Thrall Twilight of the Aspects (31 page)

He recalled that the druids had been working hard to bring back life to this place. Their efforts were successful from time to time, but always temporarily. He knew deep in his bones, though, that the new, lush life he beheld would not fade with time. Not when it was born of the Life-Binder’s tears of reawakening compassion and love.

Alexstrasza stirred against him, pulling back gently. He lifted his arm from around her shoulders. She took a deep, shuddering breath, and moved, slightly unsteady, to kneel on the earth. Thrall did not assist her; he sensed she did not want him to. Gently, Alexstrasza scraped at the newly verdant soil, pressed the acorn deep, then covered it reverently. She rose and turned to face him.

“I am… chastened,” she said quietly. Her voice was still thick with hurt, but there was a calmness to it that had not been there before. “You have reminded me of things that, in my pain, I had forgotten. Things…
he
would not wish me to forget, ever.” She smiled, and though it was a sad and haunted smile, it was sincere and sweet. Her eyes were red with weeping, but there was a clarity in their focus, and Thrall knew she was all right.

And indeed, when she stepped back and lifted her arms to the sky, her beautiful face was set in an expression of righteous fury. There was more grieving to be done for all that had been lost, and he knew she would do so.

But not now. Now the Life-Binder was using her pain to fuel action, not tears. And Thrall almost felt a twinge of pity for those who would feel the heat of her fury.

Almost.

As he had witnessed her doing once before, Thrall again watched as she leaped upward, transforming from slender elf-like maiden to the most powerful of the Aspects—arguably the most powerful being in the world. This time, though, he knew he had nothing to fear from her in this shape.

She looked down at him, her eyes kind, and then the Life-Binder lowered herself so that the orc could climb atop her broad back.

“We will go to join my brothers and sisters, if you wish to come with me,” she said quietly.

“I am glad to be of service,” Thrall said, yet again humbled and awed by the sheer magnificence of the crimson dragon before him. He carefully and respectfully climbed atop her, settling himself at the base of her neck. “With their defeat, I believe the blues will have retreated to the Nexus.”

“Perhaps,” she said. “We will either find them there, or else Kalec will have joined the other flights and be assembling near Wyrmrest.”

“The twilight dragons will see them,” Thrall said, thinking aloud.

“Yes,” agreed Alexstrasza, gathering herself and leaping into the air. “They will. What of it?”

“The element of surprise will be gone,” Thrall replied.

“We no longer need it,” Alexstrasza said. Her voice was strong and calm, and Thrall found himself relaxing as she spoke. “Our success or failure depends upon something much more important than military strategies or advantages.”

She craned her neck to look at him as her wings powerfully and rhythmically beat the air. “It is time for the dragonflights of Azeroth to put aside their quarrels and unite. Or else, I fear we are all lost.”

A
lexstrasza had been right. Sure enough, when she and Thrall were a few miles from Wyrmrest Temple, they saw blue and green dragons in the air and on the ground. She was spotted, of course. Several flew out to her and darted about almost giddily.

“Life-Binder!” Narygos cried happily. “Dark is the hour and dark are our hearts, but to see you brings a lightness to both. Thrall—thank you for what you have done.”

“Friend Narygos,” said Alexstrasza warmly, “I see my sister, Ysera, and the new Aspect, Kalecgos, and their flights. My own reds will come as soon as they know I am here.”

“Then I shall seek them out at once, Life-Binder,” said one of the greens. Thrall wondered how it was that the green knew where the reds were. Perhaps Ysera knew and had told him. There was so very much about dragons he had yet to grasp.

“Have we heard nothing from Nozdormu, then?” Alexstrasza queried.

Narygos and the others dropped back, above and below her, escorting and guarding her as they flew toward the gathering place.

“Not yet,” Narygos said, with a quick glance at Thrall. “We have heard no word from him. Have you?”

“I have not been contacted,” Thrall replied. “I can only assume that he is still investigating and learning.”

“Knowledge is power,” a large green agreed, “but it will do us no good if he learns something useful and Chromatus has slain us all.”

