The Lilly in the Glade

Chapter 12

     Lilly sat by Thomas's bedside as he went through the Changing. It wasn't pleasant; the child thought she could almost feel his physical pain and had no intention of going inside his head. But she didn't leave his side, and cared for him. Whenever he somehow relaxed, she fed him and gave him water. Teresa also helped, guiding the younger girl. 
     Teresa and Lilly were bonding closer and closer. They started seeing each other as sisters and the same thing was happening with Newt and Minho. The two boys would occasionally check on her, acting like typical older brothers. They knew that she was a courageous kid, but just wanted to offer moral support. As much as none of them wanted to admit it, it did seem like Lilly had a magnetic pull to tug everyone together.

~

     The Gladers were getting ready for Thomas's plan; to escape the Maze by going through the 'Griever Hole', or that's what Thomas and Minho called it.
     Over the last two or three hours, those that were willing to fight the Grievers to escape, started building weapons. Lilly and Teresa were appointed to binding sharp stones and long branches to form spears. Lilly said nothing to Teresa during the process, not even telepathically. Teresa tried several times to start a conversation, but Lilly remained completely focused on creating the weapons. Her face held a determined expression, and her eyes showed that she was in deep thought about something. But no one else knew what it was.

     Lilly handed Newt his spear, which was actually a wooden pole with barbed wire wrapped around the tip. She had already made a holster for the machete she was taking. For obvious reasons, Newt had anxiety about her having a machete, but he pushed that thought out of his mind.
     "Are you sure you're ready for this? This bloody idea can turn deadly," Newt said to her. Lilly stared back determinedly.
     "I'm willing to fight for your freedom," she murmured back to him.
     Newt hugged her suddenly, and she returned it. "Let's go join the others," Newt told her once they separated.
     The two of them met up with Thomas, Teresa, and Minho.
     "Alright, so we're ready to go?" Minho looked at the rest of them, and they all replied with a brief nod.
     "Okay," he looked straight at Lilly, "you sure you're ready for this?"
Lilly sighed, but it held a lighthearted tone. "Sooner or later I will get tired of that question," she murmured with a hint of a slight smirk.
     Minho smiled in reply. "Okay, let's start moving our asses," and he wrapped his arm around Lilly and they walked to the front of the Gladers. There was a strong sense of anticipation, anxiety, and overall fear that hung over the teenagers like a black cloud.
     "There's forty-two of us," Newt spoke to the them. "Make sure you've got your weapons. Other than that, isn't a whole lot to buggin' say. You've all been told the plan. We're gonna fight our way through to the Griever Hole, and Tommy here's gonna punch in his little magic code and then we're gonna get payback on the Creators. Simple as that."
Lilly stood at his side, but she was obviously zoning out. Her eyes already looked like they were in a battle field.
     "Shouldn't someone give a pep talk or something?" Minho suggested, pulling Lilly back into reality and Thomas's attention away from the deranged Alby.
     "Go ahead," Newt replied while shrugging his shoulders.
     Minho nodded, glancing quickly at Lilly and Newt, then facing the crowd. "Be careful," he said dryly. "Don't die."
     Lilly looked at him with a sarcastic expression, one that has never been presented before.
     "Great. We're all bloody inspired," Newt answered. He then continued a much more improved pep talk. When he finished, battle cries and cheers broke out. A spark of courage was spread.

Thank God you delivered that speech, Lilly sent him.

