User blog:TheAmericanDream/The 75th Hunger Games - The Extermination

Preface
'''War, terrible war. Widows, orphans, a motherless child. This was the uprising that rocked our land. Thirteen Districts rebelled against the country that fed them, loved them, protected them. Brother turned on brother until nothing remained. And then came the peace, hard fought, sorely won. A people rose up from the ashes and a new era was born. But freedom has a cost. When the traitors were defeated, we swore as a nation we would never know this treason again.'''

'''And so it was decreed, that each year, the various districts of Panem would offer up in tribute, one young man and woman, to fight to the death in a pageant of honor, courage and sacrifice. The lone Victor, bathed in riches, would serve as a reminder of our generosity and our forgiveness. This is how we remember our past. This is how we safeguard our future.'''

The crowd stood still - dead silent in the District Square as the video ended. They had all seen it, more times than they cared to count. They remained silent, many of them nervously anticipating what was coming next.. The next message would also come from President Coriolanus Snow, however it would be a much more important one.

He would be revealing the Quarter Quell's excruciating twist. Every twenty-five years, they held a special rendition of the Games. The Games on those years would have an added rule, in order to amplify the effect they had on the nation.

Prior to the Reapings for the 25th Games, the President at the time, Tiberus Snow, had come before all of Panem and revealed this dark secret about the Games. In the charter of the Games, it had been decided every 25 years there would be a Quarter Quell, in order to "quell" all thought of rebellion from the Districts.

On the 25th year of the Games, in reminder that the Districts chose death when they rebelled, the tributes for that year would be voted in by their peers.

On the 50th year of the Games, in reminder that for each Capitol citizen killed, two rebels died, there would be double the amount of tributes, resulting in 48 children being reaped.

And now, the crowd in District 2 stood perfectly still as they awaited the announcement of the 3rd Quarter Quell, and the 75th Hunger Games.

Finally, after a minute or two had passed, the screen blinked back to life. President Snow stood at his podium on the Balcony of Victors. It was where he always addressed Panem when it concerned the Games. It was there right below the Balcony of Victors, on the Avenue of Tributes, that the chariot rides took place each year. And now, President Snow stood dressed in his formal attire, ready to address the nation. A young boy stood next to him, holding a wooden box marked 75.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the 75th year of the Hunger Games. And it was written in the charter of the Games, that every 25 years there would be a Quarter Quell, to keep fresh for each new generation the memory of those who died in the uprising against the Capitol. Each Quarter Quell is distinguished by Games of significance. And now, on this, the 75th Anniversary of our defeat of the rebellion, we celebrate the 3rd Quarter Quell." President Snow finished the first part of his announcement, and then he turned to the young boy. The boy opened the wooden box, and President Snow reached in and brought out an envelope. He slowly opened it, a grin across his face. There were only two others before him who had the privileged to do this. His great grandfather, Tiberus Snow, and his uncle Commodus Snow.

Snow opened the envelope, and pulled out the golden card.

"As a reminder that even the strongest cannot overcome the power of the Capitol, on this 3rd Quarter Quell Games, this male and female tributes are to be reaped from the existing pool of Victors in each District. All Victors will present themselves on Reaping Day, regardless of age, state of health, or any other situation. They will compete in this pageant of honor and sacrifice in a glorious fashion, and will compete for the ultimate crown." President Snow finished reading the card, looked into the camera, and gave a dismissal nod. The screens went black once again.

One of the Victors onstage instantly stood up in protest. He turned to the escort, Juno Quartsite, and yelled. "Is this some kind of joke?!"

A Peacekeeper trained his gun on Victor. "Mr. Stonepoint, sit down." He ordered. The other Victors also had guns trained on them. The crowd was in an uproar. Some yelled in confusion, some of the eager 18 year olds complained, but most of the crowd was cheering. They were safe for another year. They were safe from the horrendous experience of not only the Hunger Games, but a Quarter Quell.

The man obeyed the Peacekeeper and took his seat. Juno looked uncomfortable.

"Now, now. I know this is an exciting time, but lets refocus here shall we?" She said, barely being heard over the mic.

She tried a couple more times to calm the crowd with no avail.

Finally a Peacekeeper fired a pistol into the air. The crowd grew dead silent.

"Much better! Now, we had special Reaping Bowls prepared for this occasion! We had to hide them to keep it all a surprise!" Juno confessed to the crowd. She pulled out two more bowls from behind the podium. They were smaller than the huge glass bowls generally used, and they were golden.

Juno had two Peacekeepers take away the old Reaping Bowls, and she swiftly placed down the two new ones.

"Alrighty! Well, this is so exciting! As President Snow so gracefully said, this year to honor the 75th Games, our Victors will be tributes once again!

Gamemaker Comments: As you can tell by now, this is not the 75th Games as we remember them. In this timeline, Prim was never reaped, and so Katniss never volunteered. Peeta Mellark skimped by and dodged the Games. And if that fateful day in the 74th Games never happened, what did? We know our story currently takes place in District 2, with the Quarter Quell being announced. In the story we know, it was announced early so that President Snow could unhinge Katniss. So, without our Girl on Fire, Snow had no reason to announce early and waited until the day of the Reaping. It was speculated that Snow, or Plutarch Heavensbee changed the Quell's twist to ensure Katniss was back in the arena. In this timeline, the Quell was always involved Victors, and always intended to keep a dangerous breed in check. So as we look back to our current setting, as I stated before, we know we are in District 2. We know all the Victors are present, and we know that one of them is identified as "Mr. Stonepoint." Who is this Victor? You'll have to find out...



Careers
Alastair Dongahue (1), Carnelia Balenciaga (1), Alethea Ninette (10)

Districts 2 & 8
Astraea Ashlar (2), Broider Shantung (8), Voiletta Jacquard (8)

District 4
Beauregard Varnua (4), Kyra Amphitrite (4)

District 6
Jonathon Tracks (6), Lydia Train-Tracks (6)

Districts 7 and 10
Lindsay Kimura (7), Artemis Sampson (10)

Outer Districts Alliance
Ashleeyn Beaureguard (9), Hamza Raywood (11), Siko Ponileaf (11)

Loners
Jason MacIntosh (3), Aiden Wirihana (5), Selene Prosperio (5), Trillium Duskflow (9), Emil Durian (12)

Requests
Albion (2) is waiting to hear requests

Barrett (7) is requesting Albion (2)

Trillium (9) is open to requests

Minerva (3) is open to requests

Meghan (12) is requesting the Outer Districts Alliance