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[maytheoddshq]

At Home Time & 136 Reaping

In the six months following the conclusion of the 135th Games, tensions between the Capitol and the Vox rise to a boiling point in Panem.

January

At the close of the Games in January, travel restrictions are increased significantly between Districts. Movement between, and somtimes even within, Districts becomes very difficult. Those who try are subjected to interrogation, searches, and extensive surveillance.

February & March

During February and March, the Vox numbers grow regardless and the territory of Free Eleven grows with them.

The Capitol significantly increases the Peacekeeper presence in Districts neighboring Eleven to prevent them from following suit, particularly Eight, Ten, and Twelve.

As Eleven continues to be the nexus of conflict, the remainder of Panem experiences the economic disruption ripple out. Fresh agriculture dwindles from Twelve to the Capitol, and by late March, supply in the Capitol is extremely limited. Fruits, vegetables, coffee, sugar, and more are scarce, and if they can be tracked down, they are extremely expensive.

April

In early April, the Vox fully take the district center of Eleven, and Eleven is declared a sovereign territory, ceded from Panem.

By mid April, the pared down fare is very noticeable at the Victor's Ball and in the festivities throughout the Victory Tour. The day before the Tour is intended to go Eleven, Linden is announced to be ill, and they skip the stop under this pretense of "allowing her time to recover".

At the Victory Ball, Nerissa Snow announces that 136 will make all District citizens eligible for reaping, regardless of age. It is speculated that Vox will be targeted.

May & June

Through May and June, the Vox continue to push into the District boundaries of Two, but it proves significantly more difficult and slow-going than taking Eleven had been.

July

The fighting is as intense as ever as the 136th Games open in July. District Two can't train Peacekeepers fast enough. The Vox continue to fight an uphill battle against Capitol resources and surveillance.

THE NEW DISTRICT ELEVEN

District Eleven, officially taken by the Vox, is now under rebel control. From early April through July, things are chaotic in the District, as skirmishes at the borders continue to happen with Peacekeepers attempting to reclaim the land. A significant amount of Vox forces remain to protect the District.

There is no central leader but rather a group of rebel leaders who take over governing the new territory. It continues to be referred to as Free Eleven, this time truly earning its name.

The mayor was killed in the fight to take the central city, and the Vox leaders have inherited a difficult situation: Panem's economy depends on each District exporting their goods and, to a lesser extent, importing everything else they need. Now cut off from the rest of the country, the people of Free Eleven start to grow their own food and begin an economic system based on trading. This does lead to fighting and some general unrest between the people.

There is uncertainty as to what to do with the government- or Capitol-owned orchards, but production must continue, so the Vox encourage citizens to continue their work as normal, but with the workers splitting the produce among themselves. Things are chaotic and confusing, but this is freedom.

Some who don't want to be part of a rebel-run country flee the District, falling into the arms of the Peacekeepers on its border, and the Vox let them leave, but with the promise that all of Panem is soon to be free, just as Eleven is.

The Vox themselves are working round-the-clock to make the District livable and viable, but are stretched thin due to the continued push toward other Districts. However, their numbers increase every day, as the major rebel victory has brought more people than ever from other Districts to join the fight in the rebels' favor.

🚨IMPORTANT NOTE:🚨

OOC Note: 136 will be a no Death Draw games as a ONE TIME opportunity to play out a larger rebellion plot! You may still bring new tributes and choose for them to die as normal, but you can also keep them after the Games if you'd like, or you can reap an existing character for these Games. Things will return to normal in 137-- the Death Draw will be back. (We just won't give away why or how all of this will happen yet-- that will be a surprise! Trust us 😉 )

[maytheoddshq]

Welcome to the 135th Victor’s Ball!

