tar. [galaxy + cobra]

[shrimp]

G A L A X Y

Tau, Tau, Tau, Tau.

I didn’t mean it, I never meant it. Oh god.

But when her blood hit me like a gunshot the only thing I could do was scream. And then the ground quaked in return, sending the rocks plummeting towards us. It was too dark, I couldn’t see and when I finally did it was– I - I should have done something, could have pushed you out of the way or even dived in to take your place you were – are – were – my district partner. I was supposed to protect you, even if I couldn’t recognize you anymore. Why couldn’t I do that?

Kendrick. Val. Blaire. You. Everyone sinks into the tar the minute I reach out to them and where my hands grasp for substance they find only air that grow staler as the minutes tick by, the cannons firing one by one, beckoning us towards Death and I fear that I pushed you right into the dark.

I didn’t want you to drown. Was that really one of the last things I ever said to you? If I could take it back I would in a heartbeat, in a blink of an eye, in the time it took for that candle to fall.

Everything is dark and black and I can feel it worming its way inside my pores, burrowing deep towards my heart. Maybe it’s better that way; it wouldn’t hurt as much (You disappear into the darkness just as well as the best of us, darling”). The silence is suffocating. But I don’t break it - I know what happened last time. It won’t happen again.

I close my eyes as the anthem flashes above. The light is foreign and everything that I can no longer be. I keep walking. The darkness swallows me up. You were right, Tau.

The clearing that I reach is familiar and the circles that reverberate under my feet support my conclusion that I’ve wound up back where we started. Still no closer to life, still no closer to the stars, still buried alive in this catacomb. And no matter how much I beg and plead, scream and howl, no help’s coming my way. So shut up, Galaxy. Whatever you want to moan about is not worth another avalanche.

There's no one to watch over me as I curl up inside the Cornucopia, and that's probably a good thing. I never was able to protect anyone, so why should anyone protect me?

I'm crying.

The tears won't stop.

stop.

Please stop.

[Python]

Kaa was nestled snugly among the abandoned items in the Cornucopia. Camouflaged by darkness, he coiled himself like a spring and slept until the inevitable scent of prey roused him from his makeshift nest. Normally it was the sweet aroma of a rat skittering by, and he would slither out into the cavern to seek it out and sink his fangs into a nice juicy artery. This time, though, the trespasser didn't carry that familiar scent. This was something much stronger, something with a lot more of that delicious blood pumping through its channels.

He flicked his tongue to savor the flavor. Eager to taste the treat, he uncoiled himself and slithered between the scattered items until he could sense his prey's location in the darkness. Large and soft, it was. His venom would do the trick.

Like the predatory king he was, he remained silent in his stalking. Venom and saliva dripped from his fangs. Time for a feast.

Was it even possible to fit something that tall inside of his stomach?

[attacks Galaxy - fangs/knife]
8qF3YJNiknife
Stabbed in Stomach -- 9.5 damage - poisoned

sword

[shrimp]

G A L A X Y

I'm not supposed to cry. Crying's for the weak - the Capitol scorns it. How am I supposed to get out of here now? Nobody wants a victor who cries. They want victors who are strong, and purposeful, and powerful, and superhuman. I'm not that, I'm just a girl who's lost her way and her mind. I'm a girl who's tried to be strong yet fails every single time. I couldn't stitch Kendrick back up, couldn't pull the blade out of Val's heart, couldn't watch Blaire for one fucking second while I went to attack Patricia, couldn't stop the boulder from flattening Tau. And now I'm alone, shivering in a cold metal sculpture.

Out of everyone that I've met in this arena, from the cowgirl that killed Kendrick and her partner that defended her, to Patricia with her quick wit to the boy from 12 who I murdered with my own bare hands - why am I still here? Why am I alive? How am I alive? I shouldn't be - it doesn't make sense that a girl who sometimes has trouble remembering the names of the week and can't remember whose hands it was that braided her hair as we wove stars into the sky that aren't bright enough to pierce into this arena. I'm nobody, I'm just Galaxy.

