CHAPTER 24 The Time Ticking Crank Bombs

There was nothing but grey metallic walls around him. They enclosed him in a square; only leaving space for a small table in front of him where a gun lay untouched. He turned around many times, but there were no signs of a way out, nor instructions to carry out.

With a horrible screech, a metallic wall opened, revealing the other side of it. Newt stood there, just as confused as he was; no table or weapon near him, just the emptiness of the room. Fear overtook them simultaneously, causing them to walk over to the other in an attempt to defend themselves from whatever could appear.

"Newt, is it really you?" he asked, grabbing the gun on his way to the boy.

Newt didn't reply, nor did he have the time to do so as a voice filled the room from hidden speakers. "Test MCME12 will now begin."

Both stayed still, waiting for something to attack them, but nothing did. With another person's voice and the same uninterested tone, a man gave the command. "Soldier S5, shoot Subject A5."

His hands raised the gun, but he forced his finger to stay out of the trigger. The orders didn't cease, much less his fight against his own body. "Newt, please, knock me out. Take the gun and stay away from me. Don't let me kill you."

Newt didn't reply, he just stayed put, watching him with fear. That expression destroyed his heart, making tears bottle up in his eyes. He would never have imagined that Newt would ever look at him in that way. It was torture, like the years of missions and killing were nothing compared to that single moment.

"Soldier S5, shoot Subject A5," repeated the voice.

"I won't," he said, keeping his trembling, though strong, grip on the gun to raise it. With all the energy he had left, he pressed the gun against his temple and closed his eyes, not having enough courage to face Newt as he prepared himself to pull the trigger. "I'll rather kill myself."

Another horrible screech made his eyes snap open. To his sides, metallic walls slid up until they reached the ceiling. One after another, the room became larger, and the number of people increased. Some were on their knees, crying their eyes out while hugging themselves — a gun next to them — others stood with empty eyes and streaming tears, lost in a dangerous daze they couldn't quite snap themselves out of.

To his right, there was Leen, who was crying with her head buried in her hands; what looked like Minho's body lying motionless in front of her. Nevertheless, to his left, things became stranger. There was Mae, with Harriet's body in front of her, and Bea, who was searching desperately for someone.

"Oh, thank God," mumbled Bea, running up to Leen to wrap her arms around the shorter girl. "You're alive. I didn't—Oh, thank goodness."

Not a word spoken, Mae took her eyes off the body to look at William, his hand still pressing the gun against his temple. She sprinted to him, yanking the weapon out of his grip before he could do anything. Somehow, despite the loud cries echoing in the walls, Mae's desperate yell was the loudest.

"Don't you dare!" She grabbed the collar of his grey suit. "Don't ever try to do something like that again! You hear me, Five? Never!"

"I—"

"Let go of me! I killed him! I killed my brother…" Flor cried, interrupting William's unsure reply as she struggled to get Henry to let go of her.

"He's not dead, Eight. That's not him," Henry assured her, stroking her hair as she cried on his chest. "You said he's an Immune. They can't kill him as they please."

Those words left something for him to think about. Was Newt real? He wasn't Immune, so there was no telling if he could be considered an acceptable death. He thought of looking back at Newt, but if he were real? What if he had truly almost killed him? How could he ever face him again? Or Sonya?

"How do you know that?" Flor asked.

There was no audible reply from Henry since George walked over to them while letting the gun fall to the ground. "They used my sister against me. That's how you know. Chuck's fine … just like Brenda." He gave a quick glance at Henry, who couldn't stop his eyes from trailing back to the body he had left behind. "Harriet, too. Chuck and Harriet are Immunes, they're necessary … and, well, Brenda was kicked out long ago. They can't touch her now."

"They used Harriet for me, too," Mae admitted, rubbing the back of her neck while tossing William's gun to the side of the room, where Newt's figure was fading away. "Bea got Leen, and she's alive right next to us, and that boy—" she pointed at Newt. "I'm pretty sure humans don't fade like mist… It was a trick. A horrible one, but still a trick."

"Five? One?" Rowan muttered, walking over to them, and encountering Newt's fading figure. "The boy? … No … Five, you didn't kill him?"

"I couldn't." He turned to look at Rowan just as the unnoticed doors at the end of the room opened, which only his friends and Seven ignored. "It was Dennis for you, wasn't it?"

