The Mark of Athena

The Mark of Athena is the third book in The Heroes of Olympus series. It is set to be released on Ocober 2, 2012. Thanatos gives the demigods a hint that the quest to find the Doors of Death must begin in Rome and in order to find them, a certain kind of demigod must follow the signs. Hera also warns Percy that Annabeth will cause him a lot of trouble when they go to Rome.

A prophecy by Ella the Harpy, while with Percy, Hazel, and Frank, refers to this as well. Translated from Latin to English it says:

"Wisdom's daughter walks alone, The Mark of Athena burns through Rome."

Development
Rick Riordan has been working on The Mark of Athena since the completion of The Son of Neptune. While Amazon.com released information on the book, including page numbers, Rick mentioned that the book wasn't finished yet. So the information is deemed speculative.

During his tour to promote the last of The Kane Chronicles books, titled The Serpent's Shadow, Rick read the first chapter of The Mark of Athena. There, it is revealed that Annabeth Chase is one of the narrators. It was also revealed on his blog that the book would be released on October 2, 2012. Rick Riordan plans to release the cover art in early June, and information for the tour about a month before the book's release.

Synopsis
"In The Son of Neptune, Percy, Hazel, and Frank met in Camp Jupiter, the Roman equivalent of Camp Half-Blood, and traveled to the land beyond the gods to complete a dangerous quest. The third book in the Heroes of Olympus series will unite them with Jason, Piper, and Leo. But they number only six--who will complete the Prophecy of Seven?

{C}The Greek and Roman demigods will have to cooperate in order to defeat the giants released by the Earth Mother, Gaea. Then they will have to sail together to the ancient land--Greece itself--to find the Doors of Daeth. What exactly are the Doors of Death? Much of the prophecy remains a mystery...

With old friends and new friends joining forces, a marvelous ship, fearsome foes, and an exotic setting, The Mark of Athena promises to be another unforgettable adventure by master storyteller Rick Riordan."

“Told from the perspectives of four different demigods, including Annabeth from Percy Jackson and the Olympians, The Mark of Athena unites the Greek and Roman main characters from The Lost Hero and The Son of Neptune. In a fantastical ship called the Argo II, seven demigods journey by air across the United States and by sea to Rome on their quest to defeat the earth mother, Gaea. Meanwhile, war is breaking out between the Roman and Greek demigods they left behind, and only Annabeth holds the key to restoring peace.”

Plot
While getting ready to land at Camp Jupiter, Annabeth Chase prepares by making sure the back-up plans are ready in case something goes wrong, as well as the back-ups to the back-up plans. While Leo Valdez was flying the Argo II with a control system that involved Wii remotes, a dubstep sound board, a keyboard, and a monitor, Annabeth tried to keep Gleeson Hedge from attacking the first thing he saw by making him watch reruns of mixed martial arts championships in his cabin. Jason Grace prepared by putting on a purple toga over his orange Camp Half-Blood t-shirt and Piper McLean practiced her lines for when they landed. As Annabeth watched Jason, she wondered if this could all be a trap as she was still a bit untrusting of Jason as he seemed to be too perfect. She also was reminded of how much she missed Percy Jackson every time she looked at him.

Annabeth also mentions feeling a mysterious chill, as if "an evil snowman had crept up behind her and was peering over her neck." Annabeth wished she could pray to her mother, but this would be impossible as Athena had appeared to her about a month ago, an encounter Annabeth described as horrible. Athena also gave Annabeth the worst present of her life during this meeting. Soon, the horns from Camp Jupiter sounded below as the campers spotted the Argo II.

Annabeth Chase is amazed at the size of Camp Jupiter, which is twice the size of Camp Half Blood, and recognizes the landmarks that Jason has told her about. She sees evidence of the Romans' recent battle, including the cracked dome of the Senate House.

An explosion nearly knocks Annabeth overboard, and Terminus, the Roman god of boundaries, appears on the Argo II. He shrieks that he will not allow weapons inside the Pomerian Line, grumbling at Jason for consorting with "the enemies of Rome", Greeks. Piper tries to charmspeak Terminus but he slaps her dagger out of her hands for her impertinence. Since New Rome is stil recovering from the recent battle, Terminus announces that if he was at his full strength, he would have blasted the "flying monstrosity" out of the sky, to which Leo takes offence. Annabeth tries to regain control of the situation and calm everyone down, by introducing herself to Terminus, who finds that Annabeth being the daughter of Athena, the Greek form of Minerva, is "scandalous". But before Annabeth can question Terminus on what he means, Jason interupts and asks for permission to land inside the Pomerian Line.

Then, Terminus tells them to "Surrender, then leave." and 'slaps' Leo's face for asking what the the options are. This interests Leo even more and he asks if he can take a look at Terminus' gears. Terminus makes Leo drop the screwdriver, announcing "Weapons are not allowed on Roman soil inside the Pomerian Line." and includes the Argo II as a weapon. Annabeth spots Percy walking with Frank,"a boy with a black buzz cut" and Hazel, "a girl wearing a Roman cavalry helmet", like they're best friends. She also recognizes that he is now Praetor, as he is wearing a purple cape - her heart does a gymnastics routine.

Annabeth orders Leo to stop the ship, as she asks Terminus whether there is a rule against the ship hovering over New Rome. She explains that technically the ship will not be touching Roman soil and they will use a rope ladder to get down to the Forum, promising Terminus that all their weapons will stay on the ship, as long as the legion reinforcements will honor the same rules.

When questioned by Leo, who asks if this is a good idea, Annabeth clenches her fists to stop them from shaking. She feels the cold presence, who seems to be laughing at her and the bad choices she was making. But she know Percy is down there, and that she has to see him. She replies, it will be fine and Terminus will make sure that both sides will obey the rules, if Terminus agrees. Terminus sniffs, but agreees "For now." and allows them to climb down the ladder to New Rome, but pleads that they will not destroy his town.