From now on, there will be no more Emerson POV. (Sorry!) I want to focus on Blight and the Games so that is why, if you were wondering. There might be one or two chapters in Megaera's POV. Also, the picture has nothing to do with the story. Now, buckle your seat belts. Thanks for reading!

...........................

Megaera and I are pretty far away by now, but we aren't safe yet. No one is chasing us, though someone trained could catch up easily.

The soft, slippery sand is not suited for running, so we sort of slide around. The shoes do help, though. My lungs ache for air, but we have to keep running. Megaera trips, and I help her back up. The sand makes a crunching noise under our feet. Crsh, crsh, crsh. I swivel my head quickly to the bloodbath, and notice we are about half a mile away. The sweat is soaking through my shirt, and I can feel the stickiness of Lakelyn's blood. My stomach lurches, but I keep running.

Lakelyn was too young, too frail. I can't believe I watched her die. I can't believe I have her blood on my shirt. I trip over a dead bush and momentarily forget about Lakelyn. I sprawl onto the sand, badly scraping my knee and cutting my shin. I wince, but get up and keep running.

The ocean is getting closer now, I can see the waves cresting and falling. There is a shrill scream from behind, but I will myself not to look. Eight cannons sound. I try not to think about it. After about half an hour, we reach the beach and I am happy to find a medium size forest of trees for shelter. I crouch on the sand, finally able to give my lungs their air. I rip off my bloodstained shirt and throw it to the side. I let the waves wash over me and clean the blood and gore from my body.

I go back and get my shirt from the hot sand. I plunge it in the waist deep water, careful to wash away all the blood. This brings on another round of Lakelyn thoughts, which I do my best to push away. I throw my shirt back onto the sand and float in the water. I notice Megaera swimming next to me, gliding effortlessly. The bright sun shines down on us, and I think about the fact that it also shines on the eight dead bodies around the Cornucopia. "But you survived, you and Megaera." My brain reminds me. "I know," I think, "But innocent people were slaughtered." I try, once again, to push this thought away.

Megaera and I catch some fish, and pick some berries. I remember from training that these are not poisonous. The sun starts to sink low in the sky over our beach. Megaera and I have a meal of berries and uncooked fish. We don't want to risk a fire, as to not alert the careers to our location.

We finish our meal, and retreat to the forest to sleep. I scale a tree expertly and help Megaera up. The temperature is dropping, along with the sun. Soon, it is down to about 55, and we don't have any clothes on but tank tops and shorts. "God, it's freezing out here," Whispers Megaera. We huddle together for warmth.

The Capitol anthem plays, and the dead tribute's faces flash in the sky. I only recognise Lakelyn and the young girl standing next to me. She must have screamed. Only one person in this arena can make that sound. A pang of sorrow hits me, and the anthem ends. We are alone with our thoughts. Crickets chirp, and birds sing.

Both of us have the sudden impulse to kiss each other. In the frigid air, we lean in. Our lips are about to touch, when-

BOOM!

A cannon sounds, startling us. We jerk away, shivering. Our heads swivel through the air to try and spot something. I try not to wonder who that was. No hovercrafts appear. Silently, we huddle back up and fall asleep.