Three turbulent months follow the 135th Biannual Hunger Games. The Victory Tour has come to a close, leading to the celebration of Linden Understory as the winner of the Games. The Victor’s Ball is hosted at Nerissa Snow’s mansion. Though spring has the flowers of the Capitol in full bloom, the ball itself is decidedly dull in comparison to what is typical; the usual topiaries that are finely groomed for each ball seem to be slightly overgrown, decor is minimal — lumberjack chic, with wooden tables and chairs, and different potted fir trees in their sapling stage. It feels a bit understated, or as if those in charge had more pressing concerns than decorating for the ball.

Food is not quite a scarcity at this ball but it is distinctly lacking fruits and vegetables — most of the fancy dishes seem to be a mixture of meats, fish, bread, crackers, and dairy-based goods. Notably, there are no desserts available for sampling — the closest thing would be some sweet cheeses on the charcuterie boards.

As usual, all Games staff are required to attend. Non-attendance at this ball in particular would raise some eyebrows about loyalty, and what one might be busy doing that's more important than the celebration of the newest Victor.

About an hour into the event, President Nerissa Snow herself appears; usually she is a fleeting presence at the balls, but it is clear that she has come not to mingle but to make a speech. The music stops abruptly and the room hushes as she stands behind the head table. When she speaks, it is clear and amplified by a small microphone pinned to her lapel. A camera hovers before her, broadcasting her words to the country.

"It is no secret that dark forces have been threatening our country and are now claiming that one of our beloved Districts, filled with citizens of Panem, is no longer under our jurisdiction. The fight has spread. I'm standing at the Victory Ball for Linden Understory, who fought valiantly in the Hunger Games which hold our nation together and won her rightful spot as Victor.

"But in pockets of Panem, there are more who don't understand the purpose of the Games. The necessity and beauty. The rebellious experiment in the southeast will fail, for the same reasons all societies before ours have failed.

"It seems, dear Panem, that you all have forgotten the purpose of the Hunger Games. It is not purely to entertain, to root for young people as they fight bravely to the end. No, the purpose is to keep order throughout the Districts. The purpose is so that we can all continue to benefit from the fruit of our nation — the fruit, and vegetables, and sugar, and wheat, and fish, and cloth, and trees, and coal.

"The Capitol will not stand idly by in this time of crisis. And so we think it's time to issue a little reminder to everyone, young and old: the Hunger Games are about us all. The Hunger Games are by Panem, for Panem, with Panem.

"For the 136th Games, we will be expanding our Reaping Bowl significantly. No longer is the age cut-off 25. No, instead, everyone above the age of 12 will be in the Bowl. Anyone's name can be pulled. Anyone may volunteer.

"This gives us all a chance to reflect on our own role in the nation's health and wealth. No one ages out of the Hunger Games. The Hunger Games are for all."

As a reminder, money is not in play for the 136th Games!

[maytheoddshq]

Day Four comes to a close as the sunset dips below the horizon. Tributes expect to be plunged into darkness once again. However, as the last light fades from the sky, a loud buzzing sound can be heard throughout the Arena. The buzzing lasts for only about Ten minutes as lights begin to flicker wildly. Music comes over the loudspeakers but it glitches and pauses, until finally coming through at a painfully loud volume. All at once, the rides throughout the park begin to move again, but they act unpredictably. The rides are going too fast. Occasionally, they make sudden stops on their tracks before speeding off again. The rides do not stop. They loop endlessly, leaving tributes stuck indefinitely unless they can find a way to escape. In the water park, the water comes back on with a gushing intensity. The pool fills, activating the whirlpool system. The lazy river moves at a new, break neck speed, which sends tributes right into the tangle of dangerous vines. Even the large funnel water slide is running for the first time since the tributes arrived.

About one hour after the power has come back on in the Arena, tributes will start to see lights popping and bursting. Breakers throughout the Arena begin to spark wildly, throwing embers to ignite anything nearby. Quickly, fire begins to spread through the Arena. It starts at the castle, destroying the cornucopia and everything in it, and it spreads over the next several hours. The Arena is burning, and by daybreak there will not be a structure left standing.

