>>Together We Stand<< ~A/L vs. Hellhound~

[Matt]

Anya Marie Crider

Anya had to admit that it was quite embarrassing being scooped up into the arms of her ally. How she could mustered enough strength to do such a feat was a mystery, but there was something in Lethe that must have clicked. The loyalty between the two girls was extraordinary, for the short time since they had met. Though, the alliance was missing something very important. Saskia. Anya and Lethe came to the agreement that the two would head back to the Cornucopia to search for the blind girl.

They traveled through the night, not stopping to take a break until they reached their destination. The horn shot up into the air, and Anya finally took in the beauty of it. Before, everything was hectic. She barely noticed the giant, metal structure when she was fighting for her life. Lethe finally let the blonde down, and Anya's body met the cold ground. The moon was hidden behind the clouds, but it's light still allowed Anya to vaguely see around her. Anya feel asleep staring at the stars.

The beating sun woke the District Eight tribute from her sleep. Anya looked to her right, and noticed that Lethe was curled up in a ball, still sound asleep. How adorable. A small smile crept on Anya's lips, and she looked around for any sign of Saskia. The blind girl was not here. Anya's eyes met the base of the large horn. Something metal was there, Anya could tell, due to the fact that it glinted in the sunlight. With a groan, Anya began to crawl over to the mysterious item. When she finally managed to crawl over to the Cornucopia, her eyes were wide with delight.

Important items left behind by other tributes were scattered about. With a happy laugh, Anya picked up a packet of iodine tablets, instantly knowing what the use for. She could drink water without the risk of it being infected! Anya excitedly stuffed the items in her overflowing rucksack, as she began to crawl back to Lethe. Unknown to Anya, the silly girl had forgotten to pick up a pair of pliers! Anya shook her ally in order to wake her up. "Wake up! Awe, you're so cute, I could just eat you up!"

[Rosetta]

Lethe Turner

[/center]

Lethe had never seen a night like this before. Nights are seldom similar. The day’s events decides what night it shall be. Tonight, it was an inky black night, unbroken by stars. Not even the moon came out, determined to shun them all. It was a thick blanket that choked Lethe as she and Anya settled on the ground to sleep next to the Cornucopia, where Lethe had brought Anya. The anthem had just come on, revealing the faces of the dead. Lethe saw the girl she’d killed, and counted six tributes in total. It was obvious Saskia wasn’t among them because Anya didn’t say a word about it. This meant eighteen more tributes left, including her and Anya. Eighteen more…That was almost everyone in her family, her and her nine siblings, her parents and two sets on grandparents, all living under the same roof. Lethe suddenly had a fleeting image of them all lying dead…all of them faceless and shapeless, of course…

Feeling sick, she rolled over onto her side, eyes wide open. They were well concealed, but still Lethe couldn’t sleep. It wasn’t the matter of the other tributes, it was her ally…Come tomorrow she wouldn’t know who Anya was at all. And back in District 5, she’d never been quick to trust others she couldn’t recognize. What about in the Games? Lethe bit her lip until she drew blood then spat it onto the dark ground. Many a nights the girl had spent up at home, trying desperately to stay awake, trying to hold onto those last dregs of faces…but, in the end, they always slipped away as she was forced into sleep…

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The shaking was what woke her up. And the terrifying words. "Wake up! Awe, you're so cute, I could just eat you up!" Lethe’s eyes snapped open to find a blonde girl leering over her. For one fleeting moment, Lethe wondered if this girl were a cannibal, but then figured what she’d said was merely an expression. Still, Lethe’s heart rebounded repeatedly against her chest and her hand tightened around her knife.

No, a voice told her in her head, it has to be Anya…who else would it be?

A cannibal who wants to kill and eat me?

No, trust her, that reasonable voice in Lethe’s head spoke, she’s-

“Anya,” Lethe spoke, hoping for some sign. In response, the girl nodded. Though not fully reassured, Lethe settled back down against the ground, trying to calm her heart race and lower the goose bumps from her arms. She was still petrified from the night’s round of nightmares, each containing a faceless…something, an It, laughing in her face before their sharp weapon came down on her chest…Lethe shivered again. Each nightmare had come right after the other, allowing Lethe no room to breathe. “Hi there, Anya,” Lethe said, uneasily, sick from the nightmares, sick from the fear and suspicion. She needed a break…Stomach churning, Lethe staggered to her feet, casting her eyes to the skies. The heat bore down on her hard, already drawing sweat from her pores. The glistening Cornucopia stood before her and to Lethe’s astonishment, several items lay under the dazzling formation.

