< PART ONE: DEFIANCE >

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The world moves on, another day another drama, drama. 
But not for me, not for me. All I think about is Karma

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A cold hand was set down on her shoulder, the long pale fingers gripped her tightly. Jina tried not to flinch as Doctor Leavitt's fingers dug into her arm. Jina also automatically held her breath as Doctor Leavitt leaned down and looked over her shoulder checking her work on the screen. His strong coffee breath assaulted her nose and she tried even harder not to flinch. He hummed and nodded before straightening up.

"Very good Jina. This is excellent work. As always. Rachel," He turned to the girl on the screen beside Jina, "take some notes on how Jina is doing the categorization." his voice was icy now.

Jina squeezed her eyes closed and clenched her jaw hard. She hated being praised like this now. She had learned quickly it was never true praise, always some backhanded comment to others while Jina was praised for the same work. She hated how much it put a target on her back. When she worked one on one with Doctor Leavitt he was kinder, always genuinely praised for her work, but in their group workings it was always a way to correct others. He was harsh most of the time, but if you caught him at the right time during the day, usually right after his morning coffee, he was alright. Today though, he was definitely not in a good mood.

Rachel would always whine later and Teresa would always glare at her from across the desk, like it was a competition. The iron grip loosened off her shoulder and Jina slowly let the breath she was holding out. Once the heavy footfalls of Doctor Leavitt's shoes left the room, Jina sunk and placed her head in her hands exhaling heavily.

"How do you do it?"

Right on cue. Rachel's rather whinny voice hissed in her ear. "How do you understand this stuff? It's like, all the same! And how come he always looks at your computer? Tell me! How did you manage to become the number one student- you weren't even here the whole time! I've been here since day one and I still don't get it!"

"I don't see what the fuss is. My categorization of the different variables looks the same!" Teresa had got up from her computer and come over and was now looking at her work. She stood behind Jina with her arms crossed, glaring at the screen. 

"Guys, leave her alone. It's not like she asked for the attention. Tess, come back and sit down. We're almost done and then we can go!"

Jina's stomach twisted, she looked up, shoving her dark hair out of her eyes. The boy who sat across from her frowned at the other girls. He caught Jina's eyes.

"Thank you." She mouthed, but cursed herself as she felt heat rise up her neck and into her cheeks. Her face had turned the colour of a tomato.

The boy gave her a small smile and shrugged one shoulder. "Not your fault."

Jina nodded and looked back at the screens in front of her; the brain scans of one of the subjects from this morning plus all the other DNA and blood work scrolled slowly on the side. She enjoyed the work- it was interesting. She wanted to be a research doctor when she grew up, biology, chemistry, math; it all came easy to her. It made sense in her brain, it was like a puzzle and her brain just worked that way. Rachel was smart, just lacked the confidence. Teresa was also wicked smart, and Jina knew Doctor Leavitt and another Doctor, Ava Paige was meeting privately with her as well, so Jina wasn't sure why Tess was always so wound up all the time.

Jina glanced over at her friend beside her, Rachel's mousy brown hair was pulled back, but falling out of it's neat bun from all the times she ran her hands through it in frustration. She had a permanent squint and frown on her face. Jina sighed as quietly as she could and went back to her work.

After a few minutes she felt a nudge in her ribs, looking up she saw her other work partner, he was looking at her expectantly with his watery blue eyes. He pressed his lips together in a tight line.

"What?" She whispered, leaning over.

"That was the lamest interaction I've seen. Are you gonna do anything but glance at each other over your computers while you turn tomato red?" 

"Shut up!" She hissed back, already feeling her face heat up- again. She hated that she had told Aris about her crush on Thomas. All he did was tease her and bug her about it.

The five of them had been working together for a few years. At first it had only been Rachel and Aris on a project and Thomas and Teresa and then those four got to know each other.  While, Jina had first been with the large group of girls in the dorm section of the facility for her first four years; going to regular classes and training. And then one day her name was called in the middle of science class when she was ten years old, and had been told by Director Randell she was moving to a different floor in the facility. 

"You seem to have a better understanding in math and science than the rest of your current classmates. We would like to give you an opportunity of a life time. How would you like to help change the world and save humanity?"

"I would like that a lot, sir." Ten year old Jina had nodded vigorously.