[maytheoddshq]

So, kind of a silly question but I was wondering if we can have our character's pronouns not match the fcs actual pronouns? (Say we have an actress who goes by she/her, and the fc is perfect for the character, but we want the character to have they/them pronouns) The main reason I'm asking is I saw some characters who were nonbinary and rhe fcs themselves were nonbinary. Just wanted to see how much freedom we have in that regard.

Hi, not a silly question, so thanks for asking!

However, we do ask that all characters' pronouns match those of their fc.

[maytheoddshq]

Evening on the third day comes with expectations for further chaos, as park security is once again expected to be deployed and rid the park of any trespassers. However, something altogether different happens. Just as the sun slips below the horizon, when the lights are expected to flick on, they fail to do so, and in fact, there is a momentary loud buzzing noise from the northwestern corner of the Arena. It is the sound of the power failing on the electric fence that closes the animals into the safari, and it is followed by a whooshing sound as all of the water is drained from the river that had separated the animals from the rest of the Arena.

Throughout the park, all of the power has failed, so rides are no longer operable and there is minimal light, only that from the full moon. The tributes have bigger concerns, however, as now that the animals are not confined to their area, they catch a whiff of tributes and fried food on the air and come running into the rest of the park.

The elephants, zebras, giraffes, wild dogs, lions, snakes, and yes, even the crocodiles now roam the rest of the Arena. Snakes slither beneath rides, ready to jump upon their prey; the elephants stampede across the open ground; the lions stalk their prey in silence. The security guards which might have actually been helpful are nowhere to be found; it's man versus wild in this manmade jungle of fun.

TIME TO NEXT PLOT DROP: 24 hours

[maytheoddshq]

There will be a special twist for the next Games; for the 136th Games, there will be no age maximum for tributes! This means that anyone over the age of 12 IC (still following the rule of 18+ for played characters, please) will be eligible.

If there are any questions please feel free to message the main and we'll be happy to clarify! Happy plotting!

🚨IMPORTANT NOTE:🚨

136 will be a no Death Draw games as a ONE TIME opportunity to play out a larger rebellion plot! You may still bring new tributes and choose for them to die as normal, but you can also keep them after the Games if you’d like, or you can reap an existing character for these Games. Things will return to normal in 137– the Death Draw will be back. (We just won’t give away why or how all of this will happen yet– that will be a surprise! Trust us 😉 )

[maytheoddshq]

NAME OF REQUESTED CHARACTER:

Up to Player

AGE RANGE:

28-33

FACECLAIM:

UTP, but some suggestions: Hande Ercel, Pinar Deniz, Merritt Patterson, Zoe Kravitz, Blanca Suárez, Priscilla Quintana, Ayça Ayşin Turan

POSITION / JOB:

District 7 tribute 

CONNECTION TO CHARACTER:

Forest's ex fiancé. He left her after his whole family had been killed, knowing it was safer for her to be away from him, believing that he didn't deserve to be with someone he loved as he blamed himself for their deaths. 

BACKGROUND:

Forest and her fell in love after he came back from the Arena the Victor of the 105th Hunger Games. Whether they had something going on before he went into the arena or how they fell in love is something we can plot out together. 

Contact: @coralcovestarlight

[maytheoddshq]

Please unfollow:

@rush--knox

Player is dropping the character temporarily due to time constraints.

[maytheoddshq]

Please unfollow:

@electra-torres

@masonxxbrick

@ladylancaster

[maytheoddshq]

The following characters are on activity check:

@electra-torres

@masonxxbrick

@ladylancaster

@coralcovestarlight

@sitting-on-the-bottom

@moxiepitlock

If you have been issued a warning, you have 48 hours to reinstate activity. Failure to do so will result in unfollowing after 48 hours, and the character’s spot will reopen. If a character appears on three consecutive checks, an unfollow will be issued without a 48 hour period.

Remember that permanent characters are required to post three times per week. (See revision at top for holidays). Reblogging music, memes, pictures, etc. does not count as activity. You can send an ask to the main to request a hiatus at any time if you need one.

