CHAPTER 1


The claustrophobia had finally set in. In this incredibaly long elevator ride to the arena where I was to battle to the death with 23 other kids, fear's cold grip latched onto my heart. Then nervousness had crept its way into my nerves, making me tingly and numb. Now finally, after spending 15 phút in this freakin' tube, claustrophobia had clotted my mind. With all three fighting for control over me, I was curled in a ball on the floor. Some impressive tribute I turned out to be.
My name is Grazio. No last name. In fact, no last names will be uttered in this entire story, so get used to it. A week cách đây I had been chosen for the Hunger Games. Of course bạn know what those are. The great Katniss Everdeen's valiant story of defeating the capitol and freeing the districts. Well the story is a pack of lies. The only true fact in the entire series is the fact that Katniss won her first Hunger Games. bởi (literally) stabbing Peeta in the back. But, pluagued bởi nightmares, and guilt, she killed herself two months later. And the Hunger Games continued. 10 years later, here I am, a black haired, gray eyed, ôliu, ô liu skinned twelve năm old, wearing only a black cloth shirt, pants, and a Yin Yang necklace.
My past? I'm from District 11, agriculture if bạn didn't know. I despised the Games all my life, but I knew I had a very real chance of being chosen. So the first Eleven years of my life were spent training fofor the games. In the ngày I worked on farming and my work, but I had Insomnia so I had plenty of time at night to practice. In all my life, every night I get only 4 hours of sleep. I was thêm than prepared for these games, but then again, so were the others.
I looked up, and seeing that the light was very close indeed I stood up. I schooled my features into an emotionless mask. I despised these games. Hated the idea of killing. Hated the idea that other kids would be trying to kill me. But, here, now that I was chosen, I intended to win.
My head broke tthe surface and I gasped. Lying before me were the ruins of a city that looked like it had been bombed. A lot. Fires blazed in certain places, glass, cars, brick, stone, ash, metal, planes, a train bởi the looks of it. And then there was tthe buildings. There were at least 30 fallen and 10 that still had electricity. In front of us was the cornucopia. Which was actually a crashed building. And it was HUGE. In front of the door I made out the words on a sign.

Empire State Building


In the time I had left, I examined my fellow tributes. From 1, Tyler and Garret. From 2, Coleman and Jason. From 3, MC and Harrison. From 4, Sydney and Taylor. From 5, Lyndsey and Madison. From 6, Elisa and Alyssa. From 7, Mikayla, and Mikaela. From 8, Jacob and Hunter. From 9, Adam and Jesse. From 10, Luke and Alanna. From 11, Jonathan and me. And from 12, Abby and Sara.
The ones to loon out for will be, Tyler, Garret, Coleman, Jason, and Taylor. I made a me tap note to stay away from them and try and let them kill each other. However judging bởi the bloodthirsty look Tyler was giving me, I didn't think my plan was going to work out.
"Ten seconds!" Claudius shouted. I began counting. 9, 8. I bent my legs and prepared to jump. 7, 6. A sword, and a scythe caught my eye. Being from an agricultural district, I knew how to use a scythe. And well. 5, 4. I saw a canteen full of water and a bag. What it held I don't know, but it was right tiếp theo to the two weopans I wanted, so I might as well go for it. 4, 3. I was dissobeying my mentor's orders bởi going into the cornucopia, but at the moment, I don't care. I'm going to need weopans to surrvive. 2...1...BONG!!!!!
With all my might I jumped, flying off my pedastal. I glided in the air for a second. I started moving my legs as if I was walking, and when I hit the ground, I was still going. Surprisingly, I breached the Cornucopia first. I always was fast. Sparing half a một giây I glanced back. And I shuddered. Leading g the pack of tributes, was Tyler. And his grin couldn't have been any wider.
I slung the pack over my shoulder. I noticed that it was heavy and smelled like food. Good. I picked up he sword and strapped it to my waist, and then did the same with the scythe on my back. And then I heard it. The footstep. And it had just left the ground. I ducked. Tyler, a dao, con dao in hand that would have surely cut my head in two, flew over me cursing as he hit the ground. Hard.
"That's my pack 11," a taunting voice spies from behind me. I turned. It was Harrison. But at the moment I wasn't concentrated on him. Behind him,a bloody battle raged. Out of the corner of my eye I saw four people running from the cornucopia into the ruins carrying supplies.
"Funny," I said. "If its yours, why am I wearing it?" Harrison grinned, and I saw the thắt lưng, vành đai of throwing knives strapped around his waist. Quicker than I could see, he grabbed one and threw it. But he was off aim. Barely. It stuck into the wall, precisiely 1 centimeter from my left ear. And I ran. At him. I unsheathd my sword, and my shortness helped me. I slid between he opened legs, stood up, and stabbed him through the heart. Not wasting any thêm time I ran towards a busted window and jumped threw it. The glass cut my hand and leg, but I ignored iit and kept running towards another fallen building about a mile away.

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I arrived at the building without meating any thêm tributes, except for a quick glimpse of MC who seemed absolutely delighted in being rid of her teammate. I finally settled down in a half gone living room. But the sofa wwas still their at least. I took the backpack off and opened the flap expecting food. What I got was a bunch of rocks that smelled like food.
"Bastard, Gamemakers," I muttered. On the bright side however, I did get both my weopans and water. I was quite proud of myself. I was the only twelve năm old in this years games. And that made me the prime cut in a butchers shop. Who's the butcher? I'd put my money on Tyler.
The tiếp theo thing I examined was my sword. The blade was sharp. So sharp I touched my finger to the blade and it broke skin. Immediately I placed the blade to my head and shaved my hair off. I might look stupid, and my scalps a little bloody, but with all the ngọn lửa, chữa cháy around here its probably a good thing.
The scythe was a little bit duller, but still lethaly sharp. I was rubbing the blade when the cannons sounded. Startled I jerked my hand back, splicing it open.
"Son of a...!" But then I remembered what the cannons meant. Dead tributes. I counted four. And since the sun had just set.... I looked up and their faces were in the sky. First, Harrison showed up. That meant the higher districts were still alive. Of course. I was now sucking my hand as the face showed in the sky. tiếp theo was Mikaela. Then Hunter, who wasn't to depressed about. And finally, Jesse. That left twenty people. I laid back on the couch, my hands behind my head. I was proud of myself. I had survived the first day. And it was pretty easy. And then the swarm of zombies broke down the door with a thêm bloodthristy look than Tyler had on.
I groans. "Shit."