The Boy With the Dragon Tattoo
A My Hero Academia Fanfiction
(HEY EVERYBODY WHO SAW THIS AND DECIDED "WHAT THE HELL" AND CLICKED. I REALLY APPRECIATE IT AND HOPE YOU LIKE THE STORY IM ABOUT TO TELL. OF COURSE, ITS BASED ON THE CHARACTERS FROM MY HERO ACADEMIA, BUT IVE DECIDED TO PUT MY OWN SPIN ON THE STORY…
BY MAKING A FANTASY WORLD SETTING! WHOOP WHOOP (CRINGE) IM REALLY CONFIDENT IN WHAT IVE WRITTEN, BUT ULTIMATELY THE SUCCESS OF THIS PROJECT DEPENDS ON YOU, SO LEAVE A REVIEW IF YOU FEEL LIKE IT AND IF YOU COULD, FOLLOW OR FAVORITE. THANKS AGAIN. HOPE YOU ENJOY!)
CH.1 "Lost and Found"
Pant
"Mom..." This couldn't be happening...
Pant
"Mom!" WHY was this happening...
"MOM!" THIS. SHOULDN'T. BE. HAPPENING
As Izuku ran away from the destroyed hell-scape that was his home town, A loud roar shook the ground he ran on, and he instantly ceased his thoughts of his mother to horrify himself with what he knew that sound was. And there was only one thought that came to his head:
'Dr...Dragons!'
Izuku began to run faster than he new his little legs could carry him. He had only ever heard tales of the monstrous beasts of kings and queens. Fire breathing furies that could destroy anything in their path. Creatures that rulers would use to fight the most powerful of enemies; So then why the hell did whoever destroyed his home send it after him!? How did they even know he was still alive!? Just who destroyed his home!? So many questions-yet, not one answer.
He could hear the flap of dragon wings getting closer and closer, and his heart beat at 150 miles per hour.
'This is it,' he thought. 'This is how I die. Sad, afraid, and alone. Mom...This is so wrong. Why has this happened? We've done nothing wrong ; YOU'VE done nothing wrong. Why? Why did you have to leave me mom!? I'm scared! I need you! WHY DID YOU HAVE TO DIE!?'
Just as Izuku could hear the dragons get so, SO close, and he was about to relent and let himself be spotted, it appeared as if a prayer had been answered.
Up ahead, not more than he'd estimate 20 or so steps, was a cave on the side of a hill. With one last burst of energy, he powered himself forward as much as he could, and as he entered the cave, he slipped on the moist surface, losing his balance and tumbling down the hard rock deeper into the cave. Outside, the dragons made their way to the ground, and looked frantically for their prey, grunting and sniffing in impatience. Izuku could hear them and stayed as still and quiet as a snail, waiting for them to take their leave. After what felt like an eternity, he heard them spread their wings and take off, trailed by a gust of wind due to their movement. He let go off his horrified mind state and eased up, laying on the ground with a puffy, scratched, and bruised face. After his much needed breather, he sat up to support his body weight with his left arm, but was met with a searing pain that made him tear up instantly.
"OW! Ugh... What the-" Izuku looked down to see his arm horribly bent and bleeding. He forced himself to hold back a scream, fearing that the dragons would hear him and come back, but he let his tears flow freely.
"Now THAT must hurt."
Startled, Izuku looked up to see a short man wearing a white and yellow robe with grey hair and a staff standing above him. Scared, he whimpered and shuffled backwards.
"Woah there kid. No need to be so afraid. I'm not gonna touch you." The man took a long look at the boy, and concern came to his head as to who, or what could've possibly done this in good conscience. His body was covered in ash and dirt. The entire right side of his shirt had been seemingly burned away. There were multiple bruises and cuts on his feet and legs. And most noticeable, of course, was his incorrectly bent arm that had fresh blood on it and the bone sticking out at the elbow. There was one other intriguing feature the boy had, though. It came across the over side of his right hand and continued up his arm. It then spread to the base of his neck, and traveled down his chest and stomach until it either stopped or was cut off by his pants. What the man was seeing was an incredibly detailed, eye-popping dragon tattoo.
"I had no idea parents allotted this much freedom to their children. If I saw my son or daughter come home with that, I'd chop 'em up and put 'em in my dinner to teach them some discipline." He then looked back into the boy's eyes, and turned around to walk deeper into the cave. This confused Izuku. Why would he walk backwards when there was seemingly nothing there?
"I'm not gonna carry you with me, so get off your ass and walk," the man said coming to a stop after about ten steps.
Izuku was caught off guard and sported a puzzled expression.
"What do you mean? You... want me to come with you? Where?"
"Do I really need to break this down for you? Clearly education systems in the kingdoms are no longer suited with qualified instructors. Hell if I know though. Maybe you're just dumb."
"Sir, do you-do you live here," Izuku asked. The old man had a less annoyed face after hearing that.
"Yes. I do. It didn't take long for you to figure that out. Maybe you're not dumb."
"If you live here," The boy said, "then that must mean you have medicines and healy stuff, right? So that means that you can take care of my arm?"
"Finally putting on our thinking caps, are we," the old man said. "I have disinfectant herbs and cloth. Stitching that together should be no problem." He glanced at the bone splinter sticking out of his elbow. "That right there, though, is a predicament. I'll only be able to close the wound if that's out of the way." Izuku looked down at his arm in pain and horror.
"Will that hurt," he asked.
"What do you think? Your bone's sticking out of your body. Putting it back won't be a walk in the fields," said the old man. He then began walking again.