     Newt looked at her with furrowed brows. He was definitely planning on talking to her about these strange mental abilities she's been expressing. He just needed the perfect place and time.
     Newt thrust his spear into the air. "Hear that, Creators?! We're coming for you!" He then turned, and ran into the Maze. His limp wasn't going to stop him. Lilly remained at his right, Minho at his left. Lilly had a habit of running ahead, then slowing to be level with the others.
     A little while later, Newt fell back and requested for Minho to take the lead. The Runner led the group through all the turns and corridors. Some of the Gladers that weren't used to running as much were gasping in deep gulps of air.
     There were no Grievers in sight, which caused an agonizing anxiety. Time went on, and it either brought in hope that they all could make it or that there was a death trap waiting for them at the Cliff.
     After an hour, they made it to the corridor that led to the last turn before the Cliff. Minho slowed down, coming to a stop with Lilly right behind him. The whole crowd was sweaty, some were worn out by the long run. Thomas and Teresa joined Minho and Lilly.
     There was a sudden noise that only Minho and Lilly noticed.
     "You hear that?" The teenage boy whispered. He wore a terrified expression, and Lilly was inhaling deeply to prevent panic. Minho peeked around the edge, and then jerked back and faced the others.
     "Oh no," he groaned quietly. "Dammit," he cursed through clenched teeth.
     Thomas and Teresa finally heard it, the familiar sounds of Grievers. Those that worried about a death trap were proven right.
     "There's definitely more than a dozen," Lilly murmured after reading Minho's thoughts. Minho's brow rose at the younger girl. "Jeez you have good hearing," he whispered.

If only he knew, Teresa thought.

     "She's right, though. Maybe fifteen, and they're just....waiting for us!"
     An icy chill of fear shot through them all. Alby and Newt joined the four.
     "It was obvious we were gonna have to fight," Newt whispered.

It's easier said than done, Lilly sent him.

     The unwanted dread was tortuous. It almost felt like the sadists behind this were laughing at them, as if they were mice trapped in a cage with a bobcat.
     Thomas was in the middle of a sentence when a loud noise interrupted him. He checked it out, seeing Grievers making their way down the alley from the direction of the Glade. More noise came from up ahead, and Thomas saw more Grievers. The ravenous monsters had surrounded the kids. The Gladers closed in tighter. Teresa grabbed onto Lilly's hand. The overwhelming fear had spilled all over them as if it were oil, suffocating the atmosphere. Any moment, they were expecting the Grievers to pounce at them. It made a few of them shiver and tremble.
     "I don't understand what they're bloody waitin' for," Newt ground out.
     "We should have never left the Glade," Alby suddenly spoke, surprising them. He was so quiet the whole trip.
     "It wouldn't have made a damn difference," Minho snapped quietly.
     A couple of seconds passed, and then Alby suddenly stepped forth. He started walking towards the direction of the cliff. Everyone watched in shock.
     "Alby! Get back here!" Newt's voice shook a bit.       Everyone was paralyzed. Except Alby, who had started running towards the Grievers. Newt screamed for his best friend to come back as multiple Grievers attacked him. The disturbed teenager jumped on top of one of the hideous monsters. Newt ran out after Alby, but Thomas and Lilly caught him.
     "Let go of me!" Newt screamed.
     "Are you out of your mind?!" Thomas and Lilly held on to him. "You can't do anything for him!" Thomas yelled.
     The Gladers had no choice but to process the gruesome sight of Alby being ripped apart by the monsters. Lilly let go of Newt and Thomas managed to get him to give up. She just stood and stared at the scene.There was an unreadable expression printed on her face.
     Thomas helped Newt up, and the sandy-haired boy was in utter shock. The emotional trauma felt almost physical.
     Chuck suddenly ran out and pulled Lilly's arm. "Lilly c'mon!" He yelled at her. She only looked at him blankly and looked right back ahead. Chuck just decided to pull her back into the crowd anyways.

You okay, Lilly? Teresa sent a message to the younger girl, who's turquoise eyes were still blank. No reply.

     Minho, Thomas, and Newt started discussing what to do as Chuck and Teresa tried to get Lilly to respond.
     "How can you all be so freaking heartless?" Newt murmured, and everyone looked at him. Lilly's eyes fell, showing guilt. It sorta relieved Chuck to see that she wasn't completely dead inside.
     "What do you want us to do, Newt? We can't exactly have a damn funeral out here!" Minho wasn't going to make room for his feelings. "We're not gonna let his sacrifice go to waste, Newt," he continued.
     Minho faced the rest of the Gladers. "Listen up! Number one objective is to protect Teresa and Thomas. We need to get them to the Hole-" Minho was cut off by the terrible sounds of Grievers coming to life. The groups of the monsters in unison started moving towards the group of teenagers. They were ready to spill blood.