gamemakers: (Default)
The Gamemakers ([personal profile] gamemakers) wrote in [community profile] thearena2013-06-22 02:42 pm

Oh my love, I know you are the Candy Man

Although the mood in the Capitol is...taut, once the Tributes are in the transportation craft, things seem to lighten. The peacekeepers almost seem jovial - as jovial as peacekeepers ever seem. About half the Tributes are checked over and given an injection into their tracking device.

In the underground room, the stylists have all their prep teams running busy, dressing up the tributes in bright costumes, chatting with each other, clearly excited to have so much freedom over what their Tributes are wearing in. Each one is dressed in a personalized costume, elaborate, and entirely soft.

Finally the Tributes are placed on their pedestals and sent on up, all gussied up.

25 - 24 - 23

The light is blinding for a moment, before the candy-colored world around them comes into focus. And it's not just candy-colored - it is actually candy. Some Tributes might be reminded of the game Candy Land, if it was something in their home world. Music plays, scarily cute animals roam, and every thing just looks so gosh-darn happy.

20 - 19 - 18 - 17 - 16

The Cornucopia sits, candy-striped itself, and over-flowing with a generous bounty of food, weapons, and supplies. Even these all reflect the nature of the arena, brightly-colored, and cheerful-looking, just begging to be gathered up.

11- 10 - 9 - 8

They've all been warned not to step off their pedestal early. But as the final number ticks off, those Tributes that had their tracking devices adjusted in the transport suddenly feel a sting starting in their arms. A slightly diluted version of what Ariadne was given the day before is dumped in their veins.

The dilution doesn't help them, of course; it just causes the poison to take effect more slowly.

5 - 4

3

2

1

Go.

The burning is starting for half of them, spreading through their body, lighting their nerves on fire. Within 10 minutes it's effecting their motor skills, causing them to stagger, twitch, to move against their will.

Those who are small fall faster, barely lasting 15 minutes in the bloodbath. The stronger and bigger among them might make it 30 minutes at most.

By the time the bloodbath is over, the Cornucopia is surrounded by corpses. Half of the Tributes have fallen without even a single competitor having to touch them.


[OOC: Don't forget the OOC Arena post, especially those of you running for the Cornucopia. Every Tribute must post to this post. There will be a Cornucopia thread, and anyone else feel free to post as you will. Please add a tag with your character's name.

Those who were poisoned are anyone in group 2. You will have a second post up shortly.]
whoseesbynight: (Default)

[personal profile] whoseesbynight 2013-07-18 03:25 am (UTC)(link)
Nepeta doesn't nod, although she wants to. Honestly, she's not sure that she wouldn't fall over entirely if she nodded, so she simply takes Signless' hand with perhaps a little too much haste. Just because she's doing fine - for a given value of fine - doesn't mean that he isn't doing so. Besides, the idea of leaning on each other for stability is very tempting just now.

(It is, of course, more so to imagine Karkat in his place, but she can't spend as much time imagining that. The poison running through her veins sees to that much.)

"Alright."
amplifying: (◎ now it's fine)

[personal profile] amplifying 2013-07-18 04:51 am (UTC)(link)
Beck noticed that odd kind of grin. And that's what made him suspicious the most.

He never saw this User before; she was just someone who was tracking him down for what was on his back. She chased him into this sticky, weird kind of woods, and even knocked him down with a lollipop. And all of a sudden she was just going to stop chasing him? Either let him go his way, or she go around? Either Beck wasn't understanding this like he should be, or she was up to something wrong. At this point in time, Beck was going to assume both.

It wasn't like he had much choice, though.

"Fine. I'll go." He lowered his weapon, giving her a look that was somewhere between a glare and a suspicious glance. "I don't care where you go or why. Just leave me alone."
blondevigilante: (damn it batgirl)

[personal profile] blondevigilante 2013-07-18 05:11 am (UTC)(link)
Stephanie was quick to pull the bag back. These supplies could be the difference between life and death and she sure as hell wasn't going to lose a single bag. "Sorry, Kitty." She turned on her heel and took off at a run.
tis_allgood: (Default)

[personal profile] tis_allgood 2013-07-18 10:20 pm (UTC)(link)
It only cemented his fear to watch R ignore supplies he could easily have reached down and taken. This was a man with something much more important in mind. The only other men he'd seen act like this were insane, possessed or starving. The R he knew was too stable to be insane, too slow to be worthy of possession so that really only left one option.

