Chapter 7

I walked over to Newt who was still yelling my name over and over since I had landed on the ground too quietly for him to hear me and I tapped his shoulder so he would turn around to look at me. The sudden realisation that someone else was with him made Newt jump back a bit but he quickly composed himself when he saw it was me and a smile replaced the small frown his face had previously worn.

"Willow, where were you?" He asked

"Up there." I said pointing to the trees

"Why am I not surprised?" He chuckled

We started walking out of the deadheads and towards the kitchen to get food from Frypan when I told Newt I hadn't eaten yet. When we got there, Frypan gave us both a sandwich and a red apple each which we took to a picnic table where Chuck was sitting on his own. I didn't say much while we ate because my mind was so overwhelmed with the questions I needed answers to, so I let Chuck fill in the silence with stories about his day.

I wanted to know what had happened to my brother and why Newt had been dragged off. I needed to know how we had known each other before the Glade and I had to know if we were something more than friends before all of this mess. The questions where making my head hurt and I wanted nothing more than to sit in a room alone for hours to try and work out why I had started getting my memories back but I knew that was something that would have to wait because after lunch I would be working in the gardens with a boy called Zart.

I ate quickly but mostly picked at my sandwich, not having the apatite to finish the whole thing after what I had seen only minutes before. I was too confused to focus on more than one thing at a time so Chucks voice was muffled while he recollected his stories and the food I put in my mouth tasted bland and my head felt like it was swirling with all the thoughts and questions filling it.

"I- I think I'm going to lie down for a few minutes." I whispered as the pain in my head grew until it was hardly bearable.

Newt stood up immediately as soon as I whispered this and helped me stand from the branch when I failed to do so on the first try.

"Are you okay?" He asked me

I gave him a small nod and a smile before I turned and walked away, trying to look as normal and casual as possible but I was sure I failed terribly. Most of the boys were watching me but I shrugged it off and continued walking at an incredibly slow pace. I had barely walked ten steps before my legs gave out and I crumbled to the floor. The whole Glade was spinning in front of my eyes and the pain in my skull had me clutching my head as hard as I could.

I could hear people running towards me and the gladers yelling at each other, asking what was wrong with me but I couldn't respond if I wanted to. Black dots started clouding my vision and everyone's voices became muffled so I couldn't understand what they were saying. The last thing I heard before the darkness took over was a British accent calling my name over and over again and ordering me to try to stay awake.

An amount of time later

I had no idea how long I had been in the darkness for. I kept slipping in and out of consciousness and had weird dreams about my old life every few minutes but I could never open my eyes. When the dreams ended I would be thrown into a huge black abyss only to be pulled back into another memory only a few seconds later.

I knew that I was alive but I didn't know why I wasn't able to wake up from the nightmare that wouldn't leave me alone. The aching in my body and head was gone and I was able to hear everything around me for the short moments when I was left alone in the darkness but because they were so short lived I had no idea how long the person had been talking for.

The darkness I was in faded and I knew another memory was pulling at me for attention so I gave in and let myself remember.

The room was blindingly white, much like the ones I had seen in previous memories and a woman with golden blonde hair, pulled up into a tight bun was walking in front of me while I followed behind her, accompanied by two huge men who were armed with large guns on their backs. I had no choice but to follow this woman, I was a slave to my own mind with no control over my own actions or words in every memory .

"It appears subject A11 is resisting further tests, what do you suggest we do about this Willow?" The woman said to me

"I don't have a say in the matter Dr Paige, as you already know I have not seen Caleb for eight years and I have no idea how or why he is acting out. I suggest you do what you usually do when a subject resists your tests and hope he will cooperate with you after that but as I do not know your methods as well as I would like to I can hardly tell you how to run your own lab." I said, trying not to let the hatred I felt for this woman show in my voice.

"Very well Willow. I am done with you for now but know that what we do to subject A11 is for the best. WICKED is good." She said sternly

I gave a firm nod and turned on my heel, knowing the two armed men would follow me to the cell I was being held in until I was needed for testing so that I wouldn't try to escape like my brother had before me. I had only heard about some of the things my brother had done while he was here but from what I had heard I knew Caleb hated this place more than I did and if it wasn't the constant escape plans he made it would be the way he treated the staff that proved my point. He is known for acting out around the lab and most of the other kids think him stupid for him but there are some that respect him for it and therefor respect me, not that I get to see them or any of the other test subjects they have here.

