The Wilder-ness

Chapter Three

Panting. That's all I hear as we tear through the maze, tripping over our feet and sometimes crashing into the walls when we reach another corner. Help! We're stuck! What do we do now?!

Go left.

I startle and nearly fall over, bumping into Charlie. He turns to glare at me, but I can't take the time to notice as I glance around frantically, trying to find the origin of the voice.

Shaking my head, I decide I am hearing things and continue running. Facing forward, I see a fork in the road. Stumbling to a stop, Charlie asks, "Which way?"

I study each path quickly. Then the voice comes back to me. Go left.

"Who said that?" I ask loudly, hoping to get a response. Instead, all I get is Charlie looking at me strangely. I sigh. "Never mind." Then I point to the left. "Come on, this way."

I can tell Charlie wants to question me, but we've spent too much time at the fork. The Machine behind us has gained land while we had stopped at the fork. We have no other choice.

And so we keep running. There's no stopping.

After running for what seems like hours, there is a clearing up ahead. Freedom! I can feel a grin slowly grow on my face. Finally, I will be free—

My face falls as I walk through an invisible barrier, only to find myself in the clearing that does not lead to freedom. Instead, I am in the middle of the maze.

Letting out a sigh of frustration, I shake my head and make my way to the end of a field of tall grass. Sitting down, I stare just over the grass. It would have been beautiful—if only I could see the sky and not just a tall, gray wall.

Behind me, I can hear the grass rustling. I don't bother turning around. I know it's Charlie. Who else would it be? It's just us anyway.

For a while, he just stands there. I'm surprised when he decides to sit next to me.

He doesn't say anything except the words, "We're going to find a way out of here."

But we both know that's a lie.

I don't reply. I just lean and rest my head on the shoulder of my mysterious friend. I don't know much about him, but I already trust him with my life, even though I've only ever seen him once. 

I lose track of time. How long we sit there, I don't know. I have no idea what time it is.

"Are the two of you just going to sit there forever or what?"

I nearly jump out of my skin. Looking over my shoulder, I see a girl who looks about my age. If I didn't know any better, I'd think I was seeing things, especially since she is gorgeous. Long, wavy blonde hair, fair skin, bright eyes. Tall, too.

So, this is what happens when you're a reader and a writer. Always trying to describe things in a story-like way. I laugh silently to myself, then nudge Charlie before standing.

Following the girl, I take the time to really look around the middle of the maze. There are the walls, the gates, some cabins, and a farm area. Other people slowly come into focus as we move closer to the living area.

The girl leads us to an open area in the middle of the 'village', then leaves us on a platform.

She eyes us one more time, checking to make sure we haven't moved. Then she turns to the people who have already begun gathering around and calls out, "We have newcomers."

Whispers and murmurs rise up from the crowd.

"It's been a while since someone last arrived here," the girl announces. Then she turns to us. "Why don't you introduce yourselves?" she suggests.

I glance at Charlie. I'm surprised when I find him turned towards me, watching as though waiting to see what I will do.

Turning back to the others, I hesitate for a moment.

"Uhh, I'm Heather, and this is my friend, Charlie," I say.

From the corner of my eye, I see from Charlie's expression that he is shocked—at the fact that I told them our names or that I called him a friend, I don't know. All I know is that people are now lining up to introduce themselves to us.

The girl who brought us here is first in line. "I'm Lucy," she says, shaking our hands. "Sorry if I made you worried or anything earlier."

I just nod my head. The line continues on. There are so many people. I remember a few names like Robin, Charlotte, and Simon. I just can't match their faces. Maybe later I'll get every one right, but for now, it's just faces and names.

Eventually, we get through the whole line and Lucy comes back to escort us to our own cabin. There's just one problem.

They only have one cabin left.

Looks like lots of people have ended up here over time.