Aris hitched his pack onto his shoulders. Sonya was running ahead. I'm such a sloth, she's a girl, and I'm a boy, he thought with shame. He quickened his pace a bit, feet catching on the sand. The white-hot sun beat down, engendering buckets of sweat to pour down his face. He even suspected the sun was artificial, just like back in the Maze.
He devoured bites of food in between. They all felt exhausted, and it wasn't just the bolt, it was the excessive heat. Sweat that poured down their faces, making their eyes water and feel drowns. But they just continued on, Aris shouting encouragement and clinging to Sonya's hand.
Sonya squeezed his hand gently. "I'm so glad we're back together," she said.
"Me, too." Aris glanced around, watching as Sonya hefted the weapon over her shoulder. "Are we almost there?" She looked up, staring down at her watch. What time was it? He had no idea, but he just wished he'd be in a safe haven to receive the cure and get some rest. Sonya tugged him along, practically dragging him.
"Where are we?"
"I don't know, in the mountains, maybe. I mean, safe haven should be very near now." She peered through the copse of a few trees. "Hey, look, there's greenery beginning to appear, our first clue, maybe." Aris nodded in agreement, but he still had a pit in his stomach. WICKED had tricked him so many times, how did he know they weren't tricking him right now? How could he know those trees weren't just a simple Variable?
They continued on. Minho was yelling something unintelligible, as he pointed to the ground. Everyone scurried over, and Aris felt his knees turn to water in relief as he sank onto the ground in relief. He did it, he reached it, the final goal was finally completed.
THE SAFE HAVEN.
"Wait...." Thomas said. "Our safe haven is a stick?"
"Something's not right..." Minho murmured. "Rat Man said that we'll receive a cure. Well, where's the shucking people who will provide a cure for us?" Descend down a Berg?"
"I don't know..." Aris said. "Something's off."
"Something's going to happen," Teresa said. "And that's what makes me so--"
"Wait--look! The trees are crumbling! Hurry!" Aris shrieked. The trees began crumpling, while the earth wasn't even trembling. But then, rocks began to rattle, although the ground beneath their feet was perfectly still. He was right; the trees were beginning to topple over each other, the earth quaking all around them. He scurried along, as a enormous rock descended down from nowhere.
Everything had gone insane. The world exploded, the lightning storm resumed, the Cranks lashed out at them. Everyone stumbled along, Aris and Sonya firing arrows and bullets at the creatures, who lashed out at them, punching and shrieking like a wild animal.
Bullets began piercing through the air, striking the Cranks that materialized out of nowhere and charged at them. But then--something else occurred. There were a few creatures with bulbs on them, charging at them. Aris shielded away frantically, but his arm grazed against its ankle and he cried out in agony.
Everyone began launching weapons into the air. Sonya tossed Aris a pouch of bullets and then, they continued on. But then, as he fired his third bullet, he froze momentarily, noticing the bulbs as they flickered in and out of his vision. He thought about the Shades back in the Maze, the Grievers that Thomas had spoken about....
We have to shut off the bulbs, he thought. Those were some kind of power. He remembered how they pressed a button on the Shade's wing, and everything shut down automatically, preserving more lives than they could have thought. He fired an arrow at the bulbous creature and noticed a bulb.
He lunged forward, slamming his hand right on a bulb. The creature screeched and lunged at him, but he thrust a knife, burying it deep into the scaly skin. Everyone was battling tooth and nail around him, as he whilrd around, burying the knife and spear at the same time.
The bulb-like creature shrieked, then became very still and silent. Aris whirled around, kicking away the bulb-like animal away, before assisting the others. Jorge even leaped into the truck, crashing into a million creatures, as the truck itself exploded entirely.
"Jorge!" Brenda shouted.
He collided the truck into the bulbus creature, causing the lightbulbs to shatter into bits and explode completely. Aris hurtled a spear, the creature aiming directly for him, but it landed on the floor with a thud as a spear penetrated the creature. He gasped, tearing his hand away from the glass.
He felt his shoulders slump as glass pierced sharply through them. Someone pressed a bandage against his shoulder, as hands hauled him up gingerly, balancing him, until he righted himself. Sonya was crying out his name, as he watched his friends battling wildly. Everyone landed on the ground, gasping and hurtling weapons as they were barging towards the bulbus creature.
Someone pulled him up, seized his hand. He fired an arrow, a spear, and landed on the ground. The bulbs creature shrieked inhumanely, glass shattering into a zillion bits. He shoved the shards away, driving a few into his hands. He gasped lightly and pressed his hand against the floor to staunch the flow of gore.
There were the ever-increasing bloodstains everywhere, reminding of the day when Aris and his friends fled from the Maze, the Shades killing ruthlessly at everyone in its path. He fired an arrow at the bulbus creatures, shouting Sonya's name to ensure she was still alive, just like she did back in the Maze. A wave of sorrow for Rachel overcame him, but he wouldn't want her to endure all the fear, agony, and terror once more. This is for the best....maybe her death is worth it, he thought.
He shoved the lifeless creature aside, burying another spear in the bulbus creature, as Harriet landed on the floor, causing it to roll far away from her. She pulled herself up, slamming her hand against the bulb, which shut it down automatically. "You all right?" Aris shouted to her, as he tugged her along.
"Yeah, thank you," she rasped out. He pulled her away from the stash of the beyond-repair shattered glass. Thomas was still fighting tooth and nail alongside Teresa, and Aris knew had to assist them. He couldn't flee to to safe haven himself, he had to help them out. He hurtled his spear and tackled a bulbus creature, thumping his feet furiously against the bulb, watching the creature die off.
"They have to be from some sort of pods!" shouted Thomas. Aris snapped his head up, but they were still sprinting towards them. Before them, as Thomas said, were beginning to activate, open up, spilling out more creatures. He fired a bullet, before watching Teresa passing a knife and a spear to Thomas, who began fighting with the spear. Everyone was traumatized, petrified, much more than back in the Glade or the Spring, because the bulbs were humid and very burning, causing burns to form on everyone's skin.
Everyone was fighting tooth and nail as the bulbous creature assaulted them. Some of the glass claimed a few lives, but Aris tried to keep them alive. His hands were decorated with burns now, wincing as he hurled his knife at the bulbs, one after another and prayed that once they'd passed the Trials, they would receive medical attention, like WICKED had promised.
How pathetic he was being. They'd never receive medical attention. Even if they offered it, he wouldn't be alive enough to get it.
Soon enough, he managed to barge at the creature, slamming his hand against every bulb inside of every single creature's skin, and then land on the ground, as the lights vanished and bulbs shattered as sparks descended from their heads.. "They all shut down...." he managed to get out. Everyone nodded, and Harriet pulled him to his feet, before gently pushing him along, urging him to continue towards the Right Arm's camp.
ns 15.158.61.8da2
