The Survivor of Hathsin faces down The Lord Ruler in the Fountain Square, and in a twist of fate, emerges victorious. Now, Premier Minister Kelsier leads the New Republic in its revolution- for better or for worse.
Mistborn: Smoke and Ash.
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The Beginning
- Pronouns
- He/Him
"And thus the Tyrant was cast down, like the Tower before him, and the People danced and sang in the Streets, and what they did kindled Great Fear in the Hearts of all the Kings."
Ash fell from the sky. Smoke rose to meet it. The two airs commingled in the sky above Luthadel, a reminder of the world as it was, and the progress the New Republic had made. Kelsier burned tin. His senses all grew strong- the cold iron of the highest spire of Kredik Shaw beneath his hand, the mild winter wind upon his face and hands, and the sound of his mistcloak flapping in the wind. He saw the Ashmount Tyrian on the western horizon, a blurry shadow outlined by the sky. But most importantly, he heard the sounds of Luthadel.
Kelsier smiled as he looked over the vast, teeming, sprawling city, belonging to, for the first time in its long history, no one but itself. The sounds coming out of the houses and streets of the city were manyfold, but all in all, they were the sounds of one thing- revolution. The passionate speeches of orators, the snapping of flags in the wind, the soldiers training below, but mostly, the Palace District was quiet. It rose in shouts and fire once, lifting it above the quiet sounds of pens on paper and muted screams from the Inquisition's headquarters that had dominated its entire existence- but that was six months ago.
Now, the empty spires of Kredik Shaw towered solemnly above the still district. He had hoped that the people of Luthadel could forget- but it wasn't that simple. When willing, people avoided the most blatant reminders of a thousand years of oppression under the Final Empire. As a result of the the Lord Ruler being dead and the only Steel Inquisitor in the city being Kelsier's brother, Kredik Shaw and the Canton of Inquisition headquarters were unoccupied, but people still mostly lived in the edges of the Palace District, and worked in other districts, even taking sidestreets to avoid the Palatial Square.
The only governmental organizations that had found the Palace District their home were the Department of Steel and the Ministry of War- but the Department of Steel was slowly working towards their own dissolution, and most of the Ministry of War was outside Luthadel, giving the imperial claimants hell.
He found the wind turning, and smoke from the Industrial District, Southbridge, and Brassworks came over Kredik Shaw- the smoke coming out of the new smokestacks, enemating from forges and mills, from coal and coke burning, melting metal and turning engines. Kelsier decided it was time to go, and flaring steel, Pushed himself off the spires, west, towards the Old City- and the beating heart of the revolution.
While it was Copperday, and all but the most fundamental workers and soldiers in the New Republic had the day off, there were always those who strove to go above and beyond, such as those in the industrial districts- after all, they no longer toiled for a malicious distant lord- their work was their own. And so, he smiled when he saw around a battalion's worth of soldiers- a thousand men- training in the Palatial Square. And they saw him too- an inspiring sight, with his mistcloak flapping behind him as he arced across the entire square. The soldiers stopped their training- no flintlocks today, just spears- looking up and pointing at him.
The soldiers, all one thousand of them, went up in cheers. "Premier Kelsier!" they shouted as loud as they could. Some even started hooting and clapping, too. The smile on Kelsier's face blossomed into a grin, and he waved to the soldiers below, before he left sight of the square. As usual, he found himself flying over the Steel Thoroughfare- while he was very good at steel and iron, he couldn't launch himself over the River Channerel. Had to go across the bridge, like his citizens did.
As Kelsier Pushed along nails and window clasps, he saw there were a few people along the Steel Thoroughfare- walking, talking, or transporting goods. They all stopped what they were doing, pointed at him, and looked at him in awe. He smiled. The Channerel was flowing somewhat clearer today- the water having a faint tinge of blue- but he wondered what that stroke of beauty meant for the cities upriver of Luthadel.
The Steel Bridge had some iron on it, a couple of decorations where the columns that supported the bridge extended above the bridge itself, making it easy for him to pluck and push against the blue lines, and stay above the middle of the bridge. When Kelsier got to the end of it, he flared steel, Pushing himself off the last of the iron decorations, and over the roofs of Luthadel. He always tried to stay above or next to the main thoroughfares. Once again, shouts of "Premier Kelsier!" arose from below, Kelsier brightening the lives of thousands for just a small moment.
The colors of Luthadel, outside the Palace District, had changed. Grays, browns, and blacks had shifted to a new scheme with the liberation of the skaa. Entire tenements of former skaa had chipped together to purchase large amounts of cheap paints produced in the Industrial District, and on Copperdays or holidays, had painted their tenements in solid colors. Blues, reds, greens, and yellows dominated the residential sections of the Old City, and remained a clear divider between what buildings were owned by former skaa, and which were owned by former nobles. He hoped he could break that divide down soon enough.
Quickly, at the speeds only Mistborn or Coinshots could go at, he arrived at Victory Square. Six months ago, he faced the Lord Ruler in the square, and came out victorious, thanks to the Eleventh Metal. The world had changed dramatically since then. Revolution in Luthadel and Austrex. The foundation of the New Republic amidst the cheers of millions. Three imperial claimants, looking to cast all men back into chains again. The elevation of hundreds of thousands of skaa to shop-owners, skilled workers, factory foremen, merchants, captains, government workers, and even Allomancers and Assemblymen. And the agreement with the Synod up in Terris, that delivered wonders of the Classical Era into the hands of the New Republic.
Kelsier took in the sounds of Victory Square. The public executions that happened on Copperday were done- the gallows stood empty, the bodies of the hung nobles having been taken away, to be burned if their families could spare the boxings, or to be handed over to the Surgeon's Guild and University of Luthadel for dissection if they didn't. The executions were necessary- they required redressement as a result of their actions- how many times was a son, brother, or lover lost to the casual maliciousness of the nobility? In the New Republic, former nobles had to fear slitting a skaa whore's throat, or ordering the death of a child who made one minor misstep. Kelsier would make sure these evil deeds would not go unaddressed.
Despite the grim reminder of what they were fighting against, Victory Square was active. There was always a collection of tents just outside the Assembly Hall, selling food to those who arrived early enough to secure a seat in the public seating. While on Copperdays there was only a small gaggle of Assembly who prepared for the next week's sessions, Victory Square was as busy as usual. It was a vast bazaar, a microcosm of Luthadel, with people doing everything from testing for latent allomantic potential, to selling chickens and other animals, to speaking passionately about their favorite topics.
Kelsier smiled, as a sound he hadn't heard in years echoed up to his tin-enhanced ears. Singing. God, when was the last time he had heard people sing on their own accord? He remembered. He always did. He went out drinking with his friends and Mare after they saw a play in the Assembly Hall before the Revolution, back when it was the Royal Imperial Theater, and he, Dockson, and Ham got drunk enough they stood on a table, dancing and singing.
But he smiled. They made it through the plotting of the Revolution. He thought Marsh had died, butchered into a bloody paste by Steel Inquisitors, but they were so impressed by the half-skaa spy that they had made him one of their own, without ever finding out his treason, until he turned his stone axes upon the bastards in the Victory at Fountain Square.
Ah, Blessed Victory… he remembered that day well.
Kelsier stirred to consciousness. The sun was setting, and the mists were forming, and he felt their tepid spring wetness against his skin. He had a gnawing pain in his back, and his many wounds and sprains were throbbing. He felt doubt- the Lord Ruler was dead, the Eleventh Metal proved itself to be the vital weapon that defeated him. And yet ash still fell from the sky, the sun was still red, and plants were still brown. And flowers were still a thing of legend. And then he opened his eyes.
The square blazed with light. Despite the mists, thousands of skaa hurried through the square. He saw large carts full of weapons, and the words of speakers reached his ears- including Dox's. Soldiers, his own, stood guard around the pavilion, all protecting him- he fought when they were the most vulnerable, and now they protected him.
Spook and Sazed were still by him. "Get the bands, Spook?" he asked the boy.
"Having them here." Spook waved to the bloodied atium bands, sitting on the table next to Sazed's medical equipment.
"Sazed, Spook- did you think we could do it?" Kelsier asked the two.
"I thought you could give us hope, and a victory greater than any before- but killing the Lord Ruler? So many men have tried, and they have all ended up dead. I thought you were trying to do the same."
"Oh, they'll all hate me for this, but I was." Kelsier said. "Die bravely, have Renoux impersonate me after my death, to inspire the skaa to rebel against the Lord Ruler, and Vin hopefully being able to kill him. But the Eleventh Metal worked. What do you think, Spook?"
"Wasing… Thought it woulding hard, but if anyone coulding do it, the Survivor could. Hadn't thought abouting the next step… wondering willing our world be like. Never thought too far."
Kelsier smiled. "It's great to see some faith. The future… first the nobles. We can't kill them all- but every skaa girl raped, the noble fully knowing she would be killed afterwards, every skaa dead of overwork in the wretched mills of this city by gleeful taskmaskers, every skaa killed- for nothing other than a whim or amusement- requires redressement. In the realm of government, well, we'll start with electing people to positions of government- it'll allow us to have a say, but let others in. For the basics, though- we'll pay people, with real money, cut down working hours from 12, and who knows? The Lord Ruler oppressed so much- we'll see if we can discover anything new, or learn from the Keepers."
"That ising a lot." Spook said.
Kelsier smiled at the boy. "We've finished with the first part. I expect we'll face many more challenges in the future- but none as harrowing as this." and Spook smiled back.
"Sazed," Kelsier asked, "Will my health worsen if I get up and walk around the square?"
"I would not recommend it. But no, your condition is stable" the Terrisman said.
Kelsier got to his feet, groaning, flaring pewter, as Sazed looked on disapprovingly, Spook following behind him. He stepped down from the pavilion, and walked through the wall of soldiers protecting him from being disturbed. He went over to Dockson, who was handing out weapons to skaa, and giving a passionate speech while he was standing atop a box. Dockson saw him, and smiled, helping Kelsier onto the box, as skaa clustered around him, wide eyed.
"Thank you." Kelsier said to no one in particular, and then turned to the crowd "The Lord Ruler is dead, thanks to all our efforts. He will remain that way- despite his powers, there is none that can bring a man back from the dead. And that is what he was- a man! Forget the awe and fear you had for him! It is under his rule you have suffered, suffered a thousand year reign of terror! That thousand year reign ends tonight! You shall inherit Luthadel, the grandest city in the world, if you would simply pick up a sword, axe, spear, stave, or helmet, and visit such a small fraction of the pain the nobility has caused you and your families and friends back upon them! While you cannot be faulted for mourning for those who fall, either those who have not lived to see this glorious day, or those who fall in the next few hours, you must remember to smile for the victories you have achieved!" Kelsier cast his voice as far as he could, but didn't quite yell- for it hurt when he did.
"LORD KELSIER!" the crowd screamed in joy. Kelsier smiled, and turned to Dox as the chorus echoed around them.
"How goes the assault on the city center, and how's Vin doing?" Kelsier asked his friend.
"There was one Inquisitor, but it fell by Marsh's hand. Club's captured the inner city. Vin's talked a good portion of the nobility in surrendering, while Ham's captured Keep Hastings and Keep Erikeller- Tevidian's fled, no idea where Straff Venture is, and I don't know where the two remaining Inquisitors are. I hope they've fled Luthadel." Dockson said, updating him on events.
"Good," Kelsier smiled. "Tell me when they get back." and Kelsier stepped off the box, into the crowd.
It was miraculous. Out in the open, like this? In the Fountain Square, with the Lord Ruler dead? Openly talking to skaa about a revolution? The sky above Luthadel was slowly lit yellow, as agitators brought skaa to join the growing masses, to seize their brutal workplaces, to occupy the mansions they toiled in, to capture their oppressive masters.
Kelsier spoke to the skaa in the square- they asked him all sorts of questions, and some even asked to touch his scars or kiss their babies. He answered truthfully, kissed their babies, and let them run their fingers up his lower arms. He shivered, feeling a phantom of the crystals that sliced them. And then he received a gift- from someone he had given some food to to get them through the collapse of House Tekiel. The wooden spear painted silver- paint chipped, a crack through the head, broken in half, very much covered in blood- that he killed the Lord Ruler with. His answers got less and less thorough as the night went along, but he had to keep doing this. For if he didn't, how would he fully destroy the old order that still bound the skaa in chains of thought?
As the night progressed, the square grew almost as packed as it was during executions. Kelsier gave more speeches- what the skaa should expect, the inability of the mists to harm them, the statement that simple oppression was not enough of a justification for executing a noble. Murder was a common one- both the man who gave the order, and the man who carried out the order were solely responsible for it. The brutal taskmaster who worked the skaa to death, and the noble who gave the order- yes, of course. But what of the denying of medical care? What of abuse? It was never simple. But Kelsier found a simple answer.
"Weigh their sins against their virtues." Kelsier announced, holding the half-spear out. "For tomorrow, it will be you judging them, with more restraint than as they judged you your entire lives- and they will quake as they will be faced with reckoning and redressement!"
This was received well- but at this point, he could say anything, and they would clap. He started thinking about the future. The Republic… the Hallant, in the days before the Ascension, had one, but it was a small thing, a group of noble merchants deciding on the functions of a state. There was the Council of Khlennium, which gave consul to the King- most of it was appointed or hereditary positions, but there was a small group which was elected by a few privileged towns.
Radical authors- more radical than Deluse- proposed this system. Never put into play- but it was a time of new things. Kelsier had no idea how you would divide the Central Dominance- with the largest population of any Dominance, into voting districts. Let alone the entire Final Empire, what building would have a room large enough to seat hundreds?
And his eyes set upon one particular building at the edge of the Fountain Square. Amidst the townhouses and shops and salons and restaurants of the nobles, there was something with a vague air of being devoted to the public. The Royal Imperial Theater- the top theater in all of Luthadel. He went to see a play here, once or twice with Marsh, back in the days before the Pits.
And Marsh landed next to Kelsier. He turned to see a scarlet blindfold around Marsh's head, and a blouse with the sleeves cleanly ripped off covering Marsh's chest. Kelsier smiled, as Marsh explained himself. "Clubs informed me of what exactly I'm wearing. I have… what is called steelsight. The blue lines that you see when you burn steel or iron are present for everything I can see, in different tones, and I will get more adept at it as I use it more, but for now… I can hardly even see color, or faces."
"Clubs' must've been surprised." Kelsier smiled.
"Oh, he was. The moment he realized who I was, he smiled."
"Doesn't happen often." Kelsier said, smiling.
"Nope. Clubs has captured the entire city center, and the palace, but the High Prelan Tevidian's escaped- so have two Inquisitors, and a messenger from Ham said Straff Venture escaped- Vin got Elend onboard, and he's convinced some lesser members of some Great Houses to surrender- and got half of one of the smaller Great Houses to as well."
"Are they ready to face trial?" Kelsier asked Marsh.
"The ones surrendering are primarily lesser nobility, with a few figures either knowing or thinking they won't be found guilty- so they are assuming our trials will be fair, strangely enough- I presume Vin's relationship with Elend is helping? And my treason, of course." Marsh postulated.
Dockson approached the two. "That's all the weapons, Kell. It's all out of my hands now. Breeze has captured the Garrison, and all gates in west Luthadel- all armed resistance fell before him."
Kelsier smiled. "Good. Yeden's job should be easier- the Garrison proper should disintegrate before even battle."
"I… I just can't believe it." Dockson teared up. "So long we struggled, and you were right. The Lord Ruler- a sliver of god- is killed, like any man. By dawn, all of Luthadel will be ours, and we'll have an army to combat any other armies- and liberate the entire Central Dominance."
"We've been through so much, and yet," Marsh smiled- not the full-teeth stretched-too-wide smile of an Inquisitor- but that of a man- "We survived."
"With the nobility, it seems the young, weak, and poor nobles will be the ones who will be left. We'll have to learn how to deal with them." Kelsier grimaced.
Dockson smiled. "Ah, never thought I'd see the day. Kelsier, having moderated his views towards the nobility. You know, Vin's really had an effect on you." Dockson said.
"Has she?" Kelsier thought of all the time he'd spent with Vin- and that promise, on the walls of Keep Hasting, to not kill Elend and his friends in that little book club. And then, earlier that day, saving Elend from that Inquisitor's axe. "She has." Kelsier said.
Marsh sighed- of relief, and worry. "We can finally look towards the future. We won- although we'll be dogged by Tevidian, the Inquisitors, and the Noble Houses of the Empire. Say, why are we in front of the Royal Imperial?"
"Because," Kelsier gesticulated, "Welcome to the new Republican Assembly!"
"And why this theater? Why not the Canton of Finance building- the stock exchange is large enough. Or why not one of the keeps or Kredik Shaw?" Dockson asked.
"Because we're not the Final Empire," Kelsier smiled, "How would it look if we set ourselves up in a Ministry building, a nobleman's keep, or, heavens forbid, Kredik Shaw itself? The Royal Imperial may be an unusual choice, but it has a veneer of publicity-" There were a few back seats available for richer skaa, but only when they had trouble selling seats- "and it doesn't bleed death and terror like all those other options."
Both Marsh and Dockson nodded. But Kelsier had drifted away to a memory- five years ago, the three men had stood here, right after a good play- all smiling and laughing. But with someone else here. He heard her laughter in his ears, in response to his joke about some poorly-performing noble actor. Mare, I've got vengeance, and a girl who I've raised as I would my daughter. We're halfway to your dreams.
