PROLOGUE
Fool's Gold

THE SIXTY-SIXTH HUNGER GAMES
THE ARENA, THE CAPITOL

AN INHABITANT OF DISTRICT 4 EVER SINCE SHE COULD REMEMBER, Mira's always been surrounded by water. Her father is a fisherman and they live alongside the water on the commune where all fishermen and their families reside: the Berth. Fittingly named for the deck on naval ships that its sailors would sleep on.

For the first eleven years of her life, the water's comforted Mira. It's always been a welcoming sign of home. A friend.

Now, it was her enemy.

Upon first glance, Mira could be considered to have a leg up in this arena, consisting of a cornucopia surrounded by white water rapids and farther out, a lush forest with rivers and streams scattered throughout. In any direction you glanced, water could be spotted.

Water. A welcoming sign of home. A friend.

Naively, Mira treated it as such. After following her mentors' advice of ditching the bloodbath and instead escaping to higher ground as soon as possible, Mira came upon a cave whose furthest interior wall was indeed no wall at all, but instead a waterfall. The warm, humid weather and physical exertion brought fatigue and dehydration upon Mira's body, and - as anyone would - she extended her cupped hands out towards the water, expecting to feel the familiar refreshing feeling wash over her hands.

Upon contact, a sharp burning feeling spread across her flesh instead. Mira quickly recoiled her hands, wincing as she watched the very edges of her fingernails disintegrate from the apparent acid-containing liquid. She instinctively wiped her hands on her suit to even somewhat ease the burning pain, only for the undesirable sensation to transfer onto the tops of her thighs where she rubbed her hands.

Now beginning to sweat profusely - partially from sprinting away from the cornucopia, partially from anxiety about what would happen if this acid doesn't stop at just Mira's fingertips, partially from the pain radiating from the burning of her aforementioned body parts - Mira's heartbeat quickened as she frantically thought of what to do. A bit of light shone into the cave from its entrance, and Mira recalled the patch of grass sitting right outside it. She ran as fast as she could towards the entrance, now with limps in either leg as she began to lose feeling in her quadriceps.

Finally reaching the opening of the cave, Mira collapsed onto the ground as she began rolling around the grass as if she were on fire. She rubbed her hands against the ground, desperately hoping the remaining acid would be absorbed by the earth.

Mira was too occupied in trying to relieve herself of the pain to identify the approaching footsteps, and outside viewers concluded that this would certainly be the moment where she's slain.

Instead, the eighteen-year-old male tribute dropped his guard in realization, "Mira?" She whipped her head around, heart about to leap out of her chest before slightly relaxing once she recognized her district partner, Fen. Her eyes noticed the small bag tied onto his pants, hanging at his side, and the lone sword in his dominant hand.

He took a step forward to offer Mira his free one, "I tried to see where you went," Fen began, "but I lost sight of you pretty quickly. Finding you here was pure luck." She nodded along as she glanced around, attempting to wipe the dirt from her hands onto his pant legs. Fen nodded towards the ground, declined hand still outstretched, "What were you doing rolling all around?"

Mira stood up without his aid and nodded over her shoulder in the direction of the cave, "There's a waterfall at the end of that cave. I reached out, thinking it was water," she shook her head, "but it wasn't. Acid. It was acid." She held her hands out, examining both her palms and backs of them for any residual wounds. The skin was visibly red and tender, but the burning had calmed down significantly.

Fen noticed her hands too and connected to dots as to why she didn't accept his help standing, "I'm assuming it got your hands?"

Mira nodded, shaking out her hands in an attempt of creating some sort of air to cool them off, "Yeah, they were burning bad. That's why I was rubbing them on the ground, to try and make the grass absorb it or something." She half-heartedly shrugged, "I mean, it worked."

Fen reached into the knapsack at his side and pulled out a metal flask, uncapping it before extending it out towards Mira, "Want some real water?" She readily accepted the flask, not bothering to give a verbal answer before putting the rim of the opening to her lips and appreciating the familiar taste of water - actual water.

