The Memoriam Files: Hearts ✔

| Chapter 6, Web of lies

|I'm a soldier, 'til it's over, you and I fighting for the art of war

|Song: Art of war, We the kings

|||

Lisa's P.O.V.

Silence came down over the room. I couldn't even hear my own heartbeat. He offered back our memories, just like that, without any test or trial. The first thing to cross my mind was that it had to be another lie. How could it not? I had no reason to trust these people.
Still, as I looked at my father I couldn't help but imagine having them back. Having my old life back.
My eyes found Dawn, she noticed me staring and slightly nodded at me. But I frowned, my heart racing. My memories back, was that honestly what I wanted?

Ratman cleared his throat, making me jump in my seat. 'As you were informed in your one-on-ones, the Trials as you've known them are over. Once your memories are restored, I think you'll believe me and we can move on. You've all been briefed on the Flare and the reasons for the Trials. We are extremely close to completing our blueprint for the killzone. The things we need- to further refine what we have- will be better served by your full cooperation and unaltered minds. So, congratulations.'

Next to me Minho sat up straighter in his chair. I eyed him carefully. 'I ought to come up there and break your shuck nose,' he said, his voice terrifyingly calm considering the threat in his words. 'I'm sick of you acting like everything is peachy, like more than half of our friends didn't die.'
'I'd love to see that rat nose smashed!' Newt snapped, an anger that I had never heard before was evident in his voice.
Ratman simply rolled his eyes and sighed. 'First of all, each of you has been warned of the consequences should you try to harm me-' Images of the heavy armed guards outside the door flashed through my head. '-And rest assured, you're all still being watched. Second, I'm sorry for those you've lost but in the end it'll have been worth it. What concerns me, though, is that it seems that nothing I say is going to wake you people up. We're talking about the survival of human race.'

'The human race can shuck my ass,' I mumbled and crossed my arms.
'Let's just all slim it,' Thomas spoke next to me. 'Let's hear him out.'
But Frypan spoke up before Ratman could say anything. 'Why should we trust you people to do...What was it called? The Swipe? After everything you've done to us, to our friends, you want to remove the Swipe? I don't think so. I'd rather stay stupid about my past, thank you very kindly.'

'Wicked is good,' Teresa her voice suddenly sounded through the room, making everyone go quiet.
'What?' Frypan asked.
'Wicked is good,' she repeated, turning in her seat to meet our gaze. 'Of all the things I could've written on my arm when I first woke up from my coma, I chose those three words. I keep thinking about it and there has to be a reason for that. I say we just shut up and do what the man says. We can only understand this with our memories back.'

The room was completely silence for a couple of seconds, then I jumped up, unable to hold the raging hate inside of me any longer. This wasn't Wicked controlling me, this was my own pure anger for the words that she just dared to put out of her mouth.

'Well, if Wicked being good means you beat the klunk out of your best friend and leave him for dead, if Wicked being good means you kill innocent people even if they are as little as Chuck without feeling a bit of remorse, If Wicked being good means people like you with your sick minds can do whatever they want...' I took a deep breath. 'Then you can go to hell because no sane person would call everything we had to endure "good".'

Then I sat down and arguments broke out, mostly between the Gladers, who sided with Frypan, and the members of Group B, who sided with Teresa.

'Silence!' Ratman shouted, hitting the lectern with his fist.