Who| Karkat, Cuthbert, Lottie, and Shepherd (closed)
What| Karkat and Cuthbert pick up a girl, but then complications ensue.
Where| Dessert Arena
When| During the third week
Warnings/Notes| Language, character death, multi-threading

They avoid the corpses whenever possible. Whatever-it-is that's growing inside them creeps Karkat the fuck out. If he didn't know better, he'd think they were sprouting candy. They make him feel uneasy, off-kilter, much like the extremely short three hours off/three hours on day/night cycles.

And still, still, they are looking for tributes to murder.

Who| Lottie, and Some, Jay (&Neffa?) and eventually Shepard!
What| Lottie meeting up with her people, and running into Shepard late down the line.
Where| Candy arena
When| A bit after the cornucopia
Warnings/Notes| None atm. The thread is started within for Shepard!

This was disgusting.

Once, when she had been very young, Lottie had fallen into the Bayou. She was scooped out incredibly quickly, but she smell and the feel of it had clung to her, and it was the most disgusting thing she could think of.

She would glad go for a swim in the bayou right now. The sun made everything soft and stick. her costumes didn't help, glad to gather a stick residue. She had already ditched the wig and stockings, thought the later were tied around her waist just in case.

Tired, and not really caring if she made a very obvious target, Lottie dragged herself to a shaded rocky outcropping, and did her best to find the least stick place to rest.

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.]

Who| Lottie and OPEN
What|  Hunting for food.
Where|  Near birds.
When|  Mid-days
Warnings| Death

She knew being out in broad daylight wasn't bright. But at night the birds were settled in their nest, and she was starving.

Not that she was really looking forward to egg sucking either, but it was better than nothing. Neither of her companions were planning to eat the way she ate, and so she hadn't wanted to push them into her food scrounging.

Which is why she was clinging, alone, to the slipper cliff face, praying she didn't fall and break something, as she gathered eggs from the nests here, batting away the birds that were not too happy to have her stealing their eggs.

"Oh bother off." She grumped as she felt another bird pecking at her parka. Thank god it was so thick.

The work was hard, taking a lot of her strength. And more than once she slipped free, finding herself in free fall, which was short, and ended painfully most every time.

Usually, the tribute's outfits for the arena aren't accessorized. But today, the last thing their stylists hand them before the countdown begins is a pair of heavy black glasses, polarized and thick-lensed. They look at odds with the thick, winter gear they've been outfitted in.


It's a long rise to the surface today, inside their individual little tubes, much longer than usual. They start to feel the cold only about halfway up, and to hear the wind. It howls across the surface as they reach it, pressing all of their clothes flat against their bodies. And the reason for the glasses is immediately apparent.


20 - 19 - 18


The sky is white. The ground is white (and gray and black and blue but mostly white), the far-off sea is blinding silver. Everything in sight flings light around, fractures it into scintilating rainbows and sheer white beams of reflection. It is strong, cruel light, and it bears no heat at all. The surface is so cold that the little metal trackers ache in everyone's arm, and the countdown has to continue at a deafening volume to be heard.


 12 - 11 - 10 -


The circle of silver pedestals is the only regular shape to be seen. All else is fractured and split, the most uneven footing imaginable. And at the center of the circle, the Cornucopia sports icycles hanging from its lip, almost to the pile of supplies tucked all neatly inside its mouth.


4


3


2


There's a lull in the wind just as the gong sounds, letting it peal out across the frozen glacier, and echo off the high rock cliffs in the distance. And the ice answers, with a loud crack that seems to come from miles down.


Let the Games begin.

WHO| Anyone who wanted in on this
WHAT| Exploring the lower levels of the ruins.
WHEN| A few days after the start of the Cornucopia. Please specify times, if relevant, in subject line.
WHERE| Lower levels of the ruins
WARNING/NOTES| This thread is to overlap these interactions, so please see who else has posted before starting a new thread. We will be rolling for what people will be able to grab in the above OOC thread.

The building had obviously been for something huge. Because it was huge. Miles of corridors, all wrapped around each other, followed in their path by many, many pipes, and most of them still accessible. Occasionally a collapsed wall impedes the hall's path, but down here most everything is clear. Room after room split off, varying from offices, now left in ruins, to huge rooms fulls of large machines, now rusted and useless. Break rooms, labs, control rooms, whatever was done here, it was big. And from what was still here-over turned chairs, projects left disintegrating on tables-abandoned in a hurry.

And down here? Now dark. Occasionally a collapsed roof let in shafts of light. But once your eyes adjusted to the dark, a soft glow became apparent. All along the walls, a softly glowing mold was spreading, giving just enough light to see by. It was nice and warm down here too, a refreshing break from the cold outside.