Mira removed the flask from her mouth, leaving some water remaining, and noticed Fen wasn't in front of her anymore. She looked around worriedly, feeling anxiety bubble up inside of her until she saw him behind her, beside the cave entrance. He ripped up a bundle of grasses and laid them beside the entry, laying a flat rock on top.

"What's that for?" Mira asked, referencing his homemade decoration.

"A marker, so that if we ever come back 'round here, we'll know this is the acid cave," Fen explained, wiping his hands on his own pants. He stepped back towards Mira and screwed the lid of the flask back on, returning it to his bag. He unsheathed his sword that he held in one of the loops of his waistband, nodding onwards, "Shall we?"

That was day one of the Games.

Three days have passed, all but three of the tributes were dead, and small, twelve-year-old Mira Bielatir's head was being forcibly held underwater by a boy who viewed himself as the greatest thing to ever come from District 2, Pyrite.

He only had one hand wrapped around her throat, but that was all he needed to keep her head submerged under water, her thrashing legs beside him useless. Both of Mira's hands were clasped onto Pyrite's, trying and failing to pry his iron-clad fingers off of her. Her chest tightened as it was rejected oxygen, and her vision became dotted with black spots.

Her eyes became heavier and forced themselves to slowly shut, and her fingers slowly unraveled from around Pyrite's calloused ones. Mira's arms floated perpendicularly from her body as she felt her racing heartbeat slow down, her once-thrashing body going almost completely still.

There was a small period of time - a few milliseconds, maybe - where Mira thinks she was dead. And it was...underwhelming. An eternal pit of nothingness. No utopian society waiting for her where everyone lives in harmony, no bearded man wearing white robes and sandals with a glowing aura surrounding him, prepared to greet her at the gates guarding Paradise.

It was simply nothingness, and this was not only the day Mira Bielatir began to fear water, but also began to fear death.

However, she was soon ripped away from the never-ending blackness she was submerged in as her head was pulled above water by Fen, who had been able to stab Pyrite in the back to occupy his time for a few seconds, allowing Fen to ensure Mira didn't die.

He shook her by the shoulders, "Mira! Mira!" Fen glanced over his shoulder, seeing that Pyrite was still on the ground, trying to dislodge the sword from his back although his arms couldn't move far around enough to reach, imitating a dog chasing its own tail. Fen returned his attention towards Mira, shaking her shoulders once more, "Mira!"

Her mouth opened before her eyes, spluttering out the water that occupied the sacs of her lungs. Fen quickly, and quite roughly, helped her stand, pushing her away in the direction of the forest, "Go!" Mira stumbled forward from the unsuspected shove, looking back towards Fen only to see him pointing towards the forest, "Go! Run!" At the sight of Pyrite almost able to reach the blade in his back from over Fen's shoulder, Mira followed his instructions: she turned around and ran.

Over the past few days, Mira hadn't gotten a good enough sense of the forest to know where certain landmarks were. As she was running in no specific direction, just away from the cornucopia, she especially had no idea where she was going, but she just kept running. She could not stop running.

The artificial trees and plants of the forest looked so identical that Mira had the sense that she was running in circles, and still disoriented from nearing drowning, she couldn't certainly say whether or not she was or wasn't. She eventually came across a familiar bundle of grasses held down by a flat rock on top, and glanced over to see the entrance of the cave from day one.

Desperate for an opportunity for rest, Mira ran inside, expecting to see the visualization of what she saw in her head. And, technically, she did - just with two other additional guests.

Mira approached and was met with Pyrite's back facing her as he was face-to-face with Fen at the end of the cave, dangerously close to the waterfall behind him.

