As they approached the top of the wall — about 10 feet or so from their destination — it became harder and harder for Thomas to breathe. It wasn't the air or a lack of stamina, or even an entirely rational fear of heights. It was the exhaustion. The sleep crusting in his eyes, the weight that pulled down on his eye lids and begged for his body to quit. It was the aching in his raw fingers and the way his feet groaned every time he pressed his soles into the concrete wall. It was the voice deep with in his brain space telling him to just quit.
The whine of the Grievers was a constant reminder to him that he was anywhere but safe. They'd yet to venture into the same corridor as Thomas and Green, but it wouldn't be long till the incessant click and whir found its way to them.
Reluctantly Thomas glanced over to Green. Her halo of blonde hair was knotted loosely behind her head. She'd taken off her black hoodie and tied it around her waist along with the safety rope of ivy, revealing her maroon colored t-shirt and dark wash skinny jeans. Undoubtedly the small girl was just as worn out as Thomas was, but she'd yet to quit . She was a few feet a head of him, her eyes locked on the top, one hand moving over the other. With each step she took against the wall with her bare feet she launched her self closer to the top.
She sensed him watching her. "You ok?" She asked, looking over to him.
"Just hungry." Thomas replied.
Green forced a smile, "Thanks for sticking with me." She was genuine, Thomas could tell by the sound of her voice.
"Don't mention it." Thomas said.
Great, now I have to keep going,he told himself, now I'm emotionally invested. Though he'd been emotionally invested from the time he figured out the new Greenie was an outsider just like him.
They had a fairly simple method to climbing the wall. At the start both teens had tied a vine securely around their waists. Through grasping and yanking on the thick "ropes" and sticking their feet into various cracks and crevasses found in the wall they managed to scale it quicker than Thomas expected. A third of the way into their climb they retied the safety rope so that if they fell they wouldn't splatter themselves against the ground.
They had about 15 feet left when the noise grew unmistakably louder.
"Green, quit climbing." Thomas ordered in a low hiss.
The Grievers were heading their way, Thomas was sure of it.
The noises had been echoing through the halls all night, but now a dim light began growing to their left. Thomas recognized it from the morning Newt had showed him a glimpse of a Griever in the window of the Glade. The sounds of metal screeching against metal turned the corner. The boy couldn't help but cringe as he got his second good look at the beasts that inhabited the Maze.
The beast was an experiment gone wrong, something made in the lab that turned into a horrific, grotesque shell of a living thing. The way the Griever walked, stumbling on it's disproportional legs in a zig zag fashion, made it seem like every step caused it immense pain, like death would be the easier way out. It's appendages all seemed to be different, like some scientist just stuck it's hand into a junk drawer of legs and pulled out the 6 or 7 that stuck out of the Griever with a shrug and a "that'll have to do". From two, needles poked out like the feelers of an ant. On another two there were blinking lights that seemed to serve little to no purpose. One was incredibly short and didn't touch the ground. It cried as it walked. Thomas almost felt pity for the deathly monster. He couldn't help but stare at it.
In the corner of his eyes Thomas saw something move. His attention snapped to Green. The girl was carefully continuing to climb the wall. She glanced at him.
C'mon,she mouthed to him, flicking her eyes upwards.
Thomas furrowed his brow and shook his head violently. Stop,he ordered.
She ignored him.
The Griever scuttled forward. Its beady, small eyes didn't land on the duo, but it didn't move along. It sensed them there... somewhere.
Thomas looked to Green again. Rage boiled within him. He understood that fear drove her, but how could she be arrogant as to not see that her actions could get them both killed. One wrong move and...
"Green, cut it out."Thomas snapped at the girl who had continued to move upwards.
"We need to keep going." She said quietly, she didn't look at him or try to reason with him. It was like she was stuck in some sort of trance; her body was driven by the goal to reach the top.
"What? No. If it hears us..." Thomas trailed not wanting to think of what could happen. she ignored him. Slower than before, Green placed one hand above the other, yanked on the ivy, and pulled herself towards the top of the wall.
"Green, stop."Thomas pleaded quietly.
Her bare feet gripped the wall tightly, finding a small crevasse for her big toe to push off of. She placed as much weight as possible on that foot and straighten her leg. Green reached up, her slender form stretching for the next solid grasp of rope, when her foot slipped ever so slightly. Her toe shifted to the right as her ankle rolled two degrees. She caught her balance quickly, recovering with out a noise.
But she'd loosened one single piece of stone from the wall. Thomas watched it fall; his heart dropped with the fragment of concrete. The minuscule crashing sound it made was the loudest thing he'd ever heard. He flinched as it clattered to the ground.
Green stopped.
Her head snapped towards his.
She recognized her mistake immediately.
How could she be so reckless? So blind?
The Griever sprang to attention. It positioned it's body in the way of the noise and scuttled forwards, breaking into a full speed crawl.
"It can't climb the wall can it?" Green asked, her face drenched in terror.
Thomas didn't need to answer. Like a daddy long leg spider the Griever took to the slab of concrete, it's metal appendages navigated through the ivy and stone with ease. The beast was seconds away.
