Screaming.

That was all I could hear.

Endless, blood-curdling screaming ripped at my ears as I pounded on the walls of the Maze, desperately trying to open them again. But it was useless and I collapsed to the ground, tears streaming freely down my cheeks and blurring my vision. My throat felt raw from yelling, but I ignored it.

Shocked shouts surrounded me and I felt someone pull me to my feet but I did nothing to try to help them.

"Tommy!" I gathered enough energy to raise my head and stare at Newt who was slamming the Maze walls, screaming their names over and over again. "Minho! Alby! Please! Answer me!" Hopelessness swallowed me again and I hang limply from whoever was holding me.

"Bloody walls. . ." Newt's voice was filled with pain and anger and sorrow and a thousand other emotions I couldn't identify. "I lost them. I lost all three of them." My chest tightened from Newt's words and a fresh wave of tears cascaded out of my eyes.

"No," I croaked. "No, this can't be happening. I - I need to get in there! I need to help them!" I pulled away from the Glader and scrambled over to the walls, searching for some way to get inside. "Do - do we have rope? Or - or a ladder? Please, please, don't let this be real. . ." Another heart-wrenching sob wracked my body and I covered my ears. "No, no, no, NO! STOP IT! WAKE UP, Neil!" I yelled at myself, hoping that this was all a dream. Hoping that I would wake up to eat Frypan's pancakes and joke with Minho and laugh with Thomas and. . . and. . .

I broke into a stuttering run, my healing leg only able to hold so much weight. I dove into the Deadheads, my eyes searching the shadowy crevices and branches.

There. A bright red light shone out from a clump of leaves and I hauled myself high enough to stare at it directly in the eyes.

"I know you can hear me," I said, despair turning to dreadful fury and my voice dripping with venomous anger. "You can see me too. So listen to me very, very carefully. You lay one finger - just one - on any of them and I'll hunt you down. I won't stop until every single one of you are dead and at my feet. And that's a promise." The beetle blade stared motionlessly at me and, after a moment, scuttled away.

All my anger drained away suddenly and exhaustion replaced it. I dropped down from the tree, ignoring the pain in my leg and slumped against the tree. I wanted to cry, but tears refused to form and I just sat there, exhausted and scared.

I closed my eyes, trying to find darkness to take me away from this horrible nightmare. As I approached sleep, a pair of feet padded softly on the grassy floor and sat down next to me. Two arms wrapped around my tired body and I felt hot breaths on the top of my head.

"Go to sleep, Neil," said a choked and thickly accented voice softly.

As I drifted off, eight words pounded in my head: Nobody's ever survived a night in the Maze.

"Boo."

A little boy around five years old giggled and ran around the bed, his slightly long hair whipping around as he turned sharply. Another dark-haired boy chased him, laughing as he tackled him and the boy squealed with surprise.

"Ow, Tommy! That hurt!" the boy protested and squirmed out from under him. "Let me go!" The boy slipped off of him and landed beside the bed, still laughing.

"You're not very nice," he pouted, punching the other boy with his tiny fists. "I'm gonna tell Mommy."

"Then I'm gonna tell my mommy!" declared the dark-haired boy, starting to run toward the door. The other ran past him, then suddenly stopped before reaching the door.

"Shhhhh," he said quietly, pointing to the door. "Listen."

The boy obeyed, pressing his ear to the door just as the light-haired boy joined him.

"What are we going to do?" asked a voice - a woman's. "They're too young to go through this!"

"It's their only chance," said another woman's voice, but a bit deeper. "Janson said he'll take care of them. They're smart and he needs smart kids - he wouldn't dare to hurt them."

"They aren't toys for him to play with!" said the other woman. "I wanted them to have a good future - a bright one. Now, all they have is a very slight chance of survival. Thomas will be perfectly fine, but what of Neil? He's headstrong, very reckless. And terribly, terribly curious. He's too smart for her own good."

There was silence for a moment, then the deep-voiced woman asked, "So you're scared she'll get away somehow?"

"And the Cranks will find her," said the other woman. "No matter what Janson says, he'll never be able to control her."

"We have to take the risk. He's coming soon with the other children."

"Thomas can go, but Neil - she's staying."

"You do know that they'll find a way to her in the end, right?"

"I'll take my chances. He's my son. I don't want to lose him."

A knock and the sound of a door opening, then greetings. The woman with the higher voice called, "Thomas? Come down here please!"

The boy reached up on his tiptoes and twisted the doorknob, walking out with the light-haired boy right behind him. Together, they jumped down the stairs until they were at the bottom, gazing upwards at two women.

"Mommy!" The light-haired boy ran to the left one with blonde hair similar to his own and hugged her legs. "Tommy jumped on me!" he said accusingly, pointing at the other boy.

