𝕱𝖗𝖎𝖊𝖓𝖉𝖑𝖞 𝖋𝖎𝖗𝖊 - a Leo Valdez slowburn

Chapter three

Chapter three.

[ Leo has a death wish - Leah is happy to grant it]

"Live your days like you're at the peak of humanity,

like all your friends are with you,

and like everyone is your friend"

Turns out Leah couldn't talk to Thalia about it, as she and her brother Jason were deeply in conversation. Piper and Leah talked a bit more, mainly small talk, until Aeolus's castle came in sight. Together with the other Hunters they stopped running, Piper putting her hands onto her knees for some support.

Aeolus lived on a floating island made of a glowing purple rock near Pike Peak, the world below it blanketed in clouds. Leah's eyes shone with admiration for the island. That must have taken a lot of magic to keep it aloft, she thought to herself. The only other thing that Leah could think of that was kept afloat in the air like that was Olympus, the house of the gods. Leah hadn't been there before, but she had heard stories from Thalia.

Leah could barely breathe, the air was so thin up there. The sides were rugged cliffs, riddled with caves, and every once in a while a gust of wind burst out with the sound of an organ blast. At the top of the rock, brass walls ringed some kind of fortress.

The only thing that connected Pikes Peak to the floating island - and connected the island to the remains of the world - was a narrow bridge of ice that glistened in the moonlight. Then Leah realized, along with many others, she suspected, the bridge wasn't exactly ice, because it wasn't solid. As the winds changed direction, the bridge snaked around – blurring and thinning, in some places even breaking into a dotted line like the vapor trail of a plane.

Leo spoke up from behind Leah and Piper. "We're not seriously crossing that." Thalia shrugged. "I'm not a big fan of heights, I'll admit. But if you want to get to Aeolus's fortress, this is the only way." Leah knew that was a major understatement. Thalia was terrified of heights. She had once been dared to jump off the roof of the Zeus cabin and she had had a panic attack. Of course no one saw it. Leah made sure of that. 

"Is the fortress always hanging here?" Piper asked. She continued, "How can people not notice it on top of Pikes Peak?" Leah shook her head at the girl's naivety. How much she must have missed on her trips. "The mist," Thalia said. "Still, mortals do notice it indirectly. Some days, Pikes Peak looks purple. People say it's a trick of light, but actually it's the color of Aeolus's palace, reflecting off the mountain face." 

"It's enormous," someone said behind the Leah. She jumped. To be honest, she hadn't noticed Jason next to her yet.

Thalia laughed. "You should see Olympus, little brother." He gasped. "You're serious? You've been there?" Thalia grimaced at the memory. Leah went to stand next to her and grasped Thalia's hand, looking at her  concerned. The daughter of Zeus quickly changed the subject.

"We should go across in two different groups. The bridge is fragile." "That's reassuring," Leo said. "Jason, can't you just fly us up there?" Leah raised her eyebrows in surprise. He could fly and he could control electricity? Way too overpowered in Leah's opinion. Although she couldn't really talk, she reminded herself. Thalia laughed. Then she seemed to realize that Leo's question wasn't a joke. "Wait, Jason, you can fly?" There was a tinge of disbelief in her voice.

 Jason gazed up at the floating fortress. "Well, sort of. More like I can control the winds. But the winds up here are so strong, I'm not sure I'd want to try." He hesitated. "Thalia, you mean... you can't fly?" Thalia's eyes flashed with fear and for a second, she looked genuinely afraid. Then she got her expression under control and squeezed Leah's hand tightly.