Mistborn: The Hero of Ages (76 page)

"To hell with the burns," Spook croaked. "I'm alive. I wasn't expecting that." Breeze looked up at Beldre, smiling.

Send it f l ying.
.
. .

"Where is Sazed? " Spook asked.

"You should really try to rest," Beldre said, rubbing his cheek softly. "You've been through a lot."

"And slept through more, I expect," Spook said. "Sazed?"

"Gone, my dear boy," Breeze said. "He went off south with Vin's kandra."
Vin.

Feet clomped across the floor, and a second later, Captain Goradel's face appeared beside the other two. The square-j awed soldier smiled broadly. "Survivor of the Flames indeed!"
You have a clue that nobody else does. . . .

"How is the city?" Spook asked.

"Mostly safe," B eldre said. "The canals flooded, and my brother organized f ire brigades. Most of the buildings that burned weren't inhabited anyway." "You saved it, my lord," Goradel said. I'm proud. . . .

"The ash is falling even more thickly, isn't it? " Spook asked.

The three above shared looks. Their troubled expressions were enough of a confirmation.

"We're getting a lot of refugees into the city," Beldre said. "From surrounding cities and villages, some as far as Luthadel. . . ."

"I need to send a message," Spook said. "To Vin."

"All right," Breeze said soothingly. "We'll do that as soon as you are better."

"Listen to me, Breeze," Spook said, staring up at the ceiling, unable to do much more than twitch.

"Something was controlling me and the Citizen. I
saw
it the thing that Vin released at the Well of Ascension. The thing that is bringing ash down to destroy us . It wanted this city, but we fought it off. Now, I need to warn Vin." That's what he'd been sent to do in Urteau. Find information, then report it back to Vin and Elend. He was only just beginning to understand how important a duty that could be.

"Travel is difficult right now, my boy," Breeze said. "It isn't exactly perf ect conditions for sending messages."

"Rest some more," B eldre said. "We'll worry about it when you're healed." Spook gritted his teeth in frustration.

You must get that message sent, Spook.
. . .

"I'll take it," Goradel said quietly.

Spook looked to the side. Sometimes, it was easy to ignore the soldier, with his simple, straightforward manner and his pleasant demeanor. However, the determination in his voice made Spook smile.

"Lady Vin saved my lif e," Goradel said. " The night of the Survivor's rebellion, she could have left me to die at the hands of the mob. She could have killed me herself. But she took the time to tell me that she understood what I'd been through, and convinced me to switch sides. If she needs this information, Survivor, then I
will
get it to her, or I will die trying." Spook tried to nod, but his head was held tight by the bandages and wrappings. He flexed his hand. It seemed to work . . . or, at least, work well enough. He met Goradel's eyes. "Go to the armory and have a sheet of metal pounded thin," Spook said. "Then, return here with something I can use to scratch the metal. These words must be written in steel, and I cannot speak them aloud."

. 156 201

In those moments when the Lord Ruler both held the power at the Well and was feeling it drain away f
rom him, he understood a great many things. He saw the power o f Feruchemy, and rightly f eared it.
Many of the Terris people, he knew, would re ject him as the Hero, for he didn't ful f ill their
prophecies well. The y 'd see him as a usur per who killed the Hero they sent. Which, in truth, he was.
I think, over the years, Ruin would subtly twist him and make him do terrible things to his own people.
But at the beginning, I suspect his decision against them was motivated more by logic than emotion.
He was about to unveil a grand power in the Mistborn.

He could have, I suppose, kept Allomancy secret and used Feruchemists as his primary warriors and
assassins. However , I think he was wise to choose as he did. Feruchemists, by the nature of their
powers, have a tendenc y toward scholarship. With their incredible memories, they would have been
ver y di f ficult to control over the centuries. Indeed, the y
were
di f ficult to control, even when he
suppressed them. A llomancy not onl y provided a spectacular new ability without that drawback, it o
f fered a mystical power he could
use
to bribe kings to his side.
65

ELEND STOOD UPON A SMALL ROCK
outcropping to look over his troops. Below, the koloss stalked forward, stomping a pathway in the ash for his humans to use af ter the initial koloss assault. Elend waited, Ham standing just a few steps below.

I wear white,
Elend thought.
The color of purit y. I try to represent what is good and right. For my
men.

