Mack Waterborne

Mack Waterborne is a tribute made by PoisonedPoetry. Please do not use him without permission.

Tribute Form
Name: Mack Waterborne

District: 4

Gender: Male

Age: 16

Personality: Mack has been taught to be an obedient, disciplined follower, only taking lead if necessary. He is brutal and merciless in his attacks, yet he also tries to make any kills as swift as possible. Confident and courageous, Mack shows how commonly headstrong he is. Most people describe him as strong yet silent. Although he may seem like a challenge in every way, he’s pretty gullible and easily regrets his actions if he believes they were the wrong choice to make.

Height: 5'8

Appearance: Mack, like most citizens of district 4, is a handsome lad with neatly combed dirty blonde hair. A lot of the girls swoon over him, since his dark brown eyes seem so welcoming and full of light. However this happiness is him getting pumped up to prove his worth in the family name of the Waterborne’s. Though he looks like he could be one of those loud and obnoxious preps, he’s somebody who doesn’t smile a lot unless needed. His facial expression is mostly dead, but it’s a miracle if he displays a smile.

Weapon(s): Mack has been utilized with rapier skills to fight with faster and deadlier attacks. Another weapon he’s used to is a dagger, for the same reason.

Strengths: As a Waterborne from district 4, Mack is exceptionally good at swimming, having been trained to fight underwater and drown opponents if needed. Hand-to-hand combat is also a strength for him after dueling with his parents many times, each one providing him with a different strategy. His stamina is also not to be overlooked.

Weaknesses: Mack’s intelligence isn’t that great since he’s the brawling type rather than strategic. Although he has great combat potential, his clumsy nature can easily screw things over for him. Sometimes his confidence can turn into arrogance, because he believes he has all the skills he needs in order to survive.

Fears: Were he to fail at any of his ambitions, Mack will worry that his family will turn their backs on him. This is the case even if it’s something they don’t strive for. The thought of making hard decisions is a big no-no for him, seeing as there are pros and cons for the most. He’s unable to see which path would benefit him better which sends him into stress and panic.

Training Strategy: At the start of training, Mack will immediately band with the rest of the careers and follow the instructions of the leader. He will be the silent one of the group, only speaking whenever necessary. In terms of what he'll train at, Mack will polish up his combat skills and core strength.

Private Training Strategy: Like the other careers, Mack will aim high in order to prove his worth. To begin with, Mack will battle underwater with a dummy.Then he will display his nimble attacks on the holograms and finish it off by bowing to the gamemakers.

Interview Angle: Because he's not too keen on interviews, Mack will be laid-back in the way he answers. If he is asked about any family members in the games, he will respond with '''The games are funny with family, you know. Most of the time the siblings will protect each other even if they know it's hopeless for them both to win. And that's everybody's goal: To win. We're all trying to accomplish the glory of being the lone survivor, whether it's crystal clear or subconscious. Family means nothing to me. Only one of us will make it out alive, so what's the point of sparing them? I will do whatever it takes to win, even if it means snapping the branches off of the family tree.' ''

Bloodbath Strategy: Once the gong sounds, Mack will try to find one of his signature weapons. Afterwards he will track down the nearest lone tribute or a tribute who has been separated from their alliance and chase after them in an attempt to kill them, regardless of what weapon they hold.

Games Strategy: During the first few days, Mack will offer to stay behind at the Cornucopia to defend the supplies with one other career. He will gain their trust at first by keeping everything safe. When the numbers dwindle, Mack will kill whoever is on guard will him as effectively as possible and hide their corpse. He will then steal the most valuable items before fleeing the area. From then on out, he will act alone and try to murder a few tributes.

Alliance: Careers

Token: N/A

Backstory
My tale is one full of promises, betrayals, lies and the truth. It all started off in the crystal pure waters of District 4. According to my parents, the Waterborne family had a tradition of giving birth to their children underwater together. If the babies were worthy enough to live up to their family line, they had to find their own way out of water or else they would drown. Apparently, I was the only surviving child.

At some point whilst I was unable to walk, my mother died. She had been trying out several water sources for me to practise my swimming in, when a shark ate her. I never remembered anything about her, just that she cared for me more than anybody else in the world. My dad didn’t allow himself to cry in front of me, but every now and then whenever he thought I was asleep I’d check up on him. He mourned a few tears here and there, but overall he vowed to stay strong for me.

