🦋 The 20th Hunger Games ➵ Victor: Penny

[DetectiveLunar]

Madeline Gomez//District 1//Female//A brat//Tagged; The careers

Madeline hadn’t realized it until Eden had said it out loud but he was right, there were too many of them. It didn’t seem to matter how many mutts she drove her fishing spear into, more and more would only appear to take their turn at her. They had to go back to their allies now. They couldn’t take on all of these loathsome monstrosities on their own. They were outnumbered and these mutts were not holding back. They bit and slashed, there were too many jaws and claws in her vision. Too many.. There was no way any of them would escape without a scratch. And she was right.

She looked over at Eden, who had just recently been knocked down by these dastardly beasts. She couldn’t lie, her heart had skipped a beat when she saw him lying there. It was horrifying, she almost thought that he had met the same fate as Killick. She couldn’t express how glad she was that he was okay but he hadn’t gotten away scot-free though. The sight of his mangled wrist sent waves of anger and rage over Madeline. How dare these insolent half-witted wrenches hurt her friend? She’ll show them! She’d show them all!! They would regret EVERYTHING!! Wait.. No.. Now wasn’t the time. They had to get back.

She quickly took one final glance towards his wrist before turning around. “Of course.” Her reply was quick and curt, now wasn’t the time to waste on insults. These mutts would receive their verbal abuse once they stood side by side with their allies. She would show them not to mess with her friends and if she saw that disgusting bipedal rat that led them here she would be taught a lesson as well.

She kicked and speared the vile beasts that dared to stand between her and the rest of her allies. She could feel claws rake against her sides and jaws close around her ankles but she would just kick them away or thrust her spear through their heads before continuing on, ignoring the pain that accompanied her injuries. Every claw, tooth and scale she saw only fueled her rage. Every scratch and bite was like throwing gasoline into a fire.

It didn’t take long to get back to their allies, but all the attacking mutts had made it take a bit longer. Now that they were together they stood a greater chance against these horrid and detestable roaches. Now she could unleash all hell upon these gag-inducing, empty-headed and graceless pigs!

“YOU DISGRACEFUL STOMACH-WRENCHING WRETCHES!” She screamed at the oncoming mutts. “YOU LOATHSOME, REPULSIVE, DISTASTEFUL AND VILE ANIMALS! TERRIBLY IMPUDENT AND FOUL FIENDS!! I'LL SHOW YOU NOT TO MESS WITH MY FRIENDS!” These mutts better start begging for forgiveness NOW!

(She said it! She said friends! Light some fireworks everybody!!!)

[honeybee.]

Caspia Searobin | District 4 | Location: Camp | Tags: Careers |
Pretty quickly the mutts overwhelmed the load of them, surrounding Chaska and Caspia where they were protecting Gloria. Suddenly they seemed to be coming from every angle and Caspia could no longer see her allies, only mutts. She jabbed out in every direction with her trident, which she'd only managed to scoop up a few moments before they had reached them. It was a struggle to keep the mutts away, teeth and claws reaching her over and over before she could spin and slash the attacking mutt aside. When finally those that had rushed past Eden and Madeline to their camp had been mostly dispersed, Caspia found herself next to Chaska again gazing horrified at the sea of mutts following behind their allies. She pressed her back against Chaska's, at a slight angle to allow them both to still protect Gloria who Caspia dared not look at, and allowed the rush of adrenaline that came with a fight to rush over her. "I think it might be time for a little back-to-back battling, don't you?" When your enemies could come from every angle, that was usually the best way to go. Madeline soon reached them, screaming insults at the still approaching mutts. Caspia smiled at her, she hadn't failed to notice the word friends. "If you care to end up like your friends," She yelled her own words at the mutts, threats rather than insults, "Then step right up!"


Felix Prestman | District 12 | Location:  Sienna's Campsite | Tags: Penny, Sienna.|  
It was unfortunate that the description of Sienna's lovely food was disrupted by the horrifying howl of mutts. The girl's next words were gentle, but seemed to come out in a rush. Felix nodded gently as she spoke of Eden. "I understand," As he spoke he gazed over at Penny. If she was in danger he would do the same. He would let himself lose every chance of going home if it meant she could instead. "You love him. He's lucky to have you."

