Sephy sat alone in her tiny apartment, the hubbub of Metropole East a distant buzz thirty floors below. A flash of a brightly coloured Sanguin-Os advert on the billboard outside her window briefly lit up the darkened room. She turned her attention away from the empty chair opposite her and instead focused on Mr Fairforge, his pearly whites giving a dazzling smile, the same one that he was so famous for on the Arena cameras.
How does he do it? How does he keep smiling year on year, Arena on Arena?
The commercial finished and suddenly the billboard was displaying Commander Artemis’ face, almost looming over her, as though she’d heard Sephy’s thought. Bold text flashed across the screen: “Do your bit for New Eden. Look after the Metropole and we will look after you.”
Sephy turned her back and her gaze once again settled on the empty chair across the table. It was quiet in here, too quiet, especially compared to the buzz of the Arena. Especially since...
Now Dr Grimm was peering through her window, presenting an ad for the latest BioTech gadget: “Don’t waste time drying off after you’ve showered – simply step into our brand new TowelTechTunnel and walk out again – no towel needed!”
Sephy rolled her eyes. She would never understand why the promo department of Metropole Media pushed Dr Grimm to do these ridiculous commercials, when clearly she had so many other important things to be doing. After all, she was the woman who created the regeneration technology. Surely it would be a better use of her time to –
“Maybe, if I win, I’ll get to see him again. They can do that, can’t they? Bring people back?” The voice of Fay Bell cut through her thoughts. “We see them do it in the Arena. Why can’t they use that same technology all over New Eden?”
Sephy wasn’t very clever but she knew that the regeneration technology wasn’t perfect. Dr Grimm had made that very clear. Whilst it had a good track record, there was a fine line between regeneration and mutation, and Eden BioTech couldn’t take that risk outside of the Arena.
“But if they did, they could have saved him! You wouldn’t have had to say goodbye.”
The pain was still raw. Not even three weeks ago, and her 21st birthday. She had been looking forward to it so much. A new seafood restaurant had opened up in Metropole West, more fancy and expensive than Sephy could ever afford, but her brother had promised to treat her for her birthday. He had saved and scraped every penny he could from his ushering job at the Eastside Theatre just so they could have one evening rubbing shoulders with the rich in the West District. One evening where she wasn’t at everyone else’s beck and call, where she wasn’t just the “intern”, or the “coffee girl”, or the butt of every joke.
They’d left their little apartment together and navigated the bustling streets to the bright lights of Metropole West where they checked in for their reservation. The restaurant was gorgeous and everything that Sephy had been dreaming of. Her brother looked so happy and proud that he’d been able to make it happen. It was the perfect night, until it wasn’t.
The food arrived – sushi, fish, and lobster, the finest of Province 4’s haul. They tucked in, laughing and smiling, the fresh memories of their parents separation fading to the background for just one night. There they were, brother and sister, fine-dining in one of the richest restaurants of Metropole West, and nothing else mattered.
Sephy wasn’t sure how it happened, or even exactly what happened. One moment they were chatting excitedly as her brother bit into the shellfish, and the next there was absolute chaos. Sephy was screaming for help. Her brother was clutching at his throat, his lips and tongue swelling like balloons, eyes bulging, skin turning purple. She begged him to breathe. He rasped and rattled in response. Someone rushed over and began to thump her brother on the back – short, sharp hits between the shoulder blades. It didn’t seem to do anything. Blood rushed in Sephy’s ears as a distorted voice asked if her brother had ever eaten seafood before. In a daze, she shook her head, unable to tear her eyes away from the horrific scene in front of her. She didn’t know what to do. She couldn’t do anything. Nothing. Except watch. She’d seen death before, last year, in the Arena. Filmed the final moments of Tithes as they bled out in the Cornucopia finale. But that was different. She’d watched them dying through her camera lens. She’d never been able to meet their eyes.
Her brother slumped forward, face first into the untouched food on his plate, and somehow Sephy knew –
“They let your brother die?”
​
Fay Bell’s voice snapped Sephy back to her dark, quiet apartment. The vision of her brother sitting limply in the chair opposite her faded, leaving her alone at an empty table. Sephy sighed. She felt sorry for the Provinceers, for those who had somehow convinced themselves that the Metropole had magic cures for everything. For those poor, hopeful souls who entered the Arena hoping that they might see previous loved Tithes again. She had said as much to Fay at the recent interviews:
"Archie is gone, I’m sorry. They took his body and burned it. They took them all, every one, except Ox. It wasn’t a big send-off, but at least it was something."
Fay had shook her head in disbelief and Sephy felt compelled to give the poor woman something to hold onto.
"You should know though, that he never stopped talking about you. It wasn’t just a ploy to get the Sponsors’ attention. Even when the cameras stopped rolling, he kept saying how much he loved you."
The lies fell out of Sephy’s mouth too easily, but it seemed to do the job. Of course Archie had spoken about his wife, but not to that extent. Like the majority of Tithes last year, he’d been far too worried about himself to really consider anybody back at home. Yet the words seemed to settle Fay. After that, Sephy had quickly excused herself from the conversation and returned to her dark corner at the back of the tent, avoiding eyes of Tithes wherever possible. She couldn’t look at them, not without the safety of her camera. Not without feeling totally exposed. Not without seeing the terrified face of her brother reflecting back at her as he –
Sanguin’s dazzling smile appeared in the window once again, taunting her with his too-perfect everything, totally unphased by all that he’s witnessed over the last 27 years.
How does he do it? How do you fucking do it, Sanguin?!
A scream, raw and guttural. A forceful throw at his smarmy face. A broken camera, lens shattered, pieces smashed all over the floor. Tears flowing hot and free, Sephy sank to her knees amid the fragments of her life. And in her tiny apartment, thirty floors above the hubbub of Metropole East, it was too fucking quiet.