Run | TMR X PJO [ Editing ]

You Better Hurry It Up

"Yah, are you telling me that I can be let out of prison, only with a bodyguard?" Aris said crossly. He was more than a little sore from being let out at last. Sonya had refused to give him more freedom than being let out of that lone cell, mostly because there was a rouge Glader that needed the cell more than he did.

"Yup," she nodded absentmindedly. "Lucky for you it's either Kathy or Annabeth, so you won't be too lonely."

And that was how Aris was caught up in a sort of ricochet riot to simply run off into the Maze. He had no idea who had come up with the idea--he suspected both Kathy and Annabeth contributed to the idea--but all he knew was that they would make a run for it like idiots. It seemed like they all felt trapped in that prison they called the Glade, though he didn't object to the hastily thrown together plan.

It wasn't too hard to be passed a message about the secret meetings when you had literally the mastermind behind the thing glued next to you, even muttering ideas through the bathroom door. He couldn't shower without being told how to act around the other Gladers while composing some strategy. Sonya and the others had turned a blind eye at whatever the Runners did (that he did not object to) and it was relatively easy to skive off a day in the Maze for some plotting. A week later, they had trained like the first expedition into the Maze and were ready, though Kathy had somehow convinced them to stay back. Something about diverting attention away from them, she had said. Aris couldn't exactly argue when he had been practically forced into their little band of rebels. There were only four of them, with some girl named Thalia in tow.

She was a moody person, Thalia. Arguably the most agressive out of the group (Kathy included), she didn't hesitate to lash out at anyone--her hunter-esque skills made her a valuable assent to the team despite her sour personality.

"Aye, you," Thalia approached Aris one day before they were set to run, "have you jacked those guns from under Sonya's nose yet?"

"I was about to," he muttered in reply, though he probably was going to get a snack before he did anything, however.

She clapped him on the back boyishly, the other hand running through her short cropped hair. "Okay, you better hurry it up--Sonya has been getting real suspicious lately." 

Thalia was observant and sharp, he had to give her that. Aris personally though that they had been pretty sneaky, but it seemed like the girl thought otherwise. She was the oldest after all, although he wasn't too keen on telling her that she was the old lady of the group, hence her having the most wisdom. Despite everything, he did have a filter on his mouth. 

It seemed like he was the only one whom Thalia was this rough around. She was often seen messing around Annabeth, who had claimed to know her from a previous life, and Thalia sometimes even pranked others with Kathy. Aris was never invited on such daring expeditions, but those girls were best left to their own devices in his opinion. In a sense he was slightly fourth wheeled in their little group. Not that he minded; he was grateful for any chance to escape the clutches of the Glade and whoever those scientists were.

He had actually not gotten a snack in fear that Thalia would end up hunting him down or something, so he decided to pick the lock that lead to the room with the laser guns. Two thin but strong wires in hand, he shoved one into the heart of the lock, the other wiggling on top of the first. A few times he had jump scares, afraid that it was Sonya coming down the hall or Thalia screaming at him to hurry the shuck up. But no one came, thank the gods, and the door swung open silently. Like the ninja he was, Aris snuck into the room.

The guns lay on the table where they were left, the strange inscriptions still imprinted on them. He hadn't had the chance to look at the others closely, so he decided that this was an appropriate time to do so. His he picked up in his hand, but the others he examined from the safety of the table. One was a bright red, flames flickering for style--it had the strange words on it too, this time spelling Ares. The other was a tad more humble, with lines of dark gray streaking a pale blue-gray background. The words on that gun were practically minuscule, but Aris could make out something along the lines of Athena. How he could read the odd writing, he didn't know, but at least he could read it. Whether that was good or bad, he didn't know either.

Aris felt pretty dumb for not knowing anything. It wasn't like he had all the answers, but he did feel like a useless thing.

He jumped when there was a crash at the door, followed by a load of cursing that he felt came from Thalia. Aris secretly hoped it wouldn't be her (she scared the klunk out of him) but better Thalia than Sonya. The guns stashed behind his back oh so discreetly, he creeped towards the door, were Thalia was sprawled, wincing in pain. It looked like she had tripped over something--it shouldn't be anything too bad.

She scowled at him as he stood awkwardly there. "Aren't you going to help a friend up?"

Aris was caught between the weapons and helping up a potential killer and he really didn't want to give up either. He shoved the guns upon one arm and offered his other to the girl.

"Thank you very much," she said none too brightly, brushing off stray wood dust from her jeans. "Now, you got the three blasters?"

He gestured to himself in reply, as he wasn't too sure if he could hold them up without dropping them. "I got them."

"Great," Thalia shrugged happily, snatching two of them from under his arm, leaving only his. Aris thought she looked pretty badass with one in each hand, probably ready to blast the entire Glade into smithereens. He would never tell her that, knowing that would be literally selling his soul away, if he already hadn't.

There was an awkward silence as Thalia trekked back down the hall, a new spring in her step at the prospect of having more weapons, with Aris struggling to keep up behind her. "Could you slow down," he called, his voice trailing off at how dumb it sounded. 

"Nah, kids like you gotta keep up with me," she replied, walking even faster.

Aris was out of breath by the time he had caught up with her.

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(SORTA) IMPORTANT MESSAGE
This story will not be going on much longer, as I want to keep it under forty-five chapters. It will be finished within three months. After I have finished this fanfiction, it will be going under MAJOR editing, including a change in the title, cover, and I will have revised the entire thing. Do not be alarmed about the changes, it's only to make the story a whole lot better!

And can I just say a big thank you for 10K reads + 600 votes? You guys are the best! *squishes you all*

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