"But -" started Tommy before a man clicked his tongue to get their attention.

"Hello," said the man with hair flecked with gray. "My name is Janson. Who are you?"

"I'm Neil," said the blond boy boldly, "and that's Tommy the Meanie."

Janson laughed but it sounded fake and forced. "Well then. Hello, Neil, Tommy. What have you decided?" The last question was directed at the women. One of them said, "Thomas goes, Neil stays."

Janson nodded, looking disappointed. "Alright. Thomas, please follow -"

"Who are you?" A boy of about six popped out from behind Janson, staring at them. His voice carried a strong accent and Neil scrunched up his face in confusion.

"You talk funny," said Neil, and now it was the boy's turn to look confused.

"I do?" said the boy, looking thoughtful. "No, I think you talk even funnier."

Neil looked shocked. "I do not!"

"Do too!"

"Do not!"

"Do -"

"Now, that's enough," said Janson, quickly intervening. "Newt, this is Neil and Tommy."

"Neil?" asked Newt, staring at the boy. "You're cute."

Neil's eyes widened and he blushed but quickly recovered. "You're ugly," he retorted, trying to hold back the redness threatening to cover his face. Newt just laughed, smiling.

I suddenly jerked awake, my eyes flying open. For a second, I panicked, not registering where I was, but I relaxed when I realized I was still in the Deadheads.

Then I remembered what had happened.

I clenched my teeth together, determined not to cry again. Thomas was gone. Dead. Crying wouldn't help him. The only thing I could do know was to move on.

A haunting, eerie moan reached my ears and something behind me moved. I gasped, squirming away from whatever it was, then turned around.

"Neil?" Newt mumbled, coughing. "What - oh." His eyes widened as if he had just remembered the day's event and I swallowed the growing lump in my throat.

"Newt," I answered, leaning back into him. Despite what had happened, I felt strangely safe with him. His muscled arms wrapped around me and he rested his head on mine, mumbling something.

Then a sudden yell of shock made me flinch as I registered the screamer's voice. Thomas. Hope prickled at the edge of my sadness. Could he have done it? Could he have actually survived -

Then there was a triumphant, ear-splitting screech and the shout cut off abruptly. Tears welled up in eyes as another onslaught of unstoppable salty drops ripped through my body and I buried my face into Newt's chest, wetting his shirt with tears.

Eventually, I stopped crying. But I didn't go back to sleep. I went back to the Map Room, desperately needing something to distract me.

I worked until dawn, feverishly drawing and re-drawing maps over and over again. Outside of the hut, the sun peeked over the horizon, turning the puffy clouds pale pinks and oranges. Like a machine, I sorted through the maps, drawing exact copies of each one except and correcting them, then slipping them back in.

Someone slipped into the cabin but I didn't look around, focusing on my sketches.

"Um. . . the Walls are opening in ten minutes. We're watching them, do you want to come?" asked Chuck and I pressed down on my pencil so hard that the tip snapped.

Swearing angrily, I swept the broken lead off the table and turned around to face Chuck, my anger draining away instantly.

He looked so innocent, so hopeful. I wished I could be as hopeful as he was, but I knew it was already too late.

"Please?" he asked. "Newt's coming. . ."

"And why would I care if Newt was coming or not?" I said, my voice steady. Chuck looked uncomfortable and shifted from foot to foot.

"Well. . . I just thought. . . Cuz last night. . ." He trailed off, looking down at his sneakers.

I smiled sadly at him. "I don't really know what you're saying, but fine. I'll come. Just - don't expect anything. Nobody's ever - "

"Yeah." He cut me off. "Yeah, I know. Nobody's ever survived a night in the Maze. But Tom ain't any regular shank, ya know? I have a feeling."

I sighed and stepped forward, letting my pencil clatter onto the table surface. "Alright then - lets go."

Chuck looked delighted and scampered out of the shack. I left for slowly, closing the door and keeping my eyes downward.

Chuck squeezed to the very front of the group but I hovered farther, staying back. I leaned against a wooden pole, watching the group. I could see Chuck, jumping excitedly. I could see Newt, chewing on his nails again. I could see Gladers whispering to each other.

Then the Walls started opening with their familiar crunching noise. I watched anxiously, unable to keep down my nervousness. Then I saw them.

Two struggling boys limping down the Maze corridor, tired but clearly alive. Before I even knew what I was doing, my feet started sprinting toward them.

***

WORD COUNT: 1891

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Aight so this is a ridiculously late update but I'll be damned if I break my record of updating every day. I also noticed that there are some really weird reading patterns? Like, there'll be 19 reads, then 20, but then it'll drop to 15 and jump back to 16! Like, are you guys skipping chapters or something?!?! Vote, Comment, Follow, Share!