A/N: Sooner than you all thought? With good reason. I didn't think I'd get it done, either. Anyway, I have to leave in literately three minutes, so I'm sorry if there are any mistakes. I didn't have time to read through. If you see any, feel free to tell me so I can correct them as soon as possible. This chapter has a lot of action. What can I say? I was sort of craving it.

Disclaimer: Don't own the Sea of Monster, or any other books in the PJO series. Sorry.


Demigod dreams were the worst. They were either nightmares or prophetic, and occasionally both. Unfortunately, Thalia was once again having one of those dreams.

Thalia wasn't playing an active role in the dream, she quickly realized. She was watching something take place, acting as a third party. At least, she convinced herself of the fact until she felt an unmistakable pain course through her. One minute, she had been watching the way the dark clouds rolled above a tall, mighty pine tree—her tree; the next, she felt crippled, as if she were being attacked from the inside out. Except, she wasn't even physically present in the dream.

A shadowy figure caught her eye. In a chance ray of moonlight, she managed to catch a glimpse of the person's face. Luke Castellan. What was he doing near the tree? She had no idea what her previous friend was up to, but she somehow knew it was the cause of her pain. It was too dark for her to make out what he was doing, but the longer he stood near her tree the worse the pain became.

She wanted to scream, yell, fight him back, anything, but she found herself unable to do so. Her voice was irrelevant at the moment. Thunder rang across the sky, and the son of Hermes seemed to falter at the sound, glancing around him as if any moment Zeus himself might appear. What was he doing to her pine? More importantly, why did it hurt her? She wasn't the pine. It had solely served as a replacement for her. So, why did she feel as if she were connected to it somehow?

Her view of Luke improved; she felt remarkably closer to what was happening, and it was as if someone had lit a candle. His face was strangely illuminated, his crystal blue eyes trained on whatever was in front of him. The large, menacing scar that ran through most of his face shocked Thalia, and not in a good way. Her Luke…her friend Luke…what had happened to him?

Her eyes followed his gaze, and she swore she could've fainted at the sight. Luminescent fluid—mystical tree sap, she realized—leaked from a gaping hole in the pine's side. The picture itself was somewhat baffling. It appeared as if the tree were almost bleeding. Which, in a way, it kind of was, she surmised.

When she turned back to face the son of Hermes, doubt rose within her. The Luke she had once known wouldn't be smirking smugly at the sight of the damaged tree. Hell, he had hated when she went out to hunt for them. Why would he find such pleasure in stabbing a tree?

She could only guess he had stabbed it. His blade was sunken within the fissure.

Quick as lightning, he yanked the sword back and slipped it back into his scabbard.

The pain suddenly intensified within her belly, and she felt as if she would soon implode. Her mind felt heavier. Her vision of the scene blurred, until she could barely make out his form. She was close to unconsciousness.

Thalia dissipated, her last sights that of Luke's blurry flickering smile.

Thalia woke up with a jolt, panting wildly, her hand clutching at her sweaty abdomen. Her baby cousin Calliope slumbered peacefully in the bed across the room, her little sighs sounding. The daughter of Zeus groaned aloud, tearing off her now soaked white v-neck. She may have been insanely tired, but she wasn't sleepy enough to try lying in sweaty clothes.

She climbed out of bed and quietly walked over to her dresser, being cautious as to not wake anyone else up. The last time she had woken Connie she had surely regretted it. After sliding off her warm-up pants and replacing them with a pair of black boxer briefs, she searched her closet for a baggy shirt. Finding one she liked, she slid it off the hanger and strung it on.

Thalia glanced back at the sleeping figure of her cousin before sneaking out of the room and silently closing the door behind her. She was extremely thirsty, and she wanted to clear her head before attempting to sleep again. She tiptoed into the kitchen and swiftly opened the fridge, searching for something that caught her interest.

Even though she knew she would get in trouble if Amy caught her, she grabbed a soda from the fridge and tried to suppress the sound as she cracked it open. Despite her ADHD, caffeine usually helped her calm down. If she ever needed to ease her mind, she could just drink coffee or an energy drink and she would be fine.

