The Link // Maze Runner Fanfiction // Book 1

chapter twenty

"Take us home, Tommy."

Those four words said everything. He nodded solemnly and walked over to me.

"Wait, shouldn't we have a pep talk or something?" Frypan asked.

"Be careful. Don't die," Minho said.

Newt rolled his eyes. "Great, we're all bloody inspired."

If the situation wasn't so dire, I would have laughed. Thomas frowned at them and brushed my hand. I grabbed his hand and interlaced our fingers. Together, we led the Gladers into the maze. Newt, Teresa, and Minho kept up quite well, but the other Gladers weren't used to running such distances and panted loudly.

"Don't worry guys, we're almost there," Thomas reassured them.

Finally, we came to the spot where we had found Ben's bloody shirt. No Grievers were in sight and the whole thing seemed too easy as Thomas carried the Griever key over to the wall and revealed the exit. As the stone walls opened up, I strained my ears and heard the eerie sound of Grievers approaching.

"Tommy, it's almost time," I shouted.

He nodded. I turned and ran to Newt. He had a quizzical look on his face as I pressed my lips to his and withdrew them a second later. I moved quickly towards Chuck and Teresa and grabbed both of their shoulders.

"Take the key from Thomas and go! Put the words into the computer as quick as you can and get yourselves safe. Teresa, protect him with your life or I swear to god, I'll kill you."

She nodded and led Chuck alongside me as we approached Thomas. Thomas handed the key off to them and took my hand again. I was only half-surprised when I felt his hand trembling. We stood side-by-side and led the Gladers into the tunnel. It was dark, but tall enough that none of us needed to crouch. The only light came from a white circle up ahead at the end of the tunnel.

"What are you two planning?" Minho asked. I could hear the accusing in his voice and could practically envision him raising his eyebrow in questioning.

"Nothing, Minho. Worry about yourself," I replied impassively.

Soon, we had reached the end of the tunnel. Thomas and I ducked out first, followed by Teresa, Chuck, and the rest of the Gladers. The tunnel had led us to a catwalk that dropped off into a cliff. Bizarrely, Grievers had lined up in front of the edge of the cliff. Behind us, Grievers had already filed in and blocked off the only exit.

"The exit's below that cliff," Thomas whispered in my ear.

"Okay. We go on the count of three."

He nodded and squeezed my hand harder. I felt him hold up one finger, then two, and finally three. I squeezed his hand hard enough that my ring dug into his fingers and took a hesitant step towards the Grievers.

"Ellie, Tom, don't do this! You can't!" Teresa shouted, breaking the thick blanket of silence.

Hearing the pain in her voice, I dropped Thomas' hand and looked back at the Gladers. They all looked immensely sad and horrified, some with tears glistening in their eyes.

"She's right, Tommy. Go get them. We'll escort them past them and once they are safe, we can do our sacrifice."

Thomas nodded and jogged back to the two. He returned with them by his side and grabbed my hand again. I took his hand in my left and Teresa's smooth one in my right. Nobody moved. Grievers and Gladers stared each other down. Then, a Griever took the first step forward. As if coming to life, the rest of them shuddered and took steps towards the Gladers.

Fighting between machine and human erupted all over. Wooden spears and flesh connected with metal and blubber. Pained screams from poor Gladers sounded all over. Thomas spotted an opening and dragged the three of us along. Colors blurred together as we sped towards the cliff, dodging Grievers and flailing bodies.

"Teresa, you go first. Chuck, you next. Tommy, you're third. I'll come down after you," I shouted.

Thomas nodded and aided Teresa. With the canister clutched tightly in her hands, she flung herself off the cliff. Down below, I could see a round opening of another tunnel in the concrete flooring. Teresa cleared it and disappeared from sight. Chuck went next, hitting the side of it with his belly before turning invisible.

"Good luck," Thomas breathed before jumping off the edge of the cliff. I watched the blue of his shirt contrast against the gray jungle before disappearing from sight.

I looked between the battle between man and machine and the entrance of the tunnel. I had a choice- leave my friends behind and save myself or risk my own skin to help them. Seeing a poor Glader meet his fate made up my mind for me. I'd rather die honorably than die a coward.

I pulled my own spear out and walked into the middle of the battle. A Griever saw me and scuttled over. I glared at it as it rolled towards me, wielding saws and long spikes. I dodged a blade and waved my spear. It's sharpened point landed in the midst of blubber and steel. It let out an inhumane shriek and aimed a long metal spike at my head.

It brushed against my arm. I hissed in pain and felt warm blood trickle down my shoulder. The Griever seemed to take it as a victory and rolled forwards again. I waited until it swung again and drove the end of my spear into it's blubbery body again.

It shrieked again and leaked yellow oil all over the place. As it attacked again, I noticed it moved slower and didn't have as much precision. I drove the spear into its body again until it flailed and died. I looked around at the battle and saw Grievers killing Gladers.

C'mon guys, I thought. Hurry up with the code.

Somebody grabbed me by the collar. Without even looking, I swiped at the assailant with a machete. I heard a curse and spun around. Minho was clutching his forearm and glaring at the wound. Before I could ask him what he wanted, a Griever reached out with its mechanical arm and pinned Minho down.

Minho batted at its saws and spikes as they lowered on him. Something about watching a Griever's deadly weapons closing in on Minho stirred something inside me. It was like a memory I knew I had but I couldn't quite grasp. I realized what was happening and flung myself on top of the Griever.

My hand sunk into it's fatty flesh. I grimaced and felt around for something that would help me kill it. I felt a plastic handle and yanked it. The Griever shuddered and died, almost crushing Minho.

"Help me down," I panted.

Minho extended his hand to me. I grabbed it and climbed down off the dead body of the Griever. Minho grabbed my shoulders and pushed me towards the cliff.

"Ellie, go!"

I rolled my eyes, pecked his cheek, and sprinted towards the cliff. The floor loomed underneath me. My stomach churned as I looked down. It was a far way down. Taking a deep breath and steeling my nerves, I dove off the cliff like a swimmer. I refused to open my eyes as I plummeted, knowing full well that if I missed the tunnel, I'd die.