Difference between revisions of "Summary:The Hero of Ages"

{{anchor|Part 1}}

 

{| style='margin:auto; width:50%'

{{row|{{icon|steel|mb3|70px|center}}|{{icon|zinc|mb3|70px|center}}|{{icon|copper|mb3|70px|center}}}}

|}

{{icon|iron|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|I am, unfortunately, the Hero of Ages.}}

*[[bws: mistborn-3-chapter-one|Chapter 1]]

 

{{icon|steel|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Holding the power did strange things to my mind. In just a few moments, I became familiar with the power itself, with its history, and with the ways it might be used.

*[[bws: mistborn-3-chapter-two|Chapter 2]]

 

{{icon|tin|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|In some ways, having such power was too overwhelming, I think. This was a power that would take millennia to understand. Remaking the world would have been easy, had one been familiar with the power. Yet, I realized the danger inherent in my ignorance. Like a child suddenly given awesome strength, I could have pushed too hard, and left the world a broken toy I could never repair.}}

Vin drops into the middle of the koloss, a storm of death and effortless acrobatics. Seeking out a thirteen foot koloss is all she needs to envigorate the fear in the surrounding koloss, killing it with a single boot to the head. Sparing a glance for Elend's force there are now several koloss fighting alongside the humans. Their plan was to instill fear in the koloss army and take control of them by the secret TenSoon had betrayed to her in Well of Ascension.

 

 

*[[bws: mistborn-3-chapter-three|Chapter 3]]

 

{{icon|pewter|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|This is actually what happened to Rashek, I believe. He pushed too hard. He tried to burn away the mists by moving the planet closer to the sun, but he moved it too far, making the world far too hot for the people who inhabited it.

Sazed reviews the tenets of the [[Canzi]] religion, but rejects them as self-contradictory. As Breeze and Sazed await the signing of a treaty by King [[Audil Lekal]] to submit to Elend's rule, Breeze asks Sazed to preach of one of the religions in the Keeper's copperminds, but Sazed declines, stating his faith is shaken by the recent world events. An aide to the king delivers the signed treaty to Sazed and Breeze.

 

{{icon|zinc|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Each time Rashek tried to fix things, he made them worse. He had to change the world's plants to make them able to survive in the new, harsh environment. Yet, that change left the plants less nutritious to mankind. Indeed, the falling ash would make men sick, causing them to cough like those who spent too long mining beneath the earth. And so Rashek changed mankind itself as well, altering them so that they could survive.}}

Fatren guides Elend and Vin to the Ministry building in Vetitan, and they locate a hidden storage cache, which Elend claims for the empire. Elend and Vin debate about the emperor's leadership ability and the changes in the ashfalls and weather. They find a metal plate inscribed by the Lord Ruler with information on [[Malatium]], using emotional allomancy to control kandra and koloss, and the location of another undiscovered storage depot in [[Fadrex City]]. Vin finds a postscript note on the plate that states that their foe can learn anything they speak or write, and that only thoughts are safe.

 

{{icon|brass|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Rashek soon found a balance in the changes he made to the world—which was fortunate, for his power burned away quite quickly. Though the power he held seemed immense to him, it was truly only a tiny fraction of something much greater.

Marsh regains lucidity as Ruin lessens his control over the inquisitor. He is in a large koloss camp, and is accompanied by several inquisitors, many of whom have new hemalurgic spikes charged by Terris keepers. He ponders that he will never get enough control to kill himself, and that he wishes Ruin would keep control over him permanently to let him see the beauty in the destruction of the world.

 

{{icon|copper|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|I speak of us as "we." The group. Those of us who were trying to discover and defeat Ruin. Perhaps my thoughts are now tainted, but I like to look back and see the sum of what we were doing as a single, united assault, though we were all involved in different processes and plans.

TenSoon consumes a new body. Four kandra of the Fifth Generation, including [[VarSell]], escort TenSoon to trial in the [[Trustwarren]].

 

{{icon|bronze|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|It is too easy for people to characterize Ruin as simply a force of destruction. Think rather of Ruin as intelligent decay. Not simply chaos, but a force that sought in a rational—and dangerous—way to break everything down to its most basic forms.

First appearance of [[Human]].

 

{{icon|atium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Allomancy was, indeed, born with the mists. Or, at least, Allomancy began at the same time as the mists' first appearances. When Rashek took the power at the Well of Ascension, he became aware of certain things. Some were whispered to him by Ruin; others were granted to him as an instinctive part of the power.

[[KanPaar]] of the Second Generation asks if TenSoon insists upon being tried, and TenSoon replies in the affirmative. Hundreds of kandra arrive at the Trustwarren to watch the proceedings, including [[MeLaan]], a close friend of TenSoon's. TenSoon believes that he is a proxy for a contest between KanPaar's and TenSoon's entire Generations.

 

{{icon|malatium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Nuggets of pure Allomancy, the power of Preservation itself. Why Rashek left one of those nuggets at the Well of Ascension, I do not know. Perhaps he didn't see it, or perhaps he intended to save it to bestow upon a fortunate servant.

Sazed tells Vin that he feels very depressed due to losing Tindwyl and feeling self-pity, though Vin tries to encourage him and says how much he is needed. Vin leaves him the picture of the flower that had belonged to [[Mare]], who was a follower of the Larsta religion.

 

{{icon|gold|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|The First Contract, oft spoken of by the kandra, was originally just a series of promises made by the First Generation to the Lord Ruler. They wrote these promises down, and in doing so codified the first kandra laws. They were worried about governing themselves, independently of the Lord Ruler and his empire. So, they took what they had written to him, asking for his approval.

KanPaar interrogates TenSoon on why he killed [[OreSeur|a fellow kandra]], and TenSoon replies that he was compelled by his Contract to obey. The issue of kandra killing kandra leading to their extermination is raised to weaken TenSoon's trustworthiness as a witness, but he counters with an argument that Kelsier, the man who planned to kill their [[Lord Ruler|Father]] was allowed a Contract, a treacherous act in itself. KanPaar then asks why TenSoon broke Contract with Zane, to which TenSoon replies that he upheld a greater Contract, the First Contract with the Lord Ruler, by upholding Vin, who he labels as Mother, since she killed Father and replaced him in the sense of being the prime oppostion to Ruin. TenSoon states that he revealed their secret weakness to emotional allomancy to Vin and that they should pledge service to Vin in the same way they served the Lord Ruler, but KanPaar shouts down his arguments, and informs him that he will receive his punishment in one month's time.

