"You expect us to believe that?" Alby muttered darkly, his hands clenching as he gave Sadie and Thomas a hard glare. "You expect all of us to believe everything you've said, we can't go out there! The Creators probably sent you two here to kill us. And Thomas, you're nothing more than a traitor!" Alby's voice began to rise as he yanked himself up from his chair, his fist raised as if to strike Thomas.
"You honestly think I made this all up? That I was just playing some part when I saved you? When I got torn up by a bunch of Grievers three nights ago!" Thomas yelled, his voice bitter and brimming with annoyance. Sadie looked at Alby in disbelief, he'd seemed fine just seconds before. He'd been just like Alby was supposed to be. A leader, strict but not cruel, and not accusatory or panicky like he was now. Because that's just what Alby was doing, he was panicking. Sadie could see it in his eyes. Alby was scared shitless about the prospect of leaving the Maze.
"Who knows, maybe you did." Alby spat he turned on Sadie his arms reaching out towards her, his face angry and hysterical. "You know what I'm talking about, don't you? You've seen it too Sadie!"
"Alby I don't-"
"Don't you dare shucking lie to me!" Minho and Frypan grabbed onto Alby's arms and tugged him back into his chair. "I'm telling you we can't go back out there. The world- it's messed up. It's awful, there's nothing left, disease, burned land, everything is gone!" A shudder crawled up Sadie's spine it sounded all too familiar. She'd seen it before, just brief flashes. Disease infested people that were hardly human, barren land, fires.
"The Flare." She whispered walking over and bending down until she was eye level with Alby. "It's called the Flare right?" Alby nodded and broke down completely, his shoulders shaking as he sobbed into his hands. Sadie backed up her head swimming as pictures of rotting faces and corpses danced in her head. Home is gone. Sadie looked around the room. All of the Gladers were watching her warily, whispering as they witnessed their leader cry. I can't tell them, we have to get out. Anything is better than this. I can't tell them.
"We were put in this freaking Maze for a reason. We're here because we're smart, because we don't give up and because we're willing to fight, to survive. And I for one am not going to sit here and be picked off by Grievers. I'm going to fight!" The Keepers watched her in stunned silence; most of them nodding in agreement as more chatter broke out.
"Couldn't have said it better myself." Thomas murmured as Minho walked over to stand beside them. He clasped a hand down on Thomas's shoulder and raised his fist in the air, holding up all of the energy and surging power in the room like a trophy.
"I don't know about you shanks but I'm with Thomas. I'm following this guy right here no matter what, and fighting alongside this shank girl no matter what. Even if they are freakin' annoying I want to die trying beside these two freaks." Sadie gave Minho a nod and reached over to take Newt's hand, giving it a tight squeeze as she looked down at Alby.
"Alby-"
"Do what you want, I won't stand by and be a part of this." Alby interjected pulling himself to his feet and stalking out of the room, leaving behind a feeling of unease and disappointment as the door slammed close.
"So let me get this straight," Frypan snorted, "you want us to go head-to-head with the Grievers, go hang out in their bachelor pad and die trying? Are you shucking nuts?" The other boys all broke out into arguments, each of them yelling to be heard over one another.
"Even if we don't die we'll all be stung."
"It's suicide."
"Not if we get someone to distract the Grievers." The others quieted down and turned towards Thomas their mouths hanging open in horror at what he had just offered. "Being stung was one of our variables, they're meant to kill us now, but they've been programed to only go after one Glader each night maybe if someone distracted them-"
"A sacrifice, a shucking sacrifice? You want us to throw out some poor kid and let the Grievers have them so we can escape?" Winston asked letting out a bark of sickened laughter as he shot Thomas a glare.
"All we'd need is a distraction, but basically yes. And Sadie and I are going to be the ones to do it." Before Sadie could utter so much as a "shuck yeah" Newt had them both by the elbow and was dragging them out of the meeting room. As they were pulled away from the Gathering, sounds of arguing erupted in their wake as the door slammed closed behind them.
"You two," Newt muttered releasing their arms as the door closed. "need to clear out so we can make a decision. And you will not volunteer for something as stupid as that ever again. Especially not with her!"
"Newt, I'm sorry but we have to-"
"I don't give a bloody crap, stop playing the noble hero, both of you, good that?" Sadie had to admit it was a little crazy of Thomas to do what he'd just done, but if she was being honest she would have ended up volunteering anyways.
"Newt."
"No Sadie." He grumbled turning back towards the meeting room door and yanking it open.
"But-" Newt turned around quickly and grabbed onto Sadie's chin his fingertips pressing into her jaw as he looked into her eyes fiercely. Sadie wanted to argue, both Thomas and Sadie were Runners, both of them knew the most about the Maze and they were best equipped for the job. But if the tables were turned and she was telling Newt not to go, she would have been doing the exact same thing. So instead she just met his intense gaze and gave him a nod. He leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to Sadie's forehead.
"Hell no." And with that he turned around and re-entered the meeting room leaving Thomas and Sadie outside.
"Well that was stupid." Sadie muttered as her and Thomas walked away from the Gathering, their hands stuffed in their pockets.
