THREE
「wasteland,
baby」
＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚

   THE NEXT TWO hours were chaos. Everything the Rat Man had told them whirred through Sylvia's mind, like gushing wind through the branches of desolate trees. She felt as if the information was swirling around her and she couldn't grasp one bit without another hurtling in. It was all too much to process.

   She had the Flare, a virus that had struck civilization after solar flares scorched the Earth. The virus was deadly. What did it do to people? How did it affect them? How could she know if she was getting worse? And the others had it too—her boys. She had to be separated from them because she had a rare strain of the strange virus, and she was a danger to them. As much as it pained her, she was glad. Glad she wouldn't be able to hurt them and glad it was her who had it instead of one of them.

   Both Sylvia and Hayden frantically packed whatever they could. They ripped the sheets from the beds, tying them into makeshift knapsacks. They started by stuffing the sheets with food from the pile that had been left for them. As they packed, Hayden picked up conversation. "You really think they'll kill us if we don't go through?"

   "Would you like to stay behind and find out?" She asked, sarcasm dripping from her voice.

   "Alright, could you stop being such a smart aleck for one second? We're being kicked out. I think we should discuss, at the least."

   "There's nothing to discuss," she said, shoving crackers, granola bars, and fruit into the knapsack she'd made. "We have to go through, and that's that. We can't stay here. Whatever's on the other side, we'll deal with it."

   Hayden stuffed a few apples into his bundle of sheets frustratedly. "Aren't you worried about your group? Don't you want to find your way back to them?"

   "What a stupid question." She spat. "Of course I want to find them. Staying here won't help us! If anything, we could search this 'Scorch' place. Maybe they're being sent out too, just like us."

   "Yeah, but that dude said we were being expelled because we're dangerous." Hayden argued. "That's why we were separated from them too. If they aren't hazards, I don't know why they'd be sent out of this place. I mean, it's WICKED, right? Why would they toss out their 'property'?"

   "I don't know, alright?" Sylvia exclaimed, an apple falling to the floor due to her outburst. "All I know is that we die if we don't go. This is our best shot."

   "Our?" Hayden questioned, looking a bit smug. "So you finally accept that I'm not the enemy?"

   Sylvia huffed, throwing him a look. "You know what I meant."

   After all the food had been packed, they moved onto the problem of water. They came across some plastic bags and figured it would work well enough. Hayden and Sylvia filled a couple plastic bags with water from the sink. They wrapped the bags in separate sheets from the food, so that the plastic wouldn't be punctured by anything.

   She checked to make sure the knife she had was still secured in the pocket sewn into her boot. It was the only weapon she had. Any others had been lost on the way here. She just hoped she wouldn't have to use it.

   Sylvia prepared Bark as well. The dog still had the vest on from when they escaped the Maze, so she stuffed some of the pockets with some items. In the bathroom she was able to find a roll of bandages in one of the cabinets. She stuffed that and some packages of crackers into the pockets of Bark's vest, making sure to feed him some of the food and force him to drink some water as they waited. It was five minutes until eight.

   "What's the dog's name, by the way?" Hayden questioned her. They were stationed in the common room, waiting for the Flat Trans to appear.

   She hesitated before answering, almost embarrassed. "Bark."

   Hayden's brows shot up. He laughed. "Bark? You come up with that brilliant name?"

   "No," she bit her lip, trying to hide a small smile at the memory. "Two of the boys named him because he was so loud." Minho and George.

   "Really?" He asked, intrigued. He hummed. "I don't see how he's supposed to be loud. I haven't heard him make a sound."

   "Well, it's just..." Sylvia trailed off, thinking about Nick. "It doesn't matter. It's not important. He doesn't bark anymore."

   Hayden seemed to sense that there was something more to the topic, but didn't question her further. He figured that her sharing something about herself, or her dog, was progress. "We had a cat in our maze, not a dog."

   "A cat?" She raised a brow.

   "Yeah," Hayden smiled. "The thing was a little brat. But it wandered into the Maze one day and never came back...the girls were devastated."