Director Randell smiled down at her. "That's great! I knew we could count on you. With a mind like yours you will be assigned to the research side of things, there are a few kids your age already there. I think you will get along splendid."

"When do I start?"

"Right away. I'm taking you there right now, actually. You even get your own room! You will be working closely with Doctor Leavitt and Doctor Paige from now on."

Little did ten year old Jina know she would never see the other kids in her classes again. She never got to see her brother again. Jina was kept on such a tight busy schedule she hardly noticed for a while. However when she asked about seeing them she was either brushed off or scolded, saying they were trying to save a dying planet, there wasn't time for such emotional distractions. And her few years of help was worth the sacrifice. She learned to stop asking. She threw herself into her work instead, trying to fill the emptiness of missing her old friends and older brother.

The harder she worked the more she was noticed and praised. But the more she worked the more she started to notice discrepancies in the work in front of her. Jina had been working as a research assistant for 4 years now. She was slowly being given more and more independent work, and she was doing a lot of one on one work with either Doctor Leavitt or Paige. She wasn't really told much, but still given a lot. Jina felt proud that she had worked her way up through the crowd of kids at the beginning. Proving she was worth it, proving to them she was smart and academic, trustworthy and she deserved the spot she had. Doctor Paige had told her quite a bit, many things even Thomas and Teressa didn't know- who seemed to be her next favorites. Jina know that there were more than two mazes, they weren't as far along, still in the development stage, still recruiting possible candidates. She knew who were the top candidates in regards to the research for Kill zone patters. She was given more and more as both Doctor Leavett and Paige seemed to trust her. She even knew ahead of time about the big meeting with the other four. 

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Jina's stomach twisted as she walked into the meeting. Doctors Leavitt and Paige, Director Randell and even Chancellor Anderson were there, along with a few others, they were waiting for them at a big table. Teressa threw Jina a look as she sat down at the table. The meeting itself went fine, they were told they were going to be brought in on a special secret project- which Jina knew about already. 

"...One that would change the course of their research." Doctor Paige said,  "we are calling it The Maze Trials. We have been working towards this for years, and we are now ready to officially launch the Trial and bring our top tier candidates in on this"

Randell took over explaining, "The Trial is created for a group of subjects, who were Immune to the Flare, we will have them in a very controlled environment, where everything is provided for them to thrive, we will be monitoring their behavior and especially -"

"Their brain activity." Jina interrupted, she couldn't help it. "Their Kill zones." 

"Yes, exactly." Leavitt nodded, "very good Jina. The Trials consists of Variables designed to provoke certain Killzone patterns, which we call variables, which our research team would then use to to create a blueprint to use for the cure for the Flare."

"And we get to be in on this? Help designing the trial?" Teresa asked, sitting forwards.

"Indeed." Randell nodded. "You five are our top, the best of the best- those minds are outstanding, so we thought... why not bring you on, head up the project. Thomas and Teresa you will be in charge of the Elites in Maze A. Rachel, Aris, you will be heading up the elites in Maze B. Jina will be going back and forth between the two, where ever she is needed."

"And once these two mazes are up and running smoothly, we will launch a few more, the bigger the pool of candidates the better." Jina added. As Doctor Paige nodded, giving Jina a smile of approval. 

Jina caught Teresa's side eye. Jina's stomach dropped. Of course Teresa's and Thomas got to work closely together. Then she saw the nasty look she got after the smug smirk as Teresa realized Jina had again been handed a more superior roll, getting to work with both elite groups and the other potential groups. She didn't ask for the roll. Both Doctor Paige and Leavitt and Director Randell, and even Chancellor Anderson had met with her yesterday already explaining her roll in this new project launch. Jina had nodded and accepted her job just as everyone else had. 

She ran a hand through her long thick hair and shook her head. It wasn't about working with a boy who made her stomach twist and turn and her heart beat faster- this was about trying to find a cure for the disease that was killing the world. 

"Here is the work we have so far. Take these to your rooms and study it, read it and get acquainted with this information. We will see you bright and early tomorrow." Doctor Leavitt said as Doctor Paige slid each kid at the desk a manila envelope. Jina opened it up and it was full of new information. It would probably take her all evening to read this.

The Chancellor and Doctors, and Psyches, got up and left. Jina also got up, already reading the first page. Her nose was deep in the folder reading about expanding the maze trials. She only vaguely heard her name being called. She walked into something solid. 

