The Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials Novels & Stories

The silver-braided woman finally raised a hand, silencing them. “Then the girl will be tested. If she survives, she may speak further. If not…” Her pause was deliberate. “…then the prophecy has already claimed her.” The test came swiftly. Runes on the walls flared brighter, and the floor beneath Nora split open, revealing a pit of shifting shadows. Figures moved within—beasts made of smoke and claw, their snarls echoing in her bones. Nora swallowed hard. Great. A trial by nightmare. Kael’s eyes flicked to her then, a rare spark of warning. Roman’s absence hit her like a blade—he would’ve fought to stop this. Kael… Kael was letting it happen.

“WELL, NO. EVERY WRONG TURN YOU TAKE WILL SET A PART OF THE MAZE ON FIRE,” Gasps and murmurs went up in the crowd. My heart was pounding in my ears. “If you don’t pass the trial, you’ll die!” Mina’s warning. “Promise me, Princess, you’ll come out alive,” Tristan’s pleading growl. They had all tried to warn me. Tried to make me see how high stakes the trials were but I disagreed. Now I had to face it. My tongue licked my lips and I swallowed, trying to calm my breathing. I began to turn to the maze, letting the earthy, herby smell of the trees wash over me.

"If it's the forest, that's fine. I don't understand why you all acted like it was a terrible thing to say." "Scarlett," Caleb groaned in an exasperated tone and sighed. "Why don't you let Jordan tell you about the trial first. You might end up changing your mind." Scarlett knew she wouldn't change her mind no matter how horrible it sounded, but she didn't argue. She just nodded. "Alright. Let's hear it." Jordan cleared his throat again and unrolled a parchment. "The first challenge is the trial of the body." He began. "In this trial, you'll have to survive a full night in the forest, alone, with no protection, and no weapons to defend yourself. You'll have to rely on your own strength, agil

The sunlight hits Hector’s skin, which feels like it is on fire as it blisters up. “I know it hurts. It’s ten times worse than a grease fire burn. You can run the maze now or give it a few seconds to get used to the pain, then run. Either way, the cloak stays off until the five minutes are up. Your time starts once you enter the maze.” Hector tries to ignore the pain and runs back into the maze. Rex turns the hourglass over and waits. Learning from past mistakes, he goes left and then takes the next two rights. Another fork in the maze: straight or left. The pain is getting to him, and he can’t focus on anything. He lets out a cry and then runs to the left.

But the moon twisted. The realm bent. And a new chamber formed around me— —this one filled with screams. Her screams. And I ran. I didn’t think. Didn’t breathe. Didn’t fear. I sprinted toward the sound until the world blurred. Because I had passed the first trial. And the second? The second was already waiting.

He felt the adrenaline coursing through his veins and he gave a shout. Without waiting for them to get close, he ran forward. His sword stopped the attack of the first man and cut through the abdomen of the other before bringing the hilt of the sword hard against his temple and drawing blood, the man fell. From the corner of his eyes he saw Mariam fighting forward, she and the other girls having worn the same outfit as their attackers made it a bit hard for him to distinguish them from all the chaos and the only thing that made them stand out from the assassins was the fact that they had left their hairs exposed and tied in a ponytail.

Darius ordered, his tone leaving no room for hesitation. We marched behind him as he led us to our next trial. My legs felt like they were made of lead, and all my muscles were sore from the first phase. But I didn’t have time to dwell on the pain. I had to survive. Ahead of us, I could hear the sound of rushing water, growing louder and more menacing with each step we took. When we reached the river, Wait. The river? Fuck! This wasn’t a river. This was The damn Scorching Veil! My heart immediately dropped to the floor.

Trial Two is called the Endurance Maze. The sect built it into the mountain's lower face — a formation-carved labyrinth that floods with condensed Ki pressure at random intervals, meant to test whether a candidate's body and spirit can handle sustained hostile energy without collapsing. Officially, you pass by reaching the exit. Unofficially, you pass by not getting carried out on a stretcher, which happens to roughly one in eight candidates based on the exit crowd I observe from the Trial Two staging area.

I couldn't believe that the young man who once refused to let me shed a single tear was now breaking my heart and making me cry over and over again. The last bit of my love for him completely faded away. I went back inside my room. Just as I'd lie down, I suddenly saw that Jasper had just received a message on his communication device. "Dr. Curran, another base camp has already located the person who first invented the water detection device. They're on their way to bring the inventor back. Please find the new water source and return before they bring the inventor to their base."

The air around him had grown even more dangerous and oppressive. His shirt collar was slightly open. The familiar tattoo was still there, but a vicious new scar cut across it. As soon as the interview was over, he brought his "clean" little girlfriend, Barbara Granato, here to see the world he ruled. Seeing how close he and Barbara were, I lowered the brim of my hat and tried to melt into the crowd. But Michele suddenly grabbed my wrist. His eyes were cold. "Why are you running?" he asked coldly, tugging his collar aside to fully expose the tattoo. "Aren't you going to look at the mark you left back then?"