Chapter 79 - Money

Once inside the train the doors closed and they entered the luxurious train. Although they had appeared to be sad when they left their District neither of them had cried. Which was probably a good sign. When they looked around they saw absolutely wonderful furniture, beautifully painted walls and many more things. Although Kaiser had seen the blueprints of said train, knew how to pilot it and much more he was still shocked by the luxury. Not even Aster who lived together with the mayor and was much more well off was immune to the change. The contrast between this and their home district was simply extreme. Before they could fully immerse themselves in this new environment they felt a sudden acceleration which startles them for a moment. Shortly after they are being taken to their respective rooms which is more like a personal apartment based on the standard of living of the Capitol citizens. When he goes to take a shower he purely out of habit uses his Observation Skill to figure out the individual functions of the many buttons and displays present. After he had done many trips through the forest as training he was almost forced to double check everything with his Observation Skill.

A nice shower with warm water and relaxing music later he began to check out his wardrobe. Dozens of different clothes in various sizes and made out of a multitude of materials presented themselves when he opened the door. As it had gotten a bit colder he opted for a thin pullover and jeans as well as a fancy belt, although it wouldn't have made much of a difference to simply use a T-Shirt as small differences in temperature didn't really bother him. But why would he not dress a bit warmer when he had the opportunity? Glancing towards his box he decides to wait with using the cloak for a while. Enjoying himself with a few games on a game console he found next to a large screen to pass the time he waits until Asmodeus comes to take him to dinner.

When they arrived Aster was already sitting there, playing with her golden bracelet, seemingly waiting for them. When they entered the room she looked up, perhaps she had heard the footsteps? Although that seemed to be highly unlikely as none of them were wearing shoes at the moment. As soon as Kaiser was seated as well Asmodeus disappeared once more. Seeing that Aster had showered as well he decided to do a bit of small talk until Asmodeus would return. "How was your shower? Did you find the right buttons?" She was surprised for a moment before replying: "Well it took a while until I managed to find the important ones which did what I wanted. How did you do?" Kaiser chuckled. "Quite well. It seems as though I hit most of the important ones on the first try although a few buttons held a lot of surprises. The music was especially nice." At Kaiser's mention of music Aster's eyes seemed to shine. "Music? I didn't find any sadly. But isn't it weird how many different things they have?" Kaiser smiled and replied: "They're from the Capitol. What did you expect?" She laughed. "True. If there was anything to make life easier then that thing can be found in the capitol sooner or later."

Before they could move on to another topic or even continue Asmodeus who had escorted two older people towards the table interrupted them. Kaiser who had studied the previous Hunger Games knew exactly who they were. The large male who would probably be his mentor was named Chaff who had won the 45th Hunger Games and had lost one hand in the process. Sadly he was an alcoholic and he didn't know if he would be able to help them very much. The female he knew as Seeder would most likely tutor Aster. She had won the 32th Hunger Games and had no known addictions which was one of the best conditions for a victor to be in. Both had dark skin and dark hair although Seeder was much older and already had a bit of gray hair. The biggest question to him was if they would be mentored separately or if they would tutor both of them equally and together.

When the both of them sat down Chaff immediately grasped towards a bottle of alcohol which had been put on the table but before he had even reached it Seeder had already grabbed his arm. "Don't you remember our agreement Chaff? You can drink as much as you want over the year but whenever we start training the new tributes you have to stop." Chaff sighed deeply and after Seeder had let go of his hand he relaxed it and seated himself properly. "You're simply no fun Seeder." "And you have to test me every year if I forget the agreement. I'm old but not senile Chaff! Now behave!" "Yes, MOM." Kaiser and Aster merely watched as both of them bantered. Of course Seeder wasn't Chaffs real mum but due to the fact that she had mentored him they had grown quite close after all these years.

After a few more minutes the pair finally turned towards Kaiser and Aster. "Excuse us children but this boy right here simply has no manners. My name is Seeder as you probably all know. And this idiot next to me is our notorious drunk Chaff. We will oversee your training together and do our best to try and get you to survive. If you have any questions then come to us and we will be happy to answer all of them, right Chaff?!" The man simply grumbled "Yes." Before he drowned a glass of juice next to him and grimaced. "Why did I ever agree to this stupid rule..." "Because you were really drunk when I asked you to and you agreed. This way you'll have to learn from your mistakes. Why don't you simply go to therapy?" Chaff was still unhappy with this answer but didn't want to start anything so he focused on dinner. Countless delicacies had been presented to all of them. Wonderful tastes accompanied their evening which we finished off in various ways. After a short introduction they had played various board games as well as a few card games which their mentors probably used to determine our general sense for tactic as well as our character. About two hours later they went to bed. Asmodeus who had silently listened during dinner had already left before the games had begun.

Retreating inside his room Kaiser continued to watch the surroundings. They had already come far, especially since the train was so extremely fast. From what he knew about the tracks that had been laid out they would soon stop to refuel. Soon he had enough and climbed into bed to awake well rested the next day. On top of the comfortable mattress, underneath cool and comfortable covers he slept soundly.