 

{{icon|electrum|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Rashek moved the Well of Ascension, obviously.

Elend convenes a council meeting with Vin, Lord Cett, Breeze, Allrianne, Hammond, Demoux, Gneorndin and Sazed. They discuss the encroaching mists and options for growing food, and plans to capture the caches in Urteau and Fadrex City. Elend states that he may expose his army to the mists when marching on Fadrex City, despite the risks. Elend asks the crew "What would Kelsier do?" as a means to motivate them.

 

{{icon|chromium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Hemalurgy, it is called, because of the connection to blood. It is not a coincidence, I believe, that death is always involved in the transfer of powers via Hemalurgy. Marsh once described it as a "messy" process. Not the adjective I would have chosen. It's not disturbing enough.}}

{{anchor|Part 2}}

 

{| style='margin:auto; width:50%'

{{row|{{icon|malatium|mb3|70px|center}}|{{icon|gold|mb3|70px|center}}|{{icon|cadmium|mb3|70px|center}}}}

|}

{{icon|nicrosil|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Ruin's consciousness was trapped by the Well of Ascension, kept mostly impotent. That night, when we discovered the Well for the first time, we found something we didn't understand. A black smoke, clogging one of the rooms.

Spook flares tin constantly despite the dangers, having done so for over a year, first over guilt at Clubs' death, and then to follow Vin's example and to try to maintain every advantage that he could get. As he skulks through Urteau at night, his enhanced senses allow him to see by the stars as if in daylight, make his skin feel extremely sensitive to pebbles and wind, and hear ambient noises through walls. He wishes to prove himself valuable to the crew and takes the initiative to spy on Quellion's, aka the [[Citizen]]'s meetings, and to secretly watch [[Beldre]], the Citizen's sister. Spook observes as Quellion and his council discuss Elend's conquests, the ambassador Elend is sending to Urteau to negotiate with them, and various laws to deal with the nobility.

 

{{icon|aluminum|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|The ash.

Elend tells Vin that Human is causing a disturbance and Vin goes to talk with the koloss. Human says that the mists hate him, and that they hate Vin as well, and she is surprised to agree with that assessment. Vin concludes that the mists are her enemy.

 

{{icon|duralumin|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|They are called Allomantic savants. Men or women who flare their metals so long, and so hard, that the constant influx of Allomantic power transforms their very physiology.

Spook follows the Citizen as he leaves to speak with the town residents, and maneuvers his way through the crowd to get to Quellion's and Beldre's side. He manages to communicate with Beldre without being observed, speaking out against Quellion's murders and promising that the Citizen would die. Eventually, however, Spook is noticed and the guards go after Spook. He manages to hold off three soldiers for a time, but they turn out to be allomancers, including a thug and a coinshot, and eventually is stabbed by a sword that also goes through a thug who gets slain by it, and he loses consciousness.

 

{{icon|cadmium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|The subtlety displayed in the ash-eating microbes and enhanced plants shows that Rashek got better and better at using the power. It burned out in a matter of minutes—but to a god, minutes can pass like hours. During that time, Rashek began as an ignorant child who shoved a planet too close to the sun, grew into an adult who could create ashmounts to cool the air, then finally became a mature artisan who could develop plants and creatures for specific purposes.

Elend observes as soldiers begin to get sick, including Demoux.

 

{{icon|bendalloy|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Rashek didn't solve all the world's problems. In fact, with each thing he did fix, he created new issues. However, he was clever enough that each subsequent problem was smaller than the ones before it. So, instead of plants that died from the distorted sun and ashy ground, we got plants that didn't provide quite enough nutrition.

Sazed arrives at the Pits of Hathsin, where the Terris people have relocated to, and is greeted warmly by his people.

 

{{icon|19|mb3|70px|center|link=}}

{{epigraph|Yes, the ash was black. No, it should not have been. Most common ash has a dark component, but is just as much gray or white as it is black.

Spook regains consciousness, and feels numbed due to a lack of tin to burn. He hears a voice that tells him he has lost a lot of blood and that he will soon die from flames, and realizes he is in a burning building. The voice guides him to a room that has a desk containing allomantic vials, and he drinks the contents of one. He sees a figure that talks to him, telling him that the vials didn't belong to a Tineye so they wouldn't have tin, but Spook discovers that he can now burn pewter, thanks to the mysterious figure who resembles Kelsier. Spook is told to escape so that he can exact revenge.

 

{{icon|20|mb3|70px|center|link=}}

{{epigraph|More than one person reported feeling a sentient hatred in the mists. This is not necessarily related to the mists killing people, however. For most—even those it struck down—the mists seemed merely a weather phenomenon, no more sentient or vengeful than a terrible disease.

TenSoon sits in his prison cell, feeling insulted that anyone would think he would try to escape, as various kandra visit to condemn him or commisserate with him. He looks forward to his solitary confinement. MeLaan approaches him and tells him he can challenge the second generation, and that Ruin is conquering the lands. TenSoon is hesitant to rebel, but MeLaan's pleadings make him reconsider, and he decides to escape if given the opportunity, though he tells the opposite to MeLaan in case of eavesdroppers, and she leaves him feeling angry.

 

{{icon|21|mb3|70px|center|link=}}

{{epigraph|It should be no surprise that Elend became such a powerful Allomancer. It is a well-documented fact—though that documentation wasn't available to most—that Allomancers were much stronger during the early days of the Final Empire.

Elend thinks he is becoming ruthless like the Lord Ruler, because of his exposing his soldiers to the mists, but Vin disagrees. Elend and Vin speak of how nobles used to beat their children to try to awaken their allomantic potential, though this has been outlawed by Elend for humane purposes, a decision that Elend now second-guesses.

 

 

{{icon|22|mb3|70px|center|link=}}

{{epigraph|The beads of metal found at the Well—beads that made men into Mistborn—were the reason why Allomancers used to be more powerful. Those first Mistborn were as Elend Venture became—possessing a primal power, which was then passed down through the lines of the nobility, weakening a bit with each generation.

