I never knew daylight could be so violent [OPEN]

[saisamour]

Who| Marius, Nepeta, Lindsey, Ian, and OPEN!
What| YOU get free food, and YOU get free food, EVERYONE gets free food! Encounter options available under the cut.
Where| Arena 2
When| Week 3
Warnings/Notes| Hunting, thoughts on suicide, Pontmercying

➳ Hunting for elk!
Even Marius cannot remain oblivious with the sky's abrupt changes from dark to light, and for the first few hours he attempts to make a rough estimate of the length of daytime and nighttime. Around two to three hours each, perhaps? It's not exactly the most precise, he is aware, but it is enough for him to devise his plans around it.

That is to say, if he had any plans.

He forces himself to swallow, mouth and throat dry as he trudges through the desert heat, lips chapping and Romeo costume that is now caked in dried mud sticking to his skin. He's not quite planned lasting this long in the arena, and he's honestly confused and more than a little lost. What is he to do now?

A low bark that lasts for several seconds echoes throughout the area then, almost seemingly in response to his thoughts. He crouches low, crossbow in hand, and peers from his slightly elevated spot of land to find a lone elk trotting slowly across the sand. It comes to a stop, ears twitching, then bows its head to graze on a tuft of browning ricegrass.

There's a brief moment wherein Marius considers simply leaving the elk to be. Why would he harm it when he has no need for its meat, when he intends to die? But then he remembers the other people in the Arena, and maybe it's his own little rebellion against the Capitol's games but he refuses to play their killing game. Instead of destroying them, will help his fellow Tributes survive. His father would have done the same, he thinks. Cosette may have wanted it of him.

So he raises his crossbow and takes aim for the elk's lungs, brow furrowed in concentration and eyes narrowed to slits.


➳ Getting a sponsor bag
The cold penetrates to his very bones and Marius huddles involuntarily against his sleeping bag as a shiver wracks his body. He shifts a little, intending to crawl into the bag, but a moment of hopelessness and depression strikes him suddenly then, and all he manages to do is to stare at it blankly.

What is the point to all this struggle? He could simply allow the cold to take him. He will merely return to the Capitol anyway, if he dies. Or perhaps another Arena? He hasn't the faintest idea of what's running through the Gamemakers's minds. Perhaps he doesn't care. He just wants this to end, right here and now. To die so that he could at least glimpse again the face of his beloved Cosette in the moment between the last traces of consciousness and temporary death. To look into her eyes and feel her hand against his cheek before darkness consumes him.

He does not even notice the descending bag until it's right before him, and he blinks and raises his hands for it to land on. He unwraps it to find some water bottles, enough to last him for two days. His head tilts slightly as an almost quizzical look crosses his face, as if he doesn't really know what to do with it.

Perhaps he could pass it on to someone who needs it more, should he encounter them.

Comments

Tell me if this doesn't work and I'll change it.

[hartless_cowboy]

What was the chances that two people would be hunting the same animal in the same stretch of the desert when there was barely another person hundreds of feet away?

Apparently, high enough for it to happen.

Lindsey let out a noise of surprise when, just as he was sneaking up on the large creature from the other side, the big form shuddered once and suddenly collapsed in front of him. He hadn't even raised his scythe to strike yet. Bewildered, he looked around for the shooter warily, just in case this guy's next target was him.

[saisamour]

Marius let out a gasp, eyes bulging, as soon as the elk collapsed and revealed the man behind it. He scrambled to his feet and pointed the crossbow to the ground, raising his free hand up in a sign of surrender.

He sucked in a deep breath and took a tentative step forward. He was not entirely certain whether the man was out to kill him; it seemed that he had been after the elk too, however.

"Peace," he called out, keeping a level tone. "I am not here to fight."

[hartless_cowboy]

Lindsey turned the scythe towards the other man, but his eyes widened in surprise when he saw the guy point the weapon down. He wasn't going to kill him then, and Lindsey suppose he could lower his scythe too.

At the offer for peace, the non-Batman hesitated, then called back out, "Neither am I... The creature's big enough to share."

That was an offer of truce, kind of, as long as the other man didn't mind sharing his meat.

[saisamour]

Relief flooded Marius when the man lowered his scythe; he did not intend to fight anyone, if he could help it, and the man seemed sincere enough.