Bert took a few big steps away, but couldn't really go far without tripping. He was torn between wanting to run and not wanting to take his eyes off of R. Which was what made him turn to try and run when R tackled him leaving him twisted on his side and way more frightened than he could remember being in a long time.

"Arre, it's me! Let me go, I won't hurt thee!"
deadthenred: (fifty.)

[personal profile] deadthenred 2013-07-20 12:39 am (UTC)(link)
The guy wasn't seeing straight. It didn't surprise Bucky, not exactly, but it did write the helplessness of the whole situation into an awful line across his eyebrows. He shut his eyes for a second, trying to figure out what to say.

"It's okay. You don't got anything to be sorry about." Bucky said it low and quiet, and it left him like a prayer.

It might not've been true. But it's what Bucky would've wanted to hear, if he were in the same place.
69problems: <user name="debonairbear" site="tumblr.com"> (xtra | Spilled milk tears)

[personal profile] 69problems 2013-07-20 06:57 am (UTC)(link)
He shifts closer to her, allowing their shoulders to touch in an attempt to steady the both of them. His hand grips hers maybe a little tighter than he means it to, but he's got so little control over his motor abilities by this point that the fact he can hold her hand at all is what matters.

Once they're set up, he starts walking again. They need to get out of here. He needs to get her out of here, because he can't watch her die, even if she's not the right oliveblood.
luckofthedevil: (until i fade away)

[personal profile] luckofthedevil 2013-07-20 07:30 am (UTC)(link)
It wasn't true at all, but it was roughly what Jack would have said anyway. The American accent helped, too. The poison was quickly winning however, with each breath becoming more laboured than the last, until finally the next breath simply didn't come at all.
shambler: (065)

Feel free to do whatever you need to R (not killing him) to get out :3a

[personal profile] shambler 2013-07-20 04:47 pm (UTC)(link)
R was already a lost cause, falling against Bert and getting tangled up in the other Tribute because he was honestly surprised that worked. Maybe this time he'd get a bite, get this over with. The way he was getting yelled at bothered R on a gut level, like maybe he'd regret this (he always did - then he ate and it went away only not really). Now R was too caught up in the moment to put the brakes on.

He went down heavily, squashing some of that pretty pink grass into cotton candy paste, the zombie struggling against Bert. One hand lashed out, trying to grab onto Bert's costume so he could drag him closer, R not even trying to gasp the few words he'd shared before with the human. Too much effort. And this was an easier way to get to know someone; ask any other Dead out there.
pursuitofcappiness: (so like everyone i know is dead)

[personal profile] pursuitofcappiness 2013-07-21 03:21 pm (UTC)(link)
"You keep sitting here and someone will find you," he replies. "And then your plans might not go the right way. So just... let this pass and wait for the coast to be clear."
deadthenred: (eighty.)

[personal profile] deadthenred 2013-07-21 03:41 pm (UTC)(link)
Bucky didn't stay for long. They did something with the bodies, right? They had to. There was no sense in waiting around for some bugle to play Taps. Others would be running along soon, with their fists or something sharper. He had to keep running.

He felt a bit wrong to do it, but he was used to swallowing that feeling. From what he'd said, Bucky thought Alex would understand.
carnagecarnival: (And the weaker.)

[personal profile] carnagecarnival 2013-07-22 06:07 am (UTC)(link)
"ASSURE UNTO SHE, HE INTENDS TO FIND OUT," He says through grit teeth. "Perhaps a joke. PERHAPS IT IS FUNNY. To see at them all twitch and scatter. PERHAPS IT IS SHOW FOR WHAT THEY CAN DO. Whatever they think, they have not seen for a show yet."

But once he healed, oh, he would make to deliver.

