Escaping This Ivy Nightmare

Chapter 13

"Audrey? Thao? You guys in here?" Newt asked as both Minho and himself entered the Med-Jacks tent. 

"In the back!" Thao called a few seconds later, popping out from the last door and making her way towards them, Audrey following right behind. "How was the gathering? What happened?" 

"Yeah, any big decisions?" Audrey asked, watching as Clint followed in behind the boys and pushed past the group. 

"Audrey, you can take the rest of the night off. We've got Ben and Coma girl." He mumbled, not bothering to say hello or goodbye as he vanished into the other room. 

"We just talked about all the different possibilities that we think could happen next. We're taking a few small precautions is all." Newt shrugged, sugarcoating most of the meeting for them.   

"Really? I thought since Alby got so angry earlier the meeting might have been a little tough to deal with." Audrey said, moving over to give Newt a side hug.

"That's just how Alby deals with the questions we don't have answers to." Newt sighed, resting his head against the nearest wall. "I'm a little anxious, honestly. This won't end well."

"Anxious? I'm terrified." Minho admitted, slumping against the wall and sliding to the floor. "Keepers are supposed to talk to their groups sometime tonight. So uh, group," He addressed Thao, rubbing his temple. "We need to cover all the maze as much as possible and find a way out. Nothing new. Except we can't run together." He looked upset, dropping his head onto his knee.

"You two cannot be out there alone. That's klunk. Alby can't send you guys out there alone after all the shuckin' griever attacks." Audrey argued hysterically. "You need to talk to him."

"No, he's right. We need to find a way out. That's not happening if we're joking around all day." Thao admitted, running a hand through her already messy hair. Just then, Clint and Jeff came racing down the stairs.

"Where's Ben?" Clint asked, his eyes lit up.

"I don't know," Audrey replied, affronted. "Weren't you with him?" She asked Jeff.

"I thought you were!"

"Clint told me to leave. He was there ten minutes ago." She stressed, looking wildly between the other med-jacks.

"Shuck." Clint groaned, rubbing his face. "Newt, go get Alby. Minho and Thao, can you two find that greenie? Ben kept saying his name all shuckin' day."

Seconds later the group dispersed, running out of the Med-Jack tent and towards their new destinations. Audrey had taken off after Newt, deciding it was probably best for a Med-Jack to be there once they found him.

And a couple minutes after informing Alby, and letting the first in command grab his bow, they had found him. In the Deadheads with Thomas. 

"Ben!" Alby yelled once he reached the edge of the graveyard, pointing the bow and arrow straight at the sick boy. Ben was holding a knife, and was standing in nothing but his shorts. "Ben, stop this right now, or you ain't gonna see tomorrow."

"If you kill me," Ben shrieked, spit flying from his mouth, far enough to hit Thomas in the face. "you'll get the wrong guy." His gaze snapped back to Thomas, and his voice was full of madness. "He's the shank you wanna kill."

"Don't be stupid Ben," Alby said, his voice calm as he continued to aim the arrow. "Thomas just got here- ain't nothing to worry about. You're still buggin from The Changing. Ya should've never left your bed."

"He's not one of us!" Ben shouted, and Audrey shuttered as he spoke. "I saw him--He's... he's bad. We have to kill him. Let me gut him." Thomas took a step backwards, horrified by what Ben had said.
"You leave that to me and the Keepers to figure out, shuck-face." Alby said, the bow still aiming at Ben. "Right now, back your scrawny butt down and get to the Homestead."

"He'll wanna take us Home." Ben said, "He'll wanna get us out of the Maze. Better we all jumped off the Cliff! Better we tore each other's guts out." 

"The sting must be causing him hallucinations or something." Audrey whispered to Newt quietly. "This isn't like him." 

"What are you talking-----" Thomas started, before Ben cut him off. 

"Shut your face! Shut your ugly, traitorous face!" 

"Ben, I'm gonna count to three." Alby said, his voice still remaining calm.

"He's bad, he's bad, he's bad..." Ben whispered, almost chanting. He was swaying back and fourth, switching the knife from hand to hand, eyes glued on Thomas. 

"One" 

"Bad, bad, bad ,bad, bad..." Ben smiled, his teeth seeming to glow, greenish in the pale light.

"Two." Alby's voice was louder, filled with warning. 

"What happens if he gets to three?" Audrey asked, starting to panic a little more than before. 

"Ben, I'm not... I don't even know what----" Thomas said, trying to make sense of it all. 

Ben screamed, a strangled gurgle of madness, and leaped into the air, slashing out with his blade. Audrey jumped and quickly turned away, too scared to see what happens next.
"Three!" Alby shouted.

Newt threw his arms around Audrey, pulling her to his chest. He squeezed her tightly as she heard the sound of snapping wire, and the gross sound of the arrow hitting flesh. She took a deep breath and turned around, regretting it immediately.

Thomas was standing beside Ben staring at him in shock. The arrow stuck out of Ben's cheek, and he lay unmoving on the ground. Thomas looked like he was going to be sick. "Oh my god." She whispered, turning her head away again, burying it into Newt's chest.

"Come on, baggers'll take care of him tomorrow." Alby told them, and began walking away. Thomas followed Alby out, limping as he went. Audrey thought she should check to see if he was alright, but decided to give him some space, when she heard him retching and coughing just beyond the trees.

"Let's go." Newt whispered, pulling her away from the body of the boy. "Don't look. Shh, it's okay, love." Audrey hadn't realised she was crying until Newt reached up to wipe her tears. "Shh. Let's go to bed, darling. We don't need anymore trouble tonight."

"He just.. He shot him." She mumbled, trying to process everything. "How do you just, you can't just shoot someone like that and walk away. What about rule number two?" 

"Ben was going to kill Thomas, so Alby hurt Ben." Newt mumbled, keeping Audrey close as they made it out of the forest. "Try not to think about it love." 

"We need to find Minho and Thao. We have to tell them. Oh god we have to tell them." Audrey realized halfway through her sentence that Ben had been a Runner with them, which meant they were probably close.

"Their probably at the Homestead, let's just focus on getting you there first." Newt continued to comfort her and also lean on her for some support as they walked, his eyes scanning the area for their two friends just in case.

"What if everything he did was because of the sting?" 

"Shh, stop thinking about it." Newt sighed, stopping just outside the building to pull her into a hug. "You'll only get more upset." 

"Audrey? Newt? Are you guys okay?" Minho and Thao were approaching the building from the other direction, and instantly ran up to the pair. "What happened? Why is she crying?" 

Newt quickly gestured for them to be quiet, placing his finger over his mouth before moving to whisper something in Audrey's ear. A few seconds later she nodded her head, before turning to look at her friends. 

"Sorry, we're fine. I'm fine." She started, wiping at her eyes quickly. "We uh, we found Ben. He was in the Deadheads, threatening Thomas with a knife."

"Ben's dead." Newt interrupted, sensing Audrey's reluctance. "He tried to kill Thomas, so Alby shot him." Minho and Thao paled. They lost one of their own, Audrey knew that was hard.

"Where's the greenie?" Minho asked, obviously curious as to what had happened.

"I'll talk to him in the morning. You two were too close to Ben to be interrogating the kid." Newt supplied, pointing to the door. "We are all going to bed. Now."