They Don't Own Me

Chapter 6

"He didn't just attack someone," Clint - Keeper of the Med-Jacks - said. "He killed someone."

The room went silent.

"Who was it?" Alby questioned.

"Stephen." Clint looked at Zart. "I'm sorry, dude."

The Keeper of the Track-Hoes nodded sadly, looking down. Stephen had been a Track-Hoe and had worked with Zart for a long time. The two boys had come up in the Box together and were close friends.

"Again, what happened to him?" Gally said, breaking the silence.

"He was stung," Ivy stated, her shoulders sagging a little.

"By what?" Winston, Keeper of the Slicers, inquired.

"A Griever. They roam the Maze, but normally only come out at night. They are incredibly dangerous and, as we've all just seen, can cause the most sane of people to become jacked."

"There's a cure though, right?" Gally questioned. "Shouldn't Clint have something to help?"

"There's no cure," Ivy told them after seeing Alby deflate a little.

A long silence filled the room.

"So the only way to save Justin is to kill him," Clint said. Ivy and Alby nodded. "So how are we planning on doing that?"

"We could banish him." Everyone looked at Zart.

"What was that?" Winston asked.

"You heard me. We should banish him. He broke our rule: never hurt another Glader. He didn't just hurt some, he killedthem."

"I don't know if you've noticed, shuckface," Gally said, "but we're stuck here until Ivy and the Runners find a way out. There's nowhere to banish him to!"

Zart looked at Ivy, making eye contact with her.

"There is one place," he said.

Ivy stared at him in surprise. After a minute, she looked at Alby, who appeared to understand Zart's meaning as well.

"It would make sense," she told him. "We can't keep him around here, it's too dangerous." Her gaze softened a little. "And no one survives a night in the Maze."

Alby crossed his arms and thought for several moments. Finally, he looked up and gave a simple nod.

~

Ivy stood with the other Gladers at the Maze entrance. Alby had them all makes spears, along with long poles with sticks attached at the end, forming the shape of a T. Ivy held one of the poles in her hand, just like the other Keepers. She glanced down at her arm. Justin had managed to cut her with his knife, but Ivy hadn't noticed until after the Gathering when Clint pointed it out. He had wrapped it for her, saying he would properly treat it after they were done.

The sound of struggling caught the girl's attention. She looked over her shoulder to see Winston leading Justin towards them. Justin looked like he had been crying, but his body was also bloody. Looking at his hands, she saw that they were covered in blood as well. He must have ripped at his skin while he was in the Pit.

When they reached the Maze entrance, Winston pushed the former Runner to the ground. Using a pocket knife, he cut the rope that held Justin's hands behind his back. Winston backed up, nodding to Ivy. She nodded back to him, handing her pole to Gally.

After a brief glance at Alby, she walked passed Justin. She threw a bag into the Maze, her heart shattering as she did. She didn't want to think about what she was doing, that she was sending a friend to his death. The bag slid across the ground, moving further into the Maze.

Ivy turned back to walk to her spot but her gaze landed on Justin. He looked so broken. Tears were streaming down his face, his body shaking from the sting.

"Ivy," he said. "Ivy, please help me."

The girl looked away from him and started back to her spot. Justin tried to reach for her but several Gladers pointed their spears at him. Newt even took a step forward to block his path. Ivy took her pole back from Gally, her hands shaking. The sound of the Maze doors beginning to close echoed through the Glade.

"Poles!" Alby shouted.

The Keepers lowered their poles, pointing them towards Justin. The boy rose to his feet as the Gladers moved towards him.

"No," he said. "Please no." The doors began to close as they guided him into the Maze. He looked at Ivy again. "Ivy, please! Help me!"

Ivy tried her best to ignore him as she moved forward with the other Keepers. She watched as Justin was halfway through the entrance. Knowing he couldn't make it back to the Glade, he proceeded to move into the Maze. The Keepers drew back their poles. Everyone watched Justin through the closing stone wall. Ivy shut her eyes tight when she heard him cry out again before he was cut off by the Maze door shutting, sealing the poor boy's fate.