Meraya slunk closer to Newt, never having been very fond of the dark. Their hands found each other and a small wave of comfort washed over her. Jorge was at the front of their group, easily navigating the dark tunnels. The further they got from the food stash, the more rank the tunnels got. Meraya could hear the ominous drip of a leaky pipe. It smelled of something rotten and moldy. Meraya couldn't wait to get out of the tunnels.
Her prayers were granted not ten minutes later when a faint dot of light shone from deep within the tunnels. Once they got closer it was apparent that there were ascending stairs and soon they were free from the dank tunnels. Meraya took a deep breath, taking in the semi-cleaner air of the city.
Thomas and Brenda trekked through the tunnels in silence at first. The only sound was of their footsteps slapping against concrete. "So..." Brenda's voice echoed through the concrete halls, making the duo wince. "Uh, you and Raya?" Brenda whispered softly this time. Thomas glanced at Brenda, curious as to why she cared about it. "Why do you call Meraya Raya?" Thomas asked instead of answering. Brenda frowned knowing he was dodging her question, but wouldn't let it go that easily. "You first," she countered. Thomas sighed, pausing in his steps, "I...I uh, I guess that I love her." Thomas confessed softly His eyes were downcast as he fiddled with his fingers. Brenda nodded, satisfied with the answer. "We call her Raya 'cus when its close to riot. Meraya kept causing one every time she tried to escape after we found her." Brenda explained with a slight air of fondness hinting at her voice. Thomas nodded and the conversation dropped off into silence once again.
Soon the duo found themselves at a junction. There were five tunnels leading to places unknown. Brenda stood, hands on hips and brows furrowed. Thomas felt uneasy as they stood there. There were too many openings for cranks to appear and that didn't sit right with Thomas. "Which way?" Thomas asked, fighting hard to keep the quiver from his voice. Brenda shot him a look that told him to, quite effectively, 'shut up.'
Thomas stifled a groan as he turned in a small circle. He eyed each entryway as his stomach twisted painfully with apprehension. The shattering of glass made the duo jump and their hearts race. Brenda made eye contact with Thomas, worry written on both of their faces "Probably just a rat," Brenda murmured. It was a weak lie, but it soothed their frayed nerves. That is, until they heard it again...and again...and again. One after another, glass bulbs could be heard shattering, each one closer than the last.
Brenda and Thomas turned towards the tunnel they had came from as the noises crept closer. Not long after a figure appeared. Brenda shifted closer to Thomas, grabbing his hand for comfort. "Rose took my nose!" A voice cackled in the dark, just out of sight, "Rose took my nose I suppose!" Hysterical laughter followed as the being stepped forwards into the light. It was a man dressed in a dirty, tattered suit and tie. His face was decaying, bits of flesh falling off, leaving red, raw muscle in its wake. The most disturbing detail was that his nose was completely gone. Thomas felt bile rise in his throat as he took in the man's visage.
"Such a pretty nose!" a new voice, feminine, echoed from behind the man. A woman appeared next. She too was missing her nose, eyes wide and crazed. She had patches of hair missing from her scalp and the suit she wore was also stained and torn.
"Run," Brenda whispered so only Thomas could hear. One by one, more and more cranks appeared from the tunnel Thomas and Brenda has just came from. They must have been following them since the cave in, waiting for the perfect time to pounce. "On three, run." Brenda whispered, as she kept her eyes trained on the cranks in front of them. "One," Brenda spoke barely audible, taking a small step back. "Two..." the cranks swayed back and forth where they stood, crazed eyes focused on the teens. "Three!" Brenda and Thomas turned on their heels, darting into the first tunnel entrance they saw. "I WANT YOUR NOSE!" the male's voice screeched, voice pounding off the stone walls.
Brenda ran full speed, leading Thomas through the tunnels. They made many turns in the labyrinth of passageways. The entire time Thomas heard the echoed screeches of the cranks chasing them. His lungs burned from the exertion of running top speed. His muscles begged for him to slow but he pushed further "Here!" Brenda gasped, tugging Thomas into an empty room. Thomas doubled over, hands on his knees as he gulped in air to soothe his burning lungs.
The room they entered was barren, save for a lone table against the far wall and a chair in the corner. brenda dropped to her knees, crawling beneath the table. Thomas glanced over his shoulder, the cranks were getting closer. "C'mon!" Brenda hissed. Thomas knelt, following Brenda. There was a hole in the wall, unseen unless you crouched down. Brenda and Thomas squeezed inside, barely fitting. Thomas faced the wall, lying on his side, with Brenda pressed between him and the back wall. The only sound was his blood pounding in his ears, struggling to control his erratic breathing.
