"Oh hey!" Rick exclaimed excitedly. "He's on his way to them. I wonder how this will play out?"

President Clair rolled her eyes, "What I care about it why the Careers are so different this year, and why that dratted boy from 12 won't bleed out..."

He sighed. "You're no fun."

◼▲◼

Leo grit his teeth and dragged his wounded and surely broken leg out of the clearing and behind a tree. He collapsed, not able to stand.

Useless useless useless, he cursed.

Though he was lucky he still had his limb. Bryce had been running when his axe had swept him off his feet so the swing wasn't too powerful. Then he'd ran straight by, determined to reach Travis.

Footsteps stopped beside him, and he stared grimly up at the girl from 1. Piper.

She gripped a dagger in one hand as she regarded him. "I can't believe you're still alive. Aren't you just a repair boy?"

"I invented the force field," he defended himself, trying to edge away from her, but his leg flared with white pain and he gasped. Leo willed himself not to look.

He had nothing to live for anyway, so hey, dying wasn't all that bad — he'd get to see his family again. It was only the primal instinct of survival that drove him to even try in the first place.

No blow came, and Piper fiddled with her weapon, "You need to hide."

"...What?"

"Don't make me repeat myself. Just go."

He was in too much agony to question it, "I kind of...can't walk, in case you...haven't noticed."

She scowled and checked over her shoulder. Then she hefted him up and with effort carried him to a dense low-branched tree and dumped him in it. "Climb. Or you're dead."

Her words powered him, and he immediately used his good leg to inch himself among the leaves.

Piper turned her back and stalked away, shuffling her feet to cover up the trail of blood. She shouted, "Bryce, where did you leave him!?"

"What do you mean?!" a boy bellowed.

"I MEAN YOU LOST HIM."

As they argued, Leo hugged the bark so he wouldn't fall, and weakly pulled a roll of bandages out of his backpack to wrap up the injury so it wouldn't drip.

Half an hour later the Careers disappeared and their voices faded, and Leo still couldn't figure out why Piper would spare him. Sweat dripped off his skin — he was losing way too much water.

He got distracted by Travis walking underneath him.

"Hey!" Leo rasped. "Up here."

Travis's head shot up, "Leo!" He scrambled up and settled himself beside him. "I'm glad you're safe. The Careers are at the desert planning to ambush people. I got to see the place — it's raining hard." He held out an unfamiliar steel thermos and popped the cap, "Here. I stole everything the girl from Two had on her belt."

Leo drank from it gratefully, "Thanks." He knew it was just water, but it tasted like nectar.

Travis gestured at his leg, "Is it broken?"

"Yeah. I managed to set it, but I won't be walking anytime soon."

His ally gave him an odd look, "That's fine. If we just stay here we can last a few more days until you can move."

Leo grimaced. He didn't feel like he would ever be able to use his leg — it honestly felt like it was on fire — but he didn't say so.

The anthem began to play, and they automatically looked towards the sky. Only the leaves blocked their view, so Travis climbed down to see whose cannon had gone off in the afternoon.

When he came up again, he was troubled. "It was Katie."

"Oh," Leo said. He remembered how Travis had wanted her as an ally. At the time he'd assumed it was because she had all that useful knowledge of plants, but maybe Travis had taken a liking to her. "Sorry man."

Travis shrugged, "It's fine. I didn't really know her." Then he went down again, saying he was going to make some snares.

◼▲◼

Nico had been trying to find a place to rest, but even under the moon's glow it was quite hard to figure out where it was actually safe. His side ached, but it thankfully didn't show any signs of being infected. The throwing knife he held in his hands in case something or someone jumped him.

When he stumbled across the Careers by accident, he nearly shrieked.

Three of them were spread out in sleeping bags, snoring away while clutching their weapons. The boy from 4 was pacing back and forth in front of a tree, examining his sword.

Nico remembered his name to be Percy, because he'd been the only Career to have a genuinely decent reason to want to win the Games, and yet didn't act like he wanted to win.

Still, he was with the Careers, and the boy from 1 had brutally killed his sister. Certainly a truly nice person wouldn't remain allied with someone like him, right?

He must've been glaring at Bianca's murderer too long, because Percy spotted him. The only thing that didn't make Nico sprint away immediately was the fact that the other boy dropped his sword.

The two of them froze. The girl with choppy dark hair turned over, but nobody woke up.

Percy's hand went to his pocket, and Nico thought it strange because the Arena didn't have any weapons you could hide in there — not even pocket knives. When he brought it out again, a familiar figurine stared at him across the clearing.

Nico blinked, not believing his eyes.

At first he thought the Career was using it to lure him forward, but Percy just threw it at him, and it landed at his feet.