Thalia rested back against the wooden counter and took a long sip from the can.

Her mind flashed back to the winter, when she had received the symbol of her father on her wrist. She had decided to tell her aunt long before, using the excuse that she had gotten it done before she had known of their existence. Her family had understood, knowing that she had practically came from the streets. Rayanne had thought it was cool, and begged Amy to have one of her own. The woman hadn't liked that idea too much.

Thalia didn't know why Hera had marked her. She didn't know the purpose, and she didn't care to know. She wanted it gone, and her problems with Hera along with it. Ever since the summer had ended, she had received several signs from the goddess of marriage. Abnormal cows would appear out of nowhere, in the middle of the street. It had been raining constantly, no doubt a sign of her father's irritation.

The daughter of Zeus recalled her stepmother's words after she had rescued her from the Underworld.

"Mark my words, Thalia Grace, I plan to make your world a living hell."

Well, it was about damn time the goddess started. She had almost forgot all about their heated encounter.

Finishing off her drink, Thalia threw the can away before making her way back into her bedroom. She wouldn't be able to sleep much, she knew. But, that wouldn't stop her from at least trying. Upon entering the bedroom, she crawled beneath her comforter and turned on her side. On second thought, she found that highly uncomfortable. Thalia rolled over onto her back.

There, that was better. Now…if she could just close her eyes long enough to fall asleep again…

Her bedside alarm went off, startling her and causing her to sit rim-rod straight against the headboard. Zeus' gonads, was it already time to get ready for school? She glanced at the clock and groaned aloud, running a hand through her messy hair. 6:15. Her day was going to absolutely suck.

By the time she had gotten dressed in a pair of ripped black jeans, a Ramones shirt, and her combat boots, she was already running late. As she didn't have time to stay and eat breakfast, she quickly kissed Calliope goodbye and hugged Amy before all but running out of the house. Her backpack was relatively light, as she only kept what she required inside.

The bus ride was boring, depressingly so. Thalia almost thanked the gods when she finally arrived in front of the school. Almost. She hated Frankfurt Prep, a frequent for the likes of snobby rich kids. That's not to say all wealthy students were snobby, just the ones that she knew.

Thalia rushed to her first period class, eager to get the day over with. Unfortunately, she incidentally ran into the school bully in doing so, causing the bigger girl to tumble to the unforgiving concrete.

Lamella Thompson blew hair out of her face in frustration, and glared up at the taller girl in disgust. "Watch where you're going, freak!" she demanded, standing back on her feet. Her ugly friends laughed alongside her. "Just because you're the Green Giant doesn't mean you can go around knocking into whoever you please!"

Thalia clenched her fists, trying to keep a lid on her anger. She was already at risk of expulsion, and it would absolutely piss Amy off if she got kicked out this late in the school year. She couldn't afford to get into another fight. She just couldn't.

Even though her pride screeched in protest, she sighed in defeat.

"Sorry, Lamella," she said. "It's my fault. I wasn't looking."

"Obviously!" the girl yelled, trying to get up into the other teen's face. "It's about time you learn who's Queen around here, retard."

The daughter of Zeus faltered at the words. Her cheeks flared red despite her better wishes, and she growled menacingly, her eyes sparking a dominant blue. "Oh, Queen? That what everyone's calling you now? Last time I checked, it was bitch."

The chocolate-haired bully snickered, looking Thalia up in down, feigning disinterest. "You, me. Gym. Now."

Thalia, although the sane part of her mind screamed against it, smirked and crossed her arms over her chest. "Let's go, then," she said, storming off to the gym.

Lamella followed her, growling in anger at her companions when they asked to join her.

Thalia didn't stop walking until she reached the gym, her boots ringing through the suspiciously quiet hallways. Hadn't they been crowded just a second before? Where had everyone gone? She shook her head. She knew she should have gotten more sleep. Her sluggishness was going to impair her performance throughout the day.