"Oh, sorry, Tommy." Jina cried, almost falling backwards. Thomas reached out and grabbed her elbows before she landed on her butt. 

He set her on her feet before he cocked his head, "Tommy?" He asked, raising his eyebrows, trying hard not to laugh.

"Tess calls you Tom." She stammered,  "umm...sorry, if you don't like it. I can stick to Thomas. It is your name...it just kind of slipped out- sorry- Thomas." She was rambling now.  (Thomas wasn't actually his real name. They had all been given new names when they arrived at the facility. But Jina was so little she didn't remember her old name, and when she tried now, pain from the base of her skull shot down her spine, so she just stopped trying. She didn't actually know what Thomas's real name was.)

The boy in front of her mulled the name for a second, studying her face and then his light brown eyes lit up as he smiled. "nah, I like it when you say it." 

Jina wanted to melt into the floor, she felt her cheeks and ears turn pink, she bit her lip trying hard not to smile.

"Might be kinda weird if like... Aris said it...but I like it." Thomas grinned at her, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"Oh...well..." Jina forgot how to speak. Her heart slammed into her chest.

"Ya ..so, anyways. Umm I was hoping to ask ya something..." He suddenly seemed really nervous and shy. He was glancing around and then suddenly grabbed her elbow and pulled her into the hall, away from the others. And ushered her into the corner. Jina felt Teresa's eyes on her as they left the room.

"Tommy? What's going on?"

"Sorry...just don't want to be...over heard." He whispered urgently.

Jina raised her eyebrows, she was interested now. Thomas's big eyes looked around and then he looked back down at Jina and he stepped closer. She was very aware of how close he was standing to her. Her mouth was really dry, and her stomach was on a wild ride.

"So...you have a brother, right?" He whispered. 

Jina felt a tingle run through her body, a wild rush of adrenaline, fear and sadness. It was her time to look around quickly. There was no adults around and she didn't see any cameras on the walls or ceiling. She tried to swallow. 

"Y-yes." She whispered, her voice strained. "We came here together. And I haven't seen him in years." She suddenly felt the emotions she had shoved down over the years bubble to the surface. 

"Minho, right?" Thomas whispered again. He was urgent, like he needed to relay this information quickly, he also kept looking around.

"Ya. That's right..." Jina whispered back.

"Okay...it's a long story, but we have been meeting with a few guys...be ready at 1am. I'll come get you!" 

Jina opened and closed her mouth a few times, her heart started slamming into her chest and it felt like her stomach dropped onto the white tiled floor. She finally remembered she hadn't said anything for a solid minute, she was just staring at Thomas in disbelief. 

"Wait...you ..you've been s-seeing my brother?"

Thomas nodded. "Yeah...I didn't know you had a brother all these years...why didn't you say anything?" He looked genuinely hurt at not knowing this information.

"No one asked." Jina said, her voice hardly worked anymore, it was hardly above a whisper. It had been almost four and a half years since she had seen her brother. Would he even look the same? Was he still loud and ridiculous, always making jokes and turning things into a competition. Was he still super protective and very much a leader in groups? 

"Also...last time I asked Randell about my brother..." Jina trailed off and shivered. "I ended up in The Chair and...I don't remember much after that..." 

She squeezed her eyes closed and tightened her grip on the file, clutching it to her chest, trying to fight off the sudden tears. She remember the fear of Randell and the pain in her body and she had a splitting headache for a few days. She felt a hand on her arm, she blinked and looked up, Thomas was frowning.

"Was that the time you were in the hospital wing in quarantine? They told us you had some kind of flu bug. Weren't allowed to come visit for a few days..."

Jina cocked her head and frowned, glaring at the wall behind Thomas, "Yes. I think. I... felt fine when I was discharged, no real lingering symptoms. I don't actually remember being there, Tommy..."

"Oh. That's...weird, isn't it?"

Jina just nodded, trying not to fully cry now. This was a lot of overloading information.

"I was told I had a fever and was pretty out of it. Doctor Leavitt said it wasn't the flare, but they didn't want it spread around. I remember a really bad headache...I remember the chair and being discharged from the Hospital wing. Nothing between."