Kelsier found a hand on his shoulder. Marsh's. Kelsier looked at the scarlet blindfold- heads of the spikes just barely visible beneath the cloth. "I know it's hard. So many have fallen- but not on this… job." Marsh pronounced the last word like it was a bit of gristle between his teeth. "We've done it, Kell. She would be proud."
"It's not done," Kelsier whispered, "Ash still falls from the sky. The plants are still brown. The sun's still crimson. The flowers…" his throat choked on the tears.
"Kell… some things are beyond the reach of men." Dockson said.
"But it was the world before the Ascension- the Keepers and Steel Ministry even agree upon that. It was taken away, somehow. And the Lord Ruler wasn't a god. It was all Feruchemical and Allomantic trickery. We have to figure out how he did it, and do the same."
Marsh spoke up. "Kelsier, that could take decades- it's something best done by the Keepers. We will need to focus on the machinery of state, for now. You are good at this- you know what will lead men to follow you, and support a state. Without you, we would have just chosen one of the Canton buildings, and never thought about the Royal Imperial. This was your last job, one way or another- I ask you to follow through with your last job." This was a request- for both Marsh, and Mare. Kelsier had taken this position from Marsh- he had to see it through.
"Yes, you're right." Kelsier sighed. "I won't stop trying. But first, the skaa- the people of Luthadel need me. The Nobles will try to undermine us, from outside and in. We'll have to fight Allomancy with Allomancy." Kelsier smiled. "We can test everyone in Luthadel for Allomantic abilities. Seekers, plus mixing minute amounts of metal dust from the base 8 Allomantic metals in water- like some doctors do for nobles- and handing out that water." Kelsier felt passionate- there were a thousand wonderful things he could do, with all of Luthadel. "We'll have as many allomancers as the nobles."
The three men continued their discussion- Clubs returned next, bringing bad news.
"What do you mean there's no atium?" Dockson asked.
"There's a few small bags in the treasury, enough for about two months of the atium dole. How much of the Pits of Hathsin did you destroy?" Clubs asked.
"Maybe about half?" Kelsier guessed. "But this doesn't make much sense. 90% of the atium ever mined is still missing. Marsh, was there some form of relocation of the atium following my attack on the Pits?"
"No, the only things I heard about atium were that we Inquisitors got a small stipend while going after high-value targets, and Venture was having some issues with atium production- and if they were unable to meet demands, there would be an inquiry. With the entire Steel Ministry becoming involved in the matter."
"We'll have to capture some obligators, then, those involved with the Pits." Kelsier said. "Some of them have to know what's going on."
"What matters is no one else has the atium. We've done the impossible, and I refuse to let this bit of bad news ruin this wonderful day." Dockson said.
The men all agreed, and began talking again, as more of the crew showed up. First Vin, landing with Elend in her arms. Breeze and Ham were working on mopping up the last pieces of the resistance in the city- and Kelsier knew that they would have to break out of the city tomorrow, to take the suburbs and Outer Luthadel, but for now, they laughed as Vin introduced the crew to Elend, the young man clearly out of his element. Spook in particular had fun speaking with his full accent, and Kelsier even caught a smile on the corners of Marsh's mouth as Elend looked up, pale, to see the spikes fully driven through Marsh's skull.
Ham and Breeze returned, bringing good news- Luthadel, and its two million people, was under their full control. Someone brought chairs from the pavilion, and the crew sat in the spring night air, laughing, and discussing the New Republic, that didn't exist, just yet. Sazed, Spook, Elend, and Vin joined in, with the four giving their perspectives on a state. Elend wanted a king in charge, and the rest of them scoffed. Sazed changed Kelsier's bandages.
The mists disappeared, and the sky grew the pink of dawn. Tired and bleary-eyed, the rebels turned to see the sun rise above the horizon. Kelsier's wounds felt better, and he had his pewter down to a low burn- although the fatigue of being up for two days was bad, he flared his pewter as he stood up, options suddenly opening before him.
"I'm sorry Saze, but I have to do a little bit more before I can rest. There's still some things I need to do."
"I am wondering what that could be." Sazed asked.
"There's a lot running away from Luthadel. Important figures, a load of atium and gold, and skilled individuals, that the New Republic will need. But you're right- I can't take a lot more. Marsh, Vin, are you feeling up for handling some of these?"
"I could, but Vin doesn't really have the knowledge of where people are fleeing to, or what routes they would be along." Marsh said.
"There's the canals, and the Imperial Roads… the canals go to the other large cities, and the roads connect most cities." Vin said.
"We're going to need to bring you up to speed on a lot of things, Vin. But you know where Lake Luthadel is?" Kelsier asked her.
"Yes. I presume at the exits and entrances of the lake is where fleeing boats would be?"
"You got it." Kelsier said.
"So what's most important?" Dockson asked.
There are too many options for Kelsier, exhausted after his fight with the Lord Ruler, to all tackle at once. Kelsier will go to the most voted target, with Marsh going to the second most voted, and Vin going to the third, with less returns for the latter two.
[ ] Kill. The bastards run, scurrying to their estates across the Final Empire. But not all of them will make it to their holes today. Their deaths would weaken the inevitable enemies that rise out of the ashes of the Final Empire.
[ ] Capture. Massive amounts of gold, silver, and atium are being carried away by the nobles, seeking to preserve their riches from the Revolution. That wealth would both weaken the finances of the imperial successors, and boost the wealth of the New Republic.
[ ] Convince. There are many skilled people- Hazekillers, Allomantic metallurgists, and even Obligators fleeing Luthadel. Some of these might need a guarantee of safety, some might need a large sum of boxings, or even a Steel Inquisitor to convince them to switch sides. This would benefit the New Republic the most long-term.
Which lesser Great House did Elend manage to convince a sizable portion of into defecting to the New Republic? The chosen house will provide its speciality to aid the New Republic in its ventures, but at the cost of them operating according to their own interests.
[ ] House Haught. Specializing in manufacturing and production of goods, their trade and distribution networks would prove helpful to the New Republic. However, having the Republic's production controlled by powerful nobles might have consequences…
[ ] House Urbain. Specializing in banking, House Urbain has many vaults filled with metals such as atium, silver, and gold. Their wealth would aid the finances of the New Republic. Having such a large part of the Republic's finances controlled by powerful nobles might have consequences…
[ ] House Buvidas. Specializing in politics itself, the least powerful Great House used its position to broker deals and offering neutral ground to the larger Great Houses, always taking a cut off the top, of course. They offer their social and business acumen to the New Republic, and their deep knowledge of politics would help with running the government of the New Republic, as well as dealing with outsiders. However, having part of the government controlled by powerful nobles might have consequences…
Mistborn: Smoke and Ash.
Revolution in The Final Empire.
Ash fell from the sky. Smoke rose to meet it. The two airs commingled in the sky above Luthadel, a reminder of the world as it was, and the progress the New Republic had made. Kelsier burned tin. His senses all grew strong- the cold iron of the highest spire of Kredik Shaw beneath his hand, the mild winter wind upon his face and hands, and the sound of his mistcloak flapping in the wind. He saw the Ashmount Tyrian on the western horizon, a blurry shadow outlined by the sky. But most importantly, he heard the sounds of Luthadel.
Kelsier smiled as he looked over the vast, teeming, sprawling city, belonging to, for the first time in its long history, no one but itself. The sounds coming out of the houses and streets of the city were manyfold, but all in all, they were the sounds of one thing- revolution. The passionate speeches of orators, the snapping of flags in the wind, the soldiers training below, but mostly, the Palace District was quiet. It rose in shouts and fire once, lifting it above the quiet sounds of pens on paper and muted screams from the Inquisition's headquarters that had dominated its entire existence- but that was six months ago.
Now, the empty spires of Kredik Shaw towered solemnly above the still district. He had hoped that the people of Luthadel could forget- but it wasn't that simple. When willing, people avoided the most blatant reminders of a thousand years of oppression under the Final Empire. As a result of the the Lord Ruler being dead and the only Steel Inquisitor in the city being Kelsier's brother, Kredik Shaw and the Canton of Inquisition headquarters were unoccupied, but people still mostly lived in the edges of the Palace District, and worked in other districts, even taking sidestreets to avoid the Palatial Square.
The only governmental organizations that had found the Palace District their home were the Department of Steel and the Ministry of War- but the Department of Steel was slowly working towards their own dissolution, and most of the Ministry of War was outside Luthadel, giving the imperial claimants hell.
He found the wind turning, and smoke from the Industrial District, Southbridge, and Brassworks came over Kredik Shaw- the smoke coming out of the new smokestacks, enemating from forges and mills, from coal and coke burning, melting metal and turning engines. Kelsier decided it was time to go, and flaring steel, Pushed himself off the spires, west, towards the Old City- and the beating heart of the revolution.
While it was Copperday, and all but the most fundamental workers and soldiers in the New Republic had the day off, there were always those who strove to go above and beyond, such as those in the industrial districts- after all, they no longer toiled for a malicious distant lord- their work was their own. And so, he smiled when he saw around a battalion's worth of soldiers- a thousand men- training in the Palatial Square. And they saw him too- an inspiring sight, with his mistcloak flapping behind him as he arced across the entire square. The soldiers stopped their training- no flintlocks today, just spears- looking up and pointing at him.
The soldiers, all one thousand of them, went up in cheers. "Premier Kelsier!" they shouted as loud as they could. Some even started hooting and clapping, too. The smile on Kelsier's face blossomed into a grin, and he waved to the soldiers below, before he left sight of the square. As usual, he found himself flying over the Steel Thoroughfare- while he was very good at steel and iron, he couldn't launch himself over the River Channerel. Had to go across the bridge, like his citizens did.
As Kelsier Pushed along nails and window clasps, he saw there were a few people along the Steel Thoroughfare- walking, talking, or transporting goods. They all stopped what they were doing, pointed at him, and looked at him in awe. He smiled. The Channerel was flowing somewhat clearer today- the water having a faint tinge of blue- but he wondered what that stroke of beauty meant for the cities upriver of Luthadel.
The Steel Bridge had some iron on it, a couple of decorations where the columns that supported the bridge extended above the bridge itself, making it easy for him to pluck and push against the blue lines, and stay above the middle of the bridge. When Kelsier got to the end of it, he flared steel, Pushing himself off the last of the iron decorations, and over the roofs of Luthadel. He always tried to stay above or next to the main thoroughfares. Once again, shouts of "Premier Kelsier!" arose from below, Kelsier brightening the lives of thousands for just a small moment.
The colors of Luthadel, outside the Palace District, had changed. Grays, browns, and blacks had shifted to a new scheme with the liberation of the skaa. Entire tenements of former skaa had chipped together to purchase large amounts of cheap paints produced in the Industrial District, and on Copperdays or holidays, had painted their tenements in solid colors. Blues, reds, greens, and yellows dominated the residential sections of the Old City, and remained a clear divider between what buildings were owned by former skaa, and which were owned by former nobles. He hoped he could break that divide down soon enough.
Quickly, at the speeds only Mistborn or Coinshots could go at, he arrived at Victory Square. Six months ago, he faced the Lord Ruler in the square, and came out victorious, thanks to the Eleventh Metal. The world had changed dramatically since then. Revolution in Luthadel and Austrex. The foundation of the New Republic amidst the cheers of millions. Three imperial claimants, looking to cast all men back into chains again. The elevation of hundreds of thousands of skaa to shop-owners, skilled workers, factory foremen, merchants, captains, government workers, and even Allomancers and Assemblymen. And the agreement with the Synod up in Terris, that delivered wonders of the Classical Era into the hands of the New Republic.
Kelsier took in the sounds of Victory Square. The public executions that happened on Copperday were done- the gallows stood empty, the bodies of the hung nobles having been taken away, to be burned if their families could spare the boxings, or to be handed over to the Surgeon's Guild and University of Luthadel for dissection if they didn't. The executions were necessary- they required redressement as a result of their actions- how many times was a son, brother, or lover lost to the casual maliciousness of the nobility? In the New Republic, former nobles had to fear slitting a skaa whore's throat, or ordering the death of a child who made one minor misstep. Kelsier would make sure these evil deeds would not go unaddressed.
Despite the grim reminder of what they were fighting against, Victory Square was active. There was always a collection of tents just outside the Assembly Hall, selling food to those who arrived early enough to secure a seat in the public seating. While on Copperdays there was only a small gaggle of Assembly who prepared for the next week's sessions, Victory Square was as busy as usual. It was a vast bazaar, a microcosm of Luthadel, with people doing everything from testing for latent allomantic potential, to selling chickens and other animals, to speaking passionately about their favorite topics.
Kelsier smiled, as a sound he hadn't heard in years echoed up to his tin-enhanced ears. Singing. God, when was the last time he had heard people sing on their own accord? He remembered. He always did. He went out drinking with his friends and Mare after they saw a play in the Assembly Hall before the Revolution, back when it was the Royal Imperial Theater, and he, Dockson, and Ham got drunk enough they stood on a table, dancing and singing.
But he smiled. They made it through the plotting of the Revolution. He thought Marsh had died, butchered into a bloody paste by Steel Inquisitors, but they were so impressed by the half-skaa spy that they had made him one of their own, without ever finding out his treason, until he turned his stone axes upon the bastards in the Victory at Fountain Square.
Ah, Blessed Victory… he remembered that day well.
Kelsier stirred to consciousness. The sun was setting, and the mists were forming, and he felt their tepid spring wetness against his skin. He had a gnawing pain in his back, and his many wounds and sprains were throbbing. He felt doubt- the Lord Ruler was dead, the Eleventh Metal proved itself to be the vital weapon that defeated him. And yet ash still fell from the sky, the sun was still red, and plants were still brown. And flowers were still a thing of legend. And then he opened his eyes.
The square blazed with light. Despite the mists, thousands of skaa hurried through the square. He saw large carts full of weapons, and the words of speakers reached his ears- including Dox's. Soldiers, his own, stood guard around the pavilion, all protecting him- he fought when they were the most vulnerable, and now they protected him.
Spook and Sazed were still by him. "Get the bands, Spook?" he asked the boy.
"Having them here." Spook waved to the bloodied atium bands, sitting on the table next to Sazed's medical equipment.
"Sazed, Spook- did you think we could do it?" Kelsier asked the two.
"I thought you could give us hope, and a victory greater than any before- but killing the Lord Ruler? So many men have tried, and they have all ended up dead. I thought you were trying to do the same."
"Oh, they'll all hate me for this, but I was." Kelsier said. "Die bravely, have Renoux impersonate me after my death, to inspire the skaa to rebel against the Lord Ruler, and Vin hopefully being able to kill him. But the Eleventh Metal worked. What do you think, Spook?"
"Wasing… Thought it woulding hard, but if anyone coulding do it, the Survivor could. Hadn't thought abouting the next step… wondering willing our world be like. Never thought too far."
Kelsier smiled. "It's great to see some faith. The future… first the nobles. We can't kill them all- but every skaa girl raped, the noble fully knowing she would be killed afterwards, every skaa dead of overwork in the wretched mills of this city by gleeful taskmaskers, every skaa killed- for nothing other than a whim or amusement- requires redressement. In the realm of government, well, we'll start with electing people to positions of government- it'll allow us to have a say, but let others in. For the basics, though- we'll pay people, with real money, cut down working hours from 12, and who knows? The Lord Ruler oppressed so much- we'll see if we can discover anything new, or learn from the Keepers."
"That ising a lot." Spook said.
Kelsier smiled at the boy. "We've finished with the first part. I expect we'll face many more challenges in the future- but none as harrowing as this." and Spook smiled back.
"Sazed," Kelsier asked, "Will my health worsen if I get up and walk around the square?"
"I would not recommend it. But no, your condition is stable" the Terrisman said.
Kelsier got to his feet, groaning, flaring pewter, as Sazed looked on disapprovingly, Spook following behind him. He stepped down from the pavilion, and walked through the wall of soldiers protecting him from being disturbed. He went over to Dockson, who was handing out weapons to skaa, and giving a passionate speech while he was standing atop a box. Dockson saw him, and smiled, helping Kelsier onto the box, as skaa clustered around him, wide eyed.
"Thank you." Kelsier said to no one in particular, and then turned to the crowd "The Lord Ruler is dead, thanks to all our efforts. He will remain that way- despite his powers, there is none that can bring a man back from the dead. And that is what he was- a man! Forget the awe and fear you had for him! It is under his rule you have suffered, suffered a thousand year reign of terror! That thousand year reign ends tonight! You shall inherit Luthadel, the grandest city in the world, if you would simply pick up a sword, axe, spear, stave, or helmet, and visit such a small fraction of the pain the nobility has caused you and your families and friends back upon them! While you cannot be faulted for mourning for those who fall, either those who have not lived to see this glorious day, or those who fall in the next few hours, you must remember to smile for the victories you have achieved!" Kelsier cast his voice as far as he could, but didn't quite yell- for it hurt when he did.
"LORD KELSIER!" the crowd screamed in joy. Kelsier smiled, and turned to Dox as the chorus echoed around them.
"How goes the assault on the city center, and how's Vin doing?" Kelsier asked his friend.
"There was one Inquisitor, but it fell by Marsh's hand. Club's captured the inner city. Vin's talked a good portion of the nobility in surrendering, while Ham's captured Keep Hastings and Keep Erikeller- Tevidian's fled, no idea where Straff Venture is, and I don't know where the two remaining Inquisitors are. I hope they've fled Luthadel." Dockson said, updating him on events.
"Good," Kelsier smiled. "Tell me when they get back." and Kelsier stepped off the box, into the crowd.