When she got to the huge double doors, she was shocked when her strength wasn't enough to pull them open. Lamella appeared behind her and tugged on them roughly, nearly sending them off of their hinges. The daughter of Zeus gulped; she was seriously beginning to doubt her chances at winning, and she never did that.

In the blink of an eye, Lamella had somehow appeared on the opposite side of the dark gym. Thalia blinked owlishly, blaming the occurrence on the fact she hadn't gotten enough sleep the night before. It was really taking its toll on her.

"What are you waiting for?" the demigoddess called out, spreading her arms open. Why hadn't the rude girl approached her yet? "You came here for me to kick your ass, didn't you?"

Lamella tilted her head to the side, smiling cruelly. Sharp fangs glinted unmistakably in the dim lighting, and electric blue eyes widened. Her facial features distorted, eyebrows drawn together irregularly and nose scrunched high. Lamella's skin was now a pasty gray, and her gums grew bright cherry red.

"Not quite," the creature rasped, shooting towards Thalia at an unmatchable speed.

The demigoddess had just enough time to activated Aegis before the strange demon reached her. The creature leaped back at the sight of Medusa, hissing at the brunette wielding it.

Thalia had never seen a monster quite like this one. It almost looked like…like a vampire. But, did those even exist? She had never read of any in Greek mythology, but she knew better than to shoot the theory down that quickly. There were a lot of things in her world that she had yet to learn about. The demon in front of her was obviously one of them.

"Daughter of Zeus," the previous Lamella cackled, hunching over in an animalistic fashion. Thalia watched as it grew long talons from its fingernails, and wrinkled her nose in disgusted fascination. "The ones of old aren't fans of you, and coincidentally, neither am I."

"W—what are you?" Thalia managed to get out, panting from exhaustion. Her lack of sleep was going to be the death of her. She hadn't even begun fighting yet, and she was already close to passing out.

She held her shield strong, her other hand subtly searching for her trusty pocket watch—her sword, Thunderbird. Usually, she wouldn't have hesitated this much. But, this strange creature was certainly foreign to her. She didn't even know if her sword would work!

Resisting the urge to do a little victory dance when she found her weapon, she secretly slipped it out of her pocket. Keeping her eyes on the monster in front of her, she swiftly activated the sword and swung immediately.

The demon was even faster than she, and effortlessly dodged the attack, grasping the weapon in between her menacing claws and flinging it far away from them. Thalia stared wide-eyed as the vampire-like thing fearlessly closed in on her, despite the fact that the head of Medusa was glowing frighteningly.

"I expected more from a child of the most powerful god," the monster mocked, licking her fangs hungrily. "The Ichor flows strong with you, young one. I might just eat every bit of you."

Thalia closed her eyes tightly, pressing herself against the wall. Her weapon was all the way across the room. With the demon's speed, she only had once chance to get it back. She just had to wait until Lamella leaned close enough…

CLANG!

Medusa met Lamella head-on—no pun intended—sending the vampire to the ground. The daughter of Zeus wasted no time in sprinting as fast as she could over to her sword, but her speed was no match. The monster rammed into her from the side, sending her body sprawling. The skin above her ribs stung from her recently obtained gash. It looked as if the talons had nicked her. Blood soaked her black shirt, and caused the material to stick to her abdomen.

Aegis transformed back into a bracelet on its own, which desperately angered the demigoddess. She hated when it did that!

Lamella stood hovered above her, and pinned her body down. The daughter of Zeus thrashed in protest, but even her strength didn't match that of the monster. Her mind flashed back to what Chiron had once told her about Herculean strength. It would have come in handy at the time, if she was even illegible to earn it in the first place. She seriously doubted it existed. Her life wasn't a freaking Disney movie.

The vampire settled her fangs on her pulse point, gripping her wrists tight and holding them against the cold gym floor. Just as soon as the monster had pounced on her, it was off. She didn't know what had startled the demon, but it stood ten feet away staring at her in fear. Lamella cradled her—its—hand, and the daughter of Zeus watched on in awe as smoke rose from the burned flesh.

"Hera!" the monster bellowed. "Curses! The bitch has always had it out for me. This isn't supposed to happen."

