Chapter Twelve.

A/N: I won't say much up here, expect a detailed A/N after this chapter. What you're about to read, I'm sure you'll be disappointed by. Not the content, I really like this chapter, so good job to Teddy for getting this put together. But you won't like the fact that this chapter marks the end of this story. We have reasons, so yes expect them later on.

For now, enjoy!

The Careers: Reign Arondight, Calaise Therian, Julius Dumont, Sierra Lange, Tiberion Wadell, Aliset Chevillar.

The Careers formed instantly back in training on the first day.

Tiberion had his eyes on becoming the leader of the Pack ever since he volunteered. He wanted to show not only District Four that he was capable of responsibility and leading a group of people, but also the Capitol. He had something to prove from this alliance, but he wasn't the only one.

Reign and Calaise didn't say much in matters pertaining to the group. They nodded their heads, stepped back, and observed it all. Julius and Sierra were the most talkative, while Aliset smiled, giggled, and agreed with whomever she needed to.

With Tiberion in charge, nothing could go wrong. He was able to manage each ally, considering each of their concerns and questions. He wanted to be a responsible leader, one who worked with his allies and wasn't tyrannical. It's how he was taught in District Four.

Julius and Aliset were open to his suggestions and to his leadership. They gladly obeyed, never causing a scene or an argument. Sierra had her moments, though, where she purposely instigated a conflict with Tiberion or Calaise. She giggled and laughed it off, while no one suspected a thing.

No one ever noticed the cracks in the alliance.

The cracks that would ruin the alliance from the inside-out.

Alliance #2: Oscaron Linnerchip, Levi Rinehart, Wyatt Lane, Frazier Malcolm.

Wyatt thought he was being clever by allying with Oscaron during the chariot rides.

Oscaron saw no problem with it, finding Wyatt's boisterous personality endearing. Wyatt patronized Oscaron, though, and only wanted to ally with him to benefit himself. He wanted a lapdog, but only Oscaron would not suffice.

Wyatt never stopped at just one before, so he didn't want to start now.

Levi and Frazier became allies on the first day of training, with Levi approaching the boy with a warm smile and kind words. Levi didn't want to use Frazier like Wyatt wanted to use Oscaron; it was a mutual alliance.

When Oscaron approached the two boys, they all shook hands. As Wyatt came over, though, Levi immediately was suspicious of him. Levi was a smart, perceptive boy. Right away, Levi didn't trust Wyatt. Oscaron and Frazier might have, but Levi was completely opposed to the idea of allying with him, yet he didn't do a thing about it.

They all allied, anyway.

Levi started to count down the days until Wyatt would ruin it all somehow.

Alliance #3: Juliette Durand, Ciel Fontaine, Juno Burnet.

Ciel had no problems with talking to new people. He was charismatic, friendly, and had a way with words. He knew to avoid the Career tributes, so when he saw Juno working alone at the fire-station, he went over right away, hand extended. They shook hands, and soon after, they were allies.

Juno was thankful for finding an ally and a friend. Ciel simply wanted someone that would entertain him and that would pass the time.

When the two boys noticed Juliette rolling her eyes and flipping her hair at the running-station, they went over. She was berating the trainer at the station for messing up the time it took for her to run it. Ciel laughed, joining in on the taunts and when the trainer finally walked away, Juliette stayed.

Juliette always wanted an ally but never knew how to go about getting one.

It was easier than she thought, apparently.

Maybe everything else was, too.

Alliance #4: Lauro Calert, Sadia Garris.

Sadia approached Lauro back in the Training Center, snickering at his attempts to tie a simple knot. She offered help, while he rejected it. Sadia persisted, while Lauro eventually let his façade down, accepting help from his District partner.

Sadia toyed with him. She wanted to see what he was capable of – to see what he could actually do. Knot-tying proved nothing. Running around in circles proved nothing.

Wielding a bladed-weapon did prove something, however.

It proved that he could kill.

And Sadia wanted an ally that wouldn't be afraid to kill.

She wanted one that wouldn't be afraid to survive.

Alliance #5: Armity Selsun, Mitzie Hunter.

Mitzie's rambunctious and rowdy attitude attracted not only Armity, but Adelyn and Rebekah as well. Mitzie appreciated Armity's ability to snap back if someone overstepped their boundaries. Mitzie appreciated Rebekah's determination, too. Mitzie didn't appreciate Adelyn's complete disregard for everyone else around her, though.

Mitzie couldn't get along with Adelyn, and really, no one could, besides Rebekah.

The four girls tried to maintain their alliance, yet on the last day of training, it was too much for Mitzie to handle. It was too much for Armity to witness and it was too much for Adelyn to handle. Adelyn didn't want to be artificial with anyone – with Adelyn, what you see is what you get.

And, if Mitzie or Armity didn't like it, then it wasn't Adelyn's problem.

The four girls then split up into two pairs of two.

They all thought they would be better off this way.

Alliance #6 Adelyn Varelis, Rebekah Amare.

To them, it was better off this way. Less people to worry about. Less people to betray when the time came.

Adelyn saw Rebekah as a toned-down version of her, unlike Mitzie and Armity. They had morals. They had a regard for people back home, for anyone that wasn't themselves.

Adelyn didn't find that compatible.

Adelyn cared for herself and for herself only.

With Rebekah, though, she put that to the side; for the time being, at least. Adelyn knew that eventually, even this smaller alliance would crumble, and that she would betray Rebekah without a second of hesitation.

Adelyn still would put herself first.

No one else mattered. Nothing else mattered.

Alliance #7: Remy Prynne, Ilise Massey.

Everyone saw this alliance coming.

They were the two youngest girls there. They were the nicest, the most selfless, and the friendliest girls. It was Remy who approached Ilise with a wide smile. Ilise stood up from her table, hugged Remy, and just from that gesture, they were allies.

