"You guys coming?" Thomas called over his shoulder.

Minho and I hadn't moved, it had been three years of running every inch of two mazes and I had never seen anything like this. Minho slid his hand into mine and he stared down the hall after Thomas. Thomas was still following the beeps of the cylinder. Which were speeding up the closer we got to the walls.

"Minho? Jessie? I'm guessing you've never seen this before?" Thomas asked.

"No." I said flatly.

"It's just another dead end. It kinda looks like the Cliff, just way bigger!" Minho replied, looking around.

Thomas was still looking at the beeping cylinder, and following the noise as it sped up to an almost constant beeping. It was rather annoying the high pitch constant beep.

I looked apprehensively at Minho, "You sure about this?"

"Nope" he said, popping the p at the end, but kept walking slowly after Thomas. "But, Jess, I think he's out best bet to get out. Look at what he's done so far."

I just nodded. Minho slowed to stop and hung his head, his body deflated. I stopped and faced him.

"Words." I said, folding my arms, "I can't help if you don't use your shuck words."

He took a shuttering breath.

"I've been Keeper for three years. I've run every inch and cycle. And couldn't find a way. Then this shank," Minho gestured to Thomas who was leaning over the edge looking down into the pit of nothingness. "He shows up and what a week later finds this?" He threw his arms around.

"Yeah? And? I've run two mazes in three years, been a Leader and a Keeper, and we found this together. Someone had to do the ground work."

Minho deflated some more, looking away, his jaw clenching and unclenching.

"Look. You and I are both stubborn as hell. We got up every day and came out there and risked our lives for everyone else. Runners, and their Keeper, gave the rest of those shanks hope. You kept the shuck Glade running. And that's not a pun. Every day to get up and come out after knowing there was nothing left to map. Know how much fucken stubbornness that takes? How much hope you still had to have to come out each day to still try find a way? If you and I hadn't mapped the whole fucken maze we wouldn't have know about the cliff, or that the walls change or about the blades. He come here with all the pieces readily available. Someone had to be first and find the shuck pieces, that was you and me."

"Look at you with pep talks and encouragement!" Minho tried to tease.

"Yeah it's fucken awful. If only Sonya could see me now." I rolled my eyes. "But here, this is more my style."

He raised his head and looked at me, raising his eyebrows waiting. I crossed my arms and stuck a hip out.

"Stop feeling sorry for yourself. Stand the fuck up, brush the dust off and let's help our Intelligent Idiot find a way out.  Sure he has wild ideas, but who is going to actually exicute those plans? You and I. So, quite the pity party and let's do something useful Sparky."

The corner of his mouth lifted.

"What would I do without you?"

"Do you want me to answer that?"

He sighed dramatically, and pulled me closer. He ran his nose along mine making my eyes close in contentment. He kissed my forehead and slid his hands down my arms to my hands.

"I love you Jess. Thanks for the tough love."

"It's why you keep me around."

"Among other reasons." He murmed against my forehead. He kissed my forehead one more time, then stepped back and pulled me with him further down the hall behind Thomas.

We caught up to Thomas, he was half way across the drop off bridge. He glanced at us. I nodded at him and he looked at us greatfully. We walked to the dead end wall. The cylinder was now a constant noise. Without warning it shut off. The three of us stood in silence for a second, looking at the cylinder in Thomas's hand.

Then a red light flicked on right in the middle of the wall. The lazer light lowered over them and then ran back up their bodies, almost like it was scanning them for something. It clicked off with a long buzz, followed by silence.

I looked at Minho and then to Thomas who was also glancing unsure at us.

"This was your dumb idea." I said, looking back at the wall.

I flinched slightly when there was a loud gear grinding noise followed by a long piercing metal on metal sound, it was loud in the dead silence of the maze. The dead end wall slide apart to reveal another long dark corridor. I couldn't see the end of the tunnel. Thomas looked at Minho who shrugged. Thomas looked around to me. I also shrugged in answer, and I stepped forward.

"Probably your dumbest idea yet, there Thomas."

"Yeah...this time I think I agree with you." He answered quietly, looking into the darkness.

"Well what are we waiting for?" Minho asked.

I pulled my backpack off, and pulled out a flashlight and then stepped further into the dark tunnel, flicking the light on.

"Smart." Thomas notted.

