Devoted

'''I really hope this book turns out. It's more of a ripoff of The Hunger Games, but I'm going to try and make this. I hope it gets views, I hope to finish it too!'''

Dead: (5)

Lei

Heui

Bri

Chance

Wrye

Alive: (22)

Names:

1. Mucus

2. Kat

3. Leah

4. Bri

5. Chance

6. Wrye

 7. Bolt

8. Quince

9. Arrow

10. Lei

11. Tovi

12. Bru

13. Opal

14. Echo

15. Infinite

16. Heui

17. Kinsey

18. Ani

19. Beaut

20. Velc

21. Dare

22. Volts

Chapter One
Isn't it strange how some things just make us wonder? An example of that is when people are literally lining up for a possible death. Yeah, seriously.

All of us animals line up in front of our pod. Our pod is a section of the wild. We're in Pod 3 out of 11. Each year, 2 random animals, a girl and a boy, have to be sent to a big arena to fight to the death. The winner gets food supply for about 10 years, while the others battle starvation.

Anyway, it's mostly to remind us of the Truce's power. The Truce is a huge city. We surround it, us living in the wild, them with big buildings and skyscrapers and plenty to eat and strange styles. They rule us pods by a lot, and The Devoted Games remind us of that.

Basically, 2 from each, male and female, get placed in a huge arena- a landscape. The Truce's workers are in charge of it, deciding when to send fires, storms, rain, and others. The point is for us to fight to the death while everyone watches for their entertainment. Exciting, right?

Well, this time, it's different.

Way different.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It was time for the start. All of the members readied themselves, waiting intensely for the signal that they could get off of their platforms. Looking around, Mucus noticed items- tempting weapons, gear, and resources- laid out in neat piles according to rarity, the most hardest to craft being in the very center. There it was.

A pack of bombs, food, water, and even more supplies such as suits and sacks. It was all you needed to survive, but Mucus was very smooth with a knife. He spotted a silver one glinting in the sunlight, which only now Mucus realized was beating down on him very hardly.

It was ''silver. ''And it was in the second row, which meant easily obtainable. Well, maybe not back in his pods, but possibly somewhere else. Shifting slightly, he wondered if he could grab it and take a sack. He spotted a bright orange backpack near it. If he got both of those...

Then again, it was very bright. If he found mud or leaves he could stick it on there to camoflauge it. That might work. He was still considering when the bell sounded.

The competitiors raced across the fields, each aiming for a different object. Mucus quickly swept the only items he could reach into his paws and bounded across, running and running for his life. An arrow narrowly missed his head and landed in the tree. He almost ran into it, staring out to see the shooter.

She was standing there, whipping her head around, supposedly confused. A knife sunk into her head and blood oozed out. The killer retrieved his knife and continued running. As fast as he could, he sped down the forest trees.

He was good at climbing, and he needed a safe spot to check out his items. He figured a lake would do just fine for anything, so he ditched his climbing idea and ran across, searching for a water source.

Night began to fall as he approached. He didn't quite have his shelter figured out yet. He stared at the water. A blank face stared back at him. He couldn't get caught in the endless ripples that you'd never stop gazing into, so he snapped back to reality and looked through his stuff.

He buried himself deep into the mud and covered himself. He'd do better in the morning, but for now, it was all that he had, and he would take it.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Kat ran for her life, bounding across. She didn't have anything. Her plan was better and would surely work. She climbed a tree and swiftly crafted a poorly-made but make-do bow and arrow wooden match. She armed herself and knocked one out. A boy, she thought.

It was dangerous out there, she warned herself, but she already knew. Once night fell and everyone was gone, she was sure of it, she crept out of her hiding place.

Her strategy worked perfectly. She took all that everyone had left behind, unfortunately she couldn't risk getting the best thing. Somebody had smartly set up a trap there. She'd have to figure it out before she attempted anything.

She made do with what she could find, nestled up in her tree: a sleeping bag, a long rope, 2 loaves of soft, still-warm, buttery bread, a canteen full of water, and a set of bow and arrows. Strong. Not the best, like gold or silver or metal or other jewels or stones, but it was strong. Good. Smooth release. It was perfect for her.

She slept until noon.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Leah spotted everyone bounding across the meadow. She was tempted, sure, by all the things laying in front of her, and she had to admit she had her eye on a special, glinting knife. But when she saw someone, (Mucus) run towards it, with his big muscles and sharp eye, she decided to back off.

One girl ran straight through without getting something. But Leah, no, she wouldn't reveal her strengths- not here, not now, of all times. Nervously, she picked up a quiver and then set it down. She didn't have time to select, and someone was loading their bow. She picked up a sword and sprinted for the desert.

