Newt had been assigned to a room with Thomas and several other Gladers. They were crammed inside like sardines all of them trying and failing to fall asleep. Newt had gotten the one bed in the room but he didn't see a point in attempting to sleep when he knew it wouldn't come.

The steady glow from the unnatural sky seemed to stretch the minutes into hours until it seemed like tomorrow would never come. It was obvious that no one else was sleeping either. The boarded windows and extra knives that each Glader had been given did nothing to stop the storm of panic that was building in Newt's chest. He couldn't help but think of Sadie as another groan from outside echoed through the Glade. She's safer in the Slammer. Newt reassured himself. No way a Griever could break through those concrete walls. But he still couldn't help but wish she was here with him instead, not necessarily to comfort her, he doubted Sadie would really need that, but to help him. Newt wasn't afraid of a lot of things. But he would always be terrified of the nightmare that was the Maze.

The constant anticipation of what could happen was maddening to Newt. With each passing minute the groans and clicks of the Griever's continued to grow closer and closer. He almost wished they would just come and bloody get it over with. And as the hours passed by at a snails pace Newt started to wonder if he should just get up and walk out like Alby, just take whatever was coming before he went mad waiting for it to arrive. But one thing kept him glued to his spot in the small crammed room. Sadie, Sadie, Sadie.

Sadie.

And then they heard the first Griever approached Homestead. Everyone in the small group shot to their feet eyes wide in horror as the familiar wails and whirring of the Griever sounded directly outside, sending chills up Newt's spine as he tried to quiet everyone down. His own heart thumped rapidly against his chest as he motioned for everyone to stay silent and quietly limped towards the boarded up window. Thomas crept up behind him as Newt peered through one of the cracks in the boards but he saw nothing.

Nothing but the eerily empty Glade stretched out before them. Newt returned to his spot on the bed his eyes glued to the window as more sounds emitted from outside. The constant clicks, groans, and screeches of grinding metal was enough to get everyone on edge and enough to make Newt shudder every time a sound echoed outside. Everyone was up now no longer pretending to sleep as the terrifying snaps and whirrs continued to circle outside. Newt caught Thomas's eye and held up four fingers. There's at least four out there…. At least.

And then a new sound was added into the nightmarish mix. The horrifying sounds of shredding and splintering wood that shook the whole house making the beams of wood groan in protest.

It was climbing the side of the building. It's coming. Every boy in the room scrambled away from the window and far wall all of them huddling together against the door as the sounds of the climbing Griever continued to grow louder. The Homestead quivered under the Griever's weight, Newt could just picture it's sharp needles and appendages ripping into the wood as it climbed it's way towards them. It's sickening and rotten flesh pressing into the side. We're done for. And then when Newt was sure that the Griever was about to tear through the window, rip through the wall and kill them all, everything went silent.

Newt held his breath as lights began to flicker through the cracks in the window outlining a figure that swayed back in forth outside. Almost as if it was searching for them, trying to sniff them out like a wolf hunting for prey. When Newt was getting ready for the inevitable attack of the Griever, the door behind them sprung open sending them all reeling in shock, all of them shouting out in surprise at the unexpected attack from behind. And then they saw who had opened the door.

Gally.

Newt thought Gally was a raging mad man before, but that was nothing compared to how he was acting now. Gally's eyes were wide and bloodshot with a sick crazy gleam to them that made them all backup at his sudden appearance. He looked like klunk; his clothes were ripped and caked in mud and something that Newt hoped wasn't blood. The Glader collapsed to his knees his chest rising and falling rapidly as he tried to suck in as much air as possible before screaming a mad and haunting scream.

