The First Gladers

Chapter 53: Massacre

 It's a massacre. Before you had a slight amount of hope that Alby's sacrifice would at least let you and the rest of the boys escape. But as you steal a quick breath between fighting Grievers it's clear to see the damage that's been done. Your whole body aches and pain seers from several cuts. But you're still alive.

You take a deep breath as blood drips down your face and charge onward. Before you, a Griever stands over Clint, blade poised for the killing blow. Without a second though you lunge forward slashing the beast across its side. It howls in rage, turning on you. With a powerful stab of your sword you anchor the writhing monster to the floor. Just as you look up at Clint with a smile of victory, a blade shoves through his chest.

You scream as he crumples to the ground. The next thing you know you're taking on the Griever head on. Slashing and slashing and slashing until it's dead.

You never thought to look behind you.

An ear piercing howl tears through the air behind you. You whip around right as a Griever launches itself onto of you, slamming your body into the ground.

For a moment the world goes black.

The constant ringing in your ears drowns out the sounds of your friends screams.

You can't focus.

You know you're about to die, you should fight back.

But you can't move.

An image starts to form in front of your eyes as your vision returns. Slime drips down onto your face from the open fanged-mouth of the Griever above you. The weight of its monstrous body crushes you against the stone floor, leaving no room for escape.

You hear Newt's voice calling your name as the Griever lifts a blade to deliver the final blow. This is it. This is how you die.

You close your eyes.

Nothing happens.

You dare to open your eyes only to find the Griever frozen above you, as if someone had just deactivated it.

Within seconds Newt is by your side, pushing the Griever off of you. With much straining its lifeless body rolls away from you allowing you to breathe properly.

Newt offers you his hand, his face covered in dirt and blood, yet still he smiles.

"I almost lost you that time." He says softly.

"Yeah, looks like you gotta deal with me a bit longer."

He smiles, shaking his head before limping over to the edge of the cliff. All the other boys had already made the jump. Newt offers a gentleman's bow,

"Ladies first." He adds cheekily.

"Go right ahead then." You respond with a smirk.

Rolling his eyes, Newt jumps, disappearing into the invisible hole.

You take one last glance back at your home of two years. Then, you jump.

 Your heart jumps into your throat as you leap off the edge of the wall, descending down what seems to be a never ending drop. Yet, despite the brilliant illusion you fall through the invisible hole into a room filled with darkness and Griever slime.

You collapse onto a heap of boys, all stuck under the narrow entrance hole. A groan erupts from the pile as you land solidly on who you assume to be Newt since he jumped in seconds before you.

After several minutes of uncomfortable shifting and adjusting you're free from the pile and join Theresa and Chick by Thomas's side where he stands by an old computer monitor.

"How'd you do it?" You ask in awe.

Thomas shakes his head, "It was the code. Float, Catch, Bleed, Stiff, Push. It shut down the Grievers."

"I guess it wasn't useless after all." You shrug.

Your gaze then starts to travel around the room, taking in all of the dark walls covered in rotten smelling Griever slime.

After a moment of silence Fry Pan asks the question on everyones mind,

"So what now?"

As the words leave his lips a circular metal door slides open from what previously appeared to be a solid wall. Minho cautiously creeps over to it, half expecting to see a Griever waiting to strike unexpected.

"It looks like a slide." He says bewildered.

Minho then looks back at you with eyebrows raised.

"Well, what do we do?" He asks you.

Heat rises in your body as you sense all eyes falling on you. Again you question your decision to step up as a leader. Why on earth did you think you could handle this kind of pressure?

"Well..." You start, "I guess that's the way out. I say go for it."

Minho nods thoughtfully, "Lady's first then." He adds with a fearful glance at the hole.

You roll you eyes and move to the front of the group, standing in front of the hole. You take a deep breath and close your eyes. Here goes nothing.

Without a second thought you slide down the tube. You have to force down the bile rising in your throat as the stench of Griever slime covers your body and spews into your face. Within seconds you reach the bottom. You're now faced with an eerie dark hallway.

Turing back to the tube you out up to the others, telling them it's safe to come down. When the last boy slides out of the tube, Minho takes the first steps to lead the group down the hallway.

Yet, as he takes his second step, he activates some sort of motion activated light. With loud clicks which echo off the walls a trail of lights spring to life revealing something truly horrifying.

The corridor is filled with Grievers. 

Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. 1 Peter 5:7