The Floor is Ivy {Berserkers}

I'm alone.

Ezen ran off to who-knows-where as soon as the ambushers showed up, and all I'm left with is my weapon and Alice's motionless body. Her skin is still warm, and a shudder escapes me as I set her down and close her eyes. I want to take back all my chiding words, but now Alice is gone and Serena is gone and I'd spent my last words lecturing them about getting drunk on apples and - none of us had expected they would really ambush us this early.

It's too late now. No use for regret. No use thinking about could-have-beens. No use for anything but burning hatred for the blackhearted boy - Serena's district partner - who had killed both of them and then disappeared into the trees just as quickly as he had shown up.

I hope my weapon left a mark. It's a real shame I missed cracking his head open.

I look around. I can't hear anyone dangerous, but I can't see Ezen either. There's nothing around me but creepy trees and a wooden chest -

A wooden chest?

There could be life-saving items in it, perhaps medicine or a better weapon or a jar of tar to light that stupid smug Six boy's face on fire with -

With a heave, I wrench the rotting lid open. It's heavy, but the wood cracks as soon as I push on it, yielding a damp musty smell and o̷h̸ ̷s̸w̴e̷e̷t̶ ̵R̸i̸p̴r̴e̵d̷ ̴n̷o̴n̸o̷n̸o̶n̴o̷n̷o̴ ̶W̸H̸Y̶ ̸h̴o̸w̸ ̶c̴o̷u̵l̶d̸ ̵t̶h̵e̴y̵ ̸D̶O̶ ̵T̵H̸I̴S̶ ̷̦̆́Ĩ̸͕̃ ̴̟͆͠c̴̝̉̚a̸̫̼͐͗ń̷̤̈́'̵͕̅t̴̰̑̕ ̶̛͉͝-̶͔͋ ̵͎̝̚I̸̾͆͜ ̵̡̜̾̚j̷̮̩̈́ủ̶̘̇s̸͓̦̅̇ṫ̴͔͇̇ ̵̖͚͆͠c̶̱̤͋ḁ̵̍͝n̷͎̎̀'̸̰͂ͅt̴̲̀ ̴̜́-̴͈̲̒ ̷̡̖͋̿ẗ̴̖̗́͐ȟ̴̹̀ͅê̴̫ÿ̶̖̒ ̶̢̈́-̴͙͚͝ ̸̦̉ẇ̸̙̈h̸̦͆̉a̷̤͆ẗ̴͉́͋ ̷͓̜̀t̷̡͕̓̓ḥ̶̡̏̎ë̸̜́ ̴̦͂H̷̩̓E̸̞̦̊̓L̷̨̻̃L̷͇̐ ̸͖̗̃m̴̺̑u̸̲̾̀s̸̖̃͘t̶͉́͂ ̸̹̈ͅḧ̷͔̳́ã̸̠͝v̷͇̈ḛ̶̬̅ ̷͚̽͝H̵̫͖̓À̶̮̼̎P̴̑͐ͅͅP̵̬̱̽E̸͈̬̎͠N̶͙̔̈́Ë̶̯̭͘D̵̎ ̶̔̈́

f̵o̷r̷ ̵w̵h̶a̴t̴?̶ ̷T̶o̶ ̵w̶a̴t̸c̵h̸ ̵m̷e̵ ̷s̶u̸f̶f̶e̸r̴?̶ ̸B̵e̶c̵a̸u̷s̷e̵ ̵s̴e̷n̵t̵e̶n̵c̸i̵n̵g̸ ̴m̶e̸ ̵t̸o̷ ̴d̸e̵a̵t̵h̴ ̸i̶n̴ ̸t̴h̶e̸ ̶G̴a̸m̵e̴s̵ ̸w̵a̶s̶n̸'̵t̸ ̵e̷n̸o̶u̶g̴h̴ ̵t̶h̵e̴y̵ ̷h̷a̶d̴ ̷t̵o̷ ̶k̴i̴l̷l̷ ̷m̶y̶ ̴c̶h̵i̴l̴d̵r̸e̵n̵ ̵a̸n̷d̶ ̴l̷e̷a̸d̸ ̶m̴e̵ ̶t̷o̴ ̶t̸h̴e̷i̶r̶ ̴c̵o̷r̷p̴s̴e̶s̷?̶