They talked about complete nonsense and shared stories. They laughed and poked fun at each other. They talked about their competition, about their lives back home, and the Games were not brought up once. They were enjoying each other's company.

They became more than just allies.

They became the best of friends.

Alliance #8: Erron Barnum, Eleza Leore.

This was the last alliance to form. Due to the pressure from their mentors and the realization that they were the only loners left, they formed an alliance. It was tense. It was shaky. It was awkward.

Eleza knew it wouldn't last. Erron, however, hoped that it did. He didn't want to go into the Games alone.

He wanted somebody to be there for him.

While Eleza knew what it was like to be alone. To be on her own.

It was only a matter of time until Erron had to learn to live on his own.

The Twentieth Hunger Games.

The Games were set in a mausoleum.

The tributes started out underground. They all stared at the center, looking at the makeshift Cornucopia. It was made of wood, and the ceiling was high, stone surrounding them all. There were tunnels that jutted out from the center area, some of them being darker than others.

Behind each tribute was a hole in the wall, resembling a spot where a body would be laid the arena were holes in the wall and the ground. There were skeletons lying throughout the tunnels. It was dreary and ominous.

Everything reminded the tributes of death.

It was morbid, yet fitting.

Twenty-three of them were going to die, after all.

Only one could live.

Day One.

24th: Remy Prynne of District Twelve.

Sierra didn't want to waste any time.

Sierra sprinted right towards the middle, and she lowered her hand, scooping up a machete. She run to the other side, and when she saw Remy hunched over a few backpacks, she knew who her first target was going to be. Sierra had always wanted to commit the first kill of the Games.

And this was her chance.

She stabbed Remy right in the back, leaving the machete in her as she fell forward. Sierra turned around, grinning at the sight of Ilise standing there already crying.

It's almost as if Sierra did it on purpose.

She wanted Ilise to see her ally's death.

23rd: Juliette Durand of District Five.

Tiberion saw Sierra make her first kill.

He wanted to do the same now. He grabbed a sword, and as he spun around, he saw the red head girl trying to escape from the area. She was fast, but Tiberion was faster. He chased after her, and as she heard him coming, she tried to sprint away faster.

Tiberion got a hold of her, though, and with one swift movement, his sword impaled her through the back.

As she fell to the ground, Tiberion felt triumphant.

In the Games, he would finally prove himself worthy.

22nd: Asher Challier of District Eight.

Reign was never too keen on the idea of killing. He knew he would eventually have to do it and that there would be no way around it; he did volunteer, after all. He knew what he was getting himself into.

When Asher ran in front of him to grab a backpack, Reign contemplated killing him or letting him go. As Reign rushed towards him, though, he stabbed the boy in the back of his head.

Reign wanted to end the boy's life quickly.

He didn't want him to suffer, unlike other Careers.

Reign wasn't like other Careers.

And he just wanted to prove that.

21st: Ilise Massey of District Eight.

Ilise, still in shock over witnessing her own ally and friend's death, stumbled around, unsure of where to go. Unsure of what to do. She glanced back at Remy's body, and soon as she turned back, she saw two figures running towards her. It was the two from District Nine.

Sadia saw Ilise standing there, wide-eyed, looking frantic.

Ilise didn't step to the side. She didn't run away. She just stood there.

And, so, Sadia did what she thought was right. She extended her arm, and as she ran past Ilise, impaled her right in the stomach with the sickle's blade.

Sadia didn't even look down at what she had just done. She kept running, while Lauro hesitated. He gulped, shook his head, realizing that he could never do that. He could never be like Sadia – he could never kill.

Or so he thought.

20th: Oscaron Linnerchip of District Six.

Sierra saw a straggler.

Oscaron was running after his allies who were a few feet ahead of him. The Cornucopia area was too dark, as was the tunnels jutting out from the central area. Sierra chased after the boy, and she threw one knife, but it missed him completely.

Oscaron began to panic, calling out to this allies, and when they didn't turn around, he knew that Sierra would catch up to him. When she did, he turned around, throwing out his fists and backpack. It smacked her in the face, and Sierra hunched over, going right for his legs.

Sierra stabbed him once in the foot.

And then again in the upper-thigh.

Oscaron fell to the ground, still calling out to his allies. Sierra smirked though as she shook her head, revealing another knife from her back belt. She glanced at Oscaron one last time before slitting his throat.

It was only one more kill to her.

It meant nothing.

19th: Ciel Fontaine of District Ten.

Frazier, Levi, and Wyatt ran through the tunnels, not stopping. They turned the corner, and in front of them stood a tall figure. It was a boy, and he was resting against the wall, trying to catch his breath. He was breathing heavily, and when they got closer, they saw someone else was next to him. He was standing up against the wall, and he tapped the other boy on the shoulder, pointing at the pack of boys coming their way.

Juno was able to get away just in time.

Ciel, unfortunately, was not. Wyatt's palm found Ciel's face, pushing it up against the wall. Wyatt stabbed his sword through Ciel's chest, leaving him slumped against the wall. Juno kept running, though. He already lost Juliette, but now, he lost Ciel, too.

He was on his own now.

He cursed under his breath, swearing to avenge his allies' deaths.

Juno wasn't going to let their murderers get away with it.

Day Two.

18th: Rebekah Amare of District Seven.

Rebekah and Adelyn trekked down the tunnel, making sure to stay alongside it, not wanting to reveal themselves. They didn't know who could be following them or who they might encounter.

They didn't say one word to each other or even look at each other.

They were in the Games now – they didn't have time for anything convivial. All they cared about was surviving.

When they saw Armity and Mitzie at the end of the tunnel, they exchanged one glance. One glance was all it took for the two of them to start running, heading right towards them. Rebekah raised her axe, and before she could get anywhere near them, Armity shot her arrow.