   Sylvia hummed in thought, then looked down to check the watch at her wrist. 

   Seeing the time, her head whipped up to glance at the wall where the Rat Man said the Flat Trans would appear, and there it was—a gray, shimmering plane had taken up a space on the wall. The sight was almost illusory, not seeming real.

   Sylvia stood slowly, eyes intent on the Flat Trans. Hayden turned his head, his attention grabbed. When he spotted the plane of shimmering wall, he muttered, "Holy..."

   "So, do we just walk through it...?" She questioned Hayden.

   He shrugged. "Yeah, I think so. Who's going first, me or you?"

   "Are you kidding?" She rolled her eyes. "We're going at the same time. Together."

   "Together." He mocked, grin on his face. "You're starting to sound like you like me."

   "Shut up." Sylvia hissed, waving him off. "We have to do it at the same time. Come on, before it closes."

   The two of them walked up to the Flat Trans, standing just before it. Bark was near Sylvia's legs, waiting. She grabbed onto the collar of his vest, making sure he would follow her as she went through.

   Hayden took a breath and looked at her. "Okay, on the count of three. One, two—"

   She walked through the Flat Trans.

   A cool, tingling sensation washed over her body. It lasted for only a few seconds before a searing burst of light blinded her. She winced, screwing her eyes shut. The light sent an almost instantaneous headache ripping through her skull. Sylvia felt the collar of Bark's vest tugging at her fingertips. She held on tighter.

   "Ah!" Hayden exclaimed. Sylvia couldn't see what he was doing. "My eyes! What the hell?"

   "Damn it!" Sylvia hissed. It felt like her skin was on fire, her head throbbing profusely. The air was sweltering with heat. "I can't open my eyes. Hayden, can you see?"

   "No! It hurts too much." He groaned.

   Sylvia crouched on the floor, one hand covering her eyes, the other around Bark. The ground was solid, so at least they hadn't walked out into quicksand or water. Colors pulsed and split over the dark plane of her closed eyelids. It felt like they had walked straight into an oven.

   There were a few more seconds of agonizing blindness before Hayden called out, "Wait, hold on—Sylvia! Come here!"

   "Where?" She shouted incredulously.

   "Just follow my voice!"

   She tried to move in the direction of his voice, hearing wood creaking beneath her feet. She walked, one hand out in front of her to make sure she didn't run into anything, the other hand still on Bark.

   "Sylvia?" Hayden called out again.

   "I'm coming!"

   His voice had guided her in the right direction, because she bumped into something hard and a hand enclosed around her arm. It was almost as if a shadow passed over her direct vision, the sunlight that had previously burnt a bright red against the back of her eyelids fading. Tentatively, she blinked her eyes open and let them adjust.

   The first thing she saw was Hayden's face. She turned her head, taking in her surroundings. It seemed to be that they were in some sort of shack. It was made of old wood and was a harsh blow of wind away from falling apart. It had two small rooms, the shaded one without windows that they were currently in and the one they had just come from.

   She walked forwards, toward the wall where the boards had been messily nailed over the windows, creating a thin piece that was able to be seen out of. She lowered her eye to it, peeking out. She squinted as she did, the light still unbearably bright. All she could see was wasteland. Sand covered the landscape for as many miles as she could see. Somewhere in the distance she could see a town, maybe a city, with mountains converging behind it.

   "What is it?" Hayden questioned. "What do you see?"

   She stepped back from the break of wood. She mumbled, "Nothing. There's just...nothing."

   "What do you mean?"

   "It's just sand, for as many miles as you can see. I think there might be a city farther out..." she trailed off, becoming angry. "Why the hell would WICKED send us here?"

   "You said you saw a city?" Hayden asked, moving toward the look-out hole. He crouched to its level. "Wait...that doesn't seem too far away. We should go there. Maybe someone can help us."

   "We could barely see in that other room. What makes you think we can go out in that? Neither of us are very equipped for the situation." Sylvia said, gesturing to their clothing.

