like so stupid. You know I never used the word Gah until I joined. But anyway I will send you all P.M.s when the new one starts and if you would like to tell me what spots you would like to save for yourself before hand I will save them for you. If you don't want to join the next one please tell me right now.

A. S.

P.S. I am still open for ideas about the arena.

Awesome ending, Ithy. I like how you recalled all the tributes he knew. Nice. *tears*

Oh, and I want a girl from District 4, 'kay?

Will do, anyone else?

Thanks Ultra! I wanted a visible character ark, and I think I got it, so I'm happy.

I might as well put someone on hold, even though I never seem to have any trouble adding boys in storybooks. I can go for District 9 guy this time around.

Awesome Ithy!

I'll take the boy from District 7, and girl from District 4.
For a arena it should be something with an underwater sea world!

Saved

Saved.....?

I read this the whole way through (even though I couldn't join) and it was so good! I was actually tearing up at the end :'(

Thank you everyone

(Just felt I should let you know how much I loved this xD)