Hello all! This is just a short little one-shot (probably) that I entered into the Figment June Challenge contest, and I thought I should post it here as well! For those wondering, part of the challenge was to begin the story with the first sentence of The Maze Runner, so that is why I used it. First sentence and characters belong to James Dashner. Enjoy!
He began his new life standing up, surrounded by cold darkness and stale, dusty air. The smell of sickness crept into his nose, penetrated into his very body. He knew where he was all too well. After all, Newt had let them bring him here.
They had sedated him, of course, as if expecting him to put up some sort of fight. But the truth of the matter was entirely the opposite-Newt wanted to go. Or, at least, he knew it was what he had to do to keep the others safe. He had to protect them from himself; he at least owed them that much.
Light fell through a crack in the doorway, allowing Newt to see that he stood in a small shack, a place that reeked of neglect and disuse. But considering where he was, Newt knew he shouldn't have expected anything different. Crank Palace wasn't exactly known for first-class accommodations.
The prospect of stepping outside was a daunting one, and Newt wasn't sure if he had the guts to do it. He knew that if he stepped out the door, it would suddenly become real. He would begin his slow descent into insanity, alone in a sea of Cranks. Bloody Cranks that were just like him.
Time always hurries towards the things one dreads, if only to remind them just how much power a clock wields. But Newt was ready to stare down Time, to let it bring it's worse. And so he opened the door.