The Maze Runner

As Thomas follows the beetle blade, he walks deeper and deeper into the forest. He eventually loses sight of the creature. Suddenly, he hears a twig snap, which startles him. He calls out but no one responds. He thinks it may be an animal, and moves towards the sound, finding himself at the graveyard. There are a number of graves, each marked by a poorly made cross. Thomas wonders how all these boys died, and then walks toward a structure covered in grimy glass. When he peers inside, he sees half a skeleton. Next to the structure is a plaque warning future Gladers not to try climbing down the Box, confirming that Chuck was telling the truth.

Thomas hears another snap behind him, and becomes frightened. He calls out again, but receives no response. Soon, he hears twigs snapping as something moves towards him faster and faster. Before he can do anything, he sees a skinny boy moving towards him in an odd run. The boy attacks Thomas, and as Thomas falls to the ground and feels the grave markers digging into his back, the pale, ghostly boy bites into his shoulder, causing Thomas to scream out in agony. Thomas pushes against the boy’s chest until the boy finally falls off of him, and he realizes that the crazed boy is Ben, the very same boy he saw going through the Changing earlier.

Thomas notices that Ben still has the ropelike, green veins wrapping around his skin. Ben crouches to attack again, and at some point he acquires a knife. Before he can lunge, however, Alby appears with a bow and arrow pointed at Ben and tells him he will kill him if he does not back down. Ben shouts back that Thomas is the one who Alby should kill because he is not a Glader like the rest of them; he reveals that he saw Thomas during the Changing and that he is bad, and that Thomas will try and take them all home, which is far worse than being in the Glade. Alby tries to calm Ben down, but when Thomas asks Ben about his vision, Ben snaps and lunges at Thomas with the knife. Alby shoots Ben in the cheek, and he falls down, bleeding. Before Thomas can ask any questions, Alby says the “Baggers” will collect Ben’s body, and then disappears back into the forest. That night, Thomas wrestles with the issue involving Ben and life in the Glade in general, and feels dejected. He even mouths off to Chuck who tries to joke with him before bed, wanting to be left alone.

The next morning, Chuck has to force Thomas to go about his morning routine as Thomas is still depressed about his part in Ben’s death. But as Newt brings him to his training with the Keeper of the Blood House, he starts to feel better. Newt tells him that the girl is still in a coma, and that work is the best way to take his mind off of things. The Keeper of the Blood House, Winston, begins showing Thomas around, and Thomas spends his first hour working with the animals, even shoveling animal feces (“klunk”). The hardest part for him is watching Winston slaughter a pig during his third hour at the Blood House. Thomas surmises that Winston must have actually been sent to the Glade for being a serial killer based on the pleasure he takes in slaughtering animals. Before Winston sends him to lunch, Thomas decides he will never be able to work in the Blood House or eat pork again.

As Thomas leaves for lunch, he notices a Runner, an Asian kid with strong arms he has seen before, coming out of the West Door earlier than expected. Thomas is excited and eager to ask the Runner questions, but before he reaches the boy, the Runner collapses to the ground.

Thomas fears the Runner may have been stung, and so calls out for help. He rushes over to the Runner, and is joined by Alby. When they reach the Runner, they find that he is actually conscious but exhausted and barely able to speak. Alby tells Thomas that the Runner’s name is Minho, and asks him why he has returned so early. Minho tells Alby to calm down and to get him some water. Thomas is shocked at the tone Minho takes with Alby, but Alby smiles and says Minho is the only person who can talk to him like that, and then surprises Thomas even more by running off to get Minho water. 

Thomas asks Minho why he talks to Alby like he does, and Minho jokes that Alby is not in charge. His tone is sarcastic, however, and Thomas becomes increasingly annoyed with Minho. He gets ready to leave but Minho apologizes, saying that he is just having fun at Thomas’ expense. Thomas then asks Minho if he found anything in the Maze. Minho says that although that is normally the worst question to ask a Runner, today is different. Thomas is intrigued, but when he asks Minho what he found, Minho says he has to wait for Alby to return to see if he wants him to talk in front of Thomas. When Alby returns with the water, he gives Minho permission to speak in front of Thomas, and Minho tells them that has found a dead Griever in the Maze.