The Scorch Trials

Teresa is the beautiful and enigmatic girl who changed the Gladers’ lives forever. She is smart, witty and can think on her feet, like her best friend Thomas. Teresa worked alongside Thomas for WICKED, and she also spends a great deal of time trying to discover her role in the events before the Maze. Like the girls from Group B, Teresa can easily hold her own against the Gladers, as well as the monsters they must face at the end of the novel. Teresa, however, reveals an entirely new side to herself in The Scorch Trials, begging the question of whether she is still working for WICKED, and if she can truly be trusted by Thomas and the others.

Minho becomes the de facto leader of the Gladers. Though he bears a tattoo on his shoulder proclaiming as much, Minho knows that WICKED is manipulating the Gladers, and wants nothing to do with the leadership role. He soon accepts it, however, and leads the Gladers through the Scorch with precision and courage. His leadership style is very different to that of his friend, Newt, or even Thomas’s. Minho is best at making and carrying out the tough decisions, but is extremely hot-headed, which gets the Gladers into trouble on more than one occasion.

Newt was previously the leader of the Gladers, and takes more of a backseat role in The Scorch Trials when he convinces Minho to accept the leadership role. Newt’s tattoo says that he is The Glue, which Thomas understands to mean that he is the one who keeps the Gladers together, even in times of suffering and peril. Though Newt has a limp from an injury he received as a Runner in the Maze, he is able to hold his own against the monsters and various trials that WICKED places in the Gladers’ path.

Aris is a newcomer to the Gladers, and is revealed to be Teresa’s counterpart in Group B. He has been switched with Teresa and placed with the Gladers for some unknown reason. Most of the Gladers, especially Minho, are suspicious of his true intentions. Aris can communicate with Thomas telepathically, just as he can with Teresa. It is later revealed that Aris was communicating with Teresa while they were both in a coma in their own separate Maze. Aris plays a large part in the betrayal enacted by Teresa at the end of the novel. Though Aris also worked with Thomas and Teresa for WICKED before the Maze, his true purpose in everything, like Teresa’s, is unknown.

Brenda is a seemingly random Crank who helps Thomas through the terrifying city and to the safe haven. Her allegiance is to Jorge, and she is chosen by Jorge to help lead the Gladers through the city on account of her intelligence. She is tough and quick with her knife, yet reveals a softer side when she and Thomas are away from the rest of the group. Brenda shows she has feelings for Thomas, and is hurt when she finds that those feelings are not mutual. Her purpose is also unclear, especially when Thomas dreams she is speaking to him telepathically at the end of the novel.

Jorge is a young man who leads a group of Cranks in the city the Gladers must pass through. He is strict, and at the outset, merciless. He is a critical thinker and a fighter, and after listening to Thomas, decides to help the Gladers instead of harming them. When separated from Thomas and Brenda, Jorge leads the rest of the Gladers through the dangerous city, thereby keeping them alive. Thomas promises that Jorge and Brenda will receive the cure for the Flare once they reach the safe haven.

Rat Man is a spokesperson for WICKED. He appears to both groups and explains their instructions for getting through the Scorch and to the safe haven. He is calm and calculated and always in a white suit. He has also given Teresa instructions regarding Thomas that must be carried out to ensure Thomas’s survival. The Gladers and Group B despise him, but know they must follow his instructions to the letter.