WICKED is Good

Chapter Seventeen

Coughing, I pushed myself up. I could hear the masks getting closer again, so I started running, but had to lean on the wall to even stand.

Someone grabbed around my neck, then tried to pull me away.

I managed to shout to the others, "Run!" But the person overpowered me, throwing me into a truck.

Two more people were thrown in. Thomas and Brenda.

"You two okay?" I checked.

"Yeah," Thomas replied, "You?"

I shrugged, forcing a smile into my face, "Still as blind as ever."

The heartbeat and breathing of one of the masks sat across from us sped up. Thomas elbowed me.

"What?" I asked.

"You just go around announcing you're blind?"

I rolled my useless eyes, "Not admitting it doesn't make it less true."

"So you'll just tell them weaknesses?"

"Why is this a problem?" I asked. I sensed the masks getting more and more uncomfortable, "It was a joke. Am I not allowed to make jokes now?"

Brenda laughed, "Whenever you two are done arguing," she muttered the rest of what she said so quietly only I could hear, "Take them by surprise."

I nodded faintly before lunging forwards and pulling one of them into a chokehold, taking their gun and shooting the other two.

Unfortunately, it was just a stun gun.

As the back of the truck opened, I kicked out the only conscious one, leaping out myself a moment later.

"Who are you and what do you want?" I asked.

The two of us were distracted by shouts, one of the trucks rocking side to side. The door opened, revealing Jorge tackling one of the masks.

"Where is she?" He shouted.

"I'm right here," Brenda sounded more bored than anything, "And I'm fine."

I heard a drop hit the ground in the truck Jorge had come out of. Too thick to be water, too thin to be oil.

"Jorge, why'd you have to make a blood splattered mess of that truck?" I asked.

I got no answer.

"We're on the same side," said the mask I had attacked.

"Who even are you?" Thomas asked.

I heard a rush of air as they removed their mask, "Hello greenie."

"Please tell me I've gotten that voice wrong," I said to Newt.

But they were all in shock. Thomas whispered, "Gally?"

Great. I didn't get it wrong. I thought Minho and I both threw spears at him. I thought he was dead.

The room was silent except for the noise of Thomas lunging at Gally, punching him in the face.

Gally deserved it, but I grabbed Thomas' arm, "No."

"He killed Chuck," Thomas' voice was breaking, "Don't you remember?"

"Of course I remember," I snapped, "I also remember he was stung and half out of his mind. Hear him out."

I listened as Thomas backed away.

"I deserved that," Gally admitted, standing up, "Anyone else? Newt? Fry? Max?"

"You know this guy?" Brenda asked.

I nodded, "From the Maze," from an eternity ago. I added, "You doing pretty good for a dead guy."

"I didn't die," Gally argued, "Now, why are you here?"

"WICKED took Minho," I stated, "We're going to get him back. We just need a way in."

Gally sighed, "I may be able to help with that." We followed him through a few hallways, "How don't you trip over? Or understand facial expressions?"

I shrugged, "Echoes. Heartbeats. Breathing patterns."

"Huh," Gally replied, "This guy doesn't get a lot of visitors, so let me do the talking. And try not to stare."

I gestured to my eyes, but I knew no one was looking.

We walked down the stairs to a man cutting flowers, "Rose took my nose. I suppose it blows, my dear Rose took my nose."

A man was muttering it as he cut flowers. His breathing was labored, and his heartbeat was slow. His voice sounded on the edge of insanity.

He had the Flare.

"Who are these people?"

"They're from the Maze. Immunes," Gally explained.

The man asked, "And why are they here?"

"We need a way into the city. Gally said you could help," Thomas said. So much for letting Gally do the talking.

"Gally should know better than to make promises he can't keep," the man replied, "Get out."

Gally winced, probably expecting Thomas to kill him.

"You want WICKED gone?" I asked, "So do we. You want the city, we can get it for you. We just need a way in."

The man hesitated.

"I did not come this far to take no for an answer," I continued, "If you won't help us, I'm sure WICKED would love to know the location of a rebel base. Am I correct?"

"I suggest you watch your tongue before you lose it," the man hissed.

I spread my wings behind me, "Is that a threat?"

Everyone in the room backed away, even Thomas and the others. They knew what happened if they crossed me when I was angry.

"Will you help us or not?" I asked.

"Gally can take three of you to the city. The other three stay here as insurance," the man gave in.

I sensed Gally nodding as it was decided. Thomas, Newt, and I started getting ready to go.

Well, I was ready, as was Thomas. Newt was fiddling with his shoe as Gally opened a sewer vent.

"You handled that well," Brenda remarked, "Nothing works better than threatening your allies."

"It stops her from flying in on her own without a plan," Frypan replied, "I say it's a win/win."

Gally seemed frustrated, "Let's go."

I followed him into the sewer, Thomas and Newt behind me.

"So what happened?" Gally asked, "Stare at the sun?"

"Lightning, actually," I corrected, remembering how Minho had thrown me out of the way, getting hit by the lightning in the process.

Gally sighed as we climbed up into the city, "They've upped security. I'm guessing you lot have something to do with that."

No way. It wasn't like we'd freed a bunch of kids that WICKED wanted to experiment on. It wasn't like we wanted our friend back.

"Probably," Newt replied, looking amazed at the sheer amount of tech in the city.

"I know it's hard," Gally said, "But try to act like you've seen it all before."

I muttered, "Won't be an issue."

We climbed a ladder to a set of stairs until we were near the top of the wall. Gally grabbed what felt like a spyglass and started aiming it.

"There's our way in," Gally let Thomas look.

By the way Thomas' breath caught in his throat, his heard fluttered and raced, it could only be one person.

Teresa.