I wasn't trained like Val, or Kendrick, or the girl from One who just wanted to protect her friend. I'm lackluster at medicine, haphazardly patching people back together with the little information I've retained from home. I scream whenever something scary happens. The statisticians must be furious that I'm here right now. But my heart's beating rapidfire, as strong as it was yesterday, as strong as it hopefully is tomorrow, and the day after that and the day after that and the day after-

Galaxy Rose-Clements was bloodbath fodder, but I'm still here with six others. Everyone else has watched their blood pool out beneath them, taken the trek towards whatever lies ahead. I don't want to join them, I can't join them I can't not just yet there's still so much I have left to do, so much I needed to get done. I had a month outside of the ward to get used to life again before I was thrown into this hellhole. It's not fair. Don't I deserve to live? Don't all of us deserve to live?

There's movement.

I can hear it, scratching against the smooth metal, just faintly. I don't know what it is, I do know that I'm an idiot and I should have been watching out for it this whole entire fucking time. Why am I so stupid? Val would have noticed it. Kendrick would have noticed it. Blaire would have noticed it. Fuck. I move to a sitting position, fumbling, grabbing for my sword in this darkness when all of a sudden there's red hot fire bursting into my stomach and all I want to do is scream and cry but I can't, I can't I can't I can't because then the ground will quake again and everything will fall. We're already buried deep down here, there's no need to go any deeper.

I'm clutching at my stomach though, feeling the hot hot hot liquid, black as ink, spurt out of my body oh god oh god oh god and there's this sensation of... Of something I don't know. It's not good, this isn't good. I don't want to die please no please just let me live one more day, just let me survive this one more day. I'm so scared.

Kendrick, Val, Tau, lend me your strength. I'll make it up to you, I swear.

[attacks the pythanacobra | SWORD]
D49iZ8ECsword
[1006 -- Shallow Cut on Left Bicep -- 3.5 damage]

sword

[Python]

His fangs plunged into a soft, meaty surface, drawing sweet trickles of blood that he could taste with the tip of his forked tongue. Liquid fire surged through his fangs and entered his prey’s pulsating circulatory system. He could always count on that advantage to do the trick, although larger prey always tended to weaken slower, so he would have to continue his efforts. Not to mention that it was lashing back at him; he felt a minor sting somewhere along the upper half of his scaled length, and perhaps it was time to form a defense.

Instinct raised Kaa’s head to an upright position. He could not tower above this prey, but he was mightier nonetheless. He was the King.

He hissed in a warning and struck out again.

[attacks Galaxy - fangs/knife]
xNMJAJFoknife
Deep Gash on Right Bicep -- 8.0 damage

knife

[shrimp]

G A L A X Y

Whatever is attacking me, I graze it. I can feel the slight resistance when sword meets flesh, but this isn't helping because clearly I'm not prepared. Of course I'm not prepared - it seems that whenever it matters most I can't fucking do anything - Kendrick falls Val stabbed - the sting on my right arm is just as deep as the last, and I let out a groan, grabbing the sword with both hands. I can feel the blood trickling down my stomach, down my arm - who knows how much more this sack of skin and bones can take?

I'm tired. I'm so, so tired. I just want to go home. I don't want to be stuck in the dark forever - regardless of what Tau says, I'm a girl who loves the light; the streetlamps when they illuminate the College campus; the sunrise that seep through my window during a sleepless night; the crackle of a sparkler as it flies through the air, my hand as its anchor (was that a memory or did my brain conjure up something of its own accord? I can never tell anymore).

Fuck you. Fuck you fuck you fuck you I'm not ready don't make me go just yet. There's so many flavors of ice cream I've yet to try, too few nights that I've spent curled up with her constellation charts and father across the room in his chair with a smile on his face (I try not to remember the way we were before the coma, but my brain always fails me when I need it most).