It pierced Rebekah right in the chest.

Her body fell backwards, forcefully hitting the ground. Mitzie started to shout aloud, only taunting Adelyn more. Adelyn grew furious at the two girls, and as Armity shot another arrow, Adelyn side-stepped, dodging it.

Adelyn might not have cared about Rebekah as a friend, but that was her ally.

And she wasn't going to let them step all over her.

She had something to prove now.

17th: Armity Selsun of District Ten.

Adelyn ran past her body, letting her arms flail as she leaped towards Armity.

Adelyn knocked Armity's bow out of the way, and when Mitzie came near Armity to help her, Adelyn sent one punch into Mitzie's face. Mitzie shouted and backed up, trying to stop her nose from bleeding. Armity and Adelyn struggled now, and now that Armity was weaponless, Adelyn went in for an attack.

She swiped her knife, and Armity threw up her arms, letting the blade slice open her under-arms. Armity bit down on her lips, not wanting to show Adelyn the pain she was going through. Adelyn hustled, though, and went in for another attack.

This time, Adelyn aimed right for Armity's shoulder. The blade sunk deep into the skin and bone, and when she yanked the knife out, Mitzie was back up. Adelyn kicked at Mitzie, and before Armity could strike, Adelyn had a split second to attack once more.

Adelyn stabbed her knife right through Armity's neck.

It was all over within seconds.

Adelyn immediately sprinted away, hearing Mitzie's shouts and screams coming from behind her. Adelyn felt her hands shaking as she thought of Rebekah. As she thought of how she just killed.

She refused to become emotional. She refused to feel guilt.

She had to kill.

If she wanted to win, she had to kill.

She got over it quickly and kept moving.

Day Three.

16th: Juno Burnet of District Twelve.

Juno was determined to find Wyatt. He couldn't have possibly saved Juliette back in the bloodbath, but Ciel was right next to him. He ran when he saw the pack of boys coming towards him. He ran – he abandoned his ally.

Juno was disgusted with himself.

He grabbed his spear, punching the wall out of frustration. He trudged down the tunnel, listening to every noise that echoed in the tunnels. When he heard voices, he began to run. He went towards the voices, and when he noticed who it was, he became even more determined.

It was Wyatt.

That's the only person he paid attention to.

Just as Juno took a step forward, the tunnel began to crack. Small pieces began to drop down, with a trail of dirt following it. Wyatt, Levi, and Frazier all picked up their supplies and sprinted away, while Juno followed them. He pumped his fists and legs, trying to catch up to them.

When a large rock fell in front of him, he threw his spear. It might have missed Wyatt completely, but he tried. He tried to do what he thought was right.

The debris fell on top of him, suffocating him. He extended his arm as the stone and dirt fell on top of him, letting out one last shout. Maybe someone would hear him – maybe someone would help him.

He didn't want to die.

He just wanted to avenge his allies' deaths.

And, now, he was dying, too.

He never prepared himself for this.

15th: Mitzie Hunter of District Eleven.

Mitzie whistled as she walked through the tunnels.

Whistling kept her distracted. It kept her focused, too. At every creak, she snapped around, looking to see where it came from. At even her own footsteps was she on alert. She didn't want to be caught off-guard, especially not with Adelyn still out there.

Adelyn might have killed Armity, but Mitzie refused to let Adelyn kill her.

When Mitzie heard a female voice, she instantly thought of Adelyn. It nearly sounded like her, too, and when Mitzie turned the corner, she was convinced it was Adelyn. She must have followed her.

Before Mitzie could even realize that it wasn't Adelyn, Sadia was already after her. Lauro trailed behind Sadia, but Mitzie didn't back down. She was always fond of competition, of getting down and dirty.

She didn't even consider how there were two of them, however, and only one of her.

Sadia swung her sickle, meeting Mitzie's machete. The metal clanged in the air, and with every stroke, the two girls kept going. Neither of them were going up. Lauro stood there, though, watching, the whole time berating himself for not doing something.

He just stood there and watched Sadia.

And, as Mitzie swiped her machete at the right angle and actually slit Sadia's arm, Lauro still just stood there. Sadia hunched over, and when she raised her head to look at Lauro, he knew he had to do something.

Before Mitzie could bring down her machete, Lauro's knife found her back.

Mitzie collapsed to the ground and Lauro was already distraught.

He wasn't a coward anymore.

For once in his life, he finally did something for himself. He had killed. He had protected someone and saved their life. He was finally becoming the Lauro he wanted people to see him as. Lauro might not have liked what he had just done, but he felt relieved.

He did the one thing he thought he never could. He always had it in him, though.

Lauro killed.

And there was no going back now.

Day Four.

14th: Erron Barnum of District Three.

Eleza and Erron barely exchanged any words.

All they did was greet each other every morning with a smile and say good-night with another smile. Eleza was always on alert, never being able to sit down and just rest. Erron usually just sat there, and whenever he did attempt to start conversation, Eleza didn't answer.

She started to realize that she didn't even want to be in this alliance.

She just had to find a way to break it to him. To break up the alliance.

When they started to walk away from where they slept the night before, Eleza found a crack in the wall. She convinced Erron to follow her through it, not knowing what might be on the other side. They went through it, and in the center was a hole. Eleza led Erron over towards it, and Erron leaned over, looking down it.

With one gentle push, Erron fell forwards, saving himself by grabbing onto the ledge.

Eleza stared down at him, as Erron reached up his hand and begged for Eleza to help him back up, Eleza shook her head. She stepped on his hands, digging his fingers into the ground. Eventually, Erron let go and Eleza walked away.

She was finally on her own.

She always preferred being alone.

Day Five.

