carlisle-ember

[carlisle-ember]

“Seriously?” She questioned. “I didn’t even know who you were, so  I wasn’t following you. I heard voices, so I decided to hide until I knew who was there.” She explained, pushing against him again. “What —No, please.” As his hands wrapped around her throat, she squirmed beneath him. She pushed against his chest, but she was too weak from the exhaustion, and the hunger. It was no use. “I’m sorry.” She whispered, as she felt herself beginning to let go. She didn’t know who the apology was for; Bertha, her brothers, it was probably mostly for herself, because she had failed. Ember Carlisle’s eyes focused toward the sky, and she knew that in a few minutes she would be with her parents again, and with Minka, and Cooper. That gave her peace.

The Darkest Hour || Ember & Gem

“Why were you following me?” He demanded to know as he tried to keep the female Tribute pinned, not wanting to let her get the upper hand. He didn’t trust her, especially considering how she waited in the bushes to try and steal his blowdart. And then he remembered…This is a game. If either him or Alva wanted to get out, he’d have to kill her. “I’m sorry…” He said before wrapping his hands around the girl’s neck and starting to squeeze.

[carlisle-ember]

Before Ember’s hand could manage to grasp the weapon, she found herself being tackled by the other tribute. She let out a grown as her back hit hard against the ground. Having gone days without any kind of substantial food, it was as if she could feel every bone in her back as it poked through her skin and collided with the cold floor of the arena. 

She matched the boy’s growl as she looked up at him. “Ember Carlisle. District Six.” She muttered out, and attempted to push Gem off of her.

The Darkest Hour || Ember & Gem

The moment Gem saw movement, he didn’t hesitate. He lunged out from his hiding spot and manages to ram into the person who had been trailing him, slamming her into the ground. When he saw who it was, he narrowed his eyes as he tried his best to hold her arms on the ground in case she had any weapons. 

He narrowed his eyes as he looked down at her. “Who the hell are you?” He growled, wondering why she had been hiding.

[carlisle-ember]

What was he doing? Ember wondered, as she watched the male walk a short distance away. She saw the blow dart as he left it on the ground. Why would he leave that? It couldn’t have been absentmindedly. He would come back for it, and either way, he would see Ember. 

Her eyes peeled around, but she didn’t see Gem anywhere. If he was on to her, she didn’t have anything to protect herself. It was an amazement that she had made it as far as she had without any weapons. She stayed quiet, listening for any sign of Gem returning. With no sound, she sprinted out from behind her bush, and made a break for the blow dart.

The Darkest Hour || Ember & Gem

Gem forced his body to relax as he turned towards the river. He knew his watcher was still looking, but he didn’t know if they were human or not. He’d need to test them. So he pulled out the bowl that used to be full of trail mix and walked off with the water, ‘accidentally’ forgetting his blow dart. 

He didn’t walk far before silently sneaking into a nearby bush. He was happy he learned about his endurance and how to move silently, since he figured this might help him. He slowly moved towards the spot where he had left the blow dart by the river, wondering if he’d see a Tribute falling for the trap. 

[carlisle-ember]

“Shit,” Ember thought to herself. She recognized that voice. Who was it? She thought for a minute. Gem! The boy from District Five. She had gotten to know his partner, Alva pretty well when they were back in the Capitol. She didn’t recall ever speaking to him, though. 

She kept her body low to the ground, and as close to the bush as possible. There weren’t very many trees in the arena, and the bush she was using to hide herself was quite small, but Ember was a slender girl. Maybe if she kept as quiet as possible, he wouldn’t notice her, and he would go away. That’s what she was hoping for, anyway. 

She knew he was close. Catching a glimpse of his blow dart, her eyes widened. She definitely didn’t want to get hit with that thing. She slowed her breathing. She didn’t hear or see Alva. She wished the blonde had been there, perhaps she could team up with them, and be allies. She chewed on her bottom lip, partly out of nervousness, and partly out of concentration. She d focusing hard on the male and his actions. She didn’t want to be caught off guard by anything.

The Darkest Hour || Ember & Gem

Gem had told Alva to stay in the cave while he checked the traps. The two had been doing surprisingly well so far, although he made sure to knock on wood after saying that. In fact, if he remembered correctly they were the only two people left from the same District. This made him feel better about his chances. 

