Emma picked at her nail, feeling uneasy about the situation. Frypan and Newt were alongside her as they waited for Thomas to show up. They knew him well. It was both a blessing and a curse.
Thomas would go after Minho, and he would try to do it alone. He was always the bravest of the bunch. Always putting others ahead of himself. Emma hated it. Thomas wasn't alone. He didn't have to do everything on his own all the time.
She wanted to help. Emma never prided herself on being the strongest or smartest, but she was a survivor.
Newt and Frypan had been silent the entire time. Both were lost in their thoughts. Emma understood. Currently, she is doing the same. A part of her did wonder if leaving Brenda, Jorge, and Harriet behind was wise. They would be willing to help. At the same time, was it worth the risk? This mission would be different from the last. WICKED would be ready. It would be in their territory if the city was real. There would be an absurd amount of soldiers. It wouldn't be easy. The risk was higher.
There was a chance that they wouldn't come back.
Dying didn't scare Emma. She wasn't afraid to die. It was leaving others behind that worried her the most. Leaving Newt, Thomas, Brenda, and the others to grieve. Selfishly, she was glad that if she did die, she wouldn't be around to see it. After losing so much, all of them had the same fears. Losing a friend, a trusted friend, was the worst type of pain. They were a family. At least, to Emma, these people were her family. The closest thing she would ever have to one, anyway.
The sound of footsteps caught her attention. Emma blinked a few times, coming back to reality in time to see Thomas jogging up the stairs. He had a backpack, a sign he planned to rescue Minho alone.
"Where do you think you're going?" Newt turned on the light, revealing himself and Emma. Frypan was in the front seat, but he wasn't visible yet.
Thomas paused, clearly surprised to see them. However, he shouldn't have been. "Newt. Emma-"
"Don't be twat about it." Newt approached him. "We're already in." He snatched Thomas's bag and walked back toward the vehicle. Emma stared at the dark-haired boy but didn't speak. "Come on."
"No," Thomas said, shaking his head. "Not this time. Even if we find Minho, there is no guarantee we'll make it back from this."
They were aware of the risks. "Well, you'll need all the help you can get." He opened the driver's door, revealing Frypan. Thomas scoffed, realizing they had planned this. "We started this together," Newt added. "We might as well end it that way too."
Thomas nodded before he spoke. Minho meant a lot to all of them, and they were willing to fight. They had just as much of a reason to go after him as he did. "Okay." Emma smiled at Thomas. "Let's go get him back."
Emma tapped on the side of the car before opening the door and getting in the back with Newt. Thomas got in the passenger seat, and Frypan remained in the front. A minute later, he began driving. Frypan waited until they left the compound before turning on the lights.
She knew Vince, when morning came, would not be happy to find them gone. There was a chance that when they returned, the camp would be empty. Waiting for them would be foolish. Emma knew that. She understood.
But she didn't care. Emma knew the risks. She was okay with whatever happened to her. Rescuing Minho was all that mattered. They had to try.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Car rides were never her favorite, especially long distances. It was boring. Emma hated being forced to sit with her thoughts. It made her think about things she had tried to forget.
Rather quickly, she decided to sleep. There was no telling what awaited them, and rest could be hard to find. She got comfortable in the back seat, resting her head on a jacket on Newt's thigh. Luckily, her friend didn't mind.
Back in the Glade, sleep used to avoid her. Emma was always struggling to fall asleep. It seemed whenever she was on the move or in an unknown situation, her body had no problem sleeping.
Frypan drove the entire time. He was the best driver, after all. Thomas helped navigate when needed, but it wasn't hard to follow abandoned roads. It was silent nearly the entire time. Emma wasn't awake to know that. The warmth of the car and the vibration of the gravel below kept her asleep.
It wasn't until the car came to a stop that a gentle hand patted her shoulder. "Emma," Newt said, tapping her again. "Come on. Wake up for me."
Emma's eyes fluttered open. She blinked a few times, staring up at the blond boy. "Are we there?"
"Not quite. Come on." Emma sat up, stretching her arms. Looking through the front window, she noticed they had stopped in front of a tunnel with a sign that said mandatory infection check. Emma followed Newt out of the car. The inside of the tunnel was dark. She couldn't see anything. "You want us to go in there?" Thomas studied the map, making sure this was the correct way. "I don't want to come across as overly negative, but if I was a crank, that's exactly where I'd be."
