Chapter 13 Chapter Thirteen Entering the Traverser
Thomas figured it was getting late and knew they would have to sleep that night and get ready for the next morning.So for the rest of the night, he and the Glader made crude packages out of sheets to pack food and extra clothes that turned up in the closet.Some of the food arrived in plastic bags, and those plastic bags, now emptied, were filled with water and tied with strips of cloth torn from the curtains.No one expects these grain reserves to last for a long time without leaking, but this is the best way they can think of.
Newt had finally convinced Minho to be the leader, and Thomas knew as well as the others that they needed a leader, so he took comfort when Minho grumbled and agreed.
Around nine o'clock Thomas found himself in bed, once again staring blankly at the bunk above his head.The room was eerily quiet, even though he knew no one was asleep.They must have been as captive to fear as he had been.They've been through the maze and all that horror, and they've seen up close what WICKED can do.If what the Ratmen say is true and everything that happened was part of some grand plan, then these guys made Gary kill Chuck, shoot a woman at point-blank range, hire people to save them but Just to kill them when the mission is done... the list just keeps getting longer and longer.
Then, worst of all, they gave them a horrible disease, using the antidote as bait to lure them on.No one even knows what is true and what is a lie.That evidence goes on to suggest that they picked Thomas for a reason.It's a sad thought - Chuck was the one who lost his life.Teresa was the one who disappeared.Just to take them both away from him...
His life was like a black hole, and he didn't know how to muster up the courage to continue tomorrow morning, to face what WICKED had set for them.But he'll do it -- not just for the cure.He'll never stop, especially now, after what they've done to him and his friends.If the only way to get revenge on them is to pass all their tests and trials and survive, then so be it.
Just do it.
Thoughts of vengeance gave him practical comfort in a sickly twisted way, and he finally fell asleep.
Every Gladiator set the alarm on their digital watch for five a.m., but Thomas woke up long before that and couldn't get back to sleep.When the alarm finally rang through the room, he swung his legs out of bed and wiped his eyes.Someone turned on the light, and a yellow glow illuminated his vision.Squinting, he stood up and walked to the bathroom, who knows how long it will be before he can wash his body again.
Ten minutes before the Ratman's appointed time, all the Glademen sat expectantly, most with a plastic bag full of water in their hands, and sheets wrapped around them.Thomas, like everyone else, decided to hold the water in his hands so that it wouldn't splash or leak.The invisible barrier reappeared in the middle of the public area after a night, and there was no way to cross it, so the openers could only gather on this side of the boys' dormitory, facing the stranger in the white suit The place where the said plane traverser will appear.
Ares was sitting right next to Thomas, speaking for the first time since he last heard the boy's voice, Thomas couldn't remember when.
"Do you think you're crazy?" the new kid asked. "When did you first hear her voice in your head?"
Thomas looked at him and paused for a moment.For some reason, up until then he'd been reluctant to say everything to this guy, but suddenly that feeling was completely gone.It wasn't Ares' fault that Teresa disappeared. "Yeah. Then when it kept happening, I got used to it - it was just that I started worrying that other people would think I was crazy, so we didn't tell anyone about it for a long time .”
"It was weird to me," said Ares, who looked lost in thought, staring at the ground. "I was in a coma for a few days, and when I woke up, talking to Rachel seemed The most natural thing in the world. If she hadn't accepted or answered my words, I bet I would have lost it. The other girls on the team hated me - some of them wanted Kill me. Rachel is the only one..."
His voice gradually dropped, and before Ares finished his story, Minho stood up and spoke to everyone.Thomas was happy about that, because listening to an alternate version of what he himself had experienced would only remind him of Teresa, and it would be too painful.He didn't want to think about her anymore, and now he had to concentrate on trying to survive.
"We still have three minutes," Minho said, with a serious look on his face for the first time, "Are you sure you still want to go?"
Thomas nodded, noticing that the others were nodding at the same time.
"Has anyone changed their mind after one night?" Minho asked, "Speak up now or never. Once we go where we're going, if someone is going to be a coward and want to come back, I'm sure I'll break his nose and smash his personal belongings to pieces."
Thomas looked at Newt, who was muttering loudly with his hands over his face.
"Newt, do you have a question?" Minho asked, his voice stern.Shocked, Thomas waited for Newt's reaction.
The older boy looked just as surprised. "Uh...no. Just complimenting your leadership."
Minho pulled his shirt back to reveal his neck, and turned sideways to show everyone the tattoos there. "What does it say, stubborn head?"
Newt looked left, then right, his face flushing. "We know you're the boss, Minho, please stop talking."
"No, you should have said less," Minho retorted, pointing at Newt, "We don't have time to waste on that kind of thing, so keep your mouth shut."
Thomas could only hope that Minho was putting on airs to solidify their decision to make him their leader, and Newt knew that.Although if Minho was acting, then he would have acted too well.
"Six o'clock!" cried one of the Glademen.
This announcement seemed to trigger a mechanism, and the invisible barrier became opaque again, atomized into a speckled white, and it disappeared completely in an instant.Thomas immediately noticed a change in the wall opposite them—a large section of it had become a flat, gray-toned surface, glowing dimly.
"Come on." Minho yelled while putting his burden on his shoulders, and clutched a bag of water in his other hand, "Don't be confused, we only have five minutes to cross over. I'll go first," he said. Pointing at Thomas, "You back—make sure everyone before you comes with me."
Thomas nodded, trying to suppress the flame that was burning his nerves; he reached out and wiped the sweat from his brow.
Minho walked towards the gray wall, then paused in front of it.The plane traverser didn't look stable at all, and Thomas couldn't focus his eyes.
Its surface danced with ever-changing black shadows and swirls that seemed ready to disappear at any moment.
Minho turned and glanced at them. "See you on the other side!"
Then he stepped over, and the dull gray wall swallowed him whole.