The Supreme Games - Book One

|70| The Supreme Games: Day 1 - The Bloodbath

Crystal's P.O.V. (D1)

"Okay Crystal, this is your time to shine!" exclaims my stylist, fixing my braid. "You have what it takes to win, so go and make District 1 proud!"

I flash her a nervous smile, nodding my head and taking a deep breath. My heart beats vigorously inside my chest.

I might just throw up.

One minute.

My stylist hands me a water bottle, and I chug half of it down. Who knows if I'll be able to drink clean water in that arena? Based on my attire, I have a feeling I'm going to be somewhere warm, maybe with lots of water. I have on cargo shorts, airy ankle-length black boots, and a maroon tank top. No jacket, no long sleeved shirt, no long pants.

Thirty seconds.

I hope I'll be able to find Phoenix quickly. And who knows, maybe Astrid will die in the bloodbath. One thing is for sure—I do not trust her. Maybe I'll be able to kill her before Phoenix can see.

Ten seconds.

Not wanting to wait any longer, I step into the tube. The door shuts immediately and begins to lift me up. Adrenaline kicks in as my hands begin to shake and my throat goes dry.

Deep breaths.

This is it, the moment I have not been waiting for.

Surprisingly, I'm in the launching tube for much longer than I was previously.

How far up is the arena?

With every passing second my anxiety doubles. After about ten minutes in the tube, I finally reach the very top, leaving me standing on top of an extremely narrow pedestal. I squint my eyes and cover my face from the blindingly bright sunset glow. As soon as my eyes adjust to the environment, I take a moment to absorb my surroundings. However, once I see what lies ahead of me, I regret ever looking. Bile rises up in the back of my throat, but I force it down. My stomach twists into knots as my eyes nearly pop out of their sockets.

This is not what I've trained for. This is nothing like what I've ever trained for. No amount of training could have ever prepared me for this. In front of me is none other than an inevitable death, and I can tell by the look on everyone else's faces that they're thinking the same.

↞↠

Emerald's P.O.V. (D4)

So this is it. Definitely not what I was expecting.

The harsh glare of the sun setting makes it all the more difficult to focus as it bounces off the top of the cornucopia. The cornucopia itself looks like it's miles away, and I know I have to make a decision fast. Do I risk my life climbing up this wobbly rope ladder only for someone else to get there before me and chop it off? Or do I turn around and zip line down into the forest empty handed?

I only have sixty seconds to decide.

I allow my eyes to wander over to the other tributes as a distraction. On my right is Brooklyne from District 10 and on my left is Princeton from District 1. Just my luck.

However, even though they're both wearing their signature snarls on their faces and look ready to tackle this arena, I notice something similar in the both of them.

Fear.

No doubt everybody is absolutely terrified to death, even the careers. This arena is horrific, and the huge abyss below our feet only makes matters worse. Our pedestals are quite literally standing hundreds, if not thousands, of feet in the middle of the abyss. These pedestals have to be standing higher than a skyscraper! They are also extremely narrow—so much so that one tiny gust of wind could make me lose my footing and drop down into an unending darkness.