Hello dear readers :) I finished ch 9 and time to upload ;) I really enjoyed to write this chapter - that sounds weird xD I hope you will like it too ;)

Nobody slept on that night. The screams and shouts kept continue some time and then nothing. The silence was almost harmful. But the night hadn't got its ending yet, so the others had to sit and wait until dawn. They could only guess what happened with the girls, but the options were horrible. What if they all died? What if they were stung? What if the Grievers take them with itselves and who knows what they are doing with them? What if the Creators do something with them? And what if they change them and send them back like some kind of human Grievers? Brainwashed, programmed to kill their friends... Soon they finished discussing these theories; they were too depressing. Boys and girls waited for the morning in total silence.

When dawn was coming the gates opened with their usually load noise. Everybody gathered around that gate which the Night Runners usually use; the girls' gate. It opened fully but nobody was on the other side. Instead of the girls the others saw blood. Lots of blood.

It was everywhere: On the ground, on the walls... half fresh, already started to dry.

"What happened here?" Alby asked from nobody.

Newt knew what happened, they all did. The Grievers cut the girls down just like they did with the animals in the Bloodhouse.

"We have to find them." Sam said and she already turned to collect her running team.

"I'm going too." Minho agreed, but Alby stopped him.

"Are you sure? It is dangerous. The Grievers can be around."

"I go and I am not going to argue about this topic." Alby nodded and Minho also went off with his runners for prepare for the long run. Newt just watched the bloody ground and walls before him. How many of the girls survived? Who died? How many of them needed help? He knew he couldn't sit around and wait for the answers, he had to do something. The girls probably knew they were going to die, but they never give up, took their chances and fight. He had to go out to find them.

"I go too."

Alby looked at him, fully surprised. "No, you don't."

"I have to and I will." argued with his leader.

"That was working for Minho, but not you. You stay, and that was my last word about the topic."

"Don't act like I am a Greenie Alby. I am not and I will go out. I know what it is outside and the others will be around too."

"The others are Runners, you are not. The others are healthy, you are not. You cannot run perfectly and if something happens out there, you'll die first." he sounded annoyed.

"You don't know that."

"I do!" shouted Alby "Just look at the bloody wall you stubborn shank! Look at it! Look what happened with them and they knew what they were doin'!" he pointed to the bloody wall "They were the best and they are all dead by now! I am not going to let you run around in the Maze, looking after some corpses!"

They froze into the moment. Everybody looked at Alby. He was the very first who said it out loud that the girls were all dead by now. But still, it hurt some of them, especially the close friends of the Runners. Newt looked at Alby. It was like his friend hit him with his words. Alby wasn't a Greenie, he saw things too but Newt felt that Alby gave up the hope too soon.

"If they are all dead…. if they really are… they still deserve the trying. We go out find them, bring back them here and bury their bodies. They deserve that much!"

"Slim it Newt, let the Runners do that."

"No."

"Why not? Why is this so important now?"

Newt sighed and looked down. "I cannot leave her in the Maze. I have to find her. Dead or alive, but I have to know… "

After a moment of silence Alby shook his head slightly. "Fine. But go with Minho or Sam. And don't wander around. And don't die. If you die out there, I will be very angry."

Newt smiled a little "Thanks Alby."

Twenty minutes later Newt was in the Maze's corridors with Sam at his side. They went in pairs: two people could bring back a body much easier than one. They didn't know where the Night Runners went but they followed the blood traces and turn after turn they started to realize what happened at night. Sam and Newt almost saw how the girls were moving, what they did. Somebody stopped here to rest, and then kept going, but she already lost a lot of blood and was in big pain; her steps were shaky. In a crossroad somebody halt and fell. Probably ran into a Griever. Her team member tried to protect her, she stepped into the blood and her steps were really clear to see. She had to use some kind of a long weapon, like a spear. After one or two meters Newt found the weapon's remains. The bloody footprints started to sprint forward. Sam explained how it had to happen: the Griever was before the girls, one of them saw it, halt and fell. The other jumped in front of her, tried to keep away the Griever with the spear. The Griever destroyed it. There had to be a gap between the Griever and the wall so the girl decided to run forward, next to the Griever and hoped it will chase her and don't kill her friend.

They followed the sprinting girl's traces and after the corner Sam saw her.

"Oh no" she gasped and run toward her. Newt followed and when he saw the girls' face he recognized her. He knew her from face, but never knew her name. He never asked it. Sam slowly reached out to check is she alive, but when she touched her skin, she shuddered. Newt reached too, but there was nothing to feel. The body was cold. Sam looked down, closed her eyes and gulped the air. She tried to hold back her crying.

"Who was she?" Newt asked quietly.

"Her name was Ava. She was Zera's co-leader and best friend among the Night Runners. Probably Zera was the one, who fell to the ground and Ava tried to protect her and failed."

"You didn't know that. Zera is smart enough and fast. Maybe she could escape."

Sam looked up to him, tears glistened in her eyes. "I don't think anybody could survive this Newt." she whispered.

They took Ava's body back to the Glade, hoping they'll find some of the Night Runners alive there, but the others found nothing or just corpses. It seemed the girls ran in different directions, probably they wanted to separate the Grievers. It was easier to deal one or two at the same time. But as the others said some body was taken where they found her. The Grievers took them away. Who knows why.

Harriet was there too and she looked devastated. She lost her group members, her night runners, her friends…. It was too much for the girls. Some of them cried, but the others just stood in silence with deep sorrow in their eyes. Harriet turned to Sonya.

"Start to dig the graves."

"How many?"

"As many Night Runners were out there yesterday night."

When the searching pairs came back Sam and Minho called them together and agreed; they'll keep going with the searching until they find every runner they missed. Soon Newt found himself in the Maze again. Not much section remained; they almost checked the whole Maze. They still saw traces of the fighting; dead Grievers, lost weapons, some blood here and there… the girls didn't give their lives easily. He started to lost hope about Zera. Maybe a Griever took her away and they will never find her. Probably that was in Sam's mind too, because she turned to be really silent. Newt couldn't imagine how she felt; she was really close to Zera. Maybe the others will have some good news, maybe they found somebody alive.

Sam and Newt slowed their pace, rushing seemed pointless by now. Sam looked up to the sky.

"Soon, we have to go back, the gates will be closing."

Newt nodded, then they turned around and started to run back. When they reached another crossroad, Newt looked into one of the corridor and stopped.

"Sam, wait!" he grabbed her arm.

"What happened?"

"I think I saw something in that corridor."

Sam looked where Newt pointed and definitely there was something. It seemed to be a bag of something. But bags didn't appear inside the Maze. They approached slowly to the thing. After a few steps Newt could recognize what it was.

"Zera!" he shouted and ran toward the girl, who was on the ground, next to the wall in a half sitting, half lying position. Sam also hurried to her friend. As Newt stopped next to Zera and reached out for her. He feared; maybe her body will be as cold, as Ava's was? He hoped not. The girl was so pale, she lost so much blood, her face was almost colourless. He touched her cheek and gasped. Sam flinched; she thought she lost another friend.

"She is alive! Help me Sam!"

All the grief, crying and sorrow... bad things happened again. But what happened exactly? Why the girls failed? Who else survived the night? And Zera will survive?