Chapter 20

Claimer: I OWN THIS STORY! You copy it and you will pay! I own the characters and everything that is made up by me.

Disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride and the Flock and everything made by James Paterson.

WARNING: My chapters got mixed up. GOOD NEWS!: I fixed it! This is the real chapter 20! YAY! Everyone clap for joy! Now I'm gonna sing "Joy To The World" for no reason whatsoever! ENJOY!

Sam's POV

"Where am I?" I mumbled. I was on something soft. Falling asleep in a hard cave means you wake up in a hard cave, right? Well, in my case it means you wake up in a hard cave or a cold cage, but soft still isn't suppose to be involved. I sat up and looked around. My room? I was in my room?

I walked to the door and opened it, expecting something like a dark abyss or a cliff edge with sharp rocks at the bottom, because that's usually how it is in dreams like this. There was no dark abyss. Just my house!

"Um…ok?" I said to myself.

I walked around and found a bowl of raviolis in the kitchen. A note next to it said:

Dear Sam,

It's over now. We found the others and stopped the School and Itex. Don't worry about the others. Here, I made you so found.

-Love, Max.

"Weirdness. Voice, I'm expecting you to give me some even weirder input. Not that I want it, though." I thought.

Nothing. No weird comments, no "I'm a part of you" stuff, and no "I can't help you, this is a test" trash. What is going on? I looked around the kitchen. The can that the raviolis came in was still on the counter. I rinsed it out and took it outside to the recycling bin.

"This isn't right. Mom never signs something 'Max' when it's to Corin and me. And she never leaves something un-recycled."

I made a decision right there. Mom didn't leave this for me. This is a trap. I threw the can away and looked up. Lilly!

"Lilly!" I ran to her. "Hey, Lil! What's up?"

Her face was blank. She stared at me.

"You left us." She said.

"What? Lilly, I didn't leave you."

"Then why are you here?! Why aren't you with us?!" She screamed. "Oh, I forgot, you didn't leave us…yet."

"Yet? Lilly, I would never leave you guys."

"You will. Just look at Maddy. This is what is going to happen when you leave." Lilly stepped aside and I saw Maddy, crumpled on the ground in pain. She was bleeding, crying, and looking at me. She mouthed the word "Why?"

"You don't know what's going to happen, Sam." Lilly said. "They said you would leave and that you didn't care about us."

I bet down to her eye level. "Lilly, you know you can't trust the Whitecoats. They're bad people. They always lie to us."

"Who said they told me? One of you is going to leave. I know Corin already did. If anyone else is going to leave, it's you."

"Lilly, what do you mean?"

"You always try to be like your brother and all the pressure is on you. You'll be the one to leave. If not you, then him. He gets this message too. Be ready. If he leaves you have to fight a traitor. If you leave you have to fight your family."

Strom clouds were filling the sky. Where they came from, I don't know. Wind blew and Maddy disappeared. Like she was sand blown away by the wind. Everything else went away too. Lilly and I were all that was left.

"I have faith in you, tough." Lilly said, breaking the silence. I looked at her. "They told me you would leave, but I never believed them. I just brought you the message." Her blue, tear-filled eyes looked at me. "You can't leave. You have to stay."

"Lilly, I told you, I'm not leaving."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Then, I wish I could say the same for him."

"Him who?"

"The traitor."

"Who is he?"

"Narrow it down. How many he's do we have?"

"Will and Zack won't leave."

"I don't know. You could be right. I'm just the messenger not the message. Don't ask me."

I put my hands on her shoulders.

"Lilly, whoever told you that is lying."

She slipped away from my grasp.

"I hope so." She blew away like sand. Wind came from nowhere and I stood up.

"How do I get out of here?" I screamed. "This isn't a nightmare, it's real! Tell me how to leave!"

"Sam." A voice said. It sounded like mom. I turned around to see…myself. "Sam." The reflection said. "It's not your mom. It's you. You sound just like her."

"Who are you?" I asked.

"You. And your Voice."

"Get me out of here!"

She giggled. "You can't get out of reality. You said it yourself, 'This is real.' I tried to tell you about him, but you wouldn't listen."

"I don't believe it! This is a real message, but it's still a dream. Now get me out of here. He won't betray us."

"Fine. Don't believe me, but let me ask you, what would you do it the people you loved were threatened?"

I woke up in the cave. I looked around. The sun was rising and Will was poking the fire with a stick.

Traitor.

"Shut up!"

I looked at Lilly. She was peacefully asleep in my lap.

Don't ask her, she doesn't remember.

"Will?"

"Yeah, Sam. What's up?"

"You won't leave us, will you?"

He was silent. He closed his eyes and thought for a while. "No. I won't leave." I heard him mumble "Not permanently, at least."

Be ready. He's leaving.

"Go away."

Maddy woke up, and the first words she said was "I'm hungry! Oh, good morning!"

"Good morning." I replied.

"Hey, Mad. Wanna help me go catch breakfast?" Will asked.

"Sure! I've never been hunting before! Is it fun? You have to teach me! This is gonna be great!"

"Ok. Calm down." Will laughed. "Let's go."

They flew off. The image of Maddy in my dream flashed through my head. I clutched on to Lilly. I couldn't stand to lose any of them.

"Sam." A muffled voice said. I looked down at Lilly. "You're crushing me."

"Oh, sorry." I let go.

"I like breathing, Sam." Lilly laughed.

"Yeah, me too."

Reg walked into the cave with a rat in his mouth.

"Well, where have you been?" I asked.

He wagged his tail and gave me a smile.

"Ewww! He's eating a rat! Gross!" Lilly said.

"And what do you think Maddy and Will are coming back with?"

"Not rat!"

"Well, you never know."

Zack groaned. "Ugh! Caves aren't fun!" He said. "Next time, lets sleep in a tree."

"Ok." I said. We waited for Maddy and Will to get back. Every second when on for hours. Every minute when on for years. Time didn't move. Every thought in my head was nothing but worry and doubt. What would happen? Would Will give Maddy to the Whitecoats? Would Maddy die? What would happen?

Finally they came back. Will held three rats and Maddy held some berries.

"Breakfast!" Will said.

Maddy looked at Reg. "Why does everyone have to kill rats? What did they do to you? They were just minding there own business and bam! We kill them! Why?"

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