Sazed meets with the Terris elders, giving them advice, telling them he cannot stay to be their leader since he isn't worthy, and that he will be leaving the following morning. He inquires about mist deaths, and is informed that none of the Terris people have been stricken with this illness, a fact that he dwells upon.

 

{{icon|lerasium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|During the early days of Kelsier's original plan, I remember how much he confused us all with his mysterious "Eleventh Metal." He claimed that there were legends of a mystical metal that would let one slay the Lord Ruler—and that Kelsier himself had located that metal through intense research.

;Summary

Spook explores his past in a fever-dream, reliving the day he was taken in by [[Clubs]].

{{icon|iron|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|I now believe that Kelsier's stories, legends, and prophecies about the "Eleventh Metal" were fabricated by Ruin. Kelsier was looking for a way to kill the Lord Ruler, and Ruin—ever subtle—provided a way.

TenSoon deliberates whether he should accept his punishment or try to escape to help Vin. VarSell and other kandra appear, ordering TenSoon to consume his wolfhound body to wear as punishment for his sentencing, since they believe that TenSoon despises the dog's body because that is what he said to MeLaan while they were eavesdropping, not realizing that this was actually TenSoon's desired result.

 

{{icon|steel|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|The Balance. Is it real?

Elend asks Vin to scout, and offers to go along, but Vin says he isn't good enough. Cett provides a list of informants in the city and Vin leaves for her infiltration mission.

 

{{icon|tin|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|I am only just beginning to understand the brilliance of the Lord Ruler's cultural synthesis. One of the benefits afforded him by being both immortal and—for all relevant purposes—omnipotent was a direct and effective influence on the evolution of the Final Empire.

Spook marvels at his survival and newfound Thug ability. He notices a metal sliver in his skin from the sword he was stabbed with and prepares to remove it, but Kelsier's voice tells him to leave it as a sign of his survival. He leaves his lair late at night and goes to a tavern to drink and get the pulse of the population. Spook daydreams about his past but notices several people talking about him being a member of Kelsier's crew, and wishing to avoid attention, leaves the bar.

 

{{icon|pewter|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Yes, Rashek made good use of his enemy's culture in developing the Final Empire. Yet, other elements of imperial culture were a complete contrast to Khlennium and its society. The lives of the skaa were modeled after the slave peoples of the Canzi. The Terris stewards resembled the servant class of Urtan, which Rashek conquered relatively late in his first century of life.

Hoid appears in this chapter

 

{{icon|zinc|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|One final aspect of the Lord Ruler's cultural manipulation is quite interesting: that of technology.

Elend says he wants to use his army to invade Fadrex only as a last resort, and Vin suggests they crash one of the balls to talk with Yomen directly.

 

{{icon|brass|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|The Lord Ruler didn't just forbid certain technologies, he suppressed technological advancement completely. It seems odd now that during the entirety of his thousand-year reign, very little progress was made. Farming techniques, architectural methods—even fashion remained remarkably stable during the Lord Ruler's reign.

As their carraige traverses the streets, Spook meets them, dressed as a soldier. He leads them to the unused Canton of Inquisition building to use as a base. He also leads them to the cache of supplies which is hidden under the building. They discover why the canals are all empty, due to the fact that the water source has been diverted to an hidden underground lake located with the supplies.

 

{{icon|copper|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Originally, men assumed that Rashek's persecution of the Terris religion came from hatred. Yet, now that we know that Rashek was himself a Terrisman, his destruction of that religion seems odd. I suspect it had something to do with the prophecies about the Hero of Ages. Rashek knew that Preservation's power would eventually return to the Well of Ascension. If the Terris religion had been allowed to survive, then perhaps—someday—a person would find their way to the Well and take up the power, then use it to defeat Rashek and overthrow his empire. So, he obscured knowledge of the Hero and what he was supposed to do, hoping to keep the secret of the Well to himself.}}

After Vin leaves the table, Lady Patresen's sycophants follow her, and offer to introduce her to the other party goers.

 

{{icon|bronze|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Rashek wore both black and white. I think he wanted to show that he was a duality, Preservation and Ruin.

Sazed thinks about Tindwyl and her influence on him, and resumes his religious research.

 

{{icon|atium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Allomancy, obviously, is of Preservation. The rational mind will see this. For, in the case of Allomancy, net power is gained. It is provided by an external source—Preservation's own body.}}

They plan to attend the next ball which they think could give them an opportunity to infiltrate the storage cavern, and when the song ends, they both use steelpushes to make a dramatic exit as Elend offers safe passage to his army to any who desire it.

 

{{icon|malatium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Hemalurgy is of Ruin. It destroys. By taking abilities from one person and giving them to another—in reduced amounts—power is actually lost. In line with Ruin's own appointed purpose—breaking down the universe into smaller and smaller pieces—Hemalurgy gives great gifts, but at a high cost.}}

{{anchor|Part 3}}

 

{| style='margin:auto; width:50%'

{{row|{{icon|bendalloy|mb3|70px|center}}|{{icon|20|mb3|70px|center|link=}}|{{icon|21|mb3|70px|center|link=}}}}

|}

{{icon|gold|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Feruchemy, it should be noted, is the power of balance. Of the three powers, only it was known to men before the conflict between Preservation and Ruin came to a head. In Feruchemy, power is stored up, then later drawn upon. There is no loss of energy—just a changing of the time and rate of its use.}}

Marsh walks through a small town in the Central Dominance, near [[Ashmounts|Mount Tyrian]], full of starving people despite the fact that the area is in Elend's protected zone. Marsh revels in the despair, holding back his sliver of resistance. He creates a bronze hemalurgic spike by stabbing a [[Copper|Smoker]] through the heart with it, then leaves and watches as the volcano erupts in a flow of magma.

 

{{icon|electrum|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Hemalurgy is a power about which I wish I knew far less. To Ruin, power must have an inordinately high cost—using it must be attractive, yet must sow chaos and destruction in its very implementation.

Kelsier tells Spook to go after Quellion before he harms Sazed and Breeze, but Spook dismisses this threat. One of Durn's henchmen approaches Spook, asking for help rescuing his sister from being executed by the Citizen, and Spook agrees to help for a price.

