Murder In The Maze (Maze Runner Fanfiction)

Chapter 49: After the Maze

     "Vince drove us through the barren scorch for days under the beaming sun and sandy winds. He took us to his camp - hid within the shadow of the red rock mountains. When Gally and I reached the primitive settlement of fighters, someone greeted me by my name, then another person, as if I was a friend.

     "Harriet, one of their snipers, told me I was part of the maze she came from; she called it 'Group B.' At the WICKED compound, my file said the same thing, but I was unclear about what it meant until now. Harriet claimed that I lived in her maze for a few years. She told me that WICKED took me away one night. When she and the rest of Group B escaped their maze, they assumed I was dead...or worse.

     "Seeing her was a painful reminder of how much I do not remember. At times, I wonder what I did before the wipe - of who I was. A void lies in my brain, like an itch I cannot scratch. Everything before the maze is a blur. Other times I feel it does not matter; that version of Tanya is gone.

     "Vince gave us refuge - a place to call home - but at a price. Gally and I were to help the Right Arm wage war against WICKED. Whether it was infiltrating supply chains, spying on high-level scientists, or destroying experimentation labs, we did it. Every mission was one step closer to seeing our friends again.

     "After months of work, we finally found a way to destroy WICKED. They took refuge in the last city standing; it was almost impenetrable. Gally found an entrance underneath the ground; we opened the gates from the inside, leaving the way clear for the Right Arm and their supporters. They charged at the city, destroying WICKED's facilities. A smaller group split off from the main charge; our main focus was freeing the prisoners.

     "Harriet, Gally and I found them: the others. I'll never forget their faces when they saw us - like they couldn't believe it was real. Part of me felt the same; sometimes, I doubted I would find them alive. To my surprise, the first thing Newt did was hug me. That's when it hit me - the Gladers are my family. I had often imagined meeting my parents again, but at that moment, I realized I didn't need to; this was the only family I wanted.

     "We found Thomas in another laboratory. Transparent tubes protruded from his skin, riddling his body. Blood pulsated through them in a steady beat, flowing into another beeping contraption.

     "Teresa was looming over him when we arrived. She told us that Thomas' blood was a cure to the flare - the contagious disease that wiped out most of the population. WICKED was harvesting his blood to synthesize a cure for the disease.

     "Seeing Teresa flared up a rage I did not realize I possessed. After all, she assisted in Alby's escape; it was her fault that Minho died. For that, I took great pleasure in acquainting her face with the rear end of my gun. The Right Arm then took her with the other WICKED scientists and helped us with Thomas. Thomas had his memories intact, but the blood loss left him delirious for the following days.

     "The next few months were chaotic; hoards of infected 'cranks' flocked to the Right Arm for the cure. Many of them took refuge in the repossessed city. Jeff and I joined with the Right Arm to provide medical care for the injured while Maximus and Gally cleared the ruins of debris.

     "A woman called Mary repurposed the WICKED labs to mass produce the cure and meet the increasing demand. Thomas donated his blood whenever he was able. Although many of the infected were beyond the help of the cure, some survived.

     "Whenever he wasn't snacking on rations or chatting with Thomas, Chuck assisted me and Jeff. He fumbled around, but his eagerness to help made him perfect for menial tasks. 

     "One of the patients started crying whenever I was administering her injections. I asked her what the problem was; without hesitation, she bolted from her bed - towards Chuck!

     "At first, I tried to stop her. My main goal was protecting the others, especially if this woman was crazy. She broke free of my grip and ran to Chuck, pulling him into a tight embrace. "You're alive!" is the only thing she blurted out through tears.

     "After she had recovered, she told us that Chuck was her son. I almost didn't believe her at first. After all, the chances of that were slim at best. I could never have imagined something like this could happen, but she wasn't lying. Seeing Chuck and her happy reminded me that good things can still happen.

     "Many of the cured cranks settled down, rebuilding parts of the city. The Right Arm banished the remnants of WICKED - including Teresa - to a barren village in the desert. Their deaths were inevitable, whether by the scorching sun or the flare.

     "Vince took us gladers and the Right Arm to a place he called the safe haven: an island far north of the mainland. Every day bears a new challenge: building shelters, planting food, and hunting. 

     "The nights are worse; nightmares of running through an endless maze plague me often. In some vivid dreams, Minho begs me to help him, but I am always too late. He bleeds out, pleading for my help with his dying breath. Other nights, I am back with my gun pointed at Alby. Either I kill him again, or he kills me; both force me awake in a cold sweat.

     "Life for me is not easy - it never has been. Still, I have something I never had in the maze: freedom. I have people I care for - a new family. I cannot change the past, but this is our life now."

     My eyes gaze up from my journal and out at the impending waves. The amber sunset glints off the sparkling water. A breath of fresh air fills my lungs, a hint of salinity laced in the sea breeze. 

     "Tammie!" Newt calls, limping as he sprints over. "You're gonna miss the fight!"

     He stops, flicking the damp sand off his boots. "You alright?"

     "Yes, I'm fine," I mumble while closing the journal. "Just writing."

     "Writing?" Newt sits down beside me, his gaze drifting to the notebook. "What are ya writing about?"

     "Everything that's happened, so far anyway."

     "Oh."  Newt runs his fingers through his dusty blonde hair. "Delightful," he states, sarcasm lacing his words.

     "Who knows, maybe someone will want to read it someday," I respond. "It helps writing down what I can remember. This way, I won't forget anything, even if my memories are wiped a third time," I joke dryly, but the words come out hollow.

     Newt tosses a pebble into the sea. He scoffs, a smirk inching across his face. "Good that - I'd read it now if you'd let me," Newt teasingly reaches for the notebook.

     "I'm not finished," I retort, gently slapping his hand away. "Not yet anyway - you can read it when I'm done."

     "What's left to say?"

     "The end," I comment. "I don't know, something to tie it all together."

     "Surely Gally has some profound revelation - he must have," Newt jests.

     "Gally's words of wisdom are something of a secret, a well-kept secret!" I mock.  

     "It's not just about survivin' anymore," Newt pauses for dramatic emphasis, "It's about...something else..."

     "Hm." I press the pen against the journal's spine. "Not bad."

     Newt taps his temple with his fingers. "Think about it - all that time in that buggin' Maze, every day was about surviving. Now, it's more like enjoying things - real living."

     "You're a genius, Newt," I exclaim, taking my pen to paper. Taking a deep breath, I write the last line.

     It's not just about survival anymore - it's about living!

Author's Note: I finally finished the book! Please comment your thoughts and questions below and thank you so much for reading it! It's taken quite some time to finish, but I'm glad I did! Thank you and God bless!

           Greenie :)