Hi! Thank you for actually taking the time to read my story! This is my first time writing and posting so I was super nervous about having people read my work. If you guys have any advice for me please let me know! I would love to hear from you! I am sorry for any errors in this chapter; I rushed through because I was so happy that people were actually interested in my story. I wanted to get another chapter out for you guys! And don't worry we will be meeting all of the Gladers in the next chapter! Until then, I hope you enjoy!
Chapter Two
It seemed like it was going to be another typical day in the Glade. The runners had left on time this morning, the cook fed the others as they woke, and then everyone left went to their assigned job. The two boys who seemed to be the leaders, Alby and Newt, I think their names are, were discussing something intently out by the box. I enjoyed watching their interactions. The blonde must have made a joke because he grinned cheekily and Alby was shaking his head laughing. I couldn't help but smile at the two. They seemed like happy normal teenagers, despite the position they are in. Boys like them helped me stay grounded while at work. They were able to keep their humanity and continue through the hardships. That was something I really admired. Plus the blondes smile was so contagious. I smirked and began to feel heat rush to my face. I looked around and switched camera views before anyone noticed the blush that was creeping on my face. How ridiculous was I, blushing just thinking about a boy I've never met, and probably never will. The cook was cleaning dishes preparing for lunch. I switched again. A taller blonde was ordering another group of boys to move some lumber and tools to the other side of the glade. The group of boys had an almost scared look on their face as the bigger boy yelled at them. I hadn't figured out the bigger boys name yet but I just internally called him Jerk Face. He was always yelling, pushing other boys, and on nights they had parties he was always the first in the circle to fight. He usually won too. I always thought about how much fun those sparing circles would be. I had only ever trained against Thomas. But I quickly surpassed his skill level, and the level that WICKED wanted him to be trained at. I was only trained "In case of emergencies." I switched cameras. A dark haired boy was making his way to the barn that held most of the animals. My lip curled at the thought of what he does in that barn. I had seen my fair share of deaths while observing the boys, unfortunately human and not. I shook away the nasty thought and looked down at my notebook. It was days like this, normal days that made me the happiest.
I began writing my report on the boys in the glade. It was short and simple, everyone seemed content, no obvious mental breakdowns likely, no major accidents, and jobs were getting done. I then switched to beetle blade cams in the Maze. They were interactive and turned on automatically when they sensed someone was near. It showed a fit Asian boy bent down to catch his breath. He looked up as another boy entered the frame. Minho and Ben were my favorite runners to watch. They were the best runners out of them all but still had time to goof around and have fun with their job. It appeared to be lunch time because they took out water bottles and sandwiches before sitting down against the wall. They were talking but I couldn't read their lips do to the distance. I moved the beetle blade slightly down the wall towards them which made Bens eyes shoot up. He pointed the beetle blade out to Minho, who glared up at it. I shifted feeling slightly uncomfortable with his harsh gaze. But he soon turned away and said something to Ben. They both laughed and then looked back up to the beetle blade and began to wave at it. I busted out laughing.
I was still laughing when I heard someone clear their voice behind me. I covered my mouth and sat up a little straighter than before. "Miss Danielle…." My Superior's voice boomed behind me, clearly unhappy with me. I slowly turned to face him and gave him a small smile. "When you are done with whatever you find so amusing please join me. I have some important things to update you on." he stated plainly folding his arms. I nodded and got up quickly before following him. Others in the room stared at us, some sending me death looks as we left. As we walked down the hallway he gave me a side glance before whispering "Straighten out your dress and fix your hair." I complied as we reached the door to his main office. He began to enter in his code on the key pad before looking back at me. "Do not embarrass me." he spoke through his teeth before opening the door.