Pyrite slowly stepped forward, machete drawn, and lowly chuckled as Fen reacted, "Ah...it's just you and me, Four...no one here to help you now..." Fen noticed the movement over Pyrite's shoulder and glanced up, heart dropping at the sight of Mira. He was hoping he'd somehow be able to throw both himself and Pyrite over this cliff into the body of acidic water, leaving Mira as the lone Victor; however, the situation just got more complicated tenfold.

Pyrite noticed Fen's fixation on something behind him and narrowed his eyebrows, "What?" He quickly glanced over his shoulder without letting his guard down in the slightest, subtly surprised to see Mira had joined them. Pyrite quickly returned his attention to Fen who had tried to take the opportunity to strike, only for Pyrite to deflect his sword's blade with ease, knocking the weapon to the stone surface below them with a clang. Within a second, Pyrite had Fen in a chokehold with his machete's blade pressed to his neck, both facing Mira from across the depth of the cave. The succession of events occurred so quickly that if one would have blinked, they would have easily missed it.

Pyrite's mouth morphed into a smirk as he effortlessly tamed Fen's attempts to break free, "Well, look who decided to join us." Mira was unsure why he was using such theatrics since it wasn't like Mira held a weapon in her hand that she could use to strike Pyrite from, what? Two, three yards away? She didn't have any weapon on her body, actually, and her seventy-something-pound figure didn't exactly pose a huge threat either.

Pyrite knew what he was doing; the Academy teaches its students to show no mercy, even towards the calf destined to be slaughtered after barely being allowed to live. He watched as Mira's petite figure shook in fear, having gotten this far by having an abnormally good fortune and was now counting down her last few minutes of life - although it was arguable Mira ceased living the moment she was reaped to play in these Godforsaken Games. Either she died in the arena, or would abide by President Snow's beck and call; neither could be considered "living."

Mira watched as Fen kept trying to use his body to his advantage, but his thin and lanky stature had nothing on Pyrite's healthy, broad build. Fen didn't live in the Berth like Mira, but he lived in the adjacent Orlop where the citizens weren't exactly bathing in food and riches like the district is publicized to be. Pyrite, however, evidently came from a background where he never had to be concerned over whether or not he'd have a meal for the night or enough well-fitting clothes to make it through the winter. His greatest - and only - concern was to succeed in the Academy and come home a Victor to bring pride to his district and his family; so far, he had done the former and was well on his way to complete the latter.

The tension in the cave was thick as Pyrite toyed with both of them, pressing his blade further down onto Fen's neck as Mira watched, useless. Fen and Mira made eye contact and came to the same conclusion: they were going to die. There was no way around it. Unless the universe decided to grace them with a miracle, Fen couldn't break free from Pyrite's unwavering grip who was only dragging out his inevitable death; as soon as Fen's jugular was irreversibly punctured, Mira would quickly succumb to the same fate.

Pyrite nodded towards Mira, "Well...? Are you even going to try to save him?" He made a faux pout as he spoke in a baby-voice, "Or is the little girl too scared?" Fen audibly grunted as he attempted to jolt his body free, unable to speak coherent words since the sharp edge of the blade rested directly against his throat. Pyrite momentarily loosened his grip before quickly grabbing Fen in a tighter hold, "Nuh, uh, uh. I know you're anxious...you'll be out of your misery soon enough." He adjusted his grip on his blade, his mouth nearly salivating at the prospect of acquiring the title of "Victor" in just a few short moments.

He roughly gripped onto the scruff of Fen's neck, "Any last words?"

A vein in Fen's forehead bulged as he glanced once more towards Mira, clenching his jaw before speaking directly towards her, "Run."

Pyrite sighed, "Such a waste of a breath," and didn't hesitate before swiping the machete along Fen's neck, bright red blood spurting out from his carotid artery and his mouth, staining the stone ground before him as well as his skin that the blood ran down. Pyrite gripped onto Fen's body and turned around, tossing Fen off the cliff and into the waterfall in one fell swoop.

