WICKED is good

Chapter 17: Inside

"I'll distract them," Newt says, eying the rapidly approaching creature. "You guys can sneak in. Their defenses aren't that great. It should be easy."
"No, way," Minho immediately protests. "You aren't putting yourself in anymore danger. Let me go."
Thomas shook his head. "Minho you're best with the Launcher and Newt needs to find Sonya. I have to be the one who distracts them."
   Newt and Minho open their mouth to protest but Thomas cuts them off.
   "We don't have time to argue! It's the best option right now. Besides, they'll probably put me with the other Immunes so you'll get to me soon anyway."
"Fine," Newt sighed. "Just be careful."
   "Yeah," Minho grumbled before replacing his frown with a grin. "Yeah. Don't die." He punched Thomas' arm encouragingly.
Thomas rolled his eyes. "I make no promises."
   Newt glared at him as they ran off and Thomas held up his hands defensively, letting him know he was joking. With another eye roll from Newt, the two scrambled down a nearby ledge, out of view.
Hoisting his Launcher, Thomas ran at the monster, but he didn't shoot that one. He shot its friends, hoping to draw more attention to himself. It worked. The ones who had been shot screamed, despite their lack of mouth and shuddered violently. It only took a few seconds for them to regain their bearings and surge forward again.
By the time the first monster reached him, he'd gotten more than half were running towards him. That was as much of a distraction he'd be able to cause. Hopefully it was enough for Minho and Newt to sneak inside.
   Thomas turned back to the creature, slamming it with the butt of his gun, receiving a few scratches from its long nails in the process. The monster screeched—a long guttural sound that vibrated all around them—and staggered. The bulb Thomas hit burst, making its movements ever so slightly slower. It was as if the bulbs were the source of its power.
   Rushing with adrenaline, Thomas hit again, shattering bulb after bulb. Despite the fact that this was only a distraction, he got a satisfying feeling from destroying the creature, bringing it to its knees and smashing the last bulb.
   The lightbulb monster fell dead.
   Thomas breathed heavily, looking down to realize his chest and arms had been completely cut up. He had little time to consider why he didn't notice while fighting, when he was lifted off his feet by the arms.
   The bulb creatures carried him, one for each limb and others around just in case. They brought him towards the entrance. This time Thomas didn't resist, seeing Newt and Minho slip inside before the door closed. With the lack of eyes, his captors didn't seem to notice.
Thomas was carried down the halls, strangely similar to WICKED headquarters but they obviously couldn't afford anything nice. The walls were dirty and cracked, occasional rodents scurried around. Despite the poor quality, he saw plenty of rooms with expensive equipment, obviously stolen from WICKED. He wondered how The Right Arm was okay just leaving them open like that. Apparently, they weren't expecting a break in.
One of the bulb monsters opened a door, leading into a large room. A few yards in were bars from the floor to the ceiling, enclosing the other side. Behind the bars were dozens of people Thomas recognized.
The Immunes.
They looked at him sadly as if another kidnapping wasn't a surprise. It hurt to see them so devastated. Thankfully, they were dressed in clean clothes and had normal beds lining the walls and, judging from the plates on the floor, they were fed regularly. Thomas was slightly comforted to know they were treated like normal human beings but anger still flared every time he made eye contact with any of them. They were terrified. Of what, he didn't know.
   After Thomas was roughly dropped to the ground, a guard walked over from the corner he'd been sitting in. He snatched the Launcher off of Thomas' back, swinging it onto his shoulder.
   "How'd a kid like you come across a weapon like this, huh?" He asked.
   Thomas stayed silent.
   The man shrugged. "Not much of a talker, alright. Well, you can just go right in then," He offered, unlocking the gate and swinging it open.
As if Thomas had a choice.
As soon as the guard locked the door and resumed his position in the corner, Thomas started looking around for Chuck and Sonya.
"Chuck?" He called. "Sonya?"
"Thomas?" Said a familiar girl's voice.
He turned towards the sound of her voice. "Sonya?" He pushed past some Immunes to see her standing there with some other girls.
She immediately crashed into him with a hug. The two had never been very close, but Thomas understood the relief of seeing a familiar face.
"Are you alright?" He asked when Sonya pulled away.
"Yeah, I'm fine. But what are you doing here? The Right Arm said the Elites had gotten away." She bit her lip, as if considering her next statement. "I just thought you guys were going to save us."
   Thomas looked towards the guard, seeing him engulfed in his phone and not paying attention. Still, he motioned for Sonya to lean in close, he whispered the plan.
   "Newt's here?" She asked, joy filling her eyes. "Oh, thank goodness."
   Thomas felt his heart squeeze when he realized it was the same look Newt made when he talked about Sonya. He wanted nothing more than to reunite the two. "Yeah. Him and Minho. They should be here soon to bust us out. Is, uh, is Chuck here?"
   Sonya looked down, shaking her head. "They moved him right after I got arrived. I think he's okay though. The Right Arm aren't the most cruel kidnappers in the world," she said with a twinge of sarcasm but Thomas moved on.
   "Do you know where they're keeping him?"
   She shook her head sadly. "No. I'm sorry, Thomas."
   Thomas choked out something like "it's okay." Before moving back towards the bars. He slid his hands through and pressed his forehead against it, waiting for Newt and Minho. Then he felt a presence next to him, a small hand on his back. He glanced over to see Sonya rubbing him gently. Again, it struck him how alike the two siblings were. Same solemn expression, same caring tendencies, same need to look out for others. They even had the same sort of sparkle in their eyes when the light hit it. And, of course, they had the same love towards each other, as if they were willing to drop everything in a moments notice for the other. It made Thomas' heart long for Chuck, the closest thing to a brother he had.
