The Death Trials

14

By that, the hovering machine left.... Wait,Newt?

"There she is!"

I glance to my back and saw Minho running down the street. Thomas, Brenda and Jorge are close behind. I stare back to the dead man, I saw a bunch of keys beside him. One of it must be the key to open this handcuffs. I kick the key up with my feet and catch it with the tip of my finger. I saw a key with number 6 written on it. I look to the handcuffs, it has 6 on it, it must be! I slide the key in;

CLICK

The handcuffs open and fall to the street, freedom! Suddenly, someone rush a hug onto me.

"Thank goodness, I thought I lost you...again"

"It took me more than just being drag away to lost me"

We break the hug and as that the others join us. But, my smile drop when I saw a bruise on Thomas's cheek.

"What happen to your cheek?" I ask

"I shucking punch him for leaving you" Minho answer calmly.

"What?! I'm sorry Tho.."

"No, it's also my fault. Sorry."

"Woah, you did that?" Minho pointed to the man beside me.

"Kind of. One of those cop machines did it. Flew in here, shot him to death, then next thing I know the Rat Man appears on a screen. He tried to convince me that I need to go back to WICKED."

"Minna, you.."

"Go back, yeah. Of course I'll go back there, right after I'm over in hell. Give me some credit here"

"At least, together be happy" Jorge said.

"Not yet, we need to find Newt. Rat man told me he's in trouble and I believe him this time. I'm suprised"

Brenda open his mouth to ask, but something vibrate in her pocket.She take it out, it's a walkie-talkie. She answer it and at the end of the line, a girl said with a shaky voice.

"Brenda..Brenda"

"Nina, what's wrong?"

"Newt..he..he's gone! He left only a message behind. I was sleeping that time."

"We're on our way, stay in the Berg." Brenda order and the line go off.

"Guess our goal now is clear" Brenda said and we start walking to the Berg.

Lucky for us we find a cab and we move to the other side of the city, where we first come in. It didn't take long to get through security and back outside the massive walls surrounding the city. If anything, the staff they encountered seemed thrilled that they were leaving.

The Berg was right where they'd left it, waiting like the abandoned shell of a giant insect on the hot and steamy concrete. Nothing stirred around it.

"Hurry up and open it," Minho said

Jorge pull it open. and there stood a girl behind it, holding a knife.

"Whoah Nina, slim it" Thomas calm her down. She drop her knife and run to me before giving me a hug. Crying on my shoulder.

"He left, he left Minna. He left"

She break the hug and hand me a letter. I dare to open it and drop my mouth open as I read it;

Scribbled in black marker, it said:

They got inside somehow. They're taking me to live with the other Cranks.It's for the best. Thanks for being my friends.

Goodbye.

"Newt," Thomas whispered. His friend's name hung in the air like a pronouncement of death. I myself feel horrible, what less Nina? She must be gathering herself to keep herself sane somehow.

"I want you three to listen to me." He took a moment to look at each one of them, then continued. "Ever since we broke out of WICKED, I've basically gone along with whatever you slintheads ended up saying we should do. And I haven't complained. Much." He gave Thomas and I a wry grin. "But right here, right now, I'm making a decision and you're going to do what I say. And if anyone pushes back, to hell with you."

I knew just exactly what he wanted, and i was glad for it.

"I know we have bigger goals in mind," Minho continued. "We need to connect with the Right Arm, figure out what to do about WICKED—all that save-the-world klunk. But first we're going to find Newt. This isn't open for discussion. The five of us- 6 at that- all of us- are flying to wherever we need to go, and we're getting Newt out of there."

"They call it the Crank Palace," Brenda said and scoff.

I turned to her and she was staring off into space.

"Sounds fancy," Minho said. "You've been there?"

"No. Every major city has a Crank Palace—a place where they send the infected and try to make it bearable for them until they reach the Gone. I don't know what they do to them then, but it's not a pretty place to be, no matter who you are, so I can only imagine. Immunes run things there, and get paid a lot for it because a non-Immune would never risk catching the Flare. If you want to go, we should think long and hard about it first. We're completely out of ammunition, so we'll be unarmed."

Minho had a glimmer of hope in his eyes. "Long and hard thinking done. You know where the closest one is?"

"Yeah," Jorge answered. "We passed over it on the way here. It's just on the far side of this valley, right up against the mountains to the west."

Minho clapped his hands once. "Then that's where we're going. Jorge, get this piece of klunk up in the sky."

"I'll be glad for a little adventure, muchacho," Jorge said, standing up. "We'll be there in twenty minutes."

Everyone sit in the Berg, much being quite, except for Minho and Thomas talking. I decide to lay down on my bunk. But, that's when I feel something under the pillow. I put my hand under it and pull out...a brown letter. Written on it also with black marker;

'To Minna'