"They'll kill all of you!" He wailed his voice raw and angry. "They'll come back and kill everyone! One Glader every night until it's over. Until it's all over!" Gally staggered to his feet his legs thumping against the ground as he thudded towards Thomas and Newt pointing a shaky finger in Tommy's direction. "You- you shank!" He screeched manically spit flying from his mouth. "This is all your fault. You and those shucking girls!" Gally's fist clenched and soared toward Thomas's head so suddenly that all they could do was stand and watch as his fist smacked into Tommy's ear. Newt finally snapped out of his shock and surged forward pushing Gally away and sending the boy crashing into a rickety desk right by the boarded window. Newt and Thomas stood in front of the crazy Glader preparing for another fight. But Gally didn't try to retaliate he only looked at each of them his eyes sweeping the room with his mad and shudder inducing gaze.

"There's no way out, it can't be solved...It can't be solved!" Gally shouted his voice distant and haunting. "One at a time…. each night…. their shucking Variables and trials. It's better this way." Newt soaked in the crazed boy's words, goose bumps racing up his arms.

"Gally." Newt tried stepping forward his eyes trained on the Glader. "You need to shut your bloody mouth. There's a Griever outside. If we're quiet it might go-"

"You don't get it Newt. You've never gotten it. You're all shucking idiots if you think you can solve the Maze! We can't win! They'll kill everyone… one by one!" Gally screamed throwing his body against the boards that were nailed to the window. He began ripping at them like a rabid animal until he ripped one free and threw it to the ground.

"Stop!" Newt barged forward right when Gally tugged the other board loose, he turned on Newt the board swinging and smacking with a burst of pain against Newt's head. Newt felt his head snap back and his body fly backwards into the room's bed, blood splattering the walls from the new gash. As soon as Newt crumpled onto the bed his vision went black.

Newt woke up to utter chaos. Gladers ran in every direction flashlights shinning, everyone yelling. Newt groaned and looked up to see Thomas standing in front of the now torn open wall of Homestead his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open as a form disappeared into the Maze. Thomas whipped around and sprinted out of the room disappearing into the mass of confused and scared Gladers. Newt pulled himself up; his head spinning rapidly as a deep ache spread through his skull. Blood trickled down the side of his face as he forced himself to his feet and dashed after Tommy grabbing a towel and pressing it to the side of his head as he pushed through the swarming boys.

"Tommy!" Newt called hobbling after him.

"Minho! He went after the Grievers. He went into the Maze!" Thomas shouted back trying to push his way through the Gladers. Newt pulled away the small towel and grimaced at the patch of blood that stained it.

"Shuck, this hurts like a mother." He grunted pressing it back into place. "And I know. I saw the shank follow it. I always knew Gally was crazy but it looks like Minho's not bloody far from it."

"I'm going after him."

"Is that bloody so Hercules?" Thomas shot Newt a dirty look and was about to give him a spitting reply when Minho rounded the corner and came running over.

"Minho? What the shuck were you doing you numbskull!" Thomas called waving the Glader over as the Keepers around them attempted to regain control of the panicking boys. Minho leaned forward on his knees sucking in big breaths.

"I… had… to make…. sure." He panted straightening up to look at the two of them.

"For shucks sake, make sure of what?" Newt asked impatiently. Minho shot him a sharp look and put his hands on his hips comically.

"Oh would you two slim it, I was checking to see if it went towards The Griever Hole."

"Did it?" Thomas asked

"Yep." Minho replied his eyes caught on something in the distance. "Smoke still comin' out Newt?" He asked nodding his head in the direction of the Map Room.

"Wait what do you mean smoke?" Thomas asked his eyes following their gaze.

"Someone burned all of the Map trunks. All of 'em."

Newt followed Thomas as they made their way towards the Slammer both of them doing their best to avoid staring at the angry gashes and overturned earth that trailed the ground, the path of destruction leading straight towards the jail.

"Do you think they're okay?" Thomas asked as they passed by several trees that had been shredded into splinters.

"Gally said one a night… and I don't think they could break through the Slammer's walls." Newt responded picking up their pace anyways. Newt had come close last night. To throwing it all in and following Gally's lead. He'd done it before, back when he'd decided to climb the Maze walls and… well.