Instead of going by in an instant like it had been for the entire duration of her time in the arena, time slowed down as Mira felt herself leave her body. The sight of life leaving Fen's eyes that were locked onto hers as he ultimately fell to his death and his mutilated yells from being submerged in acid never left her mind, looping on repeat. She felt that she became an observer of the situation, her soul temporarily leaving her body to be able to see both herself and Pyrite.

Boom. The cannon sounded, confirming that Fen was deceased.

This entire time, Mira was unsure if she'd ever be able to kill someone. It simply wasn't in her nature (ironic since she is now in the Hunger Games), and the thought of picking up Fen's discarded sword on the cave floor and sending it through Pyrite's abdomen caused bile to rise in her throat.

So, she didn't. Instead, she followed Fen's instructions once again. She ran.

Mira's arms and legs pumped in slow motion as she ran forward, towards Pyrite who still had his back turned. Though he never reacted, the bleached and disintegrated spots on the back of his suit from where the acid had splashed on him were evident, showing his reddened skin underneath. His machete was covered in blood and dripping onto the stone below it. Pyrite was too busy admiring his handiwork to notice the girl approaching him from behind - rather quickly, too.

Mira ran with such speed and force that she's ever experienced before. Perhaps it was all the pent-up anger, or the adrenaline, but Mira exhibited no signs of stopping that she worried for herself whether or not she would.

Instead, she used her momentum and entire body weight into pushing onto Pyrite's back, causing him to tumble forward and turn around at the last second, ready to strike but unable to since he lost his balance. His arms flailed backwards in circles as he stumbled closer and closer to the edge, his upper body eventually taking predominance and sending him into the waterfall. At the moment of realization that he was about to meet his doom, Mira noticed the shift in emotion behind his eyes. His arrogant attitude disappeared as genuine fear took over. For the first time since this entire process began, Pyrite finally showed a sense of humanity. Mira stood frozen as she watched his body become enveloped inside the water, his agonizing screams echoing and filling her ears before it went out of earshot.

The cloudiness of the water prevented Mira from seeing what was on the other side, simply stuck inside the cave with the water barrier separating her from Fen and Pyrite, who ultimately faced the same death. Mira stood there, eyes wide open with a heaving chest as the weight of what she had done came rushing over her.

At the final cannon's boom, Mira dropped to the ground, quickly becoming overwhelmed. Now, she couldn't stop seeing Pyrite's last moments before his fall, his last moments of breathing. Surely, he and Fen were now burned beyond recognition - possibly nothing more than two piles of ashes. The water continued splashing inside the cave towards Mira, burning the random parts of her body that it touched, and yet she didn't even flinch.

The pain of causing the end of a life was far more heavier to bear.

Suddenly, a man's voice resounded inside the arena, "Ladies and gentlemen, may I present the Victor of the sixty-sixth Hunger Games...

"Mira Bielatir."

She may be the last one standing, but Mira would be foolish to believe that she was truly victorious.

AHH THE REWRITE HAS OFFICIALLY BEGUN!!! i opted against showing mira's games in an entire act like i did before and instead condensed it all into this prologue frankly bc,,, i didn't feel like rewriting her games lol. i want to focus more on the aftermath of her games + how it affects her (esp bc she's so young), so if this prologue seemed a little all over the place, that's intentional since mira's memory is going to be spotty and arrange her memories in a different order than how they happened due to the severity of the environment, initial ptsd effects, etc

i updated back-to-back weeks for the summary and prologue to kick start things, and while in an ideal world i would be able to stick to updating this once a week, i'm instead going to try my best to update once a week but will guarantee an update at least every other week. every other week is more of an achievable goal for myself that will actually allow me to be able to finish this rewrite (unlike the first lol) but i will try my best to get these out asap. i'm sure at some point something will come up that will delay a chapter until the next week or so, but i'm going to try my best to stick to this update schedule you have my word 🤞🏼 anyway i'm itching to start publishing real chapters and hope you're as excited as i am!!