Thalia crawled to her feet, backing as far away as she could, making sure to snatch Thunderbird off the floor.

Lamella hissed. "What are you? A servant to that bitch? She hates children of Zeus!"

Thalia frowned. What did Hera have to do with anything? "Lamella…what are you—"

"It's Lamia!"

The daughter of Zeus scowled. "Lamia, I am not a servant of Hera. I don't even know what you're talking about. What does she have to do with anything?"

"Get away from me!" Lamia snarled, straightening her back and roaring.

Her teeth grew even longer, if possible. Before Thalia could say anything else, the demon suddenly ignited, flames dancing across gray, peeling flesh. It was quite the dreadful sight. The demigoddess thought the creature might possibly charge her again, but to her surprise it ran for the wall and sunk completely through the brick.

The only traces the monster left behind were the bloodstains on the floor, and the gash in her side.

Thalia deactivated her sword and tucked it into her pocket, not a moment too late. The school jerk of a principal, Eddie Packwood, swung open the door to the gym and marched in, several teachers behind him.

His beady eyes caught sight of her, stained with blood, and he stomped his foot in anger. "Young lady!" he screamed, sounding more like a wife from a reality show than a respected disciplinary figure. "In my office, now!"

The daughter of Zeus internally seethed. She was getting blamed for a stupid, runaway monster destroying everything. Figures.

She had been so close to going on Spring Break, and some demon had to come along and ruin it for her. Amy was going to raise hell when the principal called. Thalia sighed. That was one storm she didn't feel like weathering.


"Why did you do it?" Amy asked as they drove away from the school, fingers tightly gripping the steering wheel. "You had one more day until Spring Break, and you fuckin' blew it."

Thalia crossed her arms over her chest, grumpily sinking down further in her seat. She didn't want to answer her aunt. She knew it would only result in another fight, and that was the last thing she needed right now. The demigoddess just wanted to get home, crawl into bed, and go back to sleep. She didn't feel like facing the rest of the day. Not with her family disappointed in her.

"Well?" her aunt snapped irritably, throwing her a hateful look.

Thalia's mouth tightened in a disgruntled fashion. "I don't know," she mumbled under her breath.

"What?"

"I don't know!"

"Don't raise your voice at me, girl!" Amy angrily shouted.

"You couldn't hear me!"

Amy continued on, as if she hadn't heard the girl. "I was nice enough to take you in, and this is what I get? You know, your mother was the same. Selfish. Always thinking of herself. Do you know how much it hurts when everyone in town knows I raise a delinquent? Do you know how many stares I get?"

Thalia's breathing seemed to stop all together. Why was she being so…well, mean? The daughter of Zeus didn't find trouble, it found her! Amy's reprimanding tone reminded Thalia of her mother's harsh, drunken rants.

"It's all your fault! Your father never would have left us if you weren't so disrespectful!"

"You're so disrespectful!" her aunt started again, but Thalia had already begun to tune her out, dwelling on hazy memories. "Would it kill you to be a good kid for once?"

"You act this way in spite of me! You think I like punishing you?"

Thalia closed her eyes tightly, not wishing to relive the terrible memories but unable to stop the onslaught of thoughts. Her aunt's voice drowned to the back of her mind, as she desperately pleaded with her mind to clear itself of everything. Of course, it was no use.

Thalia just wished she could get over her troublesome past and move on. It was only serving to hold her back.

Her eyes watered beneath their lids, and she gripped her thighs painfully. Her side ached, her mind raced, and she just couldn't take it anymore. She didn't want to hear Amy. She wanted everything to stop.

Thunder shook the sky, as lighting raced down to peck the gravel road. Amy was shocked out of her lecture, and struggled to keep the vehicle from slipping as rain poured down even harsher than it had before. The violent winds assaulted the treetops, shaking leaves and the like to the ground.

"I didn't see anything on the news about a storm!" Amy muttered thoughtfully, displeased. "Was it this bad earlier?"

