"Come on, hermanos. Get in!" Jorge tells us as he hops in the front seat of Bertha.

"I call shotgun!" Newt called out as he ran to the passenger door. He had just beaten me.

"Damnit Newt!" I exclaim.

He laughs. "Sorry, Ted. Better luck next time," his smile ranges from ear to ear as I slam shut his door.

I end up sitting in the seat directly behind Jorge. Next to me is Frypan and next to him is Aris, then next to Aris is Brenda. Teresa, Thomas, and Minho are all in the very back.

Jorge chuckles. "Hold on tight kids. We've got a long drive ahead of us."

Jorge starts driving fast and I feel lucky I got the view out the window. I watch as we drive out of Crank city— the name I heard Jorge call it earlier. I see the mountains far away in the distance, and I'm more than excited to finally see what awaits for us.

The cold breeze from the open roof washes over my skin, sending chills down my neck. The change in temperature is astonishing how it went from burning hot to bone chilling. I wrap myself tightly in my jacket, luckily it'll keep me warm.

~~~

It's about in hour nobody has spoken for most of the ride. We're all way too exhausted and worn out from everything that's happened in only the past week or so. I have to admit it feels good to just have silence. It's not awkward or uncomfortable. It's calming and peaceful and I love it.
Silence is always something I loved. Even in the Glade.

Thinking of the Glade makes my heart swarm with memories. I miss it so much. I miss Chuck. I miss Alby. All my friends. My brothers.

"You alright?" I hear Newt whispers. I turn my head (which was resting on my hand) to face Newt. I swear to god he can read me like a book. He has a worried look on his face which makes me wonder what expression I had on my own.

A smile grows on my face. "Yeah... yeah I am. Thanks," I whisper back.
And for once, it couldn't be more true. We are hours away from our destination and a new life and peace. I can't wait!

~~~

The vehicle rocks as Jorge drives across a rocky slope. The temperatures as dropped even more in only a few hours. The sky has big, grey, fluffy clouds covering it. The sun only shines through a small opening when the clouds aren't in the way.

Most of my friends have drifted off to sleep, or are resting their eyes. I've tried to fall asleep, but there are too many thoughts that cannot seem to escape my head.

There is a small radio in the front which has been playing for most of the ride. I listen to the lyrics of each song and occasionally ask Jorge for details about it.
"When was it written?" Or "who's it about?" Or "why was it written?" And more too, but I think you get the gist.
Jorge never really had answers for any of my questions. He seemed annoyed so I stopped asking. The questions still lingered in my mind.

I remember how in the Glade I asked for books and they sent some up in the box. I would do anything to have them with me now. I love being able to dive into a fictional world, and away from reality.

Now Jorge is driving up the side of the rocky mountain. All of us are now awake and aware that this is the mountain in the distance. The mountain that could potentially save our lives from the infected and change our lives forever. Free from WICKED.

I perk my head up when Bertha comes to a stop. "What's going on?" I asked confused as I look out the front window. "Oh..."

Multiple cars block the road. The only way to get to the other side with Bertha.

"Welp," Brenda says, popping the 'p.' "Guess we're on foot now."

The pain in my knee is still in a brutal amount of pain. The thought of walking horrifies me. I'll never understand how Newt could do it all these years.

But, I follow everyone out of Bertha. We start making our way through the maze of cars when all of the sudden I hear a gunshot ring through the air, then glass of the car directly in front of us shatter.

"Shit!" I exclaim.

"Get down!"

"Take cover!"

And before I know it I'm being pulled to the ground by someone, hiding behind a car. Multiple shots fly by and I realize it's Newt's arms that I'm in.

My breath becomes unsteady and I try to calm myself down.

"Hey is everyone okay?!" Thomas shouts from behind a car.

"Yeah!" I call back, along with the others.

Newt loosens his grips around me but never let's go fully. And I don't want him too.

Wait—

I'm snapped out of my thoughts when Newt speaks up. "Does anyone know where those bloody shots came from!?"

No answers.

"The son of a bitch Marcus," I whisper to Newt. "He led us into a goddamn ambush."

When the bullets stop coming, a strong, stern feminine voice shouts at us. "Show yourselves!"

Only from hearing her voice I know I don't want to mess with her. I hesitantly stand up from Newt's grasp and see the others are already coming out from hiding.

I peer over the cars and notice two girls standing with guns pointing directly at us, and masks covering their faces.

"Come out!" The firm voice says. I believe the voice is coming from the girl with brown hair.

This time I walk out fully with my hands up and my heart racing. I know she won't hesitate to shoot me.

"You two!" She calls out. "Over here, now!"

Aris and Thomas come out from behind another car and slowly make their way to the front of the group.

"Don't be stupid! Move!"

My jaw nearly drops to the floor when both girls put their guns and masks down. I didn't expect them to do that so quickly...

"...Aris....?" The blonde girl says.

"Sonya!?" Aris exclaims.

Pure confusion is flooding over me and I exchange glances with my friends.

The blonde girl (now known as Sonya) drops her gun out of her hands and runs up to Aris and they give each other a bone crushing hug. The smile on her face is so wide. I don't think I've ever seen someone so happy. I watch tears of joy spill from her beautiful brown eyes.

"Aris you're lucky we didn't shoot your dumbass!" Sonya mutters.

Sonya finally pulls out of the hug and Aris goes and hugs the other girl. Just not as tight. Or as long.

"What the hell are you doing here?!" The brown hair girl happily exclaims. It's funny how her voice changed so much in only a matter of seconds.

Aris doesn't have time to respond when he's interrupted. "Uh— what's happening...?" Thomas questions.