As a reminder, our rule regarding TFV players and activity is now in place for 135. Any TFV player cannot have any of their characters appear on two activity checks during the Games cycle (from arrival at the Tower through the Arena finale). If you are playing a TFV and ANY of your characters get activity checked twice, your tribute will be moved to PD.

[maytheoddshq]

As night falls on Snow Gardens, the park security springs into action. Their arrival is announced by a voice over the speakers scattered around the park, saying that ‘the park is now closed, any trespassers will be removed by park security.’  

Removal, unfortunately, as Phila Ment learned the hard way, included bludgeoning and dismemberment; strung across the front of the Castle Coaster are the remains of the Tribute  – hung on walls, lazily laid at the entrance of the coaster, their head impaled on the turnstile to enter the coaster itself. The pieces are left as warning to evade the guards at all costs.

The guards are faceless and almost silent – they move with an eerie coordination always in packs of two, scouring every crevice of the park in search of trespassers. The only thing that readily marks their presence are the beams from their flashlights and the jingle of their keys. A more astute Tribute, if too close or face to face with the mutts, hear a muffled voice from behind the smooth skin of their faces – the words are incoherent, though the tone indicates almost like the security guards are trying to yell. 

If a guard gets their hands on a Tribute the only thing they can do is fight to stun them so the Tribute can run or to kill them. More guards appear in their stead, however and much like a hydra, where one is killed, two more appear. The other option the Tributes have is to hide, though caution is necessary as the guards know nearly every inch of the park itself.

Time to next plot drop: 48 hours

[maytheoddshq]

135th Mentor's Ball

The Mentor's Ball is held partially outdoors, despite the January chill. Heating lamps line the area to keep guests comfortable, and snow has been shoveled aside to set up an elaborate, pop-up carnival, complete with smaller, more basic versions of some of the rides in the Arena. There are games lining the main stretch of all invention, every guest has been gifted tickets they can exchange for tries at challenges like the ring toss, duck pond, balloon darts, and more. Big winners can choose from a variety of oversized, stuffed prizes, and smaller winners receive smaller tokens (a yo-yo, a finger trap, a stress ball) for their efforts. There is a heated tent for music, dancing, and socializing, with performers scattered about: fire breathers, contortionists, stilt walkers, aerialists. There are high-class twists on carnival food available at stalls, like gourmet funnel cakes, artisanal popcorns, and cotton candy in novel flavors. And, of course, the drinks flow liberally-- see the inspo blog for the evening's menu of bespoke cocktails.

[maytheoddshq]

Please follow:

@forestd7

[maytheoddshq]

Sawdust Forest (he/him). District 7 Mentor. 105th Victor. 33. Can Yaman.

Mentor:

What was their childhood like?

His parents were quite young when they had him, getting married quickly when they found out they were expecting, fresh after their high school graduation. Still, their marriage was a marriage of love, resulting in five more children. Sawdust was the eldest, two years later came Sage and a year after that Leo. Three years after that came twin girls Laurel and Cedar. No one expected their parents to have another child, but a couple of days after his sixteenth birthday the miracle baby, Spruce. Everyone adored him, taking turns watching him while their parents were working. Their house had always been cramped and he'd been used to sharing a room with his brothers, but he never knew anything else so he didn't complain. They were on the poorer side of district seven, always rationing food and trying to disperse it equally between each member of the family. If there was one thing their house didn't lack it was love, their parents tried making up for what they didn't have financially by doting on their children. As the eldest, he always saw it as his duty to watch over his siblings and protect them. Which is why he was the only one taking out tessare, not wanting his siblings to have a bigger chance at getting reaped. His parents had been against it, but he had drilled it into his siblings minds that they were not allowed to take out tessare, it was his responsibility as the eldest to help their parents and make sure there was food on the table. His childhood memories were ones he looked back on fondly, barely remembering the hardships and instead only focusing on the positive memories.

How did they feel about the games before being reaped?