He followed the river in hopes of stumbling across an animals, something that’s happened quite a few times before. His blow dart was in his hands tightly. He frowned as he thought he heard something and looked around, narrowing his eyes. Something didn’t feel right about this place…And then he realized something. THe area was quiet. And animals and bugs are only quiet when a predator’s around. Question is��Was it an animal or a human?

“Who’s there?” He called out as he brought his blow dart up just in case, not hesitating. He had killed a twelve year old boy just a few days ago…And after witnessing that, he figured it wouldn’t be so hard killing someone his own age.

[carlisle-ember]

[carlisle-ember]

The Darkest Hour || Ember & Gem

Ember had been walking for what felt like days. In reality, it had only been a few hours. She wasn’t tired, at least not physically. Emotionally, the girl was drained. The Capitol had taken so much from her ―her parents, Minka, and now Cooper. Initially, when Ember had heard the canon, and she looked to the clouds to see the other tribute’s face, she had wanted to die with him. Now she wanted to live. She had to live. Her brothers need her, and if she made it out of the arena, then she would feel like she had gained just a little bit back from the Capitol.

Ember hadn’t seen another tribute since she and Cooper had separated from one another. It almost made the girl felt lonely. Perhaps that was one of the worst parts of being in the games; being alone for most of it. If her calculations were correct, Ember had figured that there were only nine tributes left in the arena, including herself. Now that Cooper was gone, there wasn’t anything or anyone worth protecting in the arena. She remembered something Axel had said to her, “Nobody decent ever wins the games.” She wondered if the moment was approaching when she would let go of her decency, when she would do whatever it took to survive. 

She could still feel the wind as she walked, but only slightly, because she had the comfort of her thick, heavy jacket Bertha had sent her. It had been nearly a day since she had finished consuming the beetles she had stumbled upon. She felt hungry, but getting to eat even once a day in the arena was like a luxury. She wasn’t going to push her luck with food just yet. Perhaps Bertha, or another sponsor would send her a meal if things got too bad. What she did need, was food and more supplies. There was only one career left. Perhaps she could make it to the Cornucopia and back in one piece now. She headed East through, making a short cut through the arena. As she walked, she heard a noise. It was another tribute. The sound stopped her in her tracks, and she darted behind a small bush, hoping not to be seen.

[carlisle-ember]

Sitting in this room playing Russian roulette, Finger on the trigger to my dear Juliet, Out from the window see her back drop silhouette, This blood on my hands is something I cannot forget

[carlisle-ember]

Ember awoke the morning after Cooper’s death as a different person. His death had devastated the female, but she couldn’t let it cause her to fall apart, not right now. She had to make it out of the arena alive. Her brother’s had just lost their best friend. She couldn’t let them lose her too, not now when she was so close to returning home to them. She had to push her emotions aside for now. She still had her jacket on that Bertha had sent her, so she wasn’t worried about freezing to death, at least for now. She picked up her belongings and began to walk.

[carlisle-ember]

Task 019 -  Ice, Ice Baby.

It had been against Ember’s better judgment for her and Cooper to separate. They hadn’t left one another’s side since the train had taken them away from District Six, but they needed food, and they needed water, otherwise death would be inevitable for them. Splitting up and scanning the area for resources did seem like the most logical thing to do. Cooper would head East, and Ember would head farther South. 

As the brunette walked, she heard a canon. The sound made her stop in her tracks. She looked to the clouds and saw Oak’s face. “Jesus.” She muttered. She was beyond relieved that it wasn’t Cooper, but her heart sank nonetheless. Oak was just a child. She remembered back to the last conversation she had with the little boy. “It’s okay. It’s all going to be okay. You gotta try and stay strong.” She had told him, as she held the crying boy to her chest the day before they were launched into the arena. It had been a lie. Ember knew that. Nothing was okay, and now Oak was dead.  She stayed still for a moment, paying her respects to the boy, and to whatever family he had that might be watching. She had to keep moving.

Her feet sloshed along the grassy terrain. Another canon was heard. She stopped and looked towards the sky again. The clouds were beginning to look grey, and dark. It was strange, because up until that point, it had been fairly nice out. Her attention focused towards the fallen tribute that was displayed. It was Nox. Oh, god, Axel. She thought. Axel had became someone that  Ember considered a friend while she was in the capitol. She knew he didn’t think of her that way. He was only trying to be a mentor, and to give her advice. She knew that he cared about Nox, and that he must be hurting right now, watching the games. She shook her head and continued her trek further South.

