Cycle of Hatred by Keith R. A. Decandido

Author:Keith R. A. Decandido [Decandido, Keith R. A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Video & Electronic, General, Science Fiction, Games, Fiction, Media Tie-In
ISBN: 9780743471367
Publisher: Pocket Star
Published: 2006-01-30T03:00:00+00:00

TWELVE

Aegwynn really wished the annoying young woman would just go away.

That wasn’t going to happen, of course. Aegwynn was too much of a realist to think otherwise. But it didn’t stop her from wishing it with all her heart. She had been alone for two decades and had come to appreciate being by herself. Indeed, she’d been happier these past twenty years than the hundreds of years prior to her exile to Kalimdor.

She had truly hoped that these highlands, surrounded as they were by impassable mountains, were remote enough, and that the wards were low-level enough, that no one would find her. In retrospect, that was a forlorn hope.

“I can’t believe you’re still alive.”

This Proudmoore woman sounded like a teenager. Aegwynn knew it wasn’t her standard mode only because she had modulated into it upon learning who Aegwynn was.

Proudmoore went on: “You’ve always been one of my heroes. When I was an apprentice, I studied the records of your deeds—you were the greatest of the Guardians.”

Shuddering at the thought of what those doddering old fools at the Violet Citadel would have written about her, Aegwynn said, “Hardly.” Unable to stand this anymore, she lifted the bucket of water and headed back to the hut. If she was lucky, Proudmoore would leave her be.

But Aegwynn wasn’t particularly lucky today.

Proudmoore followed her. “It was because of you that I was able to become a wizard.”

“Reason enough for me to be sorry I became one,” Aegwynn muttered.

“I don’t understand—why are you here? Why haven’t you told anyone you’re still alive? Honestly, we could’ve used your help against the Burning—”

Dropping the bucket to the ground, Aegwynn whirled on Proudmoore. “I am here for my own reasons, and they are not yours to know. Now leave me in peace!”

Unfortunately, all this served to do was cause Proudmoore to drop the teenager affect and go back to being the leader she apparently was. “I’m afraid I can’t do that, Magna. You’re too important to—”

“I’m not important to anything! Don’t you understand, you stupid little girl? I’m not fit for human company—or orc company, troll company, dwarf company, you name it.”

That got the infant’s back up. Aegwynn could see the magic roiling within her and realized that, child though she may be, she was quite powerful. She had gotten through the wards without Aegwynn’s even noticing, after all, and that bespoke a certain skill. “I’m not a ‘little girl.’ I’m a wizard of the Kirin Tor.”

“And I’m a thousand years old, so as far as I’m concerned, you’ve got a few centuries to go before I might consider calling you something other than a little girl, little girl. Now go away—I just want to be left alone.”

“Why?” Proudmoore sounded genuinely confused, which led Aegwynn to think that the young wizard hadn’t really read her history—or it had been thoroughly bowdlerized by the time Proudmoore got to it. The girl continued: “You were the one who blazed the trail for women to become wizards. You’re one of the unsung heroes of Azeroth.

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