♡ Dark Paradise ♡ ; newtmas fanfic.

s w a r m

There were hundreds of them.
"Well, we're screwed," Ben admitted as soon as he lay eyes on the creatures surrounding us.
"Don't say that," I said, wincing as I caught a terrified look from Chuck. Newt was standing behind him; his hand resting on Chuck's shoulder. I knew Newt would - could - protect him, just as well as I was able to. But worry still numbed my body and took over my mind. What if I lost both of them?
"Chuck, come stand near me," I instructed. "Minho, you lead. Everyone else, defend yourself. If all else fails, run like hell."
"Since when did you become the leader?" Minho snorted.
"I'm not," I argued. "I told you that you were leading us out there, didn't I?"
Minho ignored my comment as Chuck waddled over near me, leaving Newt's side. Chuck curled his hands into a ball and stared up into my eyes. "I'm scared, Thomas."
"Don't you worry. Nobody is going to get hurt, OK? I promise."
Chuck tried to smile bravely, but I could sense his uneasiness.
Minho took a deep breath, exhaling dramatically as he led us out through the swarm of Cranks. The Cranks - although brain-dead - seemed to glare at us with hungry eyes. They gathered around us quickly, reaching out with their bloody, grimy hands. In a panic, I hauled Chuck closer to me and pressed his back against my body protectively. I spun around and grabbed Newt, too, pulling him beside me. I was perfectly aware that he could fend for himself, but I needed to be able to see him. I needed to be able to know that he was going to be safe.
The group of us ran as fast as we could, kicking away the Cranks blocking our path. Gunshots were firing, knives were being thrown, blood was splattering everywhere. I told Chuck nobody would get hurt, but those monsters didn't count as people.
As we tried to sneak through the thick swarm of Cranks, I heard somebody screaming. I instinctively pulled Chuck and Newt closer to me - although they were already so close it was nearly impossible - as I turned around and saw Ben laying on the ground, wrestling with a Crank. He was pinned to the ground beneath the Crank, and I knew the Crank was winning. Ben was screaming, desperately rolling around on the dirty ground trying to kick the Crank away from him. Before I had time to react, Newt had already separated himself from me and ran to help Ben.
I cursed under my breath as I turned around and gently pushed Chuck towards Teresa. "Protect him," I instructed.
Teresa nodded and as I ran towards Newt, struggling to tear the Crank off of Ben, a Crank sneakily approached Newt from behind.
"Newt! Watch out!" I cried out, but it was too late. He was already being tackled to the ground.