District 11 Train

✎ ♏ac Starberry ✎

The teen was escorted immediately from the Justice Building to the Train Station, a place he had never seen before. It looked so luxurious and shiny, the train did. The station itself looked pretty ugly and old. Wooden boards were the only things holding Mac up from whatever was below, maybe tons and tons of tarantulas. Spider webs that made the future-tribute just shiver as he walked over the wood. Right in front of him, the shine from the glossy trains hurt his eyes almost as much as the sun. The doors opened like magic, nobody waiting in the opening. The escort, a bit pushy, pushed him up the train cart, making the boy a bit annoyed. Why was she rushing them to their death? Mac didn't no, and odd enough he didn't want to find out.

Without hesitation, the teenager walked through the carts, trying to find the end. The end where nobody tried to go. One.. two.. three. It seemed like minutes as he traveled through the carts, trying to find the last one. After a long time, he found it. It was small and curved, with a fluffy-looking couch and pillow sitting at the very end. Behind it was a window, showing all the trees rapidly come and go. They were moving, but he couldn't even feel it. With a sigh, he took two steps and was now face down on the couch. Letting out a moan, it was obvious that he just needed some peace and quiet.

It didn't take long for the exhausted boy to drift off into a slumber. He had a dream, a kind of dream that warned him about the dangers of the games. Mac had tried not to be afraid, so this dream didn't help. It made him prepare for what he was going to have to do. Images started popping up of the tributes with their exact deaths. The first was the girl from five, he remembered that she died in the very beginning. Her dismembered body frightened him, but it went away in the blink of an eye. Then came all the people who died in the bloodbath and a few more after. He saw the other person from five, a grappling hook lodged in his body. The pinata boy from District three pierced with an arrow. He was the little girl from Two being slashed to death by the crazy guy. The girl from District Eight with knife wounds all around her. Then came the girl from three helplessly hold up three fingers. He saw the Fun girl from Eleven's body nearly in half from the crazy guy. The girl from four was killed by the crazy guy, and that made the finale. The boy from Nine with a knife in his back, the crazy guy obviously faking when he gave up. The last two was quicker than others, the boy who killed the crazy guy with the knife in his back. The girl from Twelve won. Oh boy, how scarred she must be now. His head hurt thinking about how hopeless her life is now, along with all the other victors. If he wanted to prove himself, he'd have to do something like that.

Obviously, the saddest one had to be Icarus. It was so fast to him, and when he watched it, he almost cried. A spear launched out of nowhere to kill him. He was in the arms of someone else, so you could guess that Mac was even more upset. He had so much potential... why did he have to go like that?

His dream was thankfully awakened by a pillow to the face. Rubbing his head, he looked up. The pillow was a bit fluffy for his taste, some of the feathers in his eyes. Mac was a bit afraid of whoever had the guts to hit him. The feathers tickled his eyes. He readied his fingers, rubbing his eyes, trying to get whatever tickled out. "What was that for.." He said in a quiet voice, trying to be calm.  

we're all just stories..
in the end..
and when a chapter is finished..
start all over again.

✎ ♏ac Starberry ✎

 His eyes finally stopped itching, well, enough to open them. He looked up, but didn't see anything but a head of hair. Mac looked down to see a short guy, probably his mentor. "Can't be sleeping now. We don't have much time to get you prepared for these Games...and it sure as hell won't be enough, but we can at least try to get you back home." The mentor said, making Mac smile a bit. "Nobody's ever prepared for the Games," He said, rubbing his eyes once more. This guy seemed to really care for Mac, something that he didn't experience often. Usually he was just ignored when he walked to school. The only people he had to talk to were Jac, Axel, and Jude. Maybe some of their friends, but the teenager didn't seem to mix well with them.

"So Mac, if you got any questions, now would be an excellent time to ask. And please try to not ask about my height, as even I don't know why I was made like this." He listened to his mentor talk, with a little laugh about him being so short. "I'm not a very judgmental person.." He said smiling, wondering how old the victor was now. He had to be at least in his thirties, but with his height, who knew? Questions.. questions. What could Mac ask? "Uh well, He stuttered, looking around the tight squeeze room. "Well, I'm not really the 'let's go murder people' kind of person. Fact is, I've never held any kind of weapon, unless a sharpened pencil counts," Mac said with a laugh before continuing. "Got any ideas for a kid like me?" He said, wondering if there was any hope left for little ol' Mac Starberry.

won't you
stay with me..
'cause you're
all I need

✎ ♏ac Starberry ✎

Mac had a feeling he was going to like this victor. "Well...most people from eleven aren't exactly the type who are ready to start bashing skulls. No...you look more like..." He looked down at the man's face, finding that he actually meant it. He wasn't alone on the whole weakling kind of thing. Mac, before trying to respond, let him continue. "An intellectual. Like myself. See, we may not be the strongest physically, but we have brain power. And I can tell just by how you look that you have a lot of it. Also, make some friends. They'll sure as hell make your life easier...and may keep you alive to the very end. And after that, with a little luck and skill you'll be sitting here in a year's time." The man said, giving a bit of advice to him. The best thing Mac could do was try and follow it.

The truth was, Mac was really an intellectual. He knew a lot about the mental strength (even though he doesn't have it), but the physical knowledge was weak and dull. He did have a lot of brain power, so when Kettle said this, Mac took it as a compliment. But friends? That was something that would probably be a bit harder for him. In a year, if he was lucky, he'd be in the exact same position as Kettle. Although staying alive would be nice, doing something like this would be absolute hell.

"What're you drinking?" He asked, looking at the sparkly liquid. It looked good, so he took a closer look at it. "I'm kinda thirsty.. can you get me one, Sir?" He questioned, wondering where it came from in the first place.

won't you
stay with me..
'cause you're
all I need