The entire city was at war. Buildings were tumbling. Everything was falling apart. Nowhere was safe.
Gally led them through the chaos, gun raised. She stayed close, unable to be far from Newt. He was running out of time. Thomas and Minho were carrying him, his legs almost entirely useless. They dragged against the ground. "Hang on," Thomas said. "We're nearly there."
"Just leave me." Newt choked on a black liquid his body was producing. Emma believed it to be blood.
Suddenly, an explosion occurred ahead. A car went soaring past them. The force knocked them all down. Gally threw his arm back, making sure everyone was behind him. "Get back!" People ran by, the ones from outside the walls. They screamed as they attacked, not caring about anything other than destroying WICKED.
Then, a familiar sound broke through the fighting. A berg flew over their heads and toward the tunnels. "Brenda." It was Brenda. It had to be.
Jorge, Emma thought. He completed his part of the plan.
"That's them," Thomas was relieved that help was close. "That's them. We gotta go."
"Go without me," Newt begged. He knew he was slowing them down, putting them in more danger. "Go-" his words were abruptly cut short by the black liquid he coughed up. He wheezed, chest heaving.
Newt couldn't go on his own. Minho and Thomas carrying him slowed them down. At this rate, the virus would take over before they made it to the berg. He wouldn't get the serum in time. "Minho," Thomas began, an idea forming in his head. "Run ahead and get the serum with Emma. Then come back to us as fast as you can." It was the fastest way to get the serum.
Emma blinked dumbly at the boy. "No, Thomas." She wasn't going to leave Newt.
"Go," he pleaded.
"He's right," Gally agreed. "I'll cover."
"I'll stay," Emma pushed, not wanting to leave either of them. "Gally and Minho-"
"Go," Newt said to her. Emma glanced at him. "Go with them, Em." It was safer than staying. Behind her, Gally stood up. Her lips parted, hands trembling. Newt wanted her to go.
"Newt-"
"Go, please," he begged, his eyes suddenly clear. "It's okay."
Emma wanted to argue. To scream at him and say that Thomas couldn't do this on his own, but she couldn't.
Instead, she cupped his cheek. His face was slick with sweat, but she didn't care. She didn't care that he barely looked like himself or that his skin was burning. "I'll be right back." She bent forward and kissed his forehead, a lump forming in her throat. "I'll be right back." It was a promise. She would come back with the serum. She would come back for him.
It took all her strength to let go of him and stand up. As Minho tried to do the same, Newt grabbed his hand. "Thank you," he said. "Thank you, Minho."
Emma's eyes burned with tears that she refused to let fall. Brenda had the serum. They'll get it and bring it back. They'll save him. Emma refused to lose him.
"Hey," Minho said to him. "Just hang on. You hear me?" They had to be fast. There wasn't much time.
Minho stood up. Taking one last look at Newt, she offered him a comforting smile. Turning around, Emma followed Gally onto the street. "Go, go!" They ran, moving quickly around the debris left behind.
She left Newt behind with Thomas. She left them.
Thomas was the leader. He could take care of himself. He was smart. When he was separated from the group with Brenda, he found his way back.
He was a survivor. So was Newt. He had endured more than most. A busted leg didn't hold him back. He was resilient. If anyone could fight the flare, it was him.
The city around them was burning.
Emma's steps faltered at the thought of Newt and Thomas being left defenseless. Did they have a weapon? What if something happened? She should have stayed behind to provide cover, if nothing else.
An explosion occurred beside her. Emma shrieked, raising her hands. "Em!" Minho pulled her to the side, ensuring they kept running after Gally. He was the one leading them back. Emma knew the way, but Minho didn't.
They jumped over dead bodies—fallen soldiers on both sides. Cars burned, and buildings tumbled. People screamed as they fought, firing randomly. There would be crossfire, but that didn't seem to bother anyone. It was beyond reckless. It was dangerous.
But it didn't matter. Newt was dying, and he needed the serum.