13th: Calaise Therian of District One.

Sierra was getting antsy.

She wanted to move. She wanted to hunt. She wanted to kill.

However, Tiberion wanted to remain together, since he thought it was the most logical and sound thing to do. Reign offered no insight to the matter, while Julius let the rest of the members decide. Aliset wasn't comfortable with the idea, either, and yet, Calaise was the one to speak up.

She offered to go hunting with Sierra. To appease her, perhaps. To get Sierra on her side.

While the other Careers wanted to stay back and to protect their supplies, Calaise and Sierra were the ones to venture out into the arena. Through the cracked stone they went, with Sierra strategically walking behind her. When they were far enough away from the rest, Sierra let out a muffled chuckle.

It caught Calaise's attention, and without even giving Calaise a moment to react, Sierra lunged at her.

Sierra had the upper-hand, and with one forceful push, sent Calaise flying into the stone. Her head smacked against the wall, and Calaise dropped to the ground, desperately kicking out and flailing her arms. Sierra pinned her down, though, her knife already pressed against Calaise's throat.

Sierra's plan was finally coming into fruition.

With a swift flick of the wrist, she slit Calaise's throat, and Sierra got off of her. She began to walk away, but realizing that it would have been too obvious, she pressed her hands against her cheeks and began to rub it. She took some of the dirt from the ground, patting it on her arms and face as well. She wanted to make it look like there was a fight.

She didn't want her allies to find out what she had done.

It was her little secret.

Sierra made her way back to the group, a proud grin plastered on her face. She overcame one obstacle, while eleven others still stood in the way. If she could only pick the rest of the Careers one-by-one, she would be a shoe-in for victory.

"Where is Calaise?" Aliset questioned, immediately shooting up from the stone ledge. She stood up on her tippy-toes, perking her head to the side, looking past Sierra. Aliset began to panic, and when Sierra ignored her plea, she spoke up again. "Where is she?"

"It was a muttation!" Sierra cried out, concealing her wicked smirk. She hid behind a façade, behind a wall of lies. She was the one who did it. She was the one who killed her ally. "I… I thought she was behind me…"

Aliset took a step back, feeling lightheaded. That was her ally – it was her friend. And, just like that, she was gone, but Aliset wouldn't accept it. She had no closure, and plus, she had no evidence. She never trusted Sierra, but she wouldn't call her out. Not yet, anyway.

Aliset wouldn't have anyone to back her up.

Calaise would have, but now, she was dead.

All Aliset could do was sit back and blame Sierra.

She knew she didn't have it in her to actually do something about it.

She was too afraid of what could happen.

Day Six.

12th: Levi Rinehart of District Five.

Frazier was the one who withdrew himself from the alliance. He remained quiet, sitting back and resting his eyes most of the time. While Oscaron was alive, he was friendly enough and Wyatt actually let him speak. Without him, though, Wyatt controlled the alliance; from where they went to what they talked about.

Levi didn't appreciate it. He might have kept quiet, but he put a strain on Wyatt's patience.

Levi would do one thing and then Wyatt would do the same thing.

If Levi could do this, Wyatt could do that.

If Levi did well, Wyatt did better.

It was a competition of sorts. A petty competition at best. To Wyatt, it was a way to prove himself, to show that he is on top and that he is the best at what he does. To Levi, he just simply wanted to put Wyatt in his place; he wasn't in it for the instant gratification.

He just wanted to show his allies that Wyatt couldn't be trusted.

Wyatt demanded that they move to a new area, since he knew that if they sat around, the Gamemakers would interfere and get them to move. They packed up all of their supplies and went on an adventure, as Wyatt called it. They walked through the dark tunnels, passing by skeletons and cracks in the wall. They approached the end of one tunnel, and at the end of the tunnel were five figures.

It was the Careers.

While everyone but Wyatt wanted to turn around, they didn't. As Wyatt kept walking forward, they continued, following behind him slowly. Wyatt whistled, catching their attention, and in the matter of seconds, they all sprung up, weapons in hand. Levi walked to the edge of the tunnel, gliding himself along it, and when Sierra was one of the first Careers to reach their group, he was her first target.

Her knife found his skull quickly.

It was too dark to see anything, so his allies didn't even know he was killed.

When his cannon sounded, no one knew whose it was.

Except Sierra, that is.

She knew of all the bad things she had done.

She was proud of doing them, too.

11th: Tiberion Wadell of District Four.

Tiberion ran to the front, not wanting to seem weak or like a coward. He led the Careers towards the group of boys, and Wyatt ran up to him, and they began to fight. Tiberion swung his sword and Wyatt swung his, the metal clashing in the air. Tiberion was physically superior, but Wyatt was willing to fight dirty, while Tiberion was honorable.

Wyatt kicked at Tiberion's ankles, and with every blow, Tiberion was becoming sloppier. Wyatt grabbed for his arm, and Tiberion pulled it away, and before Tiberion could bring his sword back down, Wyatt plunged his into Tiberion's lower-abdomen.

The Careers all stared at the image.

Their leader might have been dead, but the fight wasn't over.

Now that Tiberion was gone, Sierra didn't have to behave herself. Reign moved out of the way, letting Julius charge at Levi. Aliset stood in the back, her hand pressed over her mouth, completely shocked at everything that was going on around her.

Without Tiberion, she didn't want know what to do.

10th: Frazier Malcolm of District Eleven.

Julius caught Frazier off-guard.

It was still too dark to see anything, and Wyatt chased after Reign now, leading him through another tunnel. Frazier was now alone, and Julius scooped up Tiberion's sword, not letting Frazier have a moment to breathe. Frazier didn't give up, and although he wasn't trained, he didn't go down without a fight.

Julius knew what he was doing, though.

He was a volunteer, after all. He had to know what he was doing.

