"Gwyneth, it's okay. We're getting there, just keep going..."

Sonya's words of encouragement were no match for Gwyneth's state as they struggled to get out. With WICKED's soldiers ambushing them left and right, it was getting more difficult for her to keep up.

"Do you think she'll make it out?" Piper asked, getting more concerned.

"Well, if we keep moving, she might," Beth replied, helping Gwyneth by holding her arm.

"Where the bloody hell did Thomas and Newt go?" Maeve spoke up.

"Probably went looking for Minho. He got out before those doctors could sedate us," Lillie explained. "But most importantly, where's Teresa and Aris?"

That was a question Piper wished she had the answer to. Wherever Teresa went, Aris went after her, and she had a feeling that they weren't anywhere near the medical wing.

"I see a door!" Sonya yelled, dashing toward it, but her expression grew worried as she attempted to look for a way through. "We need some kind of thumbprint ID to open it."

"And the thumbprint we had is gone, thanks to the stick ditching us," Beth pointed out.

"Aris went to go find Teresa," Piper told her.

"Yeah? For what reason?" she retorted. "Admit it, he's still on WICKED's side, and he'll always follow them, as well as Teresa."

Piper shook her head in disbelief. "No, that's not true. Otherwise, him and Teresa wouldn't have helped us get inside here."

"They only helped us, because we didn't give them any other option."

Piper remained silent, not being able to think of another comeback. She didn't want to believe Beth's words, not after her moment with Aris. It seemed like things were different now. Maybe she was too quick to assume that. Maybe her feelings were beginning to interfere with the harsh truth.

"So what are we gonna do now?" Maeve questioned, sounding almost annoyed. "We can't get out, but we can't just keep fighting while Gwyn gets worse."

Piper's eyes slid over to Gwyneth as her black and purple veins traced all over her neck and arms. Her face was just about drained of color, her life being sucked away little by little. All of them hated to see her like this, which was why they were more determined to get that serum that hopefully Brenda already had by now.

"We keep looking for a way out," Piper told them. "Come on."

"It's like being in the Glen all over again," Sonya commented. "Trying to look for a way out in this place."

"Yeah, doesn't feel any different," Beth muttered. "Let's go."

So the girls turned back around and went on with figuring out another exit. Their fighting came to a halt for now, which relieved them. Still, with the adrenaline pumping through their bodies, they couldn't stay relaxed for long. What seemed like forever, they continued on, treading lightly, but still rushing for a way out.

"Wait...stop..." Gwyneth breathed out. "I need to stop."

"We can't stop now," Beth told her.

Down the empty hallway, they gave in and decided to let Gwyneth rest. She was panting, the blood oozing out of her mouth. "Just go ahead and end me now."

"What? Gwyn, you're crazy for thinking that!" Maeve responded. "We told you that we'd figure this out and we're sticking to it. So stop being a crackface and--"

"Maeve, stop!" she growled, which caught all of us off guard. She did her best to compose herself, then continued. "I didn't want things to end like this, but it has to. I'm turnin' into one of those damn Cranks and we all don't want that, especially me."

All of them looked at her with a sad expression, tears forming in the group.

"Just put me out of my misery, please," she wheezed. "I spent three stickin' years helpin' people in the Glen. Now do the same for me."

The girls were at a loss for words with Gwyneth's final wish. None of them wanted it to come down to this, but seeing the desperation in her eyes, the pain stretching across her face, this was something that had to be done, despite all the hope they were still holding out on.

So Piper was the first to nod and speak up. "Okay."

The girls gave her shocked looks through their wet eyes.

"Piper--" Sonya started to protest.

"Sonya, she's dying," she pointed out. "If this is what she wants, then we'll respect that."

"Says the one who wanted to save her just like the rest of us," Maeve retorted.

"I hate to say it, but she's right," Beth admitted. "As Gwyneth's friend, I can't bear to see her like this."

Piper grabbed her walkie out of her pocket with a shaky hand. "Harriet, it's Piper. You okay?"

After a few seconds, a static was heard, followed by Harriet's voice. "Yeah, sort of. Lawrence is gone, though. Just me, Brenda, and Fry."

While Piper was curious to know where Lawrence and his followers went, she knew that wasn't important at this moment. "Look, um...we can't find a way out of the building. We're trapped in the medical wing. So I'm calling for Gwyneth. She isn't going to make it."

There was a silence that loomed over them, but Harriet eventually came back on. "But Newt's infected, too, and Thomas hasn't given up on him yet."

"Newt's not deteriorating at the rate Gwyn is," she pointed out, her voice cracking. "It's time to say goodbye, Harriet."

With a weak arm, Gwyneth took the walkie out of my hand and put it up against her bloody mouth. "Harriet..." she croaked, coughing a bit, then speaking some more. "You were always a good leader and friend in the Glen. For two years, we've been through some crazy things there. Thank you for sticking by all of us." She paused, swallowing hard. "I just wanted you to know that."

The crying all came upon us as Harriet responded with, "I'm sorry it had to come to this. You were one hell of a Medic."

Gwyneth let out one last cough, then breathed out another response, the last one she would make to Harriet. "Goodbye, Harriet."

A sniffle came from the walkie. "Goodbye, Gwyneth." With that, she was gone.

So everyone took turns to say farewell to their friend. When it was Piper's turn, she did her best to wipe any tears from her face. "Say hello to Esther and Rachel for me, will you?"

She nodded, a small smile creeping up on her face. "Yes, and I'll leave the other Glenners out."

Piper couldn't help but laugh through the crying. "Go find your own safe haven, okay?"

"I will, Piper."

Beth wiped her eyes, then spoke up. "Okay, let's get this over with." She took out her gun and motioned the others to get out of the way before standing up herself.

"Are you really going to shoot her in the middle of the hallway?" Lillie questioned.

"Like we have any other choice," she retorted. "She wants us to go ahead and end her suffering before she becomes a Crank, so that's what I'm going to do."

It didn't seem like the ideal place or way to do it, especially with more of WICKED's guards probably on the way now, but like Beth stated, this really was their only option to grant Gwyneth's final wish. Giving up on Gwyneth felt so wrong, like some glimmer of hope was about to come in and save her.

Everyone closed their eyes when Beth pulled the trigger, and the loud bang was ringing in their ears.

Through the tears, they opened their eyes and looked at Gwyneth's lifeless body lying there.

"Piper!"

The girls turned to see Aris running their way, just about out of breath.

"Aris!" Piper shouted. "What are you--"

"She did it," he told her, then looked at Gwyneth's body. "No...is she--"

"Yes," she replied. "Gwyneth's dead."

He shook his head. "No. No, I came here to tell you that she did it."

"Who did what?" Lillie asked.

"Teresa. She got some of Thomas' blood and did some tests."

"And?" Maeve asked, raising her eyebrows.

"It's him," he breathed out. "Thomas is the cure."

~~~~~~~

A/N: Well, they were too late. RIP Gwyneth. You really were a good Medic.

Her fate of being infected was always certain, but at the last minute, I changed her death. While I was planning out a whole fight scene with her and the other girls, it didn't feel right as it happens to Thomas and Newt later on. Plus, she doesn't deserve to be a Crank.

Anyway, the song above is Lung by Vancouver Sleep Clinic.

Comment, vote, we're close to the end (er, sort of).

-A