Kineos was sucked underground and he looked around. It was pretty dark down here considering there wasn’t any sky or any light for that matter down here. There was some poking out every now and then but it wasn’t that much. Kineos sat there for a little bit, letting his eyes get used to the dark so that he wouldn’t be completely useless down here. He put his dagger in one hand and his dirk in the other hand, just in case he was attacker soon. Once they were adjusted to the dimly lit cavern, he started walking throughout the maze underground. He didn’t know where Jeremiah or Joule was but he needed to see them soon so they could pair up again. Kineos kept on walking until it turned hard and it opened up in a little room and there was already another tribute standing there.
Crawling through the tunnels was a frustrating endeavor for Imogene, even though she had the aid of the night vision goggles. She had a lot to carry and it seemed rather ridiculous to her as she navigated through the dirt. Finally, she emerged into a larger cavern. Light trickled down from above as roots dripped with water. She removed the goggles, as they were clunky and annoying. Looking around, she gripped her spear as she came across another tunnel opening. If she’d come from one, she had every right to expect that another tribute would pop out of the other. And if so, she would be ready, but more than anything, she hoped it would be Fox so they could figure this mess out together.
Tossing the goggles in the dirt, she quickly loaded her bow with an arrow and nocked it just as she heard rustling in the tunnel. With her eyes trained on the dark hole, she steadied her breathing and waited. A light appeared and she knew whoever it was had a flashlight. It wasn’t Fox, that’s for sure. She frowned, but prepared herself for an inevitable battle. Finally, a red headed boy stumbled into the cavern, armed with a simple dagger and a blowtorch. A pack was strapped to his back too, and who knew what he had in his pockets, but she could tell it was something because the unfortunate truth of the matter was that those disgusting plaid pants were tight as hell.
“Shit,” Kineos murmured once he finally laid eyes on her. She smirked, having the upper hand. “Alright, look… I am not here to fight…I just want to find my allies.” His hands were up a little and he looked less than enthused that he was at the tip of her arrow.
“That’s too bad, ain’t it, carrot top. There’s 8 of us left and I have a feeling that’s what the Game Makers want… so if you’re not gonna fight me, just stand there and look pretty would you?” she cooed.
His brows perked at the nickname, clearly unamused by it. He cricked his neck, stretching a little, his eyes never leaving her. “If that’s how you want it, blondie,” he retorted, giving her a stupid nickname that referenced her hair color in return.
His fingers inched to his pocket and she tightened her stance. “Whatcha got in there huh? Something real nice I bet. Well you better think twice about that,” she warned. And still, he moved towards the smoke bomb he knew would help him in this situation. Imogene, feeling threatened by this, released the arrow. It sailed into Kineos’ thigh, just above the knee-cap as his fingers gripped the smoke bomb. He screamed out, having not expected her aim to be that good. In truth, it wasn’t, as she’d been aiming for his chest.
“Bitch,” he murmured, now crippled but the blow. As she loaded another arrow, he dropped the dagger and lit up the smoke bomb with his blowtorch. Imogene shot another arrow towards him but missed, and he chucked the bomb in her direction. It smacked against the dirt wall of the gopher hole as smoke poured from the little grey ball. She choked and coughed as the smoke billowed, hiding her from his view and vice versa.
“Oh you must think you’re so smart,” she coughed.
“I do, as a matter of fact,” Kineos replied with a laugh that turned into a cough.
“Sure, I can’t see you, but you can’t see me either jackass,” she laughed back. She clutched her bow and inched backwards, knowing that he would either attack or expect her to. But she was smart and as she backed up, she found the wall and crept back into the tunnel opening that she came out of. Loading her bow, she sent a shot out into the smoke, hoping to catch him. He didn’t utter a single sound, so she knew she missed. She loaded and shot again, this time in a different area. Still, nothing.
She cursed to herself silently, wondering what Kineos was up to. Maybe he’d even retreated back into his hole and turned back the other way, using the smoke as a distraction. Finally, she heard a noise, it was her opponent, who was fumbling in the smoke with his pack. Dropping her bow, she reached into her pack and brought out the crossbow. It was smaller and easier to use and would allow her to use her other hand for other things. Knowing he had the blowtorch and dagger and not much else, she expected Kineos to use it. She grabbed the bottle of isopropyl alcohol from her pack and unscrewed the cap. Finally, the smoke began to dissipate. She nocked a bolt into the crossbow and stepped back into the cavern armed with only her crossbow and alcohol. The spear was nearby, if she needed it.
Kineos was prepared now, and he turned on the blow torch. He began to heat the blade with the fire and laughing as if he’d planned on this the entire time. Releasing the bolt as soon as she caught a glimpse of his form in the smoke, he screamed and she knew she’d struck him, but she didn’t know where. He groaned and staggered closer to her as she loaded another bolt. She sent it flying as he charged her. The blade glowed hot orange and she saw, even now throught the smoke, that she’d caught him in the shoulder. The blowtorch made the cavern glow blue and orange as he closed in on her.
His growl echoed against the dirt and as he stabbed forward, she splashed the open alcohol bottle towards the blowtorch, causing an explosion of flames. She let go of the bottle and ducked, but both were caught in the fire as as it plumed between their faces. His eyebrows scorched off and he was nearly blinded. His eyes watered and he dropped the blowtorch before it set something else on fire. It was kicked away in the scramble as Imogene lurched for her spear. Kineos drove forward towards her. Her fingers curled around the handle but he was already on top of her, rendering the weapon nearly useless. She tried to smack him over the head but let go as soon as the hot blade of his dagger sunk into her shoulder.