Sierra laughed out loud as Julius stabbed Frazier right in the chest, and the two of them watched Frazier fall to the ground, his body slumping against Julius' leg. Aliset stood there in the shadows, still in disbelief. She didn't want to believe that Tiberion died.

She didn't want to have to deal with Sierra alone.

But, she had to.

And, as Julius chased after Wyatt to go find Reign, Sierra stayed behind. Her and Aliset stared at one another, and Sierra gestured for Aliset follow her. Aliset accepted the offer, and although Aliset knew that Sierra would try to kill her too, she followed her anyway.

This time, Sierra wouldn't betray another ally.

Aliset would kill her before she could.

Day Seven.

9th: Sierra Lange of District Two.

Aliset couldn't sleep at night.

She sat there, staring at Sierra sleeping, knowing that she could kill her right then and there. She could slit her throat, she could poison her, or she could suffocate her. She could kill her without Sierra even knowing that she did it.

But, Aliset couldn't. She was too scared still.

Aliset knew that Sierra killed her. She knew that Sierra wanted to kill her, too.

When Sierra woke up, Aliset nearly lunged at her, but she refrained. She sat there with her legs crossed, sitting on her hands. She made sure that her trident was nearby, and as Sierra stretched and yawned, Aliset looked her up and down.

"Is something wrong?" Sierra asked, a smirk on her face. Sierra knew that Aliset was suspicious of her, that she was beginning to catch onto her deviousness. Sierra wanted to let Aliset attack first, though, so no one could blame her.

Sierra had it all figured out.

"No," Aliset said, her voice soft. Aliset was never one to speak back to someone, to be rude or to be hostile. She was always the nice friend, the one who was too gentle and too good-natured to ever do any harm.

Aliset watched Sierra turn her back.

Slowly, Aliset stood up, grabbing her trident.

Sierra was aware, though, and as Aliset lowered her head, she turned back around. Sierra stood there, wide-eyed, a grin on her face. Aliset felt the bile rising in her throat, but she swallowed it, holding her trident out in front of her. Sierra took one step forward, but Aliset lightly poked her weapon forwards.

"You wanted to follow me for some reason," Sierra said, raising an eyebrow. "Spit it out."

"You killed Calaise," Aliset snapped, almost too quickly. She has been holding it in for a while now, anyway. "You lied to all of us. You killed her and you planned on killing me next."

Without responding, Sierra lunged at her, wielding her knife.

Aliset threw out the trident's shaft, and it smacked Sierra in the throat, knocking her back. She came forward again, though, swinging her knife forcefully and aimlessly. It scratched Aliset's upper-arm, and she bit back, stabbing her trident right into Sierra's thigh.

Sierra pushed Aliset back.

Aliset didn't give up. She already had the adrenaline rushing through her, the determination to kill Sierra to avenge Calaise's death. She never, ever trusted Sierra, and Aliset finally had her chance to do something about it.

Sierra grabbed Aliset's hair, pulling her head back, exposing her throat. Sierra tried to raise her knife towards it, but Aliset kicked out, scrambling out of Sierra's grasp. Aliset mustered her energy, and with one last forceful thrust, stabbed the trident's prongs right through Sierra's stomach.

Sierra hunched over, her body falling right on top of the shaft. Aliset ripped it out of her stomach, watching Sierra curl up into a ball on the ground, listening to a muffled chuckle come out of her mouth.

"I should have killed you when I had the chance," were Sierra's last words. Sierra closed her eyes, and when her cannon sounded, Aliset fell to the ground, bringing her hands up to her face.

Aliset might have killed her, but it didn't make her feel better. She still missed Calaise. She still missed Tiberion.

She just wanted to go home. She wanted to get back to her friends and family.

She wanted to get away from everyone in the arena.

8th: Lauro Calert of District Nine.

Sadia was proud of Lauro.

Lauro was proud of himself, too.

Sadia clasped her hand on Lauro's shoulder, feeling him tremble. Sadia laughed, and Lauro laughed back, but Lauro wasn't as content with himself as Sadia was. He killed. It was his knife that killed Mitzie.

This was the person Sadia always knew was in him.

Lauro never knew he had it in him – he questioned what else he was capable of, of what else he'd be forced to do in the Games. Killing was always on his mind back in the Capitol, but now that he actually did it, he felt different.

Sadia, on the other hand, didn't seem fazed in any way. She seemed unaffected by it all.

Lauro still wanted to be like her.

Sadia led Lauro down the darkest tunnel they've been down. It was silent in it, except for their footsteps and the occasional noise one of them made. Lauro tapped his fingers against his leg, and with every step, he wanted to speak. He wanted to turn back since he didn't feel safe.

But, he didn't.

He wasn't a coward anymore.

When Reign jumped out of the shadows, though, he realized that he should have said something. Reign grappled his arm around Lauro's body, throwing him to the ground and falling on top of him. Sadia shouted out Lauro's name, but it was too dark to see anything or anyone. Sadia didn't know who it was.

Sadia rushed forwards, wanting to protect her ally. Sadia grew fond of Lauro; she might not have cared about many people in her life, but she had a special relationship with Lauro. Sadia watched him grow up and mature.

She didn't want to see him die.

Reign punched Lauro in the face and then in the neck. Lauro dropped his weapon, and he struggled and scrambled to get back on his feet. Just as he was about to get up, Reign propelled his knife forward, not aiming for anything since he really couldn't see. No one could.

The knife found Lauro's lower-abdomen. He let out a shout, and Sadia shouted back, desperately trying to find where they were in the dark tunnel. Sadia's kick might have found Reign's hip, but it was too late. Reign already had another knife ready, and when he shoved this one forward too, it implanted itself right into Lauro's chest.

And, just like that, Lauro was dead.

