“This is it, boys. Everything you’ve been training for…this is why.”

 I stood before my trainees. So much had changed since I took charge of them. Instead of their usual District 13 attire, they were all dressed in protective clothing for the mission ahead. Bullet proof vests. Black, sturdy boots. Each of them held a black helmet under their arm, given to them not only to protect them from head trauma, but also fitted with microphones and earpieces to communicate with me, gas masks and a nightlock pill that could be torn from just in front of their lips should they be taken in for questioning. I knew it was possible any of us would be. In fact, I was certain that if we weren’t successful that day, we’d all be in for worse than questioning. It’ll be better to end it with a pill than torturing I thought.

 Even in their new outfits, my boys looked like just that. Boys. That hadn’t changed. They weren’t ready for the mission, I knew that. But Coin insisted they needed field experience, and I knew that arguing with her was dangerous, and it wouldn’t even get me anywhere. So I shut my mouth and endured the looks of fear on the boy’s faces. Because there was nothing else I could do.

  The mission’s purpose was simple: get Peeta Mellark. The process itself was not easy. Not in the slightest. I hadn’t been part of drawing up the plan, but I’d seen it several times. It was complicated, and mostly up to Beetee Latier and his team, who’d be working from inside 13 to initiate power failures in the Capitol and destroy security systems. It was our job, as soldiers, to actually get inside the Capitol prison and release Katniss Everdeen’s sweetheart. No one complained, but I know people were bitter. We were all risking our lives for one boy we didn’t even know. But we knew what he meant. He meant the upkeep of the revolution. We needed him to keep the Mockingjay going. The rebellion meant enough to us that we were willing to die for him, even if not happily so. But we kept our mouths shut.

 Or most of us did.

 “Why should we have to go?” Zach growled “What is Mellark to us?”

 “He’s everything to us,” I replied calmly “He is the reason we’re even standing up in the first place. Him and Katniss are the rebellion. And he’s innocent. He’s done nothing wrong.”

 “Neither have we, and still we’re putting out lives on the line,” Zach retorted. I sighed, and the others watched as I moved towards him, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder.

 “It’s okay to be scared,” I told him.

 “I’m not.”

 “Yes you are. And that’s what’ll keep us alive today. That, and team work.” I stepped away from him again and looked around at the others. Ronan and Alexius were the only ones who seemed ready to go. The others all looked downcast and afraid.

 “Today is a hard day for everyone,” I told them “But there’s nothing we can do now, but survive. I believe in you all. I know that no matter what happens today, you’ll do me proud. Chins up, boys. Today is the day you prove to everyone that you are good men. Good, kind, brave men. Screw everyone who ever said otherwise. You’re all heroes in my eyes. And when we come home with Peeta Mellark, no one will be able to argue otherwise. Are we ready?”

 The boys nodded, looking a little more inspired. Zach raised a hand and saluted me.

 “Thank you, Soldier Verona-Grey. We owe you a lot,” Zach said. I grinned at him.

 “Let’s not get all soppy, now. This isn’t a goodbye. We’re all going together, and we’re coming out of there together. OK?”

 Everyone nodded.

 “Right then. Let’s get to the hovercraft. Your families are waiting to say goodbye.”

 Ronan led the way to the lift, and shook my hand as he passed. Each of the soldiers followed suit, taking my hand firmly and patting my shoulder. I nodded curtly to each of them, trying not to let my own emotions and fears show in my expression. Zach flanked the group, and to my surprise, pulled me into a hug.

 “Stay safe today,” he said.

 “You too,” I replied awkwardly. Zach pulled away, and I saw a flicker of fear cross his face as we piled into the lift. Too soon, we were outside, feeling the engines blowing cold air into our faces. All the boys were saying goodbye to various family members, and I stood waiting for mine to appear. Most of the boys had boarded the hovercraft by the time my parents, Uncle Drew and Finch arrived. Finch trailed behind my mother, who looked frail and bony wrapped in a grey shawl, and my father, who was blotting tears with his shirt sleeve. I hugged my father first.