"Teresa?" Thomas called through the bars anxiously

"Yeah?" Teresa's head popped into view her hand rubbing at her eyes groggily. "Did someone-"

"Where's Sadie?" Newt interrupted his voice hitching in worry.

"Here." A second voice answered Sadie's head coming into view as her and Teresa crammed their heads together to see out the small window. Newt sighed in relief, she looked fine just extremely tired. "This shucking girl, I swear she actually fell asleep." Sadie grumbled yawning widely.

"Can we come out now?" Teresa asked ignoring Sadie's comment, her arms snaking through the bars. "We have a lot to talk about. You'd be surprised by how much thinking you do in jail." Newt nodded and pulled out his keys and unlocked the door. As soon as Sadie stepped out of the Slammer Newt surged forward and wrapped his arms around her.

"Well someone missed me." Sadie chuckled the sound vibrating through his chest as her arms looped around him her head nuzzling into his neck. The feel of her cold nose against his skin and her hands on his back quickly chased away any and all thoughts of climbing Maze walls and… jumping. "You okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine love." Newt mumbled against her hair hugging her tighter.

"Well he did get smacked in the head with a board."

"What!" Sadie exclaimed pulling away and yanking Newt down by his shirt so she could have a better look at his head.

"Sadie!" Newt yelped as she tugged him forward. "I'm bloody fine, it was just a scratch." Sadie of course ignored him and continued to run her fingers through his messy blonde hair in search of the bloody gash. If Newt's head hadn't been hurting and if he wasn't being yanked down to the height of his slightly short girlfriend he would have rather enjoyed the moment.

"Who in the hell hit you in the head with a board?" Sadie demanded her fingertips brushing against the hastily bandaged cut.

"Gally did." Thomas answered for him watching them with a hint of amusement. Newt sent him a withering look.

"Wait." Sadie released Newt and turned on Thomas her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "You mean you guys found Gally?"

"Well he kind of found us, started talkin' about death, punched Tommy, smacked me in the shuck head, then rode off into the sunset on a Griever. Nice little reunion." Newt quipped back him and Thomas quickly explaining the strange occurrences from last night to the two bewildered girls.

"He said they'd take one a night. And he kept talking about trials and variables- or something like that." Thomas finished shaking his head in wonder. The two girls shared a look and a silent agreement seemed to pass between them.

"Tom do you remember when you told me that I had mentioned something about codes to you?"

"Yeah, why do you think it means something?" Thomas responded leaning forward in interest.

"Well you told me that the walls move everyday and that Minho thinks there's a pattern… Well Sadie and I were talking and there just has to be a code in the maps somewhere." Thomas raised his hands his eyes getting far off and distant as he took in their information.

"Wait… Minho told me that they only compare each map with other maps in their Section. Maybe we're supposed to compare them to other sections." Newt could practically see a light bulb flip on over Tommy's head.

"Well Teresa and I thought about it and the first thing that popped into our heads when we thought about a code was letters. Like in the alphabet. What if-"

"The Maze is trying to spell out something." Teresa finished for Sadie and in that one moment all the puzzle pieces seemed to click together at the exact same time in all of their heads.

"Minho said the walls change in a pattern but the Runner's have only been analyzing each map in their own section. What if we're supposed to compare each map with all of the sections…like a-"

"Like a different code word for each day or a different letter each day." Sadie added catching on to Thomas's theory. Newt nodded the gears in his mind working in overdrive as he mulled over the idea.

"This whole time- we've been looking for a way to escape not letters or words. The whole shucking time we've been lookin' at them like maps, not pictures." Newt muttered his mind swirling in excitement and eagerness. Is it possible? Did we actually find a way out?

"Shuck." Thomas yelpedhis eyes widening in realization. "Oh crap, crap crap crap crap." Thomas stumbled back and caught Newt's eye his gaze shifting ever so slightly to the Map room.

"What's wrong now?" Sadie asked a spark of worry igniting in her eyes.

"The maps- they're gone. Someone burned them all. If there was a hidden code- it's gone now."