"I'm sorry I volunteered you, I really am I just knew that you would do it. And the only reason I'm doing it is because, I feel like- like I have to fix everything, like I have to make up for designing the Maze."
"Like you need to save everyone?" Sadie added her mind traveling back to the multiple memories she'd had of her pouring over map after map, of her running in the Maze by herself since the beginning, trying to find a way out. She'd been taken from those girls, she was supposed to help them find a way out and she'd failed them. She couldn't let these boys down. She couldn't be a disappointment to herself again. "I know the feeling."
Newt left the meeting in a rush. He limped as fast as he could in search of Sadie and Tommy. He'd done it, he had successfully convinced the Keepers to go with Tommy's plan, but convincing the rest of the Glade was a whole other story.
"Newt?" A voice called out from somewhere above Newt's head. He turned around in a slow circle and peered up into the canopy of leaves in one of the many trees that bordered the Glade. Sadie was sitting on a branch her legs dangling over and her feet swinging back and forth.
"What are you doing love?"
"What the hell does it look like I'm doing?" She snapped, her voice snippy but her smile bright. Newt shook his head and held out his hand waving for her to come down. Sadie grabbed onto the branch with her hands and swung down, still clasping onto the branch so that her body dangled from the tree. "Stand clear, a 5'1 Runner is about to deploy." Newt chuckled and stood under her.
"It's okay I've got you." Sadie was hanging just low enough that her legs could easily be draped over Newt's shoulders. He grasped onto her ankles and felt her weight on his shoulders as he walked them out from under the tree. Sadie griped onto Newt's hair and laughed nervously.
"Yeah okay, you can put me down now." Newt chuckled and began walking faster. Sadie's grip tightened on him and she let a small yelp as Newt broke out into a jog. "Holy shucking god! Newt… Newt! I'm shucking serious, put me down."
"Why?" He laughed as he spotted Tommy and Teresa in the distance, the two of them sitting side by side near the Box. Sadie was clasped onto him like a cat that had been caught in the rain, her fingers laced through his hair and her legs tight around his shoulders.
"Because I'm short and the sudden altitude change is making my ears pop, just shucking put me down." She replied with another shaky laugh. Newt complied and reached up grabbing onto Sadie's waist as he helped her hop down from his shoulders. Sadie grumbled as they walked over to Teresa and Tommy her face bright red as they headed towards the Box. Newt was glad for the small moment, with the impending severity of the plan they were about to follow looming over him, a bright moment, even if it only lasted a couple of minutes, was enough to make it seem worthwhile. When we escape, it can always be like this. Newt thought, gripping Sadie's hand tightly. The two of us together without a bloody care in the world. With the idea racing through his head he approached Tommy and quickly told him that the other Keepers had agreed. The plan was a go.
The next couple of hours were crazy. Most of the boys in the Glade agreed to go for the run; even Alby had decided to give the plan a try. Those who didn't spent their time sulking around as the rest prepared to leave. Frypan, Teresa, and Chuck were distributing food and water while others passed out backpacks. Sadie was set up in the weapons room with several others including Newt and Thomas. All of them handed out weapons and worked on making new ones. With a bit of twine and some knives, spears were made and sticks were sharpened into spikes. Sadie soon discovered that if you wrapped a random object with enough barbed wire and pointy things any boy would accept it as a weapon. The Gladers' were beginning to look like a small, ramshackle army. Sadie wasn't sure if all of them would make it, but they'd sure give those Grievers hell.
After everything had been prepared, Frypan gathered them all up for one final meal. The air was thick with feelings of fear and panic as everyone spoke to one another nervously. Sadie was at a table with Newt, Minho, Thomas, Chuck and the others. And even on what may as well have been her last night Sadie was still hungry enough to devour her food, it made her stomach turn as thoughts of what they were about to do swirled in her head.
"The plan's simple. Get in, get some info and get out." The man briefing Sadie instructed, the cloth he'd tied over his mouth muffled his gruff voice. Sadie felt bad for him and the other adults that ran the organization she'd become apart of. With the threat of disease still high, most of them didn't leave the compound, and when they did they always had to cover up, like Mr. Muscle-Man Jarhead before her. Sadie wasn't paying much attention. She must have heard the plan over a hundred times by then.
It was anything but simple, in fact in Sadie's mind there was a whole list of things that could go wrong, but she had been selected, because of her knowledge of Wicked's headquarters. She knew the building inside and out, after spending most of her childhood in the whitewashed walls of the building, it had quickly become as familiar as the palm of her hand. All she had to do was wait for the other renegades to clear the area out, she'd sneak in, take down as many as she could, find the man in charge and do whatever it took to get some answers out of him and then, get rid of him all together. No, it didn't seem simple at all to Sadie.
"Sadie?" Minho asked flicking her arm as the boys stared at her in confusion. She blinked a couple of times to clear the memory from her head. Sadie looked around and realized that her body had grown as tense as a coiled spring. "Jeez, it looks like you're getting ready to stab some poor shuck with your fork." Minho commented. Sadie rolled her eyes and forced her grip on her fork to loosen.
