IT STARTED WITH A MAZE - Newt x Reader (F)

- AN OPEN GLADE -

Our breaths come fast and ragged. The air tastes of fear and sweat. The weight of what Alby said lingers between us, but now it's shoved aside by the pressing need to act.

I find myself beside Newt. "Winston," Newt stops the boy as he rushes past us, his voice tense. "What's going on?"

Winston steps forward, torch held high, face grave. "The doors," he says, voice low but urgent. "They're not closing."

My breath catches in my throat.

The night air is suddenly heavy and cold, thick with an unsettling silence that presses against my skin. The Glade feels different - larger, more ominous, every shape and sound magnified, every shadow a potential threat. Up ahead, boys clutch flickering torches, their pale flames casting long, dancing shadows against the towering walls of the Maze. They stand frozen, eyes fixed on the yawning opening where the wall should be - a gaping abyss swallowed by pitch-black darkness.

Newt, Minho, Thomas, and I are shoulder to shoulder, our breaths shallow, our hearts thundering in unison. The gap feels unnatural - like the Maze itself has shifted against us, and for the first time, I see it with terrifying clarity.

"Shit," I mutter, my voice barely more than a whisper, but the word feels heavy with dread. I exchange a quick glance with Minho and break into a jog towards the great doors of the glade. We reach the threshold. My feet crunch on the rough ground as I catch my breath, the torchlight flickering across sweat-dampened faces.

Murmurs erupt. People want to know what's going on. What do we do? Yet as we all realise our helplessness in the reality, an eerie silence settles over our group as we stare into the Maze. I exchange a long look with Newt. Gears turn behind those brown eyes and I fear that none of his questions will gain answers.

The stillness breaks with a sharp, piercing sound - a crack that slices through the night like a whip.

The noise isn't just loud; it's a deep, grinding crack that vibrates through my bones and drills into my skull. It makes the hairs on my arms rise, sends a shockwave of panic rippling through the crowd. The birds nesting in the trees erupt in terrified shrieks, wings beating wildly as they scatter into the darkness above.

A low rumble follows, subtle at first, then growing louder, rolling through the glade like a storm gathering strength. One by one, we all turn our heads - eyes wide with mounting horror - to the opposite side of the Glade. The massive stone walls begin to move, shifting and grinding, the ancient mechanisms deep within stirring back to life.

They're opening.

With a metallic clang that reverberates like thunder, one wall slides back, revealing another entrance to the Maze. Then, almost simultaneously, another booming rings out to our right. A third follows to the left.

Four walls surround us, each housing its own massive gate into the endless Maze.

The realization strikes like a punch to the gut. We're trapped in the center, surrounded on all sides.

Panic surges through the crowd. Voices rise in confusion and fear.

"Chuck," I hear Thomas bark, urgency tight in his voice. "Go to the Council Hut and start barricading the doors." Without hesitation, Chuck nods and bolts toward the council tent, footsteps pounding the dirt.

Newt turns sharply. "Winston, you go with him. Make sure those doors hold."

A flurry of movement bursts from the crowd as Gally's voice cuts through the chaos. "Hey! The others- get to the forest, now!" His command sends a wave of boys sprinting toward the depths of the trees.

Minho's eyes lock with Newt's. "We need weapons. Get everything you can and meet us at the Council Hut," Newt says.

"I'll get Alby," I offer, pushing through the crowd as determination tightens in my chest.

Newt nods sharply, and Teresa steps up beside me. "I'll come," she offers.

We turn, urgency pushing our steps, but before we can move far, a piercing scream rips through the air - agonised, terrified, raw. I swirl so that I'm facing the forest - the source of the noise.

"GRIEVERS!" Someone cries.

The wails begin almost immediately afterward - grotesque howls mixed with snarls, mechanical screeches that scrape against my nerves.

A guttural roar comes from right behind us, and I spin around just in time to see the terrible silhouette emerge from the shadowed edge of the Maze. Its eyes glow with cruel intelligence, its metal claws scraping the ground with terrible promise.

They're here.

There's no stopping them now.

~