Sadia grunted as his cannon sounded.

7th: Reign Arondight of District One.

Reign tried to get away, but Sadia threw her body right on top of him. Her head smacked against the stone, and she got back up, swinging her arms out in front of her. They hit Reign several times, and he tried to get another knife out from his belt, but Sadia was relentless.

She was angry. She was furious.

Sadia was going to kill him.

Sadia jutted out her elbow, cracking Reign's jaw. Reign coughed up blood, and they both stood up, but once again, they couldn't see anything. It was all too dark. Sadia swung out a fist, and when it smacked against Reign's face, she now knew where he was.

She stabbed him with her sickle with as much force as she could muster up.

Sadia ripped out her sickle, hearing Reign's body fall forward, landing right at her feet. She kicked his head once just to make sure, and when his cannon sounded, Sadia fell silent.

Somewhere in this tunnel laid her ally.

Sadia wanted to search for it, but she knew it was too dark. She had to keep moving. Her ally might have died, but she couldn't let that stop her. She couldn't let that cloud her goal of winning.

She had to keep going.

She couldn't look back now.

Day Eight.

6th: Julius Dumont of District Two.

Julius found himself thinking of his family.

He thought of each family member and how each of them had individually affected him. They made him the person he was today, and although he appreciated everything they did for him, he couldn't help but feel better. They were the reason he volunteered, after all.

He was doing this for them.

If he gave up, it would reflect poorly on the whole family. He couldn't let that happen.

Julius was walking down a tunnel as he saw Sadia coming his way. She walked forward, broad-shouldered and her sickle at her side. She walked with a stride, one that made Julius question what he was getting himself into. Julius nearly tried to greet her, but Sadia didn't want to talk.

Julius had killed before. This would be no different.

Julius didn't, however, expect Sadia's fury. He didn't expect her relentless attacks and her brute strength. She swung her sickle up in the air and then down low on the ground, making Julius dodge and jump. He only got a few strikes of his own in, since Sadia was controlling the situation.

Julius was trained. Sadia wasn't.

Yet, Sadia quickly got the upper-hand. She gripped both hands on the sickle, and with one swing, knocked Julius to his feet. Julius tried to crawl away, but he had Sadia on his tail. She brought down her sickle, digging deep into his ankle. He let out a shout, kicking his other foot out behind him. It hit Sadia right in the face, making her fall back, giving Julius enough time.

But, the pain in his ankle was too much for him to handle. He limped as he tried to reach for his weapon, but before he could come anywhere near it, Sadia was back at it. She knocked him back onto the ground, pushing him face forward into the stone.

Her sickle found his skull.

And, just like that, it was over for Julius. It was over for his family, too.

He failed them.

5th: Eleza Leore of District Three.

Wyatt thought he found her sleeping.

She wasn't, though. She simply had eyes closed, but she was still fully awake. When Wyatt came closer to her, she sprang up, knife in hand. Ever since she pushed Erron into that hole, she hadn't come across anyone else. This was her first interaction with a person in a while.

Yet, she didn't like it.

She liked being alone.

They exchanged a few words, but the whole time, Eleza was examining the tunnel she was in. She noticed the holes in the wall, where the bodies would normally go. She tried to find an escape route, or even something that she could use to her advantage. But, there was nothing.

All she had was Wyatt in front of her.

Eleza ran around the edge of the room, trying to get behind Wyatt, but Wyatt spun around, stabbing his sword forward. It slammed against the wall, and Wyatt recoiled his weapon, stabbing it again. This time, it pierced Eleza's hand, the pain rushing through her arm feeling unbearable.

Eleza swung her knife, but she knew it wouldn't do anything. Eleza tried to run the other way, but Wyatt rushed forward, pushing her up against the wall. Wyatt's sword found her chest, and Eleza stared at him, not saying a word. She kept her mouth shut tightly, and slowly, she closed her eyes.

Eleza couldn't help but think this whole situation was ironic.

She was finally going to join the people she once robbed from. She was going to end up in a coffin.

And, in a way, she hoped that someone would find her.

That someone would steal from her, too.

It's the least someone from District Three could do for her.

Day Nine.

4th: Wyatt Lane of District Seven.

Wyatt woke up, panicking.

He was sweating. He was shaking. He was having trouble breathing.

He opened up his water bottle, splashed some water onto his face, and tried to relax his breathing. Wyatt looked around him, the silence of the arena seeming to have the opposite affect than it normally would; he didn't like the silence. He wanted noise.

He wanted for something to happen.

Wyatt grabbed his sword, made his way down the tunnel, and mumbled to himself. He tried to reassure himself that he was going to win; that he was the best and no one stood in his way. But, for some reason, Wyatt couldn't believe it. Even Wyatt was now starting to question his own talent.

Wyatt heard someone's footsteps behind him.

He walked slowly, letting the person follow him, and eventually, he turned around to see who it was. It was Aliset, who was already disheveled. Wyatt waved at her, and she didn't even crack a smile or open her mouth. She remained motionless and silent.

Wyatt tried to smile, but he couldn't do it. He didn't have it in him anymore. He just wasn't the same boy he used to be.

At first, Aliset was just a pretty girl to Wyatt. Another blonde that he fantasized about.

Now, she was a competitor. She was a contender. She was on obstacle in his way of victory, and as they stood a few feet apart from one another, he felt his smirk falter. He stood there, thin-lipped, a heavy feeling on his chest.

He couldn't do this anymore.

Aliset could, though. She finally could.

Wyatt was always the instigator. He was always the one who made the first move, the one who always had the upper-hand and had the advantage. This time, though, it was Aliset. Wyatt might have wanted to win, but Aliset wanted it more.