The sound of cranks got closer and closer. Thomas held a hand over his mouth to stifle the sound of his breathing. Just as fast as they came, the cranks continued down the hall, too crazed to coherently think about checking any rooms. Thomas breathed out a sigh of relief as he heard the screeches disspating deeper into the tunnels. Thomas glanced back at Brenda with a relieved smile. As they shifted towards the exit they heard the creaking of the door opening and froze. Thomas' heart lept into his throat as he heard footsteps shuffle into the room. "Pretty nose, where are you!" the woman's voice cooed, followed by crazed giggled. Brenda swallowed thickly, clutching to Thomas out of fear. "They ain't in here!" an unknown male voice grumbled irritated. Thomas winced as they heard a thump, possibly the crank hitting or kicking something. "They're in here, I know it." the male that had first appeared spoke. "Pretty pretty nose! Come out, come out wherever you are!" the woman cooed again. When no answer came she huffed, "They're not here! I'm leaving!" Thomas could hear the door open and close once more, leaving the original crank, his breathing the only sound in the room.
"I know you're in here, nose," his voice was low and menacing. "Come out, come out," he chuckled darkly. "Gotcha!" Thomas felt a hand latch onto his ankle and yank. Thomas yelled out in fear as his body was dragged out of the hiding place by the cranks incredible strength. "You're mine now nose!" the crank cackled, hands clamping over Thomas' throat. Thomas gasped, hands tugging at the one's over his throat. Thomas kicked his feet, fighting hard to throw this crank off. The crank drew a blade from his back pocket, nearing Thomas with it.
Brenda scrambled out of the hole, searching quickly for something to fight with. Grabbing the chair from the corner, she wacked it over the back of the cranks head. He toppled over, knife skidding across the floor. "Grab the knife Thomas!" Brenda yelled as she jumped on top of the crank. He struggled beneath her. It took all of Brenda's strength to keep him down. He screamed and writhed and thrashed below her. "Thomas!" that shot him into action as he scrambled towards the knife. He clutched it in his shaking hands, crawling back over to the crank. "You have to do it Thomas." Brenda said, motioning towards the crank. "I can't hold him much longer." Thomas nodded, holding the blade in his hand. He lifted it above his head and paused. He stared down at the animal like man, chewing his lower lip. "Thomas do it!" Brenda cried out, beginning to lose her fight with the crank. Thomas glanced between her and the man, blade raise. "Do it for Meraya!" Brenda cried as a last ditch effort. Thomas swung his arm down, sinking the blade into the cranks chest. He struggled for a few more seconds, gurgling as blood bubbled out of the corner of his mouth before going limp. His eyes lost their light, glazing over as they stared, lifelessly, up at the ceiling.
Thomas stared down at the body in horror. He had just killed a man. He held his hands up, seeing they were covered in the man's blood and scrambled towards the corner, emptying the contents of his stomach in the small room. Brenda watched with a small, sympathetic frown. "We need to go," Brenda whispered softly, "There's no way that they didn't hear that." Thomas nodded, wiping his mouth and stumbling towards the door. The two checked to see if the coast was clear before heading out. It didn't take long for them to find the exit after that, thankfully.
Thomas half expected to see the gladers and Meraya's shining smile at the exit of the tunnels. He was disappointed to find them nowhere in sight, worry beginning to find home in his mind. "I'm sure Jorge got them out. He's a fighter and knows those tunnels like he made them," Brenda tried her hand at cheering Thomas up. It worked, if only a little. The two began to walk towards the edge of the city. Jorge knew the plan, to get to the safe haven. If and when they got out, he would have kept going and taken the rest of the group out of the city where it was slightly safer to wait than in the city.
By the time the sun began to set, Thomas and Brenda were a quarter mile from the edge of the city. Brenda found an abandoned truck in a back alleyway. She motioned Thomas to hop inside the cab. It was as safe a place as any to spend the night. Thomas sank into the plush cushion of the driver's seat, reclining it back into a laying position. He folded his hands behind his head, looking up at the roof. "You're worried about her aren't you?" Brenda whispered. Thomas looked at her from the corner of his eye before turning on his side. "Yeah. I don't know why but she just...she just means the world to me." Thomas murmured. He didn't know why he was confessing all of these things to a girl he barely knew when he couldn't even say it to Meraya's face. "Well if her reaction to finding you alive today was any indication, I'd say you mean the world to her too," Brenda offered with a soft smile. "You think?" Thomas asked shyly, voice filled with hope. Brenda giggled, nodding. "Yeah I do. You're a catch," she said with a strange glint in her eyes that Thomas couldn't place. He didn't answer after that, nodding silently and rolling on to his back. Seconds later, he was fast asleep.