I've thought hard about how I want this story to go, and I think I've figured it out for the most part. I'm going to be molding pieces of the movies and the books together and some tid bits of plot details will be changed, but for the most part I will stick to the source material. Enjoy!

Chapter 1: The New Group

We did it. We beat the maze. The long years of being stuck at the center wondering day after day if we would ever get out, and we did. This would be a happier moment if it wasn't for what happened… if Beth hadn't have killed Rachel right at the end. Her hatred of the blondie was obvious from the start as she tried time and time again to convince us to turn against her and send her to the maze. To see her bleeding out on the cold hard ground like she was when we were pulled from that wretched place will forever scar my memory. Aris sat next to me on the helicopter. His knees pulled to his chest as he silently wept. The two had grown close in the short amount of time they had been in the Glen with us. He had never left her side through every obstacle. I put my arm over his small shoulders and pulled him close, trying my best to comfort the boy, but I had no idea what I was doing. He had only been around for a couple of days, but seeing him so broken filled me with the urge to protect him.

"Woah…" I breathed when I looked out the window, "Look at that."

Below us was the maze. All of it. Every second that passed felt like an eternity as I looked at the ivy covered stone walls. Remnants of Shades skulking about the maze, picking off the rest of the girls that decided to stay. My heart ached for them, wishing that they had agreed to come with us. With a disheartened sigh, I turned my face from the window and closed my eyes, not wanting to waste another minute looking at that place. Sleep came to me immediately.

Two Months Later

"Here ya go, Blondie. Same slop as yesterday and the day before. Eat up." I set two trays of food on the table where Aris and I sat every afternoon. This place took decent care of all of us. The few girls that we escaped with had their names called weeks ago, and we were the only ones left waiting to be taken away.

More people showed up every few days, all with the same story. They came from a maze, rescued from WICKED. How many mazes had there been? How many were still out there with kids just like us? Those questions boggled my mind every time new groups showed up. Aris and I mainly kept to ourselves, but every now and again my curiosity got the better of me and I would converse with the other groups. I wanted answers to my questions. None of the staff here would do it, so I thought that maybe the other groups would know. It never worked out that way. They all had their memories erased just like we had, so they knew nothing outside of the maze. Aris had barely said a word since we got here. Losing Rachel took more away from him than I could ever understand. He was broken, lost without her. Getting him to eat was a chore in itself. Sleeping was a whole other ballgame. It didn't help matters much when he would sneak through the vent shafts every night doing who knows what and didn't come back till it was close to morning.

He kept his hood up and picked at his food with the plastic fork. I took a few bites of mine as I watched him slide the morsels around on the tray. When he showed no signs of taking a bite, I nudged his arm and gestured to the food.

"You're getting too skinny, stick. Eat." I all but demanded.

Aris didn't so much as look at me as he took small bites of food. I gave a disappointed sigh as I finished my dinner.

The doors opened as a fresh batch of newbies came in. They looked around, confused, but also relieved. It didn't take them long to cross the room to the tables and sit down. Wandering eyes, all of them. All probably thinking the same thoughts the rest of us had when we first got here. I wondered… maybe they had a different kind of tale to tell than the other groups here.

"You gonna be alright for a sec?" I asked Aris as he gave up on eating the last ¾ of his food. He only nodded as he slouched down in his chair and picked at his fingers.

I bit the corner of my bottom lip as I left him sit in his sorrows, and approached the new group of boys.

"Hey fellas." I cheerily said as I sat across from them, "Where did you come from?"

The group glanced at each other as they debated whether or not it was safe to talk to me. The dark haired one in the middle spoke up.

"We came from a maze. These guys rescued us from WICKED." He said solemnly, "What about you?"

"Also a maze. We all came from WICKED's maze." Shock and amazement shown in each of their eyes as they looked around at the many tables that seated the groups. "Not the same one, mind you. Everyone seems to have a different encounter with theirs. What was yours like?"

"Uhh…" they said in unison.

I put my hands up in a surrender motion, "If you don't wanna talk about it, I totally understand. The first day out is usually the hardest. Everyone poking and prodding you the second you walk in the door. It gets kind of overwhelming. My name is Millie by the way. Over in the corner there is Aris. He and I came from the same maze."

"The same maze?" The dark haired one spoke up again, "Was he the last one up?"

"Um… yeah he was. He came a day after our new blondie, Rachel. Shook all of us something fierce. It was only girls the last two years until he showed up."

I looked back to Aris, feeling that same pain in my heart at his depressed form. I forced my spirits back up as I faced the new group again, a painted smile on my face.

"Well, we'll be stuck here together for a while. What names do you all go by?"

I put my hand out to shake their hands. I've done this with everyone like clockwork. They all shook my hand, the confusion still written all over their faces as they told me their names.

