"Not the face! Not the<span style="font-style: italic"> fucking </span>face, you bastard!"<br/>Stark could barely feel the pain in his cheek as he blindly sprinted in pursuit of Eden. Curses at Eden screamed in his head over and over.<span style="font-style: italic">That bitch thinks he can escape me?</span>He laughed at the thought and imagined what he would do to Eden once he had him in his grasp. He thought of skinning his face, then tearing his fingernails off with a pliers, then yanking out his teeth with his knife.<span style="font-style: italic">I will break you to pieces</span>, he promised to Eden and to himself.<span style="font-style: italic">And shatter those pieces into even more pieces.</span><br/><br/>The cries of his comrades didn't even reach him over his thoughts as they floundered in the acidic pit. Once the image of them struggling in the aperture appeared in Stark's eyes, he slammed his foot on the ground and propelled himself over it. He would have made it to the other side safely if his leg hadn't grazed someone's head, throwing off his balance. Stark's chin hit the edge of the crevice as his knees were banged against the bottom of it. His sledgehammer was hurled out of his hand onto the ground. Without hesitation, he threw his hands out and dug his fingernails into the ground as his feet scraped against the wall of the pit.<br/><br/>Pulling himself up, he rolled over onto his back and started clawing at his skin and clothes. His skin felt on fire. The burning sensation seem to engulf his body, like flames would. As Stark writhed in pain, he gazed at his arms and saw bubbling red patches. Instinctively, he tried to rub them off, but only caused his fingers to start smarting. Bellowing in pain and frustration, he tore off his shirt and his pants. He went back to the hole just as Coren got out of it, screaming and rolling on the ground. Kneeling beside her, he opened her backpack and dug through it. Once he found it, he grabbed the canteen and opened it and poured some of the water over his searing skin to relieve it. The stinging was soothed, but only enough that Stark could bear it. He pushed Coren onto her back and saw the acid eating half of her face. He emptied the canteen's contents onto her face and torso.<br/><br/>When he looked back at the group, they were out of the hole and thrashed on the ground, wailing in agony. He cautiously approached the crevice and saw a the remnants of a girl's body at the bottom; her skin was almost completely consumed by the acid. He gazed off into the thickets of the forest, thinking,<span style="font-style: italic">Since when did that little punk get smart?</span>He shook his head at the thought.<span style="font-style: italic">Not smart; just resourceful.</span><br/><br/>"Stark," wept Coren behind him. He looked back at her with a vacant face. "It... h-hurts so much. I c-ca..." The rest of what she said was indistinguishable blubbering. He tried to respond, but when he opened his mouth, blood spewed out. He covered his lips with his hand and acknowledged the pain in his mouth. He spat something out onto his hand and saw that it was chuncks of his tongue. He had bitten off the sides of his tongue when his chin slammed onto the ground. Coren stared at Stark in horror and continued to cry.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Eden</span>, he thought with blazing eyes.<span style="font-style: italic">I will cut off your tongue. And then I'll make you burn.</span><br/><br/>***<br/><br/>Eden was unsure for a moment since he wasn't told exactly what to do, but just took another route to the river as the others did. He imitated as much as he could see of them, crouching to the ground and making a haphazard path through the tall, golden grass. As he went along, he noticed that the sun was already nearing the western horizon.<span style="font-style: italic">I've made it through the first day</span>, he thought in relief.<span style="font-style: italic">With many close calls, but I got through them.</span>He acknowledged that running away is the best option for him, since he could do little else.<span style="font-style: italic">But I still have a chance at survival!</span><br/><br/>Once they gathered at the creek's edge, the young man lead them across it. Eden's feet slipped  on the rocks of the other bend and fell to his knees, but recovered and continued; his face was hot, but blushing couldn't be seen on his dark face. As they approached the falls, the sky lit up and flashes of names and faces of death appeared.<span style="font-style: italic">They all had families</span>, he thought with dreary eyes.<span style="font-style: italic">They all had dreams... and they were taken away.</span>He was solemned by the thoughts, but his sadness was dull, as if he mentally prepared himself for such feelings.<br/><br/>He saw District 7 girl's face and his somberness turned to confusion when he saw her name was Janiel. "What?" he muttered with a glance back at Janiel. He blinked. "Why do they think you're dead?" His question was answered when Janiel took off her mask, revealing a face that was entirely different from the one in the sky. His brow furrowed at the unfamiliar girl and he asked, "Who are you, then?" He made an utterance of surprise when his ally grabbed his knife once he saw who Janiel really was. "Wait, what's-" Before the young man could attack, Eden stepped beside the girl and held his hand up. "Wait a minute, what's going on? What are you doing?" He wasn't sure what he would do if the guy attacked, but he wouldn't just watch the girl get killed without getting answers first.