"Thomas," Teresa's voice echoed through the PA system. Emma nearly tripped but caught herself. "Thomas, can you hear me?" Teresa was talking to Thomas. Emma had no idea why. "I need you to listen to me. I know you have no reason to trust me, but I need you to come back." Gunfire surrounded them, but Emma was focused on the words Teresa spoke. She was asking Thomas to come back. "Thomas, you can save Newt. There is still time for him."
Emma caught sight of the berg. It was sitting on the bridge across from the tunnels. "Gally," Emma yelled over the fighting. He glanced at her over his shoulder, firing at people nearby. "The bridge!"
He looked back, noticing the berg. They were close. "Come on!"
"There is a reason Brenda's not sick anymore. It's your blood. You cured her." Finding Brenda and getting Newt the serum was all that mattered. "Do you understand me? Brenda isn't sick because you cured her." Brenda was cured. Now, they needed to cure Newt. The serum would buy him time. Enough time to save him. Thomas was the cure. They could save Newt. "She doesn't have to be the only one. You just need to come back. It will all be over. Come back to me. I know you'll-" the broadcast cut out.
Emma was struggling to breathe. All of the running was tiring, but she had to get the serum and find Newt and Thomas. She had to save Newt before the virus took over.
The three raced up the stairs. Emma's thighs burned. On top of the bridge, the berg was waiting. The back door was open, revealing the others. "Brenda," Minho shouted, getting her attention. An explosion occurred behind them. "Where's the serum?"
Brenda pushed off the wall, stumbling down the ramp. "What? Where's Thomas?"
"The serum," Gally couldn't help but shout. "We need the serum for Newt!" There wasn't time to explain.
"Where is it?!" They were frantic. There wasn't much time. Newt needed the serum.
The fear was evident in Brenda's eyes as she rushed toward them. Frypan grabbed the bag of serum and followed. Minho gestured for him to grab one, wanting to take it back. "Where are they?" Frypan opened the bag, reaching inside.
"Around the underpass-" Gally never had the chance to finish. Brenda ran past them, a vial in her hand.
She had a vial of serum.
"Brenda," Jorge screamed. "Brenda, wait! Don't!"
"Brenda!" Emma turned on her heel, following Brenda down the stairs. She knew Brenda could find them, but that didn't matter. There was a war going on inside the walls. It wasn't safe to run straight through the gunfire. It wouldn't help Newt if she were shot down, either. "Brenda!" Her voice cracked as she screamed.
But she ran just as recklessly toward the fight. Brenda was her friend, and she couldn't lose her. She was already losing Newt. "Thomas!"
"Emma! Wait!" Minho, Gally, and Frypan took off after them. "Stop!"
"Wait for us!"
"Brenda!" Emma chased after her.
Gally dropped his gun. The extra weight slowed him down. He needed to catch up to Emma and keep her from getting killed. "Emma," Gally shouted. The fear he felt watching her run down the street and into the fight was indescribable. He couldn't stop her. He couldn't protect her if he wasn't with her. "Emma! Wait!"
Bullets soared past her. Fires spread. Debris flew through the air as explosions occurred, but Emma only cared about Newt. About Brenda, who she was losing in the smoke. "Brenda," Emma screamed, lungs burning. She only ran faster.
The boys behind her were getting closer, maybe ten feet behind. They were fast, faster than her. They would catch up soon.
She had to keep going.
Running under a bridge, she felt the heat of the nearby fires against her skin. It burned. There were dozens of people fighting. Shots are being fired in all directions.
The risk of being shot was too high. "Shit!" Minho, Gally, and Frypan ducked behind a car as the fighting intensified. They expected Emma to do the same, but she didn't. Instead, she raced after Brenda.
"Thomas!" Brenda kept going. Emma kept chasing her. The others watched.
"No, no," Gally cried, scrambling to his feet. "Emma!" Frypan yanked him down as someone shot at him. "Emma! Stop!" She kept going. "Emma!"
