"We're here!" Penelope declared.

The four Careers stood at the edge of the forest. After several days of traveling, they'd finally reached the end of the woods. Before them was a small pond full of clear, cold water–they'd already filled their canteens to the brim with it. Now, they stood, nearly at the end of their journey. For before them, the mountains stretched tall, seeming to reach endlessly into the sky. Looking at them filled Leonardo with wonder.

"Wow," Hazel breathed, her eye wide with awe. "It's...beautiful."

"Are we going to gawk at these mountains, or climb them?" Monica asked, with a hint of teasing to her voice. "Come on, let's go."

She led the way, and together the Careers began to climb. This time, Leonardo brought up the rear. Penelope trekked not far ahead of him, and in front of her was Hazel. Both girls' hair looked crazier than it had been before they'd entered the Arena. Leonardo wondered if the weather had gotten to their hair. Probably.

"So what exactly is the plan for when night falls?" asked Penelope. "How do we set up shelter?"

"Maybe there will be caves around here," Hazel suggested.

"There may be no caves here at all," Mona added. "This could all be one big sham from the Capitol."

"Don't think like that," Leonardo scolded. "Look, guys, we didn't come this far to start doubting ourselves. We'll be safe in these mountains."

"You're never truly safe in these Games," Monica muttered, her voice barely audible.

The four of them had only been climbing for a few minutes when a low rumble suddenly erupted from farther up. At first, it was faint, like the wheels of a cart rolling on a tile floor. No one heard it. But it rapidly grew louder and louder, stronger and stronger, until it was absolutely deafening. The earth began to shake and tremor violently. The Careers froze, their muscles tensing.

"WHAT IS THAT?" Hazel hollered over the noise, pressing her hands to her ears. She gritted her teeth, not at all liking the extremely loud noise.

Leonardo's head snapped up as he stared forward. Ahead of them, what looked like a gigantic gray cloud swirled and rolled. The blue-masked turtle squinted, his heart speeding up with each passing second.

Is it...coming toward us?

A pebble flew down the slope, rolling over Mona's foot. Penelope's eyes widened as more and more rocks began to rain down on them. The gray cloud grew closer, seeming to eat up the ground as it progressed rapidly forward. The roaring grew impossibly louder, like a lion roaring constantly in their ears. Leonardo realized with a surge of panic what it was.

"AVALANCHE!" he screamed.

The four Tributes instantly whipped around and started running. Cliffs crumbled and fell high above their heads, sending sprays of rock raining down on them. Behind them, the avalanche grew larger and larger, keeping up with them with deadly speed.

Hazel's foot sunk deep into the snow, tripping her and sending her landing on the ground with a shriek. Mona's feet skidded as she stopped running, rapidly helping the younger girl back up again. Leonardo barely had time to glance at them over his shoulder before he found himself fleeing again. The only clue he had that his allies were still following was the faint sound of their footsteps crunching on the snow. Penelope raced along ahead of him, rapidly picking up speed.

Leo's strides grew longer as the roar of the avalanche filled his ears completely, ringing in his brain until it was a all he could hear. He ran faster and faster down the mountain, past Penelope, his large feet practically flying, as the avalanche rumbled down after him. A pang of hope pricked Leonardo's heart as he saw the tall trees of the forest ahead of him.

If we can just make it to the forest, we'll be safe.

He sped up, his muscles screaming and his face hot, as he rocketed down the mountain. Determination fueled his every step. Cold wind rushed into his face, making his eyes water. Finally, he sprang forward, breaking into the cover of the tall trees at last. He kept going, stumbling in the snow, until the violent rumbling of the avalanche was only a far-off echo. Leonardo doubled over, catching his breath, his chest heaving. A sense of shocked relief washed over him.

We survived.

"Holy shell, you guys," he breathed, turning around to face his allies. "We made it! We–"

His voice trailed off as he realized that he was speaking to no one.

Hazel, Mona, and Penelope were nowhere to be seen.

It was then that a cannon boomed, making Leonardo's heart sink into his stomach. Not a moment later, a second cannon went off. Leonardo's stomach twisted and flipped. He nearly doubled over and vomited. Horror gripped his body like a gigantic fist. Slowly, he sank to his knees, bowing his head as sorrow flooded over him like a river.

I hate these Games.

I hate them so much.

***

As it turned out, Monica and Hazel had been the ones to die in the avalanche. They were only Tributes to appear in the sky that night.

Seeing their smiling faces and the light in their eyes made grief stab once more at Leonardo's heart. He sighed, slumping against the nearest tree trunk and burying his face in his hands.

At least Penelope didn't die. She's still out there, somewhere. But where could she be? She could be anywhere by now. I may never see her again.

Hazel and Mona's faces flashed in his mind for what felt like the millionth time that day. Seeing Monica's face especially made him feel guilty–she'd been his friend since he was small. She'd helped him through the hardest of situations, she'd been there to cheer him up when he was down. She'd given him advice that he wouldn't have been able to live without. He heaved a deep sigh.

I'm sorry, you guys. I should've stayed by you. But I was too determined to save myself that I didn't even think about saving you.

I left you to die.

Moisture began to accumulate in his blue eyes as the two Tribute's faces faded from the sky–fading away forever. Leo turned away, beginning to trudge away into the snow-filled woods as tears started rolling down his cheeks.

Where am I even going? Shell if I know. I'll just wander, I guess.

Slowly, he dragged one foot in front of the other, his gaze fixed on the ground. The cold night wind swirled around him, making goosebumps pop up on his green skin. The blue-clad turtle shivered, his teeth beginning to chatter. A slight rustle sounded from somewhere nearby, but he ignored it.

Probably just the wind on leaves.

Suddenly, a heavy weight smacked into Leonardo's shell, knocking the wind out of him and throwing him to the ground as he shrieked with terror. Two heavy paws pressed down on his plastron, and Leo found himself staring up at a hulking, jet-black wolf with three jagged scars over its left eye. It bared its sharp teeth, snarling. Leonardo gasped as he looked into its eyes. They were familiar.

It's Destiny. She's going to kill me!

He didn't bother struggling.

Nearly all my friends are dead anyway. What's the use in fighting it?

So he closed his eyes, bracing himself for his death. To his surprise, the weight on his plastron vanished. He opened his eyes to see that the enormous canine had morphed back into the winged wolf-girl he was used to.

"Leo?" Destiny breathed, her eyes wide. "I thought you were prey!"

Leonardo scrambled to his feet, regaining his breath. His head spun, and he shook it to clear it.

"And I thought you were gonna kill me," he responded shakily.

"The only thing I want to kill around here is prey," she responded. "Which there isn't much of in this weather."

Her fluffy tail flicked as she crossed her arms, rubbing her hands against them for warmth.

"So...I see most of your allies died," she spoke softly.

"Yeah..."

"I'm sorry."

Leo didn't reply, only taking a deep breath.

"I hate these Games," he muttered at last, turning away.

Destiny's tail drooped and her ears pressed against her head, her eyes growing sad. For a moment, the two of them stood side-by-side, fingertips brushing, in complete silence.

"I know now might not be the best time," Destiny murmured at last, "but would you want to ally?"

Leonardo turned his head to look at her.

"I could use some company now that the others are gone," he replied glumly.

Until we all die anyway.

A slight smile played on the wolf-raven's face. 

"Come on, then," she said. "I'll show you to my den. I've got some leftovers there, if you don't mind eating raw snow hare."

Within a few seconds, she'd morphed back into a wolf and was taking off through the woods, her paws practically flying over the snow. Leonardo followed, grief still weighing him down with every step he took.