"Oh .." he frowned, "...spread around...the fact you have a brother? Seems...weird. I know another set of siblings who were being kept apart too, they don't get to see each other..."

"Really?" Jina asked, finally looking back up at Thomas. He was looking at her, but his mind was going a thousand different directions. He was thinking, trying to solve the puzzle. Why keep siblings apart, why send her to the chair for asking about her brother...why tell others a lie about where she had been, and what happened between the chair and the hospital wing? It didn't make sense.

Jina shook her head. Did she want to see Minho? Yes, absolutely she did, but...she was scared. She missed him so much, she didn't even know he was still in the building! But she was terrified of Randell and being caught, what if she jeopardized her spot in this research project? What would Randell do to her if she was caught? She bit her lip hard.

"Well..." He blinked a few times and looked back down at her and smiled, his half smirk and half little shy smile that made her cheeks flush pink and her stomach do somersaults. "So...Tess and I will pick you up at 1am sharp. She's figured out how to rig the security cameras so they are on loop."

Jina's heart sunk just a little. We ...Thomas had said Tess and him were going to get her, not he was going to. But she smiled anyways, "Thanks Tommy. I've got a lot of reading to do now. I guess..."

"Oh. Ya, ya it's a lot..." He trailed off rubbing the back of his neck.

They stood in the hall only a few inches from each other. There was a sharp click from the office door. Thomas looked around. Teresa stepped out of the door, and stopped, her eyes narrowed. Thomas stepped back quickly.

"Ready for some studying? There's a lot to cram for." Thomas grinned at Jina and gave her a small wink. "See ya later Jina!" He left down the hall with Teressa beside him.

Jina leaned against the wall and puffed her cheeks and let a long exhale go.

"Umm. Explain that right now!"

"Aris!" Jina whined.

She peeked an eye open at the boy beside her. He had his hands on his hips. He grabbed her arm and dragged her down the hall after the other pair. Jina could hear them bickering and arguing about something. Aris didn't let go of Jina until they came to his room. He opened the door and shoved her inside and closed the door.

"Sit and explain!" He pointed a threatening finger at her. 

Jina dropped the file on Aria's desk and flopped onto his bed. She explained in detail. Aris was the best person to tell secrets to. She knew he wouldn't judge- tease sure. But he also liked to whisper and giggle about Thomas. Aris had become her best friend since she was removed from the big group of girls. Tess and Rachel were nice and all, but her and Aris just clicked, he was also not competitive and didn't seem so catty with her. She had cried on his shoulder many times. She had vented and raged, and giggled, whispered soul secrets too. He also didn't get so up tight about her one on one work with the Doctors. And he always, always had her back.

"So are you going to go?" Aris asked eagerly.

"I haven't seen him in four years! But also...almost a week of recovery from the Chair when I asked about him...I'm kinda nervous."

"Girl! If Thomas and Teresa have been doing it for a few months already, I'm sure it's fine. Tess is really smart with computers, I've seen her rehaul some footage- you'll be good!"

"I don't know..."

"Go! He's your brother!" Aris insisted.

Jina bit her lip nervously, still very unsure about this.

She had a hard time paying attention on her work that evening. She couldn't considerate and highlighted the wrong parts. Again. She threw the highlighter down and groaned.

"You better be going! It's 12: 58!" Aris's voice floated through her mind.

"I hate you!"

"Nah you love me!"

Being able to communicate with him through their mind was weird. It took her a long time to become use to the link- it hurt at first, but now it was easy, it was comforting, always having that voice- that presence with her. She could actually communicate with the others too, just not as easy, and it felt like a bit of a violation of privacy. Rachel always felt awkward and uncomfortable, but over the years it became more comfortable. Teresa's always felt cold and unwelcoming. And she couldn't work up the courage with Thomas. Her stomach and heart were way too nervous to mind link with him. 

Except for now, apparently.

"Hey, Jina, on my way." Thomas's voice made her jump. Jina got up off her bed, ran her fingers through her hair. Her stomach on a wild rollercoaster of emotions right now, she almost felt like throwing up. Her hands shook and she squeezed them into fists a few times. trying to relax.

There was a sharp knock on her door.

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Long chapter. And For WattMama, not a lot of trauma. 

Yet....
Buckle up my Shanks. It's coming.
Maybe not a lot of physical trauma but there will be some good mental trauma. ;)