He'd always believed that the games were wrong, hearing whispers about it from his parents from a young age which helped shape his opinion. They'd had open and honest conversations about it with the entire family, finding it important to instil the right morals into their children. His parents had six children, the odds of one of them being reaped were high, especially due to their financial status. Sawdust always had the worst odds, his name being in about fifteen times more than his siblings'. He'd never understood how people could support the games and pick and choose who to root for. It seemed so heartless to him, so dehumanising. He had several classmates and neighbors reaped, managing to escape it by sheer luck as the number of slips with his name on them increased each year. Whenever the reapings came about it wasn't himself he worried about, it was his siblings. They were all so young. He knew that if one of them was reaped he would volunteer in a heartbeat. It was his duty. However he'd been reaped before any of them could've been, making it to the capitol before he reached his 20th birthday.

What was their trajectory in the arena & how did they win their game?

The arena he'd been in was freezing cold, snow and ice encapsulating the whole place. Everyone had been in snow suits and there'd been bad visibility whenever a snow storm came along. He'd been lucky that he learnt early in his life how to make a fire and how to best keep his body warm in cold temperatures. He spent most of his time hiding up in the trees where he had a good vantage point, no one was able to sneak up on him from up there. He only left the comforts of the trees at night. While some might have cautioned him away from lighting fires at night as that would attract the other tributes, he had used that as his strategy. He drew them to the fire in the dead of the night, using the night vision goggles he'd been sent from sponsors and took out each tribute that approached his lair. He only had one goal and that was making it back to his family, he couldn't let them down. He'd promised little three year old Spruce to come back as the clinging toddler had to be taken away from him as they said goodbye before he made it into the arena. That image had been his motivation. He vowed himself to see his little brother's smile again, to wrap his hands around him. He killed whoever got in his way, making sure to end it quick rather than draw out their suffering. In the end it was only him and the male tribute from district 2 standing, their battle felt like it had gone on for hours, but he came out victorious.

How were they affected by their experiences in the game?

Sawdust came back from the arena a changed man, more quiet and introspective than even before. He felt guilty for the lives he had taken, despite knowing that it had been a necessary evil. If he hadn't done that he would not have made it out of the arena alive. How fucked up it was hadn't been lost on him for a second. While he'd been against the games and all that they stood for ever since he could remember he hadn't voiced his opinions on the matter for fear of retaliation. He had his entire family to protect, he couldn't risk their lives so carelessly, even if the cause was an important one. So even though he aligned with the rebel beliefs he tried his best to keep quiet and focus on getting his tributes out of the arena. Whenever he wasn't required to be in the capitol for the games he spent his time in district seven with his family. He tried to go back to normal life despite the fact that they were living in the victors village now, each of them having their own room instead of being cramped into a small space. They had enough food on the table, enough money to buy clothes instead of passing along hand me downs. He fell in love too and with time his girlfriend turned into his fiancé, spending more and more time at his house integrating herself into his family. Things had been going well whenever he was home, but whenever he went to the capitol he felt a huge hole in his heart having to leave all his loved ones behind.

A few years into mentoring he got into an argument with a tribute that refused to train, already giving up before they even made it into the arena. He'd gotten so angry at them, at himself and at the situation that he'd forgotten the cameras and microphones around the training area. On the way back he ran into a group of sponsors who asked him what made his tribute unique and what made him special enough to win. That's when he snapped. He always knew they treated the tributes lives as games, as entertainment, but to be confronted with it so viscerally he couldn't hold his tongue. He had to say something. None of the tributes deserved to die. Every year there were children dying, being brutally murdered for their viewing pleasure. He asked if they weren't ashamed of themselves, if they lacked all forms of empathy, if they were even human. Something he'd live to regret. A few days into the games he'd gotten an urgent message. There'd been a gas leak in his house. Supposedly, the pipes had been malfunctioned. His life changed in a moment. Before he had a family, now he was all alone. He'd wanted to leave the capitol immediately and get to district 7 as fast as humanly possible, but as the games had just started he hadn't been allowed to leave. He knew he'd been too late even if he could've left the capitol when he got the message, but his resentment for them grew tenfold. He had been told it was an accident and yet he blamed himself. Maybe if he'd been there he could've gotten them all out in time? It sent him into a depression spiral, turning into a shell of the man he once was. That's the moment Sawdust became Forest. He started going by his last name to honor his family, to make sure they were never forgotten. He broke up with his fiancé, believing that he didn't deserve to be happy when his family was dead. He felt extremely guilty, unable to eat and sleep until he passed out from sheer exhaustion.