 

{{icon|chromium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|In Hemalurgy, the type of metal used in a spike is important, as is the positioning of that spike on the body. For instance, steel spikes take physical Allomantic powers—the ability to burn pewter, tin, steel, or iron—and bestow them upon the person receiving the spike. Which of these four is granted, however, depends on where the spike is placed.

Demoux asks to be relieved of his position as General as he feels that Kelsier has judged him and found him unworthy. Demoux mentions another statistical oddity that Elend was not aware of, that sixteen percent of the sick either remained sick for sixteen days or perished. Demoux mentions other ways that the number sixteen seems to be relevant, stating there is a pattern that Kelsier is behind. Elend states that Demoux wasn't killed and that means that he isn't being punished for lack of faith as he thinks. Elend tells Demoux to stop pitying himself and apply scientific reasoning to investigate the mists and the numerological phenomena. They are interrupted by shouting.

 

{{icon|nicrosil|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Hemalurgic decay was less obvious in Inquisitors that had been created from Mistborn. Since they already had Allomantic powers, the addition of other abilities made them awesomely strong.

Vin goes to the koloss camp and is met by Human, who says they need more koloss. She doesn't understand when Human asks for help to create more koloss so she gives him an allomantic push and follows Human to see what he does. Human takes a dead koloss to the triage area of the human camp and removes the skin from the koloss corpse and removes 4 spikes from it. Human goes into a sick tent and reaches for an unconscious solder but is stopped by Vin, who finally realizes how koloss are created.

 

{{icon|aluminum|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Hemalurgy can be used to steal Allomantic or Feruchemical powers and give them to another person. However, a Hemalurgic spike can also be created by killing a normal person, one who is neither an Allomancer nor a Feruchemist. In that case, the spike instead steals the very power of Preservation existing within the soul of the people. (The power that, in fact, gives all people sentience.)

Sazed and Breeze sit in a tavern and discuss how the skaa go out into the mists at night, something once unheard of. They then join some skaa at another table to explain their presence in Urteau and to plead Elend's case as a good replacement for the Citizen as ruler of the city. The skaa state they don't need outside interference since [[Spook|The Survivor of the Flames]] is there to deal with Quellion. Sazed asks to meet this new Survivor and is told to attend an execution that is taking place the following day.

 

{{icon|duralumin|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Even now, I can barely grasp the scope of all this. The events surrounding the end of the world seem even larger than the Final Empire and the people within it. I sense shards of something from long ago, a fractured presence, something spanning the void.

TenSoon retrieves two iron hemalurgic spikes that he hid before returning to his homeland for trial, and absorbs them into his mass. The two spikes which TenSoon had stolen from OreSeur now grant him the [[Blessing of Potency]], giving him greater strength, to go along with his [[Blessing of Presence]], and giving him great power for a kandra. He then seeks out Vin as a replacement for the Lord Ruler to serve her under the terms of the [[First Contract]].

 

{{icon|cadmium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Originally, we assumed that a koloss was a combination of two people into one. That was wrong. Koloss are not the melding of two people, but five, as evidenced by the four spikes needed to make them. Not five bodies, of course, but five souls.

Vin realizes that they have to succeed in taking Fadrex since they are running out of options. She pleads to the mists to help her as they did against the Lord Ruler, but is ignored.

 

{{icon|bendalloy|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Hemalurgic spikes change people physically, depending on which powers are granted, where the spike is placed, and how many spikes someone has. Inquisitors, for instance, are changed drastically from the humans they used to be. Their hearts are in different places from those of humans, and their brains rearrange to accommodate the lengths of metal jabbed through their eyes. Koloss are changed in even more drastic ways.

Sazed, Breeze and Allrianne watch the building burn, and witness Spook escape from the building with the girl. Allrianne Riots the crowd to rush the remaining twenty guards, allowing Spook to escape in the confusion.

 

{{icon|19|mb3|70px|center|link=}}

{{epigraph|I think that the koloss were more intelligent than we wanted to give them credit for being. For instance, originally, they used only spikes the Lord Ruler gave them to make new members. He would provide the metal and the unfortunate skaa captives, and the koloss would create new "recruits."

Marsh observes in secret as surgeons confer about Penrod, deciding to leave the spike in place since they aren't able to safely remove it and since he seems to be in good health even with the spike, all according to Ruin's plan.

 

{{icon|20|mb3|70px|center|link=}}

{{epigraph|For all that it disgusts me, I cannot help but be impressed by Hemalurgy as an art.

Elend and Vin are followed by the mysterious mistborn, but ignore it as they travel to a ball at the Canton of Resource. At the ball, they split up, and Vin mingles at the party before setting off for her mission to locate the storage cache. She detects a couple of mistings, a Smoker and a Tineye, tailing her at the party. She sees Slowswift at the party, and asks him for two men to help her, and he agrees to have someone meet her on the patio. She stands on the patio waiting for Elend to create a pre-arranged distraction, and when it happens, she attacks the women, using a duralumin brass push on them, then knocking them out and having the two friends of Slowswift conceal their unconscious forms, so that she can move about undetected. She changes into more appropriate garb for subterfuge, and sneaks into a building to find the cache.

 

 

{{icon|21|mb3|70px|center|link=}}

{{epigraph|Each spike, positioned very carefully, can determine how the recipient's body is changed by Hemalurgy. A spike in one place creates a monstrous, near-mindless beast. In another place, a spike will create a crafty—yet homicidal—Inquisitor.

{{anchor|Part 4}}

 

{| style='margin:auto; width:50%'

{{row|{{icon|22|mb3|70px|center|link=}}|{{icon|lerasium|mb3|70px|center}}|{{icon|tin|mb3|70px|center}}}}

|}

{{icon|22|mb3|70px|center|link=}}

{{epigraph|A man with a given power—such as an Allomantic ability—who then gained a Hemalurgic spike granting that same power would be nearly twice as strong as a natural unenhanced Allomancer.

Vin confronts Reen, demanding who or what he really is. She tries a duralumin zinc blast but nothing happens, proving the creature is not a kandra. She goes on the offensive, though Reen only backs away defensively, not attacking, and asks her to stop to talk. The lights go out, but Vin is still not able to hit the impostor. In the dark, she focuses on the allomantic pulses and realizes they match the ones from the Well of Ascension, and that the creature is Ruin. Ruin tells her that all things must end and that he is not her enemy. It also says that it has always been with her, even when she couldn't see it, since she was a child.