"Keep talking and I just might." She mumbled her voice edgy from the memory. "What are you shucks talking about anyways?"
"We were wondering who we are all named after." Chuck answered his mouth full as he gestured around the small table with his fork, his mouth stuffed to the bursting point with mashed potatoes. Sadie let out a loud laugh and shook her head. The idea seemed hilarious, that at a time like this, when they were all about to face a certain death, Chuck was concerned about the origin of his name. Well someone has their priorities straight. "Newt and Thomas are obvious ones. Isaac Newton and Thomas Edison, no one has any idea who you and Minho are named after and I'm…" Chuck looked around hopefully, his voice leaving a clear opening for someone to fill in his sentence. Minho picked at his food with an uninterested glare while Newt shrugged. Finally Thomas spoke up.
"Maybe it's short for Charles, like Charles Darwin the dude who came up with the theory of evolution." Sadie laughed and nodded in agreement her arm reaching across the table to ruffle Chuck's hair. The promise her and Thomas had made him still rung clear in her mind. She wondered if Chuck was as scared as she was, no doubt he had to be.
After another few minutes of chatter, mostly on Chuck's part, Newt looked down at his watch and gave everyone at the table a nod before walking off. Sadie watched as Newt helped Alby gather everyone up, even though Alby seemed to be acting like himself again Sadie still knew that Newt was acting leader. And it was time to go.
"If this doesn't work Thomas I'll kick your ass." Minho announced simply, as if he was informing everyone of the weather as they came to a stop in front of the West exit. Newt turned towards the group of Gladers and cleared his throat, his hand finding Sadie's as he spoke to them.
"There are about forty-one of us. Get your weapons ready and get ready for a fight. We're going to make it to the Griever whole, and get out of this buggin' Maze. Good that?" Newt said raising his deadly looking spear in the air as the other Gladers echoed his movement with their own weapons.
"Shouldn't someone give a pep talk or something?" Minho asked as he picked at the handle of the machete in his hands. Newt gave him an eye roll and a shrug.
"Be my guest." Minho turned and faced the crowd, his face grim and his voice a dry and quiet roar.
"Be careful. Don't die."
"Great. We're all bloody inspired." Newt commented as he turned towards Sadie. "You wanna say anything to them love? A lot of them look up to you, they really do." Sadie turned towards the crowd and took in all of their faces. It still felt like she'd been in the Glade forever, like the boys around her weren't just the people she'd been trapped with. They were her brothers, her friends, her family. Sadie realized that she would probably never see some of the faces she saw in the crowd again, but the thought didn't scare her, it fueled her.
"The Creators have been treating us like lab rats since we were little, but you know what? Not anymore. We're going to take the fight to them, and we'll take down every Griever in this shucking Maze while we do it! We aren't an experiment! We are people, and we will escape! The Grievers and Creators better be scared, because tonight we are NOT GOING DOWN WITHOUT A FIGHT!" The boys around her cheered, all of them calling out whoops of battle as the brandished their weapons and stomped their feet. This is it. Sadie thought, as she chanced a glance in Newt's direction. Newt gave her a determined nod and pulled her into a deep kiss. His arms wrapping around her waist as she held his face tightly between her hands. She'd have to remember this as she fought. She would have to remember the sounds of their cheers and the echoes of all of their yells and the feel of Newt's lips on her own as she fought the Grievers. This is worth fighting for, this is something to escape for. Sadie thought as their lips disconnected, their foreheads still pressed together.
"Stay safe love."
"You too." The boys around them roared and the two joined in, thrusting their weapons into the air as their voices cut through the night. Sadie grabbed onto Newt's hand, Minho appeared at her left and Thomas and the others fell in behind them. With one final cheer they ran into the Maze, Newt's limp didn't hold him back from keeping up with Sadie as they pelted into the inky grayness of the Maze corridors. We're coming Creators, we're going to get out of this freaking maze and then we are going to find you.
Hey guys, so i decided to upload another chapter today because i was bad and didn't upload one last week. I know I know sorry. Anyways hope you're getting as excited as i am and i hope you liked that bit of Sadie and Newt fluff, i wanted something sweet to happen before all the dark stuff to come.
Anyways a lot of people have been private messaging me asking questions about the story (which i love by the way) and sometimes their accounts wont let me reply so ill just try and answer the questions i receive the most often.
FAQ
1.) Yes I will continue to write for the whole trilogy, i have some big plans for the next book coming up.
2.) I use so many exclamation marks because Sadie yells a lot and likes to yell to get her point across.
3.) Yes i do like the ship ThomasxMinho, and would you guys like it if i included that in the story? Give me some feedback and ill consider adding it in!
4.) Yes Sadie does hate apples, I don't know why I just decided to add it in for some reason. I don't know man, she just hates them.
5.) If Sadie and Newt were to have a ship name it would be Sewt cause it sounds adorable and like soot.
6.)About that certain death of a certain character *SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS* Newt in the Death Cure, you guys will have to wait and see :)
Anyways thanks for all of the follows and stuff I really really appreciate it and I love reading your comments. See you guys next week, and thanks for sticking with Sadie :)