At first he didn't know that their deaths were planned. The capitol had done their due diligence, replacing the pipes in all the houses in the victors village, taking responsibility for the damages in the house. He would have preferred to move to a different house, one not tainted with haunting memories, but they stood firm in making sure he returned to that house . His entire family was gone and would never come back. He'd never hug his mother again, or hear his sisters argue, never light a fire with his dad and roast marshmallows with his siblings, or have an axe throwing competition. All of his fond memories were now tainted with the knowledge of never experiencing any of that again. It hurt spending time in that house all by himself, so he actually looked forward to when he had to take the train to the capitol to mentor new tributes. There were no memories of his family there.

The depression had been extremely difficult to work through, as he constantly spent his time analysing the situation and the more he did that, he realised that it hadn't been an accident at all. It had been a warning issued to him for speaking out against the capitol. They also insisted on him being admitted to a mental facility for his depression. He'd spent a year there until he'd been able to convince the doctors and therapists that he was 'fixed'. He'd put up a front that they seemed to buy. His family was murdered because he couldn't keep his mouth shut. Of course he'd never be okay again. Forest blamed himself for everything that happened. It made his guilt return tenfold and it was what made him officially join the rebels. He wanted - no he needed to get justice for his family. Each and every one of their names was inked onto his chest, a tree spanning up to his shoulder with branches carrying each of their names. After his year in the mental hospital he returned to the capitol, acting as a mole for the rebels. What better way to find their weaknesses than to exploit them from the inside?

What are they like as a mentor?

Forest had been a hard working mentor from the get go, trying his damned hardest to make sure his tributes came home. A year after he won he brought home his first victor with Lee, before that he'd lost two tributes. He learnt from his mistakes, working hard to improve and even going so far as to try and talk to sponsors (not that he had been any good at it, but he knew he needed to try for his tribute's sake.) He cared a lot about fairness, helping each tribute assigned to him in equal measures, not picking and choosing favorites. Everyone deserved help equally, no matter what their story was. After coming back from district 7, he worked even harder for his tributes than he had before, spending every moment they could training with them, trying to prepare them for the arena. Of course he couldn't help everyone and not everyone of them was willing to accept his help, but for those who did, he tried. he tried everything he could.

What is their personality?

Back when his family was around there was this certain lightness and joy to him, even though they didn't have much he'd always been hopeful, believing that if he worked hard he could make something out of himself and help his family. Nowadays he has his walls up so high, very few can penetrate them. When someone first meets him they think of him as this surly mountain man as he's a man of few words, preferring not to get close and open up to new people. It takes him a lot of time to let his guard down and actually trust someone. Forest keeps people at arms length, wanting to shield himself from the pain of losing someone again. He never has been much of a talker, being more of an introvert he always preferred to let his actions speak for him rather than holding up a conversation.

Three strengths and three weaknesses.

Stubborn, closed off, proud

loyal, persistent, hard working

PENNED BY: Lynn

[maytheoddshq]

ARENA INTERACTION PROMPTS

Below the cut you will find prompts for the Arena that will earn your tribute some additional sponsor money. Please note the guidelines before reading through prompts.

POSITIVE interactions earn tributes $200 each, and are capped at FIVE prompts.

NEUTRAL interactions earn $100 in sponsor funds, and are capped at TEN prompts.

NEGATIVE interactions earn $500, and are capped at TWO prompts.