   "We'll figure something out," Sonya assured him. "Maybe—"
   Suddenly, Minho and Newt burst into the room, out of breath, alarms blaring.
   "Hey, what!?" The guard exclaimed, leaping to his feet with his Launcher in hand. He didn't hesitate and fired.
   Minho was caught off guard but Newt was ready. He tackled Minho to the floor before shooting the guard himself.
   "Thanks," Minho said, scrambling up towards the gate. He pulled out keys and unlocked the door.
   "Sonya?" Newt called through the surging crowd.
   "Newt!" Sonya exclaimed, pushing forward. She tackled Newt in a tight embrace, the gesture immediately returned. They pulled back a few seconds later to hear Minho giving orders.
   "Alright, listen up!" Minho yelled. "I'm gonna lead, you're gonna follow. If we start getting shot at hit the ground and wait till it's safe. Thomas, Newt, you take up the rear. Any questions? No? Okay, let's go!" He turned around and ran out the door, Immunes filling out after him.
   "I'm not going," Thomas told Newt suddenly, though his plan wasn't entirely thought through yet. "I have to find Chuck first."
   Newt grabbed his arm, pulling him away from the others. "You can't, Tommy. I didn't just get Sonya back to lose you."
   Thomas pulled his arm away. "I let you leave to find Sonya. You need to let me do this. Please, Newt."
   Newt glared daggers at him for a few seconds before closing his eyes and sighing. Then, surprising Thomas in the midst of the chaos, he pulled him into a fierce hug.
"Just come back to me," Newt begged before letting go. "Okay?"
   Thomas nodded, touched at how much Newt cared. "I will."
   With one last regretful look, Newt ran off to join the others.
   Thomas ran down the hall, in the other direction, deeper into the compound. As soon as he rounded a corner, he realized what a dumb idea this was. He was running around an unfamiliar base with no weapon and no idea where to look. The only lead he had was going deeper, where they would hold the more important experiments. Chuck definitely counted as important.
   He looked in every window he passed, hoping to find his young friend, but only found empty rooms or expensive science equipment. There weren't even guards or doctors around to give him any clues. He ran on.
   Strangely, the further he went, the safer he was. The guards would be going to cut off his friends instead. They wouldn't be focused on Thomas. He didn't feel encouraged by that.
   Suddenly, he rounded a corner, coming face to face with a buff woman. Before she had time pull out her gun, Thomas used his momentum to slam her into the wall. He was surprised to find her pass out immediately.
   Deciding not dwell on his good luck, he turned back to his original task and looked in the room. Lifting his spirits, he saw Chuck sitting in a bare room except for his desk and chair. His hands were clasped in front of him and he was talking to a man in glasses. They seemed to be having a normal conversation, nothing like the torture Thomas was expecting. He could almost weep for joy.
   He tried opening the door but it was locked. Quickly searching the guard, Thomas found keys and a Launcher. He was thankful to have some sort of defense again.
   The boy unlocked the door, kicking it open and aiming the Launcher at the man. He immediately let out a startled noise, raising his hands defensively. Chuck whirled around to see what the commotion was about. His face lit up.
   "Thomas!" He jumped from his desk, rushing over and squeezing Thomas in a hug.
   "Oh, Chuck," Thomas breathed, squeezing him back. "I'm so glad you're okay." He might've held on to the younger boy all day but he knew they weren't done yet. He let go. "Look, we have to go catch up to Newt and the others now. Okay?"
   Chuck nodded.
   Thomas gave him a reassuring pat. "You'll be okay. Stay behind me. We'll be fine." With that, the two took off.
   They only encountered one rushed doctor on the way back, he backed off as soon as he saw Thomas with the gun. Other than that, the halls were completely devoid of people. It was nerve racking more than reassuring.
   "We're almost there," Thomas assured Chuck as they ran. "I think."
   "Comforting," Chuck remarked sarcastically.
   Thomas smirked. He missed him.
   The two dashed around yet another corner, nearly running into a guard. His back was turned and he didn't seem to notice the two. Thomas quickly ushered Chuck back.
   Gathering his bearings, Thomas glanced around to see four guards now, all pointing Launchers at his friends.
He couldn't see the other side but, by the fact that they weren't running or firing back, he assumed they were surrounded.
   Peaking around the first guard's shoulder, Thomas made eye contact with Minho. He hoisted his Launcher and gestured to the guards behind Minho.
   You get the ones behind, I'll get these. From living with each other almost all their lives, they could practically read each others' minds. No telepathy required.
   Thomas raised his fingers, counting down from three then began firing at the guards on his side. He saw Minho and Newt do the same. Within the few seconds of absolute chaos, the guards were immobilized.
   Thomas and Chuck ran forward to see some of their friends. Some were twitching on the ground but most were still on their feet, scared but okay.
   "Thanks for the assist," Minho said, giving him a curt nod before raising his voice. "Alright, everybody help those who were shot! We have to hurry before more guards come."
   The Immunes obediently hoisted their fallen friends, helping them forward. Even little Chuck was lending a hand.
   "Tommy!" Newt shouted, distracting Thomas from helping a girl to her feet.
   He looked back to see Newt struggling with Sonya, who had been hit. Thomas quickly handed the girl off to someone before running back to help.
   "Glad you aren't dead," Newt said as they lifted Sonya between them.
   "You too," Thomas said as they ran, surprised to find this greeting normal.
   "It's just up ahead!" Minho shouted. "Come on!"
   Thomas was just thinking about how good their luck was, with the lack of guards, when the group stopped suddenly.
   "Minho?" Thomas called, trying to peak around the heads. "What's wrong?"
   Nobody answered. That's when he heard it, the low moaning sound he hadn't heard in years. Thomas looked back to see five more of the terrifying creatures surround them from behind.
   Grievers.