Onward
Weeks. Time really had crawled that far.
Not once had Roland been able to walk on his three legs, unless he was with Ashlyn. She'd taken the liberty of helping him around whenever he desired it. Of course, he didn't ask her often. He didn't want to seem like a pest; being his extra leg had to have been irritating her.
He'd tried his very best to get his paws moving properly again, but his efforts were never to any avail. Nine times out of ten he would fall flat on his face before taking the first step. There was the rare occasion he could find a centre of balance, yet he would always fall before he could move. Sitting down, however, wasn't too difficult; he utilised the muscles in his rear legs for that.
Even flying proved to be horrendously difficult. He found his body tilting to the left whenever he tried, and then he'd have to right himself. It put a harsh strain on his back too, so he'd decided staying grounded was his best option, despite how much he loved soaring through the open air, taking in the sights. And if it wasn't his missing limb causing the problems in his wings, there was obviously something wrong with his spine. He strangely got cramps every now and then, usually when he tried walking. He'd gotten used to them by now, but he'd scared Ashlyn the first time they'd stabbed at his back. He hoped his spinal column would end up mending itself with time, anyway.
"You look deep in thought," Ashlyn said from beside him. He glanced in her direction, sighing.
"Yeah, just... thinking back on everything."
She smiled, clapping him on the back with her wing. "Hey, I'm sure you'll get used to it. It's only been a few weeks. It's just going to take some time."
Roland stared out towards the abundance of snowy trees before him; after a rather troublesome flight, he'd taken her to the odd hill randomly plopped down in the middle of the jungle. He loved the spot and the sights it offered. Showing the ice dragoness was only fair, considering what she'd been doing for him. Soon, however, he turned his wandering eyes to her. "How much time, though?"
"I'd say you should remain hopeful," she said, "but I don't know. You've made some progress, at least."
Roland exhaled, looking down upon the white canopy once more. He wanted to go down there, run around, gather some snow in his paws, maybe send it careening into Ashlyn again. That wouldn't happen. It wasn't like he could just grow another leg. Even spirit gems couldn't heal a wound so devastating.
"Come on, where's that smile been, Roland?" She smirked again, but he didn't return it. He simply couldn't. An exasperated breath escaped her maw. "Like an old grump, you are ..."
He struggled to suppress the smile threatening to curl his muzzle at that one. "Old grump? That's the best you can do?"
"Well, I was going to say old fart, but..." She chuckled slightly. "I didn't want to offend mopey you."
He shook his head, dug his paw into the icy vapour enveloping their hill, and made sure he hit her dead in the jaw with the clump he'd collected. A startled gasp sounded from beside him, and he quickly found himself with a face full of snow as well. "Gosh. Should've leaned left."
Ashlyn lifted herself from the floor, smiling all the while. "Meh. Anyway, we should probably get a move on. It feels like it's been hours."
He inclined his head, although he wasn't looking forward to the wobbly flight home. "Yeah, maybe. Alevor still wants help with a few thing before he leaves."
"I wonder where he's going?" she said. "Maybe he'll set up shop in Avalar somewhere. It's not like he can just go and re-join the tribe."
Roland nodded once more. There had been heavy discussion involving what was going to happen later – to Alevor and everyone else. The llama had nothing left; the smithy was trashed – every item had been reduced to nothing but broken scrap in the raid.
"With his skill, I'm sure he could make a profit," Ashlyn continued. "Really, though, we should be worrying about ourselves. How are we getting over the Burned Lands?"
He shrugged, not having a clue. "No idea. I'm sure there's a way over, but... Yeah, it just seems so impossible. Not like we have anywhere else to go now, though."
Ashlyn grinned. "Meh. We can think about it when we get there. Let's get going, Roly."
He still loved that nickname. Every time he heard it, happiness drowned out any other feeling he might've had, and he didn't know why. It was so weird; he couldn't place a talon on his own feelings... somehow.
For now, however, he had to make his way back. He leaped into the air, following Ashlyn, and almost immediately fell flat on his face.
Oh, the fun he was going to have.
Another night. Staring into the sky, gazing upon lights glistening like little fireflies far above, dazzled by their beauty. He wished that was all he had to think about, but it clearly wasn't the case.
Everything was done on Alevor's part; he was ready to get going. Ready to move out and explore the vast world in which he lived. But Roland was nothing of the sort. He was preoccupied, in deep thought.
His journey was going to be an agonising one.
Ashlyn still desired to travel with him, of course, and he was particularly appreciative for that. Walking that dark, lonely path would probably led him to insanity, most likely death. Facing Drevon on his lonesome was a death wish in itself.
But he really didn't want her going, either. He didn't want her to experience anymore pain, anymore suffering. She'd done enough for him, and he wanted to give her the break she deserved.
