Mistborn Trilogy - Brandon Sanderson [360]
“His motivations will be simple, Mistress,” OreSeur said. “He will be following his Contract.”
“What if he’s acting without a Contract?”
OreSeur shook his canine head. “Kandra always have a Contract. Without one, they are not allowed to enter human society.”
“Never?” Vin asked.
“Never.”
“And what if this is some kind of rogue kandra?” Vin said.
“Such a thing does not exist,” OreSeur said firmly.
Oh? Vin thought skeptically. However, she let the matter drop. There was little reason for a kandra to infiltrate the palace on his own; it was far more likely that one of Elend’s enemies had sent the creature. One of the warlords, perhaps, or maybe the obligators. Even the other nobility in the city would have had good reason to spy on Elend.
“Okay,” Vin said. “The kandra is a spy, sent to gather information for another human.”
“Yes.”
“But,” Vin said, “if he did take the body of someone in the palace, he didn’t kill them himself. Kandra can’t kill humans, right?”
OreSeur nodded. “We are all bound by that rule.”
“So, somebody snuck into the palace, murdered a member of the staff, then had their kandra take the body.” She paused, trying to work through the problem. “The most dangerous possibilities—the crewmembers—should be considered first. Fortunately, since the killing happened yesterday, we can eliminate Breeze, who was outside the city at the time.”
OreSeur nodded.
“We can eliminate Elend as well,” Vin said. “He was with us on the wall yesterday.”
“That still leaves the majority of the crew, Mistress.”
Vin frowned, sitting back. She’d tried to establish solid alibis for Ham, Dockson, Clubs, and Spook. However, all of them had had at least a few hours unaccounted for. Long enough for a kandra to digest them and take their place.
“All right,” she said. “So, how do I find the impostor? How can I tell him from other people?”
OreSeur sat quietly in the mists.
“There has to be a way,” Vin said. “His imitation can’t be perfect. Would cutting him work?”
OreSeur shook his head. “Kandra replicate a body perfectly, Mistress—blood, flesh, skin, and muscle. You have seen that when I split my skin.”
Vin sighed, standing and stepping up on the tip of the peaked rooftop. The mists were already full, and the night was quickly becoming black. She began to walk idly back and forth on the ridge, an Allomancer’s balance keeping her from falling.
“Perhaps I can just see who isn’t acting oddly,” she said. “Are most kandra as good at imitation as you are?”
“Among kandra, my own skill is average. Some are worse, others are better.”
“But no actor is perfect,” Vin said.
“Kandra don’t often make mistakes, Mistress,” OreSeur said. “But, this is probably your best method. Be warned, however—he could be anyone. My kind are very skilled.”
Vin paused. It’s not Elend, she told herself forcibly. He was with me all day yesterday. Except in the morning.
Too long, she decided. We were on the wall for hours, and those bones were freshly expelled. Besides, I’d know if it were him…wouldn’t I?
She shook her head. “There has to be another way. Can I spot a kandra with Allomancy somehow?”
OreSeur didn’t answer immediately. She turned toward him in the darkness, studying his canine face. “What?” she asked.
“These are not things we speak of with outsiders.”
Vin sighed. “Tell me anyway.”
“Do you command me to speak?”
“I don’t really care to command you in anything.”
“Then I may leave?” OreSeur asked. “You do not wish to command me, so our Contract is dissolved?”
“That isn’t what I meant,” Vin said.
OreSeur frowned—a strange expression to see on a dog’s face. “It would be easier for me if you would try to say what you mean, Mistress.”
Vin gritted her teeth. “Why is it you’re so hostile?”
“I’m not hostile, Mistress. I am your servant, and will do as you command. That is part of the Contract.”
“Sure. Are you like this with all of your masters?”
“With most, I am fulfilling a specific role,” OreSeur said. “I have bones to imitate—a person to become, a personality to adopt.