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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐘 𝐓𝐖𝐎
·𖥸·
ғɪɴᴀʟ ɴɪɢʜᴛ ᴀʟɪᴠᴇ
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AN EXPLOSION.
A violent and destructive shattering of familiarity that sent cold chills down Josephine's drenched back.
The seven words forming a single sentence might have made heads turn to the bright screen that played a striking woman, her blonde hair neatly tied up, mirroring her white suit that sparkled as if it were coated with snow, making her seem delicate
Josephine's head, however, did not turn, not daring to meet the image that held the voice that brought a series of pictures in her brain, presenting a story for her. A dark, moving, container with stained windows, then a little girl with red stained eyes, then blonde hair in a bun, then the feeling of a cold hand on her own, all ending with two echoing words, "Beautiful name."
Josephine's film fused out, her vision encountering the screen as it went on speaking to the wounded soldiers who had marched from a forest of green to an office of sparks.
"I'm Director of Operations of the World Catastrophe Killzone Department," the voice, or Dr. Paige continued.
"What a title," commented Minho, who had planted his feet besides the girl, Thomas on her other side.
"If you're watching this, that means you have successfully completed the Maze Trials. I wish I could be there in person to congratulate you," Dr. Paige spoke before a brief pause that was filled by a blaring siren in the background, people standing up, alert to their surroundings.
"But circumstances seem to have prevented it," she continued, "I'm sure by now, you must all be very confused, angry, frightened. I can only assure you that everything that's happened to you, everything we've done to you, it was done for a reason. You won't remember but the Sun has scorched our world."
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"Won't remember", Josephine whispered underneath her breath, "Scorched."
The blonde woman left the screen, her voice echoing from the pictures presented, red tragedy portrayed in each painting of pure fear.
"Billions of lives lost to fire, famine, suffering on a global scale. The fallout was unimaginable. What came afterwards was the worst. We called it the flare, a deadly virus that attacks the brain."
A man with black protruding veins was shown, gloved hands holding him down as his body, shaking, struggled against their grip.
"It is violent, unpredictable, incurable. Or so we thought. In time, a new generation emerged that could survive the virus. Suddenly, there was a reason to hope for a cure. But finding it would not be easy. The young would have to tested even sacrificed, inside harsh environments, where their brain activity could be studied.
"Sacrificed?", Jo questioned, her and Thomas's eyes meeting before planting themselves on the screen, yet again.
"All in an effort to understand what makes them different, what makes you different. You may not realize it, but you're very important. Unfortunately, your trials have only just begun. As you will no doubt soon discover, not everyone agrees with our methods. Progress is slow, people are scared. It may be too late for us, for me, but not for you. The outside worlds awaits."
The blond woman, so elegantly, brought the barrel of a silver gun to the temple of her head, "Remember, Wicked is Good," and soon her finger had pulled the trigger, the sound echoing throughout the chaotic lab as everyone's eyes looked away.
Josephine's, however, stayed and watched as the blast resulted in Dr. Paige's body slanting towards the side, her nerves shutting down as her brain no longer held the answers it needed to function.
Red was seen again.
"Remember. Don't. Won't. What's the game here?", Josephine whispered in thought as the screen flashed dark, Dr. Paige's dead body disappearing within the second.
Thomas looked over to the girl, he couldn't provide her with an answer, although, no one ever could. His body turned towards the back of the group, parting his way towards a dead body of one of the scientists that had been alert during the video.
Josephine stayed in thought as the group followed Thomas, the sound of a door opening causing heads to turn towards the new entrance, or exit.
"Is it over?", Chuck asked towards Josephine as she made her way towards the group.
"She said we were important", Newt spoke, adjusting his position as Josephine stood between him and Thomas, the dirty blond's eyes meeting Jo's, "What are we supposed to do now?"
Jo looked towards her side, a cold Thomas already awaiting her gaze, their eyes danced around the features on each of their faces, his eyes pausing briefly at the cut on her cheek he had been too distracted and slow to stop, before their eyes met again.
No answer could be found in their expressions.
"I don't know", Thomas truthfully answered, "Let's get out of here."
It felt as if this was what they all fought for.
The moment of freedom in which they wouldn't be confined into four walls of pure survival that would taunt them each night, filling them with nightmares during both sun and moon.
But Josephine did not feel a change, Josephine did not feel the moment in which a switch would flick, opening up a feeling of difference.
Josephine now knew the answer to Chuck's question.
No. It was not over
But somebody had beaten her to it, somebody whom she had taught she had left behind.
"No", the voice said, the group turning around to meet Gally, a version of him at least.
"Gally?", Thomas questioned.
Josephine walked towards the boy, Thomas on her heels before the duo was stopped by Teresa's arm.
"Don't", she warned, "He's been stung."
Josephine, however, took one more step, her calculating eyes wondering over the boy she thought she would never see again, and she was right.
The boy standing in front of her was a stranger.
"We can't leave", he spoke, his eyes full of misery as they only spoke to Josephine for a brief moment.
A gun in his shaking hand, Josephine walked one more step before her arm was pulled, her back meeting Thomas's chest as his grip would not loosen.
He wasn't letting her go.
"We did. Gally, we're out. We're free", Thomas said, placing his body in front of Josephine's.
"No, no, no. This is all wrong", Josephine's mind raced as her sight consisted of Gally's face, his body covered by Thomas's shoulder.
"Free? You think we're free out there? No. No, there is no escape from this place", the tired boy cried as his right arm rose, the weapon pointed towards the people he once had called family in another life.
