Into the Maze

Chapter 2

The two boys who were like doctors, called Med-jacks by everyone, didn't let her out of their hut until the evening of her first night in this new prison, and by then she was genuinely concerned. So far, not even an inkling of what her name was had come to her. Would she ever remember? Newt had left her about two hours before the med-jacks had let her go, and already her head was full of questions. She really needed to talk to Newt. Alby, however, was the one who showed up to get her out of the med-jack hut. He now walked beside her across the grass as she tried to take in everything.
The walls were the same as she remembered them, the huge gap still yawning beckoningly to her. But there was much more that she hadn't seen before. First, she noticed the buildings. They weren't exactly the best shelters, just lean-tos and shacks, but they were filled with all the boys would ever need, including food, supplies, and even a pen full of goats and pigs.
The second thing she noticed were the boys. They ranged in all sizes and colors, and the voices which rang out across the grassy field were of many different accents. But always, her attention returned to the gap in the walls.
"Can you tell me now? Please?" She asked Alby.
He sighed. "We call this place the Glade. This is the most important part of the whole maze."
"Maze?"
"Yes." Alby gestured to the doors. "You wanted to know what's out there, it's the maze."
"What is that?"
"Exactly what it sounds like. We are at the center of a giant maze. The only way out is by solving the maze. No, we haven't yet, but we're close. It's the Runners' job to go out and run the maze. Then they come back and map out all that they've found. We've almost mapped the entire maze and we still haven't found a way out, just a billion dead ends."
"Can I be a Runner?"
He stared at her. "Greenie, nobody wants to be a runner. Only the strongest and fastest are Runners. It's a dangerous job, shank."
"Why?"
"First of all, those giant doors you tried to run out of today? They close every night. The Runners have to be out by the time the doors close or else they're trapped in there for the night. Nobody survives a night in the maze."
"Why?"
"Alby! Should I get the fire started!?" A tall, brawny boy had stepped out of a shack which looked like it held all the food nearby.
"I'll be there in a minute, Frypan! I'll explain it all later, Greenie," Alby said in a low voice to her, before he set off towards the boy at a brisk pace, leaving her standing alone. She sighed, but could only stew about it for a few seconds because, at that moment, a commotion over by the gap into the maze caused her to be distracted from all else.
A couple of the boys near her dropped what they were doing and began to run towards the doors, and she willingly followed them.
By the time she had reached the doors she had realized what was going on. It must be the Runners, she thought.
Four or five boys had run out of the maze and were now bent over, hands on their knees. She realized one of them was Newt. Is he a runner? She questioned herself. But he had straightened up and spotted her, and a friendly smile spread over his face, and he beckoned her with his hand.
She pushed through a few boys and walked up to him. "You're a runner?" She asked.
"Yeah. I see Alby explained everything to you."
"Yeah, and I wondered..."
"Never mind." He waved her question away with his hand. "There's someone I want you to meet."
Leading her through the milling, talking boys, Newt strolled over to another boy. He was one of the five that had run out of the maze moments ago. He was taller than Newt, as well as the two boys he was talking to.
"Hey, Minho!" Newt called when they were about ten feet away.
The boy turned and noticed them. He was Asian and there was an air of confidence about him that made him stand out from the rest of the runners.
Newt strolled up to him and said sociably to her, "Greenie, this is the shank that knocked you out this morning."
A feeling of dislike was ignited in her the moment she remembered that morning and the attempted breakaway.
"And Minho, this is our new Greenie."
Minho looked at her as if sizing her up for a few seconds, then shrugged. "I knew you were a girl, but I was hoping you'd be hotter."
"Excuse me?!" She jerked her chin up and glared at him. He just turned away, saying, "Nice run today, Newt."
"I hate him."
"Take it easy, Greenie." Newt patted her shoulder and grinned. "He's got a big job."
"And that is seen as an excuse to be like that!?"
"Greenie, Alby explained the whole runner thing to you right? Well, Minho's the keeper of the Runners. He is in charge of the mapping of the bloody maze, what Runners do what sections and, ultimately, getting us all out alive. It's a big job."
"So don't give it to a jerk."
Newt just shrugged. "Minho is going to get us out of here, Greenie. Just you wait."
She turned and looked into the maze. It was the first up-close look she'd had yet. The inside of the maze was dark. Shadows slanted to the stone floor and the ivy climbing the walls rustled, without a breath of wind.
And suddenly it hit her. Like a rock to the head, it came upon her. She staggered backward, panting. Newt was suddenly by her side, steadying her. "What's wrong, Greenie?"
"My name... my name is Jackie!" She cried, whirling to face him, feeling genuinely happy for the first time since her arrival at the Glade.
"Jackie..." Newt smiled at her. "I like it."
A breeze had picked up from the depths of the maze, and Newt grabbed her arm and said in a suddenly harsh voice, "Don't try anything, Greenie."
"What?" She was confused. What was happening?
A grinding sound of stone on stone came from within the depths of the maze, and yet another, stronger wind blew down the tunnel of the maze into their faces, and with that, the two huge doors began to slide closed.
Jackie then understood the wind and grinding, it made sense. One thing didn't, though.
When the Glade had gotten quiet once again and Newt had let go of her arm, she asked, "why did you grab me?"
"I didn't want you to run off. It wouldn't be the first time a Greenie's gone insane and run off into the maze their first day."
"I'm not going anywhere without the rest of you." And she meant it.
When darkness had fallen, all the boys grouped the the shack which was their small, grimy excuse for a kitchen. Frypan, the big boy who had broken up her conversation with Alby, was apparently the cook, and though the food was gray and didn't taste fantastic, it was food, and after a busy first day, Jackie was hungry. After Frypan had heaped about twice as much food as usual on her plate, along with giving her a friendly smile, she found Newt, sitting with his back against a log, staring at the door of the maze.
His face was grim, but when she sat down next to him, he flashed her a smile. "Eat up Jackie, the bloody food don't improve with cold."
It was the first time anyone had called her anything but "Greenie" or "Shank" and she found she much preferred it.
"So tomorrow we thought you could try a day with the sloppers to start out easy," Newt ventured.
"Sloppers?" Jackie didn't like the sound of that.
"Well... yeah... I mean, they kind of help out with the animals, and... run errands and stuff."
"It's the worst job isn't it? Why does Alby hate me?"
"Listen, Jackie, he doesn't hate you, but all the bloody jobs around here... they're men's work. These jobs aren't made for girls, Jackie."
She scowled into the dark.
"Jackie, please just work with us here."
She thought of the bruise on his cheek and sighed. "Fine. I owe you one I guess. After what I did today."
"Good that." He leaned back against the log and stretched.
She stared at the door, which was now only a massive shadow across the Glade.  Without thinking, she found herself looking over her shoulder and skimming the crowd of boys by the campfire. Her eyes stopped on Minho. He was standing apart, slightly aloof from the rest, talking seriously to Alby.
My life is riding on the shoulders of that jerk, she thought to herself, and a sudden helplessness overtook her. The mood followed her through the rest of the night until she found the softest spot of ground she could and flopped down on her back for a fitful night's sleep.