 “I’ll be home before you know it,” I told him “You won’t even realised I’m gone.”

 That only made him cry harder, but I didn’t have time to comfort him. I kissed my mother’s sharp cheeks gently and she pressed her forehead to mine momentarily, before moving to take my father’s hand. Uncle Drew cupped my face and kissed between my eyebrows.

 Finch didn’t touch me. He didn’t have to. He said goodbye with his eyes. I longed to say goodbye with my lips. To push them gently to his mouth. To press them to his neck, his chest, his hands. To say how much I missed him. That I loved him. Instead, we made do with a glance. He nodded ever so slightly. He was wishing me luck without words.

 I left my family behind with my head filled not with the task ahead, but with Finch and the fear I wouldn’t see him again.

***

 “Masks on!” Soldier Hawthorne hissed. We were crouched low behind the walls of the prison. The power in the building was due to go off at any second. That was our cue to get inside the building. But first, we needed to release the knockout gas into the ventilation system. I’d just managed to get the ventilation grill loose and pulled it away. Gale opened the canister of gas and threw it as far as he could into the system, and then snatched the grill from my hands and put it back in place.

 “Remember, Peeta’s the priority. Get Mason if you can, and Annie Cresta. But any signs of trouble, we get out of there. So long as we have Mellark. Got it?”

 Everyone nodded. Suddenly, we saw the windows in the building going dark. The power was off. I was the first to move, rushing out to the front of the building. Others followed.

 The glass doors at the front of the building were automatic and wouldn’t work without electricity. I got out a knife and wedged it between the two doors, working it open. Gale helped, pulling apart the heavy doors, and allowing us to break in. Inside the white building, people were feeling the effects of the knockout gas, stumbling around woozily and trying to shoot at us intruders. Several shots were fired before they actually passed out, wounding a few of our soldiers in the process. There was no time to wait for them. I didn’t look back to see who’d been hit.

 Gale grabbed my arm and pulled me to the stairs. I knew he wanted us to be in and out of the building as soon as possible, and that meant we needed to get to Peeta right away. We had no way of knowing where he’d be, but we knew that the highly secure prisoners were on the top floors, so we started at the very top. I felt like being back home, running up the hundreds of stairs to the top. There, the electronic door that usually kept in the prisoners was wide open, revealing a horrific scene. There were guards lying on the ground, beat to a pulp by the escaped prisoners. The prisoners were clearly making up for all the time they’d spent imprisoned by those guards by beating to death.

 And then, I spotted Johanna Mason. Her face was beaten bloody and she had no hair left on her head, but she was still distinguishable amongst the other prisoners. I heard her let out a yelp and smash her elbow into the mouth of a guard. Then she took the baton from the guard’s belt and proceeded to smash at his face. I took off the visor on my helmet to make sure I really was seeing the massacre before me.

 “That’s for this!” Johanna said, grinning as she pointed at her bruises. I stared at her in horror until she met my eye.

 “He’s not here,” she shouted “Mellark’s in the basement. But I’d hurry if I were you. They’ve prepared for a break in, and he won’t survive much longer down there.”

 I didn’t need to be told twice. I pulled Gale with me and we hurtled back down the twenty or so flights of stairs, back into the entrance hall. It was carnage in there, people shooting at the soldiers who’d managed to avoid the effects of the smoke.

 “How do we get to the basement?” I asked Gale desperately.

 “There!” Gale shouted, pointing to a trap door. It was defended by two Capitol guards, who were scanning for anyone who threatened to break through them. Gale pointed his gun immediately and took one of them out with a head shot, and I wounded the other with a shot to the chest. The look on Gale’s face as we ran for it, dodging bullets and shooting more ourselves, terrified me. It made me realise how much he’d do for the Mockingjay. How he’d risk everything for Peeta. His only threat in his and Katniss’ relationship.

