Burnt; TDC ➵ Thomas [DISCONTINUED]

A14

[...]

"GALLY, DO you swear everything you told us is true?" Thomas questioned as he stood up. Jorge, Brenda and Minho followed his actions. Finding Hans was number one priority right now.

"Every bit," the Glader swore. He didn't move from his position on the floor. "The Right Arm wants to take action. As we speak, they're formulating a plan. They need information about WICKED, and who better to help us than you? If we can get Teresa and her gang to assist, it'll be excellent. We need every warm body we can get."

Gally earned Thomas' trust and respect. The enemy of his enemy is his friend. Thomas gave a small nod before asking more questions.

"Come back here. Any time before nine or in the morning, for another week. I should be around. I don't think we'll make any moves before then." Gally smiled.

"Cool." Thomas returned the smile awkwardly. Gally gave Thomas a two-fingered salute as the other teenager left his apartment.

Brenda was at the door waiting for him when he turned to go. He followed his friends with confidence. The fear of the unknown no longer controlled him.

Unfortunately, they didn't manage to find Hans' location until the next day. He lived in an apartment that was in better shape than Gally's. They climbed to the fourth floor. Jorge knocked on a grey metal door. The lady who answered pushed that she didn't know anyone by the name of Hans. Jorge continued to insist. Then, a grey-haired man with a wide jaw peeked over the woman's shoulder.

"Let them in," he instructed. He led the team to a rickety table in the kitchen where they sat, all their focus on the gruffly distant man named Hans.

"Glad to see that you two are okay." He greeted Jorge and Brenda with a nod. "But get straight to the point, what do you want?"

"I think you've already figured out the reason," Brenda answered, stealing a glance of Thomas and Minho. "We heard that WICKED's got a bounty on your head. We need this to be over and done with. Then we'll get you out of here.".

Hans ignored the last part of her sentence. He observed his two potential costumers. "You've still got the implants, huh?"

"I just want the controlling device out. I don't want my memories and I want to know how this operation works first," Thomas demanded. He was nervous but determined to get it over with. Hans wrinkled his face in disgust, scoffing.

"Are there any nice people in Denver?" Minho muttered under his breath after watching their host's rude reaction to Thomas. Hans turned to face Minho so fast that it could've given him a whiplash. With a menacing look, Hans threw his hands up and slapped the table. He stared into Minho's eyes... If looks could kill.

"You folks are three seconds from getting kicked out," Hans spat with a finger pointed straight to Minho's face. The ex-runner glared at the older man, clenching his fists.

Brenda shouted to get the males' attention. Although the tension was still there, the situation was mediated. She huffed before leaning towards Hans and spoke in a quieter voice. "Listen, Hans, this is important. Thomas is important. WICKED will do anything to get their slimy hands on him. We can't risk anyone having the power to control either of these two. We've got two more on the Berg but a plan hasn't been created for them.".

Thomas glanced at Brenda before focusing on their host once again. Hans' nose flared as he scrutinised Thomas. He rolled his eyes and stood up from his seat. "Give me five minutes to prep.".

He disappeared through a side door without any further explanation. Thomas couldn't help but wonder if Hans knew him before he entered the Glade. He wondered if Hans recognised him. The teenager shrugged the thought off. He just wanted this procedure to be over with so they can go back to Gally, reunite with Newt and Amelia then do whatever the Right Arm needs them to do.

Thomas groaned as he rested his elbows the table, then his hands which began to throb in his hands. His actions caught Brenda's attention.

"Thomas... You okay?" Brenda asked. Thomas grunted as he looked up.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just need to- Ugh!" The words were caught up in his throat as a sharp pain sliced down his spine. Just as quickly as it came, it disappeared. He sat up in his chair, startled at what just occurred. A spasm sent his arms out straight and his legs kicked. He fell to the floor with a thud. He struggled to gain control over his limbs but it seemed impossible. With an attempt to speak, it failed as drool came out of his mouth instead.

In the corner of his eye, he could see Minho trying to calm him down. Jorge was frozen in place, eyes wide open. He couldn't spot Brenda so he assumed that she either went to get Hans or she is in his blind spot.

Then, his limbs stilled. Legs straightened as it came to a rest. Arms fell limp by his sides. Despite this, Thomas still had no control over his body parts. Brenda appeared into his vision, concern written all over her face.

"Thomas?" she whispered, her expression now filled with horror.

Thomas didn't know how his body started to shift although he wasn't in control. It was like he became a puppet. He tried to scream but it came out as a pathetic breath.

"You okay, man?" Minho prompted. Although he seemed calm, his eyes showed that he was terrified. Thomas couldn't blame him. Who wouldn't get scared if their best friend suddenly acted like he'd been possessed?

His head twitched. Then turned towards the door where their host for the time had disappeared to. Words fell from his mouth but he had no idea where they came from.

"I can't... let you... do this...".

[Written 1 December 2018]