❝You are all still here because of an uncanny will to survive.❞
Solving the Maze was meant to be the end. No more tests. No more puzzles. They thought that by escaping the Maze that they'd been stuck in for two years, they could go back to their old...
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10 → "WASTELAND"
THOMAS PUSHED HIS WAY down the stairs after Winston. Both of Winston's hands were at his face, pulling at the silver metal ball, which had already melded with the top of his head. Winston was screaming at the top of his lungs, thrashing around.
"Get it off me!" he yelled. Winston cried out a bunch of tortured screams. Thomas threw the pack off his shoulders. Adeline couldn't stand to watch what was happening right before her.
"Adeline ..." Newt called out. She couldn't tell how far he had moved from where she currently stood. Attempting to pry her eyes away from the commotion, she found Newt's gaze.
"Y ... yeah?" She stammered. Newt motioned first her to move toward where he stood.
"Come here." he ordered. Adeline didn't argue, she backed away from Winston's thrashing body and raced up the remaining steps of the staircase, beside Newt, who wrapped his arm around her waist protectively. Both watched in terror as Winston thrashed around on the ground. Thomas took the bed sheet and wrapped it around his hands then yanked. With a disturbing sucking sound, the sides of the metal lifted before slipping out of his hands and slapping back down over Winston's ears. A couple of other Gladers tried to move in to help, but Thomas shouted for them to back off.
"We have to do it together!" Thomas yelled at Winston. "Listen to me, Winston! We have to do it together! Try to get a grip on it and lift it off your head!"
Adeline buried her face into Newt's shoulder, not wanting to watch what was about to unfold. Newt pulled her closer. The chaos continued.
"On the count of three!" Thomas yelled. "Winston! On the count of three!"
"On the count of three! Winston! On the count of three!" Winston continued to thrash around. Screaming. Kicking. Slapping at the silver metal. "Just do it! One! Two! Now!"
After yanking at the stretching silver metal, the entire mess of silver came off. Thomas threw the silver goop over his head, and as it flew through the air, the silver quickly formed back into a sphere. It stopped just a few steps down from them, hovered for a second, then it shot away, flying down the stairway until it disappeared in the darkness. It was gone and it hadn't attacked again. Meanwhile, Winston was whimpering. He was a mess, curled up into a ball and shaking. The hair on his head had been sucked off from his head, replaced with raw skin and spots of blood.
"You okay, man?" Thomas asked. Winston shook his head, his body still trembling. Adeline couldn't control the fear that made her body shake.
