Chapter One: Gone

I woke up to my half-brothers and half-sisters staring into my face. I sat up so fast, I almost smacked my half-sister, Haley, in the face.

"Geez, you scared me. Just be glad I'm used to you doing that to me whenever something important happens. Otherwise, I would have you at sword point by now."

"Ah, Stace?" Haley said, looking in my face. "We do have something important to tell you."

"Can you at least wait 'till I am dressed and not laying in my bed with about 15 of my siblings are staring at my face? I am defenseless and my hair is probably a mess and a half." I asked politely giving Haley and the rest of my sibling some reasons to let me out of bed.

Haley cracked a smile. "Just like mom," she said, slowly shaking her head back and forth.

"You've me Aphrodite?" Zoe asked, her voice full of amazement. She was almost 7 and was one of the newest campers at Camp Half-Blood.

"Of course." Haley answered, bending down so she was at Zoe's level. "Once you've been at camp for 5 years, Rosalie and Zachary allow us to meet our godly parent."

Zoe's blue eyes widened to the size of saucers.

"Of course, you have to go through a scorching desert first and then you have to climb Mount Olympus." Haley went on. She had a strait face but her eyes showed she was doing all she could to keep from laughing.

"Oh no!" She exclaimed, sounding like the little kid she was.

"Haley!" Jasper, one of the older campers, scolded.

"What!" Haley asked, standing up strait so she could glare at him. "I was just havin' a little fun."

Jasper rolled his eyes.

I just was laying in my bed, stretched out and comfortable. "Excuse me guys, but can I get dressed now?"

Jasper turned to face me, with his back to Haley. "Of course. And you're right. Your hair is a mess and a half." He said, smirking.

I rolled my eyes at his foul remark. "Thanks for the compliment." I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

I swung my legs off my bed and went to the foot of my bed so I could get my clothes out of my trunk. Picking out a camp t-shirt and a pair of jeans, I went to the bathroom so I could change.

After I came out, my hair looking much better, I cleared my throat.

All my half-siblings turned to look at me.

"The reason half of you were staring into my face when I woke up?" I asked impatiently.

Haley stepped forward and stood straighter. "Well…I'm not really supposed to say…It will be explained at breakfast by Rosalie and Zachary. So you will have to wait until then.

I rolled my eyes for the second time in five minutes. "And breakfast is when?"

Jasper looked at his watch. "Fifteen minutes. It's 8:45 right now. We have to leave in about five minutes."

-Time Lapse-

I stared down at my empty plate and rubbed my stomach. I had just eaten 12 chocolate chip pancakes in 15 minutes. I looked up to the front of the dining pavilion just as Rosalie and Zachary trotted (they're centaurs) to the front.

"Welcome to another-" Zachary started saying.

"Just get straight to the point, Zachary. They need to know." Rosalie snapped. "Of course half of the Aphrodite-" Rosalie got interrupted by a cheering and whistling. "Thank you, boys for announcing to the whole camp that you think Aphrodite, and all the girls in that cabin, are hot." Rosalie said the last part like it was a disgusting, atrocious bug. "Back to what I was saying before I got so discourteously interrupted. Half of the Aphrodite cabin already knows what is going on."

"Like Rosalie already said, you guys have a right to know this. Aphrodite has been kidnapped by none other than Ares himself."

This cannot be happening. I thought. This is all a dream. I will wake up very soon. I promised silently to myself.

"And those of you thinking this, this is not a dream." Rosalie stated like she read our minds.