Training began today. It was held underground. There are obstacle courses and survival areas that look like forests and deserts as well as weapon training areas. There are also games that test your agility and your survival skill. Another test if you would. We are allowed to pick one weapon to focus on. Most people went to things they are comfortable with. I decided to go to the archery area. If I got a bow in my hands and didn't know how to use it then how useful would it be?
I practiced on that bow for a week to no avail. I knew I was a swordsman at heart but I stayed away from it so that no one knew. This game was all about strategy and I had to be in with the winners. I had to think like a victor. In doing so I realized, I should probably head to the survival area. That was where I was most likely going to die. I didn't know how to make traps of fishing lines or anything of the sort. I walk over and sit in the forest. I strip the bark from two trees and begin to attempt to make a fire.
"Rub more down and faster when you do that." I hear and grab one of the smoking sticks and point it at the girl. It was that Abigail girl.
"Really? How would you know?" I ask her and she smiles.
"Here let me show you." She says as she gets down on her knees. Her red hair was lighter now, almost strawberry blonde. She turns out to have freckles and blue eyes. I smile as she lights a fire.
"Hey, do you want to help me with the other stuff?" I ask her and she nods.
"If you help me with weapons." She says and I nod. My first alliance with a three. It was fine though cause I could use her till I didn't need her. I just needed her to learn all I can.
"Alright, so let's start with making a trap for fish. Do you know anything on how to start?" She asks me and I shake my head.
"No, I don't know anything," I say and she nods.
"First you're going to need some wood, a half hollow log, and a small hollow log. We're going to cut a hole into the bigger log and feed the smaller log in like a tube. That's all there really is to it. After you do that then you put some bait and the fish come in and can't get out because of the water level when you submerge it. Oh I almost forgot the side going into the log must be serrated." She says as she uses a sharpened rock to cut a hole into the log that had a base but an open top. She then pushed in the other log and created a spout. This spout fed halfway into the larger log and then she took it and placed it in the water where she sprinkled in the raw meat which she had gathered throughout the day.
"And how did you sharpen the rock?" I ask her. She takes my hand and shows me a smooth boulder she had found and she takes her rock and slices on it. She continued to do both sides till the rock was smaller but much sharper.
"And how did you get the meat?" I ask her. She points to the station then puts her arm on my shoulder.
"Yeah, right there but in the real ring, you'll need to catch some by hand then cut them up. Finally, when you use the trap you can take the smaller fish that you catch and cut them up as the bait and use the larger fish for dinner or lunch." She says with a glint in her eye. I look down at her clothes and notice how dirty they had gotten,
"And who taught you all of this?" I ask.
"Well, I always had a guess that I was a floater. Ever since my mom cried after school one day when I failed a test. A normal test. Ever since then I resorted to books and would slip into the forest through a back gate and practice. I never ran away though cause I'm not good enough to survive by myself out there forever. But in the ring, I'll be okay as long as I stick to hiding in the shadows." She says and I nod.
"I get it, is there anything else you could teach me?" I ask her and she nods her head.
"Yeah, loads more. I can teach you about gathering and stuff as well." She says and I nod my head. She takes me quickly to where we laid the trap and points to the water.
"What is it, I can't see anything but this green yuck," I say and she rolls her eyes.
"It is the green yuck. It's known as marshmallow, it has soothing and healing properties. As long as you clean the wound off this will help heal it faster and if it is inflamed this will help soothe it." She says and I nod my head. That's when we hear the alarm go off. It either meant dinner which felt too early or bad news. It must be the latter I thought to myself.
"This can't be good," I say underneath my breath just loud enough for Abigail to hear.
"No way is this good. It isn't dinner yet and that alarm certainly isn't used for a good thing. If it is then thank god." Abigail says. Everyone begins to murmur to themselves or their already formed alliances. The kids that were battling seemed to hit it off very well I had noticed earlier.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, there is a new sort of test for all of you to do." Mr. Arm says as his pedestal.
"What do you think it is?" Abigail asks in the same voice I heard from the first night. I thought mainly it was my sisters in a dream I was having. The voice haunting me.
"First to kill another wins a prize." Mr. Arm says.
ns 15.158.61.46da2