It was miraculous. Out in the open, like this? In the Fountain Square, with the Lord Ruler dead? Openly talking to skaa about a revolution? The sky above Luthadel was slowly lit yellow, as agitators brought skaa to join the growing masses, to seize their brutal workplaces, to occupy the mansions they toiled in, to capture their oppressive masters.
Kelsier spoke to the skaa in the square- they asked him all sorts of questions, and some even asked to touch his scars or kiss their babies. He answered truthfully, kissed their babies, and let them run their fingers up his lower arms. He shivered, feeling a phantom of the crystals that sliced them. And then he received a gift- from someone he had given some food to to get them through the collapse of House Tekiel. The wooden spear painted silver- paint chipped, a crack through the head, broken in half, very much covered in blood- that he killed the Lord Ruler with. His answers got less and less thorough as the night went along, but he had to keep doing this. For if he didn't, how would he fully destroy the old order that still bound the skaa in chains of thought?
As the night progressed, the square grew almost as packed as it was during executions. Kelsier gave more speeches- what the skaa should expect, the inability of the mists to harm them, the statement that simple oppression was not enough of a justification for executing a noble. Murder was a common one- both the man who gave the order, and the man who carried out the order were solely responsible for it. The brutal taskmaster who worked the skaa to death, and the noble who gave the order- yes, of course. But what of the denying of medical care? What of abuse? It was never simple. But Kelsier found a simple answer.
"Weigh their sins against their virtues." Kelsier announced, holding the half-spear out. "For tomorrow, it will be you judging them, with more restraint than as they judged you your entire lives- and they will quake as they will be faced with reckoning and redressement!"
This was received well- but at this point, he could say anything, and they would clap. He started thinking about the future. The Republic… the Hallant, in the days before the Ascension, had one, but it was a small thing, a group of noble merchants deciding on the functions of a state. There was the Council of Khlennium, which gave consul to the King- most of it was appointed or hereditary positions, but there was a small group which was elected by a few privileged towns.
Radical authors- more radical than Deluse- proposed this system. Never put into play- but it was a time of new things. Kelsier had no idea how you would divide the Central Dominance- with the largest population of any Dominance, into voting districts. Let alone the entire Final Empire, what building would have a room large enough to seat hundreds?
And his eyes set upon one particular building at the edge of the Fountain Square. Amidst the townhouses and shops and salons and restaurants of the nobles, there was something with a vague air of being devoted to the public. The Royal Imperial Theater- the top theater in all of Luthadel. He went to see a play here, once or twice with Marsh, back in the days before the Pits.
And Marsh landed next to Kelsier. He turned to see a scarlet blindfold around Marsh's head, and a blouse with the sleeves cleanly ripped off covering Marsh's chest. Kelsier smiled, as Marsh explained himself. "Clubs informed me of what exactly I'm wearing. I have… what is called steelsight. The blue lines that you see when you burn steel or iron are present for everything I can see, in different tones, and I will get more adept at it as I use it more, but for now… I can hardly even see color, or faces."
"Clubs' must've been surprised." Kelsier smiled.
"Oh, he was. The moment he realized who I was, he smiled."
"Doesn't happen often." Kelsier said, smiling.
"Nope. Clubs has captured the entire city center, and the palace, but the High Prelan Tevidian's escaped- so have two Inquisitors, and a messenger from Ham said Straff Venture escaped- Vin got Elend onboard, and he's convinced some lesser members of some Great Houses to surrender- and got half of one of the smaller Great Houses to as well."
"Are they ready to face trial?" Kelsier asked Marsh.
"The ones surrendering are primarily lesser nobility, with a few figures either knowing or thinking they won't be found guilty- so they are assuming our trials will be fair, strangely enough- I presume Vin's relationship with Elend is helping? And my treason, of course." Marsh postulated.
Dockson approached the two. "That's all the weapons, Kell. It's all out of my hands now. Breeze has captured the Garrison, and all gates in west Luthadel- all armed resistance fell before him."
Kelsier smiled. "Good. Yeden's job should be easier- the Garrison proper should disintegrate before even battle."
"I… I just can't believe it." Dockson teared up. "So long we struggled, and you were right. The Lord Ruler- a sliver of god- is killed, like any man. By dawn, all of Luthadel will be ours, and we'll have an army to combat any other armies- and liberate the entire Central Dominance."
"We've been through so much, and yet," Marsh smiled- not the full-teeth stretched-too-wide smile of an Inquisitor- but that of a man- "We survived."
"With the nobility, it seems the young, weak, and poor nobles will be the ones who will be left. We'll have to learn how to deal with them." Kelsier grimaced.
Dockson smiled. "Ah, never thought I'd see the day. Kelsier, having moderated his views towards the nobility. You know, Vin's really had an effect on you." Dockson said.
"Has she?" Kelsier thought of all the time he'd spent with Vin- and that promise, on the walls of Keep Hasting, to not kill Elend and his friends in that little book club. And then, earlier that day, saving Elend from that Inquisitor's axe. "She has." Kelsier said.
Marsh sighed- of relief, and worry. "We can finally look towards the future. We won- although we'll be dogged by Tevidian, the Inquisitors, and the Noble Houses of the Empire. Say, why are we in front of the Royal Imperial?"
"Because," Kelsier gesticulated, "Welcome to the new Republican Assembly!"
"And why this theater? Why not the Canton of Finance building- the stock exchange is large enough. Or why not one of the keeps or Kredik Shaw?" Dockson asked.
"Because we're not the Final Empire," Kelsier smiled, "How would it look if we set ourselves up in a Ministry building, a nobleman's keep, or, heavens forbid, Kredik Shaw itself? The Royal Imperial may be an unusual choice, but it has a veneer of publicity-" There were a few back seats available for richer skaa, but only when they had trouble selling seats- "and it doesn't bleed death and terror like all those other options."
Both Marsh and Dockson nodded. But Kelsier had drifted away to a memory- five years ago, the three men had stood here, right after a good play- all smiling and laughing. But with someone else here. He heard her laughter in his ears, in response to his joke about some poorly-performing noble actor. Mare, I've got vengeance, and a girl who I've raised as I would my daughter. We're halfway to your dreams.
Kelsier found a hand on his shoulder. Marsh's. Kelsier looked at the scarlet blindfold- heads of the spikes just barely visible beneath the cloth. "I know it's hard. So many have fallen- but not on this… job." Marsh pronounced the last word like it was a bit of gristle between his teeth. "We've done it, Kell. She would be proud."
"It's not done," Kelsier whispered, "Ash still falls from the sky. The plants are still brown. The sun's still crimson. The flowers…" his throat choked on the tears.
"Kell… some things are beyond the reach of men." Dockson said.
"But it was the world before the Ascension- the Keepers and Steel Ministry even agree upon that. It was taken away, somehow. And the Lord Ruler wasn't a god. It was all Feruchemical and Allomantic trickery. We have to figure out how he did it, and do the same."
Marsh spoke up. "Kelsier, that could take decades- it's something best done by the Keepers. We will need to focus on the machinery of state, for now. You are good at this- you know what will lead men to follow you, and support a state. Without you, we would have just chosen one of the Canton buildings, and never thought about the Royal Imperial. This was your last job, one way or another- I ask you to follow through with your last job." This was a request- for both Marsh, and Mare. Kelsier had taken this position from Marsh- he had to see it through.
"Yes, you're right." Kelsier sighed. "I won't stop trying. But first, the skaa- the people of Luthadel need me. The Nobles will try to undermine us, from outside and in. We'll have to fight Allomancy with Allomancy." Kelsier smiled. "We can test everyone in Luthadel for Allomantic abilities. Seekers, plus mixing minute amounts of metal dust from the base 8 Allomantic metals in water- like some doctors do for nobles- and handing out that water." Kelsier felt passionate- there were a thousand wonderful things he could do, with all of Luthadel. "We'll have as many allomancers as the nobles."
The three men continued their discussion- Clubs returned next, bringing bad news.
"What do you mean there's no atium?" Dockson asked.
"There's a few small bags in the treasury, enough for about two months of the atium dole. How much of the Pits of Hathsin did you destroy?" Clubs asked.
"Maybe about half?" Kelsier guessed. "But this doesn't make much sense. 90% of the atium ever mined is still missing. Marsh, was there some form of relocation of the atium following my attack on the Pits?"
"No, the only things I heard about atium were that we Inquisitors got a small stipend while going after high-value targets, and Venture was having some issues with atium production- and if they were unable to meet demands, there would be an inquiry. With the entire Steel Ministry becoming involved in the matter."
"We'll have to capture some obligators, then, those involved with the Pits." Kelsier said. "Some of them have to know what's going on."
"What matters is no one else has the atium. We've done the impossible, and I refuse to let this bit of bad news ruin this wonderful day." Dockson said.
The men all agreed, and began talking again, as more of the crew showed up. First Vin, landing with Elend in her arms. Breeze and Ham were working on mopping up the last pieces of the resistance in the city- and Kelsier knew that they would have to break out of the city tomorrow, to take the suburbs and Outer Luthadel, but for now, they laughed as Vin introduced the crew to Elend, the young man clearly out of his element. Spook in particular had fun speaking with his full accent, and Kelsier even caught a smile on the corners of Marsh's mouth as Elend looked up, pale, to see the spikes fully driven through Marsh's skull.
Ham and Breeze returned, bringing good news- Luthadel, and its two million people, was under their full control. Someone brought chairs from the pavilion, and the crew sat in the spring night air, laughing, and discussing the New Republic, that didn't exist, just yet. Sazed, Spook, Elend, and Vin joined in, with the four giving their perspectives on a state. Elend wanted a king in charge, and the rest of them scoffed. Sazed changed Kelsier's bandages.
The mists disappeared, and the sky grew the pink of dawn. Tired and bleary-eyed, the rebels turned to see the sun rise above the horizon. Kelsier's wounds felt better, and he had his pewter down to a low burn- although the fatigue of being up for two days was bad, he flared his pewter as he stood up, options suddenly opening before him.
"I'm sorry Saze, but I have to do a little bit more before I can rest. There's still some things I need to do."
"I am wondering what that could be." Sazed asked.
"There's a lot running away from Luthadel. Important figures, a load of atium and gold, and skilled individuals, that the New Republic will need. But you're right- I can't take a lot more. Marsh, Vin, are you feeling up for handling some of these?"
"I could, but Vin doesn't really have the knowledge of where people are fleeing to, or what routes they would be along." Marsh said.
"There's the canals, and the Imperial Roads… the canals go to the other large cities, and the roads connect most cities." Vin said.
"We're going to need to bring you up to speed on a lot of things, Vin. But you know where Lake Luthadel is?" Kelsier asked her.
"Yes. I presume at the exits and entrances of the lake is where fleeing boats would be?"
"You got it." Kelsier said.
"So what's most important?" Dockson asked.
There are too many options for Kelsier, exhausted after his fight with the Lord Ruler, to all tackle at once. Kelsier will go to the most voted target, with Marsh going to the second most voted, and Vin going to the third, with less returns for the latter two.
[ ] Kill. The bastards run, scurrying to their estates across the Final Empire. But not all of them will make it to their holes today. Their deaths would weaken the inevitable enemies that rise out of the ashes of the Final Empire.
[ ] Capture. Massive amounts of gold, silver, and atium are being carried away by the nobles, seeking to preserve their riches from the Revolution. That wealth would both weaken the finances of the imperial successors, and boost the wealth of the New Republic.
[ ] Convince. There are many skilled people- Hazekillers, Allomantic metallurgists, and even Obligators fleeing Luthadel. Some of these might need a guarantee of safety, some might need a large sum of boxings, or even a Steel Inquisitor to convince them to switch sides. This would benefit the New Republic the most long-term.
Which lesser Great House did Elend manage to convince a sizable portion of into defecting to the New Republic? The chosen house will provide its speciality to aid the New Republic in its ventures, but at the cost of them operating according to their own interests.
[ ] House Haught. Specializing in manufacturing and production of goods, their trade and distribution networks would prove helpful to the New Republic. However, having the Republic's production controlled by powerful nobles might have consequences…
[ ] House Urbain. Specializing in banking, House Urbain has many vaults filled with metals such as atium, silver, and gold. Their wealth would aid the finances of the New Republic. Having such a large part of the Republic's finances controlled by powerful nobles might have consequences…
[ ] House Buvidas. Specializing in politics itself, the least powerful Great House used its position to broker deals and offering neutral ground to the larger Great Houses, always taking a cut off the top, of course. They offer their social and business acumen to the New Republic, and their deep knowledge of politics would help with running the government of the New Republic, as well as dealing with outsiders. However, having part of the government controlled by powerful nobles might have consequences…
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Luthadel Rising
- Pronouns
- He/Him
"The Son of Man entered the Archives of God, and looked upon the Shelves with Great Hatred and Sadness, for he found a Great Many works Burned or Scarred by the Tyrant's Reign. But he Knew that in Spite of the Great Loss, Clear Skies could be Restored Once Again."
Marsh and Kelsier made it to the promontory that overlooked a certain bend in the river, and saw it, in the red sunlight. A Steel Ministry Canal barge, that looked to have a hull of copper. It was assuredly carrying millions of boxings' worth of atium and coin to Austrex, under Tevidian Tekiel's orders. Pulled by canal skaa, albeit with guards walking alongside. He smiled. The fools, trusting in skaa when they had finally found out they could cast off their chains. The guards were a step above the basics, though- Ministry Hazekillers.
Marsh turned to Kelsier. "I'll take out the guards and obligators inside the boat. You do your thing with the skaa."
Kelsier grinned. "Now, this is going to be fun."
The two dropped clips, and soared into the air. The guards raised the alarm, but the canal skaa looked up- at the Mistborn and Steel Inquisitor, working in tandem. Kelsier had got his mistcloak specifically for this, and the skaa started clamoring and shouting as he hit the ground. He heard the two common ones- Lord Kelsier, and the Survivor of Hathsin. But some others he hadn't heard before. Godslayer. Iconoclast. Revolutionary.
"Skaa, I have heard your calls for liberation!" Kelsier screamed, flaring zinc and brass, Rioting the determination, anger, and passion of the canal skaa, as well as Soothing away their hesitancy and exhaustion. The hazekillers pivoted towards him, and Kelsier could only grin. "But the only ones who can liberate you are yourselves! I can merely give you the ability to start, and see it through!"
The skaa screamed, and charged. The Ministry Hazekillers turned, but it was too late. Hazekillers were specialized in combat specifically against either Mistborn, or small groups of Allomancers. A large group of canal skaa, strong from pulling canal boats and loading and unloading cargo from almost birth, turned into revolutionaries by a Mistborn… it was the exact situation they had never trained for. The Hazekillers tried, but glass knives and dueling canes didn't really make a dent in the group- and they found their canes and knives snatched and turned against them.
The canal skaa turned to Kelsier, seeking direction. "Bring this boat back to Luthadel. The wealth contained within will be vital for the New Republic- and please do not steal any of it. Anything on these people, and on those who my brother has slain inside the barge, is fair game. And then Marsh came out of the barge, bloodied, blindfold off. The skaa's eyes grew as large as saucers, and Kelsier knew he was needed. "How many Hazekillers were inside, and how much wealth is there?" he asked.
The skaa seemed to calm down some- this was just Marsh, his brother, and despite his frightening appearance, he was the Marsh he'd always known- and Marsh was a veteran of the skaa rebellion as well, so it was possible some of these men had heard of him.
"More than outside, but when I took my blindfold off- not being able to see when it was covered with blood- they grew very frightened, enough to weaken their instincts. And yes, this appears to be a good portion of the Canton of Finance's fortune. About half- I would guess they're moving the rest overland." Marsh explained.
Kelsier Pushed himself off a coin onto the boat, and moved past the bloodied walls and carpeting, to the armored vault, selecting a few bags filled with ten-boxing coins. Marsh raised an eyebrow, before Kelsier explained his plan to him. "I'll tackle the ones that will need convincing with coin, while you tackle the ones who need convincing by a Steel Inquisitor." Marsh nodded, and the two split up- Marsh heading south along the Channerell, while Kelsier headed north.
Kelsier landed on the canal boat with a thump. Although this one wasn't pulled by skaa, but instead by oxen. Good. They were smarter than the last ones. Hopefully smart enough to recognize his offer. There was someone leading the oxen with a rope, but he didn't see Kelsier.
The sun was setting, and the mists started to appear out of thin air, cloaking the landscape in a white haze, but with tin, Kelsier was able to see the name of the canal boat- smaller and more lithe than the last barge, with a small sail atop. The Viper. This was the group, all right.
Kelsier heard the shuffling of feet behind the door thanks to his tin-enhanced senses, and so he did the best thing he could- he knocked, with a smile on his face. Was that a heartbeat he heard? Oh boy, they were scared. He heard whispering, and were there more sounds than just the sound of the water lapping at the boat he wouldn't have heard it.
And so, Kelsier turned the knob, snapping the lock as he flared pewter for a second. He opened the door, and found about a dozen heavily armed Hazekillers staring him down, with the bloody light of the sunset illuminating the interior of the boat. Kelsier smiled as he casually entered the boat, with the Hazekillers backing up, surrounding him on three sides.
This was the Mercenary Hazekiller group The Vipers, one of the top hazekiller groups in the Final Empire- and the best, only below Ministry and Noble Hazekillers.
"Why have you come here, Survivor?" one of them quietly growled.