“Hush, Rothos,” Alexstrasza said sternly. “It is not the orc’s fault if the Timeless One is not present. We … all do what we must.” The last phrase was said in a sweet, sad voice, and Thrall knew she was thinking of Korialstrasz. He had done what he had to do, at a terrible cost.

Rothos looked apologetically at Thrall. “I am sorry, my friend, but you have seen what we fight. I would have Nozdormu and his bronzes with us when we try again.”

“No offense taken, and I agree,” Thrall said sincerely.

They had almost reached the site. “Please—go ahead and gather everyone,” Alexstrasza asked of Rothos. “I have … some information they must know.”

“Information about Chromatus?” Rothos asked hopefully.

Alexstrasza shook her head. “No. But I hope it will give them courage, and fresh hope, and those are weapons indeed.”

A few moments later they landed. Thrumming, musical dragon cheers filled the bitterly cold air. Thrall was smiling as he slipped off of Alexstrasza’s back into calf-deep snow.

“Thrall!”

He turned to see Kalecgos beaming down at him. The Great Aspect reached out a paw and very gently gathered Thrall in it. Thrall felt not a twinge of worry, only pleasure at seeing his friend again.

“I must stop underestimating you,” Kalec said, bringing the orc closer to his face. “You have done as you said you would. You
brought us back our Life-Binder—in all senses of the word,” he added, looking over to where Alexstrasza nuzzled maternally at both greens and blues who rushed up to her. “I know not what magic you used, but I am grateful for it.”

“Only the magic of the heart,” Thrall said. “She will tell you what I learned, and shared with her. We will all know.”

Ysera craned her head at the sound of Thrall’s voice and moved toward them. She dipped her head on its long, sinuous neck in a gesture of respect.

“You were part of my dreaming, and one of the best parts,” she told him. “You have done so much to help us. I grieve for Desharin, but I am glad you escaped.”

“Know that if I could have saved him, I would have.”

She nodded. “The Hour of Twilight awaits us,” she said. She lifted her head and looked around, her rainbow-hued eyes bright with pleasure. “I see green and blue dragons gathered together. It is well, son of Durotan. It is well. But, ah, our red brothers and sisters have come to join us!”

Thrall turned to follow her gaze, and a short moment later could both see and hear the approaching leviathans. Dozens of them, there must have been, bearing down upon this gathering place. Thrall gazed in wonder, then looked about. Three Dragon Aspects and their flights were assembled now. He recalled the fight against the twilight dragons, and began to feel hope rising inside him. Surely there were three times the number of dragons gathered here now as had been at that fight, and with the Life-Binder leading them …

Alexstrasza leaped into the air. The reds clustered and darted about her, moving in lightly to reverently nuzzle her, dropping back respectfully. There was joy in her that he had not seen before, joy at being with her flight after so much anguish and bitterness.
After a few moments of the aerial dance of this beautiful reunion, Alexstrasza landed lightly on one of the jutting peaks, positioning herself where everyone could see her. They fell silent, eagerly awaiting the words of the Dragonqueen. She looked at them all for a moment, her head moving slowly as her eyes scanned the crowd.

“My brothers and sisters,” she said, “we stand on the brink of a dreadful battle, against a foe whose power is terrifying. But there is something you must know before we begin our planning. Something that will, I hope, give you yet more reason to fight for yourselves, your flight, and the whelps not yet hatched.”

This was received in silence. Some of them shifted uneasily. It was as if they had suddenly remembered that Alexstrasza’s mate had been the one to destroy so many eggs.

Kalecgos gently lifted Thrall up toward his shoulder. The orc made the now-familiar leap, landing securely atop the blue Dragon Aspect as Kalec rose and flew to stand beside Alexstrasza. He offered wordless solidarity as she began to tell the other dragons about the vision Thrall had shared with her. Ysera glided to land at Alexstrasza’s left side, supporting her sister.

Some, probably those who knew Korialstrasz best, seemed to be more than willing to believe Alexstrasza, their own scaly faces and lambent eyes showing deep sympathy. Others, while not outright protesting—Thrall suspected that they were too glad to have the Life-Binder returned to them to challenge her story—seemed to be dubious or plainly skeptical.

