CHAPTER 1

Meraya awoke to a gloved hand covering her mouth. Her eyes popped open, looking around frantically as more hands seemed to come out of the darkness and hold her down. She could feel her heart race as she kicked her feet, trying to free herself unsuccessfully. The room seemed to a void of darkness. Meraya couldn't see a thing and it terrified her. She couldn't even see the bottom of the bunk above here, only six inches away from her face.

Then the hands began to drag her. Meraya kicked, wriggled, arched, everything she could think of to get free. It was like a wild animal being taken into captivity. On instinct, Meraya's mind reached for Thomas' he was her only hope, the only one who could help her...if he could hear her.

Thomas! Thomas wake up! Someone's here and they're taking me. I need you, please wake up! Meraya's mind was frantic, reaching for Thomas but she was met with emptiness. It was strange, even when he wouldn't answer she would feel him there and now there was nothing.

Still tirelessly fighting there grip, Meraya was able to free herself of the hand over her mouth. She felt the bed lift away from beneath her and she took her only opportunity, her only real hope now, the one person Meraya could possibly say she despised, "Teresa! Help me!" Meraya's voice called out into the darkness, fading into nothing. The gloved hand reclaimed her lips, silencing her once more. Despair filled her heart as Meraya realized there would be no help, there was no one there to save her.

Distracted by her sudden realization, her captors took this opportunity to prick her with a small needle. The effect was nearly instantaneous as Meraya felt her limbs turn to stone, too heavy to move, and her eyes unable to stay open. Before long, Meraya was plunged into darkness.

Thomas slept soundly, unprepared for what he would be waking up to. The faint sounds of screaming and panic began to filter through his ears in the early morning. He groaned, tossing his head a bit before settling back down. It wasn't until strong hands grabbed his shoulders and started shaking, did Thomas fully awaken. Thomas jolted awake to come face to face with Minho. "...wake up!" The end of his sentence filtered into Thomas' fogged mind as the teen began to look around. The other gladers were in a state of panic, huddled at one end of the dormitory. On the other, barred by windows, were two people, at least Thomas thought they might be people, screaming at them, dangling from the metal barred windows. Their skin was red and patchy, covered in sickening blisters. Their hair, or more likely their remnants of, were sticking out from beneath peeling, bloody skin. The thing closest to Thomas had wild, bloodshot eyes with a slit in his cheek exposing bloody teeth. Thomas would never forget that man's terrible visage for the rest of his life.

Thomas saw the man's mouth moving, the words coming a moment later. "I'm a crank! I'm a bloody crank!" Minho hauled Thomas out of bed as the gladers huddled by the door. They tried to open the door to the outside but it was locked, and soon they found the same to be true for the bathroom door. Newt stepped forward, headache forming from the cranks in the window and the gladers panicked shouting. He found a fire extinguisher encased in glass. Throwing his fist forward, shattering the casing, Newt pulled the metal canister from the wall and handed it to Minho. It took a few blows but the lock clanked to the ground, the door swinging outwards a few inches. The gladers paused, staring out into the sliver of pitch blackness awaiting them outside.

Meraya's body was placed on a metal table as men and women dressed in white loomed over her. Her eyes were closed, body forced into a paralytic coma via injection. Monitors beeped around the room, tracking her vitals as her chest rose and fell at a pace just fast enough to keep her alive. The men and women in lab coats had masks covering their faces, clipboards in hand. They seemed to be in a heated debate, unsure what they should do with the girl. They had found an anomaly in her blood, something they were never expecting to show up. Chancellor Paige had been very clear about what she wanted done with the girl who was never supposed to escape the maze. "Throw her into the Scorch." Her voice had been crisp, clear, and cold as ice, but the doctors couldn't do that, not when they'd found what they'd found.

"We have to leave her there if we want to live." a woman's voice, curt and matter-of-fact spoke.
"We can not let her die. Not with what we have found!" a man's voice seethed.

"I'm not saying let her die. But she must go out there." the woman spoke again, much calmer than the male. There was a slight pause as they scientists mulled over the woman's reasoning. A collective "ahhhh," could be heard as they all came to the same understanding.

Thomas stepped through the darkness of the dining area that had given them so much hope only the night before. A few time he ran into something solid, causing it to sway back and forth in the darkness. Each time it made his stomach churn knowing whatever it was, it couldn't be good. "Found the lights!" Newt's voice rung out in the dark. Thomas squinted against the bright lights, letting his eyes adjust. For the second time in the last five minutes Thomas wished they'd never come here. Above them were the lifeless bodies of their saviors. Ropes cut into purple skin as their bodies swung slowly from the ceiling. Tongues lolled out of mouths and eyes bulged out of sockets as they swayed. A rancid smell suddenly filled the room causing some gladers to turn and empty the contents of their stomachs on the floor, others stared unable to tear their eyes away, and others shielded their eyes from the gory sight.

