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.]
xanthous: (pic#4016309)

[personal profile] xanthous 2013-06-24 06:29 am (UTC)(link)
The pain hits immediately, but he doesn't let go. He doesn't stop, one hand dropping to the Initiate's cheek. He's...not afraid, no. He's more accepting of death than most other trolls would be, and he doesn't care as long as he can get the Initiate to just.

Relax.

Calm down.

Let go.

He whispers softly, keeping the same rhythm of his shooshes. "It'll be okay, I promithe."
carnagecarnival: (And filmed my mistakes.)

[personal profile] carnagecarnival 2013-06-24 07:15 am (UTC)(link)
Finally, finally, the red starts to ease, to at least an orange. The pained noises don't stop though. Over the crush of all that's wrong in his head and his forehead drops to the Helmsman's. The noise he makes might be pitiful if it wasn't for the teeth that it formed around.

And then his hand is off the Helmsman's chest and his arms are wrapping around him, pulling him up and close. He hangs on tight as he shakes, claws digging in.
xanthous: (pic#3430338)

[personal profile] xanthous 2013-06-24 07:35 am (UTC)(link)
He winces, then, at the feel of claws. But he doesn't let that stop him, continuing to pet the Initiate's face and murmuring softly under his breath, Alternian clicks and chirps.

It's nothing he would have expected him to do, to calm down a highblood like this, but the ache he feels for this young, poor troll is what surprises him the most.
carnagecarnival: (And God forbid.)

[personal profile] carnagecarnival 2013-06-24 07:54 am (UTC)(link)
'Stay, stay, stay,' goes off like a chorus in his head through the howls and screams and visions, the calm the Helmsman provided giving enough room for just that.

And then his body seizes with one final terrible burst of pain.

The crunch made this time is loud and wet, and he screams even louder, a bone deep horror that pierces through every mother fucking thing else.

His body refuses to function then, and, twitching but otherwise paralysed, he falls to the side, arms loose and eyes wide.
xanthous: (pic#4016309)

[personal profile] xanthous 2013-06-24 08:18 am (UTC)(link)
For a moment, he thinks he's safe. For a moment he can breathe, can focus on the way the Initiate has stilled. He did it. He managed to calm him down.

But then everything hurts.

Blood drips from his lips, and he coughs. He goes silent except for coughs and gurgles, and everything starts going hazy and dark around the edges. His body aches all over, aches deeply and he doesn't know how or what has happened, just that everything is fading fast and all he can do is stare and wonder why.
carnagecarnival: (As the hush kisses at our neck nape.)

[personal profile] carnagecarnival 2013-06-24 08:33 am (UTC)(link)
No.

He watches the Helmsman as the yellow drips down.

No, no, no, Messiahs no...

He gives a cough of his own as the pain finally starts to fade. The Initiate tries to move his hand but he's heavy and he's sinking.

Stay, stay... please...

The Indigo of his eyes goes dim and blank and he ceases to move at all.