Sorry this took so long! Been dealing with a bout of allergies that is kicking my butt. But I'm getting better and finally had the energy to write so here we are!
Chapter 2
It was dark. Ava hated the dark. She felt trapped and isolated from everyone when it was dark. It was why she always kept a lantern around in the glade. Only when the stars were bright enough would she extinguish it.
She knew where she was again. Back in the maze, running for her life from the Grievers behind her. She could hear their metal legs hitting the ground as they screamed and screeched, advancing on her.
She turned another corner, her eyes widening as she saw the entrance to the maze. She could see the Gladers, cheering her on. Yelling at her to hurry. The entrance was closing, faster than normal. Or was she going slower? She tried to pick up speed, but when she did the gate moved faster.
"No!" She screamed. One final step. She hit the door as it closed, locking her in. She screamed, hearing the metal legs as they advanced on her.
"Her patterns are remarkable. It's like they begin to accelerate and strengthen as she thinks she's winning, but then they slow down and change as soon as the dream changes." One of the nurses explained, handing the clipboard to the doctor as they watched her. She was strapped down to the bed, thrashing and unable to get out of the dream she was in.
"She spent two years in the trial with all those boys. She has to know how to fight. It's obvious in this." Another said.
The doctor sighed. "Take her out and let her rest. She doesn't need to be under this all the time." She watched as a nurse walked into the room to disengage the dream sequence. Turning, she flipped through her clipboard. "Out of the five boys that survived, only three of them are immune. The other two were test subjects." She explained.
"Oxford said she was close to one of the boys. Then again she was close to all of them during observation."
"We'll have to keep running some tests. Dr. Paige will not be happy with that."
It was a blur as Thomas came bursting through the vent he had just gone into with Aris, who was climbing out with them. Newt and the others had no idea what was going on. All they knew was Thomas looked terrified, trying to barricade the door with whatever he could.
"Thomas can you please just turn around and talk to us?!" Newt exclaimed once more. He hadn't seen Ava all day since she was taken for testing. And then Thomas fought with one of the guards just to get a keycard. They believed they were safe there, away from WCKD. But Thomas didn't believe it.
"It's WCKD! It's still WCKD. It's always been WCKD." Thomas finally blurted out, looking at his friends with an almost crazed look in his eyes. The boys fell silent, looking at each other.
"Thomas. What did you see?" Newt asked. Thomas looked at them.
"The kids, going to the safe haven. It's not a safe haven. They're being harvested for their blood. Strung up. Using it to find some cure." He quickly explained as they moved. "That's where Aris was going. Showing us. We have to get out of here. We need to find Ava and Teresa and get out."
Newt looked at Minho, then Frypan and Winston. They wanted out of WCKD and were back in it. Newt nodded, before following Thomas and Aris back into the vents.
It was quiet. Nothing but the wind through the leaves on the trees and the bleating of a goat or the crow of a chicken.
Ava smiled, looking around the Glade. It was peaceful. She sat at the edge of the pond, watching her friends as they milled about, gardening or building.
This was one of her moments. To watch the others as she took a breath. She could see Gally on the top of the council hall, fixing a leak that had formed after a rainstorm. Her eyes drifted toward the fields, where Newt was leaning on his shovel, laughing at something that Zart had said.
The smile never left her face. Her home. Her safe haven. The Glade and the Gladers. They were her family and her home.
"Teresa!" Ava blinked, spinning around at the voice. She could hear the racket, but it wasn't behind her. Shrugging, she turned back toward the others.
"Newt! Newt, she's right here!" Ava raised an eyebrow, looking for the source of the sound. Who was talking? She was alone. Or so she thought.
"Ava? Ava, wake up! You gotta wake up."
"Newt?" Ava spun around to where the fields were. But Newt was gone. Everyone was gone. She watched as the Glade began to fade to white as if a fog had descended over it.
The whole situation was a blur. Winston had gone with Aris and they were trying to find the med wing. They managed to find the doctor that had been working on the girls and took her hostage, forcing her to show them to the med wing.
"Minho!" Thomas called, handing the blaster over to him where he faced the nurses and doctor that were in the crossfire. He didn't want to hurt anyone, he just wanted to save the girls and get out.
Thomas moved to pull a curtain back, eyes widened. "Newt! Newt, she's right here." He called over to the other. Newt, who had been tying the others up, turned and followed Thomas.
"What the hell!" He cursed, staring at Ava. She was asleep, restrained to the bed as wires were taped to parts of her body. What were they doing? He didn't have time to think. He began to shake her gently. "Ava! Ava, wake up! You gotta wake up!" He begged, watching as her eyes began to open. He quickly began to remove the wiring from places.