They keep me under lock and key so that I cannot socialize with the other kids or interact with many people. They tell me I will be a special part of their plans, plans I have no interest in taking part of. WICKED is good, they tell us. Trust us, we can help you, they tell us. We all know what we are to them and it is because of them that I haven't seen my parents for six years, my brother for eight and Newt for two years. It is because of them I haven't interacted with another human being that isn't dressed in a lab coat for almost five years apart from the short times I would slip out to see Newt at night before he was taken.

It wasn't until three days later that I found out what the lab did to the subjects that wouldn't cooperate with them. I wasn't meant to find out at all but the staff hadn't been too careful when they talked about what they had done to subject A11. None of the staff could hide the happiness they felt as they spoke about my brother and how he was no longer a problem. There was basically a party in the lab the day they had finally got rid of the pest nobody could stand to work with. The staff would talk about it freely not even a hint of remorse in their voices when they spoke of the eighteen year old they had killed during his sleep.

The anger inside of me overpowered the sadness as that was how I was raised since I was ten years old when they brought me to this place. I couldn't contain myself and demanded to speak with Dr Paige the minute I put the pieces together.

I marched down the white corridors with the two men behind me, judging my every move and accessing weather I was going to be a problem or not, they knew me well enough to know that I would always be a problem, it ran in my blood.

"You killed him. You killed my brother when you promised his safety." I said

"He was becoming a problem. Subject A11 would not cooperate, it was necessary."

"It was murder!" I said almost shouting, my anger getting the best of me.

She raised her eyebrows at me but didn't say anything for a moment as she walked behind her desk and took a seat behind it, her posture perfect and her face an impassive mask so no emotion could be seen.

"Is that so? Well I am sorry you feel this was Willow but we are doing what is necessary to save the remaining population of the world." She said

"What you think is necessary doesn't make it right." I snapped

"What are you saying Willow?" Dr Paige was now glowering at me but I saw the curiosity within her eyes.

"I no longer wish to be a part of this experiment, you have kept me here against my will for too long now and I have not said a word against you. I said nothing when you kept me away from my brother or when you kept me isolated away from everyone else. I didn't react as much as I should of when you took Newt from me or when you dragged me out of my house and away from my parents when I first arrived here. I have been nothing but helpful to you and I have allowed you to do your tests on me when I thought they were right.

"I thought this was a good thing, something that wouldn't be permanent. I thought you would have found a cure by now and I thought nobody would get hurt. But you killed one of the people I would trust with my life and stole the other one from me. I am done with the experiments and wish to be released from my duties as a subject here." I said

"Very well." Dr Paige said

I was surprised by her agreement but it was short lived when she pulled out a large silver hand gun from one of the draws of her desk. I knew what she would do as soon as I saw her pull the gun out but the shock I still felt when she aimed the gun and pulled the trigger still left me speechless.

"You have been a great asset to us subject A12. You are relieved from your services here." She said calmly as the blood started to seep through my shirt where she had shot me.

She put the gun back in her draw and sat back in her chair while I crumbled to the floor and a searing pain shot through my body, mainly at my right hip where she had shot. She didn't want me dead she just wanted me injured. Whatever she had in store for me would be worse than death, that was something I was sure of before I passed out.

Have you ever woken up from a really realistic dream and just found yourself completely confused and disorientated because it didn't really happen? Or have you ever dreamt of something that resembled a nightmare so much that you found you were too desperate to wake up?

Well this was sort of like that, except instead of waking up I was just sent into another dark abyss where I could momentarily focus my thoughts on the dream I had just experienced. Thousands of questions swarmed my head but I pushed them aside as I heard someone talking.

"-so will you please wake up Willow." Someone said from the foot of the bed I was resting on.

While I was in the semi-conscious state when I could hear the people around me I had figured out that I had been taken to the homestead with the Med-jacks and I was in one of their hospital bed things.