He was not particularly averse to sharing, either. "Then we can, if you wish it." Not mentioning the fact that he would also willingly surrender more than half of the elk, whether the man requested it or not.

And though his stance relaxed he remained where he stood, waiting for a sign from the man that it was acceptable to approach.

[hartless_cowboy]

Realizing that the other man was waiting for him, Lindsey made an all encompassing wave down to the dead Elk. "If we don't cut this up soon, it's going to waste in the sun."

Giving the other man another glance, more prominently towards that crossbow in a wary look, Lindsey took a swing of his scythe and hacked into the creature. It was easier than sawing at it with a folding knife, they could do that after he severed its limbs and chopped it into manageable albeit bloody pieces.

[wantwhatiwant]

Ian looks to be more sleeping bag than boy, and he moves around the desert in a shuffle. He's taken to napping in the short days, finding the coolest place he can, and then moving around at night. Less likely to be taken by surprise by angry animals, and people, and less likely to freeze to death.

He notices another figure, another sleeping bag and approaches cautiously.

[saisamour]

Marius stills, the feeling that he's not alone suddenly nagging at him. He sets the bottles on top of the sleeping bag and moves into a crouching position as he reaches for the crossbow underneath it, his eyes sweeping the area until they set on...

On a boy. He blinks, eyebrows raising a little. The boy is young, likely not even beyond twenty years of age. Instantly, his hand slides away from the crossbow.

"Ah... Hello." Tentativeness colors his tone of voice, as well as a bit of weariness and tiredness that is evident in its slight hoarseness.

[wantwhatiwant]

"Hi..." He notices the crossbow and his eyes immediately searched the area looking for cover in case the man decided to shoot.

"I mean no harm."

[saisamour]

Marius's features relax at that, and he gives the boy a tiny smile of assurance. "Then neither do I."

He shifts back into his sitting position, slowly, careful not to startle the boy with sudden movement. "Are you alone?"

[wantwhatiwant]

Ian nodded slowly, likewise not wanting to startle the man into pulling the trigger. "Yeah, you?"

Hunting

[whoseesbynight]

With their little group expanding out into other people, having a decent supply of food was becoming more and more important. Fortunately, it hadn't taken too long to grasp the basics of the Signless' explanation on how to survive in the desert. Unfortunately, the rapid shifts of night to day and back aren't helping in the least. Sure, she can take consolidation in the fact that the humans are probably not doing much better but it does make things a little more awkward in the realm of hunting.

Not that Nepeta lets that keep her down. She'd be a poor huntress if something so small got in the way, and after the first unending day it had been pretty clear that whatever was illuminating the area was not anything like the sun they'd had on Alternia. Fortunately, she still has the sunglasses that had come with the outfit she'd been put in, so that's at least something. The rest, however, is starting to see some wear and tear, although it's obviously been patched up to the best of her ability.

Either way, she doesn't spot Marius until he's already lining up his shot - even in a desert, her hunting style bears more than a passing resemblance to that of cats - and though she doesn't do anything to break his concentration, if she actually had fur it would no doubt be bristling. She hadn't expected to run into anyone else and there was no telling how he'd react to her presence, something that was more than worrisome with him having the advantage of range with that crossbow.

[saisamour]

Seven.

Marius counts off the bolt as it releases from the crossbow and zips into the air, piercing through the elk's body and puncturing its lungs in a single, clean shot. The elk gives out a startled bugle of pain, the wail resonating across the area as its legs buckle and its body collapses with a thud.

It's only when he pushes himself to his feet that he notices the other's presence. His eyes widen when they set on her, and he stills and holds his ground in a moment of uncertainty. How long has she been there? Is she a foe? He wishes the strange eye wear did not prevent him from glimpsing her eyes so that he could somehow read her intentions better.

Although she does not appear to possess on her person a long-ranged weapon, so he might be a safe in this distance. He points his crossbow to the ground and raises one hand in a show of peace.

"I will not attack you." He's sincere, of course—he will never play the Capitol's games; that is what he promised himself—and it's more than evident in his voice.

[whoseesbynight]

She's been there long enough to see him taking aim, and even if he has the advantage of range, she's probably also been there long enough that she could have taken him down unawares if she'd wanted to. She doesn't appear to be armed, true, but that doesn't really mean anything. Not when practically everything is an unknown in this place.