 

{{icon|lerasium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Ruin's escape deserves some explanation. This is a thing that even I had a problem understanding.

An earthquake hits, causing little damage, and Spook returns. He tells Sazed and Breeze that they should spread rumors about the allomancers that Quellion is gathering, to undermine his rule. Spook asks Sazed to try to get the water flowing to the canals again and Saze accedes to this request, though it would require him to do research using his metalminds. Spook declines for now to explain how he survived a two story drop unscathed, asking that Sazed just trust him for the time being without questioning that.

 

{{icon|iron|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Ruin's prison was not like those that hold men. He wasn't bound by bars. In fact, he could move about freely.

Elend stands in the mists, worrying about Vin, but also having faith in her ability to take care of herself. Lord Cett tells Elend that the siege isn't working, and that they should attack Fadrex then return to Luthadel. They are interrupted by a disturbance and Elend leaves to investigate and it turns out to be a brawl between mistfallen and other soldiers which Elend helps break up. Elend orders Demoux to march with the mistfallen back to Luthadel to assist Penrod. Elend goes to Noorden's tent to change his battle tactics against Yomen.

 

{{icon|steel|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Once "freed," Ruin was able to affect the world more directly. The most obvious way he did this was by making the ashmounts emit more ash and the earth begin to break apart. As a matter of fact, I believe that much of Ruin's energy during those last days was dedicated to these tasks.

Vin is startled as the cave door opens.

 

{{icon|tin|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|One might ask why Ruin couldn't have used Inquisitors to release him from his prison. The answer to this is simple enough, if one understands the workings of power.

Beldre meets with Sazed, Breeze, Allrianne and Spook in the Canton building, and pleads for them to not kill Quellion. Spook has a conference away from Beldre, then return and decide to hold her hostage, while spreading rumors that she defected from her brother.

 

{{icon|pewter|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|One can see Ruin's craftiness in the meticulousness of his planning. He managed to orchestrate the downfall of the Lord Ruler only a short time before Preservation's power returned to the Well of Ascension. And then, within a few years of that event, he had freed himself.

Vin uses her last allomantic vial and exits through the cave door past several men, using a steel push to try to escape using the ceiling trapdoor but she fails because the trapdoor has weights on top to keep it from opening. The first man who entered, dressed as a noble, is Telden Hasting, and he tells her that she will be freed from the cavern if she agrees to drink drugged wine. Vin tries to bluff Telden but he doesn't fall for it, so she takes the wine and falls unconscious.

 

{{icon|zinc|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Once Ruin was free from his prison, he was able to influence people more strongly—but impaling someone with a Hemalurgic spike was difficult no matter what the circumstances.

Elend uses steelpushes to travel toward an area where a koloss army was sighted. He locates the army attacking a village and starts fighting and killing koloss. After a while, he uses a duralumin pull to successfully control the army. Then he returns to his camp.

 

{{icon|brass|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Near the end, the ash began to pile up in frightening amounts. I've spoken of the special microbes that the Lord Ruler devised to help the world deal with the ashfalls. They did not "feed" on ash, really. Rather, they broke it down as an aspect of their metabolic functions. Volcanic ash itself is, actually, good for soil, depending on what one wishes to grow.

TenSoon returns to the Keep in Kelsier's form, and interrogates the guards who are members of the Church of the Survivor about the condition of the city, about King Penrod, and about Elend's and Vin's whereabouts. They tell him that Penrod is mad and that they think Elend is in Urteau. TenSoon tells the men to seek shelter when the mists vanish, then leaves. Back at the Church, he tells more followers to seek shelter underground, then he switches back to the wolfhound form and heads for Urteau, though he takes Kelsier's bones along.

 

{{icon|copper|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|The pact between Preservation and Ruin is a thing of gods, and difficult to explain in human terms. Indeed, initially, there was a stalemate between them. On one hand, each knew that only by working together could they create. On the other hand, both knew that they would never have complete satisfaction in what they created. Preservation would not be able to keep things perfect and unchanging, and Ruin would not be able to destroy completely.

Spook promises trade contracts and a title to Durn in exchange for his help in clearing out the canals so people aren't drowned when they are refilled. Spook and Durn go to various taverns to meet with townsfolk and burnish Spook's reputation.

 

{{icon|bronze|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Preservation's desire to create sentient life was what eventually broke the stalemate. In order to give mankind awareness and independent thought, Preservation knew that he would have to give up part of himself—his own soul—to dwell within mankind. This would leave him just a tiny bit weaker than his opposite, Ruin.

Vin awakes in chains, and with no metals in her stomach to burn. Yomen describes all the precautions that are in effect to keep Vin from escaping. Yomen took Vin's earring to examine it, and it confuses him, since it is made of silver and bronze, a combination of little use to an allomancer. He allows her to take the earring and she does, putting it back in place. One of Elend's soldiers is escorted in to ask Vin a question to verify that she is still alive and not a kandra impostor. Yomen says that she was captured to be executed for the murder of the Lord Ruler, though he will allow her to speak in her own defense. Ruin whispers to her to kill Yomen.

 

{{icon|atium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|By sacrificing most of his consciousness, Preservation created Ruin's prison, breaking their deal and trying to keep Ruin from destroying what they had created. This event left their powers again nearly balanced—Ruin imprisoned, only a trace of himself capable of leaking out. Preservation reduced to a mere wisp of what he once was, barely capable of thought and action.

Elend walks back to the camp at Fadrex accompanied by his new army of thirty thousand koloss. He feels heavily burdened by the hardships of his job and kneels down in the ash, ready to give up. The mist figure appears, kneeling next to him. It points to the northeast when Elend asks what it wants him to do, but Elend says he is confused. Elend manages to communicate with it using yes or no questions, with the figure waving its arms for yes, so that Ruin can't change its message, and Elend asks questions about the figure, the mists, the ashfalls and Ruin. The figure indicates that it doesn't want him to attack Fadrex, and that the mists are not killing people, and points at Elend's metal vial, then vanishes after saying that they maybe can survive. The encounter revigorates Elend though he isn't sure why.

