Chapter 26 Chapter 26 Dangerous elements

Thomas sat motionless, a sick feeling growing in his stomach like a virus.Since arriving here, he has experienced all emotions in just a few days: fear, loneliness, despair, sadness, and small joys.But now it felt brand new—that a person hated him enough to kill him. Gary was crazy, he told himself, he was totally crazy.This thought only increased his worry out of thin air.Insane people can really do anything. The council members sat or stood in silence, all as shocked as Thomas.Newt and Winston let go of Minho, and the three of them walked dully back to their places and sat down. "He's completely broken." Minho said in a low voice.Thomas thinks he's lowering his voice just so he can be heard alone.

"Listen, you're not some saint," Newt said. "What the hell were you thinking? That was over the line, you know?" Minho narrowed his eyes and scratched his hair, as if he didn't understand what Newt was talking about. "Don't tell me these things are useless. Everyone is happy to see that slippery end. You know it very well. It's time for someone to stand up and teach him a lesson." "There's a reason he got a seat on the council," Newt said. "Dude, he just threatened to kill Thomas! This idiot is completely out of his mind, you better find someone to throw him in the cell now, he is a dangerous person."

Once again, Thomas deeply agreed with his words, and almost broke the rules and said it out, but he stopped himself in time - he had enough troubles on his body, don't make trouble anymore, but he doesn't know how long he can control himself. "He may have a point in what he says," said Winston in a low voice. "What?" Minho blurted out, which was what Thomas wanted to say. Winston was stunned by what he said, and glanced around the room: "It is true...he has experienced a painful change. He was stung by a ghost and fire beast outside the west gate at noon that day, which means he has a memory. Yes. He said that the newcomer looks familiar, think about it, does he need to make up this nonsense?"

Thomas couldn't help thinking about this so-called "pain change" and its ability to recall memories.He had a sudden thought: Is it necessary to let the Griever sting himself, go through that terrible process, in order to awaken the memory?Is it worth it?He thought of Ben struggling in bed and Alby's screams.Forget it, he thought. "Winston, did you see clearly what happened just now?" Frypan had an unbelievable expression on his face, "Gary is crazy. You can't take his nonsense seriously. Why, do you think Thomas is a ghost in disguise? beast?" Thomas had had enough, council or not, he didn't want to just sit there in silence again.

"Can I speak now?" he asked, his voice raised in frustration. "You guys are talking about me out there like I don't exist. I've had enough." Newt looked up at him and nodded. "Come on, this damn meeting couldn't have been any worse." Thomas quickly sorted out his thoughts, brushed aside the frustration, doubts and anger in his mind, and searched for suitable words. "I don't understand why Gary hates me so much, I don't care, he's just crazy in my opinion. I'm as ignorant as you are about who I am. But if I remember correctly, everyone is sitting here now , just because of what I did in the maze, not because some idiot thinks I'm a devil."

Someone snickered, and Thomas shut up, hoping he'd made his point clear. Newt nodded with a satisfied expression on his face. "That's right, let's finish the meeting quickly and worry about Gary's problems later." "We can't vote without a full crew," insisted Winston, "unless they're all, like Alby, very sick." "Dear Winston," Newt responded, "If I ask you, Gary was very ill today, and if he wasn't there, he wouldn't be here. Let's continue the meeting. Thomas, keep defending yourself, and we'll vote later , see how to deal with you."

Only then did Thomas realize that he was unconsciously clasping his hands on his knees.He let go and wiped his sweaty palms on his pants a few times.He started to speak, not knowing exactly what to say until the words came out of his mouth. "I didn't do anything wrong. All I know is that I saw two people struggling to get in the door, and they couldn't do it. It was selfish, cowardly, and a little... stupid just to sit back and watch because of stupid rules. .I saved a life and you're going to throw me in a cell for this, so do it. I promise you, next time this happens I'll just point them, laugh, and enjoy Some of Frypan's good food."

Thomas was just trying to make a joke, completely insensitive, not realizing that the humor was superfluous at the moment. "My proposal is as follows," Newt said. "You violated our first rule, so you must go to the cell for a day. This is your punishment. I propose to elect you as a walker, which will take effect at the end of the meeting. The past night has proved You're far more capable than most of the trainees, and as for what you do to protect people, forget it." He looked at Minho, "Gary's right—it's a stupid idea." This comment hurt Thomas' feelings, and he couldn't agree with it.He looked at Minho, waiting for his reaction.

Minho didn't show too much surprise, and retorted: "Why? He is the most powerful here so far. I swear, the most powerful person should become the guardian." "Okay," Newt said, "if that's the case, then we'll change it later and give him a month to prove himself." Minho shrugged. "agree." Thomas sighed softly, relaxing quite a bit.He still wanted to be a walker—it surprised him that he didn't change his mind even after all he had been through in the maze before—but it was absurd to ask him to be a guardian. Newt glanced at the others in the room. "Okay, there were other opinions raised before, let's take turns..."

"Oh, come on," said Frypan, "vote, I agree with you." "Me too." Minho said. Everyone else agreed, and Thomas felt relieved and proud. Only Winston said no. Newt looked at him and said, "You don't need to vote, just tell us what you think." Winston looked Thomas carefully, and then at Newt. "I'm fine with what you say, but we shouldn't ignore Gary's words completely. There's something in what he said... I don't think he made it up. Things have definitely gotten weirder here since Thomas came." "Okay," Newt said, "Everyone will keep his words in mind, and the next time we feel better and have nothing to do, let's hold another meeting to discuss this matter, how about it?"

Winston nodded. Thomas was a little unhappy, and everyone ignored his existence again. "You talk about me as if I'm not there, which is great, love it when you do it." "Listen, Tommy," Newt said, "we just made you the goddamn walker. Don't wait for me, let's go, Minho has a lot to teach you." After hearing this, Thomas realized that he really wanted to become a walker and explore the maze.He was excited, sure they would never be stuck out overnight again, and that maybe his good luck was over and it was time for bad luck. "When will the punishment begin?" "Tomorrow," Newt said, "was up until sundown." One day, Thomas thought, just one day, not too bad. The meeting ended, except for Newt and Minho, everyone left the room in a hurry.Newt didn't lift his ass and continued to record. "Well, what a wonderful time," he muttered. Minho walked over and punched Thomas on the arm jokingly: "It's all Shank's fault." Thomas punched him back. "Guardian? You want me to be a guardian? You're a lot more insane than Gary." Minho smiled evilly. "It worked, didn't it? Aim higher and you'll have a better chance of achieving it. Thank you later." Thomas couldn't help laughing.Just then there was a knock on the door—it was open, and he turned to see who it was: it was Chuck, looking as if he had been chased by a Griever.Thomas's smile faded away. "What's wrong?" Newt also stood up.His tone reinforced Thomas' concern. Chuck wrung his hands. "The doctor called me here." "why?" "Alby was beating around like a madman, telling the doctor he wanted to talk to someone." Newt walked to the door immediately, but Chuck held his hand. "Well...not you." "What's the meaning?" Chuck points to Thomas. "He's the one Alby wants."