10
SACRIFICE AND ESCAPE
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It was not long at all before Gally had sent his men to collect Teresa and 'unconscious' Thomas and Rosa. Two of the builders had held either of her arms over their shoulders as she was draped over them, with her feet dragging behind her. Rosa had to try her hardest not to wince or call out in pain as they caused her bruise to ache and sting.
Just by looking at the ground behind the safety of her hair, she knew that they had arrived at the entrance of the Maze. Or one of them. She heard a thud as Thomas was thrown to the ground, yet they still held onto Rosa.
"This is such a waste," Gally muttered, his eyes roaming over the three that he was about to sacrifice to the Grievers in hopes that the rest of Glade would be spared.
"Gally," Winston called out as he approached, "It doesn't feel right man."
Jeff too spoke up, "Yeah, what if Thomas is right? Maybe he can lead us home. Rosa has been here since the start, and you turn on her now?"
Gally scoffed, stepping forward several paces, "We are home. Okay? I don't want to have to cross any more names off that wall."
Rosa could hear Teresa's muffled voice; "You really think that banishing us is going to solve anything?"
"No. But this isn't a banishing. It's an offering," Gally corrected.
Teresa's eyes widened, "Wait! What? Gally, what are you doing?" she shouted, her arms were tied above her head to a post in the ground.
"You really think I'm gonna let Thomas back into the Maze after what he has done?" Teresa gasped in pain as the ropes tightened around her wrists, "Look around you! Look at our Glade. This is the only way. And when the Grievers get what they came here for, everything goes back to the way it was."
"Are you listening to this?" Teresa gasped, looking at the Gladers with a guilty stare, "Why are you all just standing there? He's crazy."
"Shut up!" Gally shouted.
"If you stay here," she continued, "The Grievers are going to come back. They are going to come back, and they're going to keep coming back until you're all dead."
"Shut up!" he shouted again, now pointing at Thomas and then Rosa, "Tie them up. Do you hear me? I said tie them up!"
Rosa waited for the queue, which was Thomas starting to attack the Gladers that held him down. When she heard them grunt, Rosa elbowed one of the men holding her and headbutted the other as hard as she could, ringing sounded in her head as her temple throbbed in pain. Rosa pulled the machete from his sheath, which was actually hers, and held it at them as she backed up to where Thomas and Newt were.
Frypan cut Teresa lose, Minho held his weapon at Gally and Chuck ran towards then, holding all of the bags, including the box that Rosa had told him to retrieve from her campsite. Glader turned on Glader, weapons pointing at each other as they waited to attack or flee.
Gally looked stunned, "You're full of surprises, aren't you?"
"You don't have to come with us, but we are leaving," Thomas started, his spear pointed at them.
Rosa finished it, "Anyone else who wants to come, now's your last chance. We won't be coming back when we find help and get out, it will be your own lives that you are putting at risk."
Gally shook his head at her, "Don't listen to her. She's just trying to scare you. All right?"
"We aren't trying to scare you," She shouted, "You're already scared. All right, I'm scared. But I'd rather risk my life out there than spending the rest of it in here. We don't belong here. Okay? This place, it isn't our home. It was never home! This is just four walls that were designed to contain us and test us."
"We were put here, okay? We were trapped here. At least out there, we have a choice. We can make it out of here. I know that" Thomas replied, his eyes staring sincerely at the Gladers.
One by one, several Gladers joined Thomas and Rosa's side. Gally could only watch as the Gladers joined the opposing side with their heads forced down in disappointment. Slowly, Rosa's side began to back up into the Maze as they waited to see if anymore joined them.
"Gally, it's over," Thomas spoke clearly, "Just come with us."
He stood in shock momentarily, "Good luck with the Grievers."
Thomas turned, along with the others, and started to run into the Maze. Rosa let her eyes linger on Gally earnestly before she ran to catch up with Thomas. It broke her heart to see Gally and so many Gladers risk their lives in ignorance, but she could not force them to join her as they set out on a mission that could result in her own death. So she left, her heart weighing down in her chest with regret and remorse.
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"Everybody, this way!" Thomas yelled behind him, Minho, Thomas and Rosa leading the group through the Maze as they followed the route they had taken days prior when they found the exit.
Rosa's eyes scanned the walls for anything that stood out or that she might have recognised, but all she could see was vines and stone. Rosa's back ached from where her backpack rubbed against her bruise, but it was important to her that Chuck did not carry her devices in case they exploded. She would rather risk herself than lose someone else she cared about.