The prompt caps are for the entire Games (NOT per Plot Drop) and participation is optional. You may interact with none, a few, or all of the allotted prompts. These may be completed in threads or self-paras. 

Any self-paras used to claim a prompt must be 300 WORDS minimum to count toward task money. The week’s interaction totals should be submitted to the Discord bank channel before 12 PM EST the FRIDAY before Saturday plot drops, so admins have time to update banks.

Please note — more prompts will be added in another post as the Arena goes on.

POSITIVE

Figure out the correlation between clean water and the park-themed plastic cups

Grab a high-calorie snack from one of the park’s concession stands

Identify an edible plant in the Safari or Enchanted Forest in the park, have a snack

Get the high score on the Lazer Blast

Cool off and get clean at the pool

Successfully use a park ride to injure (or kill) another tribute

Manage to sleep

Climb an acacia tree to find safety

Fix up an injury (yours or someone else's)

Use a sponsor gift

Make it back inside the castle to get something from the Cornucopia

Use the Jeep as a getaway car

NEUTRAL

Get a go-kart out of the track and take a joyride around the park

Sit in your District’s designated teacup

Claim one of the “Quick Tickets” at the park entrance and use it to pointlessly access a ride through the special line

Wear Ted’s nametag

Re-access the Cornucopia via the Castle Coaster

Be creeped out by one of the fairy tale animatronics in the Enchanted Forest

Get stuck at the top of Sky Drop for a while

Name a mutt (It will still try to kill you, but it’s named now)

Cry

Accidentally take the wave pool whirlpool transportation system

Explore the dried-out waterslide

Set off the anti-theft alarms in the waterpark store

Proudly (or disdainfully) wear some park merch from the waterpark store

Flush a toilet in the waterpark

Recreate a moment from 134 in the Pirate Splash Pad

Take a ferry ride to or from the Safari section of the park

Eat some of the psychoactive food in the Galactic Gauntlet

Experience the Gravitron

Get a bird's eye view of the park on the Cosmic Orbiter

Get a mild sunburn

Try a ride– and actually have a little bit of fun

Drink a slushy

Use the park pass to scan between the different sections of the park

Betray an ally

Make a new ally

Get in an argument with another tribute

Watch the nightly fireworks show saluting the fallen

NEGATIVE

Get trapped in “It’s a Little Panem.” Go a little insane.

Take a fall from the rails of one of the park’s roller coasters

Sustain an injury from one of the rides in a creative way

Be swarmed by the aliens in Space Race

Get stunned by a laser in Lazer Blast

Be attacked by one of the safari mutts

Get in a tangle with the lazy river vines

[maytheoddshq]

Please follow:

@electra-torres

[maytheoddshq]

Electra Torres (she/her). District 5 Mentor 116 Victor. 28. Camila Mendes.

In a district full of problems, the Torres family were fixers. Electra knew the mantra from a very early age; find the problem, work the solution. Tess and Kelvin were engineers that fell in love between turbines. They were dreamers, caught in their own vortex, unable to see beyond what they made together.

Electra was the eldest of their three daughters. Even with the comforts of two stable incomes and a roof over their head, childhood (if it could be called that) was short for them in five. El made the best of it though. She was an eager student, an eager babysitter, and an eager apprentice. Because her parents were always building, always planning, always turning over rocks. When she was six, her mother built a telescope out of fragments from the factory floor. When she was ten, she helped her father create a generator. They were little designs, never meant to be seen or spoken of beyond their family. Except, when she got a little too excited. She told a friend that all the wonders of the capitol couldn't compare to what her parents made every night in their work room; and one sentence fell to another like dominos.

Peacekeepers came one night and tore them out of their beds. They raided the house and destroyed everything her parents had poured their talent into. For the useless baubles taken from the factory, her parents were demoted to grunt work, their pay cut. Electra remembers the glass, the cotton, the torn shreds of curtains more than her tears. This was what happened to the innovators, to the dreamers. It was a lesson well learned.

