The Death Cure Rewrite

Part 6

The tunnel was the darkest tunnel I'd ever been in in my life, and that included the checkpoint. Although, we had significantly less light in this one, so that might've had something to do with it. Not only was it the darkest, but it was also the smelliest. We were definitely in the sewage tunnels now.

"Ew, this is gross," Newt said.

Thomas passed a smear on the wall and grimaced. "Yeah... This is great."

"This is exactly what I hoped we'd be doing today," I quipped, trying not to shine my small flashlight on anything that looked like shit. I was pretty sure I was already walking through urine, though I tried to stay out of the stream as much as I could.

Gally stopped, flipping a switch to a generator I hadn't seen and the entire tunnel light up. "Stay with me. We got a ways to go." I frowned, waddling as I straddled the stream of human waste to keep my shoes clean. I very much liked these shoes. I didn't want to have to throw them out because they reeked.

I did that for nearly half an hour, looking like I just had a baby that was hanging between my legs by the umbilical cord until finally Gally opened a door and walked casually out into a crowd. I tried to act like I belonged, following him and Thomas. I'd been told to remove my holster, but that was the last thing I wanted to do, so I compromised by carrying a few knives hidden in various spots. Looking at where we were now, I was thankful that I had. My weapons would've made me look very out of place.

Some people wore medical masks over their mouths like even breathing the same air as everyone else wasn't good enough for them. Most people dressed in business wear, very few dressed like us. Luckily, there were some so we didn't stick out too much.

We went up a flight of stairs and I slowed, taking in the intimidating sight of city life. The whole town was illuminated. I couldn't see a single star and it felt alien. Everywhere we'd been, I could always count on one thing: the stars. They were there every night, but here there were none. I felt like I was on a different planet.

"We're not in the Glade anymore," I said.

Over intercom for the entire city, an automated woman said, "Fifteen minutes to mandatory curfew. Please proceed home in an orderly fashion. Remember, this is for your safety. Thank you for your compliance."

"Yeah, we better get off the streets. And I know it's hard, but act like you've seen it before." Gally looked at me and I closed my gaping mouth. I walked tentatively down the streets, hiding when I had to from patrol cars.

When one passed, we ran across the street and hid behind a wall just in time for another one to zoom by. "Jesus, where's the trust?" I muttered.

"It didn't used to be like this. They've definitely upped security. I'm guessing you shanks have something to do with that."

I frowned, shrugging lightly. "There's a compliment in there somewhere." Gally actually chuckled, and if I hadn't been leaning back against the wall, I'd have tipped over. I guess almost dying gave him a sense of humor.

I ran across another street then kept going until Gally led us into an alley close to a wall. He stopped at it then clasped his fingers together. Newt put his foot in Gally's hands and climbed up the wall. It wasn't too tall, so I wasn't worried. When Newt was up, Gally gestured for me to go.

He lifted me while Newt reached his hand down, and I scooted my body onto the top before standing. Gally offered to help Thomas up, but instead Thomas jumped and grabbed the top, using the tip of his boots to climb his way up on his own.

While Gally climbed, I sent a look to Thomas. He shook his head at me. "What?"

"Nothing," I hummed, holding up my hands in defense. I hated what happened to Chuck, too, but Gally wasn't in his right head when it happened. He was stung. It wasn't fair to hold that against him forever. Besides, he seemed like a changed person. Or maybe being away from the hostile Maze changed him. Either way, it was for the good.