Thrall Twilight of the Aspects (37 page)

“Welcome back,” Nobundo said. “I overheard some of what you told Muln. And I am so pleased to hear of this. Are you hungry? Your journey must have been arduous, and there is meat roasting on the fire even as we speak.”

“Thank you all,” Thrall said. “And while it is good to see you, there is one here I do not see. Excuse me, I must find her.”

He bowed to his colleagues.

Aggra was not here; she would have come out if she had been. He suspected he knew where she was.

There was a small rise that seemed less harmed than most places in this area. Certain herbs grew here, struggling but surviving, and Aggra often came here to harvest carefully and, Thrall knew, simply sit and meditate.

She was there now, sitting calmly on the rise, legs crossed, eyes closed.

For a moment Thrall permitted himself to watch her while he remained unseen. For so long he had dreamed of this moment: returning to this amazing, inspiring female, who filled his heart and soul with a love so bright and strong he could barely contain it. This was the face—brown, strong-boned, tusked—that had kept him from surrendering to the cold. This was the body, muscular and curvaceous and powerful, he wanted to hold in his arms for the rest of his life. Her laughter was the music of the universe to him; her smile his sun, moons, and stars.

“Aggra,” he said, and his voice broke on the word. He was not ashamed.

She opened her eyes, and they crinkled around the edges in a smile. “You have returned,” she said quietly, though joy hummed in the words. “Welcome home.”

Thrall crossed the space between them in two huge steps and before she could say a word, he had swept her up into his arms and held her tightly to his chest.

She laughed in pleased surprise, and her arms encircled him. Her head was nestled on his shoulder, where it fit perfectly. He could feel her heart beating against his chest, rapid with excitement and delight.

For a long, long time he held her thus. He didn’t ever want to release her. She, too, clung to him and didn’t protest as the moment lasted.

Finally, though, he moved away slightly and cupped her face in his large green hands.

“You were right,” he said without preamble.

She raised an eyebrow, indicating he should continue.

“I was hiding behind the mantle of warchief. A thrall to the Horde, to what I thought was my duty. And that kept me from having to look deeply at myself, and seeing things I did not like. And if I didn’t do that, I couldn’t change them. I couldn’t become better.”

He stepped back, reaching for her brown hand. He entwined his fingers with hers, fully present, seeing as if for the first time the nicks and scars on both their skins, green and brown, feeling the rough textures rub against one another. He then lifted her hand and touched it to his forehead before lowering it and looking deep into her eyes.

“I couldn’t truly appreciate either the great things or the little things. Like this strong hand in mine.”

Her eyes were bright; were they glittering with tears? But she was smiling broadly, remembering the moment as he was.

“I do appreciate these things now, Aggra. Every raindrop, every shaft of sunlight, every breath that fills my lungs, every beat of my heart. There is peril and there is pain, but here is also quiet, constant joy, if we just remember and know it is there.

“I did not know who I was, or who Thrall would become, after leaving all I had built. But I do now. I know who I am. I know what I must do. I know… who I want.”

Her smile grew, but she stayed silent, listening.

“And I know in my heart that when the time is right, I will be able to do what is necessary.”

“Tell me,” she said quietly.

And standing there, their arms wrapped around each other, he did. He told her of the ancients, and of Desharin. Of the killer who turned out to be an old, old enemy made new and thrust into the rightful timeway. Of the pain of choosing not to interfere with his parents’ murder, mixed with the joy of reassuring Durotan that his child would live.

He wept as he spoke of this, recalling all he had seen, and felt, and done, all the horrors and kindnesses that had come his way, and a strong brown hand smoothed away the salty tears from his green face.

He spoke of Taretha and Krasus, of Nozdormu, of Alexstrasza and Kalecgos and Ysera and Kirygosa. Of his own experiences in understanding, and appreciating, and being truly present. Of the experiences he, a simple mortal orc, had endured, and the lessons he had been able to bring to beings as powerful as Dragon Aspects.