"Always come prepared. Rule two of being a runner." I answered.

The small beam of light shone on the walls, which were all dark cement or stone. Thomas had wandered off towards the left wall, Minho towards the right wall. I stayed where I was sweeping my light back and forth. Something caught my eye. The light revealed a weird flat computer screen flush with the stone wall. I stepped over to the computer. I tapped it, the big capital block letters flashed on the screen W.I.C.K.E.D.

"The hell?" Thomas asked, he was standing at my shoulder.

The screen flashed a number 7, from red to green.

"Guys!?" Minho's panied voice made me spin. He was standing at the other wall, holding his hand out, fear on his face hildithis hand away from his body like it was contaminated.

"Griever slim!" He croaked, his eyes wide and dilated even from across the hall and in the small beam if my flashlight I could see his dilated pupils and his shaking body.

A bright red light flashed again from the wall, the computer flashed from the letters to a giant number 7. There was a loud ear piercing beep, making all of us throw hands over our ears.

"What the Shuck was that?" Minho yelled, looking at Thomas and I. His face twisted in fear and confusion. The deep grinding of stone on stone and gears echoed off the qalls. I whipped around to the opening we came through; it was closing.

"GUYS! Out! Now!" I shouted and took off towards the opening that was getting smaller.

"Thomas, give me the key thing!" I shouted, he tossed it to me, I caught it and slipped it back into my backpack.

"MOVE MOVE! WERE GOING TO GET TRAPPED!" Minho shouted.

Minho made it first then Thomas and I had to dive head first through the narrow space. I had to fuck my body and rolled, coming up into my feet. Just as the door slammed shut. It was silent again. We were all breathing hard. I slowly stood up straight. The guys were laying on the ground in a heap. I grinned as I stepped closer and held my hands out for them.

"Totally thomased the door." I smirked.

Thomas groaned. "Can you please stop trying to make this a thing?"

"Nope. I'm going to make it a thing."

"Nice, babe. The duck and roll, perfection."

"Thanks." I smirked even bigger.

I had just pulled the guys to their feet when  the bridge started to shake.

"We can't catch a break! Go! GO! GO!" Minho screamed, giving me a push down the hall. Minho took the lead, with his phenomenal eidetic memory, he had no problems remembering the way we came. I reached behind me and grabbed Thomas and shoved him in front of me.

"Go! Move those feet Thomas!" I screamed over the wild noise, it sounded like the walls around them were starting to move and shift.

We had to make it back through the blades, which had started to swing shut. Following Minho, we all made it through the first row with no problems. Minho made it through the second row. But as Thomas tried to run through he stumbled. I grabbed his arm and hulled him back up, and gave him a shove forwards. I kept him from falling but that slowed both of us down and now we were on the wrong side. More of the blades were slamming shut.

"NEVER STOP RUNNING!" I could hear Minho screaming at us. We ran beside each other, with the blades slamming shut just before we could slide through.

"REALLY?" Thomas yelled back. "Great advice!"

Despite how fast we were running I smirked and laughed at Thomas smart ass comeback.

"It's real helpful! I forgot for a moment what we were doing!"

I pushed my body even harder, shoving Thomas along.

Right before the blade slammed shut I yelled, "Now Thomas!"

He threw himself in between. It was so close I could see it snagged his bag, Minho was right there to catch him and keep him on his feet. Now it was my turn. I put my head down and pushed my body even more. I was running faster then I had ever pushed myself. I only had a few more blades left.

"Come on Jessie!"

"Move your ass, Jess!" Minho screamed, "This ain't how you go out!"

He was right. I was not going to die by getting squished in the maze by stupid blades! With a wild angry yell, I threw myself in-between the slamming blades. I felt it graze me as it slammed, making me trip. Minho's strong arms caught me before I hit the ground.

"I got you! You're okay."

As we kept running I looked up at him and nodded. His eyes were still dilated in fear, but they didn't look as paniced as when we were in the Griever tunnel. He nodded back and let go of my arm and we kept running.

I glanced at Thomas and grinned evilly. "Think that was my best thomas yet, what do you think?"

"Shut up." He huffed.

"Come on move! Lets go! Let's go!" Minho was screaming at them.

The maze walls were moving, but not slowly, like they do at night. The walls were slamming and dropping, like it was falling apart around them.