Rowan doubted for a second, rubbing her teary eyes with her sleeve before replying. "Yeah, Dennis…" she sighed, batting her eyelashes in slow and irregular times to force the tears to run down her cheeks. "Or, well, you know, Soldier Number Two …"

"I'm sorry, Three."

His voice was sincere, just like the pain that engulfed his chest, burying his heart deep inside an obscure gap. Contradictory thoughts rushed through to make up for the sentiments lost, none rational in the slightest. Although, who cared?

He had failed the test.

"I'm so sorry, Rowan."

She stared at him up and down, eyes wide open and a pale face that made her look like she had seen a ghost. Somewhere between the confusion, hurried footsteps made their way on the tiled floor to them, making loud clanking sounds echo over the fainter cries of the countless soldiers around that had supposedly killed a loved one; be it lover, friend, or family.

"You've got nothing to be sorry for." Rowan held his gaze, not moving as the footsteps got worryingly close. "You didn't pull the trigger, William. You didn't kill him."

A soft chuckle escaped his lips, his eyes travelling to the floor under his feet for a second before looking back up with an apologetic smile. "I didn't save him either."

Two arms wrapped themselves around his shoulders, yanking him away from anybody and restraining his only means of fighting back. Everyone stood still, perplexed at what was happening and unable to move. There were some shouts and attempts to move, like Rowan's, Seven's, or an unknown boy with jet-black hair, but none prevailed.

He wasn't told, but he knew he was being taken to his death.

There was no time to think as his senses kicked in. He breathed in through his mouth while sitting up, pressing a hand against his chest in a desperate attempt to check he was alive. Coughs soon followed after the shaky breaths, making it sound and feel like he was underwater, trying to find a way to the surface, only to watch it slip through his fingers time and time again.

Through normal breathing, William managed to feel calmer than before. His sight focused, letting him see the sheets under his body with clarity. Contrary to what his prior thoughts had told him, he was in a quiet and calm place. There were two other beds around apart from his own, and only one was occupied.

"Nightmare?" Brenda asked, declining Jorge's help and sitting up on the bed by herself. "Heard you have lots of those."

"Yeah, they're a buggin' pain." William sat up as well, rubbing his face with his sleeve harshly. "Bloody, I meant, they're a bloody pain."

Still worried about Brenda, but understanding she needed space, Jorge squeezed her shoulder and patted William on the shoulder as he announced, rather loudly, that he would wait for her outside. Both teens smiled at him as he walked out of the tent, letting them be alone to begin a conversation neither was sure if they wanted to have at that moment.

"George," Brenda began, "he's changed a lot. It took me a while to recognise him."

William doubted, scratching the back of his neck, still feeling the bumps on it, though they were fainter, almost gone. "He's your brother, isn't he?"

"How do you know?" She locked eyes with him, making an odd uneasiness travel through William's body. "Right, you worked for WICKED. Thomas said something like that when you were out of it."

"He talked about me? I'm flattered," joked William, forcing himself to show her a smile, though failed to be convincing.

"He wouldn't leave your side," said Brenda. "The doctor, Mary, I think, had a hard time getting … I think their names were Newt and Aris … Those two that kept you sane. They didn't like the idea of leaving you." She remained silent, watching his expression change from a forced smile to an unsettling worry. "The doctor told Thomas we can't go with them. I heard her say it when I was half-conscious."

"It makes sense." William's eyes travelled to his hands, which fidgeted together over his lap. "What did she give us? A temporary cure? There's no way they'll let two time-ticking Crank bombs be with a bunch of Non-Immunes and some Munies."

"What's the plan, then?" Brenda asked in a serious tone. "I don't know how Thomas didn't realise it, but when we were alone, Mae was very clearly putting up a barrier between her and us two. You were planning to leave from the beginning, right? She doesn't put that barrier with you and the S's, so it's obvious she wasn't planning to go by herself."

William ran his fingers through his hair, taking his now long fringe out of his eyes. "I want to make her stay." Playing around with his shirt's sleeves, he continued. "Come with me. I know Jorge's important to you, and there's the whole thing with George being your brother … but if they come with us, the chance that they get infected is very high … I can't let that happen. If someone got infected because of me … I'd lose it."

After a quick nod, Brenda asked, "what about Thomas? He doesn't look like the kind of guy that will let us get out of his sight as we please after the stunt we pulled earlier."

