"Alby!" She screamed.

Tuning as fast as she could she ran down the hall and shoved the Homestead door open and ran into the dinning area, screaming for Alby. The boy was sitting at the table with a cup of coffee. He turned at her wild yelling.

"Hey, Girly, where's the fire?"

She skidded to a stop in front of the table and slammed the paper down on the table in front of Alby.

"Tori?" Gally caught up to her finally, "what's going on?"

"Something's wrong with Newt. Now someone needs to believe me!" She cried turning to Gally.

"Breath Girly. Tell me what's wrong."

"Newt takes great care of his cat, always has a clean tidy room. But I u Peaches howling and scratching at the door, he was disheveled and sad. His room is ripped apart and trashed. And then I found this."

She held up the paper.

Alby took it and his eyes went wide and his mouth dropped open. He handed it to Gally, who's face went pale.

"Shuck!" Alby cursed.

"Do you guys finally believe me?" She hissed.

"Tori, we always believed you, but clearly something is even worse today!" Gally tried to soothed her, he laid a hand in her back, but she could see how shaken he was.

"Where is he? He left already didn't he?! Something's not right. He's going to try something! He's calling for help!"

"Ya...ya we saw him leave on our way to get you out!"

"Dammit!"

Alby got up and started towards the wall door. Victoria was on his heels. She let the cat down and he took off for the barn. She followed Alby until they stopped right infront of the doors.

"Are you going to look for him?"

Alby nodded. "I agree with you, something is wrong. I don't like it. And in going to find him. You coming? I could use your sharp mind, Girly."

Victoria hesitated. Her eyes flicked to the big doors and she chewed her bottom lip and tugged on a curl. Alby sighed rolled his eyes and turned to her and Gally.

"I, Alby, Leader of this shucken Glade, give you Tori, keeper of the Barn and Gally, Keeper of the Builders grant you permission to leave the Glade and venture into the Maze to look for a Glader who is screaming for shucken help." He folded his arms and rolled his eyes. "Better?"

Victoria slowly nodded, "okay. Okay, All, I'll come help. Only because it's Newt and he's one of the only kind ones."

She heard Gally groan, but he relented. "Only because she's going."

Alby nodded and turned and together the three of them crossed into the forbidden halls.

Victoria's eyes were wide and her skin was crawling. The walls were huge and looked more menacing inside the wall. Everything was dark and cool. The air was damp and cold. There was some weird mist, she didn't know where it was coming from. Taking a closer look around the stone walls looked old and ancient, like they stood the test of time. Moss and ivy grew in random places.
There were giant gouges and scratches in the thick grey stone.

"What are those?"

"I'm guessing marks from the Maze monsters."

"Shuck. What are those things!" Gally whispered.

"Let's not find out." Alby whispered, "come on. We gotta find Newt."

What felt like all morning they jogged and walked randomly calling for Newt. Alby kept asking if she remembered the way back and Victoria would nod.

They rounded yet another turn that looked just like the last turn. A wild terrible anguished scream echoed through the stone corridors. It bounced around, making it sound like it was from all around them. The trio froze and looked at each other.

"Newt!" Victoria whispered.

She took off in the direction of the scream, pushing her body hard. She never liked running, she hated how her body would burn and ache. The impact of her feet hitting the concrete made her joints hurt. But she knew something was very wrong. She heard Newt scream some more, now she was closer she could make out the words.

"I hope you're happy! This is on you!"

She heard a wild sob of despair.

Her head snapped up, eyes wide open. She knew what was going to happen next.

"NO!"

She screamed so loud, her vocal cords just about ripped. She pushed herself even more, she had left the boys behind. She wasn't a runner, and neither was Gally or Alby apparently. She turned the corner just as Newt launched himself from about half way up the wall. He climbed the ivy and jumped.