Their family recovered. They kept their heads down and stooped to taking out tesserae to help keep food on the table. It was a practicality for El, something she rationed out in her head as the reapings came around. The games were an inevitability for a kid from five. It was the sword over all their heads, but so was starvation. There had to be a balance struck between them, precarious as it might be, El didn't live her months awaiting the reaping. She lived instead of the misfortune of others. On the larger families with less food, and her older neighbors with more siblings. And at eighteen, when her name was called out before the justice building, she was truly surprised.

For the 116th games, tributes were launched into an opulent lobby. It was marbled with glass windows looking out over serene rolling hills and trees. From the ceiling above hung chandeliers and doors at either end led to stairwells. The arena was a skyscraper. One-hundred and thirty floors built to test endurance and wit. The glass to the outside was unbreakable, the doors barred shut. Balconies where a tribute could step outside started forty floors up. A drop from that height was instant death. Gamemakers could control how hospitable a floor was, release gases that caused hallucinations, and activate mutts to herd tributes inevitably upward.

Electra was no one's favorite. She was small and unremarkable in her training sessions. What favor she garnered was during her interview where under the lights, she was well-spoken and pragmatic. When she'd said her goodbyes, hugged her sisters, calmed her mother's tears her father had held her tight. He'd told her to work the problem.

The first problem was the bloodbath. For that she turned tail and she ran. The stairwells quickly became echo chambers, filled with the screams of tributes below. The career pack solidified quickly and hunted fast. El went up fourteen flights before her legs gave out and she was forced to take her chances. She found herself on a floor with a large arcade and bunkered down there behind the machinery. As the sun began to set the noise on the floor steadily increased until her ears were ringing. Wincing at the pressure, she decided to cut her losses. Tore a hammer from one of the arcade games and made her way up the floors.

Four days followed as she climbed slowly upward. There were dogs mutts and riddles, and tributes at her heels. She slept in bits and starts, curled up beneath beds or tables. Halfway through the floors bared themselves to anyone who hadn't made a kill. That wasn't a problem for El after the second day. Her first kill was a rabid tribute from twelve no older than fourteen that came at her on the stairs. Her second was a battle with the district four girl, burned from floor 83. El tricked her over the railing and listened to her manic laughter as she fell. In her head, they were all just obstacles looking for the right fix. The careers dominated up until the third day when their pack ran into problems on the 99th floor with hallucinogenic gas.

When there were only three tributes left an announcement was made. All tributes were to make for the roof, anyone left behind after midnight would be killed. El, hiding out on the 121st floor, had a handful of hours to come up with a plan. She would have little success in an all-out match with larger tributes, but there were bat mutts three floors down. Vicious things the size of badgers that had chased her off. She descended, braved the floor again to waken the creatures and then released them into the stairwell. She fell back one floor and waited, and close to midnight when the other two tributes made a break for the roof they fell into the mouths of mutts. El made her own break for it, armed with her hammer and prepared for the fight, and with two minutes to spare, she burst out into the open air with deep wounds gouged into her shoulders. She fell backward against the door, throwing her weight against it and waited. Listened to those last screams and there, higher than the clouds she heard the announcement that crowned her victor of the 116th Hunger Games.

Following her victory, Electra only wished to disappear into district five. Her family was provided for, her parent's afforded the opportunity to spend their later years in comfort, but she was left with twenty-three ghosts. For some time, she was wrapped into mentoring, and she tried to work tributes the way she would machinery. But, with little success and little popularity, the president allowed her to melt back into five. For the past four years, she's worked at the dam providing electricity to the capitol. Keeping the lights on for all of Panem, as the workers call it. Her return wasn't so much requested as demanded. Built on the whisper of unrest from the victor's village. Words from a sister and parent that should have stayed under the roof. Words that might just grow too big to fix. 

Strengths: pragmatic, stubborn, innovative Weaknesses: coarse, fatalistic, reticent

PENNED BY: Kate