thearena | Arena 12 - The Spaceport

As usual the Tributes are woken up early for the start of the arena, leaving the Tribute Centre before dawn. A few hours ride in a hovercraft delivers them to their destination where their excited prep teams will outfit them in skintight suits that are colour coordinated by District (D1 is White, D2 is Red, D3 is Orange, D4 is Aqua, D5 is Purple, D6 is Pink, D7 is Light Green, D8 is Blue, D9 is Yellow, D10 is Dark Green, D11 is Lavender, and D12 is Black) over which they will be put into what is instantly identifiable as a spacesuit, complete with oxygen tank and helmet before being loaded into the tubes.

They rise up into what appears to be outer space and immediately upon emerging from the tubes Tributes will find themselves floating upwards with a length of rope the only thing holding them to their podiums. The countdown crackles out from speakers built into each Tributes helmet.

20

19

18…

The Cornucopia sits in the middle of a dusty crater with buildings surrounding it, made up of a number of chained down cases and cubes in limited numbers. Cubes which sharp-eyed Tributes will note look like they fit into the slots beside the doors that lead into the spaceport.

8

7

6…

The mirrored visors of the uniformly white spacesuits make it impossible to tell friend from foe. Tributes fighting for goods will have to risk harming their friends but the alternative, floating off into space or suffocating when their oxygen runs out, leaves them little choice.

3

2

1…

The gong rings out and the countdown’s voice announces, “the Arena is now open” before the line goes dead. The Games have begun.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Don't mention it." He may be thanking her for saving him, but the part that stands out to her is the few seconds when she walked away. She wonders if a real person, a really good human being, would have even questioned coming back for him. He's done nothing to her but be vulnerable and run up her credit card a little, and yet she was convinced she was leaving him there for a solid few moments.

She knows there are people that would have left him there, of course - but she also knows that trying to separate herself from them has been a trial she's been fighting for the last year or so. She's got as much blood on her hands as any of them, but she's not the scum of humanity, not a sociopath with a crown of bone and flesh, right?

Right?

And as if embracing that mercenary role, she puts on an act like this was all part of a plan. She glances out of habit over each shoulder, and above them, making sure there's no immediate threat before she asks: "before you got locked in there, did you see a little troll kid run past? I'm looking- I'm looking for someone."

Head clearing little by little, he pauses to lean against the wall a moment and watch her work through thoughts and emotions he can only guess at until she tosses a question his way. Between having met Initiate up on the roof while lounging with Nick and having a description from Joel still bouncing around his mind, he has at least a general sense of what trolls look like to be able to answer more helpfully. Although the answer he gives her isn’t the one she’s looking for.

“Can’t say I have.” He shakes his head, lips thinning. “M'sorry.”

And while he can’t know for sure what her motives are for seeking the ‘troll-kid’ out, he’s inclined to believe that she’s asking not in the interests of hunting him or her down but to protect him or her. More than anything else he’d just rather not think of kids being slaughtered by other tributes - adults, especially - despite the reality of their situation and the circumstances being what they are.

She nods. She figured as much. What with the spacesuits and the chaos of the airlock doors, it's been near impossible to find anyone. She can only hope Kankri isn't one of the spacesuits outside, floating with globules of blood in silent statis.

"Look, Luke..." She pauses and presses her lips together before collecting her space helmet again and holding it on her hip. "You seem like a decent guy. I hope I'm right about that. My game this time is to take out anyone who starts gunning for the kids, and believe me, I can do it. Consider that a warning."

Not because she suspects him, but because it's a statement for the cameras as well as him. She has a mission this time - a storyline, for the audience, a tantalizing tale about whether or not she'll keep to that. She turns to go.

Luke straightens from the wall, holding her gaze neutrally as he does, unflinching.

‘My game this time--‘

If eking out a living for two years in a post-apocalyptic wasteland has taught him anything, it’s to err on the side of caution and not to dismiss a warning that comes his way when there’s no knowing whether it’s a bluff or not. He doesn’t answer, doesn’t assure her that he isn’t looking to have the blood of kids on his hands, because he doesn’t have to. At the end of the day it’s what he does - and what he doesn't do - that means the most.

He blinks thoughtfully, watching her turn away again, for real this time. And after pulling in a long, steadying breath he takes off in the opposite direction, doing his best to tamp down the adrenaline-fueled restlessness as shock subsides and his being alive has a moment to sink in. Too much time has been lost already.

Arena 12 - The Spaceport

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