I was happy, goddammit. And now it's all taken away for what? For some pointless revenge tactic sixty seven years in the making? I had nothing to do with this, we had nothing to do with this. We're just kids who got caught up in a war we didn't know was our own. And now we're done, tossed aside like ragdolls for the next shipment to arrive.

This isn't right. And I don't want to play the game anymore. But that means that I'll die here, and the thought of my heart stopping body frozen brainwaves gone sends the most gutwrenching tremors up my spine that I can't, I can't let myself just stand here and take this bullshit. If I don't do anything I'll be gone, along with any prospects of a future that still glimmer against the darkness. I thought I could be a creature of the night. I was wrong.

I'm a stargirl, it's about time I lived up to the name. Their names echo in my mind as loud as Patricia's screams in that terrifying cavern. Kendrick. Val. Tau. Blaire. Calliope. Dad. Rose, who I knew but I must have forgotten. I took her name for a reason, carved it into my name with hyphens with my father standing beside me, his hand on my shoulder and a tear running into his beard. He grew so old, that much I can recognize.

If I leave him too, he'll turn ancient.

[attacks the pythanacobra | SWORD]
IPSwWARisword
[1020 -- Shallow Cut on Forehead -- 4.5 damage]

sword

[Python]

Blood painted the inside of Kaa’s mouth. His prey was sluggish, unable to evade his lightning strikes. If a snake could feel pride he would be the proudest of them all. No other Capitol-produced reptile could match his speed. He was quicker than the blink of an eye, the beat of a heart, the bullet of a gun. When he raked his fang across more pliant flesh he was rewarded with another sample of flavor – an appetizer to the main course. It was like candy to him, it was addicting.

Who needed rats? This was much more fulfilling.

[attacks Galaxy - fangs/knife]
H0vS3YDVknife
Shallow Cut on Left Shoulder -- 3.5 damage

knife

[shrimp]

G A L A X Y

I'm not strong. And I know it - everyone knows it. They've all seen me flail about in the arena, stumbling this way and that, tending to wounds I know won't heal. But dammit, if I go down now I'll never be able to forgive myself. Dad's counting on me, and I want to get to know him again. I need to get to know him again. It's been so long since I've hugged him - the last time in years was when he was saying his goodbyes before I was whisked off to the Capitol. We always screamed at each other, although time and injuries have scrubbed the reason why out of my head.

But I need him, and he needs me. We're two very messed up people who need someone else to take care of. Who else is going to make sure he eats enough while he's working on his "groundbreaking new research?" Who else is going to listen to me talk about the street that I wandered down today, how the panels on the windows created fractals of rainbows when the sun hit them just the right way after a right drizzle? Whatever this accident was, we became closer. And if I don't do something about it, the rope that tethered us together will be cut apart with a quick snap.

I need to tell him I'm sorry. I need to tell him I love him - you know I never told him that? Not even when I was leaving. I just said I'd be okay.

Because I had to be, because inside the panic was bubbling and I couldn't breathe and as soon as he walked out of the door my knees lost all function and I fell to the floor in the feeble position, hyperventilating and feeling my heart beat so fast it just might burst. I wouldn't let myself show him that side of me anymore. I'm going to be okay, because I told him so and I need to make do on my promise. I need to, I need to I need to I need to.

I told Val and Kendrick that I would be strong for them. I told Blaire and Tau that I would be strong for them. So I need to be strong - stargirls never back away from a promise. Stargirls search for the truth, for what's right, and we stand tall doing so. I'm so fucking afraid right now but if I show it the snake will be even more aggressive, will attack even further and the headache I'm getting will be even worse (something's not right I need to get away I need to find whatever vial was in the bag maybe that'll help).

Fucking DIE. I'll split you into two, I'll cut off your head, I'll stick my sword down your throat and then I'll skin you until you're nothing but a rotting carcass. You're not getting the best of me, I'm going to beat you. They're all counting on me. I won't let them down.