"Well, there's nothing he can do if we leave at night, right?" William got up, putting on a jacket that had been left at the bottom of the bed for him. "He doesn't have to know. Nobody has to know … they'll get the message and stay here, where it's safe."

"What if they don't?" asked Brenda, fidgeting with a silver locket in her hands.

"They'll have to. Many have families here, did you know?" His hands trembled at his sides, despite being guarded by the jacket's long sleeves. "Half my group has a brother or sister here, and I'm planning to get them to stay. They'll keep the rest from trying to look for us."

"It won't be easy," Brenda said, grabbing his hand to give it a reassuring squeeze. "They don't look like some unknown sibling popping out of nowhere will change their minds."

"I know … it'll be a buggin' pain." William returned the gesture before hiding his hands in his pockets, trying to keep them warm as he searched for globes with his eyes. "But once I tell them, they'll have to stay. They don't have the motivation to leave their only families behind … Unless you want to tell George."

With a swift shake of her head, Brenda immediately disregarded that possibility. "Can't risk it. He wouldn't believe me either." She paused, sliding the silver locket back into her pocket. "Do you have someone here?"

"Aris," William replied simply. "He's Immune." He chuckled softly, showing her a genuine smile as he added with a hint of tease in his voice, "but my bloody fiancé isn't, so, yeah, I should go."

"I'll see you at midnight, then."

"Sure will."

The cold froze his unprotected fingers, still hidden in his jacket pockets to have the slightest feeling of warmth around his hands. Unconsciously, though to his advantage, William had taken a stroll around the Right Arm's compound and found a couple of places where he could get the basics to run away later with Brenda. It was all planned, from where they would go first, to how they would stay out of everyone's radar until they left before the sun rose, and it was too late to go after them.

He halted abruptly next to a tent, watching his brother and Newt chat with their respective friends, each on one side of the camp. Newt was up on a hill with the boys and Teresa, who kept glancing at her right pocket nervously. Meanwhile, Aris was by the fire with Sonya and Harriet, making them laugh as he explained their break-out from the Sanctuary.

"Hey, Aris!" called Frypan from the top of the hill, waving at Aris and the girls, receiving the same gesture back from the three.

"Hey, sticks!" Aris's eyes searched among the large group, seeing as there were missing members. "Where are the rest?"

"Those shanks ditched us a long time ago," replied Chuck. "I think they went to the medical tent."

William turned around, muttering an unnecessary 'thank you' to Chuck as he walked back to the tent, though he didn't get too far. George practically walked into him as he and the rest of Group S walked out of a different tent from the one he and Brenda had been in. However, before he could articulate a single word, Flor and Rowan were already hugging him, threatening him once again for scaring them, and trying to make him promise not to do it again.

"I promise I won't Crank out in front of you again," he said truthfully, hugging them back quickly before accepting George's and Henry's hugs. "Now, if you could stop threatening my life, that would be great, too."

"One step at a time." Mae patted his shoulder and gave him a reassuring squeeze. "Now, I think we have something to plan."

"Yeah … about that." William turned his head around, trying to look for a place where they could talk without many people around. "I have something to tell you all, and you might want to sit down."

"Why?" Bea asked, clearly nervous. "Is something wrong?"

"Well," William began, pulling his sleeves over his hands, "remember when we said, 'if we have family'?" He waited for everyone to nod, which they did in unison. "Yeah, it's not an 'if' anymore."

At a safe distance from Aris, Sonya and Harriet, Group S took a seat around a small fire, all facing William in one way or another. His hands trembled, but it wasn't due to the cold. He had to be convincing, even exaggerate the most devastating parts if it was needed. Whatever could make his friends decide to stay, he would do it.

"The first thing you should know is …" he doubted, gulping down his anxiety as he added, "We're called soldiers and not subjects for a reason."

"Yeah, we know," said Bea. "WICKED wanted us to kill Cranks for some reason. We're their little Non-Immune experiment."

"It's not just that." William's eyes landed on every single person in his group. "There was a bigger plan behind it. I'm not sure why, but they tested all of you … because of me. I … I can go against the orders … that's what doomed all of you to this … I'm sorry."

"But Janson showered us with orders, and you always followed them," Henry muttered, a mix of surprise and worry in his voice.