In the very first years of training, my dad pushed me to the limit. He expected me to make slow but certain improvements in the skills he taught me in. If I found something too hard, he would break down the steps or adjust the obstacle so that I could complete it. I picked up on everything quite quickly. However it was the same old routine, day in, day out. My weaknesses weren’t being improved on. As time flew, much less effort was put into training me to become the fine warrior I was expected to be. My father started to shout at me for every little thing I did wrong. He never violently attacked me, but I would rather he have in order for him to blow off some steam. I never thought much of it, but later on he would be one of my main sources of terror.

When I turned fourteen years in age, I found myself with newfound courage. My inquisitiveness had peaked highly, so I thought it was time to ask dad what had happened to turn him into the monster he was now. Well, without those exact words.

“Dad?” I said.

“Yes?” He replied, clearly irritated.

“I was wondering if there was something bothering you. I notice you’ve been quite aggressive and-“I was cut off as his fist landed on my cheek. I was sent back a couple of centimetres and widened my eyes at my father. I rubbed my cheek, where a reddish mark was. For the first time, I noticed how his breath smelt of booze. There was a wild glaze in his eyes, red from overtiredness.

“Shut up. You have no right to be here! The demon lady is here! She’s after my blood! And it’s all because of you. Waterborne? As if! You’re a weakling! The only reason your puny little ass is still here is because of me! Your mother would be very disappointed in you. Now get the f*ck out!” I heeded Dad’s words without explanation. Though I wasn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer, I knew it was the best course of action to protect myself from death’s wings.

After I sprinted several metres from my house, the thought of where I was going to stay lingered on. Despite not knowing where I was headed to, I continued to flee. My only option was to follow the river and find a small fishing village or a port.

Not long after I started my trek, I saw a woman stood on the other side of the riverbank. She was wearing a strange dark green cloak which covered her hair and her forehead. There was a small smile on her face, made even wider when her eyes fell upon me.

“Hello?” I timidly said.

“Hi!” She waved at me. I had to admit, the woman freaked me out a little. She reminded me of one of those Satanists. However I could see genuine concern. I didn’t know whether I could trust her or not. She was sending off mixed vibes. “Need somewhere to stay? You’re welcome over to my house.”

“Umm, ok.” I shrugged as I followed a path of stones to her side. Even though she could’ve been some mass-murderer in disguise, I wanted to believe she truly had a home for me to stay in. And besides, what would I lose if I died? My dignity? The pride of the Waterborne’s? I never owned either of them. They never existed for me.

It was only a few minutes of walking before we came across a small tribe-style village. The huts were made of timber, sticks and whatever other natural materials there were. A few other people wearing similar cloaks to mum greeted us. There was a well in the centre with bonfire wood not too far from it. It felt bizarrely quaint, yet welcoming.

“Welcome back, Crea!” A young man bowed to the woman that brought me here. She nodded her head to acknowledge his presence. We both then entered the largest of the huts where Crea took me to a small meeting room. It wasn’t anything more than four chairs and a table.

“What am I doing here?” Was the first thing I inquired.

“Hush, young one. The questions can be asked later. For now, I need you to understand one thing: I’m your mother.”

“No, it can’t be!” I spluttered. “Dad said my mum died after a shark ate her.”

“Then tell me: How else would I know that you are Mack Waterborne, the only survivor of your pack after the other infants drowned?” If she hadn’t had made the claim that she was my mum, I would’ve been disturbed by how much she knew about me. There was no doubting it though: She was telling the truth.

“But why did Dad claim you were dead?”

“Well, it’s a long story. Ever since you were born, me and that pig-headed father of yours argued about whether we should build up your strengths to be the best in that field, or whether to round you off as a fighter with many talents. I wanted the latter of the two, but your father was intent on two words: The best. In my belief, you can only be the best career if you utilise many abilities. Six months after the debate, I fled the river after your father threatened to throw you to the fishes below. I still watched over you, but I stopped after I overheard the venom he spat out at you. I feel like it was my fault he snapped in the first place. I’m sorry I couldn’t collect you earlier, I needed a time when he wasn’t quite so focused.”

“It’s fine mum,” I reassured her with a hug. “We can just start again and rekindle our bond, as well as help me improve my flaws to carry the Waterborne pride.” Mum seemed a little iffy about the answer, nonetheless she accepted it.

“We can start training in a week’s time. But first, I need to introduce you to some of the locals and give you a tour of what’s around here.” There wasn’t anybody or anything interesting there, but the local legends were interesting. Apparently, there was a satanic tribe here who were believed to account for a massacre in the early Panem days. They made a curse on the site saying that anybody who lived there would carry on the sacrifices until the devil visited from the pits of hell. Commonly overused, but the way it was said caught me on tenterhooks.