[attacks the pythanacobra | SWORD]
DfdtBYLrsword
[1083 -- Shallow Cut on Neck -- 4.0 damage]

sword

[Python]

This sure was taking awhile. A king like Kaa should've finished his prey off by now. Surely the venom was doing its job, unless he had not pumped enough into those pulsating veins.

Hissing, he prepared for a second injection of the deadly poison to speed up the process. He was hungry, and now his scales were bleeding all over the cavern floor of his domain.

He didn't like that.

[attacks Galaxy - fangs/knife]
CgkS4hIzknife
Stabbed in Hand -- 8.0 damage PLS STOP

knife

[shrimp]

G A L A X Y

But it's so strong.

How can I fight it when every time it attacks it sucks a chunk of life out of me? I can hear it, hissing away at me and I know that if I don't dispatch it soon I'm a goner, and I can't be a goner. I'm not ready to be a goner and everyone else is counting on me to not be killed but this godforsaken snake - it's definitely poison, I know it is, there's death already coursing through my veins and if I can't get away I'll be dead before I know it.

I just want to live to tomorrow, I don't want my time to end in this hollowed out shell with only a slithering monster for company. I need to be strong, I need to fight back and I need to grow some fucking balls. My hand is killing me, my arm is killing me. It's hard to hold this weapon. It's hard to move - now I know what they meant when they talked about how snake venom was extremely dangerous ("class if you have poison in your system it is important to stay calm and stay still. Lie low to the ground, make sure the poisoned area is closer to the ground than your heart. Contact our emergency medical services as soon as possible")

I'm doing everything wrong today, aren't I.

I can make it up to you all, I promise. I'll show this fucking snake who's boss. Me. Go fucking slither off and bite someone else - I'm done. You're dead meat. You're going to pay. I'm so terrified frightened nauseous dizzy fucking pissed off at you right now, and now you're gonna pay.

Dad I'm coming home, I'm coming home. Don't lose hope. Please don't lose hope. I'll be there for you.

[attacks the pythanacobra | SWORD]
fI_BeAK|sword
[MISS]


I'M ROLLING FOR ACCURACY OK


sword
[1102 -- Deep Gash on Right Calf -- 8.0 damage]

sword�sword

[Python]

Success. More lukewarm venom leaked through the tip of his fangs and dribbled into the wound that coated the inside of his mouth in blood. Muscles flexed and contracted to shift his heavy body left and right. He left blood trails in his wake, most of it his own. Something sharp like an enormous fang pierced him near the tail, and he coiled up in defense.

A hiss of anger escaped his bloodied lips. He didn't like this creature. It reminded him too much of where he was born, and he also didn't like his scales being damaged.

Time for another counterattack.

[attacks Galaxy - fangs/knife]
zziS4feBknife
Shallow Cut on Left Forearm -- 3.5 damage

knife

[shrimp]

G A L A X Y

I want to walk into shops with Calliope and try on crazy hats while we laugh at ourselves in the mirror, even though we both know we'd rather be doing something else. I want to laugh and I want to daydream and I want to look at the sky and know that the stars will be out when night falls. I want to feel the warm breeze against my skin instead of this cold one that constantly reminds me of Patricia's intellect. I want hot chocolate with Dad and hard candies that taste of memories and nightfall, I want to sew an endless array of scarves so long that it covers the entire District. I want to wake up knowing that I'm safe, that there's nothing trying to attack me or stab me in the back. I want to be alive, I want my heart to beat when I jog, run, cry, scream, giggle. I want to meet someone and fall in love with them. I want to kiss their cheeks and hold their hands and cry at terrible Capitol movies. I want to go to school and learn about multivariable calculus again even though I fucking sucked at it. I want to go to the observatory and finish Rose's - Mom's - Mom's I want to finish Mom's charts that she never got around to filling in. I want to be I want to be I want to be I want to be.

"Get this motherfucking snake out of my motherfucking cave," I hiss, and I swing as hard as I can.

[attacks the pythanacobra | SWORD]
kWGcetTrsword
[1197 - deep gash - 9.0]

sword