It felt as if it were getting even colder. She shivered, wrapping her arms around herself as she walked. Her eyes fell to the ground. It was hard to stay focused when there were so many tributes losing their lives, and when it was so cold. Luckily her distraction paid off, because she spotted a couple of beetles mixed in the grass. She eagerly bent down, scooping them up, and tucking them inside a side compartment of her backpack. Sure it wasn’t a capitol meal, but it was something to keep her and Cooper from starving. She wondered if he was having any luck with food or water.

It was snowing now. It was coming down hard, and fast. It made it difficult for the girl to see where she was going. She would need to find shelter soon, by the looks of it. She worried that she wouldn’t be able to find Cooper again until morning. Ember’s teeth were beginning to chatter together as she walked. She spotted something in the distance. The snow was clouding her judgment too much for her too see what it was, but as she got closer, she realized that it was a girl. Tinley ―the district eleven girl that Ember had fought with for her backpack. She didn’t look so good. “Tinley?” She questioned as moved closer to the girl, crouching down beside her. The girl was alive, but she was in a weak condition. She must have been in her position for a while now. She tried to speak, but Ember shushed her. “Save your strength.” She told her. “I’ll stay with you.” Ember didn’t dislike the girl, just because they had gotten into a confrontation over the backpack. They were both simply trying to survive. The other girl seemed sweet, actually.

The other girl was shivered hard, and her color was a light shade of blue. Hypothermia was beginning to take over. “Tinley, if you can hear me, squeeze my hand...” There was no response. Ember let out a sigh. She didn’t want the girl to suffer any longer than she had to. She capped her hand over Tinley’s mouth, and her nostrils, keeping it there until she no longer felt a breath from the girl. A tear rolled down Ember’s cheek, and she closed the other girl’s eyes. A canon was heard, and then another. Two tributes. Ember focused her attention to the clouds. She saw Tinley’s face, and then another.

“N  ―No.” The girl cried out. It wasn’t real. Cooper Jettson wasn’t dead. He couldn’t be. “Goddammit!” She screamed, sliding down to the ground. Had he been alone when he died. Oh, god. If he was alone she would never be able to forgive herself for not being there. She was sobbing by this point. Ember had known Cooper her entire life. She knew only one of them would make it out of the arena, but she had refused to focus on that part. If she was the one to make it out of the arena alive, how was she going to face her brothers? And Cooper’s family?

For the first time since the reaping, Ember was alone. She no longer had Cooper. She didn’t have anyone. She pushed herself up off of the ground. “Take care of him.” She whispered, looking at the camera. She was speaking to Bertha. She knew that Cooper’s body was probably already at the morgue by now. She wanted only the best for the boy she would have given her own life for. At that moment, a parachute began to drift down towards the girl. It had a coat inside. Ember slipped the coat on. Immediately she began to feel more warmth. It was too cold, and the vision was too limited, Ember didn’t think she would have trouble from any of the other tributes for a little while. Odds were, everyone was seeking shelter. She zipped up her new jacket that Bertha had sent her, and curled up into a ball. She began to cry again. She would worry about the games again once the storm was over. For now, she only had thoughts of Cooper.

[carlisle-ember]

A silver parachute drifts slowly to the ground, with a large box attached. Inside is a thick jacket. Inside is a note saying the gift is from mentor Bertha Train.

[carlisle-ember]

Ember wasn’t harmed, at least she didn’t think so. She might have a nasty bruise on her cheek come morning, from where the career boy had hit her, but she was used to bruises. Growing up with three brothers, she had grown up outdoors and play fighting with them. She held onto Cooper’s hand as he led them towards a different area. She gave it a squeeze, as if she was saying that everything was going to be okay. She felt like she was holding onto him for dear life, afraid that one of them might disappear if she let go of him. She heard the canon sound overhead, twice, signifying the death of the career and the boy from district eight. “The careers usually stick together, and the cornucopia is still close by, so there might be other careers headed this way. We should probably head South.” She murmured, keeping her voice quiet. “But when we get somewhere safe, we’re taking care of that cut. Maybe there’s something in one of our backpacks that can help with it.” 