 

{{icon|malatium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|I don't know why Preservation decided to use his last bit of life appearing to Elend during his trek back to Fadrex. From what I understand, Elend didn't really learn that much from the meeting. By then, of course, Preservation was but a shadow of himself—and that shadow was under immense destructive pressure from Ruin.

Sazed watches as his water flow control system is built, and thinks the workers are working effectively. Spook tells Sazed there are riots in Urteau, and he senses Sazed's doubts in his ability, but professes that he still has faith that even if he fails, there is someone watching over events that will make them work out ok. Sazed realizes that he needs faith as well.

 

{{icon|gold|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|I have come to see that each power has three aspects: a physical one, which can be seen in the creations made by Ruin and Preservation; a spiritual one in the unseen energy that permeates all of the world; and a cognitive one in the minds which controlled that energy.

Ruin manifests in Vin's cell to teach her about entropy and that all things end and to gloat over its eventual victory. Vin senses human emotion from Ruin, and thus weakness, which she thinks may be exploited somehow. Ruin says that Vin and Elend are valuable because they are good at destroying things due to their passion and dynamism. Vin asks what Ruin did to the other force that was opposing him, and Ruin replied that while Preservation was once a cage, it is dead now and the bargain was completed. Ruin tells of how he and Preservation together could create, with the promise that Ruin could destroy their creations. Ruin says that Vin can't use Preservation's power now that he is dead, and that he wants Vin to know the end is near, days away. Vin thinks that Ruin won due to Vin's imprisonment, making her realize that she must escape soon to foil Ruin.

 

{{icon|electrum|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Once you begin to understand these things, you can see how Ruin was trapped even though Preservation's mind was gone, expended to create the prison. Though Preservation's consciousness was mostly destroyed, his spirit and body were still in force. And, as an opposite force of Ruin, these could still prevent Ruin from destroying.

{{anchor|Part 5}}

 

{| style='margin:auto; width:50%'

{{row|{{icon|pewter|mb3|70px|center}}|{{icon|brass|mb3|70px|center}}|{{icon|bronze|mb3|70px|center}}}}

|}

{{icon|chromium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|I do not know what went on in the minds of the koloss—what memories they retained, what human emotions they truly still knew. I do know that our discovery of the one creature, who named himself Human, was tremendously fortunate. Without his struggle to become human again, we might never have understood the link between the koloss, Hemalurgy, and the Inquisitors.

TenSoon reaches Urteau, and finds that the city has a great number of burned buildings, though the canals are again flowing. He finds Elend's soldiers guarding a ministry building and wanting to save time, tells them he is a messenger from Elend and wants to speak to the city leaders. He finds Breeze in charge, who thinks he is OreSeur, but TenSoon corrects him. They both go to Sazed to discuss the situation. Sazed explains that Vin is at Fadrex City, and TenSoon is upset since that is a great distance from Urteau. Sazed asks why TenSoon wants to see Vin, and he replies that it has to do with the Hero of Ages and the end of the world. TenSoon is puzzled by the lack of reaction on Sazed's part.

 

{{icon|nicrosil|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|The prison Preservation created for Ruin was not created out of Preservation's power, though it was of Preservation. Rather, Preservation sacrificed his consciousness—one could say his mind—to fabricate that prison. He left a shadow of himself, but Ruin, once escaped, began to suffocate and isolate this small remnant vestige of his rival. I wonder if Ruin ever thought it strange that Preservation had cut himself off from his own power, relinquishing it and leaving it in the world, to be gathered and used by men.

She turns his statement against him though, saying that she can't be tried for murder since Yomen thinks the Lord Ruler is still alive and using Vin as a catspaw. Vin reveals that the army is really there for the atium which Yomen calls worthless, and then he ends the discussion, saying that he is trying to determine what the Lord Ruler wants him to do next.

 

{{icon|aluminum|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|I don't wonder that we focused far too much on the mists during those days. But from what I now know of sunlight and plant development, I realize that our crops weren't in as much danger from misty days as we feared. We might very well have been able to find plants to eat that did not need as much light to survive.

Elend arrives at his camp with his group of koloss. Elend tells Hammond that Vin is still alive, since her bonded koloss haven't lost control. Hammond says that scouts from the Central Dominance say that Luthadel and many villages are in very bad shape, and that some cities have been destroyed by earthquakes and lava. Elend orders Hammond to plan a surprise attack for the morning with the koloss leading the way.

 

{{icon|duralumin|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|I suspect that Alendi, the man Rashek killed, was himself a Misting—a Seeker. Allomancy, however, was a different thing in those days, and much more rare. The Allomancers alive in our day are the descendants of the men who ate those few beads of Preservation's power. They formed the foundation of the nobility, and were the first to name him emperor.

Sazed leaves them to review the last ten religions in his portfolio, and ends up spending a day reviewing and rejecting them all. Sazed ponders on all the commonalities of the religions, and how they all shared inconsistencies and logical fallacies. He opens the journal that he and Tindwyl compiled their notes about all they could find on the Hero of Ages, and finds Mare's drawing of a flower tucked within. Sazed feels betrayed because his rational belief in the absence of god blocks him from having faith. He listens to TenSoon and Breeze converse and prays silently for something to have faith in. TenSoon says goodbye to Breeze and says for him to give his regards to the Announcer, and this terminology sparks something in Sazed. Sazed rushes out to ask TenSoon to repeat his phrase and he complies. Sazed checks his notes which were changed by Ruin to call Sazed the Holy First Witness. Sazed asks how TenSoon knows the correct title. TenSoon counters by saying why no one wonders what happened to Rashek's fellow packmen. Breeze says that the Lord Ruler turned them into nobles but Sazed disputes this since they would have been both allomancers and feruchemists, something that the Lord Ruler was working to avoid happen. TenSoon reveals that the packmen were changed into mistwraiths, then kandra, and that they form the First Generation. Sazed realizes that his religion lives on, and gets ready to set out to find the kandra. TenSoon offers to lead him there, so that Sazed can convince the kandra that the end is here.

 

{{icon|cadmium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Ruin tried many times to get spikes into other members of the crew. Though some of what happened makes it seem like it was easy for him to gain control of people, it really was not.