Thomas looked around the room. There were no exits only the door to Teresa and Meraya's room. Thomas' stomach dropped as he sped forward, worry beginning to overcome his fear and disgust. Thomas shook the handle to the girls room, unable to open the door. Minho brought up the extinguisher once more, smashing the door handle clean off. Newt pushed his way between the boys, rushing into the room, Thomas following close behind. His stomach dropped as he saw both beds empty, sheets in disarray. The sound of a flushing toilet calmed his nerves as he realized the girls must be in the bathroom.

The other gladers filed into the room, looking around for the girls from the glade. The door lock clicked, Newt and Thomas taking a step forward, but the person who came out of the bathroom wasn't Teresa or Meraya, it wasn't even a girl!

The scientists checked Meraya's vitals and were pleased with what they found. She was moderately healthy, although lacking a few key nutrients here and there. It would take a few days before she was fully healthy again and then they would place her in the Scorch, much to their chagrin.

Aris stepped out of the bathroom only to be met with the confused faces of a room full of boys. He was sure his own face looked just as confused since he had never met any of these boys once in his life. Aris froze, hand on the doorknob, one foot out of the door as looks were exchanged between the boys.

"Who the shuck are you?" came from his left and Aris turned his head to be met with a tall, muscular asian boy. He gulped staring at the intimidating teen but stood his ground.
"Well who are you?" Aris shot back, face changing from confused to guarded. Thomas stood, anger clearly written on his face.

"There's twenty of us and one of you so I'd say you answer his question." he hissed glaring at the boy. Aris frowned slightly, brow creasing with worry but folded. He knew when he was beat.

"Okay fine, I came from the maze."

There was a long silence after Aris spoke, disbelief on every gladers face.

"That can't be true. WE came from the maze." Newt insisted. Aris shook his head and held his hands up in surrender. "Look, I'm telling you the truth. We came from a maze. Big stone walls, nice little place to live in, doors closed every night." Minho glared, not believing a word this kid said. "Yeah right." Aris huffed getting frustrated. "Look, I don't know who you are but me and my friends came from a maze a few days ago okay. We had to fight through these god awful mechanical...things! And when we got out we were taken to a bunker. Last night the guys who took us said I had to sleep alone, you know, since I'm a guy and everything and when I woke up I was here and now I have a bunch of random guys yelling at me for something I don't even know what!" Aris breathed heavily once his rant was over, chest heaving, eyes moving around to gauge the other boys reactions.

Thomas folded his arms, relaxing his posture slighting. He had a frown set in his features as he studied the boys face, he looked terrified. With a soft groan, Thomas let his arms fall to his sides. "He's telling the truth." All eyes were on Thomas. "Look at him, he's just as confused as we are. He doesn't know anything." Newt glanced between the boy and Thomas, then sighed. Thomas was right. Minho was a little less forgiving but decided to keep quiet. He would keep an eye on the kid though. "So what now?" a voice piped up from somewhere in the crowd. Before anyone could answer, a blaring horn sounded throughout the dormitory. Thomas' hands flew up to cover his ears, wincing at the noise. They gladers looked around in confusion. It was the same horn as the greenie box from back in the maze. Minho went for the door, trying to open it but it didn't budge, even with the broken handle. When the horn died down, the door opened with a soft click, swinging open slowly to reveal a pitch black room.

Newt stepped forward, peering out into the darkness. No one wanted to go first as they all waited with bated breath for someone to volunteer. Newt glanced back at Thomas and then out into the void. He took a cautious step forward, one hand on the wall to track his movements. The farther he moved from the door, the darker it got. His hand skimmed the smooth surface of the wall until he felt the cool plastic of the light switch. "Found the lights!" Newt called before he switched them on, shining bright lights illuminating the open room. The gladers filtered out slowly, looking around. "Anyone notice anything different?" Newt mused sarcastically. Thomas glanced around and realized it first. "The bodies are gone." He whispered. "And the cranks ain't yellin' no more," another voice added. A few gladers ran to the room and sure enough, the windows where the cranks once hung were covered with bricks. "Impossible!" someone breathed. "What kind of shucked place is this." Minho grunted, arms folded over his broad chest. "So what now?" someone finally asked the real question. All eyes turned to Newt, who'd been Alby's second in command for two years. Newt opened his mouth and then shut it. His brow creased as he realized there was only one thing they could do...wait.