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hwangoZignu opened his eyes and realized immediately that he was alone in the tower. This was not due to any supernatural senses or mystical powers, though of course he possessed both of those things. No, it was simply that he couldn’t smell any bacon cooking, which meant that no one was preparing breakfast, which meant that he’d lost yet another apprentice. Such a pity – Marco had been an excellent cook.
Zignu reluctantly got out of bed. It was hard to work up any enthusiasm to face a day where you suddenly had to do everything for yourself again. But breakfast he made himself was certainly preferable to no breakfast, so he stumbled over a pile of books and trudged down the stairs to the kitchen.
There he discovered a rolled piece of paper tied to the handle of the frying pan. Well, Marco certainly knew Zignu’s habits well enough to know that the note would be found if he left it there.
Master Zignu – It is with great sorrow that I leave you this message. I shall be forever grateful for you teachings, and for the home you have provided me these several years. The wisdom and learning that you bestowed upon me I shall treasure for all time. However, I find that I can no longer bear to see the deeds of Horuld the Blackhearted go unpunished, and so I have...
The letter went on and on like that at great length, a sort of combined thank you note and apology, all of it carefully seasoned with praise meant to defuse the terrible wrath and betrayal Marco apparently thought Zignu would be feeling at that moment. In reality, Zignu would have preferred something more straightforward that would have wasted less ink, paper, and time.
Oh, Wise and Powerful Master Zignu (okay, yes, a little flattery would be nice) – I’m too much a coward to quit in person, so I left you this note filled with sycophantic drivel instead. Thanks for teaching me the ancient language of the spirits and the secrets to bending the universe to my whim. I’m going to go use this great power to get revenge on somebody who ruined my life when I was nine years old. I made sure there was plenty of bacon in the larder. PS – Please don’t come after me and turn me into a hedgehog.
Zignu shrugged, crumpled up the note, and tossed it onto the embers from last night’s cook fire. He only vaguely remembered Horuld, but his heart hadn’t seemed particularly black when he’d been washing out beakers, dusting the tower, or cooking bacon. Oh, well. He wished Marco the best of luck all the same.
Several weeks later, Zignu found a shivering half-starved young boy named Pavel trying to crawl through a window to steal some bread. The child was appropriately astonished and terrified to learn that Zignu was a keeper of ancient mystical knowledge who possessed amazing magical powers. After begging to be spared (Zignu was never entirely sure what they thought he was going to do to them that they wanted to be spared from), Pavel pleaded for shelter, since his own home had been destroyed by a terrible curse put upon the land by a foul sorcerer. He went on and on about blighted crops, empty wells, terrible storms, hordes of monstrous beasts, and all sorts of other misfortune that had befallen his village until the survivors finally abandoned the place in despair. It sounded to Zignu as if Marco had certainly gotten his revenge, and that it had included quite a lot of collateral damage.
Well, that was hardly unprecedented.
He hoped Pavel would turn out to be a good cook.
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Date: 2012-06-18 08:52 am (UTC)I hope little Pavel does turn out to be able to cook bacon to the right crispiness and not burn it¬!!!
Bless you, Blue.
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Date: 2012-06-18 12:18 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-06-19 09:22 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-06-19 09:23 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-06-19 09:28 am (UTC)