Green didn't hesitate to act. She let go of her ivy, dropping the initial 10 feet until her safety rope caught her. She didn't so much as let out a scream. She simply fell.
Her eyes flicked upwards. "C'mon!" She cried to Thomas as if he was supposed to just let go with out a second thought.
But that's exactly what he was supposed to do if he wanted to live.
Thomas swallowed hard. With a surge of faith and a silent prayer to no one, he released his aching fingers from the thick vine and let himself fall.
His heart stopped, his eyes squeezed shut.
He fell for minutes: that is what it felt like.
But the ivy tied around his waste caught him. He was suddenly suspended 8 feet off the ground by a plant. He looked to Green who was frantically wresting with the knot around her hips. His eyes fluttered to the Griever. They were seconds away from being it's next midnight snack.
Green continued to struggled with her knot. Her fingers were numb and raw from climbing. But they didn't have time to sit and struggle. They had seconds at most.
"Your knife! Cut yourself loose!" Thomas ordered.
Understanding lit up through the girl's forest eyes. Her hands moved to the waistband of her jeans. They were clammy and unsteady; it took her 2 tries to pull the blade from her belt. Gripping the ivy with one hand she slashed the knife through the loop around her hips, breaking the vine and setting her free. She slid down it quickly, crying out as the friction burned her hand.
Thomas turned to the knot around his own hips. It too had grown impossibly tight from his weight. He pulled at it desperately, glancing up at the oncoming beast.
"I can't get it!" He yelled in frustration, forcefully attempting to rip it. "I'm stuck!"
He turned to Green who was now on her feet on the ground.
Before he knew what was happening, the girl took a calm step backwards, cocked her hand behind her head and released, sending the thick kitchen knife sailing towards Thomas's head.
THUNK!
It buried its self in a lonely vine just inches from his nose.
"Holy..." Thomas trailed
"C'mon!" She cried.
Shocked, but determined to survive, Thomas pushed the girl's surprising abilities from his head and snatched the knife out of the ivy. He sloppily slashed through his restraints, grabbing the vine above his head just in time to stop himself from breaking a bone. He squeezed the vine tightly as he fell trying to slow himself, but the force only caused him pain. His reflexes told him to let go of the vine and after a moment more of burning his hand with the friction,he obeyed his body. Thomas let go a few feet higher than Green had, slamming against the ground with a loud thunk and an even louder groan of pain.
In the corner of his eye, Thomas could see another Griever emerge from the other side. This one was faster than the other, it moved in a more concise line with less limping and metallic crying.
"Get up!" Green cried to him. She snatched the knife from his hand and stashed it back in her jeans, then she grabbed him under the armpits and yanked him to his feet.
"How did you-" he started as he stumbled.
"No idea." Green cut him off. "What now?" Her words were precise and driven. She wanted to live.
The Griever on the wall passed over the spot the pair had been just seconds before. The other beast to the right of them was charging down the hall.
Thomas was in a daze. His body was stiff from pain and exhaustion, his limbs felt heavy and his bones felt weak. His feet dragged behind him.
"Thomas run!" Green begged, pulling him along behind her. He wanted to comply to her demands, but everything was weighing him down. More then anything his body cried for sleep.
But then everything changed.
"Over here you shanks!" A voice echoed to the left of the duo.
Green and Thomas swiveled their heads to the left.
Everything melted away from Thomas. Instantly his body lightened by 20 pounds.
A figure appeared at the end of the hall, poorly lit by the radiating light of the Grievers. Sure enough it was Minho in the flesh and blood.
"MINHO!" They cried in unison.
A new hope sparked in Thomas. He forced himself to pick up the pace, surpassing Green on his way to Minho.
"Minho what are you doing?" Thomas cried, shocked to see the grumpy, unhelpful and slightly selfish Runner in the Maze.
"Saving your sorry butts." Minho responed, "Now follow me if you don't want to bite it."
With out a moment to think Thomas dove into step behind Minho, not even glancing behind him to check for Green. He could hear her heaving breaths and the pitter patter of her bare feet against the stone.
Thomas didn't wait for another invitation. He grabbed Green's free hand and pulled her behind him. He poured all of his speed into his legs and all his strength into his arms as he forced the girl to keep up with him. Minho didn't say another word when they reached him. He simply turned on his heels and began running. Thomas didn't question him, he didn't ask for an explanation as to why he was back or where they were going, he just followed the Runner. With Minho there Thomas felt like they might actually have a chance to make it back to the Glade. A weight had been lifted off his chest. Though they were running faster than he thought he could ever go, Thomas had never been able to breathe so easily.
The trio ran together through the corridors taking turn after turn. At first Minho seemed to know exactly what he was doing, where he was going; he never stopped to pause.
Minho veered to the left and turned sharply. Thomas followed, whipping Green behind girl was lagging. She wasn't nearly as fast as the two boys, but Thomas refused to let her fall behind.
They took another left then a right.
"Minho… where are… we going?" Green demanded between heavy breaths.
"Back to the Glade. Another right." The Keeper called back to her.
