Saving Newt

Chapter 42

After running for only two hours, Minho abruptly stopped, his breaths running short as he turned to face Brianna and Thomas. His head snapped across the maze, his eyes swimming with fear as he detected the owner of the noise. 'You hear that?'

Without listening, Brianna demanded, 'What? You hearing things, Shuckface?'

'Not things,' Minho dismissed angrily, not with her, but with his inability to identify the direction of the noise. 'A thing. Coming from.... Somewhere over here....'

He trailed off, taking two steps closer to the left wall of the maze and placing his ear closer to the ivy covered walls. Thomas suddenly looked terrified, his whole face glazing over in realisation. Brianna swallowed, almost in frustration, as she leaned in and listened carefully. As soon as she heard it, her heart skipped a beat and she jumped back from the wall in terror.

The noise seemed to echo through her ears, pounding at her skull and driving her insane.

Whirrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Click-click-click

Brianna abruptly spun around the Griever was on the other side of the wall, making its way towards them. It was only two metres to Brianna's left and almost adjacent to her. Minho out a finger to his lip, silencing her. And then, she heard it again.

Whirrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Click-click-click

Whirrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Click-click-click

'It's moving!' Thomas exclaimed anxiously, as Minho grabbed Brianna's hand and dragged her away from the wall, along the route they would usually take before turning around.

It took a while for Brianna to stumble back into Thomas and Minho's rhythm, finding her feet before driving through her arms and sprinting now, the searing pain in her leg excruciating, but she blocked all pain from her mind, consuming her thoughts of the terrifying Griever coming their way.

'What the hell were you Shuck face thinking? You can't outrun a Griever, your not strong enough. Oh God, we're gonna die in a pile of klunk even if we return to the Glade! What was I thinking?' Minho ranted selfishly, annoyed with himself for agreeing to take Brianna through the maze.

'You're the one that took me, Minho, I'm as ready as I ever was!' She argued defiantly.

'Yes, I was the first to take you, but I wish I never did. Because now I'm gonna have to drag your shuck body back to the Glade when you almost get killed by a Greiver, like the sound of that do you, oh valiant and brave warrior?' He tormented and she glowered slightly in annoyance.

'Will you too stop!' Thomas exclaimed angrily at the two of them, like a distressed mother to her bickering children. 'This isn't going to help us get away from the Griever faster, is it?'

'Sorry mom.' Minho teased, smirking g to himself as Thomas and Brianna roared with laughter, completely understanding what Minho meant.

'We'll get back and if not together, you two will.' Brianna said in confidence. 'Remember what you told me and Thomas, Minho: You see a nearly dead runner, check for watch first. Don't take any risks, run back empty handed and be safe with a few minutes to spare than rushing half dragging, half carrying that shuck face behind you, remember?' She repeated his words and Minho swallowed, not replying.

'Brianna and Minho?' Thomas said nervously from behind.

'Yeah?'

'It's catching us up, accelerate!' He exclaimed and they all accelerated, running for their lives away from the Griever.