Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena, received the most important quest of her life when she was just seventeen.

She was to set sail across the Aegean Sea in search of Aphrodite's Treasure, and she had twelve days to retrieve it and bring it back to Greece. The myth about the treasure was that the goddess Aphrodite had fallen in love with a mortal named Cristovao hundreds of years ago, and as a gift to remember her by, she'd given him her 'heart' – the treasure, which she'd put in a jeweled box and stored safely in Athens, where Cristovao lived. But soon after Aphrodite gave Cristovao her gift, her mortal lover was killed in a raid on his village. Vicious pirates had swarmed Athens and pillaged the city, leaving nothing unturned. They'd stolen everything they could get their hands on, including Aphrodite's Treasure.

Days ago, Annabeth had been at home in New York, studying for her SAT's, when Aphrodite herself appeared and asked her to retrieve the treasure.

"But – it's been missing for hundreds of years," Annabeth had pointed out. "And I don't even know what it is. How am I supposed to find it?"

"You're a daughter of Athena," Aphrodite had said with a coy smile. "I'm sure you'll figure it out." She waved a hand in the air. "Your schedule has been cleared for the next two weeks. You will go to Greece – alone – and there you will find a ship waiting for you. You have twelve days to find the treasure and return it to Athens."

Annabeth was honored that she'd been chosen for the task, but still, she asked, "Why me?"

Aphrodite smiled again, and it was gentle and sweet. "You'll see, Annabeth. I would retrieve the treasure myself, but unfortunately it is out of my reach."

Annabeth had learned not to ask too many questions when it came to the gods. If they wanted you to do something, you did it.

"What exactly is the treasure?" she asked. "No one's seen it for centuries."

"I am forbidden from intervening too much, but I can tell you this: the item you seek is not one, but two. And it will be easier to find than you think."

The gears in Annabeth's overactive demigod mind started turning on overdrive while she tried to process what that meant. The goddess of love smiled.

"I have faith in you, Annabeth. There is a reason I chose you for this quest. When the time comes, you will understand. You have a great destiny, child of Athena, one filled with adventure, danger, passion . . . and a romance so epic it cannot be rivaled by even the gods' love stories."

Annabeth's eyes widened. Epic romance? She'd never even had a boyfriend before.

"I . . . I'll do my best to find the treasure," Annabeth said, straightening her posture. "I'll bring it back to Athens on time."

Aphrodite smiled again and nodded. "I know you will. Good luck, Annabeth. And I'll tell your mother you said hello." And with that, the goddess of love disappeared, leaving Annabeth alone in her bedroom, her SAT prep books spread out around her.

The next day, she'd gotten on a plane to Greece.

It was hard saying goodbye to her father – he thought it was dangerous for her to go alone, but Aphrodite had told her she had to. Reluctantly, her father let her go. She was thinking about him now as she stood in front of the ship Aphrodite had promised would be waiting for her. Annabeth stood on the docks, rubbing her good luck charm with her thumb. It was a necklace her father had bought for her when she was twelve; nothing special, just a small, circular silver disc on a plain silver chain. But it was her most prized possession. She hardly ever took it off.

"Miss Chase?" someone said, and Annabeth turned to see a man standing behind her on the docks. He was dressed like the captain of a ship, armed with a sword, and he bowed slightly to her. "My name is Captain Xavier Wells, son of Hephaestus. This is my vessel, here, the Cleopatra. I've been ordered to give you safe passage across the Aegean."

Annabeth nodded her head to him. "Nice to meet you, Captain Wells. I'm Annabeth, daughter of Athena."

Captain Wells smiled at her. "We set sail in ten minutes."

"Son of Hephaestus," Annabeth muttered, staring at the Cleopatra. It was an impressive ship – not that she had anything to compare it to, because she'd never seen one in person before – but it was big and looked sturdy. The crew was milling around on deck, preparing for departure. "Did you build this ship?"

The captain nodded proudly. "I did. I can assure you we'll be safe against any obstacles we may face on our journey."

"Do you know where we're going?" she asked him. Captain Wells looked at her and shook his head with a small smile of regret.

"I was told to sail until you tell me to stop," he said. "Aphrodite said you would know when."

Annabeth sighed. She should've known this was the way things were going to go. Here she was, about to set sail on a quest to find a mysterious treasure that had been missing for hundreds of years, without any idea of what it was or where it was or where she was going.

"All right, then," she said. "I suppose we'd better get going."

She and the captain boarded the ship. The crewmembers nodded respectfully to each of them as they passed. Annabeth followed Captain Wells up to the quarterdeck and stood beside him at the wheel of the ship. She looked out towards the sea. The wind was blowing her blonde hair back, and the smell of the salty ocean made her close her eyes as she took in a long breath. The scent seemed to awaken something in her; suddenly, she knew where to go.

Captain Wells was looking at her expectantly.

"North," she said, keeping her eye on the horizon. "We'll go north."

And so the Cleopatra set sail across the Aegean Sea, in search of a treasure that had been long lost.