   They only had the clothes they'd been given at the facility. Sylvia, dressed in a black sleeveless shirt and green cargo pants. Hayden was in a gray t-shirt and black jeans. They were too exposed to be in this type of weather. The sun, whatever had happened to it, was a hot and blistering mess. She was sure they'd be roasted alive the second they stepped out there.

   "We'll be fine," he brushed off her concerns.

   Sylvia watched incredulously as he walked past her and out into the other room. He brought a hand up to his eyes to conceal them from the searing light. There were two dingy windows and an ajar door in the room. Sylvia squinted against the light, trying to see what the hell Hayden was doing. He stuck a hand out the door, into direct sunlight, and recoiled just as fast, hissing in pain.

   "Oh, fu—" He cut himself off, face cringing as he ran back towards her and shook out his hand.

   "I told you."

   AFTER THAT, THEY had managed to come up with a solution. They had four sheets they were using as bags, two for water and two for food. They shoved all the food into one bag and the plastic bags of water into the other sheet. Now, they had two free sheets to use as cover from the sun. So, they ventured out.

   With the small bit they were able to see, they could tell that the city and the mountains beyond were facing north, so that was where they needed to go. They walked along the desolate land, Bark trodding along beneath her sheet with her and Hayden to her right. The heat was almost unbearable. The air was dry and hot, sweat seeping through her clothes. They had to walk a hundred miles in this?

   After almost an hour of walking, Hayden disrupted the silence.

   "So, I figure we'll be stuck dealing with each other for at least a little while. Why don't we try and get to know each other?" He suggested, "Make this a little more bearable."

   Sylvia threw him a pointed look, "I don't want to get to know you."

   Hayden whistled lowly. "A little blunt, aren't you?"

   "Just the truth." she shrugged.

   "Humor me."

   Sylvia was silent. She could feel his gaze burning into the side of her head. She sighed loudly, turning to him. "What could you possibly want to know?"

   He hesitated, then asked, "All those scars, on your arms and everything...what are they from?" She raised a brow and he quickly added, "If it's not too personal."

   "It's from the Maze." She supplied.

   "Oh," he said. "You must be pretty tough, then—to have gone through all that and still be standing."

   She shook her head, "No tougher than anyone else there. We all contributed. We all went through things."

   Hayden nodded, as if in understanding. "So...you got, like, a boyfriend or something?" When she shot him an incredulous look, he put his hands up. "Girlfriend?"

   "No," she said, a bit too quickly. Her cheeks felt like they were on fire.

   "You sure?" He asked, and she could practically hear the smugness leaking from his voice.

   "Positive." Sylvia emphasized. She eyed him. "If this is you trying to make a move or something, forget it."

   "Oh, don't worry sweetheart. I'm not into your type. Most of the time, anyway."

   Sylvia's heart nearly stopped beating in her chest. Sweetheart. What she would do to hear Minho's infuriating voice whisper that idiotic tease once more. What she would do to be back with all of them again. "Don't call me that."

   Hayden eyed her unsurely, but brushed off the cold tone of her voice. "You're more of a bird-brain anyway."

   They walked under the blistering sun for an hour. Two hours. Three. The sun steadily made its way through the sky, as if following a track. At some point, Hayden insisted they stop for a 'bathroom break' and then walked a good deal away to take care of business. His words, not hers.

   She funneled some water for Bark, who was panting in the oppressive heat. In only a couple more hours the sun would go down and they would be spared from the sun. She hoped it would cool down considerably.

   Hayden returned and they both took some of the fruit from their knapsacks, figuring they should eat the perishables first. Sylvia cut up a few slices of apple to give to Bark.

   Hayden squinted at the town ahead and asked her, "How much farther out you think that is?"

   Sylvia looked ahead, trying to judge the distance. After being a Runner as long as she had been, you kind of get a feel for things like that, though she wasn't the greatest. She wished she had Cole and his genius mind to make a guess for her. Cole.

   A chill ran down her arms, despite the humid air, and something appeared out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head to find the flickering image of a girl, her form seeming to waver in the blistering sunlight. She had long, red hair—almost down to her elbows. Her face...her face was pale and covered in blood, her eyes strained and desolate. She was wearing some sort of thin, hospital-like gown.

