Chapter Text
Very few people in the Capitol remembered the stories from before Panem.
It was by design. Anything before Panem was inherently flawed, not worth talking about except to decry for their backwards behavior. It was one of the crimes of the Districts, attempting to drag the people back to a less enlightened time. That part of the past was best left forgotten, the Capitol insisted.
But there were still some who remembered. Who whispered in secret of old stories. They weren’t exactly the same stories, distorted as they were through time and toil. But the bones of the stories were passed down by those who chose to remember. That before Athena was a name, she was a goddess of war. That arachnids were named in honor of a simple weaver who tried to challenge that goddess.
That there was a world beyond Panem.
People who sought to draw wisdom from those stories, learn from those mistakes, and share them with others, called themselves Lorekeepers.
Seneca Crane’s mother had been one. Lilia Crane was a beloved children’s author, entertaining the capitol with her entertaining yet unthreatening stories. She saved the real stories for her children, hoping they’d learn.
Little Seneca learned. But not the things she expected.
When she told of Arachne, who was hanged as punishment for her hubris, Seneca saw a woman skilled enough to challenge a goddess and won eternal glory in response. Even though who had never heard her story skill invoked her when they spoke of arachnids or named their daughter Arachne.
He and his mother had many heated discussions about these tales (behind closed doors, of course). Yes, it was tragic that Hercules lost his family at the start of the tale, but it was that loss that drove him to complete the trials. Jason may have lost everything after his adventure when he spurned Medea, but he found the Golden Fleece. Wasn’t that what really mattered?
Lilia Crane disagreed. She liked to call him her Icarus, always flying too close to the sun
It was ironic how she had been the one to fall.
In Panem, even in the Capitol, loss was common. Most people died forgotten, easily brushed aside when they weren’t deliberately buried. Seneca wasn’t going to be like that. He was going to make a mark on the world like no other.
The best way for anyone to do so in Panem, be they Capitol or District, was the Hunger Games.
The Hunger Games were the ultimate embodiment of Glory in Panem. Even those who fell were immortalized in the tapes, the interviews, the museums. And those who won received the highest honor any District citizen could receive: the title of Victor.
If Seneca had been a child of the Districts, he would have been a tribute, trained and deadly, before fighting, bleeding and killing for the chance of eternal glory. No matter his District. Seneca knew there was no version of him that would accept a slow death or a mundane life over the chance of immortality.
But since he was Capitol born; he had a different fate. It was not for him to directly claim victory. No, he would be the one who made Victors.
The Head Gamemaker
The Storyteller.
The one who decided who died, and who alone had the chance to live.
The journey certainly wasn’t an easy one. The sheer power and prestige of the position of Head Gamemaker attracted many people. Petty, unworthy people who were more infatuated with the idea of power than possessed of any ability to use it.
Seneca was smarter than all of them. He worked. In the shadows, and in broad daylight. With subtlety and brute force.
Intern.
Assistant.
Gamemaker.
Head of Tribute Affairs.
Then finally, the opening came with the disaster of the Seventieth Games. What started as a fascinating game exploring the physical and psychological limits of tributes ended with a third of the field drowning and a “mad girl” as Victor.
Chaos reigned among the Gamemakers. The Head Gamemaker, executed. The Head of Arena Design and most of his subordinates, gone. All due to a flaw in a dam, and a badly placed earthquake.
(Seneca had always preferred heroes who made their own luck. And while it was a dangerous game he played, so were the Games themselves.)
There were others who wanted the title of Head Gamemaker. But none who wanted it as badly as him. None who were willing to go to the lengths he did to make it happen.
Two arrests and a death later, Seneca had his prize.
Not that his work was done. It had only begun.
The success of the Seventy-First Games, with its vicious, unexpected Victor proved his worth.
The following games continued his momentum.
But all of this was just a prelude. A Prologue, as his mother might say. Just preparations for his true greatest achievement. His Magnum Opus.
The Seventy-Fifth Hunger Games.
The Third Quarter Quell.
He had the perfect canvas. Practically unlimited resources. Perhaps most crucially, he had the support of the President.
Only one piece remained.
The perfect tributes.
The brilliant, fascinating, dynamic, unexpected, characters that would be at the center of his story.
Traditionally, stories began with “Once Upon a Time.”
His perfect story began with a card.
"To reflect that the rebels cowardly ambushed those who believed themselves safe, the tributes for the Seventy-Fifth Games shall be reaped from the nineteen-year olds of the District. And the reaping shall take place one week following the reading of this card."
Happy Hunger Games, and May the Odds be Ever in Your Favor.
Be careful, little Icarus. Don’t fly to close to the sun.
You never know when you might fall.
Tribute List:
District 1 Male: Caledonia Peony- LC-it-gets-better-account
District 1 Female: Jewel Grace-AstralKnight98
District 2 Male: Lithos Numerian-LC-it-gets-better-account
District 2 Female: Militia Forge-Paradigm
District 3 Male: Tricks Winters-Neb
District 3 Female: Elena Whitaker-Neb
District 4 Male: Chas Avalore-Paradigm
District 4 Female: Abigail Jones-adk012
District 5 Male: Zachary Chandler-Tales From the Cluttered Desk
District 5 Female: Shalhevet Murphy-goldie031
District 6 Male: Henry "Speedy" Kian-AstralKnight98
District 6 Female: Dacia Eunos-30777
District 7 Male: Koa Lager-Across the Rio
District 7 Female: Aster Spruce-Across the Rio
District 8 Male: Ahota/Weave Sakeva-Lionkingfactsguy3
District 8 Female: Catori/Silka Moreno-Lionkingfactsguy3
District 9 Male: Ishaan Hodaka-daydreamer626
District 9 Female: Romily "Romi" Punasco-daydreamer626
District 10 Male: Edan Maltais-aesenhr
District 10 Female: Ydira Gelding-30777
District 11 Male: Sorghum Hill-DoIReallyNeedToChooseNow
District 11 Female: Lira Ambrose-Tales From the Cluttered Desk
District 12 Male: Ebony Shire-DoIReallyNeedToChooseNow
District 12 Female: Garland Firedamp-Audmirable