She does appear to relax a little bit once he announces his intentions not to attack, but even that doesn't entirely get rid of the wariness. Sincere or not, there's nothing to say that someone else won't take advantage of their guards being down and try to take both of them out in one fell swoop.

"Really?" It's asked more because it seems to be the right thing to ask, then any doubt of the sincerity in his voice. Sincere or not, they are fighting for their lives, and that has a way of changing things. Besides, he might not need to attack her to bring her time in the arena to an end, and so she figures it's probably better to be safe then regret not making sure later.

[saisamour]

The wariness from the lady is not at all that surprising, so he nods in hopes that it will further assure her. "Truly."

Although, there is a part of him that says words have little meaning in the Arena, and not all those who have been brought here are as willing as he to avoid battle. Or at least until it is absolutely necessary, and he has a rather simple mindset when it comes to what necessitates retaliation: protect those who need protecting, his own life be damned.

But perhaps he can show her his sincerity. So he bends his knees, slowly, and lowers the bow to the ground, free hand still raised where she could clearly see it, keeping his eyes on hers, or at least on her eye wear. It occurs to him for a brief moment that this will provide her an opening to finish him off. It's not that strange to him when he finds that he almost welcomes the thought.

[whoseesbynight]

It helps. Not enough for her entirely drop her wariness - there are still a number of other people out in the desert - but enough that it fades to a sort of dim background sort of noise. Still, it means that any ensuing conversation will be significantly less tense, and that's always a plus. She doesn't make a move to strike him down either. If he isn't about to attack her, then she won't be so cruel as to attack him as he sets his weapon down.

Some people she knows might have been, but she isn't one of those people.

"If you're sure, then."

She doesn't offer a name - or at least, not yet - but she seems more than willing to hold a friendly conversation, and that's a good enough start.

Hunting yes indeedy

[polyturtle]

Marius wasn't the only one hunting. Though, given the circumstances, Don wasn't sure at that precise moment whether he meant to hunt the elk, or Tribute he saw from his hiding place that was hunting the elk.

On the one hand, he would kill the Tributes. How did their lives, their thoughts, their beliefs truly matter in this place? They were meat puppets, true monsters, muttations with programmed memories. Little could change that fact. Not even the knowledge of the rebellion changed the fact in his now crushed psyche, that they could be discarded or recreated at will, by both sides. Used by both with no hope of finding another way. If they were not the scapegoats of the Capitol, then they were the tools of the rebellion. They could never go back to their homes, for their true home was Panem. And in Panem, their purpose was to entertain. That meant killing. That was all he was good for in the end.

On the other hand, he was hungry and thirsty. Almost ravenously so. His state was exacerbated by his haggard appearance from injury and lack of sleep, and his clothing bloodied from both himself and others. Despite his rationing and Sponsors more than happily gifting him, everything ran out very quickly. And this elk, he reckoned, would keep him alive for he quietly decided he wouldn't calculate Harley into the equation starting that afternoon for closer to a week with the resources it contained.

So the turtle waited for the moment. Then he saw the bolt hit the elk, causing it to fall forward, flailing on the ground.

Careless. Punctured the lung. The creature will likely survive despite diminished lung capacity.

That was when he revealed himself, and with fast reflexes - certainly not lightning fast, certainly slower because of his hunger - brought the scythe down upon the mammal's neck as it thrashed on the ground. The clean cut caused warm blood to spurt from the trunk and onto him, but this was ignore in favor of taking the severed head and turning it actually upside down.

Best not to waste too much blood.

screa

[saisamour]

Marius counted off the bolt as it hit the elk, six, though perhaps it was his angle, or the dizziness due to lack of food and water that impaired his aim, that his shot only punctured one lung. The bolt was still sticking out of the elk when it collapsed in a writhing heap, and he instantly felt rather sorry for failing to end its life as quickly as possible, when the vision appeared out of nowhere and decapitated the animal with one fell swoop.

He gasped and staggered back, and for a brief while he was convinced that he was hallucinating, I should have drank more water, but he blinked and squinted and the image was still there and currently turning the elk's head upside-down. A few seconds ticked away before his eyes widened in recognition: Monsieur Hamato, was it not? He recalled the man—or would turtle be a more polite way of referring to him?—as being one of the more helpful ones he had met when he had first arrived at the Capitol.

