Newt had no idea what to expect. In the Glade, there never were any straightforward answers. Many of the things that had went on in the Glade were mysteries to the Gladers, the only comfort being their own theories. But this? There were way too many if ands and buts, way too many situations and turns for it to come out to one or two theories. Newt had killed Grievers, he had fought till he was near exhaustion, but he was certain that this was one of the most frustrating experiences he'd ever face in his life.
Penny looked even more unsure than him. She didn't even attempt to mask her emotions because it was pointless. What was that saying she heard before? Risk and reward? Well this was one huge risk with little to no reward. Her mind was racing with outcomes of this conversation, and none of them seemed to have a happy ending. This could all be one big set-up from WICKED, possibly mind controlling Newt to do something horrible. For all she knew, WICKED could be mind controlling her. She didn't feel anything going on in her head, but how was she to know? WICKED had the technology to leave a teenager in a never ending field for three years. They had the technology to put all those boys in a giant maze. They had the technology to install false memories into a teenager. They had the technology to create Grievers. Who knew what they had under their belt?
But they didn't seem to have much of a choice.
"We c-could not t-talk about it. WICKED o-obviously wants m-me to" Penny reasoned, voice more shaky than she wanted. The thought of talking about the Stranded, to another living person that held some unknown meaning to her, made her stomach feel sick. She felt a bit selfish, but she was entitled. After what she went through, she was in no rush for story-time. But then again, Newt had told her everything… and she definitely felt like she could start trusting him. It was a scary feeling but it also held some comfort to it, like falling but knowing a mattress was behind you.
"I'm in no rush to do any bloody thing those slintheads tell me, er, us," he said 'us' with caution, looking to Penny before continuing. "To do, but maybe it'll change something?" Newt didn't feel too sure, and that seemed to be rubbing off on Penny. "Change what? I d-don't like the s-sound of that"
"Neither do I, but we don't have a choice. I'm not rotting away in this bloody room" Newt tried not to sound impatient, but it was inevitable. He always had something to do around the Glade, numerous places to go and keep busy if needed. Being in the room, only a bathroom to go to and Penny to talk to, was making him antsy and bored. When you get bored, you start thinking. Free thinking wasn't very good for Newt, as he learned before, and thinking about their situation only made his head hurt and his heart ache for the Gladers.
Penny looked at him, really looked at him. He returned the gaze, not thinking anything for once in his life. The feeling of a clear mind was an odd one, but he found himself greeting it. Before he knew it, Penny's lips were on his again. Her lips were soft against his chapped ones, moving against one another upon pure instinct and possibly something more. Realizing what was happening, Newt pulled back from her with a flinch.
"What are we doing?" Newt blurted out, a hurt look flashing on Penny before she put on a look of indifference. "I d-don't know! Okay? I d-don't!" She protested, but Newt could hear the hurt in her voice. Why? They hated each other… right? He honestly had no idea what they were to each other, and that was both a good thing and a bad one.
"We can't just-" Newt trailed off, arms flailing. "Just do that! I d-don't, we don't-" Newt struggled for words. Minho and Thomas always mentioned how Newt was the most level headed one, but he definitely didn't feel level headed. He was confused beyond belief. The mess of theories in his brain, the fluttering feeling in his chest, the gut feeling that something was different… they all didn't mix very well.
"If you h-hated it so much t-then why'd you k-kiss me back?!" She yelled, hands landing on her hips in annoyance.
"I didn't!"
"I f-felt you!"
"No, I mean I didn't," Newt lowered his voice. "I didn't hate it"
Penny blinked at him before groaning. "You're impossible!"
"This whole bloody situation is impossible!"
Penny knew he was right. All of this, the shouting and protesting, was just her subconscious way of stalling. She knew she was being selfish and immature. Penny knew what she needed to do.
With a deep breath, she started to talk.