S̴o̷m̵e̶w̷h̸e̶r̸e̸ ̶i̶n̶ ̴t̶h̴e̶ ̶h̷a̵z̶e̵ ̷c̵o̸m̴e̶s̸ ̸t̴h̶e̵ ̴i̵m̷p̶u̷l̴s̶e̴ ̵t̵o̷ ̵r̶e̵a̸c̶h̶ ̸o̴u̶t̶ ̸a̵n̴d̴ ̶c̷r̴a̵d̶l̷e̵ ̷h̷e̶r̵.̴ ̷T̸o̵ ̷f̷e̶e̶l̴ ̶m̴y̶ ̷d̵a̵u̶g̶h̴t̵e̴r̸'̴s̸ ̷s̵o̴f̸t̷ ̴h̶a̷i̷r̷ ̸a̸n̵d̴ ̸t̸i̵n̸y̸ ̸f̸i̶n̷g̵e̵r̸s̶ ̴e̸v̸e̷n̷ ̸i̸f̵ ̷t̶h̸e̸y̵ ̸a̷r̸e̶ ̸c̶o̶l̵d̷ ̸a̸n̷d̶ ̸s̵t̴i̶f̶f̴.̴ ̸T̸o̶ ̴h̶a̷v̶e̸ ̵o̸n̴e̶ ̷l̷a̷s̸t̵ ̸m̶o̵m̷e̴n̸t̷ ̵o̷f̶ ̶c̷l̸o̶s̸u̷r̴e̵ ̵b̷e̸f̸o̵r̶e̸ ̵g̴o̶i̴n̵g̴ ̶o̷n̸ ̶a̵ ̸s̸u̴i̷c̶i̶d̶e̵ ̷c̷h̶a̸r̴g̶e̷ ̵a̴t̴ ̵m̴y̵ ̶d̵i̴s̷t̶r̴i̶c̴t̷ ̴p̸a̷r̴t̶n̴e̷r̵ ̸-̸

My hand plunges through mist.

I nearly topple over, but as the shock of icy fog jolts me back to awareness I see her shape shifting, hands changing shape, hair becoming shorter and lighter, and it's my little boy staring up at me with glassy lifeless eyes -

How...? ? ? ? ? ?

Again, I reach out, and touch nothing but open air.

An illusion, I tell myself in ragged gasps. It's all an illusion. It's all an illusion. It's all an illusion. It's all an illusion. It's all an illusion -

I slam the lid of the chest shut, but it does nothing to calm my racing heart.

It's all an illusion. It's all an illusion. It's all an illusion.

But even if it wasn't - the Capitol could take away everything I love, and I'd be powerless to do anything about it.

That fear continues to sit in me as I wrench my gaze away from the chest and strap my weapon to my back. I need to find Ezen. I need to continue protecting him. I still have half an alliance left.

I don't realize that I'm running in the wrong direction until a vine catches my foot and I trip facefirst into a carpet of ivy.

Four figures are heading towards me, nothing but dark shadows in the dimly lit forest, and I flinch at every noise I make in my efforts to untangle myself. I can't outrun them. As they draw closer, I recognize Bruce from Three, Ella from Five, and Zagreus from Eight. The fourth I can't recall.

I'd talked with them in the Training Center - hell, I'd been a little surprised that the 'psycho' from Five was (very slightly) nicer than I first assumed - but was that worth anything when even growing up together in the same district wasn't?

I hold up my empty hands. "I don't want another fight," I say to them. "I'm just, uh, sort of lost."