Mass release: 5/16
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Lovise Holst-Mathiasen
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"She also said the games will last 100 days," Jose told them.
"No, it always lasts 60 days," Ruby countered.
"Not this time, baby girl," I tested the bed, insanely comfortable. "It will be a special edition, the 100th, so, it'll last 100 days, we'll be here for 14 days in a extra training to make it more enjoyable for everyone who will be watching, and, of course, for the enjoyment of Goddess Mallory. And the arena will also be different, it will be challenging, more dangerous, and made in a way to be harder for the tributes who aren't allied to get to each other, after all, it will last 40 days longer than the other ones."
"How do you know that?" Arina gasped.
"Love is a knows-it-all," Jose pointed again, unfazed. "I would tell you not to keep asking how she knows, because not even her can answer that, since she just knows. We've barely known each other, but she already made that very clear to us in the train. Now, only time will be able to tell if she was write about her previsions about the games."
"That's insane," Ruby passed a hand over her curls.
"Not really, all of the Mathiasen are like that. I bet the Haynes also have a ability that they keep a secret. My dad didn't because he was not a born-Mathiasen but a Holst-turned-Mathiasen, my mom and Silas did. They didn't really pay attention to it and chose revenge, getting them ultimately killed by the Haynes. I know better than that. I know I can and I will win because I'm smartest and more skilled than the ones who came before me. I'll be the first to do the crazy feat of going from 27th to 1st."
"Do you have faith in Mallory?" Arina asked.
"No, in myself. I'm the only one who can change my reality. Yes, I do believe in Mallory, because I know she exists, I'm not a pagan or a non-believer, I just don't have faith in her. She did nothing special to my life for me to have faith in her, she didn't save my family, she didn't avoid Greta from kicking me out and abandoning me in area 27, she didn't stop my people from constantly humiliating and mistreating me, so, why should I have faith in her? She won't move a finger for me, but I will, so, the one I have faith in is myself, and only myself. I'll save me, she won't."
"That's quite the statement, troublemaker," Severin exclaimed as he came inside, locking the door behind him, he took off his shoes and came to sit next to my bed, but not before handing some electronic stuff to Timmy and to Jose. Leaning closer to my bed, he handed me mine, "This is,"
"A neck microphone," I rolled my eyes, taking it and putting it on, then tying the belt with my name and number around my waist, "yes, I am not dumb, I did watch the past 2 games, so, I've seen Silas and mom using it." Adjusting it around my neck, I met Jose's eyes, "How am I, Jose?"
"Pretty, Love," he smirked, mimicking me and putting his on, and Timmy did the same. "But you already know that."
"I do," I winked, "you look pretty with it too," then I turned to my only firm ally, who also was putting his microphone on, "and so do you, Timmy," making him blush. "But why did you give them to us now?"
"The higher up were making a fuss because you didn't have your microphone on, and everyone was surprisingly interested in whatever the hell you would be spewing through your mouth," he looked away from me. "It seems like the spotlight in on you."
"Oh?" I glared at one of the cameras, "Fuck you, Greta!"
"Lovise," Severin gasped exasperated. "She is the 27th Leader."
"And?" I mocked. "She gave birth to mom, who gave birth to me, soooooo, why the fuck should I care about that. She had it coming. In fact," I chuckled bitterly, "I bet she wanted me not to be chosen, not for me to die, but for me not to badmouth her in a place everyone would hear it. She is probably furious with me, but there's nothing she or anyone can do about that, harming a tribute before the games, and not by the hands of another tribute, is an offense to Mallory, and no one, not even Law Haynes and his minions, would allow that to happen."
"You do know you sound arrogant as fuck, yeah?" Severin scoffed.
"Yes, and?" I mocked. "I know for a fact that the top 10 are all a bunch of arrogant brats, no matter their age, so why can't I? I'll end up as the top 1 in the end, either way," I said with a smug. "You all can doubt me all you want, but it won't change the fact that I can back my shit up, and I'll make everyone who's doubting me, shut their bloody trap," then I admired my hands again. "Who did our manicure? It's really gorgeous, I love black, it's the second best color. The first, of course, is blood red," I purred.
"Ugh, I'm doomed," Severin cried, covering his face.
"Doomed to greatness," I said cornily, and the other laughed at it.
"Now that we're here, tell us about the history you mentioned back there, Love," Timmy brought it up again, laying down on his bed.
He remind me of a cute and friendly dog, with all due respect.
"History?" Severin frowned, lost.
Ignoring him, I sat down with my legs crossed, back on my pillows, "The first chosen for the games was Adrien Mathiasen, 700 years ago in the very 1st Grim Games, he was 27 years old, married to Eva Friis-Mathiasen who was expecting their second baby, as they already had a 7-year-old son. He was lost in the beginning of the games, just like everybody else, but he was rational and had the idea of uniting a group of people, so they could all survive together, and get rid of the others who tried to attack them. Back then, they were all desperate because they witnessed humanity getting near extinct, and that was their chance of survival, granted by a deity."
"They still had the mindset of countries, as the Areas were still all getting instituted, and they weren't that used to it yet, we were from a Norse-Scandinavian country called Denmark, very close to Norway which is now area 21, and Sweden that is now area 25, as the other Scandinavian countries were all decimated in the last world war, before Mallory came to us. So, he studied the people around him, and analyzed who would it be better for him to ally himself with, he assembled nine avengers. The first was Rose Haynes the Australian, from what was then and is now area 1."
"Mattias Russo the Italian, from what was area 13 and is now the 4th. Lorena Lobo the Brazilian, from what was area 24 and is now the 6th. Miyagi Ryu the Japanese, from what was area 26 and is now the 22nd. Seth Sinha the Indian, from was area 27 and is now the 8th. Maria Løvland the Norwegian, from what was area 4 and is now the 21st. Gilbert Vayssière the French, from what was area 18 and is now the 10th. Jeremy Stevenson the English, from what was area 23 and is now the 11th. And lastly, Obi Onyejekwe the South African, from was area 11 and is now the 5th."
"He was the best strategist there were, and under his leadership, the group of ten helped each other out, by pushing away their selfishness and focusing on their future as a group, knowing that the top 10 would be the most treasured at the end of the game, they went forward. Adrien read the game like a mastermind, and he was able to create a defensive front, so all the ten of them would remain alive at the end. But he didn't want top 1, he didn't want to lead them, he wanted to be there, but not the responsibilities."
"So, he offered himself to take the 7th place, because 7 was his lucky number, and it was the number chosen by Mallory, as everything would all but keep changing from 7 to 7 years, he was 27, and his child was 7 years, and though they wanted him to take 1st, since he was the reason of their survival, they accepted his choice. Adrien suggested Rose Haynes as the leader of Area 1, because she learned strategy with him, and she had the mind of a leader, and so, the Haynes took the 1st place, not and just because they had the smallest population, but because she earned it. That was also where the relationship between the Mathiasen and the Haynes began."