   Her pallid hand began reaching out towards Sylvia. She recoiled, bumping directly into Hayden and almost knocking him off his feet. 

   "What was that?" Hayden questioned.

   Sylvia quickly gathered herself, cursing in her mind. She lied, "Nothing. I just tripped."

    "You tripped..." Hayden trailed off with a raised brow, "While standing still?"

   "Piss off." She spat, eager to change the subject. She pointed to the city in the distance. "We should be about twenty miles out. Not too much longer."

   "Okayyy..." Hayden trailed off, dragging out the word. He threw her a weird look. "You good?"

   "I'm fine." She said sternly. She glanced to her left, checking if the bloody girl was still there.

   She wasn't.

  A DAY HAD passed before they reached the edge of the city. It was dark out now, the dim moonlight not doing much to help. Sylvia looked out at the city in wonder. The buildings were rusted and falling apart. All of them were old, dilapidated things, windows broken and doors teetering off their hinges. There were some skyscrapers that had fallen against each other too. The sight was unruly.

   It seemed to be deserted. Both Sylvia and Hayden walked along one of the streets, wondering where all the people were. They had both assumed that this is where all the Cranks came to live. She peered inside broken windows of buildings and into the darkness of alleyways but she couldn't spot anything.

   Bark trailed behind her and Hayden lazily, having been worn out from the day of walking.

   "Maybe we should just find somewhere to hole up." Hayden suggested, rubbing his eyes. "Wait until it's light out to look for help."

   Sylvia sighed. "Would you like to pick?"

   Hayden gave a small bow, an amused expression playing on his face. "I would love to pick our humble abode."

   She rolled her eyes at him and followed as he walked along a row of buildings, examining each one. He was sure taking his time with it.

   Before either of them could pick somewhere to stay the night, they heard the crunching of glass come from one of the alleyways between the buildings. The two of them shared a wary glance. They looked down the alleyway, trying to see what was there.

   A plump rat scurried out from the darkness, running past them. Sylvia quickly grabbed Bark's collar to make sure he wouldn't run after it. As she did, her fingers against his fur, she felt the rumble of his silent growl, his body pointed tersely at the alley still.

   Slowly, she looked up. Just as she thought they might have been in the clear, two lunatics came running out of the alley, grunting and yelling. Sylvia let go of Bark's collar and pulled her knife out in a flash of movement, just in time for one of them to pounce on her.

   Her back hit the ground roughly, the air knocked out of her lungs. The man above her snarled, spittle flying from his mouth and gathering at his lips. He screeched, the sound long and wretched, "We'll kill you!"

   Sylvia gasped for air, pushing his clawing hands away from her. She slashed out with the knife on his upper arm and flipped it in her hand quickly to smash the blunt edge of the handle against the man's temple. He shrieked, becoming more wild.

   Faintly, she could see Bark biting the man's ankle. He howled, kicking at Bark. Sylvia scowled and pushed the man off of her with all her strength. He tumbled over and Sylvia scrambled away. As soon as she was up she tried to turn to see what had happened to Hayden. Before she could even see him, the man ran up behind her and jumped on her again, knocking her into the wall of a building. The knife flew from her hand as the man's teeth sunk into the flesh of her upper arm.

   Sylvia let out a scream and shoved the man hard. "—Motherfucker!"

   The man had stumbled back, but only a tiny bit. He was on her again within seconds, his hands reaching out frantically to try and pin her down. She struggled against him, thrashing wildly. This is not how she was going to die. She wouldn't accept that. She was not going to die at the hands of anybody but her own.

   Just as she was about to knee the man in the gut, a crowbar came down on the side of his head. She flinched violently, blood spraying across her face. The man fell down, his body limp. The crowbar was pulled out of his head with a slick sound.

   Slowly, Sylvia looked up. A man stood in front of her, Hayden holding Bark just behind him. The man was tall, with dark hair and a beard, a stern look on his features.

   He held a hand out to her, "Need a hand, kid?"

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

New character???🤔🤔😜 who's excited for halloween? 👻