"Why, you are mercenaries. What else could I have come here for? I'm here to make an offer." Kelsier said, happy. He threw one of the bags of coins he had taken from the Steel Ministry barge on the ground. It tipped over, spilling dozens of golden ten-boxing coins on the ground, where they shimmered in the light of the sunset. A message- a promise of wealth, and the fact that if they refused, he could kill them all without breaking a sweat, with the very coins they denied.
"If this is not enough," Kelsier said, "There is much more you will receive while in my service. And if you decide to tie yourself to the Republic, then I can promise you retirement- for veteran Hazekillers would be too valuable to waste sending them against Allomancers. We'll need our own Hazekillers, and someone who were to train them would have a long and successful career ahead of them."
The Hazekillers glanced at one another, and then Kelsier stepped out the door, closing it behind him. A minute or so later, the door reopened, and an auburn-haired man came out. And he said, "We agree, Survivor of Hathsin. The Vipers are in your employ, from now to forever- as long as you keep paying us."
"Fantastic." The light of the sunset looked like it was almost burning in Kelsier's eyes as he grinned. "Welcome to the Republic."
Marsh landed on the bank next to the canal boat. It was the middle of the night, and Marsh was getting tried. This one was pulled by horses, and had the marks of the Canton of Orthodoxy. He wondered if the Lord Prelan would be in this one- he wondered if Tevidian even knew if Vin was his daughter. It was poetic. He conceived his own downfall.
Marsh had taken off his shirt for this- it would work best if he was as Inquisitor-y as possible. He walked up the door, and found it locked. And so, flaring pewter, he ripped the door open, and pulled a bit too much, ripping it off his hinges. The Obligators in the boat jumped, as Marsh entered. "What is your wish, Your Grace?" one asked, but Marsh ignored him. He scanned the room- managing to locate the intricate tattoos upon the face of the highest ranked person in the barge, with some difficulty due to his steelsight.
He walked up to the man. "What is your name, Prelan of the Canton of Orthodoxy?" he asked the man.
"Prelan Noorden, Your Grace." the Obligator quaked in his robes. Marsh had heard of the man- a scholarly man, who was the head of the Canton of Orthodoxy's accounting department. One who had divorced himself from the reality of the Final Empire, and was cheerful.
"And why are you fleeing Luthadel in the Final Empire's darkest hour, Prelan Noorden?" he asked.
"There… there's no hope. They killed ten Steel Inquisitors, and Lord Elariel. Lord Prelan Tevidian ordered the evacuation the moment he heard of the Lord Ruler's death- I am merely just acting out his orders." Noorden said.
"Do you remember your oath, Noorden?" Marsh asked.
"Yes, I do. To serve the Lord Ruler and those he was chosen as the enforcers of his will, in the upholding of his reign."
"And his reign has ended, and I am the last Inquisitor he chose- and I am the brother of the Survivor of Hathsin. I promise you, if you turn around this canal, back to Luthadel, you and the Obligators with you will be spared, and you will have a place underneath the Survivor."
"I… ah. You're not with the Inquisitors, are you?" Noorden had realized the implications of a revolutionary Steel Inquisitor.
"I am not. Have you ever wanted to build a Canton from the ground up, Noorden?" Marsh asked the Prelan.
"I have, and understand the risks of denying. I agree." Noorden rose, slowly, and ordered the pilot to turn around.
Marsh smiled, and sat down in an empty upholstered chair. Steel Inquisitors tired quicker than Mistborn did, and he had been up for over a day. It would be nice to take the slow way back to Luthadel.
The Revolution was in full swing, and Dox was planning. Fountain Square- although the skaa had taken to calling it Victory Square- had been positively teeming for the past 24 hours. Some of Club's apprentices had built a gallows, where various noblemen were being tried by the crowd and hung- some were squirming on the noose right now. It was just yesterday when Kelsier had faced the Lord Ruler in the Fountain Square, and not only survived the Lord Ruler's attempts to kill him, but managed to call on the skaa to raise their hands against the Lord Ruler, and with that, he managed to finally kill God.
What did this mean? Some thought the world would end, some thought that Kelsier was now God, but most now found a truth- the skaa were free, and there was nothing stopping them from seeking redressement for an entire life in suffering. And Dox was now accounting the Revolution- who had fled, who had died, how much of Luthadel's wealth was intact, and so much more.
And then, into Victory Square, stepped Kless Haught. She was a Coinshot, and was surrounded by some of her House guards. So she had surrendered her house to Elend when he sought to minimize bloodshed. Interesting. Spook was leading the group through the crowd- the boy had been recognized as a core revolutionary, and was shooing off angry skaa who demanded justice- lucky that House Haught owned most of its factories in Urteau and the Northern Dominance. The guards looked around nervously at the crowd, and especially the gallows- but as guards of one of the three smallest Great Houses, they were likely safe. Kless Haught, however, seemed to be oblivious towards the ten thousand angry skaa outside her circle of guards. Either a smart woman, or a dumb one- likely the first, although she definitely was daring.
Spook led her straight towards the pavilion where Dox had set up his temporary center of government, working with some of his scribes to try and make sense of the revolution.
She stepped onto the pavilion, and looked at him. "You are Dockson?" she asked.
"I am. And you are Kless Haught." he said.
"I am. I understand the Survivor of Hathsin is not present in Luthadel right now, and I am asking you if the guarantee of safety made by Lord Venture's son and the Mistborn girl will hold."
Dockson sighed. She was still operating within a Great House's worldview "For now… yes. That may change, depending on what crimes against skaa you have committed. For example, ordering the death of someone."
"Fortunately, I haven't- but my husband, Alstir, has. There's a reason I didn't go with him, and now I hope I'll never see him again, now he's halfway to Urtea." Kless Haught had married into House Haught, a younger, beautiful coinshot marrying the old patriarch of the house. A political marriage, but her power in House Haught implied she had married to gain a measure of control over a Great House, and perhaps even ownership when Alstir Haught had died- or, in event of a Revolution.
"And why did you decide to join us?" Dockson asked.
"I can tell House Haught's fortunes in your Republic would be vastly improved beyond whatever our fate in the Final Empire would have been, or in Straff Venture's little state. I presume some of my properties are under threat?"
She was quick. "Yes, your largest properties- factories, townhouses, and more- will be seized, but I presume you'll be able to keep your Keep, but if I recall correctly, you own quite a few warehouses and canal boats- you'll likely be able to negotiate continued ownership of some of your properties in exchange for wealth."
Kless Haught nodded. "Yes, that's what I expected." she smiled. "I believe House Haught and the Republic will have a long, fruitful partnership with one another, with just some minor tweaks to how I run my factories."
Dockson was unsure how to factor this in. "If you want, you could try to restart, or maintain some of your trade networks? If you want to volunteer anyone, accountants would be useful- Luthadel needs to get back on its feet, and the sooner the better." Dox suggested.
"Oh, I will. After all, our fates are now intertwined." she said, and returned to her circle of guards, before setting back across Victory Square, in her circle of guards.
There was something off about the woman, but Dox couldn't place his finger on what. He shrugged, and went to speak to the messengers who had arrived with news from Breeze, Clubs, Sazed, and Ham from their sections of the city.
Kelsier awoke from his reminiscing of the day of the Revolution, as the chimes of the vast bells of the Great Clocktower reached Victory Square. Three Thirty. He was running low on time, and Sazed said he finished a section of research about the Ascension, and Kelsier was excited to pick it up.
But he smiled, thinking of a few months ago, when the Great Clocktower could barely reach Victory Square, and it was closed for renovations more often than not. Some questioned him when he suggested they turn Keep Hastings into a clocktower, but his wisdom was proven right. For now, clocks were for all people, rather than just the wealthy and noblemen. He Pushed against the roof he was sitting on, to the northeast- towards the University of Luthadel.
Sazed was having a productive day. He was working on putting together various unconnected quotes and artifacts of Larstaism together in a good summary of the religion. He was filling a tinmind and a pewtermind, and was tapping a small fraction of a zincmind- as well as some of the Eleventh Metal. He was starting to figure out what it did, and you never knew when some extra luck would come in handy while writing.
And then shouting interrupted his train of thought. Sazed looked up over the glasses on the bridge of his nose, annoyed. It was Tindwyl and Rindel again. He looked at Fisal, who had buried himself deeper in his work. But Sazed couldn't blame the Keeper. The Ministry of Public Betterment was looking for non-Imperial architecture to build houses and government buildings in, and that was what Fisal had devoted the past 40 years of his life to. This was what he was chosen to do.
"Why do you insist on continuing to dress like a Steward? Our people never chose those outfits- it was the Lord Ruler who enforced those garments upon us when he put us in servitude." Rindel said.
"You disrespect our traditions with your refusal to dress like a Keeper. You dress like skaa." Tindwyl haughtily stated.
Unlike Sazed himself. Larstaism was seemingly the most popular religion of his, solely because of Kelsier's speeches of how it was the faith of Mare, and contained knowledge of Scadrial before the Ascension. While some came to ask about it, they practiced a new form of it, one that stated that now the Lord Ruler had fallen, the world would be shortly remade to as it once was, and would become near-paradisiacal. Mostly, people seemed uninterested in religions- unless you considered the New Republic's cult of the state a religion.
Another loud shout entered his mind. "And what is wrong with dressing like skaa? Last I recalled, it was the skaa who cast down the Lord Ruler, while the Keepers scoffed at those among them who fought against the Lord Ruler." Rindel stated. He was waving about the butt of a rifle- a poignant metaphor for Rindel as a Keeper. For he chose to study warfare, and it was his knowledge that the New Republic craved the most- and fortunately for the Republic, Rindel was a Rouge Keeper, and here on his accord alone.
Sazed stopped tapping on his pewtermind, while tapping more of his eleventh metalmind and stood up. "Enough." he expressed loudly, "I understand both of you have great misgivings towards one another, but for the moment, our goals align. All of us wish to see the New Republic prosper in Luthadel, and with the imperial successors' rise, we cannot see us fall to infighting. When the New Republic stands alone in the south, then I can excuse infighting. But right now, all infighting does is aid our enemies."
Tindwyl and Rindel stopped their arguing, and went back to what they were doing. He liked both of them, but by God, it was hard to deal with the two of them together. But before he could sit down, the most important man in the New Republic walked into the library.
Kelsier was awed to see the sizable room- once the main hall of Keep Elariel, now the library of the University of Luthadel- filled to the brim with shelves, and all of those shelves were filled to the brim with books. He had heard the shouting, and was aware of the reasoning- while the Synod put on a unified face of all Keepers, that wasn't exactly true, and they were notably opposed by the Rouge Keeper Vedzan, who was head of Terris Kahl. And a Republican Iconoclast, as opposed to a theocrat. As long as the Synod was cooperating, though, Kelsier could ignore that. For all the former stewards aiding the administration of the New Republic was vital to its success.
Kelsier strode over to Sazed, who had gotten out the report he had written up. Something covering up the leadup to the Ascension- a very sparse topic in the records of the Keepers. This time, Kelsier wanted the cultural and religious reactions to the events that befell the world. Something Sazed was happy to provide.
"Here you go, Premier Kelsier." Sazed handed him the wad of papers.
"Please Sazed, we're friends. You were here from the beginning. Just call me Kelsier." he told the Keeper, smiling.
Kelsier looked down at the report, skimming it, finding an interesting passage, and read it aloud. "The Hero of Ages was known to almost all cultures and peoples. Various monarchs and leaders made mention of the Terris Prophecies, and it is known that the Anamnesor of the Hallant, Bennet, and the ancient Tilance peoples had some link to the Hero of Ages." He looked back up at Sazed. "But did they consider the Conquerer or Rashek the Anamnessor?"
"Well, some of them did. Others thought the Anamessor would save them from the Conquerer- the Lord Ruler that to his advantage, and claimed to be all these things, including the Hero of Ages, in the early years of his conquest and reign, before Ministry Doctrine truly solidified, although the Hero of Ages remained one of his titles." Sazed said.
"Wait, I remember something. This was in the Councilor of Khlennium's biography- Helenntion. I can't remember exactly what he called it…" Kelsier had made a leap, thanks to him studying classical governments to build the Assembly and New Republic. He was grinning from ear to ear.
"The Rabzeen, yes. Do you think that was a name, a distinct interpretation of the Hero of Ages?" Sazed asked.
"Yes. In the Conquerer's logbook, it said the the Hero of Ages would be not of his people, and Helenntion's assistant said that as well. But the Rabzeen wasn't a Khlenni figure, were they?" and his friends said Kelsier wasn't a scholar- the grin only got wider.
"No, the Rabzeen originated from the Great Lakes of Saran, and the Saranites had no real relation with the men of Terris, unlike the Urtan-Cazzi peoples. Khlennium had converted to the Saranite religion, and while it had unique traditions, it viewed the Saranites as closer to the faith. Kelsier, if what you think is right, then the myths of the Hero are found among completely unrelated peoples." Sazed looked up at Kelsier in revelation.
"That's big. It means something, but I only have suspicions so far. How goes your test of the Eleventh Metal?"
"I am certain that the metal stores luck itself. I become unlucky when storing the attribute in it, and fortunate when tapping it. I have been tapping it while I am working, in hopes of making lucky mental leaps in my understanding of various groups. But I am wondering, if your connection of the Rabzeen to the Hero of Ages might have been influenced by it…"
"This seems very different to most attributes- all but memory, of course." Kelsier commented. The Keepers had already made a discovery that revolutionized Feruchemy- when storing Identity in an aluminumind, one could make unkeyed metalminds, that all Feruchemists could access. The Synod had all Keepers create several sets of unkeyed copperminds, that contained all the information the Terris people had- and even if their creator perished, they would persist, and be accessible to all. Kelsier wondered when they would stumble across a second, or even a metal that would cause an allomantic revolution.
"I am aware, it is one of the more esoteric attributes. It is such a shame that Chromium is very hard to make- its ore is only found in a few locations, requires high temperatures to smelt, and requires aluminum to get the pure metal. The Republic is lucky that it has such a command over metallurgy." Sazed positited.
"I wonder if we'll ever get the paired metal. If it is like aluminum for other's allomantic reserves, and tapped feruchemical reserves, then would it be like duralumin for another's allomantic metal? I know feruchemy also has a relation between paired metals, and stores similar attributes, but with something as vague as fortune, it'd be something as similarly vague, but perhaps just as powerful." Kelsier theorized.
"I have no clue what it would be, Kelsier. What would you want me to work on next?" Sazed said.
"Find all mentions you can of mythological or even historical figures like the Hero of Ages, Rabzeen, or Anamnesor. Both in the future and past. If there was someone who Ascended before the Lord Ruler, that would mean the Lord Ruler just got lucky- and more importantly, it could be done again. Also, we could put together the full prophecy, which would help us understand the events surrounding the Conqueror's life and the early days following the Ascension." Kelsier said, and began to turn away, before a thought crossed his mind.
"Saze," he turned to the Keeper. "What does Terris mean?"
"To Preserve. It was a pillar of Terris culture before the Ascension, and we Keepers think the old Worldbringers did exactly that- the storage and preservation of knowledge, in addition to bringing knowledge across the land." Sazed said.
Kelsier nodded, said his goodbyes to Sazed, noticing the time on a grandfather clock- he was late again for the Directory meeting. Damn. He stuffed the report into his coat, and stepped out into the University Grounds. The Department of Public Works was maintaining the Elariel Gardens, for the benefit of all the students and teachers at the University. Sometimes, fresh air, sunshine, and the grass beneath your feet was what you needed.
But, as Premier, Kelsier did not have time for that. He threw a clip beneath his feet, and went back soaring over the city.
While the Synod rules over Terris and its people, and the New Republic has hashed out a comprehensive agreement with the Synod, sending Terris finished products, machinery, and all the various resources of Luthadel, in exchange for raw resources such as wool and copper, the ancient knowledge of the Keepers, and of course, the bureaucratic skills of the Terris Stewards, newly-unemployed thanks to the liberation of Terris, Kelsier doesn't have to support the Synod. It is highly undemocratic and theocratic, with only a small core of elder Keepers, having filtered out those who disagreed with their millennia-old policy of secrecy, actually making up the Synod. The very existence of Sazed and him joining Kelsier's crew proves them wrong in doing so, and it is entirely possible that the Lord Ruler could have been assassinated centuries ago. However, the Synod is not alone in Terris. Terris Kahl is an Iconoclast- like the New Republic- organization, one that had fought a guerilla war against the Final Empire in the decades before the Revolution, led by rouge Keepers who decided to fight instead of hide. They are led by Vedzan, but Rindel is one of their leaders, and were Terris Kahl in charge of Terris, the Keepers would definitely be able to do more to aid the New Republic and build Terris up into a equal partner without the conservatism of the Synod.
[ ] The Synod. While the Synod may be undemocratic, its rule over the Keepers and Terris as a whole is a vital one for the continuation of the agreement between the New Republic and Terris. While not ideal, the gamble of potentially losing the Republic's only ally in an abortive revolution is not one that is worth it. It is best to aid the Synod, and hope no one ever marches north in an attempt to attack Terris specifically, and is able to bypass the Army of the North.
[ ] Terris Kahl. The Terris have been beaten down, just as the skaa, but they need one of their own to liberate them from their self-perpetuating chains. Were the Terris people under the rule of Terris Kahl, they would engage in industrialization with the aid of the New Republic, and be able to shake off the docility and servitude beaten into them by the Final Empire, like the skaa did. Terris Kahl would undoubtedly build up an army, of a sort that could protect Terris from invaders.