In the back of her mind, Thalia knew she was strengthening the rain, wind, and lightning. But, she couldn't bring herself to stop. She doubted she could if she attempted to.

"Thalia!"

Lightning struck down within their view, blowing a good size gap in the lane opposite of them.

"Thalia!"

Storm clouds brewed above, surely moments away from casting even more earth-shattering lightning down.

"Thalia Alcaeus Grace!"

Thalia's eyes flew open, and she took in the sight in front of her. Two cars had crashed into one another, and they were both turned on their sides, smoking in the grass next to the road. She could hardly make out a thing through the glass, as the rain was too merciless for the windshield wipers to swipe away. Thunder roared above, a gloomy promise of an even rougher storm.

The daughter of Zeus closed her eyes and sought to end the storm, or at least calm it until they could get home.

"Damn it, kid! I'm sorry!" Amy yelled, setting a free hand on the teenager's knee. "Please, talk to me. I'm sorry for snapping at you earlier, but we need to get home. This storm could very well kill us, Thalia."

Thalia felt the tug in her gut—the one that she hadn't felt since she was nearly fourteen years of age. She had gotten so used to summoning lightning, that it hardly bothered her any longer. But this time, she had summoned a lot more than simple lightning. She had turned light rainfall into a tempestuous storm and nearly killed people. She didn't even know if the people in the crash were all right.

The storm didn't stop completely, but it definitely lessened. Lightning was no longer striking down or stirring very much above—Thalia would know if it were, of course. The rain was still pretty rough, but no longer absolutely unforgiving.

The daughter of Zeus exhaled deeply, turning over to send her aunt a wavering smile. "I'm okay, Amy," she promised, taking another deep breath. "We're okay."

By the time they got home, the rain was remarkably lighter. Amy stepped out of the car and grumbled.

"I've always hated rain," she complained, trying to shield her curls from the downpour. "Your mother loved it."

Thalia ignored the mention of her mother, but manipulated the rain to ease up on her aunt. The daughter of Zeus loved the rain, so she didn't particularly mind if it were pouring down on her. She had to get a shower soon, anyway.


Thalia packed her bags for camp, feeling refreshed after her shower and nap. Her day, or night rather, was beginning to brighten. Soon, she would be stopping by Percy's house, and then they would be off to camp. It was certainly what she needed most at the end of such a stressful day.

As she threw her (what she realized was) Drakon flight jacket into her duffle bag, her aunt barged into the room with her hair in a mess.

"Thalia," she said, panting. "Dinner is ready."

Did she have to wrestle the cow before she killed it?

"All right," the daughter of Zeus responded.

Amy cleared her throat. "And, just what do you think you happen to be doing?"

"Packing my bag for camp…" Thalia trailed off, wincing visibly and silently praying to whatever god was listening that her aunt didn't choose to do this. Not now. Not so close to her leaving.

Amy's hands settled on her hips and she scowled. "I don't think so. You're in big trouble. You can't just get expelled from school and expect me to let you go off and do whatever you please."

"Amy—"

"Don't," her aunt cut her off, waving a hand. "There is no room for discussion. Dinner is ready. Come downstairs and eat."

The demigoddess sighed, throwing her bag to the closet. She hadn't wanted to do this—not to her family—but she had no choice. She had to get to camp. Not only for her own enjoyment, either. Percy had promised to tell Annabeth of her recently acquired mark, and they were all going to get to the bottom of it.

Even if she had to run away, she was going to camp tonight. Zeus help whoever made an effort to stop her.


After everyone else was asleep, Thalia snuck out of bed and quickly shouldered her bag. She was already dressed in outdoor wear: a bleached jean jacket with a cotton hood, a black shirt, beige jeans, and a pair of insulated work boots.

She took out a pen and a piece of paper when she was downstairs and just inside of the door. Her handwriting was horrible, but she managed to get the brief message across.

Be home before you know it, the note read. Don't be too angry.

Thalia glanced back once before trudging outside and down the front steps of the house, her duffle bag growing heavier with every step she took. She had to do what she had to do. And she had to find Percy Jackson.