Muffled screaming came from a small supply closet in the back of the Control Room. The key-coded lock situated on the wall beside the door was gleaming brightly with the word: LOCKED displayed across its screen. The heavy door did little to drown out the sound of the fists that banged against it or the livid threats that followed. 

Amelia sighed, swiveling in her chair as Drake typed furiously on the keyboard before him, sending command after command into their arena. Her eyes followed along with each button he pressed, scanning his decisions with a trained eye. "Make it more red," she critiqued. "I like red. It's passionate. It's bold." He followed her advice without a word, lost in the technical jargon that filled the screen. The faces of three fallen tributes, Parabella Bluestone-Scoria, Jazzyn "Jaz" Jones, and Athena Olive, popped up on the screen and he dismissed them with an annoyed scoff. Amelia stood up to lean over him, hair falling across his shoulders. 

"You think she'll get out?"

"A spoiled princess like her?" Drake laughed. "I doubt she's ever learned to open a door on her own."

★THE TASK★

Ladies and Gentlemen, we started this competition with four arenas, six mutts, and over twenty possible tasks. Everything up to this point has been chosen by you with absolutely no help or persuasion whatsoever. If any of the choices had come out just a little tiny bit different, you would have been on a completely different task right now, doing something else entirely. Maybe you would have had a banquet this task. Or maybe you would have been attacked by poison-spitting lizards in the last task. But no. Instead, you've chosen the only possible sequence of events that would allow us to set you all on fire. 

So, congratulations, I guess. 

Time has passed in the arena, time enough for you to take care of your wounds and rest from the attack. Some of you are left with the voices in your ears, either your own or those you cannot reach. Some of you drown them out with busyness, hunting down as many of the disappearing birds as you can and watching in delight as they die. Night falls on the arena twice without incident, without Gamemaker interference, but as you sleep tonight, you won't sleep easy.

So many of you are hiding in the jungle, safe from the eyes of the other competitors. But no longer will the dense foliage be your ally. The smell of smoke will reach your nostrils long before the heat does. When you wake up, you will wake to find the world burning around you. A force field blocks you from the water and the coves floating just beyond the island that might've offered you safety. As the jungle burns, it will soon become apparent that the only way to escape is to make it to the beach, where your other competitors will surely be waiting. The Gamemakers want to force you back together, to see you fight, and if no blood gets spilled you can be sure there will be consequences.

There is, however, another option. Should you find yourself by the shack holding supplies, buried beneath a thin layer of sand will be a trap door. It leads down into a small cellar, both empty and leading to nowhere. Down there, you will be safe from the fire. 

Your only requirement this task is to make it to one of these two places: The beach, or the cellar. 

★WORD LIMIT★

2,250 Words

★DEATHS AND BALLOTS★

Three deaths.

Four ballots.

★DEADLINE★

Tuesday, March 7th at 9:00 P.M. CST

★BALLOT CHALLENGE★

Since Kiefer Elwood has not completed his challenge from the previous task, the same challenge will be issued to them this task. Kiefer must receive a serious injury in entry.

In addition, Josef Thomas, Valentine Rachmanioff, Evelyn Gray, Sequoia Carlisle, and Cadette Lance, will all have to have at least one death in this task.

★SPONSORSHIP★

Kiefer Elwood has received from his sponsor a jar of burn and injury cream, with a note attached. It reads, "Someone as handsome as you doesn't need those features too torn up. -A"

Laurus Enzo has received from his sponsor two bottles of water, also with a note attached. His reads, "Keep yourself hydrated--it's better for your skin. -A"

Fawn Elphinstone has decided to reassign her sponsorship to Percy Cole for this task. Eden Karam may win back the sponsorship only by receiving a higher score. If the sponsorship is won back, all the perks remain even if used by Percy this task. Good luck.

★★★CHOICES GAME★★★

This is the only choice in the competition that will not affect the task directly after it. This choice must also correlate with your entry. For this task, your choice to make is:

Above or Below?

Please put your answer below in the comments or at the end of your entry. Answers will not be taken after the deadline, and failure to answer will result in penalties of up to a half point deduction from your score.