Kelsier made his way into Mademoiselle Llana's Salon- a small restaurant on Canal Street in the Hotel District, catering to an exclusive clientele- nobles, merchants, government workers, allomancers- and in this case, the five most powerful people in the New Republic, a kandra, and a tineye. This was where the Directory met, every Copperday, to discuss plans for the next week. The four of them were already there. Dox, Minister of Republican Labor. Ham, Minister of War. Marsh, Minister of Republican Justice. Breeze, Minister of Public Betterment. Along with OreSeur, the Kandra, and Spook, the Tineye spy. The six were crowded around a table- one with a tablecloth- and waved to him.
Ham dressed as he typically did- sleeveless shirt, flattop haircut, exposing his arms, despite the winter. Breeze wore one of his suits, same with Dox. Marsh wore his typical trousers, coat, and blindfold- he had grown his hair back, and had undergone some painful procedure to remove his ministry tattoos. But sometimes, he caught the impression of the spikes beneath his blindfold, or their tips pointing out through his hair. It didn't bother him much, it was just another reminder of all they had lost. OreSeur was wearing the bones of some relatively important noble that raped a skaa girl before the revolution, and then killed her. That had earned him a trip to the noose, and after that… well, one body going to a kandra instead of the University wouldn't be noticed. Spook had reached six feet, and showed no signs of stopping.
Vin was probably recovering from a tutoring session, and Elend was reading whatever new books he could get from the University. Clubs was leading the Army of the East against the Pretender Empire and the Steeled Empire, while Yeden was leading the Army of the North, dealing with the Aspirant Empire's attempts to reclaim Mantiz. Kelsier had just seen Sazed at the University of Luthadel.
Kelsier smiled as he walked over the Directory, and sat down in an available chair, casually. "Sorry for the delay. I was at the University again. The Terris Keepers and scholars are putting down to paper many wondrous things." What went unspoken, was one thing all knew- Kelsier's obsession with the Ascension. They… didn't understand. Marsh did, a little. The Keepers did, and the people of Luthadel believed his tales of green hills and blue skies, even if they didn't understand. But they thought the power was forbidden to them, some cosmic stroke of luck handing it to the Lord Ruler a thousand years ago. As the power was taken once, it could be taken again.
The group ordered some food and drink- some pastries and meat pies, but primarily balanced dishes- Kelsier ordered mashed potatoes with steak, along with some delicious-looking glazed buns.
"And begins the seventeenth meeting of the Directory, at 5:18 in the afternoon, the second Copperday of the thirteenth month of 1022, After Ascension." Dox muttered, writing with a telescoping dip pen.
"We were going to discuss the main target of the spying bill Kelsier proposed to the Assembly- I believe we had ruled the Steeled Empire out?" Ham said.
"Ah yes, because those poor refugees from Chathram said they were abducting random skaa in the night, even small children. And we discovered that some Inquisitors, such as those made from Seekers, could pierce copperclouds." Breeze repeated their reasoning.
"I would very much not like to be sent near those Inquisitors." Spook shivered.
"It is forbidden, by my contract, for me to go near Inquisitors." OreSeur said. Kelsier still hadn't been able to figure out why that was the case, and why the creature felt safe around Marsh.
"And you still won't let us experiment with that?" Kelsier asked, smiling.
"I will not say any more." OreSeur said, frustrated.
"I do not believe the Steeled Empire even has designs on our territory." Marsh said. "We've only have skirmishes with them, and they only engage us if we move our soldiers past an imaginary line between the Ashmounts Doriel and Faleast, or Faleast and the southernmost point of the Black Lake. Not once have they moved anything north of that line." Kelsier's main issue was it being damnably hard to make eye contact with his brother with those spikes in his eyes.
"So the Steeled Empire is completely and utterly out of the question. Can kandra detect other kandra?" Dox postulated.
"Fortunately, no. So there's no worry of me being recognized by hired kandra hired by the nobility." OreSeur answered.
"So we can send you to either the Aspirant or Pretender Empires. But which one would spies be best in? Refugees and a handful of letters can only get us so far." Ham said.
"The Aspirant Empire is more powerful, in fact the most powerful imperial successor, but it's unlikely there's people with loyalty to the Aspirant Empire in Luthadel- they've preserved the government system of the Final Empire, and that is really only preferred by the Obligators themselves." Dox commented.
The Aspirant Empire was the largest successor state of the Final Empire, and had control over large portions of the Southern and Farmost Dominances, with almost full control over the entirety of the Western Dominance. It was led by the Lord Prelan Tevidian Tekiel, and they were dangerous in that regard- power and legitimacy, especially in days where legitimacy had become something many could ignore in favor of power.
"So it seems the main thing we could get out of the Aspirant Empire is knowledge of their plans in advance." Breeze said.
"And maybe knowledge of where the atium is." Ham suggested.
"If they knew where it was, they would be making moves to claim it, Hammond. So far, they've limited themselves to skirmishes, a few battles in the North, and the attempted seizure of Mount Tyrian via naval invasion a month ago." Breeze said.
"And then there is the Pretender Empire. I know there are many nobles in Luthadel who look upon the Pretender Empire highly, despite Straff's cruelty and petty obsessions. The allure of the system of the Final Empire without the restrictions placed on the nobility is one many of those with existing power have. If we send spies, then we could uncover which of the bastards in Luthadel is selling the Republic out to the Ventures. I have no doubt we are being plotted against by those nobles we trust." Kelsier suggested.
"In addition to finding out their plans, either military or just general policy goals." Marsh added.
The Pretender Empire, called the Venture Empire by non-Pretenderists, was a state ruled by Straff Venture, who resided in Urteau. This particular imperial successor has control over the entire Northern Dominance, and, using House Venture's former position as the strongest Great House, claims to be the rightful ruler of the entire Final Empire. Their former House allies and nobles in general prefer them over the two other states, as they offered much autonomy and power for nobles willing to sign up with them. Kelsier remembered the last Pretender traitor they had hung- he was screaming about how he'd own all of the skaa in Luthadel, before the hangman had pulled the wagon out.
"Remember, we managed to hide for over a year from the Final Empire. I'd be fine with either option." Spook said.
"In my opinion, either option is valid. The New Republic doesn't really have a good way to find traitors in its midst, and given the heavy Pretender skew of traitors, that would be the best option if we wanted to tackle that. And Straff's military secrets coming into our knowledge would be nice, although I would say we don't really need them. But the Aspirant Empire has about two and a half dominances, totalling about thirty million people. They equal the New Republic in population, and are the only imperial successor to do so. They'd easily be able to match our armies with equally sized ones, as time passes on. We have the advantage of being able to field guns and cannon, but cannons aren't that portable, while gunners inevitably run out of powder and shot, and affix bayonets and join the fray. Their military secrets are vital to our future success against them. They also have the advantage of being able to field small groups of koloss." Ham said.
"They do equal us militarily, but I would say our ability to face them when we are on the defensive, and set the engagements, more than makes up for that. And the Pretender Empire is stealing our own military secrets through their traitors- they could easily find out about our Allomantic secrets, or the secret of fashioning powder and guns. The Northern Dominance's large amounts of mines and factories might be able to equal us in that regard." Kelsier argued back.
The food arrived, and the group mulled over their two options, expanding on the arguments made by Kelsier and Ham. Aspirant or Pretender- military secrets or finding traitors in Luthadel? At the end of their meal, with the arrival of the bill, the Directory of the New Republic had to come to a decision…
The decision is put to a vote. What will be the main target of the spying bill Kelsier is presenting to the Assembly tomorrow? Spook, OreSeur, and some others will be sent off to the chosen target for a few months, with OreSeur playing the guise of a traitor nobleman who fled the New Republic's seizures of his property for the safety of the chosen imperial successor. If that becomes unavailable, they could always replace a local important figure with OreSeur. Kelsier will respect the chosen decision, even if he will be unhappy if the Pretender Empire is not the choice.
[ ] The Pretender Empire. Kelsier is right, the threat the traitors in their midst pose, loyal to the Pretender Straff Venture and actively working to bring the New Republic down, is too great. Spies in the Pretender Empire and Urteau will reveal those traitors, nipping an inconvenient problem in the bud early. If not taken care of, these traitors will hand the military secrets of the Republic to Straff, both allomantic and that of guns and cannon, and the New Republic's elite units will be matched on the battlefield. There is a skaa underground in the city of Urteau that Kelsier has contacts in, and this underground would be able to aid the spies, while the spies could start unrest in the city.
[ ] The Aspirant Empire. Ham is right, the sheer power of the Aspirant Empire in equaling the New Republic at home and on the battlefield could mean downfall for the New Republic, or at least an incredible hardship. However, with spies in Fadrex, this inconvenience could be averted. With advanced knowledge of military movements, armies could be ambushed, cut off, or possibly subverted to defect beforehand, and at least every battle would be fought on the New Republic's terms. In addition, the Steel Ministry has a lot of secrets dating back a thousand years, and sometimes more. These could be uncovered by the spies, giving the New Republic some potentially useful knowledge, or knowledge that could be made useful, when added to other known facts about the Final Empire.
Mistborn: Smoke and Ash
Revolution in the Final Empire
Marsh and Kelsier made it to the promontory that overlooked a certain bend in the river, and saw it, in the red sunlight. A Steel Ministry Canal barge, that looked to have a hull of copper. It was assuredly carrying millions of boxings' worth of atium and coin to Austrex, under Tevidian Tekiel's orders. Pulled by canal skaa, albeit with guards walking alongside. He smiled. The fools, trusting in skaa when they had finally found out they could cast off their chains. The guards were a step above the basics, though- Ministry Hazekillers.
Marsh turned to Kelsier. "I'll take out the guards and obligators inside the boat. You do your thing with the skaa."
Kelsier grinned. "Now, this is going to be fun."
The two dropped clips, and soared into the air. The guards raised the alarm, but the canal skaa looked up- at the Mistborn and Steel Inquisitor, working in tandem. Kelsier had got his mistcloak specifically for this, and the skaa started clamoring and shouting as he hit the ground. He heard the two common ones- Lord Kelsier, and the Survivor of Hathsin. But some others he hadn't heard before. Godslayer. Iconoclast. Revolutionary.
"Skaa, I have heard your calls for liberation!" Kelsier screamed, flaring zinc and brass, Rioting the determination, anger, and passion of the canal skaa, as well as Soothing away their hesitancy and exhaustion. The hazekillers pivoted towards him, and Kelsier could only grin. "But the only ones who can liberate you are yourselves! I can merely give you the ability to start, and see it through!"
The skaa screamed, and charged. The Ministry Hazekillers turned, but it was too late. Hazekillers were specialized in combat specifically against either Mistborn, or small groups of Allomancers. A large group of canal skaa, strong from pulling canal boats and loading and unloading cargo from almost birth, turned into revolutionaries by a Mistborn… it was the exact situation they had never trained for. The Hazekillers tried, but glass knives and dueling canes didn't really make a dent in the group- and they found their canes and knives snatched and turned against them.
The canal skaa turned to Kelsier, seeking direction. "Bring this boat back to Luthadel. The wealth contained within will be vital for the New Republic- and please do not steal any of it. Anything on these people, and on those who my brother has slain inside the barge, is fair game. And then Marsh came out of the barge, bloodied, blindfold off. The skaa's eyes grew as large as saucers, and Kelsier knew he was needed. "How many Hazekillers were inside, and how much wealth is there?" he asked.
The skaa seemed to calm down some- this was just Marsh, his brother, and despite his frightening appearance, he was the Marsh he'd always known- and Marsh was a veteran of the skaa rebellion as well, so it was possible some of these men had heard of him.
"More than outside, but when I took my blindfold off- not being able to see when it was covered with blood- they grew very frightened, enough to weaken their instincts. And yes, this appears to be a good portion of the Canton of Finance's fortune. About half- I would guess they're moving the rest overland." Marsh explained.
Kelsier Pushed himself off a coin onto the boat, and moved past the bloodied walls and carpeting, to the armored vault, selecting a few bags filled with ten-boxing coins. Marsh raised an eyebrow, before Kelsier explained his plan to him. "I'll tackle the ones that will need convincing with coin, while you tackle the ones who need convincing by a Steel Inquisitor." Marsh nodded, and the two split up- Marsh heading south along the Channerell, while Kelsier headed north.
Kelsier landed on the canal boat with a thump. Although this one wasn't pulled by skaa, but instead by oxen. Good. They were smarter than the last ones. Hopefully smart enough to recognize his offer. There was someone leading the oxen with a rope, but he didn't see Kelsier.
The sun was setting, and the mists started to appear out of thin air, cloaking the landscape in a white haze, but with tin, Kelsier was able to see the name of the canal boat- smaller and more lithe than the last barge, with a small sail atop. The Viper. This was the group, all right.
Kelsier heard the shuffling of feet behind the door thanks to his tin-enhanced senses, and so he did the best thing he could- he knocked, with a smile on his face. Was that a heartbeat he heard? Oh boy, they were scared. He heard whispering, and were there more sounds than just the sound of the water lapping at the boat he wouldn't have heard it.
And so, Kelsier turned the knob, snapping the lock as he flared pewter for a second. He opened the door, and found about a dozen heavily armed Hazekillers staring him down, with the bloody light of the sunset illuminating the interior of the boat. Kelsier smiled as he casually entered the boat, with the Hazekillers backing up, surrounding him on three sides.
This was the Mercenary Hazekiller group The Vipers, one of the top hazekiller groups in the Final Empire- and the best, only below Ministry and Noble Hazekillers.
"Why have you come here, Survivor?" one of them quietly growled.
"Why, you are mercenaries. What else could I have come here for? I'm here to make an offer." Kelsier said, happy. He threw one of the bags of coins he had taken from the Steel Ministry barge on the ground. It tipped over, spilling dozens of golden ten-boxing coins on the ground, where they shimmered in the light of the sunset. A message- a promise of wealth, and the fact that if they refused, he could kill them all without breaking a sweat, with the very coins they denied.
"If this is not enough," Kelsier said, "There is much more you will receive while in my service. And if you decide to tie yourself to the Republic, then I can promise you retirement- for veteran Hazekillers would be too valuable to waste sending them against Allomancers. We'll need our own Hazekillers, and someone who were to train them would have a long and successful career ahead of them."
The Hazekillers glanced at one another, and then Kelsier stepped out the door, closing it behind him. A minute or so later, the door reopened, and an auburn-haired man came out. And he said, "We agree, Survivor of Hathsin. The Vipers are in your employ, from now to forever- as long as you keep paying us."
"Fantastic." The light of the sunset looked like it was almost burning in Kelsier's eyes as he grinned. "Welcome to the Republic."
Marsh landed on the bank next to the canal boat. It was the middle of the night, and Marsh was getting tried. This one was pulled by horses, and had the marks of the Canton of Orthodoxy. He wondered if the Lord Prelan would be in this one- he wondered if Tevidian even knew if Vin was his daughter. It was poetic. He conceived his own downfall.
Marsh had taken off his shirt for this- it would work best if he was as Inquisitor-y as possible. He walked up the door, and found it locked. And so, flaring pewter, he ripped the door open, and pulled a bit too much, ripping it off his hinges. The Obligators in the boat jumped, as Marsh entered. "What is your wish, Your Grace?" one asked, but Marsh ignored him. He scanned the room- managing to locate the intricate tattoos upon the face of the highest ranked person in the barge, with some difficulty due to his steelsight.
He walked up to the man. "What is your name, Prelan of the Canton of Orthodoxy?" he asked the man.
"Prelan Noorden, Your Grace." the Obligator quaked in his robes. Marsh had heard of the man- a scholarly man, who was the head of the Canton of Orthodoxy's accounting department. One who had divorced himself from the reality of the Final Empire, and was cheerful.
"And why are you fleeing Luthadel in the Final Empire's darkest hour, Prelan Noorden?" he asked.
"There… there's no hope. They killed ten Steel Inquisitors, and Lord Elariel. Lord Prelan Tevidian ordered the evacuation the moment he heard of the Lord Ruler's death- I am merely just acting out his orders." Noorden said.
"Do you remember your oath, Noorden?" Marsh asked.
"Yes, I do. To serve the Lord Ruler and those he was chosen as the enforcers of his will, in the upholding of his reign."
"And his reign has ended, and I am the last Inquisitor he chose- and I am the brother of the Survivor of Hathsin. I promise you, if you turn around this canal, back to Luthadel, you and the Obligators with you will be spared, and you will have a place underneath the Survivor."
"I… ah. You're not with the Inquisitors, are you?" Noorden had realized the implications of a revolutionary Steel Inquisitor.
"I am not. Have you ever wanted to build a Canton from the ground up, Noorden?" Marsh asked the Prelan.
"I have, and understand the risks of denying. I agree." Noorden rose, slowly, and ordered the pilot to turn around.
Marsh smiled, and sat down in an empty upholstered chair. Steel Inquisitors tired quicker than Mistborn did, and he had been up for over a day. It would be nice to take the slow way back to Luthadel.
The Revolution was in full swing, and Dox was planning. Fountain Square- although the skaa had taken to calling it Victory Square- had been positively teeming for the past 24 hours. Some of Club's apprentices had built a gallows, where various noblemen were being tried by the crowd and hung- some were squirming on the noose right now. It was just yesterday when Kelsier had faced the Lord Ruler in the Fountain Square, and not only survived the Lord Ruler's attempts to kill him, but managed to call on the skaa to raise their hands against the Lord Ruler, and with that, he managed to finally kill God.
