Chapter 98 - Paint it black

Once Kaiser woke up the next day as bright morning light shone through the opening of the cave he slowly unwrapped himself from the tarp. After a few moments of folding the tarp in a way that would fit back into the backpack as well as eating and drinking a bit although most was cold and would have been better in warm conditions he had to make due. Waking up Gaia who immediately after eating and drinking went back inside the cloak to sleep due to the low temperature he departed. The mountain was still some distance away and it would probably take him a whole day just to travel back to the mountain as well as another to climb it. Although he didn't need to factor in that he would be unable to move for about half a day like in the jungle the bad terrain compensated for it well enough. Just thinking about climbing the mountain he knew that it would be a pain to climb it, not to mention that the people would be unhappy if nothing happened to him for to long. The greatest worry he had was that they would activate some avalanche while he was busy climbing.

Deciding to deal with these problems when he would need to face them and that staying and pondering would only result in him loosing valuable time Kaiser began to cross the desolate wasteland that made up the top of the foothills.

As the hours passed he slowly came closer towards the mountain which seemingly increased in height the more he moved towards it. Once the evening came and the mountain began to cover the setting sun, casting long shadows Kaiser began to look for another cave. The next one was already located inside the mountain, a few dozen meters above the altitude at which he would begin climbing. Observing the sun and checking with the plans with the arena he figured that he would manage to reach it before nightfall. Taking another few bites of the almost frozen meat they still had left as well eating a bit of snow after all the water in his bottle had been emptied which he melted in his mouth before swallowing and giving Gaia the same as they continued towards their next sleeping place.

On their way towards the mountain Kaiser didn't forget to pick up plant matter that was lying around in relatively dry spaces to make a small fire later. The closer they had come to the mountain the higher their altitude had gotten and even if it was only a slight increase when compared to the size of the mountain it had gotten colder. Had it not been for his partially sealed Perfect Body Skill he would have died and ended up as a frozen statue. He wasn't going to make that same mistake again.

As the shadows grew deeper it became increasingly more difficult to find the path since the path had only gotten more difficult compared to the part he had traversed the day before. The snow laid higher, masking the thin trail he was following as well as hindering his movements. The cold wind irritated him and from time to time he had to rest to warm his face, hands and feet to avoid frost damage. Sometimes falling snow that accompanied the fierce winds blinded him and limited the scope of his vision.

But despite everything that hindered him most dangerous and disturbing part was the endless silence besides the howling wind. No animal could be seen anywhere. No movement in this harsh environment. Although Kaiser should find this relaxing as he didn't have to fight anyone he was on guard and paranoid instead. What if something would use the wind to mask it's footsteps? Breathing? Perhaps something was watching him. Following him, constantly biding it's time until his concentration and alertness receded which it would use to mercilessly strike him down?

Once he finally reached the cave after climbing the mountain for about 15 minutes he inspected it before turning towards the entrance and relaxing. Sparking a fire close to the exit which took the smoke with it he began heating snow in a pot before filling the bottle and drinking as much as possible himself. Seeing that he only had a few stripes of meat left although they had already been conserving as much as possible to be used in times of need Kaiser decided to use half of what they had left to make some soup. He would need all the power he could get for the climb on the next day so it was better to be a bit wasteful than to die because of a lack of energy. The lesser load would also make the climb easier as they would be able to get rid of some extra weight.

Throwing some spices into the pot together with the boiling water and meat that he had found in the room that was located next to the halfway point of the stairway he leaned closer towards the fire to warm his face. Although it was slightly uncomfortable at first feeling the warmth in his face again was truly a wonderful feeling. As he thought about the day he got a bit anxious. Sadly nothing major had happened today so he feared that the Gamemakers would pull something the next day to make things more interesting. Normally they would use the environment to force tributes to approach each other and fight but due to his unique position he didn't really believe there would be many that thought that it might be a good idea to climb a mountain with no resources.

After taking the pot off of the fire he began eating while he thought of a few things. Sharing some bits of the food with Gaia she soon switched back to the cooked meat without additional seasoning. Before Kaiser decided to lie down inside the cave to doze off for a bit as he was still paranoid of incoming attacks he said in a low unpracticed voice that really showed how little he had spoken these past few days.