I froze at the door way. Sitting behind my Superior's desk was the Chancellor herself. She grinned kindly at me and waved me in before putting her hands under her chin. She was wearing a fitted white pencil skirt and a matching jacket. She had her hair up and was so perfectly groomed I was surprised. She even had a little bit of make up on, something that was not valued or seen necessary since the Sun Flares. She had bright eyes, that even though were smiling still were extremely intimidating. My superior put his hand on my back and gently pushed me in the room with him seeing that I had temporarily forgotten how to move my legs. Or at least it felt like that. I'm sure my eyes were huge. I had never seen the chancellor in person before, in fact the only person I know who had was my Superior. I was in shock and did not know what to say. "Well good morning, Danielle isn't it?" she genuinely smiled at me. I nodded. "Sit please. I believe that your Superior and I have something to discuss with you." I sat down and swallowed hard. I was so nervous. Did they finally realize what I was doing with my reports? Am I going to be killed for my attempt to give the boys a chance? I looked up at the Chancellor. "Don't look so scared Danielle you are fine. I won't bite." She gave me a toothy grin. I smiled weakly back at her. "Your Superior and I were discussing some of your reports and statistics from your coworkers. After consulting with Group B a few weeks ago I have decided that-"she began to looking through some paper work that sat in front of her.
"Group B?" I interrupted her confused. I could feel my Superior glaring at me for my rudeness but I had never heard of a Group B before.
"That is nothing you need to concern yourself with." My Superior spat at me. "Please continue Chancellor." I shrunk back in my chair feeling bad for my outburst.
"Yes, as I was saying I have come to the decision to trigger the beginning of the end for the Maze trial." She calmly said before glancing at me. My mouth dropped and I felt like I could not breathe. Thomas was my first thought, then the rest of the boys in the Glade. I struggled to put words together while thinking about how many of the boys would die all because of her decision. And there was nothing I could do about it.
"Chancellor, if you do not mind me saying, I believe truly that it is too soon. The boys aren't ready yet honestly. They are just now getting organized and everyone is getting settled in with the newer leader and I just, I don't think you will end up the best number of subjects to move on with the next trial." I rambled on trying to think of something to change her mind.
"Well Danielle I am sorry that you feel that way. But the decision is made. Subject A1 is already being sent in to be wiped." The chancellor states nonchalantly and leans back in her chair. I just nodded my head trying not to cry. I felt like the air was being sucked out of my chest. "That is all Miss Danielle." She raised an eyebrow at me and smiled. I suppose she was expecting me to say something back but I could not bring myself to. I nodded again, stood up and walked out of the room. I felt like I was in a daze. My superior followed me closely.
"Can I go see him? Before?" I turned to him and asked as kindly as I could. The tears were threatening to spill now and I think my Superior noticed because he sighed and agreed to let me go. As soon as the door closed behind him I ran to the Wiping room.
The tears were falling now. I rounded the corner as fast as I could not paying any attention to the strange looks I was getting. I ran straight into a solid body falling over. However hands reached out and caught me and I heard a very familiar laugh. "Well Dani at least you can run pretty well in heels." Thomas smiled down at me. His face did change when he saw that I was crying. He pulled me up off the ground into a hug, slowly rubbing my back.
"I tried to get them to postpone it I really did. I said the boys were not ready. I tried to protect them and you. I really did." I droned on trying not to let my voice break.
Thomas pulled back to look at me. "Dani don't worry, it's all going to be okay. I promise you, it'll be okay in the end. I mean we knew this was going to happen eventually. This was all just a part of the plan. You know how many people we could save Dani?" he wiped the tears off of my face. "So I want none of that crap! None of this wet stuff!" he yelled making me smile. "Teresa and I will be fine. You know how hard we have trained to get ready for this. Plus you will be able to watch me and Teresa every day!" Thomas tried to make me feel better. I shook my head.
"I feel like I'm losing my brother." I looked up at him. "Thomas listen to me, I want to help the boys. And help you. The trials, it's just not fair. They need an advantage. I want to warn them about the trials, if they understand what is going on maybe it will help them. Give you all a better chance to survive." I whispered to Thomas. Thomas just looked around the hallway to make sure no one could have possibly heard us. He moved us over to the side of the hallway and began to shake his head. My heart sank.