She was 5 steps behind them. Then 10. Thomas considered stopping for her, letting her catch them, but he could hear the Griever right on their heels. A second long pause and they might just be a tasty Griever snack.
They turned to the right and ran down the new corridor for a few seconds before Minho skidded to a halt.
"Shuck me!" He cried.
Thomas stopped behind him. Green nearly ran him into the ground.
"Why... are we... stopping?" She asked.
"The shucking Maze changed! This piece of klunk!" Minho screamed at the walls. He rammed his shoulder into the dead end that blocked them from moving forward.
"Ok let's just tur-"
Click click click. Whiiirrrr. Creak. Click. Whir.
"Fuck." Green breathed.
The trio turned slowly, cringing at the sight of the single, bulbous, creature that blocked them from the only exit.
Minho ran his hands through his hair.
"Can we climb out?" Thomas asked.
"Not enough time." Minho muttered.
The Griever made it's way towards them slowly, smugly, as if it knew they were dead already.
"No. We've got less than 6 hours left. We aren't dying yet." Green insisted.
"No Green. You have less than 6 hours left. We're going to be stuck in this klunk hole for the rest of our damn lives!" Minho screamed.
Green blinked. Thomas too was shocked by the sudden burst of emotions coming from the usually brass but closed off Runner.
"Minho you didn't have to..."
"Oh of course I did. I'm not some jacked shank who is going to kill a shucking girl. But now I'm going to die. And if I don't die then you get to waltz away and go back to doing what ever the hell you want while we rot in here!"
The Griever crawled closer.
She stared at her bare feet, the sole of them left small splotches of blood where ever she stepped.
"Minho..." Thomas warned.
"He's right. I'm sorry I brought you guys into this." Green said meekly, not looking up.
Minho rubbed his forehead. " Shuck. I'm just frustrated."
Green forced her self to meet his deep brown eyes, "I really am sorry." She admitted. With out another word she turned on her heals and ran straight towards the Griever.
Everything moved in slow motion.
Minho reached out to grab her, his hands just barely making contact with the sleeves of he black hoodie she wore. Thomas called for her, his eyes lighting up in shock. She ignored them both. Thomas watched her run with all her speed towards the Griever; her barefeet pounded against the stone. Thomas had no idea what she was doing, it was as if something had taken her over, possessed her body. She lifted her hand behind her head, angling her arm ever so slightly. She dug her left foot into the ground and skidded to a halt, using the momentum to release her arm. Her knife flew through the air; a stray beam of light glinted off of it as it sailed right into the Griever's metal joint.
At first, it seemed pointless. The girl didn't hit its fleshy center. She didn't even anger the beast. But as it tried to move forward. Its left leg was fixed in a bent position. The appendage could straighten and bend only enough for the Griever to stumble to the side slightly and trip over itself.
The Griever whirred in frustration, slamming its body over and over again into the wall.
Green turned to the boys, "Hurry!" she shouted.
This time they didn't hesitate. The boys blew past the girl and easily cleared the Griever's leg with a swift jump.
Thomas turned back to see the girl attempt to jump over the leg herself. She got a good running start but the beast shifted it's body as she made her way up to it. Her calf caught its self on the metal and she sprawled across the floor.
Thomas lunged forward. "Green!" He yelled. He grabbed her under the armpits as she had done for him and hoisted her to her feet.
With out another word or a glance back, he shoved her forward and together the trio took off, away from the monster.
"""""""""""""
They ran for 20 minutes without stopping. Minho began to recognize the new Maze pattern. It only took him a few wrong turns to realize where the right ones were. But when Thomas glanced over his shoulder he realized Green was a good 30 feet behind them.
"Hey Minho!" He called. Thomas slowed himself to a jog, then a walk.
Minho turned to respond, only to see that Thomas had stopped running at that Green needed to catch up.
"Hurry it up Blondie!" Minho yelled to the girl.
As she came into better view Thomas noticed that something was off. The girl's skin was paler than normal, the rose color of her cheeks was entirely gone, her mane of hair had been matted down by sweat and her eyes sunk into her skull.
"Green… you ok?" Thomas asked, stepping forward hesitantly.
The girl continued to walk forward with a slight limp.
"Something is wrong with me, Thomas." She whispered.
"Oh shuck." Minho cursed. He pushed passed Thomas and jogged over to Green, placing a hand on her shoulder and forcing her to stop walking. "Green what's wrong." Genuine worry covered his face.
Thomas crept closer.
Green wavered as she spoke. "My head… it feels… heavy."
"Green, did the Griever prick you?"
"No… no I'm fine. I just need to sit down." She assured him. The girl backed against the wall and slid down slowly.
Thomas looked at her suspiciously. Minho refused to take her bullshit.
He marched over to her and knelt in front of the girl. "Tell what's wrong shank. Right now."
"I'm fine Minho." She spat, "I just need a second to-Aaaaaargh!"
She collapsed against the wall, her body seizing, letting out a ear shattering cry.
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AN: PLEASE REVIEW! I'm really getting into this story but I need some feedback! Thanks to everyone who did review and follow and favorite, you guys are awesome! Tell me what you think!