"The koloss should have no trouble with those fortifications," Ham said quietly. "They can leap to the top of city walls; they'll be able to climb those broken stone ridges." Elend nodded. There probably wouldn't be any need for the human soldiers to attack. With his koloss alone, Elend had the numerical advantage, and it was unlikely Yomen's soldiers had ever fought the creatures before .

The koloss sensed a fight. He c ould feel them getting excited. They strained against him, wishing to attack.

"Ham," he said, glancing down. "Is this right?"

Ham shrugged. " This move does make sense, El," he said, rubbing his chin. "Attacking is our only real chance of saving Vin. And, we can't hold the siege not any longer." Ham paused, then shook his head, his tone of voice taking on that uncertain quality it always did when he considered one of his logic problems. "Yet, loosing a group of koloss on a city does seem immoral. I wonder if you'll be able to control them, once they begin to rampage. Is saving Vin worth the possibility of killing even one innocent child? I don't know. Then again, maybe we'll save more children by bringing them into our empire. . . ."

I shouldn't have bothered to ask Ham, Elend thought. He never has been able to give a straight answer. He looked out over the field, blue koloss against a plain of black. With tin, he could see men cowering on the tops of the Fadrex City ridges.

"No," Ham said.

Elend glanced down at the Thug.

"No," Ham repeated. "We shouldn't attack."

"Ham? " Elend said, feeling a surreal amusement. "Did you actually come to a
conclusion?
" Ham nodded. " Yes." He didn't offer explanation or rationalization. Elend looked up. What would V in do? His first instinct was to think that she'd attack. But then, he remembered when he had discovered her years before, af ter she'd assaulted Cett's tower.
She'd been
huddled
up in a corner, crying.

No, he thought. No, she wouldn 't do this thing. Not to protect me.
She's learned better.

"Ham," he said, surprising himself. "Tell the men to pull back and disassemble camp. We're returning to Luthadel."

Ham looked back, surprised as if he hadn't expected Elend to come to the same conclusion he had.

"And Vin?"

"I'm not going to attack this city, Ham," Elend said. "I won't conquer these people, even if it is for their own good. We'll find another w ay to get Vin free." Ham smiled. "Cett's going to be furious." Elend shrugged. "He's a paraplegic. What's he going to do? B ite us? Come on, let's get down off this rock and go deal with Luthadel."

"They're pulling back, my lord," the soldier said.

Vin sighed in relief. Ruin stood, expression unreadable, hands folded behind his back. Marsh stood with one hand claw-like on Yomen's shoulder, both watching out the window . Ruin brought
in an Inquisitor,
she thought.
He must have grown tired of m y e f forts to get the truth
out of Yomen, and instead brought in someone he knew the obligator would obey.

"This is very odd,"
Ruin finally said.

Vin took a breath, then gamble d. "Don't you see?" she asked quietly. Ruin turned toward her.

She smiled. "You really don't understand, do you?"

This time, Marsh turned as well.

"You think I didn't realize?" Vin asked. "You think I didn't know you were af ter the atium all along?

That you were following us from cavern to cavern, Pushing on my emotions, forcing me to search it out for you? You were so obvious. Your koloss always drew close to a city only
af ter
we discovered that it was the next in line . You moved in to threaten us, make us move more quickly, but you never got your koloss there too fast. The thing is, we knew all along."

"Impossible," Ruin whispered.

"No," Vin said. "Quite possible. Atium is metal, Ruin. You can't see it. Your vision gets fuzzy when too much of it is around, doesn't it? Metal is your power; you use it to make Inquisitors, but it's like light to you blinding. You never saw when we actually discovered the atium. You just followed along with our ruse." Marsh let go of Yomen, then rushed across the room, grabbing Vin by the arms.

"
WHERE IS IT!
" the Inquisitor demanded, lif ting her, shaking her. She
laughed, distracting
Marsh as she carefully reached for his sash. Marsh shook her too much, however, and her fingers couldn't f ind their mark. "You will tell me where the atium is, child," Ruin said calmly. "Haven't I explained this? There is no fighting against me. You think yourself clever, perhaps, but you really don't understand. You don't even know what that atium is." Vin shook her head. "You think I'd actually lead you to it?"