Cooper could tell by the look on Ember’s face that what had just happened was going to have an impact on her. Killing someone would have an impact on anyone, even Cooper who was doing everything he could to keep his mind off of the fact that he had killed someone, and make sure that they kept moving to somewhere safe. Once she took his hand, he helped her to her feet, quickly scanning her over for any sign of an injury. Just as he was sure that she was fine, she noticed that he had been hurt. Looking down for a moment, he saw the blood running down his arm and let out a short breath, he shook his head, there was no time for that now. “I’m fine. We need to get somewhere else.” He said, still holding her hand as he started in a different direction, no idea where he was going, but determined to get as far away from the area as possible.

[carlisle-ember]

In a short few minutes, Ember, and one of the people she had known longest in her life had became killers. Ember wanted to lose it ―to scream, or cry, but she had to remember that people were watching, all of Panem was watching. She couldn’t fall apart now. She reach up, taking Cooper’s hand and allowing him to help her up. She didn’t say anything at first. She just gave him a nod of agreement when said they needed to go. Then her eyes caught the redness on his arm, and she knew he’d been injured. “Cooper, you’re hurt.”

Cooper finally looked away from the dead District Eight tribute lying on the ground in front of him, his eyes slowly turning to Ember. He had been so wrapped up in his thoughts, trying to cope with the fact that he had just killed another person, that he didn’t notice Ember doing the same, killing the tribute from Four. As his focus shifted towards her, he let out a soft breath, unsure what to do now. If they had been anywhere else, they would have been arrested and charged with murder. He felt like he should be thrown in jail for what he had just done. After a few moments, he shook his head a little and took a few steps towards her, holding out his hand to help her off the ground. The adrenaline was still rushing through him, so the pain from the cut on his arm still hadn’t hit him yet, but they couldn’t stay there, they needed to move. “Em,” He said quietly, to get her attention, “Let’s go.”

[carlisle-ember]

A silver parachute drifts slowly to the ground, with a small box attached. Inside is a small package of hard candies. Inside is a note from mentor Bertha Train, reading “Don’t give up.”

[carlisle-ember]

Ember could hear the commotion going on between Cooper and the district eight boy, but she couldn’t focus on that. It killed her not to know what was happening to Cooper, and whether or not he was hurt. She had the upper hand at the moment, surprisingly, because she had gotten the career down on the ground. Her mind was a blur. The career tried to over power her, and push her off of him. She knew once he gained control, that he would probably kill her. He managed to get a punch in, striking Ember across her cheekbone. It was like something inside of her snapped in that moment. She was no longer distracted or lost in her thoughts. She was fighting for her life. That had never been more clear. She punched him back ―once, twice, and a third time. She saw the first sign of blood as it ran from the boy’s face. It didn’t phase the girl. She hit him harder, pounding the side of his head, as if she were taking all of her frustrations out on him. He was gone. Ember sat back, still hovering over the male. She swallowed hard as she stared down at him, her mind realizing what she had done. She was a killer.

As soon as he heard that Ember was fine, Cooper put his full attention into fighting the male tribute in front of him. Though he was good at hand to hand fighting, the other tribute was just as good, if not better. This was a fight Cooper didn’t have the upper hand in. The two struggled back in forth, throwing punches, kicks, and trying to get the other to give in. It was a fair fight for the most part, until the tribute pulled a small knife from his belt and swung it at Cooper, getting him in the shoulder. But Cooper was too caught up in what was going on to give attention to what had just happened. He knew that Ember was capable of taking on another tribute, but the other was a Career and he still felt as if he had to protect her. Within seconds, his instincts had once again taken over and he stepped up his fighting, finally able to get a clear advantage over the male, disarming him, and putting him into a headlock. Without even thinking of what he was doing, Cooper snapped his neck and let the tribute fall to the ground. After that, he just froze there, trying to process what he had just done as his own blood ran down his arm and Ember took on the District Four tribute.

[carlisle-ember]

Ember was shocked to see Cooper. She had ran away from the Cornucopia so quickly that she hadn’t had the time to see where he went. She felt a sense of relief rush over her, just knowing that he was okay. “I’m okay.” Her tone soft, but desperate as she saw the other male coming towards him. There was no way she was about to let Cooper be taken down, especially not when he was risking himself to protect her. The district four male was still there, though, and he probably thought she would be an easy target. He and the boy from eight must have formed some type of alliance. Ember didn’t know what was in her backpack, but she didn’t have time to look anyway. She would have to think quick, and on her feet if she and Cooper were going to get out of this situation. She braced herself, and ran towards the district four male, pushing him to the ground. She didn’t know what she would do once she got him there, but she had to do something. 