When the week ended, it was straight into a regular training schedule for me. I practised combat with the other tribe members, gained tips for survival from them and even learnt some new skills. I felt better adapted to whatever the Gamemakers could throw at me, should I volunteer. Just like with father though, something changed inside of the tribe. Instead of greeting me in the mornings, they would whisper and gossip to each other. Whenever I glanced their way, they would jump as if they saw a mouse and nervously grin at me.

One night, mum sent out a message to some of the other important people for a meeting. Anybody who listened in and wasn’t invited would be executed by drowning. Despite the threat, I believed mum wouldn’t mind if I heard it. She wouldn’t execute her own son after reuniting with him after 14 years or so. Despite this, I remained cautious and hid in the bushes right under the window.

“Welcome everybody to the meeting. This will concern two matters rather than the usual three, but that’s because the two connect together. First of all is the ghost town under the river. From the artefacts we’ve gathered from there, the riverbank might be where the corpses of the Satanist’s bodies were. Either that, or that’s the where the gateway to hell is. We’ve come so close to discovering the key to ultimate power. The entire Waterborne family will be in control of Panem and we can rule it however we want.” I never anticipated that my mum would think about taking over the world. However dad did mention she had Sinclair blood inside of her, which leads to the desire for power.

“There is but one problem though: We need to sacrifice six people. We have five willing volunteers, but nobody else will step up to the job.”

“Couldn’t we just ‘reap’ the unfortunate one?”

“No, Polygro. Every single sacrifice has to be a volunteer or else it will not work. Maybe if I tricked that new kid into volunteering for it.”

“That ‘new kid’ is my son! And I expect that he wouldn’t want to do it! He’s my bloodline! We need him for future carnivals and festivities!”

“But he’s our last resort. Mack’s the only one who doesn’t know what we’re up to. Crea, if you can’t bring yourself to kill your own son for our good then you are not fit to be a leader. And if you’re not cut out for the job, we’ll have to use you instead of him.”

“Well… fine. I’ll see what I can do. I guess that concludes our meeting, so see you tomorrow evening for the ritual.” My heart pounded inside of me as I fled the house. I couldn’t believe my own mother would betray me in order to find some demon for her own lust for supremacy. Though she did seem apologetic for agreeing, I still didn’t appreciate how she gave in like that. She was the leader. It was her choice. And she went along with it like a puppet.

I went to bed early and yet I couldn’t get fifty winks of sleep. I was imagining the ghost town under the river. How Satan lived there and what he did. I was frightened that if he did really exist, how he could corrupt the world. I became even more fearful when my mum placed her hand on my shoulder without me expecting it. It nearly caused me to holler out everything I knew.

“Darling, are you ok?”

“I’m fine, it’s just…” I pretended to yawn. “I’m ever so incredibly tired.”

“Ok, goodnight.” She looked back at me as I started to flicker my eyelids. The instant she left the room I climbed out of my window. I had to get as far away from there as possible, as soon as possible. Nobody saw me as I fled the village for good.

I eventually reached the river again, where I saw a familiar face scour the area with a torch. It was my father, and boy he looked rough. His stubble had now grown into a full beard. His eyes were tired and droopy. He did not take my absence well, it seemed.

“Dad! Over here!” I waved to him. Dad instantly noticed me and started smiling.

“Mack! You’re ok after all! I’m sorry for everything I’ve done, I was trying to frighten her away!”

“Who?”

“He means me!” As I glanced back, I saw my mum by herself. She appeared like a lunatic, a wild craze on her face. The way her cloak fluttered in the wind also added to the effect. “Mack, your father has verbally abused you and he hit you under the influence of alcohol. How can you be glad to see him at a time like this?”

“How could you agree to trick me into helping summon the devil, huh? I’m pretty sure the Sinclair family isn’t made up of selfish dumbass bastards like you!” Mum froze on the spot. She didn’t react too much. But then she started to shake her head and kneel of the floor. At first, I thought it was because she truly regretted her decisions. I started to approach her.

“Stop, Mack. Don’t trust her at all. She may have taught you better than I could’ve, but she’s seriously unstable in the mind. Ever since I left her, something’s taken over her.” I glanced unsteadily towards my mother, who had stopped moving. I didn’t know who I could trust anymore.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes! Just look at her now!”

“But when I did she was-“I was cut off by a strangled laugh. Mum cocked her head back as she started having a laughing fit. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head.

“The demon is here! He’s definitely below this river! When I find him, I can get revenge on anything and everything in the world! But I need the boy!” Mum cackled as she sprinted towards me. I immediately started to flee from her, only for her to jump on top of me and pin me down. An evil grin played on her lips, just as she revealed a dagger from her cloak.