Aliset swung her trident, knocking right into Wyatt's side. It threw him to the side, and Wyatt shook his head, ignoring all his doubts and realizations. He was still the perfect Wyatt he always conveyed himself as – nothing could change that.

He couldn't die now.

He couldn't die ever.

Wyatt swung his sword, but Aliset deflected it with the tip of the trident, and she poked it forwards, impaling Wyatt in the thigh. He grabbed the shaft, pushing Aliset back, and she fell against the wall. She laid up against it, and he charged forward, but Aliset jumped out of the way. Wyatt swung his sword at his side, catching Aliset's ankle.

She yelped out in pain.

Wyatt finally felt terrible about what he had just done. He hurt her.

Aliset jumped at him, wielding her trident. Wyatt tried to throw out arms and swing his sword, but her trident found his shoulder. The trident ripped right through his skin and bone, making him emit such a shout that even Aliset winced. She kept her hands latched onto the trident, though, refusing to let go of it.

She wouldn't let go until she killed him.

And even then, she still wouldn't let go. She couldn't let go.

She wanted to win, while Wyatt was just starting to give up.

Wyatt fell to his knees, looking up at Aliset. Aliset brushed the hair out of her face, peering down at Wyatt who mumbled words that not even he could understand. He was just talking to himself now, and Aliset stepped away, tears forming in the corner of her eyes.

Once again, Aliset had to do what she didn't want to. That was her life, though; she was always doing what she never wanted to. This time, though, it was for herself. She didn't want to kill.

She did want to go home, though.

Wyatt fell to the ground as Aliset ripped her trident out of his shoulder. Aliset left him there and slowly, Wyatt's vision began to fade and he could hear his own heartbeat. Wyatt reached out his hand, and Aliset turned back for one moment, curling her fingers into fists.

Wyatt was dying; painfully and slowly.

He was killed by a Career. By a female Career, nonetheless. He was killed by the same people who Wyatt thought were over-confident, who were their own worst enemies, and who were inferior.

Wyatt was killed by a Career, and yet, he could believe it. After watching his allies die right in front of him, after killing Ciel, Tiberion and Eleza, he slowly realized that he wasn't everything he thought himself to be. He wasn't the perfect boy he deemed himself back in District Seven – he wasn't the cleverest, the strongest, the most popular.

He died realizing that he wasn't all that.

He was just a bad person.

And, as he closed his eyes and felt his chest slowly sink for the last time, he knew it.

He accepted it.

Day Ten.

3rd: Adelyn Varelis of District Six.

Adelyn wasn't impressed in the slightest that she managed to make it this far.

She simply shrugged her shoulders, lugged her backpack and knife around, and trudged down the tunnels. She turned each corner, and deep down, she was hoping that she would come across someone. She was getting rather tired of the mundaneness of her wandering and from how dull the Games have been.

She kicked a pebble as she walked down the tunnel, dragging her backpack behind her. She hummed a soft tune, coughed when she inhaled too much dirt, and eventually, she just stopped. She didn't see a point in walking anymore.

It was getting her nowhere.

When Adelyn saw Sadia walking down the same tunnel, though, she wasn't scared. She pushed herself off the wall, stood up, and dropped her backpack. Sadia stood there as well, both of them mentally preparing themselves for the fight. Now that there were only three tributes left, it was inevitable.

Both girls were unaware of what the outcome would be, even if they had the preferred scenario running through their minds. Adelyn wanted to win. Sadia wanted to win.

Both of them were confident and self-reliant enough to expect it, too.

Sadia made the first move. The two girls went back and forth with their weapons, neither of them dealing any fatal blows. After a few minutes of this, Adelyn backed up, eying Sadia up and down. She let out a snicker, while Sadia stood there, smirking.

Neither of them had any regard for the other.

Adelyn didn't care, but Sadia didn't care, either.

Sadia might have had the advantage with her height and weight, but that didn't intimidate Adelyn. Adelyn charged forwards again, swinging her knife. Sadia swung back with her sickle, and when the curved blade point caught onto Adelyn's suit, Sadia tore the fabric off.

Adelyn laughed.

Sadia rolled her eyes.

Adelyn stabbed her knife at the air, trying to hit Sadia, but each time, she missed. Adelyn realized it wasn't as easy as Armity. Sadia was strong. Sadia was bigger, too.

With one last attempt, Adelyn stood up on her heels, and just as Sadia swung her sickle, leaped forward. She tried to land right on top of Sadia, but Sadia saw it coming. She held out her sickle, and Adelyn landed right on top of it. The sickle pierced through her stomach, and as Adelyn's body came crashing down onto the ground, Sadia tore her weapon out of her stomach.

Sadia let Adelyn lie there, bleeding out. She let her lie there alone as she died.

Sadia did not care, after all.

As Sadia walked away, Adelyn let out her final words, just before her eyes closed, before her heart stopped beating, and before her cannon sounded. It was the last impression Adelyn wanted to have on the world.

"Fuck you."

2nd: Aliset Chevillar of District Four.

If Aliset hated one thing, it was being alone.

To be alone with her thoughts, with her own worries, with her own insecurities. Aliset hated thinking; she didn't want to think about Calaise's death, or Sierra's death, or Wyatt's death. She didn't want to think of Tiberion, either.

But, she couldn't help it.

It's all she could do – think, think, think. When she turned one corner, she saw an image of Calaise flash in front of her, and when she turned the next corner, she could have sworn she saw Sierra chasing after her. Aliset was seeing people left and right, but when she shut her eyes tight and opened them, she realized she was alone.

Aliset really, really hated being alone.

Back in District Four, she was always surrounded by people. She was surrounded by laughter and giggles, by warm smiles and grins, by hugs and high-fives. She might not have enjoyed this all that much either, but she preferred it to this.

To being alone in a dark arena. To being alone, knowing that there is only one more person out there.