Josephine gently yanked her arm from Thomas's grip, her eyes giving him a warning to not intervene.
"Gally," Josephine whispered, "Gally, take a moment. You have made it this far, come with us. We'll fight to the end together."
A switch of an angle, the weapon now pointed at the speaking girl.
"You don't understand, Jo. We shouldn't have to fight anymore", Gally's voice cracked, his finger nearing the trigger.
Thomas's whole world stopped, wishing he still had his grip on Jo, cursing her stubborness.
"Gally, Listen to me", Thomas spoke, getting his attention as the gun was no longer pointed at Jo but at him, a breath of relief relased from his mouth, "You're not thinking straight. You're not. Now, we can help you. Just put down the gun."
"I belong to the maze," he responded.
Josephine's eyes could not leave the trembling boy in front of her, "Just put down the gun, Gally. Please."
Gally's eyes returned to the girl, yet the gun remained pointed a Thomas. He paused for a moment, his head giving the smallest of shakes infiltrated with sadness before his eyes returned to the boy his weapon wanted to take.
"We all do."
The next three seconds could not be properly explained as silence covered the actions that had occurred in the speed of lightning.
A shot fired
A spear thrown.
One body on the floor.
At least thats what Josephine thought before her head turned in the slightest, and her younger brother collapsed onto the floor, Thomas's arms around his frame.
"Chuck? Chuck? No, no, no, no", Josephine spitted out as her knees met the floor, her hands meeting the scarlet red oozing from his chest.
"Oh shit. Shit", Thomas breathed from besides her as his own hands covered the red cheeks of the young boy.
"No, no. You will not leave me. Do you understand? Look at me, Chuck", Josephine ordered, her voice becoming smaller and smaller with each word cried out.
Her vision was blurry as she tried to blink away the tears that would only keep giving, the boy only whimpering in response.
"We got you, buddy. Just hang on", Thomas took over in assuring the boy.
"It's okay", the boy finally said between weary breaths, his hands grasping the arms of the two figures above him.
"Jo. Thomas", he spoke, the wood figuring encased in his hand branching out towards Thomas.
"No, no, Chuck. You're gonna give it to them yourself. Remember, I told you that", Thomas breathed as Josephine watched.
That's all she could do.
Watch as Chuck began to leave.
Leave.
"Take it", he whispered, his only strength left fighting to look over at the girl he had been lucky to call his sister.
"Jo. Jo. I'm okay. I'm going to be okay. You taught me to be okay", he slurred as his time was giving out.
"No, no, no. It wasn't supposed to end like this. We...we were supposed to...the flower fields...flowers, Chuck," Josephine told the disappearing boy.
"Flowers. I will be with them. Don't worry. I will be with them. The string, in the book, you will be with them too. We will be together", Chuck whispered, his voice no longer heard by anyone but the two kneeling figures.
He took a look at both of them again, his guardian angels that were washing his pain away and gave his final words.
"Thank you."
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And the boy finally left.
"No, no, no, no", Josephine whispered, as she rocked the boy towards her frame.
"Come on, wake up!", Thomas shook his body besides her, Chuck falling from his arms as Thomas's forehead collapsed onto the chest that no longer rose, "I'm sorry!"
"No...No...NO...NO," cried Josephine, her hands leaving the wound she desperately tried to stabilize as they brushed the curls out of his face, her head looking up towards the roof, towards the sky, towards something she had no hope existed, "TAKE ME INSTEAD! PLEASE!"
And a response was given as a mirroring noice of a door opening echoed throughout out the grieving silence, and bodies upon bodies rushed towards the group, trying to rescue them from something that could not be saved.
Josephine, nor Thomas, would budge as strong grips tried to pry them away from Chuck.
She could see Thomas fighting, his feet trying to halt himself from being moved, failing as more hands dragged him away.
"Let me go!", she screeched, struggling against the grip, "Let me go!"
Memories flashing of a woman that reflected her face, pictures of chaos moving, she did not care.
She wasn't going to leave him behind, she wasn't going to leave him alone.
Josephine broke free of the bodies's grasps, running two steps that tasted like escape before being pulled back once more, being taken away.
Her eyes shut as what was once dark became radiant gold, and she met the Sun for a brief second before being put into a moving container, a helicopter, among the group.
"Everything is going to change", she heard over the ringing in her ears as her body curled and sharp breaths were taken, her view watching what she called home become smaller and smaller, until it only became a memory for her to keep.
Her hand followed her back, lifting up her shirt and getting the leather bounded book that had been given seconds before leaving the plethora of green behind.
"The string, in the book", she whispered, repeating some of Chuck's finals words.
Her shaking hand opened the pages, fingers drifting until she stopped in the sight of something she had never seen before.
Her fingers danced around the string as they picked it up over her face, a beautiful carved flower looped into the twine, her hand gripping the object so tight as if it was going to disappear.
"We will be together", Josephine whispered, tears flowing and flowing, drowning in them.
She wasn't scared though, she wasn't there anymore, she was just a shell.
Thomas saw the sight next to him, his own grief overwhelming him as he heard the whispered words.
He brought his arm around the girl, her body melting onto his own without any hesitance.
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"He was just a kid, Thomas", Josephine told him after a moment that felt like eternity, looking up at the hazel eyed boy, who looked down at the girl he decided he would never stop fighting for.
"We're just kids."
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━━━━━━ AUTHOR SPEAKS !
The End.