What did this mean? Some thought the world would end, some thought that Kelsier was now God, but most now found a truth- the skaa were free, and there was nothing stopping them from seeking redressement for an entire life in suffering. And Dox was now accounting the Revolution- who had fled, who had died, how much of Luthadel's wealth was intact, and so much more.
And then, into Victory Square, stepped Kless Haught. She was a Coinshot, and was surrounded by some of her House guards. So she had surrendered her house to Elend when he sought to minimize bloodshed. Interesting. Spook was leading the group through the crowd- the boy had been recognized as a core revolutionary, and was shooing off angry skaa who demanded justice- lucky that House Haught owned most of its factories in Urteau and the Northern Dominance. The guards looked around nervously at the crowd, and especially the gallows- but as guards of one of the three smallest Great Houses, they were likely safe. Kless Haught, however, seemed to be oblivious towards the ten thousand angry skaa outside her circle of guards. Either a smart woman, or a dumb one- likely the first, although she definitely was daring.
Spook led her straight towards the pavilion where Dox had set up his temporary center of government, working with some of his scribes to try and make sense of the revolution.
She stepped onto the pavilion, and looked at him. "You are Dockson?" she asked.
"I am. And you are Kless Haught." he said.
"I am. I understand the Survivor of Hathsin is not present in Luthadel right now, and I am asking you if the guarantee of safety made by Lord Venture's son and the Mistborn girl will hold."
Dockson sighed. She was still operating within a Great House's worldview "For now… yes. That may change, depending on what crimes against skaa you have committed. For example, ordering the death of someone."
"Fortunately, I haven't- but my husband, Alstir, has. There's a reason I didn't go with him, and now I hope I'll never see him again, now he's halfway to Urtea." Kless Haught had married into House Haught, a younger, beautiful coinshot marrying the old patriarch of the house. A political marriage, but her power in House Haught implied she had married to gain a measure of control over a Great House, and perhaps even ownership when Alstir Haught had died- or, in event of a Revolution.
"And why did you decide to join us?" Dockson asked.
"I can tell House Haught's fortunes in your Republic would be vastly improved beyond whatever our fate in the Final Empire would have been, or in Straff Venture's little state. I presume some of my properties are under threat?"
She was quick. "Yes, your largest properties- factories, townhouses, and more- will be seized, but I presume you'll be able to keep your Keep, but if I recall correctly, you own quite a few warehouses and canal boats- you'll likely be able to negotiate continued ownership of some of your properties in exchange for wealth."
Kless Haught nodded. "Yes, that's what I expected." she smiled. "I believe House Haught and the Republic will have a long, fruitful partnership with one another, with just some minor tweaks to how I run my factories."
Dockson was unsure how to factor this in. "If you want, you could try to restart, or maintain some of your trade networks? If you want to volunteer anyone, accountants would be useful- Luthadel needs to get back on its feet, and the sooner the better." Dox suggested.
"Oh, I will. After all, our fates are now intertwined." she said, and returned to her circle of guards, before setting back across Victory Square, in her circle of guards.
There was something off about the woman, but Dox couldn't place his finger on what. He shrugged, and went to speak to the messengers who had arrived with news from Breeze, Clubs, Sazed, and Ham from their sections of the city.
Kelsier awoke from his reminiscing of the day of the Revolution, as the chimes of the vast bells of the Great Clocktower reached Victory Square. Three Thirty. He was running low on time, and Sazed said he finished a section of research about the Ascension, and Kelsier was excited to pick it up.
But he smiled, thinking of a few months ago, when the Great Clocktower could barely reach Victory Square, and it was closed for renovations more often than not. Some questioned him when he suggested they turn Keep Hastings into a clocktower, but his wisdom was proven right. For now, clocks were for all people, rather than just the wealthy and noblemen. He Pushed against the roof he was sitting on, to the northeast- towards the University of Luthadel.
Sazed was having a productive day. He was working on putting together various unconnected quotes and artifacts of Larstaism together in a good summary of the religion. He was filling a tinmind and a pewtermind, and was tapping a small fraction of a zincmind- as well as some of the Eleventh Metal. He was starting to figure out what it did, and you never knew when some extra luck would come in handy while writing.
And then shouting interrupted his train of thought. Sazed looked up over the glasses on the bridge of his nose, annoyed. It was Tindwyl and Rindel again. He looked at Fisal, who had buried himself deeper in his work. But Sazed couldn't blame the Keeper. The Ministry of Public Betterment was looking for non-Imperial architecture to build houses and government buildings in, and that was what Fisal had devoted the past 40 years of his life to. This was what he was chosen to do.
"Why do you insist on continuing to dress like a Steward? Our people never chose those outfits- it was the Lord Ruler who enforced those garments upon us when he put us in servitude." Rindel said.
"You disrespect our traditions with your refusal to dress like a Keeper. You dress like skaa." Tindwyl haughtily stated.
Unlike Sazed himself. Larstaism was seemingly the most popular religion of his, solely because of Kelsier's speeches of how it was the faith of Mare, and contained knowledge of Scadrial before the Ascension. While some came to ask about it, they practiced a new form of it, one that stated that now the Lord Ruler had fallen, the world would be shortly remade to as it once was, and would become near-paradisiacal. Mostly, people seemed uninterested in religions- unless you considered the New Republic's cult of the state a religion.
Another loud shout entered his mind. "And what is wrong with dressing like skaa? Last I recalled, it was the skaa who cast down the Lord Ruler, while the Keepers scoffed at those among them who fought against the Lord Ruler." Rindel stated. He was waving about the butt of a rifle- a poignant metaphor for Rindel as a Keeper. For he chose to study warfare, and it was his knowledge that the New Republic craved the most- and fortunately for the Republic, Rindel was a Rouge Keeper, and here on his accord alone.
Sazed stopped tapping on his pewtermind, while tapping more of his eleventh metalmind and stood up. "Enough." he expressed loudly, "I understand both of you have great misgivings towards one another, but for the moment, our goals align. All of us wish to see the New Republic prosper in Luthadel, and with the imperial successors' rise, we cannot see us fall to infighting. When the New Republic stands alone in the south, then I can excuse infighting. But right now, all infighting does is aid our enemies."
Tindwyl and Rindel stopped their arguing, and went back to what they were doing. He liked both of them, but by God, it was hard to deal with the two of them together. But before he could sit down, the most important man in the New Republic walked into the library.
Kelsier was awed to see the sizable room- once the main hall of Keep Elariel, now the library of the University of Luthadel- filled to the brim with shelves, and all of those shelves were filled to the brim with books. He had heard the shouting, and was aware of the reasoning- while the Synod put on a unified face of all Keepers, that wasn't exactly true, and they were notably opposed by the Rouge Keeper Vedzan, who was head of Terris Kahl. And a Republican Iconoclast, as opposed to a theocrat. As long as the Synod was cooperating, though, Kelsier could ignore that. For all the former stewards aiding the administration of the New Republic was vital to its success.
Kelsier strode over to Sazed, who had gotten out the report he had written up. Something covering up the leadup to the Ascension- a very sparse topic in the records of the Keepers. This time, Kelsier wanted the cultural and religious reactions to the events that befell the world. Something Sazed was happy to provide.
"Here you go, Premier Kelsier." Sazed handed him the wad of papers.
"Please Sazed, we're friends. You were here from the beginning. Just call me Kelsier." he told the Keeper, smiling.
Kelsier looked down at the report, skimming it, finding an interesting passage, and read it aloud. "The Hero of Ages was known to almost all cultures and peoples. Various monarchs and leaders made mention of the Terris Prophecies, and it is known that the Anamnesor of the Hallant, Bennet, and the ancient Tilance peoples had some link to the Hero of Ages." He looked back up at Sazed. "But did they consider the Conquerer or Rashek the Anamnessor?"
"Well, some of them did. Others thought the Anamessor would save them from the Conquerer- the Lord Ruler that to his advantage, and claimed to be all these things, including the Hero of Ages, in the early years of his conquest and reign, before Ministry Doctrine truly solidified, although the Hero of Ages remained one of his titles." Sazed said.
"Wait, I remember something. This was in the Councilor of Khlennium's biography- Helenntion. I can't remember exactly what he called it…" Kelsier had made a leap, thanks to him studying classical governments to build the Assembly and New Republic. He was grinning from ear to ear.
"The Rabzeen, yes. Do you think that was a name, a distinct interpretation of the Hero of Ages?" Sazed asked.
"Yes. In the Conquerer's logbook, it said the the Hero of Ages would be not of his people, and Helenntion's assistant said that as well. But the Rabzeen wasn't a Khlenni figure, were they?" and his friends said Kelsier wasn't a scholar- the grin only got wider.
"No, the Rabzeen originated from the Great Lakes of Saran, and the Saranites had no real relation with the men of Terris, unlike the Urtan-Cazzi peoples. Khlennium had converted to the Saranite religion, and while it had unique traditions, it viewed the Saranites as closer to the faith. Kelsier, if what you think is right, then the myths of the Hero are found among completely unrelated peoples." Sazed looked up at Kelsier in revelation.
"That's big. It means something, but I only have suspicions so far. How goes your test of the Eleventh Metal?"
"I am certain that the metal stores luck itself. I become unlucky when storing the attribute in it, and fortunate when tapping it. I have been tapping it while I am working, in hopes of making lucky mental leaps in my understanding of various groups. But I am wondering, if your connection of the Rabzeen to the Hero of Ages might have been influenced by it…"
"This seems very different to most attributes- all but memory, of course." Kelsier commented. The Keepers had already made a discovery that revolutionized Feruchemy- when storing Identity in an aluminumind, one could make unkeyed metalminds, that all Feruchemists could access. The Synod had all Keepers create several sets of unkeyed copperminds, that contained all the information the Terris people had- and even if their creator perished, they would persist, and be accessible to all. Kelsier wondered when they would stumble across a second, or even a metal that would cause an allomantic revolution.
"I am aware, it is one of the more esoteric attributes. It is such a shame that Chromium is very hard to make- its ore is only found in a few locations, requires high temperatures to smelt, and requires aluminum to get the pure metal. The Republic is lucky that it has such a command over metallurgy." Sazed positited.
"I wonder if we'll ever get the paired metal. If it is like aluminum for other's allomantic reserves, and tapped feruchemical reserves, then would it be like duralumin for another's allomantic metal? I know feruchemy also has a relation between paired metals, and stores similar attributes, but with something as vague as fortune, it'd be something as similarly vague, but perhaps just as powerful." Kelsier theorized.
"I have no clue what it would be, Kelsier. What would you want me to work on next?" Sazed said.
"Find all mentions you can of mythological or even historical figures like the Hero of Ages, Rabzeen, or Anamnesor. Both in the future and past. If there was someone who Ascended before the Lord Ruler, that would mean the Lord Ruler just got lucky- and more importantly, it could be done again. Also, we could put together the full prophecy, which would help us understand the events surrounding the Conqueror's life and the early days following the Ascension." Kelsier said, and began to turn away, before a thought crossed his mind.
"Saze," he turned to the Keeper. "What does Terris mean?"
"To Preserve. It was a pillar of Terris culture before the Ascension, and we Keepers think the old Worldbringers did exactly that- the storage and preservation of knowledge, in addition to bringing knowledge across the land." Sazed said.
Kelsier nodded, said his goodbyes to Sazed, noticing the time on a grandfather clock- he was late again for the Directory meeting. Damn. He stuffed the report into his coat, and stepped out into the University Grounds. The Department of Public Works was maintaining the Elariel Gardens, for the benefit of all the students and teachers at the University. Sometimes, fresh air, sunshine, and the grass beneath your feet was what you needed.
But, as Premier, Kelsier did not have time for that. He threw a clip beneath his feet, and went back soaring over the city.
While the Synod rules over Terris and its people, and the New Republic has hashed out a comprehensive agreement with the Synod, sending Terris finished products, machinery, and all the various resources of Luthadel, in exchange for raw resources such as wool and copper, the ancient knowledge of the Keepers, and of course, the bureaucratic skills of the Terris Stewards, newly-unemployed thanks to the liberation of Terris, Kelsier doesn't have to support the Synod. It is highly undemocratic and theocratic, with only a small core of elder Keepers, having filtered out those who disagreed with their millennia-old policy of secrecy, actually making up the Synod. The very existence of Sazed and him joining Kelsier's crew proves them wrong in doing so, and it is entirely possible that the Lord Ruler could have been assassinated centuries ago. However, the Synod is not alone in Terris. Terris Kahl is an Iconoclast- like the New Republic- organization, one that had fought a guerilla war against the Final Empire in the decades before the Revolution, led by rouge Keepers who decided to fight instead of hide. They are led by Vedzan, but Rindel is one of their leaders, and were Terris Kahl in charge of Terris, the Keepers would definitely be able to do more to aid the New Republic and build Terris up into a equal partner without the conservatism of the Synod.
[ ] The Synod. While the Synod may be undemocratic, its rule over the Keepers and Terris as a whole is a vital one for the continuation of the agreement between the New Republic and Terris. While not ideal, the gamble of potentially losing the Republic's only ally in an abortive revolution is not one that is worth it. It is best to aid the Synod, and hope no one ever marches north in an attempt to attack Terris specifically, and is able to bypass the Army of the North.
[ ] Terris Kahl. The Terris have been beaten down, just as the skaa, but they need one of their own to liberate them from their self-perpetuating chains. Were the Terris people under the rule of Terris Kahl, they would engage in industrialization with the aid of the New Republic, and be able to shake off the docility and servitude beaten into them by the Final Empire, like the skaa did. Terris Kahl would undoubtedly build up an army, of a sort that could protect Terris from invaders.
Kelsier made his way into Mademoiselle Llana's Salon- a small restaurant on Canal Street in the Hotel District, catering to an exclusive clientele- nobles, merchants, government workers, allomancers- and in this case, the five most powerful people in the New Republic, a kandra, and a tineye. This was where the Directory met, every Copperday, to discuss plans for the next week. The four of them were already there. Dox, Minister of Republican Labor. Ham, Minister of War. Marsh, Minister of Republican Justice. Breeze, Minister of Public Betterment. Along with OreSeur, the Kandra, and Spook, the Tineye spy. The six were crowded around a table- one with a tablecloth- and waved to him.
Ham dressed as he typically did- sleeveless shirt, flattop haircut, exposing his arms, despite the winter. Breeze wore one of his suits, same with Dox. Marsh wore his typical trousers, coat, and blindfold- he had grown his hair back, and had undergone some painful procedure to remove his ministry tattoos. But sometimes, he caught the impression of the spikes beneath his blindfold, or their tips pointing out through his hair. It didn't bother him much, it was just another reminder of all they had lost. OreSeur was wearing the bones of some relatively important noble that raped a skaa girl before the revolution, and then killed her. That had earned him a trip to the noose, and after that… well, one body going to a kandra instead of the University wouldn't be noticed. Spook had reached six feet, and showed no signs of stopping.
Vin was probably recovering from a tutoring session, and Elend was reading whatever new books he could get from the University. Clubs was leading the Army of the East against the Pretender Empire and the Steeled Empire, while Yeden was leading the Army of the North, dealing with the Aspirant Empire's attempts to reclaim Mantiz. Kelsier had just seen Sazed at the University of Luthadel.
Kelsier smiled as he walked over the Directory, and sat down in an available chair, casually. "Sorry for the delay. I was at the University again. The Terris Keepers and scholars are putting down to paper many wondrous things." What went unspoken, was one thing all knew- Kelsier's obsession with the Ascension. They… didn't understand. Marsh did, a little. The Keepers did, and the people of Luthadel believed his tales of green hills and blue skies, even if they didn't understand. But they thought the power was forbidden to them, some cosmic stroke of luck handing it to the Lord Ruler a thousand years ago. As the power was taken once, it could be taken again.
The group ordered some food and drink- some pastries and meat pies, but primarily balanced dishes- Kelsier ordered mashed potatoes with steak, along with some delicious-looking glazed buns.
"And begins the seventeenth meeting of the Directory, at 5:18 in the afternoon, the second Copperday of the thirteenth month of 1022, After Ascension." Dox muttered, writing with a telescoping dip pen.
"We were going to discuss the main target of the spying bill Kelsier proposed to the Assembly- I believe we had ruled the Steeled Empire out?" Ham said.
"Ah yes, because those poor refugees from Chathram said they were abducting random skaa in the night, even small children. And we discovered that some Inquisitors, such as those made from Seekers, could pierce copperclouds." Breeze repeated their reasoning.
"I would very much not like to be sent near those Inquisitors." Spook shivered.
"It is forbidden, by my contract, for me to go near Inquisitors." OreSeur said. Kelsier still hadn't been able to figure out why that was the case, and why the creature felt safe around Marsh.
"And you still won't let us experiment with that?" Kelsier asked, smiling.
"I will not say any more." OreSeur said, frustrated.
"I do not believe the Steeled Empire even has designs on our territory." Marsh said. "We've only have skirmishes with them, and they only engage us if we move our soldiers past an imaginary line between the Ashmounts Doriel and Faleast, or Faleast and the southernmost point of the Black Lake. Not once have they moved anything north of that line." Kelsier's main issue was it being damnably hard to make eye contact with his brother with those spikes in his eyes.
"So the Steeled Empire is completely and utterly out of the question. Can kandra detect other kandra?" Dox postulated.
"Fortunately, no. So there's no worry of me being recognized by hired kandra hired by the nobility." OreSeur answered.
"So we can send you to either the Aspirant or Pretender Empires. But which one would spies be best in? Refugees and a handful of letters can only get us so far." Ham said.