He stared up at Percy, who mouthed 'I'm sorry' before picking up his sword and facing the other way, deliberately turning a blind eye.

Nico held the small object in his hands and walked off. The thing brought back all sorts of emotions and memories, the main one anger. He wanted to just throw the stupid thing away.

Although she didn't know Bryce was targeting her, he was angry that Bianca had died trying to save the stupid toy. He was mad at Percy too, for looking at him with pity when he couldn't even understand, and for apologizing and thinking that this thing could somehow make him feel better.

But most of all, it was a living reminder to be mad at himself for taking it in the first place. Bianca wouldn't have died if he hadn't acted like it was some great treasure.

Still, he held on to it, because it was all he had at this point.

Great, he thought, now he trusted Percy, whether he wanted to or not.

◼▲◼

By day four the next morning, Will's skin had gotten really red. The downside of the desert was that although it wasn't particularly hot, the sun was still strong and he couldn't spend all his time hunkering down under the two thin trees by the oasis.

And when the pouring rain began, he got really soaked, the droplets even hurt his sunburned skin instead of soothing it. It'd stopped for an hour, but his clothes were still damp.

His arm was healing up though, so that was a good thing.

He was about to start sharpening sticks to catch more fish, but saw a lone figure approaching in the distance. Will couldn't tell who it was, so he hid behind a few rocks.

When he realized it was Calypso, he was still unsure of whether to reveal himself. Who knew what people could become after a few days in the arena?

But she looked immensely tired. Her right arm wasn't moving as much as it should, and she was covered in scrapes. There was a gash in her side.

His instincts told him to go heal her, but he didn't know if it was actually a good idea.

By the time he realized she'd be able to see his footprints in the sand, she'd already called out, "Who's here? I'm not going to fight you."

Will decided to reveal himself. The girl honestly needed to just sit down and let herself heal for a second.

Her lips formed his name, and she walked a little faster. She didn't seem very happy to see him, "You've had water this entire time?"

"Yeah," he admitted. "I got lucky. See, you should've teamed with me at the start."

"Fine, you're my ally now, but don't say I didn't warn you." Then she paused, surveying the area, "Where's Nico? Wasn't he with you?"

"I lost him at the bloodbath. What happened to you?"

"Many things. The Gamemakers hated what I did. I got attacked by mutts a few times, and the latest one paralyzed my arm. Then when it was raining and I started to come here, I heard the Careers and had to run. A branch caught my side."

It took a while to dress her wound. Once her arm regained some feeling, they went to the river to catch some fish with sharpened branches.

The water was loud and the work was monotonous enough for the Gamemakers to focus elsewhere, so Will took the chance to ask his new alley some questions.

"Do you plan on winning?" Will asked curiously.

"I don't want to die, you know. I'd much rather not." Calypso took out her hunting knife and cut her branch thinner. "But if I do, the Capitol won't let me live, or at least I'd never be allowed to speak in public again. Rightfully so, because I'd just swear at them."

"Then why be this rebellious?"

She sighed in annoyance. "You're smart and cautious. I can respect that. But when the Capitol takes everyone I love, the second during my live interview, it's pretty insulting to them to pretend that it's all fine. Know what I mean?"

"Yeah," he said reluctantly. He wondered how much of their conversation the Gamemakers were cutting out. "That makes sense. So what are you doing now? Surely you don't want to win only to be forced into being a perfect Victor."

"Maybe I'll try and save someone," she said thoughtfully. "Help someone else, since I can't get myself out."

"And who do you want to save?"

She hesitated. "Leo. And not just because I think he's alright. He's almost a genius. I think he could honestly do really good things for his district. Also, he has no one at home who the Capitol can use to control him."

They were crossing dangerous territory now, and simultaneously decided to not continue the discussion in this direction.

They had caught two fish between them, and they returned to camp. Calypso managed to make a fire with bark and twigs, and they roasted the meat quickly before the smoke became too visible, just in case the Careers were close enough to see it.

Calypso then asked: "Earlier you asked me who I wanted to save. I assume you have a person in mind, too. You seem like the self-sacrificing helper type."

He wasn't sure if she meant it as a compliment or not, but he answered, "Nico."

"I don't know where he is," she said apologetically. "I left the bloodbath early."

"I barely escaped." He held up his stitched up arm for her to see. "I guess he's in the forest. Most people are. I'm pretty sure Leo is too, actually."

"And little do they know," Calypso mused, staring at the rushing river, "that the rainforest has no water. It's all in the desert."

◼▲◼

Luke was doing fine. Full backpack, a sword at his side, and pastries to keep his hunger at bay.

But it was day four, and he still had yet to find Annabeth and Thalia.

