It wasn't that Skulduggery couldn't trust Gabe. They'd had to rely on each other for a lot more than this, and in an environment with far less certain outcomes. They had only known each other for less than a year - less than a month - and even without Gabe's divine identity and intentions, Skulduggery would have trusted the Archangel with his life.
But it wasn't his life he would need to trust Gabe with.
A sorcerer's true name was the source of all their power. Anyone else learning what it was, no matter who or why or how, would be given direct and absolute control over not only that person's actions, but their mind - their emotions, their loyalties, their love, their memories. Gabriel, no doubt, understood that, given his immediate reassurance that he wouldn't try without Skulduggery's permission. Skulduggery was equally sure that Gabe would never misuse the information himself - probably never even be tempted.
But that left so many holes and loose ends that Skulduggery didn't know where to start. What would he do when he knew his own true name? The power he was already capable of would multiply, and his state of existence walked such a fine line on a daily basis that the thought physically repulsed him. Losing control again could spell disaster for the entire world. Add to that the possibility of Gabriel's knowledge somehow being passed on - or the fact that only one person knowing effectively erased any ability to seal his true name later, if Skulduggery ever discovered a way to do it without needing organs.
But it wasn't a desperate risk, either. It was a gamble. It basically amounted to whether Skulduggery trusted Gabe to stay quiet even when under someone else's control, and whether he trusted himself to be able to retain the knowledge wisely; and then whether that trust was strong enough to overcome the possibility that Gabe's 'alternative' might still work.
Gabriel, Skulduggery knew, he could trust. If anyone other than God was able to control an Archangel, the world would end soon anyway. But he didn't trust himself.
"Can you find it without letting me know what it is?" he finally asked, hardly daring to believe that he was even considering this.
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But it wasn't his life he would need to trust Gabe with.
A sorcerer's true name was the source of all their power. Anyone else learning what it was, no matter who or why or how, would be given direct and absolute control over not only that person's actions, but their mind - their emotions, their loyalties, their love, their memories. Gabriel, no doubt, understood that, given his immediate reassurance that he wouldn't try without Skulduggery's permission. Skulduggery was equally sure that Gabe would never misuse the information himself - probably never even be tempted.
But that left so many holes and loose ends that Skulduggery didn't know where to start. What would he do when he knew his own true name? The power he was already capable of would multiply, and his state of existence walked such a fine line on a daily basis that the thought physically repulsed him. Losing control again could spell disaster for the entire world. Add to that the possibility of Gabriel's knowledge somehow being passed on - or the fact that only one person knowing effectively erased any ability to seal his true name later, if Skulduggery ever discovered a way to do it without needing organs.
But it wasn't a desperate risk, either. It was a gamble. It basically amounted to whether Skulduggery trusted Gabe to stay quiet even when under someone else's control, and whether he trusted himself to be able to retain the knowledge wisely; and then whether that trust was strong enough to overcome the possibility that Gabe's 'alternative' might still work.
Gabriel, Skulduggery knew, he could trust. If anyone other than God was able to control an Archangel, the world would end soon anyway. But he didn't trust himself.
"Can you find it without letting me know what it is?" he finally asked, hardly daring to believe that he was even considering this.