“You fucking bitch, I had plans for that,” he sneered.
She kneed him in the stomach as she screamed out in pain, the only thing she could think of. His hand gripped her shoulder and he twisted the dagger in her skin, maintaining control over her. The pain caused her to clench up, rendering her unable to fight back. He yanked the dagger from her shoulder and slammed it back down into her chest, inches away from her heart. She screamed, kicking underneath his weight.
Suddenly, in a blinding explosion, the alcohol that splashed onto the blowtorch caused it to explode, blowing Kineos off Imogene’s body and catching them both on fire. Kineos rolled through the dirt, quickly expelling the flames from his pants. Imogene, having done the same, rolled over the flare gun in her pocket and remembered its presence. Still on the ground, as Kineos was righting himself, she pulled it out and rose it, her hand shaking. The dagger was still in her chest and now Kineos had procured a dirk from his pocket. The fire died down quickly due to the damp dirt in the gopher hole, but ultimately ruining his blow torch.
“What the- Who gave you a gun?” Kineos froze, paralyzed at the sight of the weapon. He had no idea the difference between a flare gun and a real gun, no matter his level of genius. She pulled back on the trigger without hesitation and shot the flare straight towards him. The flare exploded into his shoulder, blowing a chunk of flesh and bone from his upper left arm. She dropped the gun as Kineos’ screams filled the cavern.
His screams turned into a haunted and adrenaline filled holler as he launched himself onto her body. She had dropped the gun, but he landed on her before she could get the dagger removed from her shoulder. His impact only caused the dagger to delve deeper into her skin. She cried out, tears streaming down her face now, as the boy’s other blade found her stomach. Blood loss was getting to Imogene, and she began to fade, even as Kineos’ shoulder wound dripped onto her. His right arm, still plenty strong, pulled the dirk from her stomach and continued to stab into her abdomen. Finally, she stopped struggling. Kineos stabbed and stabbed away at her middle until the cannon fired, signalling her death.
Kineos pushed himself off her, although he was weak. Wiping blood and sweat from his brow, he looked down at the girl as she laid in a pool of blood. He cursed, looking over his shoulder. Scrambling to retrieve his blades from her, he collected her spear and other weapons. Noticing her pack, he grabbed that too and was happy to find gauze and medical tape. He huffed as he stuffed gauze into his wound and used all the tape and strips of torn shirt to sloppily mend his wound. This was not the end, he knew it. He gathered what he could and cursed the girl that ruined his gift from Xanthus.
As the winds die down and the tornado disappears from the sky, a parachute floats down and lands on the top of Imogene's cart. Inside is Food Pack 5: a thermos of tomato soup, a grilled cheese sandwich, a canteen of cold milk, and goldfish crackers. The note reads:
"Eat up my love, you'll need your strength as the numbers dwindle. This pack is vegan friendly, so share what you will with the friend you have. Friendship is everlasting, and is never truly lost." - Garrick
Ferris: From one lovely lady to another, let's give a hand for Imogene Fuller of District 8!
Finn: Another beautiful blonde. *chuckles*
Imogene: *walks out confidently, waving at the crowd* Finn, Ferris, lovely to meet you both! *takes a seat and adjusts her dress* This is a little intimidating… *looks out at the crowd*
Ferris: The pleasure is ours Miss Fuller, please take a seat.
Finn: It can be a little intimidating. Are you suffering from a bit of stage fright my dear?
Alcander wants a tribute who is #FunkyFreshPrettyandFullOfSpunk so from initial impressions from both Reapings and the Tribute Parade he has set his sights on:
Ferris: Here comes District 8, one of my favorites. #AlwaysColorful. #AlwaysFabulous.
Finn: This year is no exception, as the girls from 8 are already the most talked about tributes this year. #GenderBend. #Drama. #TwoGirlsAreBetterThanOne.
Ferris: Imogene Fuller and her best friend Charlie St. Claire, how heartbreaking that they were both reaped together. #SadBeautifulTragic.
Finn: Doesn't seem like their story is completely melancholy though, Ferris, from what I hear these African tribal influence designs are not actually designed by their stylist, Viva. #What'sUpWithThat?
Ferris: You mean, Viva, who forced her way into the Games this year didn't actually design these beautiful costumes? #Confused. #ReallyConfused.
Finn: More on that later, but long story short, it looks like Charlie is the one who designed these outfits. Viva merely brought them to life. #SecretsExposed. #ThisIsn'tProjectRunway.
Ferris: Well it's no secret that plenty of people are very confused how District 8 has not one but two female tributes, and it seems as though neither of these girls are comfortable being placed into stereotypical boxes. #Can'tHoldThemDown. #GenderNormativityIsForTheNarrowMinded.
Finn: I can tell, especially since they opted to put Imogene in the pants and Charlie in the dress, yet both are extremely feminine looks. #PrettyGirls. #What'sUnderTheDress?
Ferris: Charlie is completely enthralled with this, you can tell by the expression on her face. #ProudMama.
Finn: The crowd can't get enough of either of them, this is sure to earn them a sponsor. #StarsOfTheShow.
Ferris: The best part of this is that their chariot is missing the sides, that way we can see the entire design. #360View. #Can'tMissADetail. #Vogue.
Finn: I love the added effect of the red ribbon that's floating around them like magic. #HowDoTheyDoIt?
Ferris: Clearly these girls are going to be hard to beat. #FanFavorites. #BlowinKisses.
Finn: Definitely a pair to watch as we move forward. #PrivateEyesAreWatchingYou.
