Newt was by her side within seconds. Minho followed close behind, flanked by Thomas and Teresa. Brenda stood up to greet them, but Trace couldn't quite be bothered with that kind of physical activity.
Jorge then decided to walk over. Trace hadn't even seen him before. She'd almost forgotten he existed.
"What do we do?" Minho asked, upon reaching them.
"If those things have bloody Grievers in 'em, we better get ready to fight," Newt replied, looking to Trace for support. She nodded reluctantly, but remained sitting.
"What are you guys talking about?"
Harriet and Sonya approached the group and Trace found herself, once again, glancing between Newt and Sonya as if they might just suddenly realised they were related. She had no such luck.
"You would've seen those pods when you escaped your maze too, right?" Harriet asked. "Do you think they've got Grievers in them?"
"Wouldn't be bloody surprised," Newt muttered.
"We should get ready to fight them then, right?"
"We still have twenty-five minutes," Thomas reminded them. "Maybe they'll-"
A sharp hiss echoed out, breaking through the low rumble of the rapidly-approaching storm. They looked around to find the source of the sound, but Trace already knew what it was.
The pods began to slide open in synchronisation. As the top of each pod slid open, it revealed a dark blue light, emanating out from inside, casting an eerie glow around them.
Nothing else happened. Everyone was silent, waiting for something or someone to spring into action- waiting for the battle to commence- but nothing happened.
"We should check it out," Minho suggested, with a sideways glance to the incoming storm clouds. The wind has really picked up now, and Trace struggled to hear anything over the roar in her ears.
The rest of the group moved in, huddling together, boys and girls alike. Nobody wanted to be on their own. Trace could understand that.
"You and me," Thomas replied, nodding at Minho's suggestion. Minho nodded back and they both took a step towards the pods.
Newt held out a hand to Trace, who took it gratefully. She winced as she stood up, not wanting to put any weight on her bad leg. This was going to be the most awkward and uncoordinated battle of all time, and that was saying something when it came to Trace.
"Stick with me," Newt yelled to her, struggling to raise his voice loud enough for her to hear. Trace nodded, not letting go of his hand.
He really was the glue.
As Thomas and Minho made their way even closer to the pods, another sound interrupted them. A low growl shook the land around them, and Trace could swear she felt it rattle her bones.
Then emerged an arm, reaching out of the pod opposite them, fumbling until it found the edge to grip. It was an odd beige colour, disfigured, and huge in size. The colouring made it seem just human enough to be disturbing. Really disturbing. Trace shuddered.
Thomas and Minho stepped back, rejoining the group.
The creature raised another misshapen arm, gripping the other side of the pod to gain leverage. Then it pulled itself up, climbing over the edge and crawling to the ground like a naked, human-like spider. On its elbows, Trace could see the bulbs, lying just below its pinkish skin. It had more on its knees. More- smaller ones- on its fingers and toes.
She wanted to vomit. These things were so much more disturbing that she'd anticipated. She could see why they'd been left out of the movies.
Nobody dared to speak in fear of provoking it.
Around them, others were emerging, climbing out in the same way the first one had, all equally as disgusting and terrifying. Trace pulled her knife out of her pocket, hoping to use it for the last time.
The monsters just stood there, waiting until the last one was ready. Then, they raised their arms towards the sky like they were on some slow-motion roller coaster. It didn't look like much fun to Trace.
With a sudden slicing sound, dozens of blades emerged from their skin, coating their bodies. Trace felt, more than heard, Newt gulp beside her. She squeezed his hand tighter.
Minho was the first to break the silence. "There's one for each of us!" he yelled. "Grab whatever you can find and use it as a weapon!"
Trace already had. Newt pulled out another knife from his pocket. They were as ready as they'd ever be.
The creatures stepped forward, closing in on the group like some creepy monster cult. Lightning struck nearby and Trace flinched. She let go of Newt's hand and shot him- no, not shot him, but sent him- one last longing glance.
Then she stepped forward, eyeing up one of the incoming monsters.
You're mine, she thought. The monster had no face, but it seemed to glare back at her all the same. It really was terrifying, and at that moment she wondered how Chuck was coping with all of this. She risked a glance over at him, and spotted him wedged between Thomas and Frypan, holding an impressively long-bladed knife. He'd be alright, she decided.
Minho yelled something, and suddenly everyone was running at their chosen monsters. Trace panicked and followed their lead, hobbling at a fast pace towards her own.
Within seconds, she was only ten metres from it. Then nine. Eight. Seven. Six.
She heard it growl.
Five. Four. Three.
The monster raised its arm and Trace swung her knife forward, aiming for the bulb on one of its knees. She made contact. There was a pop and explosion of sparks. The creature's arm came down, slamming into her back, knocking Trace flat to the ground. She yelled out as about ten small blades pierced into her skin, digging deep into her back.
But she'd slowed it down.
She reached out from where she lay and stabbed the other knee, hearing a satisfying 'pop' and spotting the bright flash. The monster reeled back, shocked at Trace's rude behaviour.
She pushed herself to her feet and dived forward, driving her knife back and forth, nothing holding her back now, as she found and burst each bulb.
Pop. Pop. One more. Another.
One of the arms came swinging towards her and she leaned back to dodge it, but couldn't manage to get far enough away. A blade sliced across her cheek, leaving a painful gash. Trace tasted blood as it trickled down her face. It didn't matter; scars were cool anyway.
She leapt forward.
Pop. Pop. More again.
The monster was slowing considerably, swinging without its initial precision. Trace was winning.
Pop. Pop.
It slumped and fell to the ground, still wriggling a little. Trace swiped once more, hitting the final bulb, and the monster stopped moving altogether. Dead.
She'd had just enough time to catch her breath when there was a bright, blinding flash from beside her, and Trace was knocked to the ground again. Lightning. Someone rushed over and helped her up. She glanced above her as they pulled her to her feet.
Minho. He'd already killed his monster.
She nodded a quick thanks before running over to help Newt, who hadn't managed to pop as many of the bulbs. Lightning struck again, further this time, but still too close for comfort.
Pop. Pop.
The ground shook with another strike of lightning. Someone screamed a name. She couldn't hear who.
Newt's monster fell to the ground. Trace glanced over and saw Teresa leading Thomas towards one of the pods.
She grabbed Newt's hand as another bolt of lightning struck nearby, temporarily blinding them.
They had to get to the pods.
YOU ARE READING
Subject A250: The Flame (COMPLETED)
Fanfiction--Book two in the Subject A250 series-- She took the Grievers down. She survived the maze. She knows the story is far from over. So, how will she fare in the Scorch?