And yet the sudden explosion of violence from Don caused in Marius sense of wariness and distrust. The grip on his still-raised crossbow tightened as he watched for any sudden and hostile movement from the other Tribute, more than a little clueless as to what was taking place inside the turtle's head.

\D

[polyturtle]

Marius was wise to distrust the turtle. Even if he was limping, even if it was obvious he was injured, there was definitely something off and wrong. This was not the Donatello Marius had met in the Capitol. Something had changed.

What hadn't changed though right now it was only one thing was Donatello's understanding of spoil usage. Elk blood was still blood, and blood was a drinkable commodity when water was scarce. And as his water was quite low, well.

Bottoms up. Walking away to his place behind a rock, Don quietly grabbed hold of the still pulsing neck vein with his teeth, allowing him to suck on it. Even if he was hidden, it was likely Marius could understand what it was he was doing with the silhouette of his head bent down in such a way.

[saisamour]

And he did have a vague idea of what Don was doing with the head; his face scrunched in aversion, and he forced himself to tear his eyes away from the silhouette.

They settled back on the decapitated carcass, and he gave another moment's pause. Should he risk approaching it? Don's strange demeanor that was so uncharacteristic of the turtle he had met inside the walls of the Training Center continued to cause him distress and uncertainty, but what remained of the elk was still enough to feed other people for a few more days. People who needed it more than he, such as the women and children that were undoubtedly also struggling to survive in the desert.

So he took several slow, tentative steps towards the elk, bow raised and eyes watching Don with caution as he did so.

[polyturtle]

It was probably a good thing that Don decided that he'd found an alternative to killing Marius. He had food now, and drink, which he needed to get in ready order for the long run. And Marius clearly saw him, and was armed with a crossbow. He had no element of surprise.

Before Marius got too close, Don bolted, leaping into the sun ad bluring back in with the shadows it made.

Hunting

[leavewiththegame]

AndrAIa's out on a water run. Punchy and the Tims say they have plenty of water, but she knows it must strain their resources, providing for another person, and she seems to need more water than the rest of them.

They had told her where the water hole was, approximately, and also hinted that following animals might lead to water. So when she sees a healthy-looking elk not long after she ventures out of their makeshift base, she follows it at a good distance. At least until someone else shoots it.

A bit put out at not being able to follow it, she nevertheless decides to wait and see what's happening before heading to the water hole. She's confused as to why the other person killed the animal, as it hadn't seemed dangerous, and she's even more confused at how it didn't disappear when killed and the person approaches it.

[saisamour]

Marius takes a few cautious steps towards the elk, making certain that it has, indeed, been killed. When he's positive enough he lets out a soft sigh of relief and hurries the rest of the way.

Up close, he could see the faint outline of the elk's ribs pressing against skin, and its joints more than a little defined. The blood from the hole that his bolt had made caused his breath to hitch for a moment—and there was a man of the cloth upside-down on a barricade with his blood streaming down the fatal gunshot wound—but he squeezes his eyes shut and forces the vision away, attempting to divert his attention to something else.

It's then that he senses another presence in the area, and his eyes snap wide open. He whirls around, searching, until he spots the girl at a distance. His throat dries and he attempts to swallow, painfully, and tightens his grip on his crossbow although he does not point it at her. Standing still, he watches her cautiously. Is she here to kill him? Is she simply a passer-by? Or perhaps she requires assistance of some form?

[leavewiththegame]

AndrAIa holds up her own hands in a placating gesture before starting forward. She doesn't want him to turn his weapon on her. But with how cautious he's being, she doesn't think it likely, unless she really screws up.

As soon as she gets close enough to talk without shouting, she addresses him. "What was that creature? Why did you kill it? Was it dangerous?"

[saisamour]

Her gesture causes him to breathe a small sigh of relief, and his stance relaxes visibly, although he keeps his bow close to him. He doesn't take his eyes off of her as she approaches, but his brows do furrow in mild puzzlement when she raises her questions at him.

Um. He casts a swift glance at the carcass before glancing back at her. "This elk? It... It is food, mademoiselle."

[leavewiththegame]

She looks at the body, too, when he glances at it. It's still there, still not disappearing. Or reviving, for that matter.

"An... elk? What is that? And how is it food? I did not think sprites could be food."