But why had Malice set him up by not telling him there was a Sage who didn’t know? Why had she allowed it to be possible for him to violate the oath?
More importantly, why had she never told Charity?
“You could have left him there,” Malice said. She returned her gaze to the shining lights that hung over her. “I was always going to save him before he died. First, we let him soak long enough for the lesson to sink in.”
“What is the link between the Monarchs and the Dreadgods? And why didn’t you tell me?” A horrible thought had haunted Charity since the moment she’d found out. “Did my father know?”
Malice languidly waved a hand. “Of course he knew. He was a Monarch, remember, though he knew for centuries. He was one of the first I made swear to silence.”
“What did he know?”
“The Dreadgods are the price we pay to remain in Cradle.” Malice made a frustrated sound and swiped the scripts and constructs away. She turned, brushing her shadowy hair behind her as she faced Charity.
“I see you’re upset, but there’s nothing to be done about it. Advancement is the process of pushing against the natural order. Making it work for you. The existence of the Monarchs upsets a sort of balance, and the Dreadgods are the consequence of that.”
Charity’s jaw worked, but she could find no words terrible enough for the truth. Finally, she choked out, “So…all you have to do is leave?”
“You know what would happen if I advanced, Charity. The others wouldn’t, and then the family would be vulnerable. If we all did, the Dreadgods wouldn’t just vanish. They’d fade over the course of decades or centuries, during which time they’d wreak havoc. And then the very next Sage or Herald to advance would rule the entire world with an iron fist.”
Malice gave a motherly smile and held out her hands. She beckoned Charity to come to her.
The Sage of the Silver Heart remembered her dignity, her responsibility, and hesitated. But after a moment, like a little girl, Charity moved into her grandmother’s embrace.
“I’m sorry you found out this way,” Malice murmured. “I planned to tell you myself, with your father gone, but the world has required my attention. And of course I had no idea Lindon would risk his oath so quickly.”
For a moment longer, Charity sank into the feeling of being comforted by a stronger, wiser figure. Someone who would make everything all right again. Her grandmother.
Then she called herself back to action. She was over a hundred and fifty years old, and it was time that she acted like it.
Charity pulled back from Malice, composed herself, and nodded to Lindon. “Release him from the consequences of his oath.”
“Orders, Charity? I thought we were closer than that.”
“Two stars left in the clan,” Charity pointed out. “Are you ready to make it one?”
Malice smirked. “How could I risk losing you? Of course I will do as you ask, though I think he could use a few more minutes to stew. Lingering on the brink of spiritual collapse can make one very…malleable.”
“There’s a Dreadgod coming that outmatched you yourself only days ago. We cannot leave a Sage indisposed.”
The Monarch looked displeased at the reminder of her loss, but she didn’t deny it. “A weapon is only valuable when it doesn’t turn in your hand. But I suppose you’re right, as usual.”
She focused her will on Lindon’s shivering form, and it was as though the dark sky trembled. “Be whole.”
Reality twisted as the principles of restoration returned the world to order. Charity herself had little talent in that direction, but Malice had honed her craft over the long years. Lindon’s muscles relaxed and his spirit untangled itself from the messy knot the oath had left. Even the sweat on his brow vanished, and she felt Dross returning to the depths of his spirit as well.
“There,” Malice said. She threw herself back down on the couch. “The remaining trauma is mental, which is more your field than mine. His will might be compromised, and it may even affect his future advancement, which would just be…tragic. But he should be in fighting shape when the Titan arrives.”
Charity gave the Monarch a crisp bow. “Thank you, grandmother.”
Then she started to leave.
“Are you forgetting something, Charity?” Malice called.
Charity stopped and took a deep breath. Then she spoke. “I swear to Akura Malice that I will not reveal the connection between the Dreadgods and the Monarchs to any uninformed parties without explicit permission.”