[SunnyJustice]

➵ Eden Beauregard • District One • Career
➵ Location: Careers' Camp
➵ Tagged: Careers, unwanted visitors
Breathing heavily, Eden arrived back in camp beside his district partner. She was surprisingly calm for once, seeming to understand the weight of the situation as an endless onslaught of mutts assaulted them from all sides. Only when they'd reunited with their allies did the insult torture begin. Eden managed to smile at her, especially when he heard what she called them - her friends.
"Sorry, I let my emotions get the best of me. But we're all together now." As Eden struck down the next mutts that charged directly at him, his eyes swept over Chaska, Gloria and Caspia, making sure they were okay. Poor Gloria was on the floor, guarded by her allies who'd stayed behind, and as Eden looked down he was unfortunate enough to catch a glimpse of his own injuries. I look like this?
He wasn't in a great deal of pain yet, either from shock or the adrenaline coursing through his veins. At Caspia's suggestion of back-to-back fighting, he nodded gratefully and took position behind Madeline - the two of them could shield Gloria's other side. After slashing at another mutt that got too close, Eden lightly bumped Chaska's arm with his. It looked like a clumsy accident but, really, he just wanted to reassure his ally he hadn't lost his Career brother yet. Chaska was covered with blood but Eden assumed it was all from the mutts.

More and more mutts fell by his blade, but the pack seemed endless and another would always take the fallen's place. Any faint spark of hope in Eden's heart started to dwindle as he realized he and his allies had met their match. Back in the forest, it was all six Careers against a mere patrol of these things; now there were several times more mutts and less Careers to stand against them. Gloria couldn't even stand up and Eden, with his injuries, knew he was a weak link in the protective circle. But he had to stay standing. The fight already seemed impossible to win. If the Careers lost one more ally, it would be unimaginably horrific.
"Don't give up..." He murmured, voice starting to waver as his wounds caught up with him. "But I just want to say it's been an honor. If this is our final fight together... let's make it a good one, okay? I love you. Let's leave a mark on the world and also on these mutts' throats."
As he fought through the worsening pain to strike down another mutt, he focused on the steady, pounding rhythm still sounding in his chest. Were his allies' hearts beating to the same drum? In that moment, as they faced down a hopeless battle in determined defiance, Eden believed so. If only we had one more person, we might even win this... No, he couldn't dwell on what-ifs.
In his exhaustion, Eden didn't notice the mutt sneaking up behind him, ready to lunge for the final blow.


➵ Icarus Matthias • District Two • Mentor
➵ Location: Outside
➵ Tagged: Disgrace off!... Not you, Roxanne
Cursing under his breath, Icarus stormed down the streets of the Capitol. The screens were inescapable; every square sported a live broadcast of the most violent part of the games, and right now it was the mauling of his children. It took every shred of Icarus' self-control to restrain himself from literally murdering the edgy teenagers laughing at the Careers' plight. Out of all the disgusting, insensitive attitudes, he just had to witness the worst of all. The brats didn't even see tributes as human, did they? His son, his Chaska was suffering, and his poor daughter Gloria was on death's door. But these idiots saw it as just another television show to make fun of.
He felt a hand on his arm and whirled around to attack, but it was just the head trainer Roxanne with a look of worry in her eyes. Icarus took a deep breath in a probably futile attempt to calm his temper. "Sorry."
"You're going to give yourself a heart attack out here, and then who will the tributes turn to?" Roxanne scolded him gently, taking his hands in hers. They were so warm... Icarus didn't realize how cold he'd been until now. "It's not your fault, Icarus. Come back inside."
"No. If you want me to go inside, you'll have to carry me."
"Okay." Roxanne picked him up bridal style and marched him back towards the Training Center. Icarus raised his brows in shock, then just nestled into her arms comfortably. He only wished he could give Gloria and Chaska the same comfort, but he couldn't.