 I stood guard as Gale fumbled in the guard’s pockets for the key card to the basement, firing rapidly as more and more guards approached. The place must be swarming with them I thought. Eventually, Gale found the key and swiped it to open the door. Below, all I could see was darkness, but I had a flashlight on my helmet. I switched it on and dived for the ladder that led downwards, Gale hot on my tail.

 Down and down we went. I couldn’t see much and didn’t dare look down, but I could hear the ripple of something suspiciously similar to water lapping against the shore. It was only when my boot stepped straight into water and I could feel it rising against my ankles that I realised what was going on.

 “Gale, they’re drowning him!” I screamed, panicked. Turning around, I could see Peeta’s hands tied above his head and his head was bobbing just above the water. He gasped desperately and swayed.

 “Dive under and keep him above water!” I told Gale “I’ll get his hands free!”

 The two of us threw ourselves into the water. I wasn’t sure how deep it was, and I didn’t want to find out. Our helmet allowed us to swim under the water without breathing in water, so I was able to propel myself faster towards Peeta. I took my knife from my belt and came up for air. I saw Gale pushing Peeta’s feet up to keep his head above water, and I began to hack at the rope on Peeta’s hands. But the water was quickly rising and I began to panic as Peeta’s mouth became submerged again, even with Gale keeping him up.

 “Faster!” Gale said into his mouthpiece. With one last swing of my arm, I hacked the remaining rope away and Peeta plunged into the water. Immediately, Gale hoisted Peeta onto his back and Peeta clung to him, spluttering as we began to swim back to the ladder, breathless. It was even harder hoisting ourselves from the water with our clothes wet, and with Peeta barely able to move, Gale was forced to carry him up the ladder on his back, me anxiously looking upwards and hoping they didn’t collapse. But after a long while, Gale managed to get Peeta to the surface and I hurried up after him, taking a turn with Peeta and hoisting him over my shoulder.

 Everything was quieter now. So many people lay dead on the ground that I had to step on bodies to get back to the door. I could see someone carrying Johanna Mason outside, kicking and screaming, and Ronan was ushering us out of the building.

 “Quickly! They’re bringing in backup!” he cried. I began to run quicker, Gale slowly, but surely, getting further ahead of me.

 And that was when I saw him.

 Zach was lying on the floor, groaning and bleeding out. He had a shot wound in his side, and he was making tiny noises like a wounded animal.

 “Zach!” I screamed, tears already splattering my face. I knew I had to take him with me, even if he died. He definitely wouldn’t survive there. “Gale! Gale come back!”

 Gale stopped reluctantly at the entrance of the building.

 “We have to go,” he said.

 “I’m not leaving without Zach,” I screamed “Don’t you dare ask me to. He’s my man, my team. Just like Katniss is yours, and Haymitch and Finnick. You need to help me. Please, I know you understand.”

 Behind me, more men were arriving from upper floors, weapons at the ready. Gale looked torn for a moment. Then, his face hardened and he came running back to me. He scooped Zach up in his arms and together we ran, bullets screaming behind us. We were the last on the hovercraft, and it took off almost immediately as we got in. Everyone stared at Zach in horror as he cried, blood all over his hands. He grasped at me, staining my clothes with his blood.

 “It’s okay. You’re okay. We can fix this,” I promised him, touching his face. Then, some med staff came and took him and Peeta away, and I was left with Gale and the other surviving soldiers. I clasped his hand breathlessly.

 “Thank you. Thank you,” I told him. He nodded curtly.

 “You helped me save Katniss. It was the least I could do,” he said. He leaned a little closer “You’re a good leader. A strong girl. And I admire you. Your Capitol boy is lucky to have you.”

 And for the first time in a long while, I felt a sense of pride.

 I’d done something right.

 Everything is going to be okay.

A/N: Hey everyone! This update is very overdue, so I'm sorry for making you wait, but I hope you like it! I wanted this scene to be really good. It's unedited, but I think its okay, and though I tried to stick to what little of it was described in Mockingjay, I added my own personal touches. I thought it would be interesting, especially as in the film I think they'll show the rescue scene, so this is my take on it. Enjoy, I'll try and update again soon! xx