Marsh shows up, smiles at Vin, bows to Ruin, and tells Yomen that an attack is imminent. Marsh says he isn't there to protect the city, but rather to take the atium cache, but Yomen replies there was no great cache, just seven beads, and that he was bluffing Vin about having more. Ruin screams in frustration at learning this. Yomen pleads for help from Marsh but is rejected, saying the Lord Ruler is dead and that he was an unprofitable servant. Vin interjects that Elend won't attack and offers an alliance to Yomen now that Marsh refuses him. Marsh scoffs that Elend wouldn't attack the city to save Vin, but she says that Elend is a better man than that.

 

{{icon|bendalloy|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|One might notice that Ruin did not send his Inquisitors to Fadrex until after Yomen had—apparently—confirmed that the atium was there in the city. Why not send them as soon as the final cache was located? Where were his minions in all of this?

[[Spook]] awakens from his ills and is given [[Spook's note|a message]] to send to [[Vin]] by [[Kelsier]] in a vision. [[Goradel]] takes it out of the city.

 

{{icon|19|mb3|70px|center|link=}}

{{epigraph|In those moments when the Lord Ruler both held the power at the Well and was feeling it drain away from him, he understood a great many things. He saw the power of Feruchemy, and rightly feared it. Many of the Terris people, he knew, would reject him as the Hero, for he didn't fulfill their prophecies well. They'd see him as a usurper who killed the Hero they sent. Which, in truth, he was.

Elend and his army fight desperately against the koloss. Vin arrives, ordering a retreat into Fadrex.

 

{{icon|20|mb3|70px|center|link=}}

{{epigraph|Inquisitors had little chance of resisting Ruin. They had more spikes than any of his other Hemalurgic creations, and that put them completely under his domination.

Sazed rides TenSoon, who has taken the form of a very muscular horse, to the kandra homeland. TenSoon tells about the creation and abilities of kandra, and about other creatures of Ruin. TenSoon tells Sazed that Vin will lead an army of allomancers to the homeland, and that Sazed is to convince the First Generation how dire the situation is, since they have a task to do. They arrive at their destination, which turns out to be a cave complex at the Pits of Hathsin, where the homeland is located. TenSoon leaves and Sazed enters the kandra tunnel complex, and encounters a couple of kandra guards, who escort him forward.

 

{{icon|21|mb3|70px|center|link=}}

{{epigraph|Koloss also had little chance of breaking free. Four spikes, and their diminished mental capacity, left them fairly easy to dominate. Only in the throes of a blood frenzy did they have any form of autonomy.

Elend and Vin and Yomen watch from inside Fadrex as an enormous army of koloss gathers outside. An gigantic earthquake hits, doing great damage to the city. Vin is again unable to use the mists, and she is wearing her earring. She ponders trying to bluff Ruin, and how to make the mists help her again. She tells Elend that she has to get the atium cache and bring it there, and leaves for Luthadel, hoping to make Ruin tip his hand.

 

{{icon|22|mb3|70px|center|link=}}

{{epigraph|When the Lord Ruler offered his plan to his Feruchemist friends—the plan to change them into mistwraiths—he was making them speak on behalf of all the land's Feruchemists. Though he changed his friends into kandra to restore their minds and memories, the rest he left as nonsentient mistwraiths. These bred more of their kind, living and dying, becoming a race unto themselves. From these children of the original mistwraiths, he made the next generations of kandra.

He asks to speak with their superiors but they scoff at his request. KanPaar asks if TenSoon sent Sazed and Sazed replies that he did, and KanPaar asks what Sazed thinks he can say to make them change their minds. Sazed speaks of his specialty of studying religions and that it is ominous that only one religion still exists, that of the Terris, and that religion has prophecies of what is happening at that moment, and that they should listen to someone of their own faith who brings tidings. Sazed also says they should read his corrupted notes about the Hero and compare them with the original knowledge compiled by those who have lived through it to see what Ruin is trying to conceal. The First Generation appears, telling all the other kandra to leave, so that they can speak with Sazed who they call a Worldbringer, alone.

 

{{icon|lerasium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|The question remains, where did the original prophecies about the Hero of Ages come from? I now know that Ruin changed them, but did not fabricate them. Who first taught that a Hero would come, one who would be an emperor of all mankind, yet would be rejected by his own people? Who first stated he would carry the future of the world on his arms, or that he would repair that which had been sundered?

[[Marsh]] kills [[Goradel]] and reads [[Spook's note]] to [[Vin]]. Then Marsh departs for Luthadel.

 

{{icon|iron|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Quellion actually placed his spike himself, as I understand it. The man was never entirely stable. His fervor for following Kelsier and killing the nobility was enhanced by Ruin, but Quellion had already had the impulses. His passionate paranoia bordered on insanity at times, and Ruin was able to prod him into placing that crucial spike.

Elend and Yomen tour the city of Fadrex. Elend lectures Yomen on the fact that leading soldiers is about more than tactical knowledge and that emotion and courage are important. They travel to the infirmary in the Canton building. A boy with a case of mistsickness is brought in. Elend asks Yomen if he knew anything about the mistsickness and mentions the statistical anomaly, which Yomen didn't know about but which he doesn't seem excited about, since he says that sixteen is a sacred number in the Lord Ruler's religious doctrine. Yomen states there must be sixteen allomantic metals, including two undiscovered ones, to fit in with the pattern of sixteen. Elend watches the boy in pain and realizes that his experience is similar to the beatings used to snap allomancers. He goes to the infirmary to find someone who is mistfallen and has him drink an allomantic vial. After a few moments, the soldier feels odd, and Elend tells him to burn his metal, and Elend senses an allomantic pulse. He explains the mists were snapping allomancers, not harming them. Ruin sends his koloss to attack. Elend has Yomen gather every bit of physical allomancy powder he can find and have the mistfallen inbibe it since they will be able to burn it allomantically to fight the koloss.

 

{{icon|steel|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|There is something special about the number sixteen. For one thing, it was Preservation's sign to mankind.

TenSoon finds a large river of lava blocking his path to Fadrex, and feels despair that he won't be able to reach his destination in time due to the required detour.

 

{{icon|tin|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Yes, there are sixteen metals. I find it highly unlikely that the Lord Ruler did not know of them all. Indeed, the fact that he spoke of several on the plates in the storage caches meant that he knew at least of those.

Ruin's voice cuts off suddenly, and the mists return to Vin. She uses their power to heal her injuries and grapple with Marsh.