➵ Maverick Wolfe • District Twelve • Mentor
➵ Location: Living room
➵ Tagged: Jasper, Garry
Maverick's evil smile disappeared when Felix, to his surprise, actually said Groosling was his favorite. "Wait, really?"
Jasper laughed in relief. "I guess you won't be killing that bear, then."
Maverick groaned in mock disappointment, hiding his face in his hands so Jasper couldn't see his smile. He was about to crack a joke about the right to 'bear' arms in the arena when Sienna started to speak. Something about her voice was off... the usually strong, perky young lass sounded like she was about to march to her own death.
"She's really going to help the Careers, huh?" Maverick said, looking at Garry to gauge his reaction.
"Yes, she is." Despite the tears in his eyes, Garry wore a proud smile. "Not all tributes want to go home... I said that to her in training."
"That could be kind of creepy," Jasper murmured. "Depending on what you meant."
"At the time, I was talking about Eden. He reminded me of the Career I met in my games, Anise... she's the reason I'm here." Garry looked down at his hands as if there was something on them, the memory of blood maybe. "I just wasn't expecting my words to later describe my own tribute. While I don't want Sienna to die... nothing I say can stop her, so all I can do is respect her choice."
Maverick nodded, serious for once. "I get that. Whatever Felix chooses, I'll respect his choice too."
"Same with anything Penny does." Even Jasper joined in. "I want her to live... but either way I'll be proud of her."

[rose petals.]

GᒪOᖇIᗩ ᒪᗩᑕE
|female|2|career|tags: careers, mutts and annoying demitra|

Gloria struggled to her knees, hearing the voices of her allies. They were protecting her. They still care about me... even though I've been so horrible. They really are my friends.. I can't die here... not like this... I can't... All of a sudden she felt rough teeth clamp around her neck. One of the mutts must've gotten through her allies' guard. Gloria shrieked as the mutt shook her body from side to side, and eventually the blood drained from the girl's face. With one last warble of fear the crown flung from Gloria's head and clattered to the ground. When the mutt dropped Gloria's body, the girl from district two was no longer moving.

ᑭEᑎᑎY ᔕYᒪᐯEᔕTEᖇ
|female|8|tribute|tags: felix, sienna|

Sienna's words sunk in. Her mouth went dry... she wasn't sure she completely understood. Not all tributes want to go home... But she knew that she probably wouldn't be seeing Sienna again... "Good luck Sienna. I'm.. very glad we met." Penny smiled and suddenly wrapped her arms around Sienna. "Goodbye.." She dropped away and turned back to Felix, suddenly very nervous about the entire situation. Penny reached out her hand for him, draping the blanket and some other supplies over her other arm. She didn't want to say it officially but her eyes said: Alright, let's go.

[SunnyJustice]

➵ Icarus Matthias • District Two • Mentor
➵ Location: ...
➵ Tagged: ...
After Roxanne carried him back to his room, she'd wrapped him in a warm blanket and plopped a steaming mug of hot cocoa into his hands. He took a sip and tried not to show any reaction at the painfully oversaturated level of chocolate. Roxanne had done something kind for him, it would be incredibly rude if he wasn't appreciative. "Thank you. It's very sweet."
"You mean literally?" She chuckled, "I thought you might need the extra sugar."
Icarus tilted his head in confusion, but it immediately turned to horror when he looked past him and saw the screen. The rude laughter of Capitol hooligans made it hard to notice before, but now he could see all the horrific details of the Careers' fight. He already knew Chaska was suffering, but now Eden had been mauled too. Great. This was bound to do wonders for Chaska's mental health.
He watched, numbly, as the mutts encroached on the circle of Careers. Only four of them remained standing now, with Gloria helpless on the ground between them. It wasn't enough. Four Careers weren't able to keep a pack this size at bay, and Icarus lowered his head in resignation as one of the mutts found an opening to snatch Gloria into its jaws. Screams escaped her as the horrible beast shook her like a ragdoll. Then the shrieks cut out to silence, followed by a cannon that jolted tears into Icarus' eyes.
Sleep well, Gloria. Dad's proud of you.

[Runnersback]

➵Sienna Mach-North| D7 |17|Tags:Penny & Felix -> alone| loc:somewhere in the woods

Sienna softly dipped her head to Felix’s kind words before she was enveloped with a wonderful Penny hug,“I’m glad we met too Penny, I would have loved to gotten to know you both in another timeline. Thank you both of you, stay strong I’m rooting for you both!” She said as she let go and picked up her axe leaving the yellow bag behind as a small gift for the two tributes she was now rooting for. Sienna looked back one last time and waved to the others before exhaling sharply trying to figure what direction she was bound to be going before she climbed up a tree taking a moment to hone in on her listening skills.

