monachopsis - maze runner

chapter 22

Chapter 22
Canary In A Coal Mine

Florence decided she hated sand. The stuff flooded her boots as she scaled the dunes, trying to drag her back down and deliver her to WCKD. Searchlights pierced the night as the kids slid haphazardly down the other side of the dune, alerting them of the mercenaries on their tail. 

Once they were far enough away from the building, the kids slouched behind a mound of sand and watched the soldiers pour from the compound, on foot or in small cars - dune buggies, Florence had heard one of the men call them. There were even a few choppers circling the Scorch, but they only succeeded in kicking up more plumes of sand as the storm raged on.

Crouching against the wind, the kids continued to trudge through the sand as the dozens of WCKD mercs scuttled across the desert like roaches. Florence tugged up the collar of her t-shirt, holding it over her nose and mouth to keep the sand from forcing its way into her lungs. The wind whistled in her ears, knocking her sideways into Teresa. The girl grabbed her by the arm and tugged her forward, leading them to the head of the group. Her gaze was set on something in the distance, though Florence had no idea how she could see anything.

“Teresa, hang on!” Thomas shouted from behind them, coughing as he choked on sand. “Stay together!”

“Just come on!” Florence yelled over her shoulder, squinting through the darkness. “I think she’s got something!” Half a second later, Teresa skidded to a stop and threw out her arm to brace herself against the sunken remains of a building. She let go of Florence and moved along the scuffed glass wall, stopping when she found an opening.

Teresa dove into the wreckage, ignoring the screams of the guys when they finally caught up. Florence ducked beneath the jagged glass, lifting a sand-filled boot to step inside when someone caught her arm and dragged her back.

“Are you insane?” Minho cried, leaning forward so she could hear him over the wind. “We have no idea what’s in there!”

“It’s either this or the storm!” she bellowed back, slightly muffled by the fabric still tucked around her face. Without waiting for a retort, she slipped under the glass and stumbled onto a sandy hill. She wobbled for a second, holding out her arms to steady herself as she scrambled down into the dimly-lit building after Teresa. The rest of the boys slid down behind her, huddling together at the bottom of the dune.

Minho slipped the stolen backpack off his shoulders, dug out a flashlight, and passed the bag to Florence. He clicked the light on and swept it around the room, shining a faint beam of dusty light across the rubble. Piles of shattered glass and splintered wood covered the floor. A few cement columns remained to hold up the sunken roof, though most had crumbled into disrepair. There were a few sections that resembled storage rooms with giant sliding doors, which lined hallways that stretched past the flashlight’s reach. “Where the hell are we?”

“We gotta go,” Thomas waved away his question, moving towards the hallway directly ahead of them.

“No,” Teresa wheezed, slightly hunched over as she tried to catch her breath.

“We gotta keep moving-”

“Thomas, stop!” Her voice echoed in the empty space and Thomas froze. Teresa took a few deep breaths, swaying slightly; Florence swung the backpack over her shoulder and offered her arm. Teresa muttered her thanks, leaning most of her weight on Florence’s side as she addressed Thomas. “Tell me what’s going on.”

“It’s WCKD,” Thomas replied, rejoining the group. “They lied to us, we never escaped. Aris, Flo, and I found bodies, too many to count.”

“What do you mean?” Minho asked, horrified. The rays from his flashlight only reached the bottoms of their faces, casting the group in an eerie glow. “Dead bodies?”