"I didn't want to get in trouble for going against them … like I already did years ago," William explained, watching his friend come up with another twenty questions, to which he knew he had no reply. "No idea, Henry. I just know that I didn't think I'd make it out alive … It could be Probation. Apparently, I was there for six months, and the doctors made it sound like I got out of there too soon."

"Alright, you can go against orders, so what? You didn't create our Group, WICKED did," said Mae. "I won't argue about this, William. Now, what did you want to tell us about our families?"

"I don't know about all of us, but I know some. Some of them are here with us." William let his words sink in before adding, "I remembered something. They made us go through a test maybe three or four years ago. We were given orders to kill those we loved, but they were only projections of them … If someone doesn't want to know, tell me now." They all remained silent, letting him continue. "They used Leen against Bea … Mae, Henry, you had the same girl. I'm pretty sure it was Harriet. George … I'm sorry, I didn't look at the body. You were helping Henry console Flor."

"Why?" Flor asked, fear clear in her voice.

"Because you had supposedly killed Chuck, your little brother." There was no discretion as everyone's eyes quickly snapped towards the hill, where the boys from Group A were now alone; Teresa was nowhere to be found. "Since you're all already looking so blatantly. Leen, they used Minho against you, and I'm sure you and Bea already loved each other at that point, so there aren't many options left except family."

"What about me?" Rowan turned her head to look at him, ignoring how the boys waved at them.

"Dennis," William said, preparing himself to lie to his friend's face. "He was in our group … Rowan … I … He got bitten, and I shot him."

He waited for Rowan to shout at him, maybe even hit him; whichever could make her want to get him far away from her faster. It would be easier to leave his friends behind like that. If she hated him for killing her only family, it would be easier to convince the rest to stay with Rowan in case he and Brenda got caught.

"Dennis …" Rowan repeated under her breath. "I was worried… for a moment I thought you'd say Winston … or Jack."

"Rowan, I killed him," William emphasised, gripping his trousers to keep himself from walking away out of frustration. "How can you even stand me right now? I killed what might be the only family you had left."

"Might, that's the key word," she said, locking eyes with him. "And you didn't, William. Forgot our pact already? We are each other's family, not people we barely know. I'm glad for Leen and Flor … And it would be better for Mae and Henry if you remembered more about them with Harriet … but I won't hate you for something you were forced to do years ago. You said it yourself, even if your body wanted to go against the orders, your brain knew you could get in trouble. Also, if he was bitten, he would be dead today either way. That, or a Crank."

"I can't believe you." William buried his face in his hands with an exasperated sigh, feeling his friends' eyes on him.

"What about you?" Leen asked, her eyes finally detaching themselves from her newfound family, Minho. "Who did they use against you?"

William rubbed his eyes, trying to decide whether to lie or tell the truth. "Newt," he said in a low tone. "Either we were already dating or I had an obvious crush on him… I think they used him because I was angry with my brother, or maybe I had an argument with him." He raised his head from his hands, meeting his friends' gazes. "He—it's Aris. Aris is my brother."

"Now it all makes sense," George joked, nudging William lightly. "We thought you were having a hard time deciding who you liked."

"There's no way you thought I like Aris. Also, I can't possibly be that obvious with Newt." William chuckled softly, trying his best to use a dramatic tone.

"You are obvious. Like, a lot." Mae's statement made everyone nod along. "Good thing Newt is too."

William frowned, his eyes fixating on Mae. "What do you mean?"

"Why don't you go looking for lover boy and find out yourself?" Mae showed him a warm smile. "I guess we're staying with them now, so go and be open about your feelings already. Watching you two be all lovey-dovey when you're not officially going out is physically hurting me."

"We're not—" William tried to defend his position, but Bea didn't let him finish as she waved at the A's, getting all the boys' attention back to them.

Thomas waved back without a doubt, but the others weren't as subtle as their co-leader was. Frypan and Chuck kept their eyes on Newt, who was trying to ignore their teasing or perhaps trying not to get angry at them. Not taking part in the teasing, but enjoying it nonetheless, Minho gave Group S a short nod before driving his eyes back to the scene right next to him. Alongside Thomas, they laughed about how red their friend's face was becoming, though they couldn't tell if it was from embarrassment or anger.

"Go and save your prince from his darn friends … and I guess, my and Flor's brothers," said Leen, patting William's back encouragingly. "Good luck."