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Elend turned aalking aroup of them quickly approached The same one as before? He couldn't tell for certain

"Take est koloss in the tea now, or this koloss was uan to shuffle out of the ca Elend

This trip was a waste, Elend thought with frustration All I did was antagonize Jastes I risked

If only I could find out as in those pouches!

He eyed the group of koloss around hi in size fro with slued postures

Elend still had his knife out

This is stupid, he thought For so the s a deep breath, and attacking

The rest of the koloss paused to watch The creature Elend had chosen spun--but in the wrong direction It turned to face its companion koloss, the one nearest to it in size, as Elend tackled it, ra the knife into its back

Even at five feet with a s It tossed Elend off, bellowing in pain Elend, however, et out that sword, he thought, scra his knife into the creature's thigh The koloss dropped again, punching at Elend with one ar for its sith the other Elend took the punch to the chest, and fell back to the sooty ground

He groaned, gasping The koloss pulled out its sword, but had trouble standing Both knife wounds bled stark red blood; the liquid seehter, ht have just been a contrast with the deep blue skin

The koloss finally ain its feet, and Elend realized his mistake He'd let the adrenaline of his confrontation with Jastes--his frustration at his inability to stop the armies--drive him He'd sparred a lot lately, but he was in no position to take a koloss

But it was far too late to worry about that now

Elend rolled out of the way as a thick, clublike sword sround beside hied to avoid the backswing It took hi a patch of blood across his once white uniform, but he barely even felt the cut

Only one way to win a knife fight against a guy with a swordElend thought, gripping his knife The thought, oddly, hadn't come from one of his trainers, or even from Vin He wasn't sure where it caht as fast as possible, and kill quickly

And Elend attacked The koloss swung as well Elend could see the attack, but couldn't do anything about it He could only throw himself forward, knife raised, teeth clenched

He raet inside the creature's reach Even so, the hilt of the sword hit him in the storoaned quietly, slowly beco aware of the hard, ash-packed earth and weeds eaten down to their roots A fallen tas scratching his cheek Odd that he would notice that, considering the pain in his chest He stumbled to his feet The koloss he'd attacked did not rise Its coh their eyes were focused on hi

"He atethat caroup of koloss nodded Elend stu the ash from his cheek with a dazed hand as he knelt beside the dead creature He ripped his knife out, then slid it back in his boot Next he unfastened the pouches; this koloss had two

Finally, not certain why, he grabbed the creature's large sword and rested it up on his shoulder It was so weighty that he could barely carry it, and certainly wouldn't be able to swing it How does a creature so s like this?

The koloss watched him ithout comment; then they led him out of the camp Once they had retreated, Elend pulled open one of the pouches and looked inside

He shouldn't have been surprised by what he found inside Jastes had decided to control his ar them

The others call me mad As I have said, that may be true

43

MIST POURED INTO THE DARK roo around Vin like a waterfall as she stood in the open balcony doorway Elend was ain his bed a short distance away

Apparently, Mistress, OreSeur had explained, he went into the koloss camp alone You were asleep, and none of us knehat he was doing I don't think he ed to persuade the creatures not to attack, but he did come back with some very useful information

OreSeur sat on his haunches beside her He had not asked why Vin had co the forht

She couldn't protect hi even one person safe suddenly seeible--to her that she felt sick

Elend had been right to go out He was his own ly What he had done would only put hier, however Fear had been a corown accustomed to it, and it rarely caused a physical reaction in her Yet, watching him sleep quietly, she found her hands traitorously unsteady

I saved him from the assassins I protected him I'm a powerful Allomancer Why, then, do I feel so helpless?

So alone

She walked forward, bare feet silent as she stepped up to Elend's bed He did not wake She stood for a longat hirowled quietly

Vin spun A figure stood on the balcony, straight-backed and black, a near silhouette even to her tin-enhanced eyes Mist fell before hi out like an ethereal moss