"Stay down," Minho shouted, but it felt more like a plea. "Stay down! You'll get yourself killed." There was nothing they could do if they were dead. Gally watched helplessly from behind the car as Emma vanished in the smoke. No weapon. No regard for her own safety.
"Thomas," Brenda yelled ahead of her. "Thomas!" Emma was struggling to see her in the chaos. The glass beside her shattered as someone shot in her direction. Emma screamed, unable to help it.
But she kept going, bounding over dead bodies left to burn in the fires.
Emma no longer cared about anything other than finding Newt. Brenda had the serum. She was the closest.
This was not how things were supposed to go. She was aware of the risks. They all were, but the risks were supposed to come from WICKED. It wasn't supposed to be like this. It wasn't supposed to be Newt they were struggling to save. It was supposed to be Minho.
If Lawrence hadn't lied about his plan, none of this would have happened. They would have gotten Newt to the berg easier. There wouldn't have been a war to avoid.
Emma realized how scared she was. How reckless her actions were. The others were no longer behind her. She had left them, just like she left Newt and Thomas. Brenda had vanished from her sight. What if something happened to them? They chased the two into a war.
Emma was all alone.
Alone in the city that was burning around her.
"Newt," she screamed, knowing he probably couldn't hear her. "I'm coming! We're coming!" Help was coming. He just needed to hold on a little longer.
She ran up the steps toward the underpass, which Thomas was on the other side of. Emma could only hope that Brenda had stumbled upon them. The fighting was starting to tamper out. Apparently, they hadn't gotten to this part of the city yet. There were still fires from bombs, but no people.
At the top of the stairs, her eyes scan the destruction. To her surprise, she spotted Brenda. The girl was standing still, back facing her. "Brenda?" Why wasn't she moving? Newt needed the serum. "What the hell are you-"
That was when she saw it. Ten feet in front of Brenda, lying on the ground, was Newt. Newt, her friend, with a knife in his chest. "Newt?" Her focus was only on him, and she failed to see Thomas's retreating figure ahead.
Newt was motionless. A knife buried in his chest. He wasn't breathing. His chest wasn't moving. "Newt," Emma wailed, rushing toward him. She brushed past Brenda, desperate to get to the blond. "No, no, no," she spoke to herself, dropping to her knees. "No, no." Brenda had the serum in her hand. "Newt, no, hey." Gently, she placed her shaking hands on his cheeks. "Newt, come on." His eyes were open, but they were dull. There was no life left. She moved her hand down his face, letting it rest on his neck. She hadn't checked Gally's pulse, and he was still alive.
Emma felt for Newt's pulse, hoping it was like before. When Gally was thought to be dead and wasn't.
It wasn't like that.
There was no pulse. No heartbeat. Newt was dead. He was gone.
"No," Emma gasped, falling awkwardly to the side. Her head fell forward, silent cries leaving her uncontrollably. Tears streamed freely down her cheeks. "I'm so sorry." She failed him. She didn't save him.
Newt was dead.
She should have stayed. Why hadn't she stayed? It wasn't supposed to be like this. Emma wasn't supposed to lose him too.
Newt was gone.
There was a thud beside her. Minho dropped to his knees, hands trembling at the sight of Newt. Emma hadn't heard the other's approach. Frypan kneeled beside Newt's head, rubbing a hand over his face. Newt's body was blurry from the tears that wouldn't stop flowing. Emma's bottom lip quivered.
Minho placed a hand on her shoulder. Emma let out a pained cry at the contact. It brought her no comfort. Newt was still dead. She had failed him. So much loss, and for what? They rescued Minho, but the city was still burning. People were fighting, dying. Newt was already dead. She left him with-
Emma's head snapped up, breath catching in her throat. She left Newt with Thomas. Newt was here physically. However, Thomas wasn't. He was nowhere to be found. "Where's," her voice faltered. "Where's Thomas?"
Brenda choked back a sob at the mention of the boy. "I don't know," she responded. Emma turned to look at her. "I don't know. He just-" she gestured forward. "He just left. He left."