That there was only one more person for her to kill.

Then, she could go home. She wouldn't be alone anymore.

Back at the beginning, Aliset never thought she would make it this far; no one did. She volunteered with thoughts of fame and money attracting her, with the idea of being on top intriguing her. She let her own avariciousness get the best of her, as well as her friends. They were the ones who convinced her, who pressured her into volunteering.

Aliset couldn't let them down.

It was always for them, anyway. Aliset always preferred pleasing everyone around her rather than herself.

When Aliset saw the figure at the end of the tunnel, she gripped her trident, noticing that it has blood stained all over it and that one of the prongs has been bent. She gripped it tightly, and once the figure turned around, she immediately looked down at their weapon. They had a sickle. She had a trident.

But, the one thing Aliset lacked in comparison to Sadia was confidence and self-assurance.

Aliset didn't know if she could do it, while Sadia did.

Oddly enough, Aliset felt relieved. She wanted to get this over with; she wanted to fight. She wanted to win and go home. She didn't want to wander around the arena anymore.

Finally, Sadia was here and the finale was underway.

Sadia scraped her blade along the stone tunnel, the shrieking sound making Aliset panic. She began to shake uncontrollably, and as Sadia approached her, Aliset tried to compose herself. She did make it this far, after all. She killed two times.

She could do it again.

Sadia picked up her pace, coming at Aliset more quickly, and as she raised her sickle in the air, Aliset finally got a good look at her face. Sadia had a scratch along her cheek, with her hair having dry blood and dirt all through it. Aliset positioned her trident out in front of her, and eventually the shaking subsided.

When Sadia brought down her sickle, Aliset let out a squeal, making Sadia grin. Sadia knew that this was hers; that she could easily take care of Aliset. She did already kill two Careers.

The two girls scrambled to get an attack in on one another, but Aliset was nimble enough to dodge each one and to jump out of the way. Sadia was much larger than Aliset, both in height and weight. Sadia jutted out her elbow, knocking Aliset right in the jaw, making her throw her hands up in the air, nearly dropping her trident.

Aliset began to wave her hands, pleading for Sadia not to do it. Aliset never wanted to die. She never even considered death as an aspect of the Games.

Before now, that is.

As Sadia dug her sickle right into Aliset's stomach, Aliset finally realized what it meant to volunteer for the Hunger Games. As a volunteer, you not only risk winning, but you also risk dying. Aliset never saw it like that.

All Aliset wanted was to win.

All she ever wanted was to be on top. To be the greatest. To be the best.

Aliset fell just short from the top. Besides, being at the top can get rather lonely.

And Aliset never wanted to be alone again.

1st: Sadia Garris of District Nine.

Sadia left her sickle deep in the girl's stomach.

She looked down at Aliset's body, and when her fingers twitched for the last time, Sadia didn't even flinch at the sound of her cannon. She nodded her head, inhaled deeply, and for the first time since Lauro's death, felt herself getting emotional.

This time, however, she couldn't hold it in – she didn't want to, either. She couldn't avert her own emotional sensations, and when her eyes began to tear up, she didn't attempt to even conceal them. She let the tears slide down her cheeks.

It finally hit her that she won.

She killed – five times, too. Ilise. Reign. Julius. Adelyn. Aliset. She remembered all of them; their faces, their dying last words, their last breath. She remembered it all, even if she didn't want to. She shoved all those thoughts and images to the back of her mind, refusing to let them consume her.

She won and that's all that she cared about.

Sadia didn't even doubt it for one second that she couldn't, anyway. She remained confident throughout it all.

But, something didn't feel right about it. Sadia wasn't as ecstatic as she thought she'd be. She wasn't as happy or excited. She felt melancholy. She felt as if she'd done something wrong.

As if she wasn't supposed to win.

Either way, she had to embrace it. She had to accept it. Even if she didn't like it or even if she wasn't comfortable with it, she had to at least pretend to be. Sadia did win, after all, so she shouldn't be ungrateful now. She should accept that she was the winner. That she overcame twenty-three other tributes and claimed her title.

She was the Victor of the Twentieth Hunger Games.

A/N: So, that marks the end of Epitaph :(

We'll both be honest and start off by saying that we have literally loved this tribute line-up. Hands down I think we can both admit that this might be one of the best collection of tributes we've had to write personally in a long time. So big thank you to all the submitters for these tributes.

When it came to collab'ing together, it did actually start off as a random idea. Then it became serious, and it really worked. We work well together. But then, I guess our main reason for having to do this isn't because we lost interest in the tributes, we lost interest in the writing. Rather than this being something we looked forward to doing, it became something that after two weeks was a situation where we needed to update, so we spent an hour quickly writing up something just so we could send it out. It was an obligation rather than something we wanted to do.

When writing is something that you feel you need to do, not want to do, then there's a problem and we couldn't deny it any longer. As great as the tributes were, this story couldn't continue down the traditional route.

But we weren't going to obviously just quit the story. You all deserved something and this is it. We've had a list of placings done for a while now, so this isn't just a spur of the moment thing. Me and Teddy planned a lot about alliances, what would go on, and different pathways for each tribute. What you see here isn't a result of us just whipping something up because we knew we were ending it, but something that was done a while ago. So I really hope you enjoy it, this was all done by Teddy and he did a great job, honestly! What you see here is roughly what you could have expected if the Games had been written chapter by chapter.

A final thank you and a big sorry from us two. If we could feel as committed to this story as we did at the beginning, that would have been great, but it just wasn't working. Congrats to Sadia for winning! This story has been great for the time it's been round. I wouldn't call it quitting per se since we did actually finish it (technically). It's been resolved, tributes are dead. This is more of a short-cut, I guess.

Anyway, yes, that's it from us two.

Goodbye Epitaph!