Sarin was unable to balance his body, the earthquakes sending tremors through the ground. Something felt... different about himself. Unnatural. He looked down at his paw pads, covered in calluses, bleeding. His eyes felt strained. Coughing, he looked down at Stuart, who rested in his palm. Stuart seemed to be in poor health as well, his large eyes sullen and bleak. A large, empty, and vast stretch of charred land lay before the pair. Vines were sprouting cracks within the dry dirt. "...don't worry, Stuart. It will all be over soon." She cracked a small smile at the feeble creature, who looked up at her with awe, and fear. "We will get through this. Just like we always have." She was unsure of if she was persuading Stuart or herself. No matter. Sarin's green eyes flickered across the field of rocks as she sunk her claws into the ground. The foliage that had grown all around the arena had begun to wilt. She felt her vision becoming hazy... and recalled the winters she'd spent in District 6, in the mansion, alone. How they all once glared at her with contempt, and how now, they would praise her as a legend forever. She stepped forward, her bones trembling with fragility as her muscles eroded. Stuart whimpered in protest, his black eyes darting across the landscape. Sarin looked at him, one last time before she set him down in a bed of flowers. Stuart squirmed, attempting to follow Sarin, but to no avail. He was too weak and small to catch up to her. Sarin murmured something to herself, lashing their tail across the dusty ground. Holding up their wrist, they slammed their prison monitor against the ground, watching it shatter into pieces. A tumultuous, jarring sound fired from the arena's speakers, booming throughout the arena. But what could the Capitol do now? There was no greater punishment than dying within the arena. But Sarin would never die /to/ the arena. The Capitol would be watching now, awake. He would have to move fast. Sarin removed a small, petal-shaped disc from the debris, watching it glisten underneath the moonlight. Ripping a small venus flytrap out of the ground, Stuart averted his eyes, only looking at Sarin as he wrapped the wilted plant around the metal disc. Green liquid began to seep from the plant's leaves. Stuart attempted to untangle himself once again from the prison of wilted foliage around him, desperate to reach Sarin and help him. Sarin placed the disc onto the ground, his lime eyes becoming hazy... The disc glowed, concealed by the flytrap's vines. Sarin coughed once again, crimson splattering onto the dry ground. The disc glowed more harshly now, it's viridescent shine beginning to blind Sarin. It hummed and buzzed loudly, sending tremors into the ground. The arena now began to glitch, plants rapidly switching between dead and alive. Sarin dove towards Stuart, cradling the plant in his arms, watching the disc from afar. It exploded, gunpowder and heat sending a wave of ash towards Sarin. The deserted field began to cave in on itself, magma sprouting up from the ground like a geyser. All around them, the mountains shifted and crumbled, sputtering ash and setting the vegetation aflame. Drones began to descend from the barrier, armed with guns and weaponry. Small, red dots began to train themselves on Sarin's back. But it was the rebel's victory, not the Capitol's. Sarin arose weakly, his eyes stinging from the ash as he squinted at the drones. His lungs were full of smoke, lava sprouting from the snowy mountain's peaks. "You all should have bowed to the Begonias when you had the chance." He hissed, his eyes defiantly piercing the drones that projected his image across the world. "You all have reveled in my presence. I brought you all joy! Because you... you have been drawn to me. You see the best qualities- the flawlessness that you all wish was truly within yourselves. You have been watching my reports, engaging in my events, and competing within my arena, on MY stage. You yearn for my power. You long for my desire to be free. Because you are all complicit, MINDLESS DRONES!" Sarin leaped up, swatting a drone out of the sky as dozens of red dots began to direct themselves at his chest. "You are all rooting for me, in the depths of your souls. Don't deny it. This world needs someone to save Panem." Sarin's voice was brash, shaking with determination. "You can sit atop your gilded throne, Imperium. Just be aware that it will crumble the moment people realize that the only thing you rule over is the ashes of those citizens who came before you. AND THAT THE PEOPLE OF TODAY WILL NOT STAND FOR YOUR TYRANT'S RULE!" Tears flowed from Stuart's eyes as magma flowed all around them. Sarin's eyes darted toward the small creature with a smile.
"You will never be able to erase my legacy, Imperium. Stuart will outlast both of us. He will outlast the world. Death will never be able to stop him. Because he will overcome it every time. My performance will haunt you, as it has haunted the Capitol. He is the product of my passion and rage. Everyone will see him, in this very arena. The Capitol, the Districts. And even those beyond that. This is the price you will pay for the pain you have caused us. BECAUSE YOU WILL NEVER DEFEAT ME, IMPERIUM. WE WILL NOT REST UNTIL YOU ARE DEAD!" A bullet pierced his flesh. Sarin crumpled to the ground, his fur matted and snarled. His wet nose was dripping red as he sheltered Stuart. He attempted to get up once again, baring his teeth at the drones. Another one rocketed down into his leg. He cried out, unable to move. His body shifted to cover Stuart as a barrage of bullets rained down on him, the ground around him encased in magma. The heat was unbearable. Stuart screamed, terror and grief seeping into his body as he cowered beneath Sarin. Tears flowed freely from his trembling body. "S̸͈̎Ȁ̵͖R̶̖͛I̵̗͝N̴͉͌!" Sarin only smiled as he closed his emerald eyes. "...Finis non est finis." --- written by Tsu_Suki art by Tsu_Suki and Banana203 --- EVENT INFORMATION --- In this event, you will not be fighting against one another, but the arena itself, who will be played by any volunteer. Using the regular battle system, attack rolls from the tribute function as escape opportunities, with each point of damage towards the arena bringing you closer to safety. Dodges from the tribute represent a dodge against one of the eruption hazards- whether that be a falling rock, glitching plant, or chasm in the ground. Tribute health is calculated as normal. In terms of the arena, an attack is treated as a hazard put in the path of the tribute, and a dodge is a new danger that jeopardizes the escape attempt the tribute just made. Roleplaying is required from both tribute and arena, as this is different to a typical fight. Tributes that fail to escape will be eliminated. This is considered a mandatory fatal, and will need to be completed by December 10th.