Marsh shook her again, rattling her, making her grit her teeth. When he stopped, her vision swam. To the side, she could barely make out Yomen watching with a frown. " Yomen," she said. "Your people are saf e now can you not finally trust that Elend is a good man?"

Marsh tossed her aside . She hit hard, rolling.

"Ah, child," Ruin said, kneeling down beside her. "Must I
prove
that you cannot fight me ? "

"Yomen!" Marsh said, turning. "Prepare your men. I want you to order an assault!"

"What?" Yomen said. "My lord, an assault?"

"Yes," Marsh said. "I want you to take all of your soldiers and have them attack Elend Venture's position."

Yomen paled. "Leave behind our fortifications? Charge an army of koloss? "

"That is my order," Marsh said.

Yomen stood quietly for a moment.

"Yomen . . ." Vin said, crawling to her knees. "Don't you see that he's manipulating you?" Yomen didn't respond. He looked troubled.
What would make him even consider an order like that?

"You see," Ruin whispered. " You see my power? You see how I manipulate even their faith?"

"Give the order," Yomen said, turning from Vin, facing his soldier captains. "Have the men attack. Tell them that the Lord Ruler will protect them." "Well," Ham said, standing beside Elend in the camp. "I didn't expect that."

Elend nodded slowly, watching the flood of men pour through the Fadrex gateway. Some stumbled in the deep ash; others pushed their way forward, their charge hampered to a slow crawl.

"Some stayed back," Elend said, pointing up at the wall top. Not having tin, Ham wouldn't be able to see the men who lined the wall, but he'd trust Elend's words. Around them, Elend's human soldiers were breaking camp. The koloss still waited silently in their positions, surrounding the camp.

"What is Yomen thinking?" Ham asked. "He's throwing an inferior force against an army of koloss?"
Like we did, attacking the koloss camp back in Vetitan.
Something about it made Elend very uncomfortable.

"Retreat," Elend said.

"Huh?" Ham asked.

"I said sound the retreat!" Elend said. "Abandon position. Pull the soldiers back!" At his silent command, the koloss began to charge away from the city. Yomen's soldiers were still pushing their way through the ash. Elend's koloss, however, would . 157 201

clear the way for his men. They should be able to stay ahead.

"Strangest retreat
I've
ever seen," Ham noted, but moved back to give the orders . That's it, Elend thought in annoyance. It's time to figure out what the hell is going
on in that city.
Yomen was crying. They were small, quiet tears. He stood straight-backed, not facing the window.
He fears that he's ordered his men to their deaths,
Vin thought. She moved up to him, limping slightly from where she'd hit the ground. Marsh stood watching out the window. Ruin eyed her curiously.

"Yomen," she said.

Yomen turned toward her. "It's a test," he said. "The Inquisitors are the Lord Ruler's most holy priests. I'll do as commanded, and the Lord Ruler will protect my men and this city. Then you will see." Vin gritted her teeth. Then, she turned and forced herself to walk up beside Marsh. She glanced out the window and was surprised to see that Elend's army was retreating away from Yomen's so ldiers. Yomen's force wasn't running with very much conviction. Obviously, they were content to let their superior enemy run away before them. The sun was f inally setting.

Marsh did not seem to f ind Elend's retreat amusing. That was enough to make Vin smile which made Marsh grab her again.

"You think you have won?" Marsh asked, leaning down, his uneven spikeheads hanging just before Vin's face.

Vin reached for his sash. Just a little f arther. . . .

"You claim to have been playing with me, child," Ruin said, stepping up next to her. "But you are the one who has been played. The koloss who serve you, they get their strength from my power. You think that I would let you control them if it weren't for my eventual gain? " Vin felt a moment of chill.

Oh, no. . . .

Elend felt a terrible
ripping
sensation. It was like a part of his innards had been suddenly, and forcibly, pulled away from him. He gasped, releasing his Steelpush. He fell through the ash-filled sky, and landed unevenly on a rock shelf outside of Fadrex City.

He gasped, breathing in and out, trembling.

What in the hell was that? he thought, standing up, holding his thumping head. And then he realized it. He couldn't feel the koloss anymore . In the distance, the massive blue creatures stopped running away. And then, to Elend's horror, he watched them turn around. They began to charge his men.