Clear as the 'Sky'

Tommy

Merry Christmas Eve everyone.

For an early present I've decided to gift you with an extra chapter for the week.

Have a happy and safe holiday.

Disclaimer: Sadly, I still only own Skylar. Everything else belongs to James Dasher.

Chapter 22 - Tommy

Jorge led us to a small city. "Marcus runs a club. Don't drink anything they offer." He said with a secret smile. "Sky, Minho, and Newt, I want you to check the perimeter and the inside. You never know when Brenda will show."

I nodded at the command. "C'mon you shanks, let's get a look around."

...

We walked in silence. Finally, I asked about their escape just so the silence would end. "So...how'd you guys escape the maze?"

Minho answered. "There was a code in the maps. We had to enter it somewhere in the Cliff."

"The Cliff?" I remember Minho showing me the Cliff the day I was made a Runner. How did they possibly enter a code into that pit of emptiness?

Newt nodded, his lips curving into a hidden smile. "Yeah. It was a bloody illusion. There was a hole in the center but it looked like the sky so you had to be careful to not fall and miss it."

I frowned, still not understanding how they'd escaped. "What did you find once you dropped in?"

Newt rubbed his chin. "It was a room. There were these pods where we believe the grievers slept if you can imagine that. Under a keypad was a button that eventually shut off the grievers once the code was typed into the keypad."

I bit my lip, still not able to imagine how they'd escaped. I guess it was one of those events where you just had to be there otherwise it was impossible to describe.

...

We walked around the building one more time to get a good understanding of the layout. It seemed pretty standard. Four walls, courtyard, and two rooms inside on the ground floor. People were dancing all around inside the place. Drunk from what it looked like. No wonder Jorge warned us about what we drank.

"Who's this Brenda shank you're looking for?" Minho asked as we peaked in a window.

I laughed. It felt so good to laugh with them again. "So eloquently put Minho. She's my sister." They looked at me in such confusion that I laughed again. "I know what you're thinking but she's my actual sister. George was also my brother. I stole some files from Wicked. It had some information. Nothing about our real names but it has family information. Don't know how accurate it is nowadays." I thought of all the people who died every day from the Flare alone. Too many.

...

We finished the perimeter, heading into the club. I pushed passed drunk and dancing teens, eventually losing Minho and Newt in the sea of bodies. As I looked for them, I bumped into a person. The black hair was unmistakable. "Bren? Come on let's get you to safety." Brenda has apparently had some of the drink offered at the club because she didn't protest when I dragged her out. She tripped several times, stumbling over her own feet. I picked her up every time, struggling myself because of my limp. I helped her up some steps, guiding her to the room Jorge said we'd meet in. I could see Newt and Minho dragging an unconscious Tommy.

I tried to get Brenda to move on her own but she soon passed out. Mentally I groaned. 'Just great.'

I hauled her body up the steps until I heard voices, which were thankfully only on the third floor. Still quite a hike. I had to pause over a million times.