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Sazed nodded "I suspected that ould do so I, however, will need to leave you for a few days as you go to Luthadel Lord Breeze can take cohway"

Goradel nodded, eroup, or what his destination was

Several days later, Sazed arrived--alone--at the Pits of Hathsin There was little to distinguish the area, now that the ash covered everything Sazed's feet kicked up clumps of it as he moved to the top of a hill He looked down on the valley that contained the Pits--the place where Kelsier's wife had been murdered The place where the Survivor had been born

It was now the h1ome of the Terris people

There were few of thee population, and the co of the mists and the difficult trek down to the Central Dominance had claimed many lives There were, perhaps, forty thousand of theood many of the men were eunuchs, like Sazed

Sazed moved down the slope toward the valley It had been a natural place to settle the Terris people During the days of the Lord Ruler, hundreds of slaves had worked here, watched over by hundreds more soldiers That had ended when Kelsier had returned to the Pits and destroyed their ability to produce atius and infrastructure that had supported the days There was plenty of fresh water, and so other structures across the valley,of prison caes

Even as Sazed walked down the hillside, he could see people brushing away the ash froh to provide grazing for the anie in the Central Doroup of plants, and they were adapted to ash, and didn't need as much water as farm crops That meant that the Terris people actually had easier lives thanthe centuries before the Lord Ruler's Ascension A hearty, short-legged breed of sheepdown the uncovered stalks of scrub

The Terris people, Sazed thought, living lives easier than e world it has become

His approach soon attracted attention Children ran for their parents, and heads poked froather around Sazed as he walked, as if hoping that he had coed narled limbs would allow They--like Sazed--still wore their steward's robes And, like Sazed, they kept the the colorful V-shaped patterns that ran down the fronts Those patterns had once indicated the noble house that the steward served

"Lord Sazed!" one of the erly

"Your Majesty!" said another

Your Majesty "Please," Sazed said, raising his hands "Do not call lanced at each other "Please, Master Keeper Let us get you so warm to eat"

Yes, the ash was black No, it should not have been Most coray or white as it is black

Ash from the ashmountsit was different Like theour land was not truly a natural thing Perhaps it was the influence of Ruin's power--as black as Preservation hite Or, perhaps it was sined and created specifically to blast ash and smoke into the sky

19

"GET UP!"

Everything was dark

"Get up!"

Spook opened his eyes Everything seemed so dull, so muted He could barely see The world was a dark blur Andhe felt numb Dead Why 1couldn't he feel?

"Spook, you need to get up!"

The voice, at least, was clear Yet, everything else feltquietly What rong with hione That should have left hi was so dark

He was out of tin

There was nothing burning in his sto candle within, was no longer there It had been his companion for over a year, always there He'd feared what he was doing, but had never let it die And noas gone

That hy everything seemed so dull Was this really how other people lived? How he used to live? He could barely see--the sharp, rich detail he'd grown accustoone The vibrant colors and crisp lines Instead, everything was bland and vague

His ears felt clogged His nosehe couldn't smell the boards beneath him, couldn't tell the species of wood by scent He couldn't ss of peopleabout in other rooms

Andhe was in a roo to think Iasp The wound had not been cared for He re him near the shoulder That was not a wound one recovered froht, one of the reasons he was having so

"You've lost a lot of blood," the voice said "You'll die soon, even if the flames don't take you Don't bother to look for the pouch of tin at your belt--they took that"

"Fla How did people survive in a world that was this dark?

"Can't you feel theht nearby, down a hallway Spook shook his head, trying to clear his ht A nice one A noble it down

This, finally, gave hiain, his body too weak--his mind too fuzzy--to keep him on his feet

"Don't walk," the voice said Where had he heard that voice before? He trusted it "Crawl," it said

Spook did as co forward

"No, not toward the flaet out, so you can punish those who did this to you Think, Spook!"

"Window," Spook croaked, turning to the side, crawling toward one of them

"Boarded shut," the voice said "You saw this before, from the outside There's only one way to survive You have to listen to me"

Spook nodded dully