Oh Snap! That smells nasty! [Julian Bryze, Day 2]

There had been no sleeping for Julian Bryze his first night in the arena. The sands left him far too open and vulnerable to be caught off guard, and he was not about to enter a tower only to be sealed inside by dawn. He conserved his energy though and moved cautiously through around the open red sands of this strange arena. It was even more eerie in the darkness of the night. He could hear the sounds of other tributes’ movements, yet he had not come across anyone. He wasn’t particularly keen on battling in the dark anyway. Who knows what mutts could be wrought by that havoc.

Somewhere midway between the east and north towers, he sat and waited for dawn. His heart pounded in his chest as his wide eyes remained vigilant for any sign of movement nearby. If he was completely honest with himself, which he never was, he was more frightened than he could have imagined. He brought his left hand up to softly graze his lips before his fingers traced his silhouette to the center of his chest where his token lie. It was the same locket Midas had worn into his arena just one year ago. It had been sent back into the box with his body. Julian couldn’t bare to touch it at the time, but Mrs. Farrow had insisted upon him taking it as his own token as they bid him farewell in the Justice Building on Reaping Day.

He took in a deep breath as his fingers locked around it now. He still hadn’t been able to bring himself to open it. He knew what photo lay inside, and his heart stung just thinking about it. Biting his lip, Julian tried to shift his mind elsewhere, but now that he was so alone, the only thoughts he could muster were for his lost love. The District 6 boy would pay…. He had to! Julian closed his eyes for a moment, or what seemed like a moment, and opened them to see the warmth of the sun peaking over the horizon. Daylight—it was time to move.

Glaive in hand and items packed in his satchel, Julian stalked toward the north tower for whatever may lay ahead. As he approached the large glass structure, he noticed the distinct odor radiating from the environment inside this layer. He wrinkled his nose, but he wasn’t about to turn back. Besides, water would be necessary soon and the gnarly smell certainly hinted at a wet terrain. Perhaps he could even find Shrol or Liliana inside. He owed each of them a visit.

As he took his first step into the now second level of the north tower, his left foot splashed into the shallow water of the bog and sunk soft earth below. As he brought his right leg forward, he grimaced as his foot hit the soft earth. This area was going to be killer on his broken knee. His eyes darted around the vicinity to find that he was alone. No tributes…. No mutts… just alone. Being so isolated with the no allies rule seemed to only mock him further of Midas's death. It was some ironic twist of fate that he would be doomed to be alone not only in life but also in the arena, in the very Games that left him in this state. Just another punishment.

Julian gulped as he pulled his right leg out of the muddy surface and forward for another step. Fighting in this level would not be good for him, at all... He needed to stop moping about and move on. He quickly filled each of his water jugs with the bog water, turning his nose away all the while from the stench. He then placed an iodine tablet in each to purify the water before capping them. Squatting down to avoid being seen by anything that could be lurking in the distance, he bided his time for the iodine tablets to work their magic. Once he was plenty sure the water was pure, he downed the bottle and refilled it once more, placing his third and final iodine tablet in the bottle. Hydrated, and with two pure bottles of water at the ready, Julian decided he had long since had enough of the stench and it was time to leave the north tower.

[Julian receives water and flees the Bog]