 

{{icon|pewter|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|I have spoken of Inquisitors, and their ability to pierce copperclouds. As I said, this power is easily understood when one realizes that many Inquisitors were Seekers before their transformation, and that meant their bronze became twice as strong.

Marsh revels in the knowledge that whatever he did worked, as Ruin rages in the back of his mind, and that in the end he was able to not surrender. Vin pulls out one of his eye spikes while the mists finally finish flowing into her. She coughs, then vanishes before she can kill him.

 

{{icon|zinc|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|She once asked Ruin why he had chosen her. The primary answer is simple. It had little to do with her personality, attitudes, or even skill with Allomancy.

Elend and Yomen discuss the disappearance of the mists and the unusual heat. Elend orders everyone gather inside the caverns. Yomen gives his bead of atium to Elend, and reveals that he is a [[Atium|Seer]], an atium misting. Elend leaves to find Vin.

 

{{icon|brass|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Each Hemalurgic spike driven through a person's body gave Ruin some small ability to influence them. This was mitigated, however, by the mental fortitude of the one being controlled.

At that moment, a number of kandra show up, led by KanPaar, to depose the First Generation. Sazed argues, but is bound and locked up.

 

{{icon|copper|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|I've always wondered about the strange ability Allomancers have to pierce the mists. When one burned tin, he or she could see farther at night, looking through the mists. To the layman, this might seem like a logical connection—tin, after all, enhances the senses.

Vin is floating above Luthadel, full of power, and encounters Ruin in the form of a cloud of shifting smoke. He says welcome to godhood. Vin's awareness and understanding expand greatly and she sees that the planet is rapidly dying, though many people have sought shelter in the storage caverns. She intervenes to block up the Ashmounts and clean the air, and instantly the world heats up from the release of the obstructions to the sunlight. She starts making changes which cause other macro problems as Ruin laughs at her futile efforts and blocks her from keeping a tidal wave from hitting some cities. Ruin speaks of his frustration at the balance between their two forces, like allomancy pushes and pulls having consequences. Ruin speaks of Preservation's desire to create humanity which was intentionally imbalanced. Vin realizes that she and Ruin are currently balanced but won't be if Ruin finds the hidden part of his self. Vin sees Elend heading to Luthadel.

 

{{icon|bronze|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Looking back, we should have been able to see the connection between the mists, Allomancy, and the power at the Well of Ascension. Not only could Allomancers' vision pierce the mists, but there was the fact that the mists swirled slightly around the body of a person using any kind of Allomancy.

Vin expends a great amount of effort to speak to Elend because of Ruin's interference. Ruin says that time is nothing to gods.

 

{{icon|atium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|It may seem odd to those reading this that atium was part of the body of a god. However, it is necessary to understand that when we said "body" we generally meant "power." As my mind has expanded, I've come to realize that objects and energy are actually composed of the very same things, and can change state from one to another. It makes perfect sense to me that the power of godhood would be manifest within the world in physical form. Ruin and Preservation were not nebulous abstractions. They were integral parts of existence. In a way, every object that existed in the world was composed of their power.

[[TenSoon]] rescues [[Sazed]] and the [[First Generation]] from their imprisonment in the Homeland. He then impersonates [[FhorKood]] and allows the Firsts to regenerate.

 

{{icon|malatium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|I believe that the mists were searching for someone to become a new host for them. The power needed a consciousness to direct it. In this matter, I am still rather confused. Why would power used to create and destroy need a mind to oversee it? And yet, it seems to have only a vague will of its own, tied in to the mandate of its abilities. Without a consciousness to direct it, nothing could actually be created or destroyed. It's as if the power of Preservation understands that its tendency to reinforce stability is not enough. If nothing changed, nothing would ever come to exist.

The First Generation is finished regenerating. TenSoon shows up, and attacks Sazed, though he tries to warn of the danger. Other kandra begin to shake and Haddek yells out that the Resolution has come. TenSoon reaches for his shoulder with one hand, but keeps choking Sazed to unconsciousness with the other.

 

{{icon|gold|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|The kandra people always said they were of Preservation, while the koloss and Inquisitors were of Ruin. Yet, the kandra bore Hemalurgic spikes, just like the others. Was their claim, then, simple delusion?

startled by his appearance. Sazed tells Elend to stop a group of kandra that appear from behind a door that Sazed was keeping closed, and the kandra are easily subdued. Sazed says the atium hoard is here, but Elend is more concerned about the people and orders them to take refuge in the caverns before the koloss and sunrise arrive.

 

{{icon|electrum|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Snapping has always been the dark side of Allomancy. A person's genetic endowment may make them a potential Allomancer, but in order for the power to manifest, the body must be put through extraordinary trauma. Though Elend spoke of how terrible his beating was, during our day, unlocking Allomancy in a person was easier than it had once been, for we had the infusion of Preservation's power into the human bloodlines via the nuggets granted to nobility by the Lord Ruler.

Vin watches as Marsh decapitates Elend, and Ruin gloats over this. With nothing left to live for, she attacks Ruin and manages to kill both of them.

 

{{icon|chromium|mb3|70px|center}}

{{epigraph|Once Vin died, the end came quickly. We were not prepared for it—but even all of the Lord Ruler's planning could not have prepared us for this. How did one prepare for the end of the world itself?}}

Sazed remains at the cave entrance, accompanied only by Demoux who is badly injured and missing a hand. The heat from the sun is oven-like and koloss continue to rampage, but Sazed believes in Vin. He sees the bodies of Vin and a stranger appear beside Elend's corpse, and wearing all his copperminds, he taps steel to reach them safely. He cries out in anguish and despair. Then he notices white mist and black smoke leaking from Vin and the stranger and he reaches out to take the powers but hesitates, insecure in his ability to use the powers intelligently. He sees his copperminds, on his arms, and remembers the prophecies. Sazed draws both powers in, and withdraws the knowledge from all his copperminds. Using the wisdom passed down by the religions he studied, he is able to restore the world and people to their pre-ascension state. Sazed realizes that he would retain and combine the powers as they were intended, and watch over Scadrial using both powers of Preservation and Ruin, in [[Harmony]].

 

{{icon|0|m|70px|center|link=}}

{{epigraph|Vin was special.