They hiked away from the shattered glass and severely damaged bulbous bodies. Aris felt like everything in his stomach was threatening to make its reappearance the more he looked at them. He trudged along with Sonya and Harriet, trailing right behind Thomas. Sonya was the leader now, which Minho was glad of. She continued to inspect their surroundings, before pointing to something in a distance.
There were people in a camp, beginning to pack up their belongings. Aris limped towards them, his leg throbbing from the bulbs' glass. A woman glanced up from packing, her body becoming rigid, until her body seemed to relax a bit, smiling as they approached.
"Brenda. Who are they?" she asked kindly, a tentative voice on her lips.
"Well, they're Immunes. From WICKED," Brenda answered. "They were being tested, and we had to reach a 'safe haven', but there was none. Except for the bulbous creatures, if you could assume they are the safe haven."
Mary nodded. "There isn't a safe haven."
"What?" Aris managed to stutter out. "B--but WICKED says we'll receive a cure here. They said we've been ill for a few years now."
Mary laughed. "If you were so clever to figure out the Maze and cross the Scorch, you know by now that there's no cure--from WICKED, at least. We did discover a way to develop a cure for everyone, but it's only halfway completed, though it can be used in an emergency." She eyed them closely. "You should all rest."
"How do you know all this?" Thomas said. "About WICKED, about us?" Aris felt the suspicion in Thomas's voice and overcoming him as well. How did this woman know so much, about them experiencing the Maze and the Scorch Trials? Evidently, something was off, causing his fingers to close gingerly around his knife.
Mary had a troubled look on her face, as her eyes watched the movement of Aris's hand. "I suppose you should all rest first, I'll explain everything come morning. " She glanced at them dismissively, seeming to refuse to say anymore. "Vince, I'll leave them in your hands, then. Assign beds and tents. We'll move out at first light, so you'll be fine." She noticed the injuries. "I'll wrap all that up."
***
A few minutes later, after Mary had assigned everyone to tents, Aris settled down on the cot. He was still weary about their safety, but what could he do? He stared up at the ceiling, lifting his bandaged parts of his body, as he closed his eyes. When he woke up, his stomach growled, Mary had told them there'd be food if they wanted.
He stepped out of the tent, forcing the fatigue away. The aroma of broth and bread drifted through the air. Most of the Right Arm's members were seated on the ground, dining, but then, he noticed Mary, Vince, and Thomas were missing. Was she turning them in to WICKED? A shiver crept up his spine.
He spooned up the broth until a moan from one of the tents caught his attention and he looked back. Most of the tents were folded-up cloths now, but one of them wasn't. Curiously, he set down his bowl and padded towards the tent and peered in. Mary was seated in a chair, her back facing him, Thomas on the other side of her.
"I used to work for WICKED," he heard her say.
He froze momentarily. He felt his fingers close around the knife and spear and his entire body tense. Vince was watching him closely from the other side of the tent, before waving him in encouragingly and he pulled himself together, taking a sharp breath, thinking of a plot.
He sank into a chair Vince had pulled out for him. Mary looked up with a ghost of a sad smile tugging on her lips. "We were developing the cure in the right way when WICKED first formed. We were inspecting the Immunes, yes, and it was clear all of the children, all of you were the key. But we never tortured, abused them, let alone set them into the Maze.
"When the chancellor rose to power, she suggested that we begin the Maze Trials, being so desperate by then to develop a cure. Her associates, except me, agreed," Mary continued. I thought it was too risky, in fact, the implants were already too jeopardizing, killing children due to such a risky surgery. They refused to pause the Trials and use another method, so I quit."
Thomas sat on the other side of the bed, and Aris gasped when he saw who was in the bed. Thomas informed him that she contracted the Flare, and that Mary was using the enzyme and blood from Thomas to cure her. She injected the last droplet of gore into Brenda.
"That should do."
ns 15.158.61.20da2
