Chapter 2 — The Vault Beneath the Capitol
Nobody slept much that night.
District 12 buzzed with restless conversation long after midnight, as people gathered outside homes and businesses to discuss theories about the hidden vault.
Some believed it contained Capitol gold reserves.
Others thought it held evidence proving surviving Capitol officials had escaped after the war.
A few older residents quietly feared something worse.
Maria heard arguments drifting through open windows all across Victor’s Village.
“Snow probably planted lies before he died.”
“What if there were more arenas?”
“What if the Capitol kept secrets about the rebellion?”
“What if another war starts?”
By sunrise, the entire district seemed exhausted.
Maria stood beside the station platform with hundreds of others waiting to board transport trains headed toward the Capitol.
Students.
Historians.
Journalists.
Curious citizens.
President Rowan had announced public access to the vault recordings for every district representative willing to attend.
Eli adjusted the straps on his work bag beside her.
“You’re sure about this?” he asked.
Maria nodded immediately.
“Absolutely.”
“You hate crowds.”
“I hate not knowing things more.”
Steam rolled across the tracks as the silver transport train approached the station.
Maria glanced toward the edge of the platform where Grandmother stood watching silently.
“You don’t have to come,” Maria told her.
“I know.”
“Then why are you?”
Grandmother looked toward the arriving train.
“Because people forget history too easily.”
The train doors hissed open.
Passengers climbed aboard.
Maria found a seat beside the window while the train slowly pulled away from District 12.
Forests blurred past outside beneath cold morning sunlight.
Eli sat across from her reading through infrastructure reports on a portable screen while other passengers discussed the vault anxiously around them.
A woman from District 11 shook her head.
“They shouldn’t open it publicly,” she argued. “Nothing good comes from digging through Capitol secrets.”
A younger student nearby disagreed immediately.
“People deserve the truth.”
“What if the truth only causes panic?”
Maria listened quietly.
Hours later, the Capitol skyline finally appeared beyond the mountains.
Even after years of reconstruction, Maria still wasn’t prepared for how different it looked from old recordings.
Gardens covered rooftops once lined with giant propaganda screens. Public murals replaced enormous portraits of Capitol leaders. Open marketplaces stretched across streets that had once hosted tribute parades.
Children laughed openly beside fountains.
Musicians performed in public squares.
The Capitol looked beautiful.
But underneath the beauty, tension spread visibly through the crowds.
Thousands gathered outside the former presidential mansion.
Massive security barriers surrounded the entrance while Peacekeepers directed civilians through scanning checkpoints.
Maria followed the crowds underground.
Deep beneath the mansion, enormous steel vault doors stood open.
Rows of archived files stretched endlessly through the underground chamber.
Holographic projectors flickered overhead.
The atmosphere felt less like a museum.
More like a tomb.
Historians began activating recovered recordings.
The first footage showed deleted Hunger Games arenas erased from official Capitol history.
The next revealed secret executions carried out after victors became politically inconvenient.
Another displayed horrifying muttation experiments conducted using DNA harvested from fallen tributes.
Gasps echoed across the chamber.
Some people cried openly.
Others walked away unable to continue watching.
Maria felt sick.
Beside her, Eli crossed his arms tightly.
“I thought we already knew the Capitol was monstrous,” he muttered.
“We knew pieces,” Grandmother answered quietly.
“Not all of it.”
Then the lights dimmed.
A final recording loaded.
President Snow appeared onscreen.
The room fell silent instantly.
Even years after his death, the sight of him still carried enormous weight.
Snow folded his hands carefully.
“If this message is being viewed,” he began calmly, “then the Capitol has fallen.”
Nobody moved.
“You believe rebellion defeated tyranny.”
Behind him, an unfamiliar map appeared.
Frozen territories stretched far beyond northern Panem.
“You are mistaken,” Snow continued. “Panem survived because enemies greater than ourselves remained beyond our borders.”
Maria felt unease twist through her stomach.
The map zoomed in closer.
Gigantic fortresses hidden beneath icy mountains filled the screen.
A black circular symbol surrounded by silver ice appeared beside them.
“They call themselves the Dominion.”
Whispers erupted across the chamber.
Snow’s expression never changed.
“They have watched Panem for decades.”
The recording ended abruptly.
Silence followed.
Then panic began.
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