Trials Together (Book One): The Maze Runner

Chapter 25

Alby stood up so quickly his chair fell over backwards. Thomas thought the leader might have charged him if Harriet hadn't jumped up lightning-fast, and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him back. He didn't struggle.

"Sit down, or I'll put you in time out." Harriet dragged Alby back to his chair, righted it, and pushed him into it. Thomas resolved from now that he would never cross Harriet, he was surprised he had only consciously concluded this now.

"Now you're being a shuck idiot," Alby said, glaring at Thomas. "Or a traitor. How can we trust a word you say if you helped design this place, put us here! We can't handle one Griever on our own ground, much less fight a whole horde of them in their little hole. What are you really up to?" Harriet sighed, and Thomas was reminded of Beth and Gally in the first Gathering he had attended.

Thomas was furious. "What am I up to? Nothing! Why would I make all this up?"
Alby's arms stiffened, fists clenched, Harriet glared at him hard enough to melt metal. "For all we know you were sent here to get us all killed. Why should we trust you?"
Thomas stared, incredulous. "Alby, do you have a short-term memory problem? I risked my life to save you out in the Maze—you'd be dead if it wasn't for me!"

"Maybe that was a trick to gain our trust. If you're in league with the shucks who sent us here, you wouldn't have had to worry about the Grievers hurting you—maybe it was all an act."

"Come on." Harriet stood and pulled Alby up with her. "We'll be back in a minute, no one do anything." She dragged Alby through the door and slammed it, there was the sound of muffled shouting. No one spoke for few moments so Thomas telepathically relayed the events so far to Aris, Rachel and Teresa.

After perhaps five minutes Harriet came back in with Alby, who looked cowed.

"Now does anyone else have anything to say?" Harriet asked, trying and failing to look approachable.

"I think we can't trust any of these shanks, they did this to us, who says they aren't spies. Maybe Gally was right." This came from a girl Thomas did not yet know, but he thought she was the Keeper of the Baggers.

"Don't you start Alejandra, you already told us all of this and until we have any proof they're just like the rest of us. The people we were before the Maze are dead, what they did doesn't matter, what matters is what we do now." Thomas almost wanted to applaud Sonya, but settled for a grateful smile that she quickly returned.

"We can't go back!" Alby suddenly yelled, turning to look at everyone in the room. "I've seen what our lives were like—we can't go back!"
"Is that what this is about?" Newt asked. "Are you kidding?"

Alby turned on him, fiercely, even held up a clenched fist. But he stopped, lowered his arm, then went over and sank into his chair, put his face in his hands, and broke down. Thomas couldn't have been more surprised. The fearless leader of the Gladers was crying. Harriet scooched her chair to be next to his and hugged him, he cried on her shoulder like a child.

"Alby, talk to us," Newt pressed, not willing to let it drop. "What's going on?"
"I did it," Alby said through a racking sob. "I did it."
"Did what?" Newt asked. He looked as confused as Thomas felt.
Alby looked up, his eyes wet with tears. "I burned the Maps. I did it. I slammed my head on the table so you'd think it was someone else, I lied, burned it all. I did it!"

"Calm down," Harriet soothed, "we saved the Maps, we can still get out."

"I'm telling you." Alby sounded like he was begging—near hysterical. "We can't go back to where we came from. I've seen it, remembered awful, awful things. Burned land, a disease—something called the Flare. It was horrible—way worse than we have it here."

"If we stay here, we'll all die!" Minho yelled. "It's worse than that?"
Alby stared at Minho a long time before answering. Thomas could only think of the words he'd just said. The Flare. Something about it was familiar, right on the edge of his mind. But he was certain he hadn't remembered anything about that when he'd gone through the Changing.

"Yes," Alby finally said. "It's worse. Better to die than go home."
Minho snickered and leaned back in his chair. "Man, you are one butt-load of sunshine, let me tell you. I'm with Thomas. I'm with Thomas one hundred percent. If we're gonna die, let's freakin' do it fighting."

"Inside the Maze or out of it," Thomas added, relieved that Minho was firmly on his side. He turned to Alby then, and looked at him gravely. "We still live inside the world you remembered."

Alby stood again, his face showing his defeat. "Do what you want." He sighed. "Doesn't matter. We'll die no matter what." And with that, he walked to the door and left the room. Harriet shot Newt a look full of meaning Thomas couldn't decipher before chasing after him.

The Keepers all began to argue, Minho, Newt, Miyoko and Sonya were all with Thomas and his friends. Some, like Winston and Frypan, were not against the idea but terrified of it. Alejandra was vehemently against, repeating that she did not trust them Thomas and Rachel in particular, some agreed with her but Leo, her partner, was trying to make her 'see reason'.

"SHUT IT!" Sonya screamed when this had gone on for a few minutes. "Alejandra, you keep your mouth shut now, I think martians heard your opinion."

"I'm going for it, sounds like Minho's in too," Thomas was ninety nine percent sure Miyoko would follow him. "Rachel, Teresa and Aris will come with me." He knew, deeply knew, that even if they thought it suicide they wouldn't let him go alone. Momentarily Thomas wondered how he subconsciously knew so much about them, and they about him.

"I don't think they'll sting us—the Changing was a Variable meant for us while we lived here. But that part will be over. Plus, we might have one thing going for us."
"Yeah?" Newt asked, rolling his eyes. "Can't wait to hear it."

"It doesn't do the Creators any good if we all die—this thing is meant to be hard, not impossible. I think we finally know for sure that the Grievers are programmed to only kill one of us each day. So somebody can sacrifice himself to save the others while we run to the Hole. I think this might be how it's supposed to happen."

The room went silent until the Blood House Keeper barked a loud laugh. "Excuse me?" Winston asked. "So your suggestion is that we throw some poor kid to the wolves so the rest of us can escape? This is your brilliant suggestion?"

Thomas refused to admit how bad that sounded, but an idea hit him. "Yes, Winston, I'm glad you're so good at paying attention." He ignored the glare that got him. "And it seems obvious who the poor kid should be."
"Oh, yeah?" Winston asked. "Who?"
Thomas folded his arms. "Me."

The room burst into screaming chaos once again. Newt stood, pulling Thomas from his chair and to the door.

"Go sit all cosy with your friends till I come find you. If you see Harriet send her back in here."

A/N: I am fully aware that a lot of the last two chapters have been lifted from the book. It seemed to be the best method.