Mistborn Trilogy - Brandon Sanderson [122]
Sazed sighed, then reached over and fingered the large book he’d set aside before beginning the surgery. The tome was wet with rainwater and blood. Kelsier regarded it, frowning. “What is that, anyway?”
“I don’t know,” Sazed said. “I found at the palace, while I was searching for the child. It is written in Khlenni.”
Khlenni, the language of Khlennium—the ancient, pre-Ascension homeland of the Lord Ruler. Kelsier perked up a bit. “Can you translate it?”
“Perhaps,” Sazed said, suddenly sounding very tired. “But…not for a time, I think. After this evening, I shall need to rest.”
Kelsier nodded, calling for one of the apprentices to prepare Sazed a room. The Terrisman nodded thankfully, then walked wearily up the stairs.
“He saved more than Vin’s life tonight,” Dockson said, approaching quietly from behind. “What you did was stupid, even for you.”
“I had to know, Dox,” he said. “I had to go back. What if the atium really is in there?”
“You said that it isn’t.”
“I said that,” Kelsier said with a nod, “and I’m mostly sure. But what if I’m wrong?”
“That’s no excuse,” Dockson said angrily. “Now Vin is dying and the Lord Ruler is alerted to us. Wasn’t it enough that you got Mare killed trying to get into that room?”
Kelsier paused, but he was too drained to feel any anger. He sighed, sitting down. “There’s more, Dox.”
Dockson frowned.
“I’ve avoided talking about the Lord Ruler to the others,” Kelsier said, “but…I’m worried. The plan is good, but I have this terrible, haunting feeling that we’ll never succeed as long as he’s alive. We can take his money, we can take his armies, we can trick him out of the city…but I still worry that we won’t be able to stop him.”
Dockson frowned. “You’re serious about this Eleventh Metal business, then?”
Kelsier nodded. “I searched for two years to find a way to kill him. Men have tried everything—he ignores normal wounds, and decapitation only annoys him. A group of soldiers burned down his inn during one of the early wars. The Lord Ruler walked out as barely more than a skeleton, then healed in a matter of seconds.
“Only the stories of the Eleventh Metal offered any hope. But I can’t make it work! That’s why I had to go back to the palace. The Lord Ruler’s hiding something in that room—I can feel it. I can’t help thinking that if we knew what it was, we’d be able to stop him.”
“You didn’t have to take Vin with you.”
“She followed me,” Kelsier said. “I worried that she’d try to get in on her own if I left her. The girl has a headstrong streak, Dox—she hides it well, but she’s blasted stubborn when she wants to be.”
Dockson sighed, then nodded quietly. “And we still don’t know what’s in that room.”
Kelsier eyed the book Sazed had set on the table. The rainwater had marked it, but the tome was obviously designed to endure. It was strapped tightly to prevent water from seeping in, and the cover was of well-cured leather.
“No,” Kelsier finally said. “We don’t.” But we do have that, whatever it is.
“Was it worth it, Kell?” Dockson asked. “Was this insane stunt really worth nearly getting yourself—and the child—killed?”
“I don’t know,” Kelsier said honestly. He turned to Dockson, meeting his friend’s eyes. “Ask me once we know whether or not Vin will live.”
THE END OF PART TWO
PART THREE
CHILDREN OF A BLEEDING SUN
Many think that my journey started in Khlennium, that great city of wonder. They forget that I was no king when my quest began. Far from it.
I think it would do men well to remember that this task was not begun by emperors, priests, prophets, or generals. It didn’t start in Khlennium or Kordel, nor did it come from the great nations to the east or the fiery empire of the West.
It began in a small, unimportant town whose name would mean nothing to you. It began with a youth, the son of a blacksmith, who was unremarkable in every way—except, perhaps, in his ability to get into trouble.
It began with me.
16
WHEN VIN AWOKE, THE PAIN TOLD her that Reen had beaten her again. What had she done? Had she been too friendly to one of the