"The Aspirant Empire is more powerful, in fact the most powerful imperial successor, but it's unlikely there's people with loyalty to the Aspirant Empire in Luthadel- they've preserved the government system of the Final Empire, and that is really only preferred by the Obligators themselves." Dox commented.
The Aspirant Empire was the largest successor state of the Final Empire, and had control over large portions of the Southern and Farmost Dominances, with almost full control over the entirety of the Western Dominance. It was led by the Lord Prelan Tevidian Tekiel, and they were dangerous in that regard- power and legitimacy, especially in days where legitimacy had become something many could ignore in favor of power.
"So it seems the main thing we could get out of the Aspirant Empire is knowledge of their plans in advance." Breeze said.
"And maybe knowledge of where the atium is." Ham suggested.
"If they knew where it was, they would be making moves to claim it, Hammond. So far, they've limited themselves to skirmishes, a few battles in the North, and the attempted seizure of Mount Tyrian via naval invasion a month ago." Breeze said.
"And then there is the Pretender Empire. I know there are many nobles in Luthadel who look upon the Pretender Empire highly, despite Straff's cruelty and petty obsessions. The allure of the system of the Final Empire without the restrictions placed on the nobility is one many of those with existing power have. If we send spies, then we could uncover which of the bastards in Luthadel is selling the Republic out to the Ventures. I have no doubt we are being plotted against by those nobles we trust." Kelsier suggested.
"In addition to finding out their plans, either military or just general policy goals." Marsh added.
The Pretender Empire, called the Venture Empire by non-Pretenderists, was a state ruled by Straff Venture, who resided in Urteau. This particular imperial successor has control over the entire Northern Dominance, and, using House Venture's former position as the strongest Great House, claims to be the rightful ruler of the entire Final Empire. Their former House allies and nobles in general prefer them over the two other states, as they offered much autonomy and power for nobles willing to sign up with them. Kelsier remembered the last Pretender traitor they had hung- he was screaming about how he'd own all of the skaa in Luthadel, before the hangman had pulled the wagon out.
"Remember, we managed to hide for over a year from the Final Empire. I'd be fine with either option." Spook said.
"In my opinion, either option is valid. The New Republic doesn't really have a good way to find traitors in its midst, and given the heavy Pretender skew of traitors, that would be the best option if we wanted to tackle that. And Straff's military secrets coming into our knowledge would be nice, although I would say we don't really need them. But the Aspirant Empire has about two and a half dominances, totalling about thirty million people. They equal the New Republic in population, and are the only imperial successor to do so. They'd easily be able to match our armies with equally sized ones, as time passes on. We have the advantage of being able to field guns and cannon, but cannons aren't that portable, while gunners inevitably run out of powder and shot, and affix bayonets and join the fray. Their military secrets are vital to our future success against them. They also have the advantage of being able to field small groups of koloss." Ham said.
"They do equal us militarily, but I would say our ability to face them when we are on the defensive, and set the engagements, more than makes up for that. And the Pretender Empire is stealing our own military secrets through their traitors- they could easily find out about our Allomantic secrets, or the secret of fashioning powder and guns. The Northern Dominance's large amounts of mines and factories might be able to equal us in that regard." Kelsier argued back.
The food arrived, and the group mulled over their two options, expanding on the arguments made by Kelsier and Ham. Aspirant or Pretender- military secrets or finding traitors in Luthadel? At the end of their meal, with the arrival of the bill, the Directory of the New Republic had to come to a decision…
The decision is put to a vote. What will be the main target of the spying bill Kelsier is presenting to the Assembly tomorrow? Spook, OreSeur, and some others will be sent off to the chosen target for a few months, with OreSeur playing the guise of a traitor nobleman who fled the New Republic's seizures of his property for the safety of the chosen imperial successor. If that becomes unavailable, they could always replace a local important figure with OreSeur. Kelsier will respect the chosen decision, even if he will be unhappy if the Pretender Empire is not the choice.
[ ] The Pretender Empire. Kelsier is right, the threat the traitors in their midst pose, loyal to the Pretender Straff Venture and actively working to bring the New Republic down, is too great. Spies in the Pretender Empire and Urteau will reveal those traitors, nipping an inconvenient problem in the bud early. If not taken care of, these traitors will hand the military secrets of the Republic to Straff, both allomantic and that of guns and cannon, and the New Republic's elite units will be matched on the battlefield. There is a skaa underground in the city of Urteau that Kelsier has contacts in, and this underground would be able to aid the spies, while the spies could start unrest in the city.
[ ] The Aspirant Empire. Ham is right, the sheer power of the Aspirant Empire in equaling the New Republic at home and on the battlefield could mean downfall for the New Republic, or at least an incredible hardship. However, with spies in Fadrex, this inconvenience could be averted. With advanced knowledge of military movements, armies could be ambushed, cut off, or possibly subverted to defect beforehand, and at least every battle would be fought on the New Republic's terms. In addition, the Steel Ministry has a lot of secrets dating back a thousand years, and sometimes more. These could be uncovered by the spies, giving the New Republic some potentially useful knowledge, or knowledge that could be made useful, when added to other known facts about the Final Empire.
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- Pronouns
- He/Him
The Priests of Scadrial
- Pronouns
- He/Him
"The Son of Man and the Priests Almost Met, just Hours Apart. The Monk reminded the Son of Man of His Wife, and what the Son of Man was Fighting For. However, the Worldbringer reminded the Son of Man How to Fight."
Vedzan tapped tin, sharpening his eyesight, to peer into the distance, the waves of nausea and ash from Torinost doing nothing to dissuade him. Yes, there it was. A small canal boat was being pulled by horses through the northern plains of the western dominance, with a small group of Ministry soldiers, dressed in the Aspirant colors of red, both on deck, and guarding the horses.
The idiot should know better. But, well, that would make his job harder, wouldn't it? The Ashen Hand Chiefdom was the primary aggressor in the region, with General Yeden mainly holding to the cities along the banks of the Terris River. And they rarely ranged this far south of Torinost.
Vedzan waved to his men, all Terrismen like him- but few were the eunuchs of Tathingdwen. Most of his men were those who had lived in rural Terris, and chafed under the rule of The Final Empire. They had never bowed their heads, like the Stewards, or the Synod. And for the past 20 years, they had fought with him, while the Synod hid and enjoyed its rule.
Vedzan had escaped the castrations that many Keepers had been subject, as he was born in a town outside Tathingdwen where the Obligators had judged that its inhabitants had no trace of rebellion or feruchemy, and he had been smuggled into Tathingdwen. He was a bit shorter than most Terrismen as such, standing at around six and a half feet tall, but he made up in muscle. He was strong, he had always been, and he had raced, boxed, and lifted weights in the exercise yards of Tathingdwen when he was a teen. He was very muscular, and as such, he could store much more strength, and draw on more of it.
Swords and pikes were the weapons of the nobles and skaa. His men got out their longbows and Terris Jezails, the weapons of Terrismen. When the canal boat got in range, they would open fire on all in sight with the Jezails, and then light it up with flaming arrows. He would make sure the Aspirant Empire knew who had killed this bastard. They were hunting Prelan Darian Vedes, a key manager of the Breeding Program who had slipped the Synod's loose net.
The boat approached slowly, and Vedzan got down on his hands and knees, and crawled down the hill towards the canal, being careful to stick behind rocks, and stay in shade. When he got halfway down the hill, he stopped, and waited behind a boulder.
The canal boat finally passed directly below the hill, and the gunshots started. Soldiers went down, them whirling and turning, before seeing the shadows of rifle barrels in the scrub on top of the hill. They attempted to mount a defense, hiding behind the main cabin of the boat, firing arrows at the top of the hill. And this was where Vedzan came into play.
Vedzan tapped steel, racing down the hill at the speeds only a feruchemist could. The Ministry soldiers noticed him, and aimed their arrows towards him. But by the time they fired, he had already reached the bank. Vedzan crouched, and launched himself forwards. He stored weight and tapped a large amount of speed and strength, sending himself flying right onto the boat. He increased his weight even more as he neared the wall of the cabin, and tapped gold, just in case, as he raised his arms over his head.
The wall splintered as Vedzan tore into the cabin. There were several obligators inside the cabin, and they screamed as Vedzan pulled himself inside. An obligator hit him with a dueling cane, but Vedzan swiped at his legs, sending him sprawling. Vedzan stood up to his full height, brushing splinters off his arms. The Obligators spilled back, attempting to run as Vedzan pulled detailed diagrams of obligator's eye tattoos, and he found the man he had never seen before.
"Darian Vedes!" he roared, drawing on strength as he backhanded an Obligator, sending him flying into a wall.
Vedes realized Vedzan was here for him and him specifically, and he had made it to the door- although the bastard was hesitant about going into the hail of lead outside. The Obligator turned around, and saw Vedzan lumbering towards him, and decided that the firing line was safer. He attempted to hurry out the door, but Vedzan tapped steel, and grabbed the Obligator's collar on his ornate robes, hauling him back into the cabn. Vedzan spun him around, grabbing the front of the Obligator's robes.
Vedzan looked upon Vedes' face. Twenty seven Terriswomen were made into Breeders under his management. He watched them procreate with the wretched breeder terrismen they had, hundreds of times. Three of the Terriswomen committed suicide. One his sister in law. Vedzan looked up Vedes' soul, and found it lacking.
Vedzan tapped strength and weight, pinning the Obligator in place. He raised his fist, making sure Vedes saw it.
"Terris Kahlik*, Motherfucker." Vedzan said, before tapping speed and slamming his fist straight through Vedes' skull.
Smoke rose on the horizon, meeting the falling ash as the canal boat burned. Vedzan and his men had killed them all, stacked their bodies inside the canal boat, and set it aflame, denying them the graveyards and catacombs typical of the nobles and Steel Ministry.
And now, they rose east, upon the backs of horses, some brought with them, some stolen from the canal boat, towards the Terris River, and the haven of the New Republic. They rode for half the day, before reaching a military garrison that marked the beginning of the New Republic, at the beginning of nightfall.
Vedzan was quickly approached by the officer of the garrison while resting and cleaning up after the day's ambush, who apparently had a message for him. Carrier pigeon from Luthadel, and then from horse to this small garrison.
Vedzan frowned. Rindel? It must be urgent for him to send a message by carrier pigeon, as opposed to a letter to the Terris Kahl safehouse in Mantiz. And then Vedzan found that the letter carried the personal seal of Premier Kelsier himself. Vedzan opened it up, and found a surprising turn of events.
Dear Vedzan, leader of Terris Kahl.
I have noticed your work, and I must say, I am impressed. It is not often a Terrisman spills blood against those who have wronged them for a thousand years. Your organization should be heroes of Terris, not scoffed at by the Synod. I would recommend returning to Tathingdwen, and increase the influence of Terris Kahl in the city. I believe you will find many who are receptive to your message, as I did in Luthadel, despite what everyone said and believed.
Were Terris Kahl to attempt to overthrow the Synod, they would find no complaints from the New Republic- perhaps even aid in their endeavors. But I would recommend getting as many Keepers on your side beforehand- a soft coup is best, and the New Republic's health depends on the Keepers' survival. I do not want to see Terris burn. I am aware all the Keepers in Luthadel are at the very least heterodox to the Synod, so I am willing to send some of them back in exchange for some Keepers who may be more of a hassle than an asset in your plan.
I know this is a lot to ask for you, but the health of our two nations are intertwined. We care for the health of Terris, but find Synodic Terris sickly. We are certain Iconoclast Terris would be much healthier, and able to both defend itself and aid the New Republic in both times of war and the inevitable times of peace. Please memorize and destroy this letter after receiving it.
The Premier Minister of the New Republic, Kelsier, Mistborn.
Vedzan smiled, as he put the memory of this letter into his coppermind, and re-read it, before tossing it into a cooking fire.
Well, the Premier's recognized me, and wants me to rule Terris- without destroying the Keepers as an organization. I'll have to work in Tathingdwen with the Synod, but I might need some aluminum to prevent myself from throttling them. I still have a lot of networks in Tathingdwen, and the Premier wants me to get other Keepers on board, although Rindel's better for that.
Vedzan grinned. Yes, things were looking up indeed.
Straff Venture smiled as Enfram Entrone squirmed under his lambasting of the pathetic man.
"You thought you could stay in Luthadel, could you? Just fly into the arms of the dimwitted skaa shepherded by their anarchist allomancer half-breeds, and keep ruling all your estates?"
Straff gave Enfram time to respond, but all he did was huff, and drum his fingers against the table nervously.
"And then you learn exactly why the skaa can never rule a state of their own, and barely manage to slip away with your life, and a few candlesticks. And then you come to me." Straff's grin was wide.
"You come to my Empire, to my city, and to Keep Venture. All to beg me for aid. Well you know what? I'm in a good mood today. There's some forests in the north that've been taken over by bandits who killed their last nobles- you can have them. You just need to defeat the bandits first, and then you can get whatever they haven't snatched up. Like trees. And old and ugly skaa. Maybe even a few kids that couldn't hold a spear." Straff was almost laughing.
And now Enfram protested. "Emperor Venture, House Entrone requires an initial investment, of some sort. I know you purged House Devaneux, could you perhaps some of their properties? Keep Devaneux lies empty, I am aware."
Straff laughed. "Keep Devaneux shall lay out of your hands! Unless of course, you could cough up enough boxings to purchase it." Straff snickered.
"There has to be something House Entrone could have." Enfram paled.
"Just testing the limits of my good mood, are you? Well you're in luck. There's an old Hays townhouse no one else wants to buy. You can have it. Take it, or leave it."
Entrone frowned, and then stopped. "I'll take it." he said Ah, what a shame. But Straff hadn't laughed like that in years, so as all things were considered, the exchange was complete.
Maybe even 'Lord' Entrone could come to balls- and Straff could not only use his influence from being Emperor to prevent the other nobles from talking to him, but also mock him. That would be nice.
"Now get out of my sight." Straff turned around, and waved the Lord away.
"Yes, Emperor Venture." Enfram said before he slinked away.
Now why did Straff feel like something was off? He patted his pockets, feeling his coin pouch, and the note inside, still in his pocket. He shook his head, and then walked to his mistress's quarters.
Spook walked through the dark and quiet streets of Urteau. It was an unusual city- vast ditches in the ground dominated the city, and they looked as if they were almost carved from the earth. There used to be canals, Terringdwel had said, before they went dry, the Urtan River diverted for some reason at the Lord Ruler's personal behest. There were a few bridges crossing them, but skaa were forbidden to use them- if Spook was caught out past the curfew, he would get in a lot of trouble that would end the Republic's spying venture in the city.
And so Spook had to descend into the streetslots, and climb out their other side, dodging guard patrols on his way. But eventually, he reached his goal. The western side of the city had a vast slum, called the Harrows. On the backside of a tenement, he found a door, with light streaming out of it, and he knocked eight times.
"Who's there?" a voice asked from inside.
"The Luthadel Flame." Spook replied.
"Burns Bright Tonight." the voice from inside said.
"Umm… From Now to Forevermore?" Spook hoped he had got that right.
The door opened, and Spook hurried in. It was a skaa speakeasy, selling cheap and easily made liquor, as well as providing a place for gambling and card games. There was no one behind the bar, and so Spook turned to the man who had invited him in.
The source of the voice was a brown-haired skaa, with a similarly brown beard, and bright blue eyes, in red trousers. "You're a little young." the man commented.
"Don't worry, I'm not the main operative. He wants to tell you that he'll be meeting you at a small dilapidated townhouse, the former Hays residence, in the northern city, at 6 pm tomorrow."
The man nodded. "Good, I know where that is, and I can hand over the speakeasy to Olid for that time. Now what's your name, boy?"
"Spook, what's yours?"
"My name is Quellion, Spook. Welcome to Urteau."
Kelsier got out of the salon at about six, and the red sun was setting over Luthadel. He wiped his hands- sticky with glazed sugar- on his handkerchief, and remembered the coincidences that allowed them to have the sweet white substance- three months ago.
It was your typical summer day in the New Republic. The state had taken shape from its early months, and Kelsier was walking along Canal Street in the Hotel District, due to a policy that he should exercise his legs once a day, when he saw something upon the side of the wall that stopped him dead. Someone had painted a mural. And he knew instantly who it was.
Mare's eyes looked down at the flower in her hands. Two more flowers were in her long dark hair. A blue upside-down bell, with a white center. She sat, relaxed, a light smile on her face, in a flowerbed, all composed of the same type of flower, surrounded by green ferns and bushes. Her leg, foot bare, dandled off the bed, where green vines trailed down from the flowerbed. Another cluster of flowers sat at the bottom of the mural, red and star-shaped. What were possibly yellow flowers in the background dissolved into golden specks, and a bright golden halo appeared behind her head. It was painted on a canvas of a very bright yellow, and on the bottom right, below the vines, appeared the name 'Ironis'.
Kelsier felt a tear, warm and wet, fall down his nose, and down onto the ash-dusted street below. They came as he choked, a small pain in his throat. He put his hand against hers, and made a prayer, as he matched Mare's faint smile. I'm doing it Mare. The Central Dominance is free. The Keepers have come to Luthadel. And- if there is any evidence that I have made things better, even just the slightest amount, is this mural here.