Someone grunted from next to me and I felt a pressure in my left hand and I knew someone was sitting next to me and holding my hand which made me feel tingly despite being in the miserable state with no way to communicate with the people who were less than ten feet away.

"Alright lets try a different bloody approach," I heard someone huff from next to me

"Low if you don't wake I'm gonna slap Minho right across his bloody face." The person next to me, who I identified as Newt said. When I heard his voice somehow I reacted and I grabbed at the hand that was holding my own desperately.

"What!" The first boy I had heard talking screeched, definitely Minho.

That was followed by a harsh slap and some weak groaning afterwards. I wanted to open my eyes just to see what was probably a hilarious sight. Laughter soon came after from someone across the room and a small snort was mixed with it and I knew Chuck was in the room.

"Wait! She- she grabbed my hand I swear!" Newt said excitedly and it made my heart break to hear him so happy over something so small that I did subconsciously but nevertheless I somehow did it again when I heard his voice.

"Right okay, Skylar if you don't wake up I'll punch Newt." Minho said

I didn't react.

Newts hand seemed to loosen its grip slightly for a second but then it held on tighter almost immediately and I knew why. Minho had punched him just like he said he would and even though I hated hearing the 'umph' of pain he gave from the impact, I couldn't bring myself to react when it wasn't his voice I was hearing.

"You asked for it. Low wake up or I'll beat the klunk out of Minho." Newt hissed

It was clear this wasn't about waking me up anymore and was more to do with the two boys hurting each other but still, when I heard his voice I had to squeeze his hand harder than the last two times.

"I guess she doesn't want you getting hurt. Congratulations." Newt spat before his hand was taken from mine and I heard his retreating footsteps fill in the silence his statement had made.

"What the hell just happened?" Chuck spoke up

Minho said something but it was muffled as the memories started dragging me under again but I didn't want to remember anymore. I wanted to see my friends and tell Newt what I remembered. I needed to see him again and make sure he was okay after re-living the day he was dragged away from me in my dreams.

"No! I won't go back. I want to wake up, please! No more, I want to wake up!" I was mentally screaming in my head and thrashing about, trying to release myself from the ties the memories were trying to drag me down with.

People were shouting around me but I couldn't hear what they were saying.

"Please! I want Newt! Newt! NEWT!" I was begging now. I didn't know who I was talking to but I hoped whoever it was they had mercy and would let me out of my own head which was serving as a prison.

I know it sounds mad to be mentally talking to myself and maybe I had gone crazy but I was fighting with myself to return to my friends.

The darkness started fading but the dreams didn't come, instead a red pink light filled my vision and I realised it was the sunlight from in front of my eyelids. I slowly lifted my eyelids, they felt like they weighed a ton as I did so, and I looked around me. The room was filled with people; the Med-jacks, Minho, Chuck, Alby but no Newt.

I sat up with a start, gasping for breath all of a sudden as my lungs begged for more. I was so happy to be awake again but I wished the one person that had occurred in my dreams over and over would be with me.

I smiled at everyone in the room but nobody smiled back, everyone wore concerned expressions and I could understand why. I had fainted in front of everybody and hadn't woken up for hours, I would be hurt if they weren't concerned.

"I'm alright now guys, sorry I gave you all a fright." I said with a small smile at the end

"A small fright? Willow we have been worried sick for days!" Chuck practically screamed in my face.

Days?

"What are you talking about Chuck? I've only been out for a few hours." I let out a nervous laugh

"Actually you've been out cold a bit longer than that. Try two weeks." Minho said

"WHAT!?" I screeched

My throat felt dry when I used it like that and I coughed awkwardly and rubbed my throat. Jeff handed me a cup of water which I drank greedily and cleared my throat afterwards.

"I need to see Newt." I whispered

I swung my legs off of the bed and tried to get up but Clint pressed on my shoulder and pushed me back down on the bed so that I would lie down.

"Not yet." He ordered

"I need to get out of this bed! I've been trapped for what you call weeks and I need to move. I need to get out of this room and out of this building." I said

"We'll get Newt for you." Chuck said then ran out of the room immediately

"I'll question you later Willow, just rest for a while." Alby instructed

I sighed in annoyance and waited for Newt to show up while the rest of the boys shuffled out of the room so I was left alone.