"No idea how I'd live with havin' to look at that everyday, though"
'Mom always said be wary around strangers, but this guy is offering to help me get better. Plus, I really have nowhere else to go...," Izuku thought. Making up his mind, he slowly lifted himself off the ground and walked fast toward the geezer.
"How far is it," Izuku asked.
"Not far" the man responded.
"Why do you live here?"
"Do I need a reason to live here?"
"Are you the only person here?"
"Damn sure better be."
"Your cursing a lot. Mom said it's bad to use words like tha-"
"You know what, kid," the old man said. "You're speaking way too much for my liking. Since you want to be so nosy, I've got questions for you."
"Okay," The boy said.
"First off, why the hell are you here looking like a war survivor? I take it your parents left you on the side of the road?"
At the mention of his parents, Izuku gained a somber mood.
"No, my mom never left me. She took care of me. All the time."
"Then like I said, why are you here?"
"...My...My village was burned to the ground," Izuku said quietly.
"Burned to the ground," the old man said. "And just why was it burned? There is no creature in this region that has enough strength to cause such destruction. Or...was it not an animal, but a human on human attack? But who could have such audacity aside from..."
"Before my mom told me to run...I-I saw them. Soldiers in orange and black robes...and across there chest was... An image of a blazing crown. They destroyed our homes...ransacked our vegetable fields...killed kids," Izuku said as he began to sweat and breath heavily.
"And the people they left alive...they hurt them...and chained them up like they were-like they were slaves or something!"
"Kid, calm down," the old man said. "You're fine now-"
"BUT I'M NOT FINE," The boy yelled. "EVERYTHING'S GONE! I...I CAN NEVER GO BACK! I CAN NEVER SEE MY FRIENDS AGAIN...I'LL NEVER SEE MOM AGAI-"
"BE. QUIET."
This silenced Izuku. He was still crying and let out shaky breaths, but he was able to collect himself enough.
"Get yourself together. You look pathetic," the old man said disgusted.
"I understand," he continued. "You're suffering; at the end of your wits. The world you knew is gone. The people you loved... the peaceful life you lived... It was beautiful, wasn't it?...But, you now have been shown. Shown the reality of this world we live in. Heartbreak, anger, pain... All of these emotions have come to you at once. Most people would say 'Remember the good times; It's okay to be sad; you can live through this...While all of this is true, can you really live right after everything that's happened? How many men have lost everything, and have never been the same;haunted by the memories, perhaps thinking 'if I were strong enough,' or 'could I have done'?. The truth about events like the one you've been witness to... is that men cannot just 'walk away and live on'. It changes your soul... corrupts your being... and turns you into something less than a man; something dangerous."
Izuku stayed silent and processed the man's words. According to him, what just happened to him has happened many times in history; that a countless number of people have done what those murderers did; and that some never recover. Would he turn out to be one of those people who can never be saved from their past; the guilt of their failure putting so much weight on their shoulders that they sunk to depths to far for any person to reach.
"I can feel it emanating from you-the fear of the fate I've told you you could fall victim to. You want to stay yourself... tell me, what do you remember most about your mother?"
This surprised Izuku. Why would this mysterious man want to know anything about his mother?
"What do I remember most...," he thought. A smile came to his face as he appearedto have an answer.
"Anytime of the year, but During the months of April mostly, when the breeze wasn't to violent, but just gentle enough to make it feel like you were wrapped in the loin cloths a parent would hold their child in, it would rain for hours, almost every day. After a night that I'd have a bad dream, She'd say 'Put your shoes on. We're going for a walk.' The first time she told me this, I thought she didn't know what she was doing. Wouldn't standing in the rain give you sickness? But, when we got outside, she'd take me to the backyard. What she told me was 'Do you feel the rain on your skin? It's as if it's cleansing you. Now imagine everything you fear being on your body. The rain coming down is purifying you, washing away all of your fears. Making you stronger. Stronger than anything that can scare you'. After a while... I didn't have anymore bad dreams."
The old man thought for a moment until he found an appropriate response.
"She said that the rain would make you stronger by washing your fears away. That worked... when she was still with you." At that, Izuku began to form tears again, but the old sage wouldn't let him and began to speak again.
"Now, you fear to much. The rain is not enough to make you stronger. It never will be. Now... the only thing that will make you stronger is your own will to be so, and the pain you've felt that will linger forever. The memory of your mother; the memory of everything you lost- it MUST drive you. I can help cultivate the surge of emotions that will come. Help you aim them. But only if you are willing to let me. Only if you can live with the appropriate fear that this can happen again, at any time-and be prepared to stop it. And only if you know that the life that awaits you isn't for the faint of heart."
Izuku took in what had just been laid in front of him. The man was right. The rain could not solve his problems anymore. He'd have to face them head on... But could he? What if, in the end, he'd never be strong enough? What if, when he'd be faced with adversity again, he'd crack under the pressure, and fail?
"You doubt yourself" the man said. "I'll tell you this. When you struggle; when you feel as if there is no more energy left in you, and your tired of all the pain... Remember your mother. Remember what took her away from you. Remember that you can never, ever, see her again. It will make you able to carry on. So..." He turned to look at the boy.
"Will you take my words to heart. Will you become... a new you?"
Izuku straightened his face and wiped his eyes. A fiery determination was in his belly.
"I... I WILL"
From that day forth... the boy with the dragon tattoo would become a legend; a story told from parents to their children; a beacon of hope that told people that anyone, if they got a little luck, and were equipped with an immeasurable will that could face anything in its path... could change the world.