Without a word, Chuck jumped up and ran out of the room, his calls for Newt fading the farther he went.
Thomas closed his eyes and rested his head against the wall. Then he called out to her with his mind.
Teresa.
She didn’t answer at first, but then her voice popped into his thoughts as clearly as if she were sitting next to him. That was really stupid, Tom. Really, really stupid.
Had to do it, he answered.
I pretty much hated you the last couple days. You should’ve seen yourself. Your skin, your veins…
You hated me? He was thrilled she’d cared so much about him.
She paused. That’s just my way of saying I would’ve killed you if you’d died.
Thomas felt a burst of warmth in his chest, reached up and actually touched it, surprised at himself. Well … thanks. I guess.
So, how much do you remember?
He paused. Enough. What you said about the two of us and what we did to them…
It was true?
We did some bad things, Teresa. He sensed frustration from her, like she had a million questions and no idea where to start.
Did you learn anything to help us get out of here? she asked, as if she didn’t want to know what part she’d had in all of this. A purpose for the code?
Thomas paused, not really wanting to talk about it yet—not before he really gathered his thoughts. Their only chance for escape might be a death wish. Maybe, he finally said, but it won’t be easy. We need a Gathering. I’ll ask for you to be there—I don’t have the energy to say it all twice.
Neither one of them said anything for a while, a sense of hopelessness wafting between their minds.
Teresa?
Yeah?
The Maze can’t be solved.
She paused for a long time before answering. I think we all know that now.
Thomas hated the pain in her voice—he could feel it in his mind. Don’t worry; the Creators meant for us to escape, though. I have a plan. He wanted to give her some hope, no matter how scarce.
Oh, really.
Yeah. It’s terrible, and some of us might die. Sound promising?
Big-time. What is it?
We have to—
Before he could finish, Newt walked into the room, cutting him off.
I’ll tell you later, Thomas quickly finished.
Hurry! she said, then was gone.
Newt had walked over to the bed and sat down next to him. “Tommy—you barely look sick.”
Thomas nodded. “I feel a little queasy, but other than that, I’m fine. Thought it’d be a lot worse.”
Newt shook his head, his face a mixture of anger and awe. “What you did was half brave and half bloody stupid. Seems like you’re pretty good at that.” He paused, shook his head. “I know why you did it. What memories came back? Anything that’ll help?”
“We need to have a Gathering,” Thomas said, shifting his legs to get more comfortable. Surprisingly, he didn’t feel much pain, just wooziness. “Before I start forgetting some of this stuff.”
“Yeah, Chuck told me—we’ll do it. But why? What did you figure out?”
“It’s a test, Newt—the whole thing is a test.”
Newt nodded. “Like an experiment.”
Thomas shook his head. “No, you don’t get it. They’re weeding us out, seeing if we’ll give up, finding the best of us. Throwing variables at us, trying to make us quit. Testing our ability to hope and fight. Sending Teresa here and shutting everything down was only the last part, one more … final analysis. Now it’s time for the last test. To escape.”
Newt’s brow crinkled in confusion. “What do you mean? You know a way out?”
“Yeah. Call the Gathering. Now.”
CHAPTER 49
An hour later, Thomas sat in front of the Keepers for the Gathering, just like he had a week or two before. They hadn’t let Teresa in, which ticked him off just as much as it did her. Newt and Minho trusted her now, but the others still had their doubts.
“All right, Greenie,” Alby said, looking much better as he sat in the middle of the semicircle of chairs, next to Newt. The other chairs were all occupied except two—a stark reminder that Zart and Gally had been taken by the Grievers. “Forget all the beat-around-the-bush klunk. Start talking.”
Thomas, still a bit queasy from the Changing, forced himself to take a second and gain his composure. He had a lot to say, but wanted to be sure it came out sounding as non-stupid as possible.
“It’s a long story,” he began. “We don’t have time to go through it all, but I’ll tell you the gist of it. When I went through the Changing, I saw flashes of images—hundreds of them—like a slide show in fast forward. A lot came back to me, but only some of it’s clear enough to talk about. Other stuff has faded or is fading.” He paused, gathering his thoughts one last time. “But I remember enough. The Creators are testing us. The Maze was never meant to be solved. It’s all been a trial. They want the winners—or survivors—to do something important.” He trailed off, already confused at what order he should tell things in.
“What?” Newt asked.
“Let me start over,” Thomas said, rubbing his eyes. “Every single one of us was taken when we were really young. I don’t remember how or why—just glimpses and feelings that things had changed in the world, that something really bad happened. I have no idea what. The Creators stole us, and I think they felt justified in doing it. Somehow they figured out that we have above-average intelligence, and that’s why they chose us. I don’t know, most of this is sketchy and doesn’t matter that much anyway.