Chapter 9: The End of the Start
"Brenda?"
He had never felt so relieved like this.
Hearing her name, the body wriggled and twitched, blankets sliding off and restraints clicking. A short-haired girl finally found her comfortable position and her eyelids fluttered open, staring at the ceiling blankly for a couple of seconds. Then, she gasped and jerked her head towards Thomas.
"What - you - Thomas! Where are we?" She asked him in a harsh whisper, her pupils darting here and there, evidently trying to search for an exit. She pulled on her restraints, cursing menacingly until she noticed the woman, Rebbecca.
"Who is she?" Brenda glared at her, stilling trying to free herself.
"You're awake quite early. I am the head doctor at this place. I don't mean any harm to you, you are your lovely guests." She said this sentence in a jolly, gentle tone, but it didn't seem to be working on Brenda.
"And where is 'this place'?" Thomas demanded earnestly. He needed answers. Now.
"We'll wake others up, and then I'll tell you." She stated in an official tone. Thomas didn't want to admit, but this woman seemed...nicer. She wasn't like the doctors of WICKD - he just knew. Brenda didn't put off an argument and seemed to calm down. She settled herself in the fabrics, enjoying the warmth for now.
And then, he realized his friends were with him, shrouded in blankets and pillows. None of them had tubes or needles connected with them, and Thomas was so, so glad. He couldn't make who which was who, but he was sure all of them were here. Seven beds, seven lumps. Perfect.
After a few silent seconds, a few more nurses had entered the room and began to shake his friends awake, earning grunts and curses and more questions. All the nurses were females, all of them in the same outfit. They shuffled busily there and there, efficiently waking up five bodies.
In a few manic minutes, all of them were awake, and Thomas realized something.
One was missing. The lump that he had mistaken as a body were just plastic boxes and packets. He totally panicked and started checking the members.
Brenda, Fry, Teresa, Gally, Minho. Newt.
Newt was missing. His heart literally sank. Brenda seemed to have noticed it too, because her eyes widened, giving him a shocked look.
"Where's Newt?" Thomas turned to Rebbecca, who smiled warmly as if she was expecting that question. "Where the shuck is he!" Thomas yelled, frantically pulling the straps. Minho, who was lying at his right, raised his brows and desperately searched for any sign of Newt.
"I will tell you everything. Now, just calm down, I'll start explaining." She was so calm that Thomas felt no use of arguing. "Alright, everyone, shush! All eyes on me." She hollered, thumping the marble floor with her stick. Everyone, all awake and fully alert, glared at the woman suspiciously.
All of them were wearing plain clothes, long sleeved, all navy. None of them had exceptional differences compared to last time, except the fact they were still firmly strapped to the bed. Whispers and terrified voices diminished slowly as Rebbecca thumped the floor three more times, and everyone was waiting for her to spill out the information. All the nurses had exited the room, and there were only eight people in this space, including the head nurse.
Once everything was sorted, the woman opened her mouth, smiling.
"Hello, my name is Rebbecca, head nurse and an instructor." A short pause. "As you can see, this is a medical centre. And this place is a main basement of the Right Arms."
Few gasps and 'what's echoed and the room, but soon the silence settled in once more.
Especially Gally, a former soldier of the Right Arms, raised his seagull eyebrows.
Rebbecca continued, still not losing her smile. "We have - had - a total of three basements, and two of them had gone down. One a month ago, then the second one, a few hours ago."
"They attacked the WICKD. They were putting everything on fire." Teresa said bitterly, shaking her head. "Was that your idea?" She didn't look offensive. Just damn curious. So did Thomas.
"No. The head officer of that basement ignored our instructions and cut out the communication. When we were finally able to contact them again, the city was already burning down. We sent choppers to see if we could save any innocent people, and that was when we saw you."
Well, that made sense. Thomas admitted. They were about to get thrown off by explosions and get blasted by grenades. To be honest, they were too slow to make it back to the berg. He thought he heard a noise of a chopper right before they were engulfed by the whiteness, but it wasn't important anyway.
"So where's Newt?" He asked, making sure his tone was firm and threatening.
"In...recovery, I'd say. The doctors advised that he should be isolated in order to heal faster. We will let you see him soon, we're taking very good care of him right now." The head nurse's voice was assuring, but Thomas wasn't assured, not at all. Their identities had not been proven yet, and he could not simply let them keep his friend away. They could be doing a horrid thing to Newt, such as what WICKD did. Blood tests, brain x-ray, that sorts of engrossing experiments.
He was about to protest when Teresa opened her mouth again.
"So we're rescued?" She asked the question they were all wondering for ages. Her hands fidgeted with each other, impatience showing visibly. Thomas couldn't hold still - he needed to grab the nurse's shoulders and make her spill out the truths.
He didn't need information - he needed truths.
Everyone stared at Rebbecca challengingly, who broadened her friendly smile.
"Yes. You are now our priority, our precious patients. When we gather enough choppers, we will all move to the Safe Haven."
Thomas widened his eyes - they did know about the Safe Haven, his final destination. If these people were real, the real Right Arms, they could help them for sure.
"And how are you going to prove that you're not one of them?"
Thomas demanded, shooting the most ominous glare he could manage. If they could prove it, he'd do anything for them, as a little thank-you for saving his and his friend's lives. He was unconsciously hoping that they would be real because if they were, it meant he was so close to a happy ending.
Instead of an explanation, she smiled as a response, raising her walky-talky. Then she ordered something into the radio that Thomas couldn't quite figure out. A few dead seconds passed, and he was about to ask again just as the doors opened.
It was the same automatic door that the nurses exited, and Thomas realized there was only one entrance in this room. It meant only one escape route if anything happened. Shuck.
"These people, are the proof."
Rebbecca proudly introduced, gesturing at the three figures walking through the door. The metallic door fully slid open, revealing the full shape of people slowly walking in. Thomas couldn't make out their faces until Minho blurted out.
"Aris?"
This chaper is longer than expected! Hope you all enjoyed, kind reviews really motivate me. All kinds of reviews welcomed. :)
To be continued.