Dragons of the Apocalypse - An Achievement Hunter and Ray Narvaez Jr. Fanfiction

Chapter XI: Unafraid

Ryan looked at the map that the scared villager had given him. He had been through a small town recently, the inhabitants scared of the force of his power, which was only increased by his staff. They had given him various supplies, the map, a bit of food, another canteen of water, a lighter, and a grey and black cloak, hoping to persuade Ryan to not destroy their village. He wasn’t going to either way, but didn’t mind showing part of his insane mindset to get some free gear.

The map was proving helpful, allowing Ryan to get to Mount Coronor as quickly as possible. He was still by himself though, and was slightly irritated that he couldn’t manipulate his fellow vessels yet.

But, he did enjoy all the time he had to think. He found his mind always wandering to this darkness he felt creep over his heart every now and then. He could only assume that it was because of his breath power, which was known to drive draconians that were afflicted by it insane, but Ryan felt that embracing his power didn’t make him insane.

The feeling of the shadow that came over him sometimes came in flashes, and Ryan was more curious about it than scared of it. He wanted to know what it was, and why it was happening; he was unafraid of how it would affect him, and he was confident he could control whatever power it brought with it.

Ryan found himself up for hours at a time pondering this subject, and wondered if he was beginning to develop insomnia because of it. He didn’t care though, because he was always alert, and, at the moment, couldn’t keep his mind off of the evil that apparently resided in his heart.

This wasn’t the primary thing on Ryan’s mind at the moment, though, as he tried to efficiently read to map. He was on the coast of one of the continents, and his finger lay rest on an island some miles off of the coast, which he decided would be his next resting spot.

Tucking the map away in his messenger bag, and pulling his cloak around him to protect him against the harsh winds of the ocean, Ryan took a running leap, and took off in flight.

It had just turned dark by the time Ryan was about to land on the island he had set forth for. He still had quite a ways before he got to Mount Coronor, but the world didn’t seem to be collapsing and experiencing an apocalypse yet, so Ryan assumed he still had time.

He was quick to take out his newly acquired lighter and start a fire once he had settled on the island, and decided to chew on a bit of dried meat as the moon rose higher and higher into the sky.

That was when Ryan felt one of those flashes of darkness over his heart again, and while he, unafraid, tried to cling to the feeling, it was gone in an instant. Frustrated, Ryan finished his makeshift dinner and laid down on his blanket that he was originally sitting on, preparing to go to sleep.

He hadn’t wondered about the evil sensations he sometimes had that night, surprisingly, aggravated with his inability to control them.

He woke up just after the sun the next morning, swiftly preparing to get back to traveling. Ryan stuffed his blanket in his bag, and crunched on an apple he had while he searched for fresh water; he only had one canteen left, and was unsure of how long it would last. Unfortunately unable to find any precious clean water, Ryan pulled his map back out, charting his next destination. He decided on an even smaller island toward the center of the ocean, hoping with all his might that he would make it there before dark.

Attempting to increase his odds of arriving at his destination on time, Ryan took a quick look around before fastening his map on his belt next to his staff, and rapidly taking flight.

Ryan thought while he flew that day for the first time in a while. He was usually extremely concentrated while flying, but not that day. He couldn’t seem to do anything but let his thoughts wander, but that didn’t bother Ryan.

Surprise, surprise, though, he did eventually start thinking about the evilness that would overtake him every now and then. He came to a kind of conclusion about it, figuring that it probably couldn’t be controlled, though he couldn’t bring himself to believe this.

He was going to control this power, because he could overcome it, and because he didn’t fear its power.