Chapter 16-

“Where are you going? Sky!” Scott called after me. “To find Spark” I said angry and still feeling regretful. “Skylar, I know you’re angry about what happened with Troy but he did it to save you right? Hunting down Spark for revenge so viciously isn’t going to change anything” he tried calming me down. I had told him everything including who Troy was. “That’s not the point! They’re all filthy and disgusting! Troy’s own father wanted him dead and Spark is just a terrible person!” I yelled. “Sky, you’re scaring me” Scott said looking me in the eye worried. I just stared at him intently and gave up our staring contest with a sigh.
“I’m sorry. I think I’m just a bit tired” I smiled a little. But it was true. My eyes kept drooping and I fely slower than usual. Scott’s expression softened and he hugged me lightly. “Then let’s rest a bit and we can keep going tomorrow on our man hunt for Spark. It’s getting dark anyway” he said. I nodded my head not really up to arguing with him anyway. He led me to a thick part in the forest and I climbed a nearby tree. Scott glared at me a little but started climbing up too. “What happened? I thought you couldn’t climb” I teased him. “Shut up. Somebody needs to take care of you” he said gesturing to all my cuts and wounds. I gave him an emotionless expression. “You’re not changing my bandages again” I told him bored as I pulled the axe off my back and sighed moving over to make room for Scott on the large tree branch.
“I said sorry! What more do you want?” he asked throwing his hands in the air. “For you to never do it again” I said obviously. He sighed and rubbed his temple. Then he leaned against the tree trunk. “Fine so next time I’ll just let you keep the dirty, blood streaked bandages on for a few days” he said rolling his eyes. “That’s all I ask” I said. He looked away and I couldn’t tell what the expression on his face was but it looked like he was deep in thought.
“Is the idea of me touching you that repulsive?” he said in a whisper, probably not expecting me to hear. “Of course not, idiot” I mumbled annoyed as I glanced away when he turned to look at me. I stared out into the forest, keeping my eyes locked on an anthill as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. “It’s just weird” I shrugged still staring at the anthill. I felt the branch shake slightly and out of the corner of my eye I saw Scott move towards me. I kicked my feet off the branch, back and forth, and held onto it tightly with my hands.
“Why?” he asked sitting so close to me now that I could feel the heat emitting from his body. “Because you’re my friend and you’re a guy” I said obviously and mentally congratulated myself for not stuttering. “Thanks for pointing out the obvious. I didn’t quite get it the first time but now that you’ve explained, it makes perfect sense. Especially that part on me being a guy” he said sarcastically. I rolled my eyes and muffled a laugh, still keeping my gaze glued on the anthill.
“Seriously? Is it that weird for your best friend to take care of you, change your bandages and maybe see some things?” he asked in a teasing voice. I turned my gaze to him now, with annoyance in my eyes and shot him daggers. He chuckled and stuck his tongue out. “Remember what I did to Elroy on the train?” I asked him innocently. He nodded slightly confused. I pulled the knife from my belt and spun it around my fingers before gripping it tightly and raising it up so Scott could have a good look. “It’s about to happen to you but I won’t kind enough to miss this time” I threatened him with a grin. Scott’s eyes widened in fear as he quickly inched away from me. “Elroy, save me!” he yelled at the sky. “Shut up or you’ll seriously need saving” I growled.
“I could really go for some bread right now” I sighed to myself. I was somewhat surprised when a capsule landed in front of me. I grabbed it and read the note.
Play nice and don’t threaten to cut the boy’s manhood off. If you’re a good girl, you’ll get tons more bread ~ Elroy
I chuckled folding the note and putting it in my pocket. Scott looked at me oddly as I laughed. I opened the capsule and spit the large loaf of bread in half. I tossed one half to Scott and said “Compliments of Elroy and our wonderful sponsors as I reward for me not stabbing you” I smirked playfully. Scott rolled his eyes and stuck his tongue out at me like a child before eating his half quickly. Again another capsule fell from the sky, this time landing by Scott. He grabbed it read the note, rolled his eyes and muttered “Screw you, Elroy. Pervert.” I leaned towards him.
