Complicated

Chapter 70: An Explanation

Of course Thomas pushed the Play button.

"Hello."

A loud female voice echoed around the room. We all jumped. Up on the big screen in the middle of the room a video had started playing. The woman wearing a pressed white suit bright red lips and a bun pulled back so tight it looked painful. Her voice was harsh and cold. It made me shiver.

"My name is Doctor Ava Paige. I'm Director
of Operations of the World Catastrophe Killzone Department."

"WICKED... She's in charge of all this Klunk?" I whispered. Thomas flapped a hand at me to be quiet.

"If you're watching this, that means you have successfully completed the Maze Trials."

"The shuck? SUCCESSFULLY? Half of us are dead!" I yelled.

Minho had come to stand beside me and growled, his eyes narrowed. At least he was feeling my anger, Thomas was too captivated by this video.

"I wish I could be there in person to congratulate you..."

"I'd probably throat punch her." Minho muttered.

"I'll hold her." I agreed.

"...but circumstances seem to have prevented it. I'm sure by now, you must
all be very confused... angry, frightened."

With each word Minho and I both snorted and rolled out eyes. Thomas glared at us for a moment. We rolled our eyes again.

"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."

"Shuck that klunk. For a reason!" Minho growled again, his arms were folded and so tense his veins were popping out

"You won't remember..."

"Who's shucken fault was that?" I hissed

"Would you two shut up!" Thomas snapped.

"-but the Sun has scorched our world. Billions of lives lost to fire... famine... suffering on a global scale."

The video cut from the severe lady at a desk to pictures of what the world apparently looks like, fires, dead bodies in pits, riots and fighting. She kept talking

"The fallout was unimaginable. What came after was worse. We called it the Flare. A deadly virus that attacks the brain."

"Alby said something about the flare after his changing!" I whispered, smacking Minho on the arm a few times. He just nodded.

The video had cut to a operating room, something was thrashing around in the bed. It was a person- it was the same type of person from my memories, it looked like my mother...and it also resembled the middle of The Changing. This person strapped to the bed looked a thousand times worse, but I saw the resemblance.

"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."

Behind the woman in the video, people in white lab coats were starting to frantically pack up files in boxes.

"The young would have to be 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 frantic people in the background now had panicked terrified looks. They were running around, shouting. The woman sat calmly at the desk, talking into the camera.

"You may not realize it... but you're very important. Unfortunately, your trials have only just begun. As you will 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."

People in black combate gear had shown up, guns were going off, glass was shattering, people were screaming. A splatter of blood hit the screen. Making me flinch. The lady didn't even blink. She had pulled out a small hand gun.

"The outside world awaits."

She raised the gun. She raised it to her temples.

"Remember...Wicked is good."

She pulled the trigger. I yelped and jumped backwards, into Minho.

We all stood still staring at the screen, it had gone black and fuzzy.  We slowly glanced at each other, unsure what to do next. That was a lot of information to process all at once.

"Is ..is it over?" Chuck asked, timidity, he shuffled over and grabbed my hand again.

"She said we were important." Newt muttered. He looked from the screen to Thomas.

"What are we supposed to do now?" Minho asked.

It was quiet, we all stood unsure what to do. I looked around the room again. I saw, in the corner, a woman in a white suit. My stomach heaved, it was the Ava Paige lady. I looked away and my eyes landed on a ramp and door.

"Let's get out of here!" I suggested, pointing to the door.

Everyone turned without question.

"No."

My blood ran cold. I spun around so fast my feet got tangled.

"Gally?" Newt gasped.

I shoved my way to the front.

"Gally?" I whispered, rubbing my eyes, making sure he was actually standing in front of me and not just my imagination.

How could he still be alive? He looked a little more in control of himself, unlike the other night.

"We can't leave." He said flatly, raising a gun, pointing it at the group.

I took a step forward, but someone grabbed my arm.

"Don't! He's been stung!"

"Again?" I whispered.

He dropped a stinger confirming the theory.

"No!" I whispered. My hand flew again to my mouth, trying to hold the cry in. My eyes filled with heart broken tears.

"We can't leave." He repeated, his unfocused eyes found mine.

"We did! We did Gally!" I whispered, slowly letting my hand drop away from my mouth, reaching out for him.

"Gally, were free!" Thomas tried, stepping up beside me.

"Free?" He spat, looking at Thomas now. Anger flashed in his eyes. He shifted the gun to Thomas.

"You think we're free out there?" He spat.

I saw a tear slid out of the corner of his eye and slid down his cheek. He looked so broken and so lost. I just wanted to run forward and wrap him in my arms around him.

"No. No...there's no escape from this place!"

"Gally, listen to me..." I tried keeping my voice even, but the anguish crept in.

"You're not thinking straight. You're not.
Now, we can help you!" Thomas tried again to reason with him. Both his hands out in a passive gesture.

"Gally...Just put down the gun...please Love, out the gun down!" I pleaded. My voice breaking. Silent tears slid down my cheeks.

"I belong to the maze." He whispered, his eyes back on me.

"Just put down the gun, Gally. I love you!" I whispered.

"Come on man, listen to Charlie." Thomas tried.

"No...We all do...I'm keeping you safe ...from out there."

He pulled the trigger. The gun went off in a loud bang, echoing the walls. I saw Chuck out of the corner of my eye rush forward, and Minho move. Thomas dove forward. A spear went through Gally's chest.

"Thomas..."

I dropped to my knees. Both hands covering my stomach. Hot bright blood spilt over my hands.

"Gally..." I whispered taking a short sharp breath. Gally's eyes cleared for a second, and I saw him.

I saw my Gally.

I collapsed to the floor.