“You were given a gift,” Aggra said when he fell silent. “You were given the chance to see who you were, to learn from mistakes, and to change and grow. Few are granted such insight, my heart.”

He was still holding her hand, and he squeezed it tightly. “It was you who got me through the worst moment,” he said. “And enabled me to recall the broken Life-Binder to herself.”

Softly, whispering the words, he told Aggra of his need to be with her, to gaze upon her face. Her eyes did fill with tears as she listened, and Thrall realized that it was indeed possible to see a loving heart reflected on a beloved face.

“So I have come home,” he said at last. “Humbler, but proud of what I have been able to participate in. Ready to do more. To be my best, my highest self, at all times, to honor you, and my friends, and my world. I stand ready.”

For a long moment Aggra didn’t speak. Then finally, in a voice that was thick with emotion but bursting with pride and delight, she said, “There.
That
is my Go’el.”

Thrall’s lips curved around his tusks in a grin. “Go’el,” he said, the word feeling oddly comfortable in his mouth. “The name of my birth.” He regarded her for a moment and again started to speak. But before he could do so, he heard a cheerful voice behind him.

“Thrall! I only just heard. Made it back alive, I see!”

It was Rehgar, either oblivious to the intimate moment he was interrupting or, more likely, simply not caring. He hurried up to
Thrall, beaming, and clapped the other orc on the shoulder. “I will wager you have many a tale for us!”

Thrall stepped back from Aggra slightly, turning to face his friend. He reached and clapped Rehgar on the shoulder.

“Rehgar, my old friend … the Thrall you knew is no more. I am Go’el, son of Durotan and Draka. Thrall only to myself”—he turned back to Aggra, squeezing her waist and smiling—“and to my love.”

Rehgar threw back his head and laughed. “Well said, my friend. Well said. I will let you tell the others, but be quick. The roasting meat is almost done, and we are ravenous. We wait upon you, but we will not wait forever!”

With a final wink, Rehgar turned and headed back to the encampment. Go’el watched him, smiling, then turned back to Aggra. He grew serious and, taking both her hands in his, said more quietly, “I meant it. I will be a thrall only to myself, and to my love… if she will have me. For the rest of our lives.”

A joyful grin spread across Aggra’s face. She squeezed his hands so tightly that he almost winced.

“I was willing to follow Thrall to the end of this world or any other,” Aggra said. “How much more would I be willing to bind my life to Go’el’s?”

He couldn’t stop smiling. He did not think he had ever been happier. He leaned his forehead on hers, grateful beyond measure that he had learned how to savor a moment, for this one was assuredly sweet. At last he pulled back, letting the moment pass into the past, and welcoming the present. For it, too, was joyful.

“Let us go back to the camp and tell the others. We have challenges and grim duties ahead. We will triumph over some, and struggle with others. But we will always do so… together.”

Hand in hand with his future lifemate, Go’el turned back to
where the other members of the Earthen Ring awaited. There would be laughing and feasting tonight, celebrating his return and his future plans. On the morrow, the solemn duty of working to heal a wounded world would resume.

And Go’el would be ready.

T
he story you’ve just read is based in part on characters, situations, and settings from Blizzard Entertainment’s computer game
World of Warcraft,
an online role-playing experience set in the award-winning Warcraft universe. In
World of Warcraft,
players create their own heroes and explore, adventure in, and quest across a vast world shared with thousands of other players. This rich and expansive game also allows players to interact with and fight against or alongside many of the powerful and intriguing characters featured in this novel.

Since launching in November 2004,
World of Warcraft
has become the world’s most popular subscription-based massively multiplayer online role-playing game. The latest expansion,
Cataclysm,
sold more than 3.3 million copies within its first 24 hours of release, making it the fastest-selling PC game of all time and surpassing the previous record held by
World of Warcraft
’s second expansion,
Wrath of the Lich King.
More information about the
Cataclysm
expansion and upcoming content, which continues the story of Azeroth where this novel ends, can be found on WorldofWarcraft.com.