“What does it say?” I asked curiously. “Nothing important” Scott said pulling the note out of my reach. “Tell me!” I said leaning over him to grab the note from his outstretched hand. “No!” he said somewhat loudly. I leaned further across hi, my chest pressed against his and my legs scrambled on the branch slightly brushing against his as I stretched further to grab the note.
“Sky, you’re going to make us fall out of the tree” he said. “Let me see it and I’ll leave you alone” I said turning my gaze away from the note and towards Scott, only to realize just how close he was to me. Our faces were only an inch apart. I was so close to him that I could feel his warm breath hit my neck and see the little gold flecks in his hazel eyes shine as the sunlight dimmed. We just stared at each other for a minute before I pulled away from him and sat there staring out at the darkening sky.
I could have sworn I heard Scott whisper my name but I was probably delusional. I was tired after all and my thoughts were interrupted by the loud anthem. Troy’s face appeared in the sky and I sighed upset. That leaves Kurt, Spark, Retner, Scott and I. 5 tributes left and only one was going home. I glanced back at Scott to see him playing with a roll of bandages, probably what Elroy had sent him. I sighed and a yawn escaped my lips. “Sky” Scott called my name softly. I turned to him and he tossed me the roll of bandages. “Change them. The ones you have now are already a day and a half old” he mumbled looking away.
I nodded as Scott leaned against the trunk and closed his eyes. I sighed and repeated the steps I had when I first wrapped my wound. My shoulder hurt with every movement and I stifled in a moan of pain. I bit my lip and tied the bandages in place tightly then pulled my tank top on and my ripped t shirt over it.
I glanced at Scott. He had Elroy’s note clutched tightly in his hand. I assumed he was asleep so I sighed and stood up on the branch, maintaining my balance. “Sky” I felt Scott grab a light hold of my ankle. I paused. His eyes were still closed. “You can open them” I told him. “I just wanted to say good night” he smiled up at me opening his eyes. I smiled back down at him and leaned down to give him a hug. “Good night” I mumbled grabbing my axe that was still in its sling, which I’d laid on the branch, and climbed up to a higher branch to spend the night.
As I settled down and closed my eyes Scott spoke again. “Oh and when you go back to District 7 with Elroy promise me you won’t stand closer than a good 2 feet away from him at all times and if his hands ever stray or he has too much wine, kill him” Scott said joking to ease the mood but I could sense some seriousness in his voice. I chuckled a little and said “I think Elroy and I already went over the rules of touching” I told him. “And he hasn’t touched you right?” he asked. “Does helping me with my dress count?” I asked to tease him.
“He what?!” Scott practically yelled. “Shhh. Relax geez. I would have asked you but you were busy and besides it gave me a perfect opportunity to threaten Elroy’s life and go over the touching rules” I laughed. “Fine but if he does touch you, you’ll cut his hand off right?” Scott asked. I chuckled again. “Right” I promised. “Good that’s all I needed to hear” he sighed. “I’ll haunt you, Elroy. I mean it” Scott called out randomly making me laugh just a bit. I couldn’t completely look over the fact that Scott has pretty much determined that he’s going to die.
The next morning I woke up just as the sun was rising at the smell of smoke. I sat up and glanced around me. I didn’t see any fires and Scott was still asleep on the branch below me. I started climbing up the tree, as high as I could to get a better view. I reached as high up as I possibly could and saw a small amount of smoke near us. I climbed back down, stopping at my branch to grab the axe and sling it over my shoulder again. I went down to Scott and shook him awake.
