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SteelHowever, it stopped the sword strike long enough for Spook to duck away and grab a fallen warrior's sword It was different from the swords he'd practiced with--the , thin blades Still, Spook only had one soldier left--if he could cut the man down, he'd be free

Spook's opponent seee If Spook ran, it would expose his back to attack However, if Spook stayed, he'd soon be overwhel to stall for time

So, Spook attacked He raised his blade, trusting in his enhanced senses to co The soldier raised his weapon to parry as Spook swung

Spook's sword froze in the air

Spook stuely held in place--as if he were trying to push it through so solid, rather than air It was as if

Solanced desperately around him, and i had to be directly opposite Spook, for Allomancers could only Push away from themselves

Quellion, the Citizen, had joined his sister The Citizen aze, and Spook could see effort in the ht for support as he Pushed against Spook's sword, interfering in the battle as Kelsier hi the caverns where his ar it fly backward out of his hands, then threw hiing overhead, narrowly round a short distance fro loud in his ears

He didn't have tie the soldier's follow-up blow Fortunately, Spook wasn't wearing any ht any further That was a habit that Spook was glad he'd never lost

The only choice was to run He couldn't fight, not with an Allo He turned while the soldier prepared another swing Then, Spook threw hiuard He ducked under theto run past and leave the soldier confused

Soht his foot

Spook spun At first, he assu on hiround--the first one he'd dropped--had grabbed his foot

I hit that ht with frustration There's no way he's still conscious!

The hand squeezed his foot, yanking Spook backith an inhuth like that, the --a pewter burner, like Ham

Spook was in serious trouble

Spook kicked,would have the power of pewter--he'd be able to run faster, and farther, than Spook

Two Alloht Somebody isn't as disdainful of noble blood as he clai in frustration--hearing his own heart thurappled thehim by surprise In that 's body like a shield to protect himself from the third soldier

He hadn't counted on the Citizen's brutal training Quellion always spoke of sacrifice and necessity Apparently, this philosophy extended to his soldiers, for the h his friend's back, piercing his heart and driving the weapon directly into Spook's chest It was acould have perforht, dazed, as th1e soldier tried to pull his sword free froht that finally snapped the blade

How did I even survive this long? Theyto remain hidden from the population

Spook stu blood on his chest Oddly, he didn't feel pain His heightened senses should have made the pain so powerful that--

It hit Everything went black

The subtlety displayed in the ash-eating ot better and better at using the power It burned out in a od, an 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

It also shows hishis time with Preservation's power Under its influence he was obviously in a protectiveto push the planet back into place, he was reactive, working furiously to fix problems that he himself had caused

17

ELEND RODE AT THE FRONT OF HIS MEN, astride a brilliant white stallion that had been scrubbed clean of ash He turned hisover the ranks of nervous soldiers They waited in the evening light, and Elend could see their terror They had heard rumors, then had those rumors confirmed by Elend the day before Today, his army would becoh their ranks, General De destriers, brought on the trip to impress more than for usefulness Elend and the other officers would spendin canal boats, rather than on horseback