"Thomas."

"Newt."

"Frypan."

"Winston."

"Minho."

"Fancy that. Nice to meet all of you." I made to move back to mine and Aris's table when the blonde boy, Newt spoke up.

"What can you tell us about this place?" He asked, his accent sticking out like a sore thumb, as he and the rest of his crew leaned forward to listen. They were certainly more curious than the other groups that came in. I turned back to them, resting my arms on the table.

"I can't say I know much, even though we've been here for a little over two months. They keep us on a strict schedule. Every morning we get some tests done, blood work and klank like that. They say it's to monitor our health to be sure no long term damage has been done from the maze. We come here for breakfast, lunch and dinner roughly four hours apart from each other. In between time we can do basically whatever we want, so long as we stay where we're supposed to. They never let us go past those doors." I pointed to the steel airlock door at the end of the mess hall, "Only when they call our name is when we can go through."

"What's over there?" Thomas asked, not taking his eyes off the doors.

I shrugged my shoulders, "Don't know. They say it's the start to our new lives."

Like clockwork, Janson came through the doors, two guards behind him, and a clipboard in his hand. He smiles at all of us, as usual, and everyone goes quiet.

"Good evening gentlemen. Ladies. You all know how this works, you hear your name called, please rise in an orderly fashion, join my colleagues behind me. We will escort you to the eastern wing. Your new lives are about to begin." He opened his clipboard, giving us all a passing glance before he started reading off names, "Connor."

Janson read off his list of names and one by one the people called lined up by the door, excited smiles on their faces to finally be getting out of this place. They all chattered amongst themselves, being sure to keep quiet enough that the others could hear their name be called to leave.

"-and Abigail." Janson closed his clipboard, immediately addressing the groans of sadness from the ones who weren't called, "Now now, don't get discouraged. If I could take more I would. There's always tomorrow, your time will come."

With a turn on his heel, he led the excited teens out of the mess hall where they disappeared behind the large metal door.

"Lucky finches. Being able to get out of here." I scoffed as I watched them leave, "We were the first ones here. At this rate, we'll be the last to go."

"Where are they going?" The Asian boy, Minho asked, gesturing to the door.

"Far away where the Cranks don't exist and WICKED can't find them. Where exactly, I'm not sure. Some people think it's a farm. Others a large city." I chuckled, "A few think that there's some giant floating island past the mountains and that's where they go. Basically… we have no idea."

Thomas abruptly stood up and stomped to the door, his eyes fixed on a group of girls walking past the window.

"Hey Teresa!" He yelled.

I leaned back in my seat as the guards stopped him at the door, refusing to let him through.

"Friend of his?" I asked his friends. They all glanced at each other. Like Thomas's relationship with that girl was some kind of village secret. "Girlfriend… maybe?"

"She's a somthin'." Frypan replied when the other's stayed silent.

"It's probably best if you don't pester him about it." Newt chimed in with a serious tone.

I crossed my arms and shrugged my shoulders.

"Alright everybody. Dinner is over." The guard by the door yelled over the chatter. "Head back to your bunks. We'll see you all in the morning."

The mess hall erupted with the sound of chairs sliding against the floor and quiet chatter amongst the groups as everyone cleared out. Aris stood by the table we usually sit at, waiting for me before we made our way back to our bunk. I followed suit with everyone else and stood up, straightening my shirt and brushing any leftover crumbs off of my sweatpants.

"Well boys, it's been fun." I gave them all a half smile, and winked at the blonde boy. He looked away from me as his face flushed a light pink. I giggled and made my way back to Aris. Together we walked to our bunk. With all the other girls gone, it was just me and him there. Any bed we wanted, though we usually slept in the same ones every night.

The doors locked up when it closed. After two months of being here, I still didn't understand why we weren't allowed to leave our rooms after curfew, but I also just got used to it. I walked over to the sink and stared at my reflection in the mirror. My hair had grown longer since I've been here. It used to only reach just past my shoulders in thick auburn strands. I pushed back some loose pieces that flowed over my hazel eyes, and looked for more differences in my appearance since we first came here. My skin was tanner. I haven't been outside at all so it has gotten a little lighter. Some freckles popped out here and there, nothing too noticeable unless you really looked for them. Having three full meals a day and plenty of downtime caused me to gain some weight, but I still held my athletic build. My stomach stayed flat, even if my abs weren't as prominent anymore. As I started to wash up, I heard the vent cover under my bed come loose. Turning from the sink, droplets of water dripping off my chin, Aris was climbing under the frame. A routine he does every night after dinner.

"Don't be too late tonight, Aris." I said softly, "I'm not sure how long the extra pillow and rolled up bed sheets will fool the guards doing their rounds."

Glancing over his shoulder, he gave a quick nod of his head, and shuffled into the vents.