He groggily rubbed his eyes and looked at me. “Get up” I said. I opened the bag and grabbed a few dried up fruits. “Eat, we don’t have time to hunt” I told his, eating an apple for myself. “What’s going on?” Scott asked eating as I had told him. “Somebody is nearby and I want to take a look” I told him, finishing my apple. I tossed the core out into the dirt and climbed down. Scott adjusted the quiver of arrows on his back and threw the bag over his shoulder as well. He tossed the bow to me as he climbed down. I handed it back to him and we started walking.
“Armed and ready?” he asked as the smell of smoke grew stronger. “Down to my last knife but yes I am” I whispered slowly maneuvering my way around the trees. I silently prayed that it wasn’t Kurt again. With my knife drawn I stepped forward ready to throw it. I was surprised when I saw a dying fire. Nobody in sight. I spun around to see Spark dive out of a tree with a knife in hand. My eyes widened when Scott dove in front of me and fell to the ground with Spark.
They took turns rolling around and fighting one another. I ran to them as Spark had Scott pinned down and was raising the knife to him. I tackled Spark to the ground and knocked the knife out of his hands. “Don’t touch him!” I yelled punching Spark as hard as I could. He must have gotten some medicine or something because he looked a lot better than he did yesterday. Spark grabbed a hold of my hair and pulled me towards him then flipped us over. I glanced back at Scott to see that a new enemy had approached, Retner. He swung a sword at Scott, who dodged it carefully. I felt Spark’s fist connect with my gut as he laughed.
“Pathetic” he roared with laughter as he raised his fist up again, punched my shoulder, right where my wound was. I screamed in pain and he just laughed. I felt a searing pain shoot through me. Spark had my arms pinned over my head and he was physically stronger than me. I couldn’t get him off. “I kind of feel bad torturing a pretty little girl but it was Elra’s death wish and I might as well right?” he asked grinning proudly. I struggled to get out of his grip, but he was all muscle. He pressed his palm to the wound on my shoulder and chest. “Does it hurt?” he asked with a grin pressing down on it. I bit my lip to keep from screaming as tears welled up in my eyes.
He laughed and punched it again. I couldn’t hold it. I screamed bloody murder and the tears fell. Spark laughed louder, his blood thirst growing as he grabbed my knife. I stared at him terrified as he brought it down to my face slowly, teasing me. “Maybe a little arrangement to your pretty face?” he asked with a smirk. I glanced at Scott scared now. Scott had a cut across his chest courtesy of Retner’s sword.
Retner was panting heavily as he charged at Scott with his sword again. My attention went back to Spark when I felt the cold blade touch my cheek. I turned to him scared. He smirked and pressed the knife down. I felt my skin tear and blood run down my face. “Maybe I should inflict some more damage” he said moving the knife from my face to my shoulder. He looked at my terrified expression with a teasing grin as he ripped through my t shirt and tank top, revealing the bandages on my shoulder. He played with the knife, teasing at the bandages, leaving me in anticipation of when he’d finally stab me.
“Go ahead!” I yelled surprising Spark. He looked at me slightly confused. “You want to kill me, torture me? Do it! But know that no matter what you’ll suffer, Spark. You have nothing to go back to. Nobody will care about you if you win the games. They’ll treat you like a winner in District 2 for a bit but then you’ll just be another pawn in the games. You’ll just be a part of the past, only to be upstaged in next year’s games by somebody else. Nobody will give a shit about you. Want to know why? Because you’re a pathetic, sadistic, son of a bi..” The knife pierced into my wound. I screamed in pain and cried. Words hurt more than a knife. My vision blurred through the tears but I felt Spark lower his guard a bit and saw an opening.
I pulled my right arm out of Spark’s grip and threw a punch at his jaw. He fell off of me and I slowly got up, groaning in pain. My wound was bleeding heavily again as I made my way to my feet. I pressed my right palm to my wound and glared at Spark. “Words hurt” I told him, “Especially when they’re true”. He cursed and yelled running at me. “You don’t know anything!” he yelled at me as he came at me with his knife again I just stood there not really able to do much. I reached for the ax eon my back and as Spark brought the knife towards me I blocked it, the blade slamming against the axe. Spark suddenly kicked me in anger. I stumbled backwards and fell against a tree. My vision blurring and going out of focus from the blood loss.