Victoria slid to a stop, her mouth wide open in a silent scream. She watched in helpless horror as his leg became tangled in the thick ivy. She heard the bone snap a few times from where she was. Newt screamed. Victoria flinched. The ivy slowed him down just enough. His body flipped upside down, and he was slammed into the stone wall. The ivy gave way and he tumbled the rest of the way down. His head hit the stone floor with such a sickening crack bile rose up in Victoria's throat.

Newt wasn't screaming anymore. He wasn't crying anymore. And he definitely wasn't moving.

Victoria wasn't breathing. She registered nothing but the unmoving boy wrapped in ivy, laying in a crumpled heap. Her mind shut off and like it was on autopilot, her feet carried her across the hall where she knelt down.

With a surprisingly steady hand she reached out, placing it over his heart and leaning her face closer; she felt the rhythmic thudding of his heart, and the shallow ragged breathing tickled her cheek. She knew his body was already going into shock, but he was still there. Newt was still alive.

With a wild gasp, she reached for his face, gently turning it towards her. He had tear tracks down his face. Deep dark bags under his eyes, and now bright red blood covered his face.

Victoria cursed. He was still tangled in the ivy, his leg bending at an angle that made even Victoria's stomach twist and had to look away.

"Okay, Newt, stay with me. I got your note. I'm here to help. Stay with me."

She glanced over her shoulder, the guys finally made it.and they slowed down as they approached Newt. She looked back to Newt, trying to untangle the ivy from around him.

"Alby! Knife!" She called.

Glancing over her shoulder she saw Alby with his hand on the wall and bending over, he had emptied his breakfast on the stone floor. Gally didn't look much better, but he stumbled closer and dropped down beside Victoria. Watching as her hands flew over his body checking for other injuries.

"Alby! Knife! Now!" She yelled, "he's still alive!"

With shaking hands he took his knife from his belt and tossed it across the stone floor. Victoria scrambled to pick it up. Twisting back to the bloody unconscious body, she started cutting the ivy away from his twisted leg. The knife was sharp and she made fast work of it. She had nothing to stop the bleeding with, she knew head wounds bleed a lot more then other wounds, and it always looked worse, but still, she needed something.  The three of them came in here unprepared, bringing nothing but Alby's knife.

She pulled her shirt off and used the knife to rip it into long strips. Gally went to protest but the glare she gave him shut him up fast. As best she could she wrapped it around his head.

"Gal. I need you to hold him. Alby get your ass over here! I need you to hold him down too!" She called.

Alby stumbled and dropped down, his eyes unfocused.

"What are you going to do?" Gally asked hesitantly.

"We can't drag him back like this. So as sucky as it's gonna be. I gotta at least put his ankle back into place."

"Shucken hell!" Alby whispered, looking like he was going to pass out.

She grabbed his shoulders, giving him a bit of a shack. "It's that or we watch the blood pool in his leg and then I have to amputate it because there's no flood circulation. So suck it up All!" She snapped.

She told them to hold him down as she adjusted herself. She took a steading breath.

"One." She slid his boot off.

"Two." She took hold of his foot and ankle.

"Three."

She twisted his ankle, she felt it snap back. Newt's eyes flew open and he screamed once and then he passed back out. Victoria didn't have time to flinch, she took the rest of the strips of cloth from her shirt and wrapped in around his ankle to secure it. She then took the thick ivy and wrapped it around his leg, it wasn't great, but it was all she had, and the ivy was thick, and if wrapped tight enough and close together it was stiff enough to keep the bones from shifting more. She would have to come up with something better once they got home.

"Come on! We gotta get him back!" She finally said once she was done tying the ivy off.

"Yeah, yeah.... you're right. Okay..." Alby muttered.

She knew Alby was in shock, she needed to get both of them back to the Glad. Gally seemed to be functioning on very simple yet direct orders, but he was up and was helping Victoria with Newt. But Victoria knew she wasn't strong enough to carry Newt.

"Alby!" She snapped, "come here and help Gally take Newt. I'm too short, but I'll keep us back."

Once Newt was situated between the guys, it's like their brain clicked and they were functional again, having a job and being able to do it.

