WCKD Love | A Newt Fan-Fiction

Chapter 22 - Fire

"Who's Lawrence?" I ask but instantly regret speaking. My head is pounding, most likely from all the crying I've been doing. I gently rub my fingers in circles against my temples, hoping to quell the pain.

"He's the leader of a resistance group outside of the city. The group Gally's part of. They were planning on bringing down WCKD, but if those explosions are them, then it sounds more like they're bringing the whole city down."

Thomas quickly adjusts the topic of conversation, turning to Teresa. "So, where did you run off to?" he asks, crossing his arms in front of his chest. His eyes are red and puffy, but right now they don't hold sadness. They hold suspicion.

Teresa walks the remaining distance to us before she starts talking. "I was following you to make sure Janson didn't end up killing you, but then I heard all the noise outside. So I headed towards the entrance of the building, wanting to see what was going on. It's bad out there. I expected you to be done here and have gone to the Berg."

"We have no idea where the Berg is," Thomas says, uncrossing his arms and spreading them out, showing Teresa where we are: a hallway without any windows and with no way to contact Brenda or Jorge.

Teresa raises a brow, waiting for Thomas to finish his show. "I saw one flying over the wall. It looks like it's headed straight here. We need to get going now. Up to the roof. They can't land anywhere else." She turns away and walks back down the hallway from where she came from. Thomas looks at me still sitting on the floor and sidles over.

"Come on, Katya. We better get going. Give me your arm." Thomas wraps my arm around his shoulder while he puts his around my waist. He helps me stand up, but that's as far as we get. My legs feel like logs, and when I take one step, I stumble. Thomas is still holding onto me, so I don't fall, but I can see the gears in his head turning as he figures out what to do. "Okay, I'm going to carry you. Is that alright?" he asks, staring down at me.

I nod slowly, and he immediately places his arms behind both my upper back and knees, lifting me into the air. My head swirls at the sudden movement, causing me to groan. Thomas apologises and starts walking after Teresa. I wrap my arms around his neck, trying to add extra support, but my arms feel just as heavy as my legs. 'Why is this happening?'

Teresa waits at the end of the hall for us, an eyebrow raised and arms crossed. "Is she alright?" She asks as if she's bored.

Thomas frowns at her, pursing his lips. "She's exhausted herself. Are we ready to go, or do you want to stand here and chat?" he retorts tartly, walking past her and around the corner.

Teresa jogs to catch up to Thomas, who is marching down the hall. The only problem is he doesn't know how to get to the roof, and he realises that. He starts to slow down a little bit, turning his head to look at Teresa. "Are you ready to take the lead?"

Teresa nods, smiling slightly. She speeds up until she's in front of us, leading us through WCKD once again. We walk in silence, winding through dozens of hallways and open community areas. There is not a single sign of life. It's eerie.

My eyelids feel heavy, but I force them to stay open. I don't want to be asleep when we reach the Berg. That will just make extra work for Thomas.

"Can I ask you something, Teresa?" Thomas questions, breaking the silence that had been engulfing us. The only noise to break it had been the rapidly nearing explosions. "Why did WCKD give you your memories back?"

Teresa peers at him before quickly looking ahead of her again. "Doctor Paige said that having my memories back would help me remember who the good guys were," she says, shrugging her shoulders as she walks.

We walk calmly for a few more minutes until we feel the ground beneath us shake. Thomas and Teresa look at each other, fear crossing their faces. Thomas turns his attention to me, trying to seem relaxed. "Okay, Katya. This is going to be uncomfortable, but we have to run now. I'll try not to shake you too much, but I can't promise anything. Are you ready?" I nod, not awake enough to attempt to vocalise it. "Perfect," he says in response and smiles.

Thomas and Teresa start running, and I keep my arms wrapped around his neck. It's difficult, but I manage. Thomas is jostling around, and it's shooting daggers through my skull, so I tuck my head into the crook of his neck to try and dull it a little bit.

The ground doesn't stop shaking, and the explosions sound closer than at any other point during the night. Some hallways and rooms we run past have gaping holes leading outside, and fires everywhere. We each take a quick peak through the holes in the walls but don't slow down. It's the middle of the night, but it does not seem like it outside. Almost every building has been engulfed in flames, many starting to fall to the ground.

Teresa ushers us through the door, and the breeze outside hits us. It's not cool like it should be, but burning. We head to the middle of the roof, where we stop, waiting for any sign of the Berg. Thomas kneels and sits me on the ground. I look up at him and smile.

"You're going to fall asleep on that Berg, aren't you?" he says jokingly, attempting to lighten the mood in a really dreary situation.

"They're bringing Newt," I say out of nowhere, not realising that I had been thinking about what Gally said.

Thomas stares at me with wide eyes. He clears his throat, adjusting his stance on the ground. "Scratch that. I doubt either of us will get any amount of sleep."

We take in the WCKD building's surroundings. Every building that is still standing is completely ablaze. The bright orange flames are made brighter against the black and grey sky. Lawrence left WCKD until last. That just may be what saves us.

The roars of the fires are almost deafening but still not loud enough to block out the one sound we are waiting for. The low hum of a Berg fades into earshot, and seconds later, we can see it parting the heavy smoke. Thomas and Teresa jump up and down, waving their arms over their heads in hopes the pilot sees us. It must have worked because the Berg slows down as it nears us and turns around, the hatch door slowly opening for us.