Even though we had run all morning, skipped lunch and sprinted for our lives just now, I pushed my body past any limits. I don't think I had pushed my body this much before, including running the maze at night. We had to make it out of this section, or we would absolutely be squished.

"Short cut to four!"

Minho nodded, and together we turned to the right, in unison towards the intersection of seven and four.

"Tes and Jason?" I yelled over the slamming walls.

Thomas was quiet for a moment, trying to run and not die and talk to Teresa.

"Will meet us at the intersection."

"Good that!"

"Just follow me and run like your life depends on it." Minho called.

"Because it DOES!" I yelled back, rolling my eyes. Minho and I led Thomas through the maze at a breakneck speed, jumping over parts of the rising stone ground, ducking under other parts of wall that were slamming down. I had to dive out of the way from a part of the wall that came slamming down above me. I slid on my hip, threw my body forward and rolled and came up running.

"Whoa whoa whoa! Babe, you okay?" Minho yelled, skidding up beside me.

"Never better!" I grinned back.

"Come on! Keep going! Almost there!" I yelled at the guys.

"Section 4! Almost there! GO GO GO! Come on Thomas! Move it!" Minho yelled looking behind him at the new runner. I also glanced at Thomas.

"THOMAS DON'T LOOK BACK! MOVE!" Minho screamed.

"YOLO!" I screamed back with a twisted smile. I slowed down just enough to grab his runner's vest and pulled him in front of me, and gave him another rough shove forwards.

The wall was slamming down behind them every few feet, like it was trying to squish them flat. Minho took a sharp corner. I stayed beside Thomas, he looked like he was starting to loose speed, and he was starting to struggle. Minho took another corner. At the very end of the hall was the last closing wall we had to get through.

Minho sprinted head long down the hall. He dove up onto a wall that was rising, while the top of a section was lowering. He had to crouch and run through and drop to the ground.

"Don't stop!" I screamed, giving him a small encouraging nod.

Thomas and I flung ourselves up and had to army crawl, it was going to squish us if we didn't move daster. I pushed myself mostly through the space and then rolled off the edge dropping a couple feet onto the stone floor.

Thomas fell on top of me with a grunt, and made me groan.

"Made it" He huffed out.

"Get the fuck off me, shank!" I moaned and shoved him off.

We all laid there for a second. Minho was breathing heavily. Thomas was gasping for air. And everything in me hurt, my chest was rising and falling so fast I swear I couldn't get enough oxygen. All three of us lay on the ground for a second in silence trying to catch our breath. While we layed there I heard the sound of footfalls. I was too tired to move my head at the moment.

"Way to thomas that wall guys. Perfect form. That sprawl and splat onto the floor was...ten out of ten!"

"No!" Thomas groaned. "Not you too Tess!"

I couldn't help it, I laughed. I could hardly talk, could hardly breathe, but I laughed so hard my stomach hurt and I had tears in my eyes

"We totally did! Man that was an EPIC THOMAS!" Minho was howling with laughter as well beside me.

Teresa and Jason flopped down onto the ground beside us, also laughing at home frustrated Thomas was getting.

"Guys!" he whined.

It made the four of us laugh even harder. It took a few minutes for our laughter to die and eventually I hulled myself up to sit and lean against the wall.

"So? How was your exploration?" I croaked. My voice was dry. I pulled my water out while Teresa and Jason exchanged glances.

"Well...the cylinder lead us to the cliff. We hung out there for a while. We threw some rocks and stuff again. Same small square. Then we threw some cut vines."

Minho and I nodded. Thomas only now managed to pull himself up to sit.

"Well, for shuck fun of it...I decided to jump for it."

"Wait!" Minho tried to yelp, but his voice was too dry. "You jumped off the shucken cliff?"

"Yeah. The veins stayed when we threw them, so I tied a vine around myself and jumped. Ended up in some weird small tunnel. Covered in Griever slim-"

"-there was this weird computer screen on the side. There was a keypad it needed a five word pass code."

"Five words?"

"Yeah."

I frowned and hummed. I didn't know what kind of pass code it could be.

"Well...I don't know if we would all be able to get through that tunnel. It's really narrow and tight and like guys it was covered in slime."

I was chewing on my cheek trying to think.

"Well looks like we may have found two possible exits!" Thomas pipped up.

•×•

× A little Jessie Badass Assassin board ×