On one side, she started her swim. A lake stretched across the entire sandy area, that was connected to the jungle. She dug crabs out of the sand and used seashells to crack them. While she feasted, concealed, she planned out who she thought was the weakest.

The ones with bows were definitely the ones with the most range and aim, if that was their weapon. She assumed to be afraid of them. She wasn't sure. Had that boy earlier, Mucus, survived? Did he still have that knife? Perhaps she should be thinking about alliances.

She met up with a spiny bone in her throat and nearly choked. That would be a very stupid way to die, wouldn't it? Choking on a crab within the first few hours. When night fell, she cuddled herself in a ball underneath some growth and watched the sky, waiting for the booms that would notify her that people had been killed.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Bri pushed a boy aside as she wrestled for a backpack. She fell on top of the strong animal, confused. How was she, the most powerful, losing a fight? Determined, she switched it around- giving her just enough time to grab the backpack.

She raced away. Nervous, she stared at a new hole in the backpack. An arrow was stuck in it. Of course. What had it harmed? Hopefully, not much, or she was in for a wild ride trying to fix that on the first day. She was just lucky she was safe and armed.

Well, she wasn't sure yet, but at least she had a nice thing to throw. She ran her talon across the tip. It was sharp, enough to pierce a hole in a brain or heart, if it came to that. She rubbed her calf thoughtfully before sighing.

There, out in the open, she started a fire.

She toasted her paws against the warmth. Ahh... it felt really good. She wasn't expecting to see someone from out in the distance approaching her with loath.

"KILL HER!" A voice screamed. A bloodcurdling shriek sounded in the air as an arrow pierced Bri's head and the three aligned killers laughed.

"Dumb!" Volts said with a laugh. "Why would she ever even attempt making an open fire?"

With that last word, they erased their footprints in the muck and stepped away, victory seemingly resting in their paws.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

He wanted to start out pretty simple. His plan was to race across the entire field and gather some random things along the way. But then, he spotted a shiny trident, halfway down the rows. He decided to attack for it. Whatever it took.

But when he attempted to take it, it resulted in a sharp bruise and scratch that cut across his forehead. Gasping, he limped, exhausted now, to seek shelter elsewhere- somewhere away from the crowds. She spotted the trap. Excited, he tried to fling himself toward it, but someone else was setting up something.

They'd barely finished when he knocked into them, sending them both into the trap and eventually, flying sky-high. They blasted to pieces when they hit the impactful ground, now scattered everywhere.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

He had a brilliant plan. He'd gather materials and build a nice trap to cover the most advanced item ever. A girl set off toward a large tree, a boy to the forest, and another girl setting off across the sand. People fought for backpacks, one guy stabbed someone in the head, etc. He hurried along.

Once Wrye had finished gathering, it was time to build. And fast. He defended himself against another knife with his blade and continued building, not removing his watchful eyes from the other competers. He thought he was safe, thought it was ready, when he suddenly got blasted 200 feet into the air.

He felt woozy. His body exploded once he hit the ground, leaving bits and pieces of him that others had to try and jump over. The last thing he spotted was another male in the sky with him. Then pressure and gravity overcame him and... he was the fifth to die that evening.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Bolt was looking at the resources he'd gather before anybody else. He found the other guy from his pod, Quince, and noticed he was nodding towards someone else: Volts.

Bolt was uneasy, but he went along with it. Whatever his trusty buddy said, he guessed. That was all that mattered. Everyone but his opinion. Well, it didn't come as a surprise, sadly, to him. It had been like that all along.

He joined them. He grabbed a knife and tucked it in his sheath along with a bomb he found. It wasn't set yet, luckily, or he'd have probably attached it to something that was easily obtainable but good and just let the person that retrieved the item deal with it.

Yeah, he was that cruel. What could he help it? He wanted to win, just like everybody else. Two people were blown in the air. Oof. Hard way to die.

"Look, guys, smoke!" Sure enough, smoke was rising through the branches. Excitedly, Bolt stared at the girl sitting there, warming her paws. She had a backpack. It wouldn't be much use, and it had a hole in it.

"KILL HER!" Quince screamed. The girl shrieked as Volts shot an arrow straight into her head. She fell over, dead, and they covered up their prints and left without another word to be mustered by any of them. Their first kill. This alliance would work for the time being, at least until Bolt decided to ditch them and go off on his own.

Perhaps he could kill them in their sleep. That was genius! But he should wait until more people were down. With only 3 that he knew of, there'd better be more out there dead. And, if there were, how many? Before he killed his partners, he should think about what he could use them for. Yes, he agreed with himself. They'd be helpful, at least until he didn't need them anymore. Then they'd split up, but before they could they'd be dead.

Everybody wanted to take watch and nobody wanted to fall asleep, perhaps because the threat of being killed by one of their own was high. But we shook on it that for at least this night, we needed some rest and to promise not to kill them.