"Newt?" She whispered, looking at him in confusion. "What's going on?" She asked.
"Guys! We got company!" Frypan called, who was by the door. Newt turned, seeing a large metal table. "Frypan move!" He yelled, pushing the table over and in front of the door. He motioned Frypan over to help him.
"We gotta get out of here." Newt explained as he gently pulled the cannula tubes from her nose, moving to work on the other restraint as Frypan pulled his side loose. Thomas had already woken up Teresa, helping her up. The door jerked as soldiers and Janson tried to push in, stuck.
"What do we do?" Frypan asked as Newt helped Ava from the bed. She was still groggy and disoriented, and from the looks of it so was Teresa.
"Everyone stand back!" She heard Thomas yell. He tried to throw a stool into the glass window but it didn't do anything. "Newt, help!" Newt moved, grabbing another and following Thomas. They counted before throwing the stools into the window, shattering them.
"Go!" Thomas yelled as he jumped over to the other side. He helped Teresa over the glass, careful not to cut her. "Ava, go." Newt quickly said. Ava was still confused, trying to follow. She slipped over the blanket Teresa had used, letting Thomas pick her up and carry her over it as the others followed.
"What's going on!" She exclaimed, following the boys down the hallways. They ran until they found the door to the armory. Thomas grabbed a keycard and started swiping it but it wouldn't open.
"Thomas!" They heard Janson yell as he came down the hallway with some guards. Thomas turned, before throwing the keycard and grabbing the blaster from Minho, shouting at Janson. Ava looked at Teresa, who was lost as she was.
"Newt, what's going on?" Ava asked as Newt touched her shoulders, watching as Minho continued to try and get the keycard to work. Obviously, they were running from Janson. But why?
"Listen to me! I'm trying to save your life. The maze is one thing, but you kids wouldn't last one day out in the Scorch. If the elements don't kill you, the Cranks will. Thomas, you have to believe me. I only want what's best for you." Janson tried to keep the situation calm, taking slow steps as the others advanced.
"Yeah, let me guess. WCKD is good?" Thomas mocked, holding the blaster.
Janson smirked. "You're not getting through that door, Thomas."
Ava swallowed thickly. Was their attempted escape hopeless? Would she have to back to the med wing? What would happen to the guys? She couldn't lose them. As if they were being listened to, the keycard machine dinged, turning green before the door opened. They all turned around.
"Hey, guys." Aris spoke. Ava raised an eyebrow, recognizing him from the night before. They were working together now? Winston was beside him. She felt Newt push her forward through the door as Thomas began blasting the gun before turning to run at the now closing door. He slid through just as it shut. Aris turned to break the lock, preventing it from opening.
"Let's go!" Thomas yelled, ushering the others through the armory. He pulled open the main door, the others shielding their eyes as the wind whipped sand at them. It was pitch black out there, but soon they were running into it. The sand bit at their skin as the wind slammed against them. They stumbled as they ran, not used to the rough terrain of sand. Ava had already fallen a couple of times, had it not been for Winston and Minho practically dragging her as they ran. She had no idea where they were going. No one had any idea where they were going. They just had to escape. That's all they knew.
"In here!" Ava heard Teresa yell as they came close to some remains of a building. Teresa had already gone down, and the others couldn't do anything but follow. At least it was sheltered from the storm. Ava stumbled down the sand dunes, tripping again and tumbling into Aris. Thomas was the last one down.
"Okay. We need to keep moving, come on." He spoke, looking at the others. The group looked at each other before Teresa finally spoke. "No." They all looked at her. "Tell me what's going on."
"You owe us that much." Ava finally spoke up, looking at Thomas. The group of boys looked to the girls, before back at Thomas.
Thomas sighed. "It's WCKD. They lied to us. We never escaped. Me and Aris, we found bodies. Too many to count."
"What do you mean? Dead bodies?" Minho asked, shining his light on Thomas.
"No, but they weren't alive either. They had them strung up. With tubes coming out of them. They were being drained. There's something inside of us that WCKD wants. Something in our blood."
Ava looked at him, before down at her wrists where the marks from the restraints were still evident. "Before I was knocked out. They said something about proteins in our blood. Variables, something about a cure." She tried to piece together what she had heard before they sedated her. It had not made sense at the time.
Thomas nodded. "So we have to get as far away from them as possible." The group was silent, staring at each other.
"Okay. So, what's the plan?" Newt asked, turning to Thomas. When he didn't speak, Newt looked at him. "You do have a plan, right?"
"Yeah. I don't know." Thomas looked away, embarrassed.