(Scrapped the other paragraphs due to communication errors. Sorry Y’all...)

[Zyn]

☭ 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚜𝚔𝚊 𝚂𝚒𝚘𝚞𝚡 ☭
District 2 || Career || Male || Eighteen || The Mad Dog

◤xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx◥
☭ Location: North Quadrant
xxxxxxxxxxxCamp
☭ Tags: The Careers
☭ Mood: RAGE! and agony
◣xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx◢

.
Chaska was relieved to see both Madeline and Eden making their way back to them. Caspia pressed her back against him and he drew in strength from the powerful warrior. To have such a strong ally by his side was enough to bolster him, the fact that it was Caspia just doubled that. Standing besides the powerhouse made him only want to do better, be stronger, be faster, to be ally that Caspia deserved. Pressing his own back against hers he gazed out at the see of mutts with a determined look on his face. "Any foolish enough to get within our reach shall regret it" he hummed in response to her words. His gaze flickered back to their allies as they reached the camp and Madeline flung insults back at the oncoming swarm of mutts. Pack wasn't the right word to describe the number of mutts that was descending upon them. His gaze fell on Eden and he almost let a look of horror cross his face, only the knowledge that it might make his ally remember his injuries caused him to force it down. Instead he watched in silence as Eden took their place next to him and started to swing his scythe as he listened to the others. "This won't be our final fight, we are careers and we have trained for this. Just take them out, one by one and they shall fall to our blades" He growled in direct response to Eden. A foolish thing to say, even he knew that it was but a dream to hope that they would all make it out alive. "That includes you Gloria, you....." He said as he twisted to face his district partner and then trailed off.

Horror and pain flashed across his face as the mutt who had gotten through their ranks sank its teeth into her next and shook her. His lips parted and a wordless howl of pain ripped through him, a howl that echoed above the cruel growls of the mutts. A howl so raw with pain and agony it sliced through the air. Time seemed to slow down for Chaska as he swung his scythe at the mutt, but he was too late. The canon fired and his howl of pain turned into one of pure fury as he decapitated the mutt who had dared take the life of his friend. Swiveling on his heel he started to turn to deal out more punishment when he spotted a mutt sneaking up on his brother. With a swift step to the side he intercepted the mutt moments before the cruel jaws closed on Eden. Instead those jaw clapped down on Chaska's shoulder, teeth digging into his left shoulder and with a crunch his collarbone snapped drawing out a sharp cry of pain. White pain laced through his shoulder and with all his built up fury he swung his scythe slicing the mutt in half and stumbled back slightly. His back hit Caspia and he managed to catch himself before he pushed her to much. Gritting his teeth he pressed his back against the strong warrior one more time, drawing in her strength, regaining his ability to keep going. Nobody else was going to die, not on his watch. He couldn't let it happen.

[Runnersback]

➵Sienna Mach-North| D7 |17|Tags:alone->careers| loc:tree-> a fight

Sienna had found herself a small home away from home and as she listened to the snarling beasts far away as she tried to humor herself that they were just clearing out the rest of the evil-doers. Maybe they had snagged Zoe, she didn’t want to think Ill of others but frankly Sienna wanted to at least outlive her panem forsaken ex ally. But then a scream shrouded her ears and she flinched, thankfully it was not Eden’s but it sounded clearly like a dear friend of his. Chaska? Chaska!? The sound had confirmed it for her. Sienna shook her head before leaping out of the tree rolling up her sleeves so she wouldn’t be so restrained as she ran or climbed if there was trees nearby. But the girl snapped up her axe and thought spitefully I’ll raise some hell for all of us... as she started running towards the sound of snarling beasts. The girl ran as fast as her legs would carry even if it drew up nausea, she managed to make it in time to see a mutt lunging for Eden but making a quick decision of biting Chaska and death’s mighty claws breaching Gloria’s life. Sienna skidded to a halt, her amber eyes narrowing with an unequivocal rage.