It wasn't long until the familiar red blades towered over them as the Gladers weaved through them, "We are almost them!" Rosa shouted at them, their legs picking up to a much faster pace.
The group stopped at the entrance, Rosa silently waving them over to the side so Thomas could peer over the corner after Rosa did, a Griever marched back and forth, guarding the exit.
Chuck spoke up, "Is it a Griever?" Rosa nodded, causing Chuck to curse, "Shit."
Minho passed Chuck the key, "You take this Chuck. Stay behind us."
"It's okay," Teresa told him, tying her brown hair up, "Just stick with me."
"Once we are through, it'll activate, and the door will open. All right, we stay close, we stick together, we get through this. We get out now, or we die trying. Ready?" Thomas asked, his hands tightening around Rosa's.
She nodded, kissing Chuck lightly on the top of the head with her spear in hand. "I'll see you guys on the other side, let's go!"
The Gladers all bellowed as they ran around the corner, their weapons held high as they confronted the Griever. The monster chittered, it's long, metal legs clinking against the stone. The enemies ran at each other, the humans with their spears pointing up and the abomination with its stinger.
There was a collision. The Gladers attempted to push the creature off the side of the bridge but failed, its metal legs keeping it grounded. They thrust the spears at it, "Push it!" Thomas yelled. Rosa refused to give up, her arms already aching as she hit her creation several times.
The Griever tail swung at their heads, all of them ducking thanks to Minho's warning. "Watch out!" Teresa yelled at Rosa, the claw coming right for her as she hit it away, only for it to rebound and clasp around another Galder who worked with the builders. He cried out as he was pulled from the group, falling off the side of the bridge.
One of the metal legs stomped down on the stone, Rosa pulling Teresa out of the way just in time. The stone cracked below them, Teresa yelled as she swiped the leg that could have killed her with a blade, the leg hit Chuck and caused him to drop the key to the door.
"The key!" he called out, running after it as it rolled down the bridge, with Teresa right behind him.
Rosa's eyes winded, being able to see Chuck hanging off the side of the bridge. She pulled him up after running, her eyes set upon more Grievers that climbed up towards them. "Thomas!" she yelled, stopping their small celebration after finally pushing the Griever off the side.
His mouth dropped open, "All right, we have more coming!" he screamed. The Gladers retaliated with their spears, but Rosa didn't. She aimed her spear at a third Griever that was about to attack the Gladers and throw two of them off the side, including Newt. He turned, the spear going right through the Griever's middle and lodging inside. It screamed out in pain as the claw clasped around it, pulling it out. Its beady eyes directed on Rosa as she reached around in her bag.
It started to advance on her, only for the metal device to land in its open mouth as it growled. Thomas' gaze landed on her face that dropped, thinking her device didn't work. But it did, the Griever exploded with a bang and sent Rosa flying backwards with her bag staying on the floor, she landed on Minho who groaned. Her chest swelled with pride at her devices actually working, then with a bit of shame knowing that she had slept above enough gunpowder to kill her for months.
She apologised before running back and picking the bag up, throwing another one at a Griever who had climbed up, it too exploded. Chuck and Teresa stared at Rosa before going back to getting the door to open.
"Don't back down, keep pushing!" Thomas called, now joined by Rosa who had her spear pointed at the monsters before her. The Gladers slowly backed up into the open doors as they continued to push them away. Loud screams echoed as yet another was thrown from the group, his screams shattering Rosa's heart even more.
"Thomas, Rosa! There is a code!" Teresa shouted at them, "Eight numbers!"
"Eight sections of the Maze!" Rosa answered, not knowing the order.
"Hey, Minho!" Thomas called, "What is the order of the Maze?! The sections of the Maze, what is the sequence?"
It was almost impossible to hear the numbers as he called them out, but Teresa could hear him call out; "Seven, one, five, two, six, four-"
"Heads up!" Newt screamed, a Griever falling from a chute above them. "Minho!" he screamed again as it landed on top of him. Jeff attacked, his spear entering the Griever and just missing Minho's torso, Jeff was pulled back by two of the Grievers and left the other Gladers to call out for him as the only one that remained advanced on them.
"Minho, what's the sequence?!" Chuck cried, starting to panic.
"Uh, six, four, eight, three! You got it?" he replied, not stopping as he attacked the monsters.
A green light blasted behind them as the three hunks of stone began to fall on the Grievers, Rosa chucked one last device at them as the doors finally shut to conceal the blast. A smile stretched across her face, all of them yelling once more as they fell into a black room that sealed shut.
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Welp, we all know what is coming up soon xx