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“They predate the Order of Hypnos. They may have founded it, or they may use it when it suits them, but they do not serve it.”
“Well, they can’t be older than Hesperines.”
“We are ancient,” Queen Alea said, “and the bearers of wisdom even more ancient. But the Great Temples stood for thousands of years before Hespera saw fit to create us. We are not the oldest beings in the world.”
Uncle Argyros nodded. “The earliest known texts on the Old Masters are not originals. They are believed to be tertiary sources based on writings from an earlier time, however, we can attain a degree of certainty, given references to concurrent historical events that place them in context.”
“How old are the Old Masters, really?” Cassia had to know.
Uncle Argyros leaned toward her. “They were active at thebeginningof the Great Temple Epoch, some six thousand years ago.”
“One of the earliest fragments…” Lio licked his lips, as if his mouth had gone dry. “It’s a plea to the Master of Dreams for release from a nightmare of his making.”
“Well, he can’t be as mighty as the scrolls make him out to be, can he?” Cassia declared. “A mortal woman and the youngest Hesperine in Orthros’s diplomatic service sent him running and lived to be nibbled on by Zoe’s goats afterward.”
Lio let out a strained laugh, then rested his head against hers. “Thank the Goddess for you, Cassia.”
“I don’t care who he is. He’ll get no respect from me. He’s just another man with too much magic or too many swords trying to take what he wants. Thatisas old as the world, and they’re all the same.”
Queen Alea smiled. “Ah, the courage of youth. There is indeed no shame in being young.”
“He called himself an old friend of the king’s,” Cassia said. “I wonder if Lucis realizes he’s just a tiny spider in a bigger spider’s web. Whatever the Collector’s goals or motives, the Council will have to face him, if they want to depose Lucis.”
Aunt Lyta paused behind her chair, gripping the back of it. “I still vote we should warn the Tenebrans about the severity of the threat they face. We can mitigate the consequences of telling them the truth, but the consequences of keeping the truth from them are unknown and potentially devastating.”
Queen Soteira turned to her. “The way the Tenebrans would interpret the truth would have devastating consequences as well.”
Queen Alea’s face was grave. “It is not our way to conceal knowledge. When we Ritual firstbloods waited to share the Gift, thinking to protect others from our untested discovery, we caused consequences the world still lives with now. In this case, however, I suggest we defer to my Grace’s expertise on evil.”
“Only temple scholars are aware of the Old Masters,” said Queen Soteira. “Imagine if we tried to explain to the Tenebrans that a powerful mage of dreams is at work in their lands. He has a king in the palm of his hand and an army of Gift Collectors at his back. He can possess any mortal. You will not perceive the sign—his voice—until it is already too late.”
Cassia shuddered. “And I thought Chrysanthos’s witch hunt would be devastating. The panic would spread everywhere. Anyone who hinted at sympathy with the king would be suspected of possession.”
Lio nodded. “Eudias would only be the first of many innocent victims to be brutalized by spells. Neighbors would drive out neighbors, relatives would beat their own kin to death…”
“We have experienced it,” said Queen Alea.
“Would the Orders be any defense against the Old Masters,” Cassia asked, “or would they make the persecution worse?”
“I would expect the Order of Hypnos to assist any Old Master at his pleasure,” Queen Alea answered, “or at the very least, scurry out of his way. The other Orders’ relationship with the Old Masters is more difficult to assess, since so few temple mages become Hesperines and bring us insight into the current workings of the Orders.”
Uncle Argyros spread his hands. “The Order of Hypnos most likely knows as much as can be known about the Old Masters, but those are secrets no one outside the Inner Eyes will ever learn, not even their so-called brethren in the Order of Anthros. We cannot know the state of the other Orders’ research into the Old Masters, but based on the temple scholarship available to them, I reason their knowledge is similar to our own.”
“The Order of Anthros prizes their supremacy,” Queen Alea said. “They will not tolerate any mage who holds himself above the Akron’s authority. If we informed them about the Old Master, they might refuse to believe us and see it as a ploy to sew discord between the Orders and deflect their aggression from Orthros. Even if we could persuade the Dexion and his colleagues an Old Master really is at work, the world could not afford their effort to defeat the Collector. We would have a war between Aithourians and an Old Master from which to defend innocent bystanders. The Order of Kyria would act as protectors, only to bear the brunt of their brothers’ attacks. We must handle this information with the utmost care, lest we incite more violence than necessary.”
“Now Cassia needs rest,” Queen Soteira announced, “and Lio needs to speak with her without elders hovering.”
Komnena embraced Cassia and Lio, her worry and her love evident in her touch. Apollon stood near, just outside Cassia’s vision. He was making it easy for her. She realized how comforting his presence was.
Before Cassia knew it, she and Lio were alone.
ENOUGH
Lio’s kiss was sogentle, Cassia felt like the most treasured person in the world, and so desperate, he need not say how close he had come to losing her. She stroked his face, reassuring him, tasting him to reassure herself. He pulled away well before she was ready, and he rested her against him.
“Are we all right?” she wondered aloud.
“I’m not sure.”
