The First Glader |Canceled|

No Walls. No Protection.

No sun, no supplies, no protection from the Grievers. Teresa had been right from the beginning—everything had changed. Alby pointed at the girl. "I want her locked up. Now. Billy! Jackson! Put her in the Slammer, and ignore every word that comes out of her shuck mouth."

"What're you talking about? Alby, you can't—" He stopped when Alby's fiery eyes shot such a look of anger at him he felt his heart stutter. "But ... how could you possibly blame her for the walls not closing?"

"I'm going with her!" I yelled. All eyes turned to me, "I remember training and Teresa seems too important to just be left alone! This is your fight just as much as it is hers. We're stuck here and the Grievers will pick us off one by one!"

"How do you know that unless you're working for them!"

I felt anger bubble up in me as Billy and Jackson went to take me away with Teresa. "Protect the maps! Protect your heads! Think for yourself! THOMAS USE THE MAPS! USE THE CLIFF!" We were tossed in and I moved just out of the way so I didn't fall on Teresa.

"You knew something was up, didn't you?" Teresa asked me.

"Ro, she knew the way out but she stayed, I guess she didn't know everything but she figured the way out."

"You and Ro had a connection, didn't you? Telepathical?"

"We did, I just don't have it anymore. The creators took it away, I can't talk to her anymore."

"I see. What's that?" I listened, there was yelling in the distance. "What happens if the walls don't close?"

"The monsters of the maze, they're called Grievers. They come out at night and they're going to pick everyone off one by one."

"That's not good. So how do we end this?"

"We can't do anything from in here and we're probably safer in here than out there with them." She nodded though she seemed rather reluctant. "I don't like this anymore than you but we need to be prepared."

"Teresa?" We both looked up at the voice and Teresa moved in front of the window. Thomas gave a small yelp of surprise and I snickered slightly. "You can be downright spooky, ya know?"

"That's very sweet," she said. "Thanks. " In the darkness her blue eyes seemed to glow like a cat's.

  "You're welcome," he answered, ignoring her sarcasm. "Listen, I've been thinking. " He paused slightly but Teresa jumped in.

"More than I can say for that Alby schmuck," she muttered. I agreed, Alby just wasn't thinking straight.

"There's gotta be a way out of this place—we just have to push it, stay out in the Maze longer. And what you wrote on your arm, and what you said about a code, it all has to mean something, right?" Teresa and I shared a look.

"Yeah, I've been thinking the same thing. But first—can't you get us out of here?" She gripped the bars of the window.

"Well, Newt said maybe tomorrow." Thomas took a breath of relief, "You'll both have to make it through the night in there. It might actually be the safest place in the Glade."

  "Thanks for asking him. Should be fun sleeping on this cold floor. " She motioned behind her with a thumb. "Though I guess a Griever can't squeeze through this window, so we'll be happy, right?" She gave me a silent question and I nodded.

"Teresa, are you sure you've forgotten everything?"

  She thought a second. "It's weird—I guess I do remember some stuff. Unless I just heard people talking while I was in the coma."

"Well, I guess it doesn't matter right now. I just wanted to see you both before I went inside for the night."

"Tom?" Teresa said.

"Oh, sorry. Yeah?"

  Her hands slipped back inside, "I don't know if I can do this—stay in this jail all night. I mean I'm kind of in charge of this kid who's younger than everyone."

"At least it won't get completely dark—looks like we're stuck with this twilight junk twenty-four hours a day now. "

  "Yeah.... " She looked past him at the Homestead, then focused on him again. "I'm a tough girl—I'll be okay. I'll make sure he doesn't get hurt."

"Thomas, be careful. You need to be careful!" I said.

"I will Al, don't worry. I'll make sure they let you two out first thing tomorrow, okay?"

"That's a promise, right?"

  "Promise. And if you get lonely, you can talk to me with your ... trick all you want. Plus you have Al. I'll try to answer back."

Teresa was clearly speaking to him through the mind, "I wish. " He stood there, really not wanting to leave, it was clear. It was going to be what would be nightfall right around the corner

  "You better go," she said. "I don't want your brutal murder on my conscience."

  Thomas managed his own smile at that. "All right. See you guys tomorrow." A bit after Thomas was gone there were the first few moans of the Grievers coming from the maze.

"We'll be safer against the wall under the window. Grievers can't look directly down like that so we should be good for now." We sat by the window with our backs to the wall as we sat under the window. "Teresa, I know you're scared."

"Aren't you?"

"I'm just better at hiding it than most. I used to be an assassin for the creators, for WCKD."

"You know a lot, how?"

"Well my friend Ro, she gave me memories of training. I was trained to be an assassin. What do you think the annoying boys are talking about?"

"Aren't you a boy?"

"No I'm a fish!" I pretended to flop around on the floor like a fish on land. Teresa gave a laugh and so did I. I sat back next to her, "Well I'm actually non-binary but I let all these guys think I'm he. I was born male if that's what you meant but if you gotta call me anything call me Al, them, their, or they. I really prefer Al."

"Did Ro know?"

"Probably had a good idea on the matter. What about you?"

"She, her, and her's."

"Got it. Now what do you think they're talking about?"

"The maze, Grievers, a way out? The Alby guy is probably mooping around and telling the british one to do what he wants."

"You like Thomas?"

"Yeah I like Tom." I think Thomas likes her too, damn, Newt and Thomas are better. Time was crawling and the tension grew through the whole Glade as it seemed darker. The pale glow of the new sky was different but it felt darker for some reason.

Then I heard the clicks of Grievers in the distance. They were at Homestead or heading there.