Mistborn Trilogy - Brandon Sanderson [570]
“Then you are married,” Sazed said, tying off his thread, then draping a cloth across Vin’s chest. “Hold this for a bit, Lady Vin, and stanch the rest of the bleeding.” Then he moved on to her cheek.
“I feel like there should be a ceremony or something,” Elend said.
“I could give one, if you wish,” Sazed said, “but I do not think you need one. I have known you both for some time, and am willing to give my blessing to this union. I simply offer counsel. Those who take lightly promises they make to those they love are people who find little lasting satisfaction in life. This is not an easy time in which to live. That does not mean that it has to be a difficult time to love, but it does mean that you will find unusual stresses upon your lives and your relationship.
“Do not forget the love oath you made to each other this evening. It will give you much strength in the days to come, I think.” With that, he pulled the last stitch tight on Vin’s face, then finally moved to the shoulder. The bleeding there had mostly stopped, and Sazed studied the wound for a moment before beginning work on it.
Vin looked up at Elend, smiling, looking a bit drowsy. He stood and walked over to the room’s washbasin, and returned with a damp cloth to wipe off her face and cheek.
“I’m sorry,” she said quietly as Sazed moved around and took the place Elend had been kneeling in.
“Sorry?” Elend said. “About my father’s Mistborn?”
Vin shook her head. “No. For taking so long.”
Elend smiled. “You’re worth the wait. Besides, I think I had to figure a few things out as well.”
“Like how to be a king?”
“And how to stop being one.”
Vin shook her head. “You never stopped being one, Elend. They can take your crown, but they can’t take your honor.”
Elend smiled. “Thank you. However, I don’t know how much good I’ve done the city. By even being here, I divided the people, and now Straff will end up in control.”
“I’ll kill Straff if he puts one foot in this city.”
Elend gritted his teeth. Back to the same problems again. They could only hold Vin’s knife against his neck for so long. He’d figure out a way to wiggle around, and there was always Jastes and those koloss….
“Your Majesty,” Sazed said as he worked, “perhaps I can offer a solution.”
Elend glanced down at the Terrisman, raising an eyebrow.
“The Well of Ascension,” Sazed said.
Vin opened her eyes immediately.
“Tindwyl and I have been researching the Hero of Ages,” Sazed continued. “We are convinced that Rashek never did what the Hero was supposed to. In fact, we aren’t even convinced that this Alendi of a thousand years ago was the Hero. There are too many discrepancies, too many problems and contradictions. In addition, the mists—the Deepness—are still here. And now they are killing people.”
Elend frowned. “What are you saying?”
Sazed pulled a stitch tight. “Something still needs to be done, Your Majesty. Something important. Looking at it from a smaller perspective, it might seem that the events at Luthadel and the rise of the Well of Ascension are unrelated. However, from a larger view, they may be solutions to one another.”
Elend smiled. “Like the lock and the key.”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Sazed said, smiling. “Precisely like that.”
“It thumps,” Vin whispered, eyes closing. “In my head. I can feel it.”
Sazed paused, then wrapped a bandage around Vin’s arm. “Can you feel where it is?”
Vin shook her head. “I…There doesn’t seem to be a direction to the pulses. I thought they were distant, but they’re getting louder.”
“That must be the Well returning to power,” Sazed said. “It is fortunate that I know where to find it.”
Elend turned, and Vin opened her eyes again.
“My research has revealed the location, Lady Vin,” Sazed said. “I can draw you a map, from my metalminds.”
“Where?” Vin whispered.
“North,” Sazed said. “In the mountains of Terris. Atop one of the lower peaks, known as Derytatith. Travel there will be difficult this time of year….”
“I can do it,” Vin said firmly as Sazed turned to working on her chest wound. Elend flushed again, then paused