Emma pursed her lips. She knew the risks. They all did. "We don't really have a choice."
Newt licked his top lip. "Okay, but I get shotgun." Frypan and Thomas look at each other, unimpressed. Emma sighed and stepped back to climb inside the car, as did the others. Thomas sat beside Emma, hand nervously gripping the seat.
"Okay." Frypan started driving slowly into the tunnel. "Here we go." Emma stared through the windshield, eyes scanning for any cranks. Once the outside light began to fade, Frypan turned on the lights. Newt grabbed one of the flashlights, leaning out the window. "Here we go."
"Take it nice and slow."
Frypan drove around the debris carefully, not wanting to hit anything that might damage the car. Thomas used his flashlight to search out the closed window. Emma looked out hers but didn't see anything besides junk. "Woah, woah." In front of them was a crank. Its body twitched.
"It's okay," Thomas said, trying to remain optimistic. "It's just one. Go around him slowly. We'll be fine."
Frypan wasn't entirely convinced but didn't object. "Take it slow," he repeated. "Take it slow." Newt turned off his flashlight and began rolling up the window.
Suddenly, Thomas jerked back, nearly elbowing Emma in the chest. She flinched, not having expected it. Looking to her left, she noticed a woman outside his window. She was older, blonde, with black veins on her face. She was a crank. "Help me," she begged with a creepy smile. "Please." She was shaking the door handle, body twitching. "Help me." Her teeth were rotted. "Please. Help me."
There was a thud on Emma's window. She gasped, crawling back into Thomas. Standing at her window was a boy, not much older than them. Like the woman, he was also a crank. He snarled, banging on the car door. "Okay, Fry," Thomas said. "We need to go."
More cranks were appearing. Emma wasn't sure where they were all coming from. "Woah," Frypan yelled as one of them slammed into his window.
"We need to go now!"
"Go," Emma cried. "Go, now!"
"Floor it, Fry," Thomas shouted. "Go, go!"
"Hold on!" Frypan hit the gas. Emma gripped the seat as they started driving through the tunnel at an alarming speed. One of the cranks managed to get onto the hood of the car. They punched the window, cracking the glass. Frypan swerved around obstacles like cars and beams. The crank blocked his view, making it harder for him to drive. "Shake him, Fry!"
"I'm trying!" Frypan yanked the car to the side, causing the crank to slip, but it still held on. However, it was now hanging on the side of the vehicle. It punched the glass, still trying to get inside. "Hang on!" He turned the car to the side. A fallen beam hit the crank, successfully knocking him off the car.
The relief Emma felt barely lasted a few seconds. "Frypan, watch out!"
In front of them was a mound of debris. At that point, there was nothing to be done. Frypan braked, but it wasn't enough. They collided with the objects, causing the car to flip.
Emma gasped, eyes closing as she prepared for the worst. There was a loud bang. Something sharp scrapped her face as her body shifted. Dust filled her lungs. Coughing a few times, she opened her eyes.
The car landed upside down. Her body was now on the ceiling, and something warm dripped down her face. "Is everybody okay?"
Emma groaned, rolling onto her side. "My hand," someone muttered, but her ears rang too loudly to tell who. Emma pushed herself up, coughing again. The world was spinning. Blinking a few times, she felt the dizziness start to fade.
"Fry, cover your eyes." Thomas shattered the glass.
"Shit, my hand."
"Ow," Emma groaned to herself.
Thomas crawled out of the car. "Thomas, wait." As always, he didn't listen. "Thomas, the door." Frypan banged on the door.
"Emma. This way." She didn't move. Thomas stood up, noticing that the girl wasn't behind him. "Emma?" He kneeled back down. "Hey, Emma. Come on."
"Okay, yeah." Emma carefully climbed out the window.
Thomas tried to open Frypan's door, but it wouldn't budge. "It's jammed." Frypan's door wouldn't open. "Go around to Newt's door." Thomas turned to help Newt but froze at the sight of Emma. "Shit, Emma. Your head." He placed his hands on her cheeks, tilting her head to the side. The girl winced. There was a cut down her temple toward her eye that was bleeding heavily. It was already starting to bruise as well. "Are you okay?"