With the backpack slung over his shoulder, Cooper just ran towards Ember. By the time he finally got near to where she was, the other tributes had her cornered. He didn’t give it a second thought before continuing towards them and then, once he was close enough, grabbing the District Eight male and pulling him backwards, away from Ember. The commotion distracted the District Four male and Cooper took his attention from the tribute closest to him to turn to Ember and quickly check to see if she was okay. In the short time he was focused on her, the male from Eight had enough time to escape Cooper’s grip and push him backwards. For the second time since the games started, Cooper found himself in a fight with another tribute.

[carlisle-ember]

After her battle with Tinley, Ember ran away from the Cornucopia as fast as she could. She hadn’t wanted to hurt the other girl, she simply wanted to get her supplies and get the hell out of there before the bloodbath started. Crouching beside a small bush she stopped to catch her breath, and to see what was in her backpack that she had taken from the Cornucopia. Hearing a noise, she quickly looked up, only to see that she was cornered by two other tributes ―the boy from four, and the boy from eight. What was the boy from eight doing with a career, and what did they want with her? She was sure that she was probably going to have to fight them off.

After having just fought off another tribute to get a backpack, Cooper stopped in his place. As everyone around him was fighting, some even dying, he found himself searching for Ember. He had lost tabs on her when he and Nox began fighting over the bag, and now he couldn’t find her anywhere. Panic flooded him as he looked at the dead bodies already on the ground, hoping that Ember wouldn’t be among them. Realizing she wasn’t one of the unlucky tributes, he stopped looking at the lifeless bodies and turned in a half circle before spotting her. But it wasn’t just her he saw when he turned. The males from Eight and Four were just steps from her and that was enough for Cooper’s protective instincts to take over as he began to sprint towards them.

[carlisle-ember]

Task 016 - The Launch, the Arena, and the Bloodbath.

Today was the day ―the morning of the 99th Hunger Games. The nights leading up to today had been the worst. Ember had found it harder and harder to sleep as the games neared closer. She was thankful that she had Cooper there with her throughout these past couple of weeks. Next to her brothers, he was the closest thing she had to family. That was the hardest part of all of this, knowing that at least one of them would not make it out of the arena alive.

Despite her troubles sleeping, Ember had been strangely calm when she woke up. Perhaps it was a state of shock, or the fact that she had come to the realization that she had no other choice, and that the tames were inevitable. Shortly after waking up and eating breakfast, she was taken to the catacombs. She didn’t feel like eating. Who would at a time like this? But she knew she needed energy and nourishment, and who knew what, if anything she would find to eat in the arena.

Her prep team was waiting for her in the catacombs. They immediately grabbed at her, and began fiddling with her hair, and changing her into her outfit for the arena. She looked down at her clothing ―a long sleeve shirt and pants, with a jacket and boots. She wondered what the arena would be like. It must be a cold climate, she thought to herself, given the amount of clothing she was wearing, and the heavy shoes. She dreaded the cold, but perhaps it would be easier to get warm, than it would be to try and cool off in a hot climate.

Talise, Ember’s main stylist pulled something out of her bag. Ember shook herself out of her own thoughts upon seeing the object. It was Minka’s hairpin. Talise secured it into Ember’s intricate braids. She gave the girl a soft, yet somehow saddened at the same time, smile. “Thank you.” Ember said, and wrapped her arms around Talise. Who knew how many opportunities she would ever have to hug someone again. She only wished it could be someone she cared about more, someone she loved, like her brothers, or Cooper. She wondered what was going through his mind right now. Was he calm?  Nervous? Scared?

She walked over to her platform, and turned around to look at Talise one last time. Sixty seconds until launch a voice called over head. A nervous look filled the female tribute’s eyes. “We’re counting on you, Ember.” The stylist told her, trying to look positive. Thirty seconds until launch, the voice repeated. Ember turned to face the other direction, as it was only a matter of time before she would be facing the Cornucopia. Ten seconds until launch ―the voice continued to count down until it reached zero. Ember emerged from her platform and ran as fast as her legs would carry her towards the Cornucopia. Her eyes rapidly searched for anything that might be of use to her.