District Tours: Train Ride

[etcircenses]

Prior to their departure, the Tributes have to suffer a photoshoot, a few interviewers asking them a thousand questions about how excited they are, and more than a few members of their style teams asking the Tributes to bring back mementos. "Don't worry about quality, dears, we can get that all here - we want you to bring us souvenirs for the novelty of it!"

The day of the trip, Tributes are roused bright and early, well before sunrise, and driven in Peacekeeper vans to the train station. It's all rather dour, and not like the start of a vacation at all; if one didn't know what was going on, and if the Escorts and head Stylists weren't chattering excitedly, they might think they were being hauled off to a war zone.

The trains, on the other hand, are plush, fancy things, and there is one per District. There's a single blockaded car for cargo, another for maintenance, driving and Peacekeeping staff, and then several others which are open to the Tributes. A dinner car serves three meals and has small snacks available throughout the day. Another car is an entertainment center with a selection of Capitol-approved films, and a the last one is the Tributes' temporary room. It has a bunk bed for each with sheets that was a truly intense threadcount, and a single massage chair in the back. The Stylists, Mentors and Escorts sleep in the same car, although separated by a partition.

Unfortunately, all the Tributes have to share the sleeping quarters, and it's first-come, first-served.

For the most part, the trip is so smooth that the surface of a glass full of water would not be disturbed. The trips to the closer Districts are a little under a day, but the furthest Districts - 3, 4, 7, 8, 11 and 12 - take nearly 48 hours.

[OOC: For Tributes accepted during the District tours, you can assume they arrived before the departure so they can participate in the District festivities. During the train ride there is still network access. There will only be this post and the party post from the mods for this event, so players are encouraged to make their own of their characters exploring their surroundings and enjoying the Districts.]

Comments

[hit_girl_mindy]

It took every ounce of strength she had not to widen her eyes in disbelief. Ok, a ninja turtle, fine, but fucking IRONMAN too?!

"That is pretty surprising. A shame he's not here. What happened, did he die for real?"

[polyturtle]

Oh, trust him, he tried not to geek out too much as well once it properly dawned on him who he was talking to.

"Pretty much seems to be the case. How it happened...he either died in the Arena, or otherwise in a quieter manner."

After what, it turned out, Tony had attempted during the Disney arena, Don wouldn't have been surprised if it were the latter. Still, Tony had been braver than most to be so audacious. Including himself.

[hit_girl_mindy]

Mindy would, of course, be beside herself if one of the people she geeked about wound up geeking about SOMEONE ELSE she was totally into. Not that this was the time.

"They wouldn't broadcast that I bet." Mindy's voice was low, constrained. The Capitol were about ten times worse than any enemy she ever had to face. This was definitely hell.

"We should get in closer, I think. Talk to some of them."

[polyturtle]

"They'll broadcast it when they need to." Thoughts of Ariadne's death and Shepard's Avoxing caused a slight note of bitterness to creep into Don's voice. "When they feel it needs to be done."

[hit_girl_mindy]

She detected some of the bitterness there, and guessed what Don might be referring to.

"Like a lesson for all of us to stay obedient, right?"

[polyturtle]

"Something like that," Don murmured. "Especially given the methods they've employed. They've used them in the Arena, as well."

[hit_girl_mindy]

"Like electric fences and dinosaurs snacking on our innards? Yeah, I gathered that. One of the things about the Arena, you can't ever let your guard down, not even for a second. At least, not with people you don't know."

[polyturtle]

"I know," Don sighed. "Though, there's also the possibility of being poisoned even before the Arena starts."

[hit_girl_mindy]

Mindy raised her head at that. "How would that happen?"

[polyturtle]

"We...were poisoned before one Arena." Don's face darkened at this. "With a special neurotoxin that was used for execution. Designed by one of the more public torturers of the Capitol. It was put into our trackers, which steadily secreted it into our systems at the Cornucopia."

[hit_girl_mindy]

She wrinkled her nose. "Wait so it killed you all before you even had a chance to compete, or was it going off slowly to see how long you could go on until you were completely poisoned?"

[polyturtle]

"It was designed to kill us, so we could be awoken in a second round of Arenas, separate from the original." Don's fists involuntarily clenched. "That was when I found out we were clones. Our bodies were still in that original Arena, decaying."

[hit_girl_mindy]

Mindy just stared, dumbfounded. That sounded...fucking horrific. There were literally no words for her to describe what she'd just heard.

"W-what the fuck is even the point of that?!"

[polyturtle]

Those fists were tightening.

"Shell if I know. Most likely to show us we weren't going home."

[hit_girl_mindy]

"Yeah, but you pretty much already knew that? Like, seriously, what would have been the watching value in that?"

Unless it was to remind the District they were just as powerless, of course.

[polyturtle]

"...I didn't know about being a clone."

And given Don's quiet response, it was clear it was a moment he hadn't enjoyed. A moment he despised even less than the whole poisoning part.

[hit_girl_mindy]

"No, not that, that was just fucked up. I mean that you already knew that you couldn't leave, so why jam the point in your head by doing some screwed up thing with clones?"

[polyturtle]

The answer, in the end, was simple.

"Because they can."

[hit_girl_mindy]

Mindy reflected darkly. It was bad enough knowing that they had them by the balls, but to remind them in that way? There was no reason to do it other than flexing their muscles. She was already starting to form a revulsion with anyone that went along happily with the way the Capitol did things.

"I'm beginning to see why people in our group start to go crazy sometimes...for the ones that aren't already."

[polyturtle]

"Believe me," Don mumbled. "I'd rather not go down that road again, but you can see why it might be difficult."

[hit_girl_mindy]

"It's a good thing I'm not one of those nice little girls then," Mindy said. "I actually might have started losing it. I guess anyone can start killing without remorse, you stay here long enough."

[polyturtle]

"Yeah," Don said, with a small sigh. "Unfortunately."

[hit_girl_mindy]

Mindy cracked her knuckles. "Times like that, I guess it helps to have some of those ally people you were talking about. Help keep your head straight, make sure you don't get too out there. You have some people like that looking out for you, right?"

[polyturtle]

There was a silence, before Don spoke again.

"I did before. But I hadn't had really any long-term allies the past few Arenas; most of them...disappeared. I'm only just starting to forge new alliances."

[hit_girl_mindy]

"That's gotta be rough."

She meant it too: before she knew what had to be done she was already making friends so she could get questions answered. Mindy HAD allies, so to speak. Why shouldn't Donatello?

"I figured you might know some of the friendlier guys."