"Fine," she said. "Kinda dizzy."
Frypan and Newt appeared beside them. "Em-" the blond was cut off by a crank growling in the distance.
Instantly, Newt reached for his gun, only to find the holster empty. "Shit." Frypan rushed toward the car, searching for something.
"Frypan, we need to go." This didn't have much time. Emma knew they needed to go now before it was too late. "Now!"
"Wait a minute!"
"We don't have time," Emma cried. "We have to go!" The crank was coming toward them quickly.
"Frypan!"
"Now!" It was getting closer. "We need to go! What are you doing?!"
"Frypan!"
"Hold on!"
"Come on! We have to go!" They didn't have time to waste.
"I got it," he exclaimed. Frypan scurried out of the car, holding a shotgun. With one shot, he killed the approaching crank. The sound echoed through the tunnel.
"Nice shot, Fry."
"Thanks." In the distance, more cranks screeched. There were already a few approaching behind the crank they had just killed.
"We have to go." The group started running. However, Frypan stayed and continued shooting. "Frypan, we have to go!" Luckily, he listened this time. "Go!"
"Run!"
Emma ran quickly, but only for a moment. "No." In front of them were more cranks. They were trapped.
"Watch out." Frypan started shooting at the cranks behind them.
"You got them?"
"Yeah." Frypan shot two before spinning around. There were too many cranks to be shot down. It was only a matter of time before they were defenseless.
Frypan shot two more cranks before the gun emptied. "I'm out!" They were trapped. No more bullets. No weapons to defend themselves.
She knew the risks. They all did, but she thought they would have gotten farther than this. "Shit." They were trapped.
They were going to die.
Suddenly, an engine roared behind them. Speeding toward them was a truck. Driving the vehicle was Jorge. Brenda stood up, shooting at the closest cranks as the vehicle braked beside them. "Get in," she yelled. Her tone left no room for argument. Not that any of them would. Emma climbed inside quickly.
"Go, Jorge, go," Thomas shouted once they were all inside. Jorge hit the gas, plowing through the cranks with no remorse. Emma gripped the side of the vehicle, the adrenaline leaving her.
They had been rescued by the two people they had left behind.
"I'm impressed," Jorge looked back at them through the mirror once they exited the tunnel. "You guys almost made it a whole day."
Thomas and Newt climbed into the back seats. Emma stayed in the back with Frypan. "You good?"
"Yeah," Newt responded, eyes on Thomas.
Brenda turned fully in her seat, staring at Thomas. No words were spoken, but none were needed. "Sorry," was all Thomas could say. "I didn't want to bring you guys into this." Brenda glanced at Jorge.
"Hey," Frypan spoke, coming to help Thomas. "I think what he means to say is thank you for saving us."
"You're welcome," Brenda responded with a knowing smile.
"Don't get your hopes up," Jorge changed the topic. "That checkpoint back there was the city's last defense. If that was overrun, the chances are the city is as well."
"Yeah," Newt muttered. "Unless they found another way to keep out the cranks." Emma glanced to her left, eyes widening at the sight just past the trees. It was a city with walls guarding it. It was real. It existed.
The last city was real.
Jorge braked hard, and Emma gripped the car once more. The second the car was parked, she climbed out. She hurried to the ledge, staring at the city like the others. Emma had never seen a city before. However, it didn't matter. All that mattered was Minho, who was inside the walls somewhere. He had to be.
"Funny," Newt said first. "I spent three years trapped behind walls trying to break out, and now I'm trying to break back in."
"Yeah," Frypan muttered. "Hilarious."
"Jorge, how do we get in?"
"Don't ask me, Hermano." He took off his gloves. "Those walls are new. I guess that's WICKED's answer for everything."
Brenda crossed her arms over her chest. "We won't figure it out up here." She spun around, eyes flickering to Emma. "Let's go." She nudged her friend, directing her toward the car.
"Do you really think he's in there?" Emma overheard Newt ask Thomas.
"We'll find out."
"You know, she will be there too." He was talking about Teresa.
Emma tensed at the mention of her once friend. Brenda noticed but didn't say anything. Instead of getting in the passenger seat, she got in the back with Emma.
Before she could question her, Brenda pulled out a hidden first aid kit. Emma couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face. As the others got comfortable, Jorge started driving toward the city.