His hands are starting to shake. Messiahs let her be distracted.
lessthanelementary: (Default)

[personal profile] lessthanelementary 2013-07-22 04:42 pm (UTC)(link)

Welcome to the Arena, Neffa manages to stop himself saying. He bought quiet at too high a price to be snide now. He half-turns, still close to Jay but with a better view of their surroundings - it's calming, knowing he could run if he wanted to.

"I can't imagine why they'd want to kill us off in waves," he replies, and makes only the barest pretense at humor. "It seems inefficient. Assuming the deaths of Aunamee and Sigma were... were not natural." No, not a good direction. "--But that hardly matters now. The gods have sold us our lives, for the time being, and we might yet find a way to extend their contract." He gives Jay a determinedly cheerful pat on the shoulder. "Focus on that. I intend to, anyway."

Wearing a mask of confidence isn't quite the same as being confident, but the charade is easier to keep up with Jay's terror to set it against. He can be anything he wants, so long as he does it quietly.

hartless_cowboy: ([Still Comin' Down])

[personal profile] hartless_cowboy 2013-07-22 08:18 pm (UTC)(link)
As much as Lindsey hated it, he did agree with the man's assessment. So with a pained groan, he pushed himself to his feet. He shuddered when he finally managed to stand.

"... you go ahead, I'll be behind." No he wouldn't be, but the guy was nice enough that he didn't feel wrong about telling him indirectly to go save himself.
whoseesbynight: (a tail of much woe)

[personal profile] whoseesbynight 2013-07-23 12:48 am (UTC)(link)
His grip is a little tighter than would be strictly comfortable, yes, but honestly, Nepeta is so used to Equius (who is alway so, so careful but doesn't always get it quite right) that it being a little tight doesn't actually bother her. On the contrary, it's something to focus on between the pain and the fact that she knows that he's dying too.

It's not necessarily the most coordinated of things, once they start walking, but she's holding his hand as if it along can save her from the pain and the inevitability of all that will be. The farther away they can get from the crowd, the better it will be. No one needs to be a witness to this spectacle.
celebrityskinned: (Basic - Dat Body)

Re: (with permission)

[personal profile] celebrityskinned 2013-07-24 05:24 am (UTC)(link)
She pauses. He's right, of course - and people who get disemboweled before they make an impression don't garner a fanbase. She picks up a rock and tosses it in her hand, pleased that her sense of coordination wasn't totally fucked up by the fall or the blow to the head.

"Because I don't have a headache today, you live. But trust me, if I see you again, it's over for you." She tosses the rock and catches it again, taking a step back. "I got nine lives and you don't."

She just does not understand the priorities for these people. It's almost like they're not happy to be here.

She takes off running back towards the Cornucopia.
amourtician: (Default)

[personal profile] amourtician 2013-07-25 09:35 am (UTC)(link)
Jay chokes out a hollow, almost soundless laugh that sounds like a sob. He knows Neffa means well, with that line about gods, but that is cold comfort.

"Darling," he says. "My gods both hate my goddamn guts, I'm pretty sure. Being spared now means a worse fate later."

He looks up into Neffa's face, seeking comfort and reassurance and only then starts to really take in Neffa's costume as a whole and it baffles him. He's vain, to be sure, but not narcissistic enough to quite make the connection.

"Er, forgive me the bluntness," he says, thickly, through a nose full of snot "but what the hell are you dressed as? Why are there blue dots on your face?"
doesnotsew: (the sky and I we've had our fights)

[personal profile] doesnotsew 2013-07-25 10:29 pm (UTC)(link)
She kept her hands out innocently enough, though there was a sarcastic hint to it enough. The fact of the matter was that she couldn’t fight him confidently now, and she was under no rush to hurry it along anyway. If she played this carefully, instead of swinging herself around willy-nilly like she had the arena before, she could take this a lot further.

Still, she didn’t move—didn’t move, but didn’t speak, either, watching him with that strange smile like she was asking why he hadn’t gone yet.
bratwonder: Red Robin (Atonement)

[personal profile] bratwonder 2013-07-26 08:16 am (UTC)(link)
"Anything would be more practical than this," Damian corrected, though he'd probably still complain even if it was more than just flimsy costume material. It was still pretty embarrassing, after all. "But I doubt even real, functioning armor would help most of these people."