"Dani no, you know that is not possible. You have to stay here. Do your job. You need to stop thinking like that, I don't want you to put your life in danger. If anyone hears what you have been thinking about they will kill you just like…" he stopped speaking and his hand shot up to his face.
"Just like what Tommy?" I backed away from him and crossed my arms. Thomas grabbed his right elbow with his left hand, a nervous habit of his.
"Okay do not tell anyone you know but there is another group Dani. And they have two specially picked people like Teresa and I. Teresa and I have been training and working with them for the past couple of months. They were involved in the creation too. There was a third and he seemed to do something similar to what you do, but the Chancellor had him killed…" My mouth dropped as anger pooled inside of me. Thomas grabbed my shoulders. "We weren't allowed to tell you, and I don't want you to endanger your life Dani." Thomas tried to look me in the eyes. I refused to look back. "I'm sorry. I really am Dani but you just need to do your job. Please stay safe. Teresa and I will be fine. I mean the Trials are a good thing. Think of how many people we are going to be helping when it is all over." Thomas rubbed up and down my shoulders as he spoke. I nodded and backed up farther so he couldn't reach me.
"Be careful Thomas." I said with a straight face and walked away from him.
I was a hot mess when I got back to my work station. I am sure everyone saw my red eyes and streaked face but no one said anything. I was glad for the loud bustling in the room for once as the other scientist worked because it drowned out my sniffles. I began to rub my temples and looked up at the now blank glass screen. Wisps of my dark brown hair had fallen out of my braid and sat on either side of my face, the bun had loosened quite a bit and gotten bigger. I had stopped crying but the red tinge to my chocolate eyes would not go away for a bit longer. How pitiful I must look to everyone. I sighed and looked back down at my notebook. But there had to be something I could do. I flipped through my past pages and skimmed all of my writings, looking for something, anything that could have given me an idea.
I had gotten about halfway through my notes before I got so frustrated I just put my down head in my hands and closed my eyes. I took a deep breath trying to calm myself. I had such a heavy pit in my stomach. I could not help them. There was nothing I could do to save the lives of the boys or Thomas. I opened my eyes and blinked a few times to get rid of the blurriness. I was looking down at my notebook and a few words stuck out to me. The Griever hole. The Cliff. It was the day that Minho and a few other runners decided to test the Cliff by throwing rocks down them. They were suspicious that the Grievers somehow came from the cliff. It was a very monumental moment and a big step for the Glade. But they never were able to hit the Griever hole, so the rocks all just fell. The boys just figured the Grievers climbed up the side of the cliff and left back to report their findings. But really the Griever hole is the key…
The Griever hole is the key. I shot up and began to tap the screen to pull of the Maze feed. I quickly found Minho and Ben running through the section with the Griever hole. They were going to be my best hope. I ripped out a piece of paper from my notebook and wrote down a quick note on it in big words. "WICKED is evil." I had to get the note through the hole. I folded the note a few times and looked around my desk to make sure no one was watching. I tucked the note into my bra and stood up. I walked towards my Superior with a sweet smile. He stood right by the doors, looking over another scientists shoulder helping him. "Miss Danielle," he spoke without looking up at me.
"Hello Superior. I was just wondering if I could run back to my room for a second to freshen up. Fix my hair." I tried to charm him. He looked up at me and motioned for me to go away from the other gentleman for a second. I followed before adding "I really am sorry about how I acted earlier sir. I wanted to fix myself up and forget that this ever even happened. I don't know what came over me but it was so unprofessional. I need to get on with my work." The Superior eyed me suspiciously before nodding.
"Can it wait a few minutes the Chancellor is about to come and announce the big news and then we will begin the relocation of our office. We will need all hands on deck to get all of our information and people out. You know we have to leave the bare minimum for if the Subjects figure out how to exit the Maze." The Superior whispered to me. I nodded and swallowed hard before heading back to my desk. Everything was moving so fast. I had to move faster.