He knew she wouldn't listen, though. She sure was headstrong.
Chuckling a little, he returned to his gazing. Like most nights – ones where he desired peace and quiet, and no interruptions – someone would generally come up to visit him. It was usually Ashlyn, and while he liked her company more than anybody else, this was a night he truly wished to be left alone. Left to mull over his deep thoughts. But she came in with a smile plastered to her face, anyway.
"Hey, Roly."
He sighed quietly to himself. He didn't want to be impolite and kick her out. "Hey, Ashy."
Standing in the faint candlelight, her body was barely visible. But he still saw that grin recede a little. "You look like you want to be left alone, Roland. Are you... fine with me being here?"
His thoughts exactly. Gosh, he swore she could read his mind sometimes. Again, though, his mind told him to let her stay, if only to be courteous. "Yeah, you're fine." He tapped a spot on the furry mat he was perched upon next to him. "Come sit."
"Yay," she said shortly, plopping herself down next to him. "So... What's up?"
"Nothing really," he lied, not wanting to tell her about his thoughts. Roland already knew the response she'd let loose. "Just looking at the stars, as usual."
Ashlyn lifted a brow. "Well, to me, you looked like you were deep in thought. Worried about the trip?"
He exhaled silently to himself, shivering against the freezing winds of winter's night. "A little. We've got a long trip ahead of us. Longer than the one here. We'll be fine, though. I don't think anything can stop us."
She chuckled at that one. "Yeah, definitely."
He still loved the way they could both throw jests around, even on serious topics, like this. It made him feel so much better about everything. Every horrible thing cloaking the happiness inside of him simply faded away under the amusement and laughter they shared.
He still had no idea what he would do without Ashlyn. So, even if it did feel just a little selfish, perhaps taking her really was for the best. Perhaps their journey across the world would be a good one, despite the darkness looming ahead.
Roland was off to Dragon's Ruin, and he was taking Ashlyn with him, even if she was already willing to make like eggs and get cracking.
He was going to get there. He knew he would, and with Ashlyn by his side... Well, his thoughts from earlier. Anything was possible.
"Nothing's impossible," he whispered to himself, low enough so Ashlyn couldn't possibly hear. "Just improbable."
Welp, that's it. No, seriously. That's all, folks... Okay, okay. I should probably explain myself.
So, this wasn't actually supposed to be the ending. Far from it, in fact. Once upon a time, I had huge plans for this book. Unfortunately, though, they've kind of faded away as time passed, and probably for a multitude of reasons, the most obvious being that I just loathe writing this book now. I have for awhile now, and I just haven't told anyone, because I wanted to see this until its actual finale.
I desired to finish this book for those who were reading it, simply because people were actually enjoying it. Seriously, even if it doesn't seem too impressive, this is my most popular book. 5000 views and almost 50 reviews. I can't thank you guys enough. Sadly, though, I just can't continue.
I've hated this book since around chapter 5, actually. Of course, I loved writing it still at the time, but my motivation for doing so eventually went poof at around chapter 20. XD
So, I apologise for not finishing this book. I apologise for such a lazy last chapter. I apologise for leaving so many questions and plot threads unanswered, and I wholeheartedly apologise for disappointing you all. Really, though, it's been quite the trip, and I thank everyone for supporting me. Without all of you guys, this certainly wouldn't have been possible. Even just to the viewers as well, even those who couldn't make it past my terrible first chapter. Thank you, even if you won't read this. XD
And, seriously. Unqualified Nuclear Physicist, or just Nuki for short... Mate, you're the best person ever. There are no doubts about it. Without you, I'm not sure if I would even still be on FanFiction. You've motivated me to keep on writing. Seriously, I love you. Not in that w... Oh, you know what I mean. XD Shameless plug. Please check him out. Not only is he a great friend, he's also a good writer. You'll enjoy what you find. Thanks for being such a wonderful editor, Nuki.
So, what does this mean for me? Am I staying on FanFiction? Will I write another book? Well, yes and yes. I'm not entirely sure on what my next book will be about, but trust me when I say I'll finish it next time. Let's hope it's better than this crappy one, anyway. Maybe I'll learn to stop being so self-loathing. :P
Anyway, one last hurrah for Roland and crew. I hope you enjoyed this story for what it was worth, and I hope I haven't bummed you out too much with a premature ending. Plz no flame. :P
And if you really want to know where Roland's journey was going to take him, you can ask me. I'll give you the rest of the plot. Don't worry, it isn't massive walls of text. XD And if you do happen to ask, please do it via PM. I can't answer guest reviews, sorry. XD
See you next time in... whatever I plan to write next.