Chapter Text
Jimmy felt his heart pounding in his chest, the blood rushing in his ears. He looked down and felt his stomach drop. He and the other players are on a mountain peak, right next to the edge, feeling the cold air sweep around them, ruffling his feathers. Jimmy looked up from the edge to see the others forming a circle around a strange, raised platform that seemed out of place. It appeared to be made of glass over a massive drop in the middle of the mountain, with chests on top that are brimming with various supplies. Arrows poking out of some, and sharp, gleaming swords in others.
A loud voice comes from somewhere out in the distance, bringing Jimmy out of his thoughts.
“Welcome, players! This is the 36th annual Life Games. I’m sure you all know the stakes you are playing for. Try to make this entertaining for all of us watching!” The loud voice finished. It sounded taunting and condescending. Jimmy recognized the voice, having grown up watching the Life Games. Watching the massacre that was the Life Games had made Jimmy vow to never kill. That would be a lot easier if he hadn’t been chosen to participate in the games. Another voice started, a feminine one this time.
“The game will start in three…”
Fuck what do I do?
“Two…”
Do I run to the center? Jimmy looked to the other players. Some looked worried, others looked ready to kill.
“One!”
Run, was all Jimmy thought as he ran away from the center, down the mountain. The terrain was terrifying to run through, rocky and loose dirt that slipped under his feet, but he couldn’t challenge the other players. His best chance was to run and hide.
By the time Jimmy had gotten away from the mountain, his legs were aching, and his head was pounding. He leaned against a huge oak tree, desperately trying to catch his breath. He really needed to have been prepping for this. Jimmy winced at this idea. He had always thought that he wouldn’t get chosen for the Life games. It was naïve of him, really. Each year, he would see people from his home get chosen, and he would mourn for them. It really was only a matter of time before this would happen to him.
Jimmy pushed himself away from the looming tree and continued to trudge through the forest. The trees were large and towering above him, making him feel smaller than he already did. He could hear different animals skittering around the forest and chirps of birds in the air. He needed to find some sort of weapon, if worst came to worst, and he needed to defend himself. He prayed that it didn’t, just the thought of having to hurt someone made him sick. He stuck by the mountain, hoping to find a weapon that someone had dropped.
His hopes seemed to be answered as he spotted a bag on the ground. It looks to be a duffel bag, one of many that's probably left around ‘map.’ Jimmy moves a cautious gaze around the area before tiptoeing to the bag. The first thing Jimmy pulls out is a small dagger and a sheath that clips to his belt. The other thing he pulled out is a decent-sized bow and a few arrows.
Jimmy debated taking the bag, but he didn’t want one of his hands full, so ultimately he left it. With his newly found weapons, Jimmy felt a bit more confident. Like he could actually hold his own in the game-
Crash! He falls to the ground, his wings flailing behind him. The scream he let out was loud and high-pitched, almost definitely giving his spot away. His heart picked up in its already fast pace as he heard talking coming closer.
“Are you sure you heard it coming from over here?” A male voice asked not too far away.
“I’m pretty sure… Joel, are we really gonna kill them?” A female voice questioned.
“We have to, it’s either them or us, Lizzie.” The man, Joel said. Jimmy scrambled to get up, but it was too late; he could hear the man and woman coming straight towards him, yelling. Jimmy prepped himself with his dagger, holding it out towards a man with brown hair, with a strip of green that ran throughout it. The woman, Lizzie, had bright pink hair. He’s surprised he hadn’t noticed the two of them earlier; they stuck out like a sore thumb.
Joel had an axe aimed towards him while Lizzie was holding a trident. “Please, I don’t mean any harm,” Jimmy begged, holding his dagger unconfidently. He saw Joel whisper something to Lizzie before trailing closer to him, Lizzie doing the same but with less conviction. Joel swung the axe, but Jimmy moved out of the way just in time. He felt Lizzie push him down, the sharp prongs of the brilliantly teal trident being held towards his throat. She stood over him with a conflicted expression.
“End it Liz.” Said Joel, putting his hand on his shoulder.
“I- I can’t.” She said softly, her gaze leaving Jimmy’s and going to Joel's.
“Liz-” Joel had begun, but got cut off by an arrow narrowly missing Lizzie, who jumped like a frightened cat out of the way. This distraction gave Jimmy the chance to get up and run away. There was no noise of them following him, but he did hear shouting and shuffling around as he left.
It was almost night by the time he had finally stopped running, long shadows painting the ground. He could feel blisters forming on the heel of his foot. He wished he had different shoes on. That wasn’t his main concern, however; that was to find somewhere to sleep. Jimmy was exhausted, feeling like his skin was going to melt off his bones. Jimmy felt some relief when he saw a cave on the side of the mountain; it was just a small hike up. With the little energy he could muster, he made his way to the cave. It was dark inside, but it would do. Jimmy took off the bow and arrows that were strapped around his chest, setting them next to him. Jimmy made a small fire deep enough in the cave that hopefully no one could see. Sleep slowly but surely took him, but it was not a nice, dream-filled night.