“Don’t worry. Mumsy will credit you when she rules the world. Now hold still.” She raised the knife in the air, ready to plunge it into my heart. I defiantly stared into her eyes, when my father rammed into her. The two of them begun to tackle one another. The dagger had flown out of their reach, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t claim it. I had to get it in time before one of them could be murdered.

The two of them continued to wrestle each other, with dad at an advantage because he didn’t have a cloak to restrain his movement. However mum put in a lot of explosive powerful attacks. I ran in to retrieve the dagger, when the two of them rolled into my legs. I was sent bowling over, but I still had the dagger in my hand. My parents ignored me and continued to fight. All of a sudden mum was flipped over into the river. She was hanging onto the bank by her hands. She stared at me with the deepest regret I could ever see on her face. I wanted to help her out, but my father had different plans. It ended when he stomped on her hands, forcing her to let go. Mum didn’t resist as the current took her away from us.

“There we go… she won’t be bothering us anymore.” Dad flopped to the ground in exhaustion. I embraced my dad for protecting me, even if it wasn’t obvious at first. Although it was happy times, I couldn’t help but feel guilty for not being able to help them reach a compromise.

My dad continued to train me up, both privately and in an academy. I was new there, but nobody picked on me for arriving so late. I was just as skilled as them since I had lessons from both sides of the family. Everything was fine there, but I soon had to volunteer in the name of the Waterborne family. I tried once when I was fifteen, but somebody else was chosen. The next year proved to be better, as I had been the lucky volunteer selected to participate.

Backstory Summary
Like any other Waterborne child, Mack was born in the sea as a ‘ceremony’ of sorts. Basically, the future mothers would give birth to their children underwater. Those that made it above the surface alive were taken away to be trained whilst those that died were left in the sea. Mack just happened to be the sole-survivor of the infants. His parents, Crass and Crea, immediately set out to find the best training methods there were.

Unfortunately, they could never agree on how he should be developed. Whilst Crass wanted him to focus on his strengths primarily, Crea thought that Mack would be better off improving on his weaknesses. They had many rows about it until Crea ran off over the river that their house was next to. Mack was merely 6 months at this time. It was no big deal: Crass lied to Mack that his mother had died tragically.

Crass at first was enthusiastic about setting Mack up for the games, but he later lost his motivation after seeing Crea watch over her son from the other side. He knew that she would only harass him from there so he thought that he could manipulate her by being aggressive towards the life she had given birth to.

Mack became scared of his father. Even though Crass never hit or hurt him, he was still shouted at and felt like a weakling. He had the basics of what a Waterborne should be like in his head and yet his father wasn’t giving him the opportunity.

As he grew older, Mack finally plucked up the courage to ask his dad about it. It did him no good, as Crass lashed out at him. Mack no longer wanted to be there. He ran next to the river as far away from his father as he could manage. Eventually he saw a woman across the rapids. She smiled at him and pointed towards the stones that made a bridge of sorts. Not seeing any other way to escape, Mack followed her. On the way to her destination, she dropped the bombshell that she was Mack’s mother. He couldn’t believe it at first, but he took it in his stride.

She introduced him to a medium-sized group and said they were her friends. Although Mack greeted them, he thought there was something off about them. For several months, he watched them as they did rituals. He began to feel more paranoid as he overheard them whispering about him. He would find out that they were going to sacrifice him to attempt revive Satan and give his mother leadership of what remained of the world. In fear he ran off but was trailed by Crea as he saw his dad.

The trio stood at the river. Mack had to choose between Crass and Crea. He leaned towards returning to his father, which was further confirmed when Crea's insanity kicked in. Mack started to run towards Crass, but Crea pinned him down and attempted to kill him with a dagger she had stolen. Crass also ran into the scene to protect Mack. Crea set her sights on him instead and the two started to fight, until Crass flipped her into the rapids where she drowned.

Mack didn't care about his mother's death. He was instead concerned for his father over the wounds he got. Luckily he was fine. In order to prove his devotion to his father, Mack volunteered for the games.

Song Inspiration
Ghost River - Nightwish

 'It's a long road down the river deep and wild' - Mack having to look forwards into his wild future.

 'It's a scary ride we'd give anything to take' - The unknown of what's going to happen, mainly surrounding his parents.

 'Believe it, we live as we dream/scream' - Mack's parents if they were proving themselves to be the opposite of what they were acting as (Dream would be Crass and scream would be Crea).

 'If you want me, do come across' - Mack having to choose between his parents.

 'Every eye sewn shut' - The truth being hidden from Mack.

Trivia

 * Mack is part of the Waterborne family, made by Eli.
 * He was named after the song 'Mack the Knife'
 * Crass's name came from the Roman Emperor Marcus Lucinius Crassus.