It was slow going. They had to stop constantly for Victoria to try and stop the bleeding, and she did her best to keep him from bleeding out or going into shock. At least not yet. The guys were muttering to themselves. Newt's head rolled limply. Every time his injured leg bumped the ground she flinched. She could hear his ragged breathing becoming shallower. Victoria was internationally cursing.

She had led them back through the maze with little difficulty. There were only a few more turns left. The sun was setting which means the walls would be closing in an hour. She didn't say anything, knowing that Gally and Alby were struggling enough already.

"Almost there guys!" She called over her shoulder.

She stumbled and let a loud scream out, slapping a hand over her mouth she just about collapsed. Alby and Gally whipped around. Standing half way down the corridor was one of the Maze Monsters. How it snuck up on them Victoria didn't know. She would have nightmares for life. It was huge and horrifying. Half machine, half blubber animal and all parts vicious death.

Everyone was frozen. No one moved. Gally was frozen in a silent scream, Alby looked like he was been petrified solid and Victoria forgot to breath. The monster didn't move, it's dark beady eyes stared at them, eyeing then up. Victoria's lungs and heart kicked back in, like a jolt of lighting went through her. She lunged at the guys grabbing Alby and Gally by the front of the shirt and yanked on them.

"Move!" She hissed. Dragging them a few steps down the hall. "Come on! Move!"

They finally started moving again, only got the monster to scream. It was a wild bloodthirsty animalistic scream. Victoria ducked around Alby and was now behind them shoving and pushing on them.

"Go! Move it! Come on! Faster!" She screamed.

The monster started towards the group. The guys went as fast as they could.

"Tori!" Gally screamed.

"I'm right behind you!" she yelled back, "but you need to move your ass!"

They rounded another corner.

"Go! Left. Left. Right." Victoria screamed.

"Wait! Tori!"

But Victoria had already turned back to face the monster. She had no idea what to do. She couldn't fight it, but she could distract it at least. She charged towards it. Her fear turned to adrenaline, and that was enough. She ran towards it screaming. The thing hesitated, like it wasn't used to people running towards it in defiance.

The hesitation was enough for her to drop and slid underneath it and scramble out behind it. It screamed again and turned around. A whip extended from behind it, like a scorpion tail. A long sharp deadly claw opened and closed a few times like it was testing it's grabber. Victoria's burst of energy and confidence deflated, now she just wanted to curl up and cry. She slowly backed up. The monster advanced slowly. It's long sword like legs slowly stabbing into the stone, causing the long deep crevices in the floor.

Her breathing was coming in short gasps now. The claw shot out towards her, she managed to dive to the side and roll out of the way just in time. Victoria scrambled to her feet, only to have to dive the other way. The monster was now over top of her, she had to roll and scramble back and forth, trying to avoid the king sharp stabbing spider legs and the whipping tail with the claw. And now, she saw a saw blade extending from its back along with a long sharp needle appeared from the middle of the claw.

She choaked back a sob as she scrambled the other way. She felt seating pain in her arm, her roll wasn't quite fast enough, and a leg sliced her shoulder. Screaming in pain she shuddered and thrashed.

"Victoria!"

"Gally." She whimpered between sobs.

"No!"

The monster turned its head at the wild scream. The tail whipped towards him so fast he didn't react fast enough, it pinned him to the wall. A wild pain riddled scream ripped from Gally. It was so full of pain and anguish it ripped at Victoria's heart. The claw let go and Victoria saw the needle retract. Gally slid down the wall, screaming and thrashing. And just as fast and silent as it appeared, the monster was gone. Leaving a bruised and bloody Victoria and a stung Gally.

With a wild cry, Victoria struggled to her feet and staggered and stumbled over to Gally. She saw the poison already working its way into his system.

"No no no! Gally! Why?" She sobbed.

He sat up suddenly, his eyes flying open.

"You!" He screamed.

"Gally?"

"You!" He repeated, spit flying from his mouth. "You shouldn't be here!"