"You had a m-maze, I had a field. I w-woke up there one day, and I-I didn't w-walk out t-till three years later"
Her story continued and Newt paid close attention. There were some similarities between their experiments. He had the Box, she had a Tree. But the biggest difference was the population. There were nearly forty gladers, one every month, while Penny had no one. The title 'Stranded' was starting to make sense.
It took a long while for her to finally finish, but it was time well spent. Penny was placed in a fileld that went on forever, literally. No matter which direction she ran in, no matter how long, there was no end. She eventually learned that the field was a six mile patch of land that repeated every six miles. You can run straight for twenty-four hours, but you'd only be running the same six miles. It was hard for Newt to wrap his head around it, but he listened intently.
"The w-whole point was to s-see how the s-subject," She said the word with the same amount of disgust as Newt did, "Would react to h-having memories of f-family and f-friends but being Stranded. That f-feeling, knowing I h-had people to go b-back to…" she paused, tears welling in her eyes. "It was meant t-to keep me g-going. And it d-did"
When Penny's story finally came to an end, Newt was speechless.
The Stranded went on for three years. Penny didn't speak for three years, causing her stutter once she did start speaking again. Like Grievers, Penny had Narcs. The Stranded's version of the Homestead was a small tent. Every night, Penny would wait in the tent, hands pressed to her ears, as Narcs would come by the tent. In a perfect voice, they'd imitate the calls of a loved one from Penny's memories. Her mother, father, siblings, friends… whoever Penny saw in the memories, the Narcs impersonated them. The temptation got worse every night, the temptation to run towards a loved one.
"That's h-how I got this," Penny motioned to the scar. "The f-first night, I h-heard my Mom call t-to me. I was s-so scared and lost, that I r-ran towards her. I saw her and w-was overjoyed, but w-when I hugged her…" Penny's voice failed her. She choked on a sob, tacing the scar up and down as Newt had seen her do many times before. "She was this creature. It tried t-to latch onto my chest w-where my heart is, b-but I moved t-too quickly" Penny motioned to the start of the scar at her chin. "It latched h-here and h-here," she motioned to the end, near her collar bone. "Sent s-some electric shocks up m-me, but I turned a-around. Ripped my skin"
Newt wasn't sure what was worse, Narcs or Gladers. When she first told him that she had memories of her life in the Stranded, Newt felt jealous. Now? he felt sick to his stomach.
Newt and the Gladers had eventually gotten out of the Maze once they figured out it was code. WICKED had given them hints, but WICKED wasn't very kind to Penny. She was given no hints. She eventually followed a Narc, nearly getting herself fried by the electric latches, and found her way to the HQ as Newt and the Gladers had similarly done.
"I h-had to follow but n-not touch," She swallowed a lump in her throat. "It was the h-hardest thing I've ever d-done. But I d-did it. I made m-my way back"
Penny paused again, and Newt was afraid she would break out into tears.
"What happened next?" He asked, hesitantly placing a hand on her shoulder. She flinched, but accepted it. She took a deep breath before answering him, voice on the edge.
"I found out," Penny pulled her shirt collar down slightly, revealing the black tattoo Newt had noticed when he accidentally walked in on her. The black letters, neat and spaced, labeled her.
PENNY. PROPERTY OF WICKED. GROUP A SUBJECT A1. THE OUTLIER.
Newt, as gentle as he could, reached forward and traced the letters with his fingers. He wanted to ask a question but nothing felt right to say. He didn't have to think too long, because Penny spoke up.
"They discontinued the Stranded six months in. And they left me there"
This confused Newt, but he didn't know where to even begin with questions. Her voice, the stutterless words… it scared him. "Did you find your family?"
Her expression ran grim.
"I didn't have a family. It was all fake"
_
Author's Note:
Sorry the writing for this was kinda sloppy toward the end, I got kind of lazy and such. Well there you have it, Penny's trial! If you have any questions about the Stranded experiment, let me know! I also apologize for the wait, I got busy! If you're a Walking Dead fan, check out my new fic. Also, to my Supernatural and Teen Wolf buddies, expect a one-shot soon!
-KS
