Without A Choice // The Maze Runner [Book 1]

TWENTY-FOUR

"Thomas," I said softly. I couldn't take my eyes off of it. There was not much to see yet I saw them moving, the child inside of me was moving. I had no clue what type of technology would allow whoever had kept us in the Maze to see the baby inside me. 

"Oh my god," Thomas breathed. More people joined us and as we stared at the screen where spots of white, grey and black were dancing around. I held my eyes trained on one particular spot, a black speck that was different from the others. I knew what that was. My baby. I placed a hand on my stomach and gave it a small rub with my thumb. 

"Hello, my name is doctor Ava Paige," a woman's voice spoke up behind us. I blinked a few times and noticed a tear had escaped my eyes. I quickly wiped it away with the back of my hand before turning around.

Teresa was standing in front of a slightly cracked screen where a strawberry blonde woman had appeared. "I'm the head of operations at the World Catastrophe Killzone Department and if you're watching this means that you successfully completed the Maze Trials."  

I looked at Thomas sceptically before stepping toward the screen. The woman on the screen, Ava Paige, seemed so familiar. Behind her, multiple people in lab coats were scurrying around. 

"I wish I could be there in person to congratulate you, but circumstances seem to have prevented it," she spoke. "I suppose each and every one of you must be very confused, angry, frightened." Thomas's grip on my hand tightened.  

"I can only assure you that everything that's happened to you, everything we've done to you, it was all done for a reason." An uneasy feeling settled at the bottom of my stomach. "You won't remember, but the sun has scorched our world. Billions of lives lost to fire. Immense suffering on a global scale." 

Ava Paige disappeared and footage of fires, dead bodies, and scorched towns took her place. At the sight of a heap of dead people with their skin burnt off, I averted my eyes as a wave of nausea came up. I had to fight to keep whatever I had left in my body inside of my stomach. I took a few calming breaths. 

"What came after was worse," Paige spoke up after several seconds. "We call it the Flare."  An ice-cold shiver ran down my spine.

The words Ava Paige spoke after that didn't reach my brain. I turned my head away from the screen. Flashes of memories flooded my brain. A woman on a bed, thrashing around as dark saliva shot from her mouth, and a young man held down by two other men, black veins covering his head and torso. 

I carefully looked back up and saw Ava Paige had taken the screen again. "Suddenly, there was hope for a cure," she spoke. Thomas's eyes left the screen and he looked into the distance with a confused expression. His eyes met mine and I saw nothing but fear in them.

Ava Paige continued talking but I only had eyes for the people behind her. They had started running around in a panic, screens were shattering and lamps were exploding, sending down a rain of sparks. 

My breath hitched in my throat as they were shot. Armed men dressed in black stormed into the room and shot everyone at sight. "It may be too late for me, but not for you," Paige said. "The outside world awaits and remember." My hand flew up to my mouth as she pulled out a gun and held it to her temple. 

"Wicked is good." She pulled the trigger and I whipped away, only to be pulled into Thomas's chest. My entire body was shaking as he held me close. 

My eyes opened again and I spotted something that caused me to nearly throw up. It was Ava Paige, lying on the floor a few feet away from us. I pulled back from Thomas's embrace and took careful steps toward the dead body on the floor.