He lunged at her, knocking her backwards. Landing with a thud and a cry of pain Gally tried to grab hold of her. Before he could something slammed into the back of his head and he rolled off Victoria and was still.

Standing over her, looking like he was ready to murder her was a sweaty and panting Minho.

"What the actual shuck are you two doing in here?" He screamed.

"What did you do to him?" She cried, scrambling to her knees, rolling Gally over, holding his face in her hands.

"Knocked him out! He was trying to murder you. You're shucken welcome. I can think of a way you can thank me later."

Victoria looked up at him in horror and disgust. "What is your problem?" She spat.

"Well, next time I see a couple's spat, I won't step in and rescue you, with an attitude like that."

She had no words.

"Again....what the shuck are you two doing out here? I thought you were all about rules?"

"We came in with Alby!" She cried. "Newt tried to kill himself, Minho! If you had just listened to me! We wouldn't have to be here!"

He looked like he was going to combust. Or strangle her. Every muscle tensed, his jaw was clenching so tight she thought at least a few teeth cracked. His eyes were trying to kill her. "Don't you pin this on me, girl!"

"Whatever, Minho. I'll deal with that when we get back." She struggled to her feet. "help me with him!"

Minho looked like she just slapped him. "excuse me?"

"You knocked him out! The doors close in 10 minutes! We need to get back!"

"And why is helping you and your coward and rule breaking boyfriend my problem?"

She spun towards him, and shoved him in the chest. "it's your problem, because I could have had him chase me back to the Glade. It's your problem because if you listened to me the first few times I told you about Newt we wouldn't have had to come in her looking for him. It's your problem because your the Shucken Keeper. It's your problem because you have been nothing but a shucken nasty pig! Now help me get him back!"

He rolled his eyes but he did help haul Gally up. They had Gally draped between them. It was awkward because she was shorter and smaller. She was also bleeding profusely from her shoulder, and her head was pounding from smacking it on the ground a few times. They rounded the first corner before Minho spoke.

"Why was he trying to kill you? What did you do to piss him off?"

"He was stung."

"A Griever got him?"

"The blubbery machine monster?"

"Ya."

"Then ya, a Griever."

"The shuck?"

"Alby and Gally were carrying Newt back-"

"How did they know how to get back?"

"I led them?" She huffed confused. "why is that important?"

"Because you haven't been inside the maze..."

"So? Memorize the turns to get there and it's just backwards to get out." She answered him, she gave him a look like duh.

"How the shuck...?"

She rolled her eyes understanding now. He didn't understand how a girl could figure out the maze. "Not just a pretty face." She huffed. She had to take a few breaths before speaking again. "Left and then right. This is section 5. But if we don't move it we'll be stuck, the walls will change at night blocking us in for a about a week before it reopens."

Minho stopped dead in his tracks.

"How the shuck do you know that? And what are you shucken talking about?"

"Less talking. More moving!"

They continued down the hall, dragging Gally between them. Five more minutes.

"The walls change. Every night. There must be different sections in the maze, depending on how many sections, but about a week, give it take a day I'd say about 8 sections and it changes each night. One closed and a new one opens."

"What the actual shuck? How do you know that?"

"By listening and observing you Shuckface! Also I've been in your map room. I've seen your maps. How did you not figure that out?"

Minho looked like he wanted to stop and strangle her, but as they turned the last corner there was a wild wind from behind them and the floor started vibrating.

"Dammit!"

Victoria saw a group of guys standing at the door. They were all screaming for them to hurry. The familiar sound of the doors stone on stone grinding and rusty gears was heard, drowning out the shouts of the guys.

Victoria stumbled, her vision was cloudy and her legs felt numb. Gally kept slipping, her arm was coated with blood, it soaked the front and back of her. It dropped down her bare sweaty skin. The doors started to move. The long spikes on one side of the door reached out for the wholes in the other.

They had to turn sideways to fit. But just before the doors slammed shut behind them, Minho, Gally and Victoria crumpled in a heap inside the safety of the Glade.

"MEDJACKS!" she screamed.