Crying out, Lethe hobbled to them and fell to her knees, eyes feasting upon the items left behind. Her hands scooped up the items there: A knife, sunglasses (which she mashed over her eyes), a needle and thread, and a fishing net. Unbeknownst to the girl, a pair of pliers lay nearby forgotten…or perhaps the pliers were never there in the first place…

As she put these new items into her bag, Lethe imagined what her family was doing now. She imagined her mother, unrecognizable, of course, taking the picture out, the family picture she showed Lethe every morning to help her recognize her family, climbing the stairs halfway and turning around, remembering there was no one in need of this picture. She saw her father getting ready for work at the stables, but stopping for a glance at the television, where her siblings, late for school already, sit transfixed. Maybe they were crying as they watched her. Lethe glanced upward, as if that would enable her to see them, but only the blue sky winked back.

“I’m here,” she said aloud, not caring if Anya heard, only if her parents heard and her family. She wanted them to hear her, even if she couldn’t hear them. “I’m alive. I love you Mom, Dad, Grandma, Grandpa, Nana, Papa, Jessica, Leslie, Thomas, Jake, Sarah, Lizzie, Nick, Ryan and Max…” Her voice faded away slowly with each sibling’s name she uttered. She imagined them perking up each time she said a name. As much as they annoyed her sometimes, she loved them all to death. “I love you,” she whispered one last time before turning to Anya.

Lethe’s legs were weak when she stood. She wondered if perhaps she’d just been scoffed by the sponsors for having a soft side for her large family. Nonetheless, that meant they didn’t quite understand the deep love a family had for each other. It ran in the veins of each family, whether they beat each other, yelled or didn’t see one another. It was always there, eternally flowing. One just had to locate it. And Lethe realized suddenly, with a flutter in her stomach, that perhaps, through all her frustration, anger and suspiscion, that perhaps she’d found it.

Walking with a slight bounce in her step now, Lethe forced a grin to Anya-or who she hoped was Anya. “So, uhm, what now…Anya…?”[/color][/size][/blockquote]

[gxk]

Faria the Hellhound - 35hp

Faria the Hellhound was bored, hungry, and on the hunt for some poor unfortunate tributes. She had tried to feast on the corpses of those dead already but Capitol hovercrafts took her free meals away. Snarling, she slinked through the arena making her way toward the Cornucopia. Intensified by the heat, the smell of human flesh lingered there from yesterday, but there was also the fresh scent of at least two tributes. And where the scent was fresh, there was sure to be a meal. The tiny humans were no match for her razor like claws and teeth. Yes, she would tear them to piece and then have herself a nice dinner. The plan was flawless. Two weak little tributes would be enough to keep her fed for days. Even if they had weapons it was a risk she was willing to take.

She had the body of a grossly oversized wolf, terrifying red eyes, and the earthy green hue from the alligator DNA that gave her such massive biting strength and deadly sharp teeth. The stronger the scent got, the more Faria began to salivate. They were close, she could hear them know. Bloodhound enhanced ears picked up on their voices, and their movements near the golden horn. The voices were both female. This would be easier than she thought. Too little girlies about to meet their ends. Picking up a light jogging gait the mutt began to close in on her prey. As soon as she was in range they were as good as dead. It wouldn’t take much to kill them. So many different ways to end a human life, it was very exciting for the savage mutt. Break their pretty little necks, rip some limbs off, eat their hearts out, so many choices.

Finally, her prey was within sight, and still they hadn’t seen or heard her. They were making this way too easy. They were happy about something, but that would be over soon. Whatever it was they had gotten lucky over, their luck had just run out. This Hellhound had no intentions of letting either get away with their life. This was her arena. Faria could travel wherever she wanted here, and now her home was crawling with stinky little human children. They made an easy meal, but god they got annoying. Her senses were far too good, wherever she went she could hear them, smell them… And it drove her wild. The first human she saw had a gimp in her gait. A sign of weakness that would not be over looked. It was the tell tale sign of a leg or foot injury, that would slow her down for sure. The second appeared to be in better condition on the surface, but she was tiny, frail looking. And so pale… Faria growled to herself. A lame one, and a hopelessly tiny one, she’d actually be doing them a favor by killing them before another tribute did. Girls like these weren’t good enough to live in her arena. If you were strong you lived, if you were weak you died. This was the simple rule of the arena Faria called home.