And if you followed the right halls, suddenly you found yourself in a large, open room. In the middle is a strange lump of smooth rock, having been blown down there from some explosion from above. And around that? All the supplies your little heart could desire. There are force fields that flicker softly in the corners, but they don't stop you from retrieving the supplies.

What might, however, is the way the room makes you feel. Tingling, and overwhelmingly nauseous. Although the room itself is pleasantly warm, anyone standing there is hot, feverish, and feels as if they have the worst bout of flu. Ever.

WHO | Riddick and OPEN
WHAT | Riddick's hanging around being creepy and annoyed
WHEN | Evening of the Cornucopia
WHERE | The ruins
WARNINGS / NOTES | Riddick's dirty mouth and bad attitude


Not many people had tried taking Riddick out at the big shell thing. It was almost disappointing. But regardless, he'd hopped off his platform at last once the bloodbath had settled and sauntered off into the ruins to explore, ignoring the supplies left behind and the bodies fallen on the ground. Dark was falling now, but that wasn't a problem: he could stand a little cold, and all he had to do was pull his goggles off as the light dimmed.

In fact, he rather preferred it.

So he kept moving, kept his eyes open, and his ears alert for company as he sifted through the ancient equipment and rat-eaten refuse quietly and without really disturbing much-- but he wasn't here to kill anybody. For once in his life, these days, it seemed like. At least, not unless they tried to kill him first.

For some this is starting to be routine. For some it is new, and little is done to ease them into it. The peacekeepers are never warm on these flights, but they are rougher, quieter today, and after having their tracking devices inserted or reactivated, the tributes don't see them until they are lead to small, metal rooms.

They are dressed quietly by their stylist, and the stylist move quicker this time, dressing them in heavy cargo pants, boots, thick socks, an undershirt and sweater. A light, plastic jacket is laid over the top, with a hood and plenty of pockets.

They are lead to tubes, with a reminder not to leave the pedestal. The tubes are metal this time, thick, the door sliding closed over them and leaving the tributes in the small, dark area. Entombed until they start the smooth rise to the surface.

25 - 24 - 23

Rising to the surfaces, they can see before them a building, ravished by time but still standing. Behind it, cliffs fall to the ocean, glittering in the sun for miles and miles, a dark blue distance that offers no escape. Behind them, the last trails of fog lead into a forest, still spotted with the lingering remains of the buildings that had once stood there. The air is cool, crisp, and the warmth of the sweater can be appreciated quickly.

20 - 19 - 18 - 17 - 16

One wall of the building before them is gone, exposing deep into the building's heart. There, about 50 yards into the ruins, lies the cornucopia. It's weapons and supplies are scattered among the ruins, dropped haphazardly among crumbling walls and exposed rebar.

11- 10 - 9 - 8

Warned not to move from their pedestals, they are given the last 10 seconds to plans their attack.

5

4

3

2

The gong sounds, clear in the crisp air. Let the games begin.

[OOC: Check here if your character ran for the cornucopia to see your results. Post here to play those out.

Characters on reserve have until Wednesday, Nov 14th to be eligible to tag into this arena and this post, but anyone who did not sign up for the Cornucopia will be handwaved as having not not been part of the Cornucopia battle.]

WHO| Lottie, Kevin, and later Momoko.
WHAT| Lottie's turn to eat it.
WHEN| Two mornings after the Cornucopia
WHERE| Q4
WARNING/NOTES| Fluffy pink death.

Although she had been kicking around the idea of getting killed off earlier to go enjoy the Capitol, Lottie had discovered a fatal flaw with that idea.

She was a big, fat coward.

They idea of intentionally killing her self just didn't sit right. At all. Maybe it was faith based, maybe it was pain based but she just couldn't do it. Or bring herself to put herself in a place where someone else could do it.

And she actually wasn't doing too bad in this arena. She had managed to feed herself, and that was something. And not awful food, either.

Maybe she'd make it this time.

Glancing around her, she looked for anyone to be around, before darting to the edge of the water to find food. There were so many fish that, even without any equipment, it wasn't hard to catch them.

WHO| Lottie and Tate. Also, anyone else who wants to be there (Momoko, Ariadne, Kevin, etc)
WHAT| Lottie eats it.
WHEN| Backdated to her deathrool.
WHERE| The amusement park
WARNING/NOTES| Death. Also, teammates (Max, Tony), since I sorta dropped the ball, I think it's easiest to say after shit went down with Tate and Don, she got separated from them.

Of all the emotions this place made her feel, guilt was the one she expected the least. And was the worst at dealing with.

She felt guilty for ditching her teammates. And guilty for not remedying it. And guilty for letting Tate die. Although she was feeling far less guilty for that of late.

The big, ruined carnival was hauntingly beautiful, in this strange place, and she was hoping she might run into Tony or Max here. There were plenty of places to hide here, and it seemed as good as any to be.