ARENA 11-PaneMall

[etcircenses]

It’s pre-dawn when the Tributes are roused from their beds and sent to their tubes. Those who’d been imprisoned for the past few weeks had their heads covered before transport to the staging area, and there’s an air of confusion surrounding just about everything that’s happening until the stylists and managers arrive on the scene and try to calm everyone down. The reunions may be happy, but they're sadly very temporary.

The first clue that something strange is happening comes from their clothing: figure skating costumes with bright colors and sequins and ice skates strapped to their feet. Some may even find it difficult to stand with the blades on their feet, but as they're placed into the arena, all becomes clear. The mall skating rink seems quiet and quaint, especially after weeks of uncertainty and stress. Too bad the peace and quiet can’t last.

20

19

18...

Above the ice rink (which houses all 100+ Tributes) there are floors with shops looking over them. Large, bright fluorescent lights dot the multi-storied ceiling and create a warm, nostalgic glow to the place. Benign music is piped in from various hidden speakers to compliment the intended mood of fun and commerce.

17

16

15…

The countdown continues and the Tributes, some of whom haven’t seen each other in weeks, stare at one another helplessly. That is, until one of them boldly decides to speak.

"We're expected to fight here today," Steve's voice suddenly cuts through the tension in the room. It commands attention without demanding it, a conviction of truth in his tone.

14

13

12...


"To turn on each other through fear and self preservation. And we could give them what they want. A bloodbath," here he pauses longer, lets the reality of his statements sink in. Let people realize what he's saying, that this is a choice.

"Or we can choose not to fight. To instead work together," an option so many seem not to even realize they have. "No one here has to die by our hands today," he knows his speaking won't be without consequence, but he does want to believe he'll be the only one to pay for this.

"This is a risk. One many of you are hesitant to trust, let alone take. But everything we do here is a risk to ourselves and those around us," nothing in the arena comes without putting your life on the line.

"I, for one, am willing to take this risk, to choose not to fight," Steve looks around the room, making eye contact with a few people as he does. He's not telling anyone what to do, this is for them to decides for themselves; their freedom of choice.

But he's got faith in the his fellow tributes. "And I've got a feeling I'm not alone.”

… 3

2

1…

After the countdown ends, there’s a moment of utter still and silence. Then...

BOOOOOOOOOOOM

The room seems to erupt with noise and concussive force. The explosions are so violent that the muzak is paused in its tracks and shakes some of the Tributes off of their pedestals, and after the ice fog and smoke clears, it becomes apparent that fifteen of the Tribute pedestals and exploded there on the ice rink. Fifteen corpses lie mangled on the bloody ice: Deanna Winchester, Danny Fenton, Fili, Kili, Kain Highwind, Perry Kelvin, Julian Bashir, Clint Barton, Karkat Vantas, Sirius Black, Rahm Kota, Cinderella, Bunnymund, Robin, Rock Lee, and Rokk Krin.

The center of the ice rink remains completely intact and stocked with a few dozen keys of varying shapes and sizes. This is the Cornucopia and the Gamemakers are compelling the Tributes to skate for it.

The gong rings out, and the countdown's voice announces “The Arena is now open.” The Games have begun.

Comments

[aintyourdad]

Joel glances at the key, and frowns, but doesn't admonish her. They're in a mall, there are probably plenty of supplies in the shops, it was a big risk she took - but it's done, and she's okay, so what's the point?

"We'll figure it out," he says, standing up a little to glance around, his eyes scanning for the familiar auburn head.

[oopsright]

Tess grabs her skate off the ground and remains crouched as he stands, turning to see behind her. After a few moments of staying where she is, the strain of sitting folded the way she is starts to bug her hip. She reaches up for the edge to pull herself up, wincing and muttering on a hiss, "I'm too young to have hip problems, Christ."

Not caring that she's standing up as it's helping take the pressure off her hip, leaning against the edge, Tess scans the area now for herself. "No sign of her?"

[aintyourdad]

Joel glances at her hip, briefly, his brow furrowing, and then shakes his head on a sigh. "Nothin' yet. She'll stick close by until we find each other."

A gentle cough, and then he shrugs. "I expect my back to go out any day now. Miracle it hasn't already."

[oopsright]

She glances at him, eyes sweeping over his broad form. "Considering the age you're almost pushing, you're in pretty damn good shape still." It's true, he's almost fifty and she wouldn't have guessed it with how he's built, broad and sturdy, solid muscle mass.

"Landed on my hip after the explosions went off and threw me." Nodding forward, Tess then adds, "Should we circle the rink?"

[aintyourdad]

"Keep an eye on it," Joel says, ignoring her - compliment? Whatever that was. Now that he's aware she hurt her hip, he'll watch her, make sure she's not favoring it too much.

That's what partners do.

"Yeah, around the rink. Take our time, keep our eyes peeled, we'll find her," he agrees, taking her elbow and lifting his chin in the direction he intends to go. They don't often have to verbalize things with each other.

[oopsright]

Is he telling her to keep an eye on his body, the one that's in pretty damn good shape? That has to be it. Not that they should keep an eye on the rink while they circle it or on her hip.

"Keep an eye on what? Your body? Already on it." She had to. She had to. At least she's got some humor left to make light of their situation.