He spoke confidently, perhaps too confidently for a kid, but it didn't take a genius to notice that some Tributes were already struggling. Some of them were literally doomed from the start.
Edited 2013-07-26 08:19 (UTC)
hartless_cowboy: ([Different Kind of Knight])

[personal profile] hartless_cowboy 2013-07-26 03:43 pm (UTC)(link)
And Lindsey was one of the struggling ones, although he struggled to not show he was one. "Something about this place..." He said instead with a vague gesture and his hand shook when he did it. He quickly dropped his arm down hoping the spasm wasn't caught by the sharp kid. "Don't know what's wrong with it."

A pause. "Besides the obvious." Because obviously something was wrong if they made the place candy land.
bratwonder: Red Robin (Zombie Moon Rising)

[personal profile] bratwonder 2013-07-28 09:11 am (UTC)(link)
If Damian noticed it, he didn't say a word. Instead, he simply nodded, agreeing with what he said about something being clearly wrong here.

"Does it always start like this?" he asked, though he was sure his question was probably unnecessary. Tim had never mentioned anything like this, and he hadn't seen anything like it himself when viewing old footage. Whatever was going on here was likely something... different.
Edited 2013-07-28 09:11 (UTC)
amplifying: (◎ and i'm so glad)

[personal profile] amplifying 2013-07-29 04:01 am (UTC)(link)
Well, okay. Beck didn't trust this person, not in a million cycles.

...But at the same time, he didn't want to stick around.

Making sure his pack was protecting his disc as much as it could, he turned around and sprinted forward as hard as he possibly could. At first he slipped and almost fell over himself (his weird injury felt absolutely awful, and Beck hated it), but he managed to regain his balance at the last possible moment, and made a straight shot to the opening out of the gross sticky things. It wasn't about trying to fight this User off now. It was more about just trying to get out and hide his tracks.
hartless_cowboy: ([One More Shot])

[personal profile] hartless_cowboy 2013-07-29 06:10 am (UTC)(link)
The question made Lindsey give the kid a second look. "You're new?" he asked, as if the question itself hadn't made that obvious. If it was so, then perhaps the kid wasn't jaded enough to take opportunity to kill him while he was down. "Nah, usually much less of a bloodbath... this is... unusual."
whosalicewhite: (thinking here)

[personal profile] whosalicewhite 2013-07-29 10:36 pm (UTC)(link)
Parker stares at all the sugar like it is the most evil of things. How dare all this sugar be here if she may not be able to eat it?

"I'll lick it later," only Parker could make that sound not bad.

And, "Nope, thought he'd be with you." Person who sleeps with Eliot.
bratwonder: Batman and Robin (Branded)

[personal profile] bratwonder 2013-07-30 07:13 am (UTC)(link)
"Clearly," he answered, his tone dry. He didn't like admitting that he was new, because 'new' usually implied 'inexperience', but it probably didn't matter much anyway. He wasn't Robin right now, he was just a kid, and here? That sort of thing was going to happen a lot. His pride would have to accept it. But even knowing it was a thing he should take advantage of didn't mean he was going to like it.

"We'd better hope that whatever it is isn't contagious." His voice was almost dismissive as he turned away. He could tell that this guy was just trying to act normal, like everything was fine, like he wasn't affected by whatever had already taken the lives of so many others. It was in his movements and in his voice. Damian didn't know the man, but he did know that he had no way to help him, so the least he could do for him was spare him some of his dignity. He wouldn't watch him die.
Edited 2013-07-30 07:14 (UTC)
tis_allgood: (Default)

[personal profile] tis_allgood 2013-07-30 10:34 pm (UTC)(link)
"Fine, make a liar of me."

He had planned to escape and leave both of them intact, but he couldn't afford that now. Being on his side left Cuthbert with very few options, but he had one leg semi-free and he was going to use it. He made a few quick flails of it before his heel caught on R's arm and actually had some purchase. He pulled back as far as he could and kicked.

He was being scratched up between the struggle and R's grabbing hands but it was nothing compared to the sharp pain of small bones hitting large ones. The shoes he had been given did almost nothing to deaden the impact. And yet he was going to pull back and try again, aiming toward R's chest, to try and free himself.

Page 25 of 26