A/N: Hi guys! If anyone's still reading after last chapter xD Second maybe fiftieth apology for that! This chapter won't be quite as long I don't think.

light-and-Shadows-Mist-and-ice: Sorryyy!

Thalia's POV

Thalia had no idea how best to go about this. Her entire life, torn and thrown back at her, smashed and broken. How did anyone recover from this? It was impossible. All the guilt, the grief, it crushed her spirit, flattening and burning it to ashes. She could barely remember who she was, and what she was fighting for.

Surely she could've done something to save them. That message in her head…. Why did Celeste use the last of her strength to save her? Why not herself, or Camille, or Zane? What had she possibly done to deserve being saved?

Truth be told, it was almost worse being the only one who lived. The grief, the despair, the guilt. Dying meant you didn't take any of that with you. Living meant having those weights on your shoulders for eternity.

Fresh tears slipped down her flushed cheeks, her eyes red from crying. Her puffy eyelids blinked them away, and she used a grimy hand to swipe her cheeks clean. Stumbling to a standing position, Thalia took one last look at the destruction. I was so close to saving them. The thought kept recycling through her mind, bringing on wave after wave of emotions she didn't need right now.

Ripping her gaze from the bodies she so desperately wished would turn into smiling, live faces, Thalia ran. She didn't know to where, only that she needed to get away from here before it tore her to shreds. Twice she almost tripped on tree roots, and she had to slice a few vines out of her way with her bloodied knife.

How was it possible I wasn't able to kill all of them before they…. They…. I should've been able to do it…. My fault, my fault, my fault…. Thalia's mind was a constant state of swirling guilt, continuously intensifying into a raging storm as she convinced herself she could've done something.

After at least half an hour of running, Thalia collapsed against a big tree. Small needles stuck into the flesh of her legs, but she didn't care. She didn't care about the pain that had returned from the claws which had shredded her skin.

I deserve it. I deserve it and so, so much more. It should've been me who'd died…. Thalia collapsed her head into her hands, her body shaking with quiet sobs. She knew she was lost. She had a general idea where the town was, but any wrong turn would instantly confuse her mental gps which was always calculating where exactly she was.

Maybe I'll die out here. A slow, painful death. Starvation, dehydration, maybe even a stupid Jaguar will come along and eat me. I deserve the absolute worst, she thought to herself.

She barely noticed the quiet crunch of feet padding on leaves. If it was someone come to kill her, good. That was exactly what she deserved, she convinced herself. The sound came closer, until whatever it was sat down beside her. Thalia flinched as warm arms embraced her, warm hand rubbing her back gently. Her sobbing came out in heaving wails now, muttering that it was all her fault. Then, a quiet voice, whispering in her ear.

"It's ok. You're safe now, it'll all work out ok," the voice whispered. Thalia sniffled, wiping her eyes on her arm before looking up to see who this person was.

The girl who sat beside her had warm honey colored eyes, dark tan colored skin. Her hair was a deep brown, almost black. It was tied in a sloppy braid which rested gently over her shoulder. She looked to be about Thalia's age, with big eyes and full lips. She was beautiful, her previously storming mind whispered. Thalia beat the thought to bloody hell.

"What happened? Why are you out in the woods alone?" the girl asked, her voice soothing like a melody. Sniffling, Thalia ducked her head in absolute shame.

"There was…. An explosion…. They're all gone…." Thalia whimpered. More sobs overcame her. The girl hugged her tighter, resting her head on Thalia's shoulder.

"And you think it was your fault? That they're gone?" the girl asked warmly. Thalia barely managed a nod through her shaking.

"I'm sure it's not. It's your brain trying to make you collapse from the inner storm by launching all sorts of 'what if's' at you. The best way to combat that, to heal, is to go over the events clearly, without the what if's, and see that there was probably nothing you could do. I'm sure you tried your best," the girl whispered in response.

Taking a deep breath, Thalia tried to clear her mind. To go over the events again. There really hadn't been anything she could've done- she'd tried her absolute hardest to get them all out alive. Slowly, the sobs retreated, leaving dry eyes and red cheeks. Thalia brushed her knotted hair out of her face, looking at the girl again.

"What's…. What's your name?" She asked quietly. Thalia felt weird not knowing her name and not introducing herself properly. "I'm Tha…. Thalia," she managed to say without breaking down again. She hated being this weak, this fragile.

"It's my pleasure to meet you, Thalia. Even under such dire circumstances. My name's Vera," the girl- Vera- replied gently. Thalia whispered the name, letting it get used to being spoken.

"That's a lovely name, wait…. Dire? Is something else going on?" Thalia asked, her voice getting stronger. Vera's eyes clouded over, the honey color shifting to a cold grey.

"I'm afraid so…. Everyone heard about the explosion of the ancient Aztec temple. That was you guys, wasn't it?" Thalia nodded and Vera continued on. "Well, at that moment there have been so many attacks that started raging across Earth and Luna. It's so weird, and scary. The beasts…. The ones Queen Cinder Blackburn locked up in a secret sector? They've broken free, but it's weird…. Like…. Like someone is controlling them. They haven't shown any signs of aggression before today. Multiple sectors have already fallen to complete bloodshed, and Cinder and Kai are trying to get everyone into the capital where the gates should hold," Vera whispered, staring off into the distance.

"It's not just Luna though, there seems to have been… Secret reserves of the beasts on Earth. No one knows where they came from, but there are cities burning right now. No one's prepared, and it's so hard to kill even one of them…. It's terrifying. The problem is, no one can figure out who's controlling them. If we don't find this person, it's fully possible that…." Vera paused. Thalia nudged her onwards. Vera looked straight at Thalia as she said the last part, her stormy eyes piercing her soul.

"This may be the end of the world"

A/N: Hi guys! I hope that was like semi okay! It was kind of a short chapter, but I couldn't just leave Thalia to fend for herself! She needs a ship! ;)