"Chaff if you can hear this then please follow my instructions. With all the sponsorship money you have I ask of you to buy me as much medical supplies as possible. I can feed myself and protect myself so my only fear is to sustain bad injuries while climbing this mountain or during fights. I'm sure that they have hidden something up there when they have those stations in the middle of the zone where one can check the location of all tributes there. Therefore while we have time and the prices for products haven't risen too high like they usually do closer to the end of the games it would be best to send them now. I need bandages, antibiotics, ointments for burn wounds, needles and threads to sew wounds, scalpels, tweezers and more. On second thought, if you still have money left over then a decent armor would be nice. But paint it black! Please!"

As soon as he said that he pulled out the tarp before wrapping it around himself and leaning his back against the cave wall relatively close to the fire. Before he could even begin to go to sleep a small community of silver parachutes with closed off capsules attached to them fly through the entrance to his temporary abode. Landing close by he manages to count them. There are 8. Eight parachutes for one tribute at once. Never before had he seen this much sent to a tribute, especially not at once. He must have gotten a massive amount of sponsors and probably his decision to ask everything this early played a big part as well. Standing up he takes them closer towards the fire to observe them. Exactly what he requested awaits him. Dozens of medical supplies, some rather common like the fever suppressing pills while others are high grade medicinal ointments created in capitol labs. Each is packed and sterilized with a neat description of it's uses. Smiling Kaiser packs all back into the capsules before storing them away in his backpack.

Finally a last parachute arrives with a slightly large capsule containing a skin tight black mesh unitard which covers everything below his jaw. Quickly he begins removing his coat, belt, trousers as well as his shirt until he finally stands there only clothed in his underwear. Shivering in the cold he quickly slips into the unitard which is surprisingly comfortable and warm. Soon he begins wearing all of his other clothes as it is still rather cool. Checking his memories he quickly finds the unitard in the memories he had gained about this world after doing a quick image search.

His unitard also known as XR45L3 is what can be considered a new and experimental creation of the capitol. It's material though thin and light is extremely durable can hold off slashes and piercing as well as absorb a lot of kinetic force. It's only weakness would be it's inability to fully block blunt attacks although it can hinder it to a certain extent. As the head is unprotected it is the greatest weakness of the suit. It can also regulate temperature slightly, warming in hot climates and cooling in warm ones. Another important feature would be that it is permeable by water in only one direction that being from inside to the outside. So technically he could walk through water and not get wet at all. It must have cost more than one fortune to deliver this gift to him as the price would be unimaginably high. He was unsure if it was even possible to pay the amount without half of the capitol going bankrupt. Perhaps its creator had gifted it together with a few others?

Finishing his thoughts he bowed towards cave entrance. "I thank the people of the capitol and my mentor for this great gift. I'll use and take good care of it. I realize that my actions must have been disappointing to you up until now although I've had a few intriguing encounters with some of the beasts present in the arena. Over the course of the next few days I promise to tell you more about my plans and intentions so that you may find greater excitement in my actions."

After his little speech he returned to his fire. Although he had thanked the capitol citizens for their gift as he had been raised to do as it was proper he did not feel true gratitude. After all they sent children into an arena to massacre each other. Over the course of the last few days and weeks he had realized just how much he disliked being forced to kill innocent children.

In the past he had killed many villains but that had been, at least to a certain degree, excusable with the reason to protect others from immediate harm and deter others from following the villains example. He by no means enjoyed killing or causing pains to others but he had a rather neutral standpoint and thought that it was sometimes a necessity to achieve important goals. Now however when he had to kill other weak children without any reason besides amusing others he felt….pity? It was a rather complicated feeling. Perhaps it was also a result of what he had been taught in every last one of his lives? Find authorized novels in , faster updates, better experience, Please click /book/destroy-worlds-of-fiction-with-science_15665337506693305/paint-it-black_51050630994773830 for visiting.

Ultimately deciding that it was waste of energy to ponder further on this topic he went to rest immediately after seeing that no deaths had occurred on this day. But before he managed to doze of fully the system decided to send him a message.

[The only thing I'm concerned of is that it might weaken me considerably. Making moral decisions every day.]

Snorting slightly Kaiser went to sleep, too tired and unwilling to deal with all of it this late.

--- Meanwhile in the Capitol ---

Doing today's recap besides a few dangerous encounters between beasts and a few tributes as well as the unique situation with Kaiser's gifts not much happened so Ceasar was quickly finished with his report.