Strange Atmosphere | Aris Jones [1]

13 || Meaningful Conversations

When we got back to the Glen, I felt relief rushing back to me. Maeve told us to go to the Homebase while she went to go get Sonya. In a weird way, I felt more excited than ever now that we actually found something. I was hoping that it meant something. Otherwise, the trip to the Maze was a complete waste of time.

Sonya entered the Homebase as Maeve handed her the silver, tube-like object to her. "We found it in the Maze, inside a Griever," she explained to Sonya.

Sonya traced her fingers over the object. "WICKED. These are the same letters that are on our supplies."

"The Creators," Esther muttered. "That means they made the Grievers, too."

Rachel stepped up. "This is the first real clue, the first thing at all, that the Runners have found in two years." She turned towards the Runners. "Right?" The two nodded their heads as Rachel turned back towards Sonya. "We gotta go back out there, Sonya. Who knows where this might lead us."

"Ugh, enough with that bullshit." We turned around only to find Beth leaning against the doorframe with her arms folded over her chest. She strolled inside, standing beside Sonya. "You see what she's trying to do, right? First, she breaks the rules, then she tries to convince us to abandon them completely. The rules are the only thing that have ever held us together! Why are we questioning that now? If Harriet wasn't stuck suffering from the sticking Changing, you know she'd agree with me on this. That stick needs to be punished!" She furiously pointed at Rachel.

Sonya stared at Rachel, handing the object back to Maeve, then sighed. "Beth, you're right. Rachel broke the rules. So, her punishment will be one night in the Slammer with no food."

"Oh, hell no, Sonya!" Beth protested, getting more frustrated and aggravated. "One night in the Slammer and no food?! You really think that's going to stop her from going into the Maze?!"

"No, it's not, and we can't just have anyone running into the Maze whenever they feel like it," Sonya said in the calmest way, looking at Rachel. "So let's just make this official. Rachel, starting from tomorrow, you're a Runner."

Beth's mouth opened wide, shaking her head and scoffing in disbelief. "Wow. Just...wow." With that, Beth stormed out of the Homebase, her face flooded with anger.

Rachel looked at Sonya with a thankful look on her face. "Thanks, Sonya."

The blonde responded with a slight nod. "Don't make me regret my decision," she warned.

"You won't," Rachel assured Sonya.

With that, our small meeting was dismissed. While the others left the Homebase, my curiosity got the best of me, resulting in me going upstairs to check on the boy. Gwyneth and Amelia paid me no mind as I strolled in. Both patients were still in the same condition as before. I pulled up a chair and sat down next to the boy's bed, looking down at him. "I wonder when he'll wake up..." I muttered.

"Who knows," Amelia replied. "He could be out for days, weeks even."

"Weeks?" I repeated. "But that's such a long time."

"I know, but it all depends on his condition and whether or not he improves," she told me.

I huffed a sigh, placing my face in my hands, letting out a groan. "This is sticking great."

All of a sudden, I heard a rumbling noise from the bed. "Rachel...Rachel..."

I looked up and saw that the boy was rustling and talking in his sleep. I quietly motioned Gwyneth and Amelia to me, pointing excitedly at him. They came over to me, staring down at the boy as well. Then, the two went to go get some food and water for him as he rolled over, his eyes slowly opening up. When he caught a quick glimpse of me, his eyes went wide.