Spark’s knife was raised up and he tossed it at me as my vision came into focus but it looked like 2 knives and I didn’t know what to dodge. I held my head with my left hand, my vision focusing and I wondered where the knife he had thrown was. I never felt it. I glanced down to see Kurt standing in front of me, the knife sticking out of his neck. My eyes widened and I saw him turn to me with a smile. “Tell my sister I love her for me” he mumbled weakly, blood pouring from his neck as his body collapsed and the cannon boomed in the distance.
I fell to my knees and cried a little. I placed my hands over Kurt’s eyes and closed them. Then I stood up ready to kill Spark. I walked forward, grabbing the axe I’d dropped and stepping towards Spark. “You bastard!” I yelled throwing the axe with all the strength I could manage. Spark ducked out of the way though. I ran, tackling him to the ground again. I punched him in the jaw as hard as I could. I heard Scott groan and turned slightly to see Retner had lost his sword and was standing against a tree helplessly.
Spark took that chance to punch me and throw me off. He stood up and grabbed my hair, pulling m up. “Hey Lover boy, watch carefully” he yelled to Scott as he pulled me towards him. Scott turned to us with anger on his face and had an arrow drawn, blood trickling down his forehead over his eye. Spark held me in front of him as a shield, my back pressed to his chest. “You’re about to lose your little girlfriend” Spark laughed in my ear. He grabbed my left arm and twisted it around to my back. The wound stung and burned like hell. He pulled it and I screamed in pain again. Spark’s laughter had drowned out my scream. I felt him twist my arm in the most painful way imaginable and again I screamed. I heard the bone crack. My skin felt on fire, my blood boiling. Every muscle in my arm ached and my bones cried in pain.
I would never get the sickening sound of my bone cracking out of my head. Spark roared with laughter and let go of my arm. The blood didn’t seem to slow as it poured out of my wound and down my left arm. My arm fell limply to my side and Spark grabbed a hold of my head. “Her neck is next” he said to Scott. I could see the fear in Scott’s eyes. Retner seemed to regain his strength as he stood up. I managed to dig my right elbow into Spark’s side and slam the back of my head against his nose. I ducked down and Scott fired his arrow. Spark’s body fell with a thud, an arrow sticking out of his chest. I fell to my knees and coughed up blood as the cannon went off again.
I glanced up to see Retner had kicked the bow out of Scott’s hand and had punched his pretty hard. Scott fell to the ground and I saw Retner pick up his sword. I crawled towards the axe. I didn’t have a knife. The axe was too heavy now. I couldn’t throw it. I glanced up again to see Retner moving closer to Scott. I looked at the axe again. Part of the handle seemed to be sticking out further than usual. I took a hold of it and pulled it. My eyes lit up when I noticed that the axe had a hidden knife in the handle. I dropped the axe and stood up as best as I could.
Retner held the sword over Scott and with a smirk brought it down. He was a good 30 yards away. I prayed that I still had the strength to throw a knife that far. I didn’t have much time to think though as Retner was about to kill Scott. I threw the knife and watched. A smile slowly crept onto my face as the sword fell from Retner’s hand. His body froze before falling to the ground with a thud, my knife sticking out of his back, right where his heart was. “I still got it” I chuckled slightly as Scott stood up and ran to me. The cannon went off, signaling Retner’s death.
Scott scooped me up and leaned me against a tree. “Then there were 2” I whispered staring up at him with tears welling up in my eyes. “Time for goodbyes” Scott said sadly kissing my forehead as he went back to Retner and pulled the knife out of his back. “It’s over, Sky. We made it!” he said giving me his idiotic grin. “Promise me that you’ll take care of yourself ok?” Scott asked still smiling happily. I stood up as his grip on the knife tightened. He moved the knife closer to himself. My eyes widened. He’s going to kill himself.