As soon as the Chancellor came and announced the Beginning of the End, the energy level shot up in the room. I stood in the back as she talked and only made eye contact with her when she mentioned that they did expect multiple deaths as an outcome. She shared a glance with me and then continued with her speech. After she left everyone was running around the room, talking, laughing, filing papers, opening different cameras. No one even noticed me. I shut my notebook carefully and looked one last time at the feed of Minho and Ben. Minho was up ahead of Ben quite a ways now. I had about 5 minutes until they would reach the Griever hole. I had to get the note through the hole and hope that everyone would be too to notice I was the one who did it. By the time they even realized what was happening it would hopefully be too late. I inched slowly back towards the door leading to the Grievers cavern. When I reached the door I glanced once more around the room, but everyone was too busy talking with each other. The Chancellor was shaking hands and the Superior was laughing with some other scientists. I opened the door carefully and slipped through.
The room was dark with blue up lighting around the bottom of the wall. It barely illuminated the Grievers sleeping pods. I tip toed around them although I know the Grievers won't move unless activated. They still creeped me out, I had seen what they were capable of doing many times. I pulled the note back out of my bra and gripped it tightly in my hand. I had crossed the room and was studying the small rectangular hole. I glanced back down at the note hoping that it would be noticeable enough for the runners to find. I was taking my final steps forward so I could throw the note through the whole when I heard the door open.
I recoiled back around to find the Chancellor standing with her hands behind her back. My stomach dropped though as I saw my Superior holding up a small hand gun at me next to her. "Please don't Miss Danielle." My Superior spoke surprisingly calm. I could not take my eyes off of the gun. "I really do not want to have to do this. I really did think you were a great employee, you have never given us any trouble before. But the Chancellor here noticed something different about you after we shared the big news with you. She insisted I came prepared." He shrugged towards her. I looked at the Chancellor quickly. She showed no emotion on her face, eyes never leaving mine. She pulled her arms in front of her and tucked them in her white coat pockets. "Please don't go through. Do not do this. If you come back with us now we will be able to…..work something out." he added. I furrowed my eyebrows. He thought I was jumping through the hole myself… I had never thought about that. I bit my lip, knowing what I would have to do. No matter what he said, there was no way I could come back from this. I would be killed.
"Superior I have to. What WICKED is doing is not fair. Not to these boys, not to Thomas or Teresa. They did not sign up for this. I don't care how many people you think we may be able to save, torturing and murdering these boys is not right." My voice shook as I spoke. My breath was rapid not and I turned slightly towards the Griever hole.
"Please Miss Danielle. If you move again I will kill you." My superior took one step closer to me as he spoke. My mouth opened but I could not think of anything to say. I had made my choice and I had gotten caught. They would kill me either way. I looked back towards the hole. He pulled the hammer back on the gun.
"I'm sorry. I need to do this." I spoke barely above a whisper and I began to turn but My Superior was faster.
But, right as he pulled the trigger, the Chancellor pushed his shoulder making his aim go off. The bullet skimmed my right side, making me scream out. I put my hand on the edge of the Griever hole to steady myself, turning away from the Chancellor and my Superior. There wasn't any pain at first, I put my hand down on my side and brought it up closer to my face. I could not bring myself to look down. Blood now soaked my hand and dripped off the note. I put the note in my bra, my hand was shaking terribly. I began to hyperventilate.
"Chancellor!" My Superior screamed out in confusion and anger. Then the pain began. I felt like I could not breathe as a fire began to burn through my side. I knew my best chance for survival though was going to be getting to the Maze. And time was running out. I began to pull myself up on the edge of the hole. I looked back one more time to the Chancellor and my Superior. The Chancellor had moved in front of him now and held out something else in her right hand.
"One more thing Danielle." She smiled at me again so sickly sweet and I felt pain in my right shoulder. I didn't take the time to look at what hit me. The pain was nothing comparable to my side. I took steady breath and pushed myself through the hole as hard as I could.