And that’s when Mach-North whistled alerting the careers and the mutts that a new opponent had entered the territory. Despite it seemed the beasts wanted the careers more, she managed to attract the beady eyes of a worrisome bunch and the lack of trees bothered her more. But as she realized no place in this arena had remotely even been closer to her home, she charged adamantly at the few mutts that came her way. She wanted to scream and squelch at the sight of the mutts that reminded her a little to thoroughly she was a murderer just like them. This would be her revenge song,“Hey, who started the mutt uprising without me!” Sienna shouted as she cracked her axe into a mutt’s snout quickly as it was about to go for her hand. Maybe that wasn’t the best opener for getting attacked by mutts but that’s all she could think of on the spot as she whirled around loped a mutt into quarters.“I parted with my allies after I heard the mutts and I made sure they were going in the direction away form here, but tell me where you need me!” She scrambled out in slight shock as a mutt clamped it’s jowls onto her boot which gave her a keen opportunity to decapitate it.

Ada gave me permission to repost deleted portions.)

[rose petals.]

ᑭEᑎᑎY ᔕYᒪᐯEᔕTEᖇ
|female|8|tribute|tags: felix|

Penny barely registered much as they fled from their camp. Her sore feet throbbed from the constant travel, they had barely rested for the entirety of the games. Without realizing it, a tuft of black hair fell into her face and Penny blew it away on instinct. Was her hair getting longer? She had always kept it evenly cropped for as long as she remembered, but after a few days in the arena it was starting to grow out. A cannon blew, and Penny's stomach flipped. Sienna... surely it wasn't hers? How many tributes were left? Were they all in the mutt attacks? Penny slowed her pace and skidded to a stop, she needed a quick rest. Her eyes rounded to Felix and a thought struck her suddenly, what if the mutts killed the careers and they were the last ones left? Penny pushed the thought away to prevent herself from getting sick and squeezed Felix's hand. Whether the gesture was to give him or her reassurance she wasn't sure.

[honeybee.]

Caspia Searobin | District 4 | Location: Camp | Tags: Careers |
None of the Careers were looking their best, clothes soaked with a mixture of the mutts' blood and their own, but Caspia winced when Eden reached them, his wrist looking mangled. He took up his own position, back-to-back with Madeline before speaking.
"Fighting alongside all of you would be the best death I could ask for." Caspia responded, "But this fight isn't over yet."
Chaska too seemed determined to go on with their battle but his words trailed into a howl. All Caspia could do was watch horrified as a mutt picked up Gloria in its jaws and shook her like a ragdoll until the cannon fired. She would not allow herself to be overwhelmed by grief this time. Gloria had been dead since the infection in her ear had began, but she deserved a blade to the heart, not this branch of horror.
The pressure against her back disappeared for a moment, as behind her Chaska moved to protect Eden, while Caspia kept on jabbing and slashing. She couldn't help but feel grateful for the length of her trident, better keeping the mutts at a distance now that she no longer had to worry about what was behind her. She heard Chaska's cry of pain and braced herself as he staggered back into her, combining their strength into one. She couldn't turn to see what had happened, but the warmth of his back against hers and the yelping of mutts all around them, reassured her that he was at least alive.

Above all else, Caspia knew that if she ever made it home she would be having strong words with whoever decided on the number of mutts to put in the games.

A sudden whistle distracted Caspia for long enough to allow a mutt to get closer, its claws raking across the lower half of her face, putting the coppery taste of blood in her mouth. Before it could do anymore she thrust with her trident and watched the mutt fall. She couldn't see where the whistle had come from but she heard Sienna's voice. "Honour and bravery," She murmured aloud to herself, a little shocked to see the traits so strongly represented in a non-Career. Perhaps Sienna would be their saving grace.

Felix Prestman | District 12 | Location:  Towards the Cornucopia | Tags: Penny.|  
Felix took Penny's hand gratefully as she reached it out for him and then they were on the move, exhaustion and fear rendering them silent. At long last one cannon blew and they finally stopped, the lake surrounding the cornucopia now in sight. Penny squeezed his hand and he squeezed back, gazing on at the lake that would hopefully give them respite. "Once we're across, we can rest." He said softly, "Wait out the mutts. Hopefully they won't want to cross the water." He didn't want to think about what would happen once the mutts had fallen silent. "Sienna was smart to send us this way."