So this was it. Everything she had done to stay alive until this point, everything would be lost. She closed her eyes, not wanting to witness what this person was going to do to her. Maybe it would be quick. Maybe it wouldn't. She never did get to say goodbye to her mom, never told Cassidy how much she loved her. The three words would never have been enough.

"Huh." A young-sounding masculine voice.

So they did speak. It wasn't what she had expected, definitely. She had pictured an older man incapable of forming words. The simple phrase had sounded very calm and sophisticated.

"Stop cowering, pipsqueak."

She didn't want to. Were they really going to make her watch while this happened? She couldn't even stand up on her own at this point. A long silence finally persuaded her to open her eyes.

She had to blink several times to process what was in front of her. The sun had set beyond the windows, making it extremely dark. However, to her relief, the figure had a lantern held high enough to light up the room. She couldn't risk them seeing what a freak she was.

When her eyes had adjusted, she became even more confused. The figure had removed the hood, revealing a tall boy, maybe a year or so older than her. He had oddly clean, tanned skin and golden eyes that seemed to reflect the sun. His hair was also well-groomed, a shiny ebony color with a slightly messy style that had been recently cut. Past the cloak, he was wearing a black hoodie and gray jeans. He was staring at her.

He didn't speak, just set the lantern on the ground and walked across the room to retrieve the blade. Thalia watched him in shock, unsure of how to respond to the situation. She expected some creepy person who had just escaped from a mental hospital, or a prison. However, he looked like a very well-off college student.

The realization hit her like a freight train. It made sense, the cloak, the knife, everything. A Guardian. He was testing her.

"Judging by the look on your face I'm assuming you've figured it out. Took you long enough." He was back, bending down to pick up the lamp. The shadows seemed to dance around the room, taunting her.

"And don't even try the 'I'm innocent' thing right now. You ran away from Ava like a scared little mouse and just now you fought me with an energy that no human should ever have." He spoke in a monotone, slightly taunting tone. "Come." Thalia began to wish she had just stayed with the other girl, Ava.

He looked back at her as if expecting her to magically stand up and follow him. She stared, dumbfounded. "I said come. Someone like you will freeze to death down here."

Someone like you. It felt like a punch to the face.

"I'll be making a fire upstairs. Freeze if you want." He turned towards the staircase.

"Wait," She finally mustered up the courage to speak again. Everything felt numb, she couldn't stand up if she wanted to. Which, despite her earlier thoughts, she did.

"What?"

"I... think I broke my arm earlier," she said, awkwardly looking down.

"And? You think I'm so dense as to not notice?"

"No I just-"

"Then there are no problems. As I said before, I'll be upstairs." He turned again and began walking away.

"Wait!" She yelled. Though he had the looks of a celebrity, he had the personality of a depressed five-year-old. She started to wonder if death would be a better option. She heard the floorboards creak as he walked away.

Okay, don't freak out. He won't let you die. But, granted, he's not supposed to let you get wounded either. If she didn't know better she would be second guessing if he was even a Guardian. She prayed the rest of them weren't like this.

Well, there was Ava. She seemed... nice, for the few moments Thalia had seen her. Still scary, granted, but that was just the situation. She seemed like a good person. Or at the very least an angel compared to whoever this was.

After a moment, he must have walked over the floorboards above her, as another creak echoed through the room. Then the silence resumed. However, a small light continued to shine from the doorway to the stairs. He must have left his lantern there so she could see enough to climb up. How thoughtful.

As much as she hated it, he was definitely right about the temperature. Thalia was still soaked in water, making the already cold night even colder. The brief gusts of wind coming through the small cracks between the stone walls were definitely not helping either. She decided it was probably now or never, and painfully rolled to her side. As she did, she noticed the slight glow emanating from her arm. If he were to come back down before she could reach the lantern, what little she had to live for would no longer exist.

With one painful heave, she was up. She whimpered slightly as she rubbed the arm that had pushed her up. It was covered in a rough mixture of thorns, dried blood, and bruises that were just starting to yellow. The skin underneath was shimmering with a dull, silvery glow.

With that tiny detail, everything from the day came back to her. The pain, physical and emotional, seemed to attack her all at once with a shattering force. With a shaking hand, she held onto the wall with all of her remaining strength as tears streamed down her face. She may never go back home. She may never see her family again, she may be stuck with the jerk waiting for her to come up the stairs forever.

Maybe if she left, she would at least die free. Sure, whoever that was would see her glow. But it didn't matter, as long as she wouldn't be able to witness it. Did she even glow in death? Was it something that depended on a steady heartbeat, depended on a series of breaths to thrive?

Somehow, she mustered a small, desperate laugh through the waterfalls that cascaded down her face. She was asking such pointless questions, questions that would never come to have an answer. This was nothing like her, she had trained vigorously for situations like this and worse since she was first able to comprehend who she was. Even if she had no control over what was happening, she could at least have control over her reactions. She shouldn't be breaking down like this.

Thalia took a moment to close her eyes and breathe, allowing the tears to softly fall to the ground. She didn't have time to break down, however she couldn't exactly be a nuclear reactor destined to go off at any moment, either. She had to take a moment to relax.

An idea crossed her mind. No matter what situation she had been in in the past, there was something that had always allowed her to move forwards. Someone she could always ask for advice, someone who would always get her through whatever barrier stood before her in the end. Sometimes, the advice would be wrong, however Thalia never once regretted doing as she was told.

What would Cassidy want her to do?

This once, for the very first time, she wasn't sure. Cassidy, risk taking, daring Cassidy, always wanted whatever would keep Thalia safe. That definitely crossed out leaving as an option. However, staying wasn't safe either was it? Whoever was up there definitely had made it very clear they weren't willing to help in any way.

Thalia slowly moved towards the stairs, wiping the tears away from her eyes. Cassidy would have wanted her to live as long as she could. She had always said that Thalia could find something to smile at during a hurricane, and she wanted Thalia to always be able to find that. She couldn't if she wasn't alive to do it. She sighed, waiting until her skin stopped glowing and picking up the lantern that was sitting on the ground. How the Guardian was able to see up there, she had no idea. Maybe it was his trait. Not that she cared.

She ascended the stairs, lantern in hand. She figured her eyes were red, but she honestly didn't care anymore. She was definitely better emotionally, however that didn't change the fact that she was a physical wreck. Her feet appeared steady, however both of her hands were shaking, causing the light to flicker oddly against the walls. The stairs creaked loudly from under her. She finally reached the top stair, holding onto the wall for support.