The gimpy one would be first to go. She lunged with all her might, mouth agape.

[attacks Anya; teeth(knife)]
[dice=200+2000]
[Stabbed in ear - fatal injury]

[rand=603683799970895685338959796354242552753817290075038942468818277]

[Rosetta]

Lethe Turner

[/center]

It happened in an instant. Now, looking back, Lethe was unsure how she caught it all. One moment, the playing field of clear, cheerful almost, despite the heat, the next…terror had struck. The huge dog-like mutt bounded into view, appearing as if it had sprung from the ground. Lethe froze as saliva dripped from its razor-sharp fangs and its eyes leered at her. It was sizing her up, she felt it, but she was paralyzed to the spot, eyes wide. Her heart was hammering against her chest, and her knife felt slippery in her sweaty hand. Before she could even react however, the awful mutt had lunged. Lethe screamed and quickly covered her face with her hands, but the pain never came. She heard a sickening sound, a sound she’d never quite heard before, but was still no less horrifying: the sound of the mutt’s teeth sinking into Anya’s skull.

Lethe couldn’t help but watch. For the second time, she glimpsed death swoop down upon a young girl. It was quick. Anya most likely felt nothing, which is what Lethe prayed for. It seemed to take forever for the pretty girl’s body to fall. Time had slowed. All that mattered was the trickle of blood from Anya’s ear, Lethe’s terrified shriek invading the air, and the thud that soon followed the fall of the body. Lethe’s breath suddenly caught in her throat and she found she couldn’t breathe any longer. All the oxygen seemed to have left the air as surely as it left Anya’s lungs.

Anya was…All Lethe had her for was a day…only a day and a few more hours…that was all…She was such a kind girl, and Lethe knew she’d prosper under her watchful eye…she was almost mother-like. If Lethe had died, she would have wanted Anya to win. Anya may be fierce and vicious, but she’d revealed her softer side to Lethe, which Lethe found was an honor. And now, she was gone…another face in the sky that would slowly fade away from the night and Lethe’s mind.

She probably only stood there for a few seconds, trying to memorize Anya’s face. It was a trick she’d tried over and over, always waking the next morning forgetting the details, but those people hadn’t died. Anya was dead, so then perhaps things would be different. Lethe’s eyes scanned over Anya’s beautiful body, revealing details she hadn’t noticed before: a scar on her nose, black roots in her hair and chewed fingernails. It was almost as if the pretty porcelain doll Lethe had previously seen was deteriorating away before Lethe’s eye. But, she knew those things were always there. It just took grief to find them.

And that’s what Lethe felt right now, inflicting her heavily on her back: Grief. For Anya wasn’t coming back. This girl who’d called herself Lethe’s friend was gone. She would never smile, laugh, or speak again. Somewhere far away, family and friends most likely wept for her. A tear formed in Lethe’s own eyes, her stomach crawling. Lethe felt alone, an awful feeling that made her knees tremble, and the tears really flow now. “No,” she whispered, suddenly and finally realizing: Anya was really gone.

Before the words, Anya’s gone, merely flew through her head, never quite making sense. Now, they shouted loud and clear. Anya’s gone! They weren’t words. They were more than the truth. They were emotions. They were grief, horror, fear and loneliness all piled into one, an awful combination that raised Lethe’s hands to her face. Her nails were short, but she still found the pain in them. Her fingernails raked down her face, forming new scars, more blood that dripped over her skin. Anya was gone…

Lethe suddenly jumped when she realized that awful mutt was still there. She needed to move and get out of here now. There was nothing more to be done. Anya was gone…Anya was gone…Anya was gone…and she wasn’t coming back. Lethe forced her feet forward and she quickly swept by Anya. Her hands skimmed her still-warm body, whispering, “Good bye, pretty girl,” before she grabbed a handful of Anya’s stuff, as much as she could carry. Anya wouldn’t mind, would she? The mother-like girl would probably want it to go to good use, right? And so, Lethe took it.

Instinct told her not to look back as she ran away, her feet beating the ground hard in a rhythm, but when she was sure she was okay, she turned to look. The huddled form of Anya still lay there, as if she were asleep. And Lethe hoped where ever she was now, that it was beautiful. Beautiful like Anya. For the girl certainly deserved it. Slightly cheered by that thought, Lethe turned and continued running.

(Lethe Turner has fled)[/color][/size][/blockquote]