"Well, we followed you out here, Thomas. Now you're saying that you have no idea where we're going or what we're doing?" Newt exclaimed.
"Wait. Janson said something about people hiding in the mountains. Some kind of resistance or army." Aris finally spoke up, looking lost in the group of Gladers.
"The Right Arm. If they're really against WCKD, maybe they can help us."
"People. In the mountains. Mountain people. That's your plan?"
"It's the only chance we have."
"Hey, guys. Check this out." The group turned when Winston called, kneeling in the sand. "Minho, give me a light!" Minho moved, handing Winston the flashlight. They moved the light, shining it and revealing some footprints.
"Someone's been down here." The group moved on, walking through the building. Ava found herself sticking to Newt. And he was keeping an eye on her.
"Open up." Minho and Thomas grabbed at the gate, pulling it up and open. There were different items. Flashlights, lanterns. Ava moved toward the gallons of water, poking one and watching it slosh. "Looks like people lived here." Minho spoke, looking around.
"Where are they now?" Newt asked, holding a flashlight up. Thomas sighed. "Let's pack some of this stuff up. Anything you think you might need. We'll split up, and see what else we can find. Meet back here." They nodded, and Thomas and Minho went one way, while the others moved further into the storage.
Ava got to work, packing up some bottles she had found with the water from the jugs. She filled as many as she could find, passing them off to Frypan. "There's food over here too. It's like freeze-dried or something." She said, holding the packets up to the light as she looked at them.
"Ava." Teresa called. Ava looked to Frypan, before standing up and walking over to where Teresa was. "Here. These look your size." The girl handed Ava a pair of boots and some socks. Ava raised an eyebrow, before nodding her thanks and slipping them on. The girls came out barefoot. She still had no idea how they didn't step on anything. She tied them, before looking through the clothing. There was a jean jacket that she slid over her tank top.
"Here Winston, Fry." Ava walked back over with two bigger jackets, handing them to the two boys who were bagging up stuff. "Aris." She handed one to the other boy. Newt had already grabbed a jacket and had pulled it on. Ava walked over to him. "Hey." As the boy looked up, Ava slipped a red scarf around his neck, shifting it so it wouldn't fall. "Don't know how the weather's going to be. But if it's anything like tonight, we're going to need those." She smiled weakly at Newt. Her hand came to rest on his chest, feeling his heartbeat. It became a coping mechanism. To know he was here. With her. Newt smiled softly, looking down at her.
"Why'd they have all those wires attached to you?" Frypan asked as he stuffed a bag with the water, breaking the two's thoughts. Ava shook her head, blushing.
"Something about dream sequences? It went with the variables they needed. Had to study something. Before I knew it, they had sedated me. Woke up to you all." She explained, wrapping the scarf she had around her neck.
"They had you restrained. Tied down." Newt scoffed, clearly upset about it. Ava frowned. "I fought back. I didn't want to do the tests. I just wanted to get back to you guys." She walked away, looking around the place as the others finished up.
She jumped when she passed a broken mirror, suddenly seeing her reflection. She turned back to it, looking at herself in the mirror. Her hand found the scars again, touching at the spots that made her ugly. She knew she shouldn't be thinking about that, especially now. But it crossed her mind, now that she was able to see herself. And understand it.
They must have put her in the maze because she was ugly. She could fit in and be one of the guys. A lot of good that did for them. She frowned, hand still touching her cheek.
"Hey." Newt's hand took her wrist, pulling it from her face and turning her to face him. "Stop." Was all he said as if knowing. He had looked up when she had moved away, and noticed her in the old mirror, looking at the scars. They never masked her beauty, not to him. Some of the guys said it did, but he never saw it. He brought his hand up to her cheek, caressing it and letting his fingers slide across the scars. Ava leaned into his touch, smiling weakly as he stepped forward, pressing his lips against her forehead. They had never gone beyond hugs or curling up together. Maybe this would be their chance.
Maybe Newt did see a chance with these mountain people. A chance he could take with Ava now that they were out of the maze.
The lights suddenly came on, making Ava squint for a second. "What the?" She said softly, breaking up their moment reluctantly. They had lights in here?
"Hey, guys! There are weapons over here!" Aris called from a corner. Ava followed his voice. Newt looked up to hear Winston chuckling. "Shut up." He spoke, pushing him on the shoulder. They walked over to where Aris was with the girls, going through knives and other items. Aris picked up a bat, handing knives over to the boys. Ava picked up an old pipe, swinging it. It wasn't her bow and arrows, but it'll do.
There was a loud scream, almost unreal. And it began to multiply. The group stopped, turning toward where the sound was coming from. There was yelling, as Minho and Thomas came into view, running from something.