I
f you’d like to read more about the characters, situations, and settings featured in this novel, the sources listed below offer additional pieces of the story of Azeroth.

• The Cataclysm recently altered the physical and political landscape of Azeroth forever. The events preceding this catastrophe, including the death of Thrall’s close friend Cairne Bloodhoof, are depicted in
World of Warcraft: The Shattering: Prelude to Cataclysm
by Christie Golden.

• Thrall makes the difficult decision to step down as Horde warchief and focus on the elemental instability affecting Azeroth in
World of Warcraft: The Shattering
by Christie Golden. Other details concerning Thrall’s past, such as his time as warchief, his slavery under Aedelas Blackmoore, and his friendship with Taretha Foxton, are portrayed in
Warcraft: Lord of the Clans
and
World of Warcraft: Rise of the Horde
by Christie Golden,
World of Warcraft: Cycle of Hatred
by Keith R. A. DeCandido, Sarah Pine’s short story, “Garrosh Hellscream: Heart of War” (on
www.WorldofWarcraft.com
),
Warcraft: Legends,
volume 2, “Fear” by Richard A. Knaak and Kim Jae-Hwan, and issues #15–20 of the monthly
World of Warcraft
comic book by Walter
and Louise Simonson, Jon Buran, Mike Bowden, Phil Moy, Walden Wong, and Pop Mhan.

• Before succumbing to the corrupting influence of the Old Gods, Deathwing was known as Neltharion the Earth-Warder, the respected Aspect of the black dragonflight. His sudden chilling betrayal of the other dragonflights is revealed in the War of the Ancients trilogy (
Warcraft: The Well of Eternity, Warcraft: The Demon Soul,
and
Warcraft: The Sundering
) by Richard A. Knaak. A number of his other schemes can be seen in
Warcraft: Day of the Dragon
and
World of Warcraft: Night of the Dragon,
also by Richard A. Knaak,
World of Warcraft: Beyond the Dark Portal
by Aaron Rosenberg and Christie Golden, and the
Shadow Wing
series by Richard A. Knaak and Kim Jae-Hwan.

• You can find more information about Alexstrasza, Ysera, Nozdormu, Malygos, and their respective dragonflights in the War of the Ancients trilogy,
Warcraft: Day of the Dragon, World of Warcraft: Night of the Dragon,
and
World of Warcraft: Stormrage
by Richard A. Knaak.

• The creation of a clutch of malefic twilight dragons by Deathwing’s former consort, Sinestra, is shown in
World of Warcraft: Night of the Dragon
by Richard A. Knaak.

• The strong-willed orc Aggra first encountered Thrall during his stay in Nagrand while searching for answers to Azeroth’s elemental instability. This meeting, as well as further development of their relationship and Aggra’s decision to accompany Thrall back to Azeroth, is explored in
World of Warcraft: The Shattering
by Christie Golden.

• You can read about the wise tauren Muln Earthfury and the beliefs that guide him and his fellow Earthen Ring shaman in
World of Warcraft: Shaman
by Paul Benjamin and Rocio Zucchi.

• Although Nobundo is now a respected shaman of the Earthen Ring, he was once an outcast on the shattered realm of Outland. His path to becoming a shaman is featured in Micky Neilson’s short story “Unbroken” (on
www.WorldofWarcraft.com
).

• Before aiding the Earthen Ring at the Maelstrom, Rehgar Earthfury was a trusted advisor to Thrall, a member of the new Council of Tirisfal, and the owner of Varian Wrynn during the human’s time as a gladiator-slave. These exciting events in Rehgar’s life are documented in the prologue and issues #1–3, #15–20, and #22–25 of the
World of Warcraft
comic book by Walter and Louise Simonson, Ludo Lullabi, Sandra Hope, Richard Friend, Jon Buran, Mike Bowden, Tony Washington, Phil Moy, Walden Wong, and Pop Mhan.