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"Leave? And go where?"

"North," she said "To Terris"

Elend sat back, resting against the wooden wall Leave? he thought with a twisting feeling Is this what I've earned by being so distracted lately?

Have I lost her?

And yet, he'd just told her that he'd support her decisions "If you feel you have to go, Vin," he found hi, "then you should do so"

"If I were to leave, would you go withhis chest

"No," he finally said "I couldn't leave Luthadel, not with those armies still out there"

"But the city rejected you"

"I know," he said, sighing "ButI can't leave them, Vin They rejected ain, and so told him this was the answer she had expected

Elend smiled "We're a hing as she finally pulled away from him She seemed so tired Outside the room, Elend could hear footsteps OreSeur appeared ahis head into the hidden cha restless, Your Majesty," he said to Elend "They will soon co over to the exit Once in the hallway, he offered a hand to help Vin out She took the hand, crawling out, then stood and dusted off her clothing--her typical shirt and trousers

Will she ever go back to dresses now? he wondered

"Elend," she said, fishing in a pocket "Here, you can spend this, if you want"

She opened up her hand, dropping a bead into his hand

"Atiuet it?"

"From a friend," she said

"And you didn't burn it last night?" Elend asked "When you were fighting all those soldiers?"

"No," Vin said "I sed it, but I didn't end up needing it, so I forced it back up"

Lord Ruler! Elend thought I didn't even consider that she didn't have atium What could she have done if she'd burned that bit? He looked up at her "Some reports say that there's another Mistborn in the city"

"There is Zane"

Elend dropped the bead back into her hand "Then keep this You ht him"

"I doubt that," Vin said quietly

"Keep it anyway," Elend said "This is worth a se fortune to make any difference now Besides, ould buy it? If I used it to bribe Straff or Cett, they'd only becoainst thelanced at OreSeur "Keep this," she said, handing the bead toward hih that another Allomancer could pull it off uard it withopen to make room for the bit of metal

Vin turned to join Elend as they walked down the steps, uards below

I knohat I have ers

45

"THE HERO OF AGES WON'T be Terris," Tindwyl said, scribbling a note at the bottom of their list

"We knew that already," Sazed said "Frobook"

"Yes," Tindwyl said, "but Alendi's account was only a reference--a thirdhandthe prophecy itself"

"Truly?" Sazed asked, excited "Where?"

"The biography of Helenntion," Tindwyl said "One of the last survivors of the Council of Khlenniu his chair a bit closer to hers He had to blink a few tiue

Stay alert! he told himself There isn't much ti a little better than he, but her wakefulness was obviously beginning to run out, for she was starting to droop He'd taken a quick nap during the night, rolled up on her floor, but she had carried on As far as he could tell, she'd been awake for over a week straight

There wasthose days, Tindrote Soht the Conqueror Others said he was the Conqueror Helenntion didn't hts on the matter known to me The Rabzeen is said to be "He who is not of his people, yet fulfills all of their wishes" If this is the case, then perhaps the Conqueror is the one He is said to have been of Khlenniu the words again Kwaan's last testi Sazed had taken at the Conventical of Seran--had proven useful in more than one way It had provided a key

It wasn't until years later that I becaes, Kwaan had written Hero of Ages: the one called Rabzeen in Khlenniu was a es, but between synonyms It es; a figure so important, so surrounded by lore, would have many titles Yet, so much had been lost froical figures vaguely fa hosts Until the discovery of the rubbing, there had been no way to connect their naes

Now Tindwyl and he could search their metalminds with open eyes Perhaps, in the past, Sazed had read this very passage froraphy; he had at least skiious references Yet, he would never have been able to realize that the passage was referring to the Hero of Ages, a figure from Terris lore that the Khlenni people had renaue

"Yes" he said slowly "This is good, Tindwyl Very good" He reached over, laying his hand on hers