The Bloodbath

"You're the queen, Cleo. We can't survive this game without you."

Those are the words that dance inside my head as I step inside the tube that will soon send me into the arena where people just as sinister as myself will be trying to pierce my heart. I close my eyes faintly, picturing Ava's crying face like it was back in the Justice Building, and force it out of my mind. I promised her I'd make it back to her, inwardly, but if I intended on doing just that, I'd have to forget her. You see, ruling a kingdom is eerily similar to surviving. If you wish to succeed, you can't feel a thing.

So, after opening my eyes and nodding farewell at my stylist as the tube closes and I prepare to start rising, I allow myself to forget everyone but my alliance members. I forgot all the nights I'd stay up with Nox, letting him slowly become the only person who could make my icy heart beat, and I forgot all the times my mother would comb my hair as a child and sing me ancient songs about regal queens.

I cut out all of the ropes, and I prayed that I wouldn't fall.

And, as if on cue, I started to rise in the tube. My chest rose and fell with delicate breaths as I glared at nothing but empty space. This was it, there was no turning back now. In just a matter of seconds, I would be thrust into the arena with no fancy surname to keep me safe or wads of cash to persuade people to let me free. I could only rely on my alliance members, Drace and Opal and Locust, to keep me safe.

No, damn it, Cleo! You're not the weakest link! You're fast, you're brave, and you're smart! You're not an anchor to them, stop fucking feeling like one.

I shake my head as I start to feel a small breeze caress my ebony waves. This really was it. Ripred, damn it, this was the moment. I remember having watched the bloodbaths of earlier history many times in my life and being so ignorant as to never feel empathy. And now, as the tables were turned, I regretted it all. A gasp escapes my lips as light dazes my eyes, and I curse myself for breaking a promise I made to myself.

You said you'd never regret anything, Cleo. You really are a lying bitch.

I have the urge to kick and scream, but I keep my body frigid. I can't break my angle, for I am the Ice Queen of the Arena. Still, at this moment, as the fight for my life approaches, I feel as if the greatest war I'm facing is against myself.

Are you going to ask them to cry for you, Cleo? You want to feel loved, right?

Yeah, that's right, Cleo. Everyone hates you, you're just a pretty little toy that people like to play with.

You thought you were the puppet-master? You're nothing.

I clench my fists and my jaw as I glare out, appearing as some blood-lusting girl, even though I was inwardly ripping at the seams. With a gentle inhale as the timer starts, I force my mind to shut down. I can't think about all my broken promises or all my mistakes and I just can't let myself be weighed down.

I raise my chin up and glance at the sky, I don't even take the time to check for my alliance members or glance at the arena's setting. I just breathe, in and out, until my mind finally relaxes.

You're Cleo Sullivan, and you are strong.

Don't you dare regret a thing, because queens don't have regrets.

You don't need love, Cleo, it will only drag you down!

Cleo? Kill these peasants.

I roll my shoulders as the countdown reaches 10 and continues on. I find my alliance quickly, and nod at Drace, who is closet to me. I'd have to be quick, and strong, and forceful. No matter who I came in contact with, as long as they were not in my alliance, they would be at my mercy.

Because, as a queen, I do not have a gentle heart.

"Let the Sixty-Fourth Annual Hunger Games begin!"

[Cleo Sullivan enters the BloodBath]

you're gonna
catch a cold
from the
ice inside
your soul