Tess gives a tiny smirk and looks away, to the rink, shifting around when she feels his hand at her elbow. She could use the support, especially when she puts her weight on that sore hip, but she moves her elbow out of his hold as she begins moving for where he wants them to go.

[aintyourdad]

Joel rolls his eyes at her. "On your hip," he corrects irritably. "In case it gets worse. Let me know if it does, alright?"

[oopsright]

"Well I'm not getting any younger, Joel, so I highly doubt it's going to get any better." Tess shakes her head and tries not to roll her eyes back, even if she doesn't see him doing it.

"But I'll be sure to let you know, you'll be the first."

[aintyourdad]

"You fell on it, it's injured, we're keepin' an eye on it," Joel growls. Don't make this an age thing, Jesus Christ Tess. "Quit actin' like that."

[oopsright]

"It's fine," she fires back with a small amount of her own annoyance, the look she throws back over her shoulder as equally as annoyed. "I can still move. Let's just find Ellie and get somewhere that isn't here."

Here being the rink, away from the lingering chaos. The bodies, the death - as used to it as they might be.

[onlyimmune]

It was luck, really, that Ellie wasn't dead. Unable to skate, she'd fallen on her ass almost right out of the gate, and when the explosion had happened she'd already been flat on the ice. Kili's charred body had been thrown by the explosion and slammed into her, both of them skidding down the ice until they hit the sideboards.

She'd blacked out.

When Ellie woke up, there was a heavy weight on her chest, and it took her a few moments to realise what that weight was. With a much, much too loud "FUCK!" She threw the charred body off of her, the bile rising in her throat as she stared at it. Fuck, fuck, fuck.

She tried to stand up, forgetting that she was wearing skates, and fell hard back to the ice.

[aintyourdad]

It's fine now, Joel wants to say, but he keeps it to himself. No point bickering when she clearly can move. Tess is right - they need to find his kid and get the hell away from this area. Take stock.

When he spots the familiar auburn head, he sprints toward her, vaulting over the guard around the ice rink without a second thought. He knows Tess will be right behind him. She always has his back.

"Ellie!" he calls, skidding over to her awkwardly to try and get her on her feet. "You okay?"

[oopsright]

Tess is definitely following behind but she's following behind at a much slower gait and still favoring her left side. Who knows how long it'll take before she's able to walk with that limp. "How is she?" she calls out to Joel as she gets to the guard and moves for the open gate, stepping out in her socked feet.

The rink is a mess, she doesn't try to spare a look around and looks to Joel and Ellie, moving towards them.

[onlyimmune]

"I'm fucking fine," Ellie spits out, in response to both their questions, gripping Joel's arms tightly and pulling her self up, wobbling on the skates. She doesn't look back at the body.

"Fucking... assholes... boobytrapping the whole fucking--" She cuts off, letting go abruptly to grab the side. She's glad, really. Glad that Tess and Joel made it out, even though in a few days all three of them will be dead. Again.

She raises a hand to scrub through her hair - chopped short for the arena, and tsks again as she hauls herself over the rail.

"Just bruises. Nothing bad. They got the worst of it," She muttered, not looking back even as she gestured over her shoulder to where her friend lay dead. "You guys alright?"

[aintyourdad]

"We're fine," Joel says for both of them, helping Ellie off the ice so she can sit down and get the damn skates off, ignoring the cold in his feet for the moment. "We gotta find some better shoes, and clothes. Get you two into some pants before you get hypothermia."

What's done is done. There's no point commenting on the speech, the explosions, the death. Tess and Ellie are okay, now they need to get out of here and find someplace safe to hole up.

[oopsright]

Thanks for answering for her, Joel. Because she wasn't capable of doing that for herself.

Tess frowns at him but stays where she is and waits until he's done helping Ellie with her skates. It's better to not crowd the kid, not after what happened, give her some breathing room. Something that Joel's not exactly doing. Fretting over her like a father would with his own kid.

She looks down at the key in her hand and then out around at the other level overhead. What exactly could this key be used for? What kinds of stores could she get into with it.

[onlyimmune]

She's well used to Joel's fretting by now - the weirder thing is to have Tess there for it. It feels more real, somehow, here. The arena always did feel more like home than the Capitol. What difference did it make, really, getting torn apart by dinosaurs instead of Infected?

She practically rips at the skates to get them off, but doesn't abandon them - the blades will come in useful later, she knows.

"Yeah. Yeah, clothes. Some fucking food. Did you guys get anything before the place went boom?" She asked, glancing first at Joel and then at Tess - catching sight of something in the woman's palm. She didn't ask about it - she didn't need to. Either it was something useful, and they'd tell her, or it was a token, in which case she didn't need to know.

[aintyourdad]

"Tess got a key, we're not sure what it opens yet," Joel says. "Figure we'll find someplace out of the way to set up and take stock. There oughta be plenty of things to use in these stores, they don't even look abandoned or looted."

And Joel knows the look of abandoned and looted stores.

[oopsright]

"That's if someone else hasn't gotten to them before us," she adds as she leans against the edge. No way is she stepping out onto that ice again. She's perfectly good where she is, turning the key over and over in her palm and feeling the edges scrape the skin there.

"I'll worry about the key later. Let's just get out of here and find a spot." Tess turns away and begins to move, gritting her teeth against the limp and ache. Honestly, she just wants to find a place where they can sit and get off her feet for a few minutes, even if they should find somewhere to go first, scout the area and push onward no matter the injury.