Nepenthe (TMR FF) UNDER EDITING

Chapter 33

                  

"Dave!" I cried out, leaping forward. Newt reached out to me, his hand grabbing my forearm.

"Emma, stop!" He told me, his eyes flashing with hurt when I slapped his hand away. I chewed on my bottom lip, looking wildly between him and Dave, who was screaming in fear. A strangled noise escaped my throat as I pulled at my hair, tears clouding my vision.

"I can't let another one of my friends die, Newt." I whispered, my head slowly shaking. His shoulders slumped and his eyes softened.

"Emma, you can't save everyone." He told me, reaching out for me again. I stepped back, suddenly feeling a tugging sensation in my chest. I opened my mouth to say something, to tell him for once in his life to believe in me, but something stopped me. I don't know if it was just my sheer will to save my friend, or if it was the creators controlling me, but whatever it was, it made me run. I ignored the protests from my friends and just ran, trying my hardest to catch up to Dave and his little Griever friend.

I was a Runner. Running is what I did. It didn't matter if I'd never enter the Maze again. It didn't matter if I was scared. The only thought that was running through my mind was that I had to save Dave.

"Emma, don't!" Minho shouted, running close behind me. I almost tripped in surprise, but I managed to stay standing, my pace increasing. I didn't look back, in fear that I would lose my footing and the Griever would get away. "Emma, if you get stung, you might not survive this time! We don't know how many times the Serum works!"

I gulped loudly, shaking my head in an attempt to block out his protests. My whole body went numb as I locked eyes on the Griever, which had suddenly attained three friends. My confidence that I had a moment ago vanished, and fear sliced through me. I was going to die.

Finally I reached the Grievers, and they seemed to freeze in surprise, as if they weren't expecting me to come this close to them. Before I had a chance to fight, one of the Grievers burst to life, a pincer shooting straight in my direction. My breath caught in my throat as a sharp pain came to my abdomen and a shriek of pain escaped my mouth. The other Grievers consequently decided to join in, and pain erupted all over my body. The feeling of pins and needles consumed me, and I knew that I had been stung multiple times.

"Get away from her!" A voice screamed. I furrowed my eyebrows, watching as Thomas leaped onto a Griever's back whilst Minho lifted me into his arms. The Asian boy stared down at me worriedly, whispering incoherently to me. I made out the faint words of 'please be okay' before I was placed on the cold ground, a good hundred metres away from Thomas and the Grievers.

I watched dazedly as Thomas ran away from his metal buddies, and collapsed a couple of metres away from me. Dave had been left behind, the Grievers obviously forgetting about their original target by now. They were long gone into the depths of the Maze.

"Help them!" Newt yelled, as someone brought Thomas over to me. I smiled weakly at the boy as he blinked slowly. He was as dazed as me.

"You're an idiot, Tommy." I joked, reaching over and grabbing his hand. He let out a long breath, a chuckle escaping his lips.

"I guess it runs in the family, yeah?"

I snorted, closing my eyes. The last time I was stung, it hadn't affected me like this. I mean, sure, it made me dizzy and a little bit nauseous, but this time, I could already feel the darkness starting to consume me.

"What were you doing?" Newt yelled at me, his eyes filled with desperation. He turned to Thomas. "How could you be so bloody stupid?"

Thomas tried to sit up, his mouth opening in protest. "No...Newt...you don't understand..."

"Shut up!" Newt shouted. "Don't waste your energy!"

I made a hushing noise, my words starting to slur. "Shhh, I'm trying to sleep."

"You can shut up too. You're just as stupid as him, if not stupider." Newt told me, although his voice was a lot more softer. I smiled to myself. Despite the pain, I saved Dave. He was alive. It was fine.

Newt lifted my shirt, examining my body for injuries. A giggle escaped my lips, making him raise his eyebrows.

"At least buy me dinner first."

Newt rolled his eyes, and pressed a cloth to my abdomen, where I was heavily bleeding. I had forgotten about that.

Before I knew it, the British boy yelled for the Grief Serum, and I felt a small pin prick in my arm. I sighed in content, feeling the pain lessen almost immediately.

"Don't worry," Thomas whispered, his voice barely audible. "I did it on purpose...."

And then I closed my eyes, knowing that it would be a while until they opened again.

~

                  

I sat at a table in a white room, a brown haired boy sitting opposite to me. A familiar man with rat like features smiled, sending a shiver down my spine. I straight away recognised him from my previous memories. I looked to be about ten years old this time, and I wore a plain white dress with long sleeves, my hair pulled up into a ponytail.

"Thomas, this is Emma." The man told the boy, gesturing to the younger me. The boy stared at me curiously, a small smile playing on his lips. I shifted in the chair uncomfortably, avoiding his gaze. "She's very important, and you will treat her with the utmost respect. Do you understand?"

Thomas raised his eyebrows at me, but nodded all the same. "Yup."

"Yes, Sir." The man corrected, his eyes hardening. Thomas rolled his deep brown eyes, and sighed, before he turned his glare on the man.

"You're not the boss of me, Janson." His tone was surprisingly cold, making me edges back. Thomas seemed to notice my sudden fear and smiled reassuringly at me. "He's just a meanie, you don't have to worry about him."

"It wasn't him that I was worried about." I muttered, glancing at Janson. It may be good in the future to remember his name.

"Unfortunately for you, boy, you aren't top dog around here anymore." Janson told him. Thomas furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. The Ratman gestured to me, an evil grin coming onto his features. "She is."

"Her? She's just a girl!" Thomas protested. Ratman glared at the boy, his fist slamming down onto the table. I jumped back, my chair squeaking on the cold floor. Thomas sat silently, seemingly unfazed by the older man's outburst.

"How naïve can you be? This girl is our future." He snarled. Thomas sighed, looking extremely bored.

"Ten minutes ago I was your future." He shrugged. Janson breathed in deeply, trying to calm down. "Why am I not told anything anymore? I was the one who assigned to you this damn position. Where is Paige?"

"That is none of your concern, Thom—"

"I didn't sign up for this." I muttered, making them both look at me. "Either one of you tells me what the heck is going on, or I leave."

"You two really are siblings." Janson said to himself, causing my eyes to widen. Thomas looked at me, his expression matching mine. The Ratman smirked, his stupid chuckle coming from his weasel like mouth. "Thomas...meet your sister."