Disconnection • Newt • Maze Runner

11 - Gunshots

TW: Attempted Suicide

They walked in an eerie silence as the seemingly endless hallways spanned across for a while.

Eventually, the group arrived at a door, and beyond lied something Aspen had wished he'd never walked into. It was rather large with a bright green light and a lit exit sign above, awfully ironic, don't you think?

"Seriously?" Frypan clearly was having similar thoughts.

Thomas slowly inched his hand towards the handle, and as the large metal door creaked open, an alarm like sound reached their ears. Body spanned the halls as they entered through the door way, blood coating the walls, the people had been murdered, clearly. It pained Aspen to see so many corpses, people who had lives, though they dedicated it to such an evil corporation. Nonetheless, they were still people, likely with families, and yet here they lied, dead.

The group entered a room, filled with machinery and even more bodies. Aspen recognized the room, but said nothing. This was where he had worked for most of his life. Slaving away as he supplied the Glade with boys to torture relentlessly.

Newt walked towards a station which Aspen had remembered so clearly, as his hand cleared away the dust settled on a computer screen showing brain activity and cameras, cameras showing the Glade in all its glory, in all its destruction.

"So they were watching us. This whole time." He said as sorrow flanked his features. Aspen looked down, guilt building up in his stomach.

"Yeah, we were."

Thomas stalked towards an area where a bright red button flashed on a screen, and regretfully, for Aspen, he pressed it.

A woman, who Aspen knew to be his old boss, presented herself on a large screen.

"Hello, my name is Dr. Ava Paige. I'm the director of operations of the World Catastrophe Killzone Department." Aspen sucked in a breath, W.C.K.D. The woman continued. "If you're watching this that means you've successfully completed the Maze Trials. I wish I could be there in person to congratulate you, but circumstances seem to have prevented it." People rushed around in the background, fear glazing their features as they hurried throughout the room, grabbing what they could. Aspens head tilted, brows furrowing. "I'm sure by now you must all be very confused, angry, frightened. I can only assure you, that everything that's happened to you, everything we've done to you, it was all done for a reason."

"You won't remember, but the sun has scorched our world. Billions of lives lost to fire, famine. Suffering on a global scale. The fallout was unimaginable. What came after was worse. We called it the Flare. A deadly virus that attacks the brain. It is violent, unpredictable, incurable. Or so we thought. In time a new generation emerged that could survive the virus. Suddenly, there was a reason to hope for a cure. But finding it would not be easy, the young would have to tested, even sacrificed inside harsh environments, where their brain activity could be studied. All in an effort to understand what makes them different, what makes you different."

The people in the background frantically ran around, taking what their hands could carry as they struggled in fear, frightened of the inevitable, sound familiar?

"You may not realize it, but you're very important. Unfortunately, your trials have only become. As you'll no doubt soon discover, not everyone agrees with our methods. Progress is slow, people are scared. It may be too late for us, for me. But not for you." Gunshots rang the world to dust in the background, Aspen held his breath in anticipation. "The outside world awaits. Remember..." The woman held a gun up to her head, Aspen began to shake, his hands restless and sweaty as one covered his mouth so he wouldn't wail. "W.C.K.D. is good." Bang.

Aspen couldn't look away, merely staring at what he'd just witnessed. It was familiar, something that long ago, he'd remembered witnessing as well, a suicide. Only it wasn't someone else's, it was his own.

He remembered it vividly, the gun held up to his own head, sucking in a shaky breath as his finger inched its way towards the trigger. He held it there, still, as he contemplated it. Contemplation didn't win, however, as he pulled the trigger, the shot firing out of the gun, towards his head. Only it wasn't a bullet that came out, rather a blank. It didn't kill him, merely concussed him for a bit, but he told no one. Who was he supposed to tell, the people he worked for? "Hey, boss. yeah I just tried to shoot myself with a gun that I stole from your guard, by the way." Not a chance. He lie waiting, tears coating his reddened face, in anticipation for the after math. But no one came, so he stowed away the gun, and exited the bathroom, acting as though nothing had occurred. He was only 11.

Most of the others had turned away, including Newt. but when the boy titled his head back towards the screen after the gunshot rang through his ears, he stared as Aspen watched the screen, in shock. He grasped his hand, a sign of comfort, companionship. Something Aspen desperately needed.

The group walked towards the room where the woman's body lied, before an alarm blared as a different set of doors opened.

They all stared through the door way, Chuck asking what they were all thinking. "Is it over?"

The smooth accent of the British boy rang through his words. "She said we were important... Well, what are we supposed to do now?"

"I don't know. But let's get out of here."

"No."

Shit.

Gally stood, darkened veins racing up his neck, his eyes almost black, from the virus, but also with anger, an unbridled rage. Aspen sympathized with the boy, but he wasn't about to let him stop them from leaving. he turned towards Gally, as did the rest of the group. They all quickly realized he'd been stung, but only Aspen truly knew what it felt like. Sure Thomas had infected himself, but he was cured very quickly, Aspen was not, he'd had to deal with the agony of the whole ordeal. Gally was no doubt feeling such agony as well.

"Gally... Don't. Put the gun down."

"We can't leave."

"We did, Gally. We're out, we're free." Thomas spoke warily.

Gally spoke between sobs. "Free? you think we're free out there? No. No there's no escape from this place." He lifted the gun towards the group, Aspen heart wrenching at the action.

He knew what had to be done, slowly inching out the gun that he himself had snatched, he held it close by his side and out of sight, just in case, though he knew he'd need it.

"Gally, listen to me. You're not thinking straight." Thomas held his hands out protectively in front of him. "You're not. Now, we can help you. Just put down the gun."

"I belong to the maze."

Aspen gripped the pistol in hand.

Bang.