Minho then speaks up with a smirk on his face. "Care to introduce us, Aris?" I see him making eyes at the brown haired girl. Yes! I think to myself. Maybe I'll have something to tease him about! Now's definitely not the time to plot how I'm going to tease my best friend, but maybe it'll get him to stop picking on Newt and I! Or not— Minho can be unpredictable at times.

"Guys this is Harriet and Sonya!" He exclaims. "We we're in the Maze together!"

"We're clear, guys!" Harriet shouts while turning her head. "Stand down!

"You're alive!" Aris says happily. It makes me smile seeing the look on his face.

Aris was always the one that kept to himself. He never really told us much about his experience in the Maze or really about anything that's happened in his life.
Ever since I met him I thought of him as a friend. Seeing Aris now with these girls I know now that I really wasn't ever a friend but more an acquaintance. Maybe in the future.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Aris says. "This is Group A," he points to each of us as he gives them our names. "Thomas, Minho, Newt, Teddy, Teresa, Frypan, and Brenda and Jorge; who we found in the Scorch."

I give a big smile and a small wave.

"Sounds like you have a big story to tell," Harriet smiles.

Aris nods slightly. "It's complicated."

Sonya laughs. "We'll come on, then. Let's take you to base."

While the girls are leading us to cars, Aris asks, "Wait so, how did you guys get here?"

"The Right Arm got us out," Sonya simply replies.

"Wait— The Right Arm?" Thomas asks. "Do you know where they are?"

Harriet smirks. "Hop in," she gestures her hands at two cars, motioning us to pile in.

Brenda, Jorge, Aris, Newt and I go in a car with Sonya. Then Thomas, Teresa, Frypan, and Minho go with Harriet.

It takes only about a minute to drive to their "base." Sonya stops and we all get out. The others park behind us.

"They've been planing this for over a year now," Harriet informs us. "This is all for us."

We all admire the base. It's definitely not what I expected at all, but I couldn't be more grateful.

"You guys are lucky you found us when you did," I turn my head to face Sonya. We're moving at first light."

I look into Sonya's eyes as she speaks and for a split second I can see Newt's. It totally throws me off guard in utter shock. I quickly blink away and look at the ground. What the hell was that about! I freak. It was truly weird but I brush off the thoughts immediately.

Then they come back. They have the same eyes... the same hair...

"Where's Vince?!" I'm thrown out of my thoughts by Harriet shouting.

"Some where over there!" I hear a man shout from a distance.

"Who's Vince?" Thomas asks. Harriet gives me the kind of look basically saying, "why the hell does this kid ask so many questions!?" I tilt my head and smile in agreement.

She inhales deeply before responding. "He's the one who decides if you get to stay."

"I thought The Right Arm was supposed to be an army." Minho questions.

"Yeah... we were. This is all that's left of us." Harriet mentions.

Sonya adds on. "Lots of good people died getting us this far."

"Who are they...?"

We turn our heads to see a man approaching us, (who I assume is this Vince guy) along with a few other men.

"They're immunes," Harriet says confidently. "Caught em' coming up in the mountain." She smiles.

"Did you check em'?" The man asks, showing no facial expression what so ever.

Sonya shakes her head. "I know this guy, Aris. I trust him." She rests her hand on his shoulder.

"Well I don't," Vince says. "Check em'."

"Hey boss..." a man from behind Vince speaks up but my attention on him doesn't last long. I follow his eyes to Brenda.

Her face looks flushed as I watch her eyes roll back into her head before collapsing on the dirt ground.

"Brenda! Brenda!" Jorge exclaims. He kneels down beside her, who looks like she's having a seizure.

"Jesus...!" my panicked voice trails off watching the situation go down.

"What's going on with her!?" Vince nearly shouts.

Jorge shakes his head, while trying to calm down the wheezing girl in front of him. "I— I don't know..."

Thomas kneels down. "Brenda! Talk to me!"

It's all too painful to watch, so I step away from the others. The sounds don't escape my ears, though.

"CRANK! We gotta Crank!" Vince does shout this time.

My eyes widen in fear. I rush back to the group.

"No! No!"

"Wait! Just listen!"

I peer in between the people in front of me and see Vince holding a gun at Brenda.

"Listen okay?!" Thomas says. "This just happened okay! She's not dangerous yet!"

"You shouldn't have brought her here!" Vince argues.

Thomas's shoulders slouch. "I know..." he says quietly.

"We let the cranks in here now, the safe haven doesn't last a week!"

"I understand okay! I understand... just listen please. Please? I told her that you could help! There's gotta be something we can do!"

"Yeah, there is," Vince says. For a second I can see the hope in Thomas's eyes. "I can put her out of her misery!"

He cocks the gun and our whole group shouts at him.

"Vince, that's enough," I follow the voice to the person, a beautiful women with brown eyes and hair.

"She's infected, Doc!" He replied. "There's nothing we can do for her."

This day can't get any more weirder.

"No... but he can," she points to Thomas. "Hello, Thomas."

"What... you know me?" He questions.

She slowly nods her head. "Interesting. It makes since, they put you in the Maze. Though I must admit, I was worried they'd kill you after what you did."

I exchange looks with the group.

"What I did?"

She nods again. "The first time we spoke, you said you couldn't take it anymore... watching your friends die, one by one. The last time we spoke... your gave me the coordinates of every WICKED compound, trial and lab." By the time she's done speaking her smile has grown incredibly larger.

It kinda makes me sad that I don't remember anything either. Like how I actually had a family. A family used to be something so foreign to me, then I realized who my true family really was.

"... he was our source!" Vince's face lights up with realization.

"We couldn't have pulled this all off without him," the women adds. "Take her to the tent, and get these guys some warm clothes!" She instructs.

~~~

Dang this chapter was long! I prefer long chapters when I'm reading, though. Hopefully a new part will be up tomorrow! Sorry for any errors. Thanks for reading! xx