"Where'd he go?" Frypan didn't understand. Why would Thomas leave?
Minho looked over his shoulder. "We have to find him."
A building nearby exploded, and the foundation cracked, causing it to come crashing down. The fight was gravitating toward them. It wouldn't be long before more buildings fell, possibly on them.
"We can't stay here." It wasn't safe.
"We can't leave him," Frypan argued. They had already lost Newt. They couldn't leave Thomas behind to die.
"What do you want to do?" Gally threw his arms out. Searching for him wasn't an option. It wasn't safe. "We'll die if we stay here. We don't even know where he is." The worst part was that his words were true.
There was a pause before Frypan spoke. "Do you think he went to find Teresa?"
Emma's shoulders dropped. It made sense. Thomas heard Teresa's message. With Newt dead, he had gone searching for her. "He went back to Teresa," Emma breathed. He went back to her.
"What do we do?"
"We have to go after him," Brenda said as if it was obvious. "We can make it-"
"On foot? Not a chance. We'd never get out of the city if we did." They'd be trapped by the warfare. "We're wasting time. Our best chance is the hovercraft."
Emma looked back at Newt. Thomas was in trouble. They had to help him, but running back to the berg and then beginning their search would waste valuable time. Someone had to help Thomas now.
"We have to go back," Brenda agreed. She knew it was the only safe way to find Thomas.
"What about Newt?" There was nothing they could do for Newt. He was gone. The only option was to leave him behind.
"We can't leave him," Minho argued. "We can't leave Thomas, either!" The gunfire was getting louder. Emma could hear the yelling and sirens down the street.
Emma stood up, unable to think straight. Her thoughts were jumbled and nothing made sense, but she knew she couldn't lose both her friends. "We can't leave him." Newt was gone. There was no reason to lose Thomas, too. "We can use the berg, but someone h-has to help him now-"
"Emma." They understood what she was thinking, but it was too dangerous. "We have to go-"
"No," she yelled, voice hoarse. Emma stepped around Newt, walking backward. Minho stood up, extending a hand. "No, I'm not leaving him. I'm not losing him too." She couldn't lose him too.
Brenda sobbed, a hand on her stomach. "Gally's right. We have to go." Frypan placed a hand on Brenda's shoulder, guiding her back toward the berg. He trusted the others to handle Emma and get her back safely. Minho took a step back, unsure what to do. He didn't know if he should stop her or join her.
"Emma, we can't," Gally tried to reason with her. "We have-"
"Go!" She wasn't stopping them, but she was going to help Thomas. "Go! I'm going to help him this way." Emma wasn't leaving him like she left Newt. She wasn't going to lose him the same way. Before either of them could react, she turned around.
She was going after him.
Emma barely made it ten feet when an arm wrapped around her waist, hoisting her into the air. "No!" She twisted in their grip, fighting with all of her strength. "Let me go!" It was Gally who was holding her. "Gally, let me go! We can't leave him." A grenade hit the side of the structure, shaking the foundation. Still, his grip never wavered. "Let me go!" Tears were still falling. Emma was still crying, feet searching for the ground. "Gally!"
"We have to go," he said, voice shaky. Gally was holding back his emotions. "You'll die if you stay here." And he would never let that happen.
"I don't care. Let me go!" She had to try. "I'm not leaving! I can't-" a sob escaped her.
But he didn't listen. "I'm sorry," he breathed remorsefully. "I lost you once. I'm not doing it again." It came out in a broken whisper. The fight left her all at once, her head falling back against his shoulder. She was breathing heavily, her body shaking almost violently. "We have to go, Em. I'm sorry."
Cautiously, Gally set her back on the ground. This time, she didn't try to run away. He grabbed her arm anyway. His grip was tight but not bruising. Emma never had a chance to speak. Instead, she allowed him to guide her back toward the berg.
Leaving Newt behind with a sorrowful last glance.