"What are they…." Ava started, before her eyes widened at the group of…..something…chasing them. Thomas was screaming at them to go. Newt threw the packs to Minho and Thomas and grabbed Ava, turning and running from where they were.
"Thomas! Minho! What are those things?!" Newt yelled as they ran. They were people. But they weren't. They were dead-looking, with bulging eyes and black skin. And they were mad fast, dashing after the group of them.
"We gotta get out of here!" Thomas yelled, moving toward a set of stairs. They quickly followed, trying to get away. It was a blur. Ava tried to tune out the loud screeching and screaming as they ran, just trying to find a way out.
"What are those things?" Winston yelled.
"I think they're Cranks! That's what Janson had called them!" Ava yelled back, turning when she heard a crash. She knew Newt was falling behind from his limp. He wasn't the fastest anymore. One of the creatures had crashed through a window, tackling Newt to the ground. "Newt!" Ava screamed. She turned to go back, but Winston had already grabbed her, pulling her back as Newt fought with the creature. Thomas moved quickly, throwing his leg into it and kicking it off the balcony they were on. He pulled Newt up, shoving him back toward the escaping group.
"In here!" Frypan yelled as they slid into a back hallway. It was closed off, but it was an escape. They quickly ran down it, Thomas checking every door that was locked.
"It's a dead end!" Minho yelled as they came to the end, with only three doors on one side. Thomas moved, pushing against the doors. "This one!" He yelled, starting to kick at it to try and get it open. Ava turned, looking toward the hall where they were coming. Winston moved quickly. "I'll hold them off." Ava jumped at the shot, looking at the gun he had, shooting at them. Ava moved back and turned as they struggled with the door.
"Get that door open!" Winston yelled. They were coming closer. "Move!" Frypan shouted, before throwing himself into the door. It swung open, the lock breaking. "Winston, let's go!" Ava called as they moved out the door. Winston was the last one out as Thomas and Minho moved to close it. A Crank grabbed at Winston, pulling him back toward the group that was trying to get through the door. They were clawing at him, trying to get him back through.
"No!" Ava moved as Frypan and Newt both grabbed at Winston, trying to pull him from the monsters while Minho and Thomas pushed against the door. Ava moved, taking the pipe and beginning to whack the creatures, trying to get them off of Winston. She continued whaling on them until they let him go.
"Get him out of here!" Thomas yelled as Newt and Frypan pulled the other boy up and started out the other way. "Ava go!" Minho yelled. Ava looked at the two of them, before turning and following behind the others.
They managed to get further out of the building, outrunning the monsters. "Here!" Aris called to them, coming up to a crevice under some of the building. It gave them a perfect hiding spot. The group slid into it, pushing themselves as close together as they could. Lights were shut off, and they waited in silence, listening to the groans and moans of the creatures above. Ava felt Winston leaning against her. She could feel how heavy he was breathing. She knew he was in pain. "Just hang on." She whispered. "I'll patch you up. Just hang on." She wrapped her arm around him, holding the boy to her.
As it slowly got quieter, Ava made her move to help Winston. She rifled through the bag she had to find a blanket and a bottle of water. They had more. "Newt, start tearing this into shreds." She told him. "Frypan hold him up." Frypan let Winston lean against him as Ava pulled his shirt up. She winced, looking at the nasty gashes on his stomach where the Cranks had gotten him.
"It's gonna sting." She said softly, pouring the water onto the wounds. She heard him curse and hiss, trying to stay quiet. They didn't fully know if the Cranks were gone. She slowly dabbed at the wounds, trying to get the blood off and looking at them. But it was too dark. She could only do so much. She poured water on them again, before taking the fabric and tying it around his torso, trying to keep it together. "Alright. Help him lie down." Frypan and Ava moved to help Winston lay down, his head on his bag. Teresa has already fallen asleep and Minho was close.
"It's all I could do" She said softly, her voice breaking, before turning and curling on her side, closer to Newt who was laying on his back. They all needed to get some sleep. They had an adventure ahead.
Ava watched Winston as he fell into a fitful sleep, breathing heavily. She was trembling, head on her hands as she lay on her side. They survived, but at what cost? Winston was hurt and the others were shaken up. What were they going to do? Where could they go? And could they survive?
"I'm sorry." Thomas whispered, looking at Ava. They were the only two still awake. Ava looked at him, before shaking her head.
"You saved us." She whispered. "Don't say you're sorry. Just keep going." She yawned.
Thomas smirked. "Get some sleep." Ava nodded, turning on her side closer to Newt and letting sleep overcome her. She just hoped she was right.