Thrall was pleased, but not surprised, to see that Kalecgos was among those who believed at once. He felt for the blue, however, when Alexstrasza described what had been done to Kirygosa. Many of the blues muttered angrily, but Kalec simply looked away, pain on his face. When Alexstrasza had finished, it was Kalec who broke the silence.

“So much is clear now,” he said. “We know that a chromatic dragon exists. And while I am horrified to learn that Kirygosa has been … tortured in so dreadful a fashion, I am deeply glad she yet lives. When the sanctums were destroyed, we were in ignorance. To our minds, there was no reason for Korialstrasz to behave as he had. But now we know. We understand.”

“If all is indeed as was said,” said one of the older blues. Thrall recognized him as Teralygos, one who had stood staunchly by Arygos. “All we have is a so-called vision. There is no proof that any of this happened.”

“She is Alexstrasza,” said Narygos. “She is an Aspect … the Life-Binder!”

“And it is very convenient that she happened to have a vision—no, wait, that an orc came along at just the right time to tell her of a vision that exonerates her mate,” continued the older blue. “What say you if I have a vision that Alexstrasza is making this up? Or has gone mad? That perhaps the vanished Kirygosa, who—”

“Can verify all that the Life-Binder has said,” came a thin, fragile voice. Another one of the blues alighted, and he bore on his back a human girl.

Thrall recognized her at once: it was Kirygosa, from his vision.

“Kiry!” cried Kalec. Thrall slid off his shoulder quickly, and Kalec transformed into his half-elven shape as Kirygosa unsteadily dismounted. He raced to her, catching her up in his arms and hugging her tightly. She smiled faintly at him and others who hurried up to her, looking weary and painfully thin, but clearly happy to be with her flight again.

“Are you all right?” Kalec asked, concerned. “After what they … did to you?”

“Now that I am free, I will be,” Kirygosa said, leaning on
Kalecgos. “As I said … what Thrall saw about me in his vision is true. I believe the vision about Korialstrasz to be true as well.” She looked up at the great red dragon smiling benevolently down at her. “My lady, I grieve for your loss.”

“Thank you, Kirygosa,” Alexstrasza said. Her voice was heavy with sorrow but not despair. Not anymore. “And I grieve for yours.”

Kalec’s worried frown deepened. “Do you know about Arygos?” he asked Kiry quietly.

Kirygosa nodded. “Yes. He was betrayed by the Twilight Father, and slain by a human assassin named Blackmoore. I understand this Blackmoore had also been sent to kill you, Thrall,” she said, turning to the only orc present. “I am relieved to see he has not succeeded. The Twilight Father and Deathwing both fear you. I am glad you are on our side.”

“Come, sit and rest,” Kalecgos urged. “Eat something and tell us what you know.”

“The chain …” Kiry reached with fumbling fingers and pulled out a slender silver chain that hung around her neck, a simple-looking thing. Kalec clearly understood at once what it was. “I tried so hard to break it—”

“I know,” Kalec said gently. “Dar’Khan once placed such a collar on me. I well know your fear and frustration, dear sister. One I cared for freed me … and now I free you.”

Gently, he grasped the necklace between his thumb and forefinger. With the faintest of tugs, the blue Dragon Aspect snapped the chain as if it were nothing more than an ordinary piece of jewelry. Kirygosa sobbed joyfully. The others backed up, smiling, to give her room as she shifted into her true form. Thrall smiled to himself as he watched her rise into the air, flying weakly but spiritedly, free once more.

* * *

Kirygosa was attended to. Thrall helped to heal her while Kalecgos conjured meat and drink for her. Alexstrasza and Ysera stood beside her in their humanoid forms, offering what comfort they could. Thrall was surprised to see Ysera’s preferred shape. She had first appeared to him in night elf form. She still had the dark-purple skin and long ears of the kaldorei, but the crown of fierce horns that adorned her green hair marked her true nature. A few other dragons, some in humanoid forms, others in their draconic shapes, gathered around as Kirygosa’s brutal story unfolded.