From what is revealed about the event in The Maze Runner series, it seems that no major action was taken to prepare for the disaster. Thus, it is likely humanity was completely caught off guard when the Sun Flares impacted the Earth in October 2136. The population was greatly diminished due to this natural disaster.
In the prequel, The Kill Order, Dashner explains how the apocalypse happened: Sun flares scorched the Earth, irradiating the surface and melting the ice caps, thereby flooding major coastal cities (bye, New York).
When Sun Flares ravaged the planet, it was destroyed, leaving a burnt, cobbled landscape, and dead husks of the architecture that once thrived. The Scorch was mainly a barren desert, with red, rocky terrain, and natural land formations, some of which were still fertile.
In The Maze Runner world, Earth was overwhelmed by devasting solar flares and subsequent coronal mass ejections. The few survivors now also have to face the Flare—a terminal illness that might as well consume the rest of humanity—unless a cure is found.
The Flare, medical name Virus VC321xb47 was a man-made disease created by the Post-Flares Coalition after the Sun Flares. It was a virus that slowly eats away the brain, eventually turning it's victims into bloodthirsty and irrational humans who would consider killing, torturing, and cannibalistic objectives.
How To Beat The BLOODTHIRSTY ZOMBIES In "Maze Runner 2"
How did Newt get infected if he is immune?
Newt gets scratched by one of the Cranks on his right forearm, consequently infecting him with the virus. How does Newt get infected on Maze Runner? So of the guys who were originally in the Glade in the books, most of them were already immune to the Flare.
The disease eats away the minds of the afflicted until they turn into Cranks, zombie-like creatures that roam cities killing people until they're killed themselves. Fortunately for Thomas, he and most of his friends are Munies — immune to the Flare. That's why they've been put through the Maze and the Scorch trials.
Gally is alive in Maze Runner: The Death Cure because he was rescued and saved after The Maze Runner's ending. Although the Gladers thought that he was already dead, Gally confirms that they left him to die. It was after they left that another group stumbled across the maze and laboratory and found Gally still inside.
It is eventually revealed that Thomas' blood contains a unique enzyme that can destroy the Flare virus [2]. In "The Death Cure" film, Teresa, one of the main characters, uses a small fragment of Thomas' blood and observes under a microscope that it snaps a dark-red vein with the virus in it, effectively killing it [2].
The ending reveals that Thomas escapes with a vial of the cure for the Flare virus, but it becomes symbolic rather than crucial, as many survivors are already immune and no one is capable of harvesting the cure.
Newt is approached by Thomas on a rooftop and shows him his infection, as shown by the black veins on his right arm. Newt explains that the reason WCKD put him in the Maze was because they wanted to tell the difference between immunes like Thomas and people like himself.
Disease Immunity: Teresa Agnes was shown to be immune to the deadly Flare virus and its effects. In Death Cure, when Ava Paige announced that the virus was airborne in the city dozens of the people wore mouth masks to be unable to breathe it, except for Teresa due to her immune gene keeping her unaffected.
Gally got through the same way the other Gladers got through. Gally used the small mechanical device that was found in the dead Griever body. We know this because when Gally appears at the end he is holding it.
Newt reveals that the reason WCKD put him in the Maze was because they wanted to tell the difference between immunes like Thomas and people like himself. Thomas tells Newt that he can cure him.
In the movies, it is implied that Thomas was immune to the Flare virus, which made him valuable to WCKD. Instead of killing him for his actions, WCKD decided to send him into the Maze as part of their experiment [1].
Thomas calls for Newt's help, but realizes Newt won't be able to get to the Door in time to save them. Feeling he must help, Thomas slips into the Maze and the Door closes behind him. In an act of brave self-sacrifice, Thomas enters the Maze to save the others.
Initially, Thomas and the rest of the teens from the first Maze Runner were seen as potential solutions to the Flare as they were the “Munies”, the rare one percent of human population that are immune to the virus.
If Newt drew blood by biting Thomas, he may have been healed by his blood (assuming we're talking about the movies). However, he would have had to draw an extreme amount of blood to be saved, and gotten it into his (Newt's) blood stream. Thomas would not be affected, most likely.
The books center on Thomas, a 16-year-old boy with no memory of life before the Maze, the friends he makes in the Glade, and their struggles to survive a series of deadly tests and overthrow the corporation running them.
Gally's hatred of Thomas is ultimately driven by an unwavering commitment to rules and safety, as well as a deep desire to uncover the truth of the Gladers' circumstances.
Powers. Disease Immunity: Gally was shown to be immune to the effects of the deadly Flare virus. It was shown in the Maze Runner film that he was stung by a Griever. Six months later in the Death Cure film, he became healthy from it due to being cured by Lawrence.
He runs away from the Glade in a fit of rage after exclaiming that he thought Thomas was not to be trusted in the Gathering. At the end of the book, he kills Chuck when he tries to save Thomas from being hit with a dagger.
Characters. Thomas (books 1–3, 5, minor appearance in book 4) is one of the creators of the Maze along with Teresa Agnes, and later a Group A Glader in books 1–3. He is the main protagonist of the series, named after Thomas Edison. Thomas's name was Stephen before WICKED took him from his mother.
Summary. Disney confirms Maze Runner 4 is in development, expanding the successful YA franchise with potential new storylines. Possible storylines for Maze Runner 4 include prequels or sequels, offering different directions and connections to the original trilogy.
