Maze Runner Beetle Blade Novels & Stories

By the time they finished, the long-haired zombie was already rushing in. Leonard and Derek stepped back a few paces. Slice! The speed-enhanced zombie ran straight through the wires. Its body was cut clean apart. Even the skull, the hardest part, was sliced open from above the brow, its own speed driving it straight into the trap. Leonard drew a saber from his back. With a quick, precise motion, he hooked it into the split skull and pulled out a crystal core the size of a child's fist. The level 5 speed-enhanced zombie was killed instantly.

His gaze swept over Kael and lingered a moment too long, a thin, predatory smile crossing his lips. “You have survived your first test,” Harken began, voice low, deliberate, commanding attention without raising it. “Now, you will enter the Trial of Blades. Only precision, wit, and courage will keep you alive. Strength alone will fail you.” He raised his hand, and the courtyard floor shuddered. Sections of the stone split open, revealing a complex maze of raised platforms, narrow ledges, swinging blades, and hidden pits. The labyrinth stretched farther than Kael could see, shadows twisting unnaturally across every surface.

"Morien—what?" I glance down. It looks like a beetle, only it’s too big, about the size of my fist. It’s too dark, like coal. Its antennas are too long. And it’s vomiting blood from its mouth. "Ah!" I scream. Jaden rushes first to me. "What the hell is this?" Lux comes next. "Nobody touches it. That is, it's a—" She’s panicking. Morien pushes her aside, quickly cuts off a branch stem, and pushes the beetle from my leg to the ground. Then he breathes fire on it.

Three combat drones emerged from the gloom, their red sensors locking onto us. "Raya, move!" I screamed. She didn't move. She waited until the drones were in range, then slammed the base of her spear into the magnetic rail. The tip acted as a lightning rod for the tunnel's power grid. A massive surge of electricity traveled up the rail and into the spear, which Raya redirected in a sweeping arc. A wave of raw energy surged outward, knocking the drones out of the air like flies. "Pack! To the Veins!" Cane commanded.

Then I grabbed my sheath for my waist and inserted my seven inch parkerized blade. “Holy Moon Goddess! You look like you are going to war.” Rory squealed. I laughed at her energy. I look over at Aiden who is looking at me with some emotion I cannot name. The last thing I grab is my Kukri Machete. It’s eight inches long and completely black. There is only a thin silver lining along the edge. It’s great for combat, but I am going to slice through some of the targets. “Okay, I’m ready.”

I woke up from the sound of my stomach growling, without a word; I stood up from lying on my bed; my face was a little hurt from the incident earlier when I saw my reflection, a big purple bruise. I sighed and held my cheek, and started to heal myself. My mom and dad were fascinated with my gift for healing, but it wasn't extravagant; like the doctors from our tribe, I could heal simple wounds or, like mine—Bruises.

Heart thundering against my chest as I did. Right now, he’s in my fucking head. A place I never wanted him to be. At least not now. The booming sound of thunder cracks through the sky, making the earth rumble beneath my trembling skin. Shaking, I pick myself up from the ground, half-expecting lightning to zap me with its where I stood right before a growl tears through the forest again. I swear my heart was ready to combust. A fast movement under the shadows caught my attention fully. I squint my eyes, trying to keep my gaze as focused as necessary on that movement. Whatever caused it was obviously an expert in controlling his speed.

BLADE 3. Pain. It was all I felt when I shot my eyes opened. I felt so sore and tired. The memories of how Lorenzo plunged deeper into me last night filled my mind. He was so cruel to me. I didn't find any enjoyment in it at all. I tried lifting my hands and I was happy It was back to functioning. My tit hurts too as a result of the sucking he did last night.

“If I’m lucky, the buffer saved the 3D pass.” Jessica scanned the reliefs again. Sun disks. Axes. Narrowing grooves. “Follow the path of light,” she murmured. “Sun stones mark safe.” “And axes mean pay up,” Terry said. “Or lose parts,” Lizzi muttered. Sean tore free a ruined wheel, weighed it. “Test.” He rolled it; it trundled across the first seam, the second—nothing—kissed the third— Fwssssh—CLANG. Four blades bit air. Shrapnel skittered back to their boots.

Ben Carter climbed with the surprising agility of a man who has run away from many angry creditors. Below us, the sea of silver crashed against the walls. The beetles began to pile on top of each other, forming living pyramids, trying to reach us. "Shoot them!" Haley shrieked, clutching her backpack like a life preserver. "Marcus, shoot them!" Marcus racked the slide of his heavy assault shotgun. BOOM. The buckshot hit the swarm. A dozen beetles shattered, sparking as their micro-capacitors exploded. But it was like throwing a pebble into a woodchipper. The swarm didn't even pause. They simply ate the lead pellets and kept climbing.