Obviously, they weren't going to be wandering around. He'd only seen Calypso once on the first day, and thought he saw maybe the girl from 12 yesterday.

He finished off the dessert and wiped his mouth. It still jarred him when he didn't feel the long scar that used to go down one side of his face. His stylists had gotten a doctor to fix it up, and the only evidence of its existence were memories.

Taking the Peacekeepers' bet to sneak into the mayor's garden and steal a stupid apple from a tree had been a terrible idea. The pit bulls had nearly torn him to shreds.

A string of green darted across the path.

What the heck?

At first, he thought it was a snake, but it was actually a lizard pulling a bunch of vines behind it. He nearly ignored it, but he realized that there was only one person he knew who would make a signal like that.

Annabeth.

He slowly followed the lizard around. The green tail ensured that he wouldn't lose it. Soon he began noticing the vines tied to branches, and that the reptile continued in that direction, probably because its home was near where Annabeth was staying.

After half an hour, he passed a snare, and then a few more. Finally he came to a cave wall covered with leaves. Leaves that only someone from the textile district would know had to be woven...

Luke pulled them aside and slipped inside. Annabeth and Thalia were busily drawing a map on the wall with what was probably berry juice, and they jumped when he came in.

"LUKE!" Annabeth ran over and hugged him. "Thank goodness. Did you find my trail?" She took his duffel bag and surveyed its contents.

He grinned. "The lizard and vines? Yeah. Very creative." He glanced over her shoulder and saw Thalia backed against the wall, staring at him blankly.

"You okay?" he asked, before he could realize what was wrong.

Thalia stared at the ground. "Nothing. I mean, I'm glad you're here. You just...look like Jason."

He sobered. "I'm sorry."

Thalia sighed and turned away.

Annabeth was nodding approvingly at his supplies, then she gazed up at him warily. "What happened with Silena and Charles?"

He'd been dreading to answer this, but thankfully he had a lot of time to craft his answer. "I ended up staying at the Cornucopia with both of them. Charles tried to stop me, and we fought. He ended up killing Silena when she tried to defend me, and then I killed him."

She stared at him intensely. "Okay," she said finally. "I guess it was unavoidable. Next time let's just stick to disadvantaging them rather them killing outright."

"Yeah," Thalia agreed, "the other tributes could have siblings at home too."

Luke couldn't help feeling a little frustrated. Yes, he was sure that even the Careers all had families and friends that'd miss them if they died, but humanizing the other players only made them harder to beat.

Plus, all but one were dying anyway, so why couldn't it be him that did the job? Maybe now District Eight would get more attention. The Capitol's eyes used to skip straight over them. After all, they were just factory workers.

Only he figured nobody would appreciate his reasoning, so he asked, "So what's the plan?"

Annabeth made her thinking face, "For now, survive. Between the three of us, we've got enough food and water to last us a few days while we wait for the competition to thin. Oh, and tell me what you know about the rest of the arena, along with anyone you saw."

Luke told her, leaving no details. Thalia listened in with a sort of detachment that implied she honestly didn't care whether she lived or died.

He didn't know much. He explained how before setting the fire in the Cornucopia, he'd made a "safe house" near the middle of the forest, where he'd stored extra clothes and weapons. The rest of the rainforest was pretty much the same as where they were now — no water.

He'd briefly gone to the meadows to see what it was like, and Annabeth became very interested when he described it as so cold it ought to be snowing.

"I've figured out the arena," Annabeth said. "Well, I suspected for a while, but now I know for sure."

"What?" he asked.

"The climates are flipped," she explained, and the four puzzles pieces abruptly slid into place. "The desert has all the rain, and the rainforest has nothing but cold nights and dying plants. The only reason it's not very hot here is because the trees block the sun. So since temperatures at the meadows are near zero, the tundra must be fairly mild. I'm willing to bet there's even vegetation."

Thalia began to look interested, "You're really smart."

Annabeth shrugged, "I guess. Anyway, the rain must've been the first hint at what's going on. Tributes who entered the desert from another region should be close to figuring it out if they haven't already. At some point everyone will know the forest might not be the ideal place to be."

She frowned, "But the thing is, there's going to be more. Obviously the Gamemakers will push us together somehow. The forest is massive and not everyone would risk leaving it for the other areas, where they'll be much more out in the open."

And she turned out to be right, because just as she'd finished the sentence, they heard, once again, the telltale pitter-patter of raindrops. This time it was nearby — definitely within the forest.

But when the three went out to collect some drinking water, they were met with an entirely different scene from what they'd imagined.

In the near distance, the trees were blackened and sagging. Desert creatures scurried for their lives, and the bitter smell of burning life filled the dry air.

It was raining acid.