Kelsier dried his face, and cleaned his nose with his handkerchief. The artist was talented, although he didn't get it perfectly right. Kelsier didn't know if there was any depiction of Mare. The artist must've been a Larstaist- Mare's religion she accepted from Sazed, having returned from the dead a second time to be followed by a small group of inspired people in Luthadel. The artist must've had to a chat with Sazed about direction for their painting. There were a few people who were really getting into art. Even some who called themselves monks, who lived off bumming money and a room from friends or some intrigued merchants or nobles, and created paintings, songs, or books and poems.
Kelsier thought as he moved on, was Mare a saint to them? He knew they preached that he would return clear skies and green meadows to the world, which tied them into the greater Survivorist movement. He was just vaguely disappointed in himself for not managing to successfully advert that, but that was what he was doing for the years between the Pits and the Victory at Fountain Square. Shaping himself up into a worshipable figure, then martyring himself. But that death didn't come, and thought of Marsh's words. Finish the job. Making things better was an endless task, and that's what Marsh meant, but there was only one way to finish the job. And that was clear skies and green meadows.
As for Mare as a saint? He was mostly okay with it. They were remembering her, even if they never met her. Her legacy inspired them all. A final tear trickled down his face, but he dabbed it up before it could fall.
Kelsier continued down Canal Street, before he arrived at his destination. The Traveler Returning Hotel, one of the largest hotels that managed to survive, and primarily hosted travelers from other lands, primarily Terris. A string with many triangular-shaped colorful flags hung from the balconies, and the flag of Terris hung from one of them, while the flag of the New Republic hung from the other. Kelsier wondered if it was for in recognition, for non-Teris visitors to the hotel, or by some of the Terris Kahl he had been hearing about from the Terrismen?
But today, it was a visitor from somewhere outside the the grasp of any of the imperial successors, one whose state was within reach of the New Republic. And that was the Southern Islands. Through Austrex and Lancagne, was nothing but ocean between the Austrex Commune and Southern Islands. Kelsier should have known they'd have managed to form a state. They were the last ones to rebel en masse against the Final Empire, stopping 200 years ago. Although the only claimants they could have sided with were the Steel Inquisitors or the Aspirant Empire… and the islands were heavily dominated by nobles. It could be either revolution or a noble state. But nobles willing to side with the Republic, of their own accord?
Kelsier entered the Traveler Returning hotel. It had downgraded some, but the wallpaper, decorations, and some furniture remained from its height. There were a few Terrismen chatting in the lobby, and they stopped to look at him. He wondered what the Terrismen thought of him- the former imperial peoples and the Terris were culturally disconnected, and Kelsier had only found himself in Terris for a short time period during his years wandering across the Final Empire, kindling hope, and the Terris didn't really seem receptive to his speeches of liberation.
But now they had to take their destiny into their own hands. The revolution in Tathingdwen was relatively peaceful, apparently- the most violence that had occurred were many keepers ganging up on the two Steel Inquisitors, a battle that did cost some lives, but ended with the Inquisitors slain. All the Terrismen had just… began following the Synod, and had arrested the Obligators who hadn't fled the city. And after that, well, they publicly guillotined them, but a lot of the soldiers and nobles in the city, if they didn't try to fight back, were allowed to leave.
The Terrismen despised the Obligators the most of all, for it was them who were their visible oppressors. A thousand years of castrations and breeding people like animals had ensured that they would have no mercy for them. With the nobles, a few haughty and arrogant nobles going to Terris every summer for hikes in the hills did not make a lasting grudge.
But Kelsier was not here to meet a Terrisman. A finely dressed, gray-haired nobleman had recognized him. "Light blond hair, hawk-faced, scars on arms. That's him." he muttered, from across the room.
A smile grew on the nobleman's face, and he walked up to Kelsier. He bowed, and said, "Lord Kelsier, I am Daren Fathvell, Ambassador of the Oligarchy of the Southern Islands, here at your service."
Kelsier waved him off. "Premier Minister or just Premier will do. There are no lords in Luthadel." Kelsier said.
"Of course, Premier Kelsier. Why don't we sit down? I have a nice bottle of Isdath to smooth over any problems." Isdath was a very nice brand of sweet red wine, grown in the hills outside of the city of Isdathleux, the capital of the Southern Islands.
"That would be good." Kelsier said, smiling. Daren nodded his head, and led Kelsier over to some of the fancy chairs, where he uncorked the bottle.
"Old vintage, 920." Daren said, as he poured the wine into some glasses.
"That was the tail end of a fairly large-scale rebellion in Luthadel. Its higher-ups were mostly composed of allomancers, and they got further than most. But the Inquisitors definitely feasted well when it was crushed." Kelsier commented.
"Wouldn't know anything about that." Daren said, but then he seemed to recall some memory. "Ah, that was around the time of the last House War, that ended Fathvell's loss of the lordship of the Southern Islands."
"But you got back in control some decades later. Now, tell me Daren, why are you here, in the heart of Iconoclasm, on behalf of nobles?" Kelsier asked the man.
"I… errr, it's not all nobles, you see. We've given skaa merchants land and estates, and we've even given skaa rebels seats in our government."
Kelsier raised an eyebrow. "What sort of skaa rebels?" he asked.
"Pirates. They're descendants of those who survived the Great Surinsulindic Rebellion's crushing." Daren said.
"That sounds promising. What's the makeup of your government, and why is it that way?" Kelsier asked him.
"Well, we have an Assembly, like you, but it only has nine seats. Three are dedicated for nobles, three are for skaa merchants, and three are for skaa pirates." Daren said.
"And what exactly qualifies someone for a seat on your Assembly?" Kelsier asked.
"Uhh… wealth." Daren replied.
Kelsier raised an eyebrow, and Daren started to look uncomfortable. And then Kelsier laughed it off. "It's not the best political system, but it's miles better than the Pretender or Aspirant Empires, or whatever the hell the Steeled Empire has. And the skaa are free?"
"Yes, the skaa are not owned by anyone. And, and, they are paid." Daren clarified.
"All right. So what's your proposal, and why are coming to me, over the Aspirant Empire?" Kelsier asked the man.
"Well… we had a falling out with Tevidian. Didn't send him reinforcements due to unrest in the highlands and among the pirates. And then Austrex fell, and he branded Lord Fathvell a heretic, and excommunicated him." Daren took a long sip of his Isdath. "House Fathvell had to decentralize power, or risk falling entirely. It hashed something out with the other houses, but unrest continued. It hashed out an agreement with wealthy and prominent skaa landowners, granting them independence from their sponsor houses, but the pirates grew in strength, and the waters of the Southern Sea became unsafe. And then we brokered peace with the cooperative pirates, pardoned them and made them traders in exchange for promises to not… well, be pirates. And now, we're finally looking out again. But we've found little trading opportunities. Fareau is under the full control of the Inquisitors, and we war with them in Cape Solom and the Remote Dominance. The ports of the Aspirant Empire are closed off to us. And the only ports that are open to us are Lancagne and Austrex, and right now… well, the Austrex Commune isn't that receptive towards anyone not the Republic. I've come here to bargain trade rights, and hopefully an alliance, with the New Republic." Daren explained.
"And why have you come, asking for trade with us?" Kelsier asked. "The Southern Islands are rich."
"We are rich… in expensive goods. It's all plantations. After the last rebellion, the Lord Ruler closed most of our mines, and put extensive laws on what we could or couldn't make or grow. Imported enough grain and foodstuffs from the Southern Dominance. We can't eat silk, tobacco, or dyes, Kelsier. The last meals I had before I left were wine grapes and fish." And here it was. They were poor in everything else, and had come begging- although in the guise of a trader with bolts of silk, who was starving.
"I understand. So we send you grain, machinery, ores, and other foodstuffs, and you send us the luxuries?" Kelsier asked Daren.
"Yes. We have silk, tobacco, spices, sugar, dyes, cotton, and wine, and I know the New Republic has voices asking for these luxuries. We hope you will be able to talk Baz'en Wraithkiller in Austrex into allowing us access to the Commune's ports" Daren said.
Kelsier thought it over. An alliance was on the table, as well. But these were nobles, no matter how much theoretical rights they handed the skaa. In a nation defined by wealth… well, who had the most wealth? The nobles who had lorded over the southern islands for the past thousand years, or some skaa whose fortunes, were at most, a few decades old, and depended on the charity of the nobles? Maybe not an alliance, but he knew that if the nobles were reduced to eating fish and wine grapes, the skaa must be even more reduced. Denying wouldn't hurt them, and after all, they were not an imperial claimant.
Kelsier gives Daren his answer, and works on passing a bill in the Assembly, hashing out a deal, which is fully entrenched by the time he eats that glazed donut three months later.
[ ] Trade Only. Deliberately aiding the Oligarchy is not a good idea, as the New Republic has designs on its territory, after it manages to defeat the imperial claimants. The Oligarchy likely knows this. It also might be hiding something the New Republic doesn't want known about domestic conditions. Enough foodstuffs, metals, and machinery for the Oligarchy to eke out some measure of self-sufficiency, but allow the Republic to gain an economic hold on the Oligarchy.
[ ] Non-Aggression Pact. An actual alliance is out of the question- the Oligarchy is barely holding onto its mainland territories of half the Remote Dominance and Cape Solom, but aiding the Oligarchy in building up its domestic production capabilities would go to it being to hold onto its territory, and push back the Steeled Empire.
Kelsier finished wiping his hands, and after putting his handkerchief away, dropped a coin, and began Pushing himself to the northeast, finding himself crossing the Old Wall Bridge, and skirting the edge of the Palatial District, through the Argent Quarter. It was wonderful how many people were out at night, although few of them saw him dashing through the mists.
Kelsier landed upon a roof, he saw Keep Venture blazing in the mists ahead of him. Well, it didn't really blaze like it used to. More than half of the keep was dark, with many of its decorations and artifacts sold off to regain a measure of prosperity Elend's House had in Luthadel.
But he knew Vin would be in there. He smiled, and prepared to see his daughter.
Vin had her head in Elend's lap, but the young man, once again, had his nose in a book. The room was well-lit, it being a small sunroom, although at this time, the only view you had out the window was that of the mists. Elend said it was his favorite reading room when he was a boy, and he took her there often, when they had some free time.
"There's just so much to read." Elend commented in awe. Sheesh, if he only knew.
"The Keepers are doing so much to bring back ancient knowledge. If only Kell didn't insist on having me stuff my head with it." Vin complained.
"It's not just you. Classes are walk-in at the University, and he has Terringdwel tutoring Spook as well, much to both their chagrins." Elend said.
"At least you're having fun." Vin said.
"So much history is in here. And I thought the Book of the False Dawn was as far as you could get… although that was something I learned the moment I heard the Lord Ruler was dead, slain by the Survivor." he said.
"What's this one about?" Vin asked.
"Government. The Lord Ruler was a monarch, pure and simple, and I'm thinking… I don't know. It seems like governments and politics are happening very fast these days, and history is being made rapidly. Like… the New Republic. Six months old, and it's relatively stable, is one of the two most powerful nations in the world, after the largest imperial successor, and it's doing things that have never done before. Everyone above the age of 20, and it's working- although I would say that the executions of some of the most prominent nobles, and the fleeing of half of Luthadel's nobles, along with a stigma against nobles gained from the centuries of misrule has led to the New Republic finding itself with a majority of skaa in the Assembly- theoretically, it should be easy for a noble, with their pre-existing wealth and power, to buy votes, or dissuade others from voting." Elend rambled.
"Enfram Entrone tried that, didn't he? And he ended up on the noose." Vin commented.
"Yes. I think… the current system of the New Republic is a stable one, but it's not the most humane." Elend said.
"Mmm. I don't think you can get much better. There's eight nations on Scadrial, and I can't really name a better one. Terris, maybe, but they're actively searching for Obligators who were involved in the Breeding Program, and executing them publicly. I don't know much about Vershad and his state, but there's probably not many nobles in the Crescent Dominance. Maybe the Ashen Hands Chiefdom, if you count that as a state? But I've heard of them executing nobles who attempted to seek refuge from the two cities that the Koloss sacked via suffocating them in ash. Violence is a part of life, Elend. The New Republic's done the best job you can ask them to." Vin had studied international politics today, and was excited to show off her newfound knowledge.
Elend sighed. "I know, Vin, it's just that… there's a better world that can be made, I know that. If we ended the executions, I know many terrible men would walk free. But could they at least be a bit more lenient, or use guillotines?"
Vin commented, "That's what the New Republic's doing. Building a better world, for all of us. Oh, that's why he's so insisting on having me tutored! He's insistent that education is the future, and so… I'm the next generation."
Vin heard a rapping at the window, and jumped to her feet almost as instantly as she heard that. And the window opened, the clasps unlocked to allow Mistborn to enter the room. And Kelsier stepped through.
"How's your day been?" Kelsier asked, smiling, as Vin ran up to him.
"Oh, I suffered through my tutoring lessons. Do you know who Vershad is?" Vin asked him.
"Oh, learned about international politics? I hope you're ready to have many more lessons about it, as the New Republic grows. But Vershad… he's a skaa leader, one of four worldwide, counting the Chief of the Ashen Hands. He's the only skaa who's crowned himself king, and I hear from the Keepers he was a powerful bandit chief prior to the Collapse, given support by a Terris Scholar sent to the Dominance to catalog the traditions and unique developments of the Wasted Men. All I know is he calls his Kingdom that of the Burning Crescent." He had actually met with the Terris Keeper who organized the Keeper's scholars, and knew a lot about events in the Dominance- second to the peoples living in the dominance at the edge of the burnlands.
"Could he help us with the Pretender Empire?" Vin asked.
"No, the population of the Crescent Dominance is very low, and there's a range of hills that mark the border between the Pretender Empire and Crescent Dominance. I presume he's also preoccupied with fighting the Steeled Empire. The Urtan Heights- the mountains between the Steeled Empire and Pretender Empire- end before reaching the Crescent Dominance, so there's no natural borders between the Steeled Empire and Burning Crescent." he explained.
Vin nodded, and went to grab a few metal vials, and her mistcloak. Leaving Kelsier alone in the room with Elend. "How's your reading going?" the Premier asked the young lord.
"Well, there's a lot coming out of the University as of late. The Terrismen really kept a lot safe from the fires of the Steel Ministry."
"Is that Hadren?" Kelsier asked, catching the title.
"Yes, yes it is." Elend said.
"Republics and Empires, I presume. Such a shame that he got a hook through his throat."
"Yes sir, for so long revolutionaries and philosophers have been cut down before they've reached their height." Elend commented.
"Oh come on, Elend. You're very talented. Leave Philen and Penrod in the Monarchists behind, and come join the Iconoclasts. Lords are on their way out, and you're here at the beginning of a new era. A king shall never reign in Luthadel again, and you could be the next generation of revolutionaries and Assemblymen."
Elend sat, silently, for a moment. "I will consider it." the young lord said.
"Wonderful." Kelsier smiled. And then Vin came back, having changed into her Mistborn clothes.
The two Mistborn threw themselves out the window into the night. Kelsier was considerate enough to close the window using iron, but it hit the windowsill and bounced back, leaving it slightly ajar. Mist and chill winter night air began to seep into the room, and when it reached Elend, he shrugged, got up, and closed the window fully.
Vin and Kelsier raced across the rooftops of Luthadel, heading south. "Do you have a new metal?" Vin asked.
"Yep, and I have no idea what it does!" Kelsier grinned.
Vin laughed, and raced on ahead.
The two launched themselves over thoroughfares, passing by Kredik Shaw looming out of the mist, and into the field of chimneys and the few smokestacks of the Industrial District. Kelsier led Vin past Southbridge, and to the Brassworks. Where the Brassgate slums used to be- now cleared, its inhabitants having taken better housing elsewhere, either the mansions and townhouses of the nobles, or having set up the new Brassgate, outside the walls of Luthadel.
Now, vast factories, set up after the Revolution, churned out a myriad of goods, weapons, alone matching the rest of Luthadel by sheer output. It was the Brassworks, and where several departments resided- the Department of Allomancy, the Department of Military Engineering, the Department of Republican Industry, and the Department of Republican Engineering. The smokestacks increased in number as they headed south.
Tonight, they were heading to the Department of Allomancy- where Terion was working late, as he often did. Vin was excited to see the new metal, but she knew Kelsier wouldn't let her know anything about it beforehand. It was likely the paired metal to aluminum, or the paired metal to chromium. Most likely aluminum, although there was always the small chance one of the temporal external metals had been discovered.
But something was nagging at Vin, and so, as they perched atop one of the smokestacks in the district. And so, she expressed her feelings. "Why do you leave me out?" Vin asked.
Kelsier said, "I try to include you. You have an open invitation to all the Assembly meetings, my meetings with various government members, and the Directory's weekly meetings. I know you find the Assembly meetings boring- I do too- but you could join the other meetings."
"Not those meetings. Sometimes you head out, to lead armies, or kill some people who need killing. Mistborn things. And I'm not invited" Vin asked.
"Ah. Vin, I…" how could Kelsier risk her?
"I don't need protection. I've done enough training. I killed that Elariel Mistborn during my fight with Shan Venture. I've killed Steel Inquisitors, for Heaven's sake. These weekly training sessions are good, but it's not enough for me. I'm Mistborn. I'm born to kill people, Kelsier."
"I know. It's just that…"
"Mare. I remind you of her, you've said this. We've been together for a year and a half now, and I'm almost an adult- 5 months until I turn 18." Vin said.
Kelsier nodded. "Alright." he said, smiling.
"Wait, really?" Vin asked, excited.
Kelsier laughed. "You're going to need to start attending the meetings of the Directory, first, and I'll ask Terringdwel to switch to some more practical lessons, while I'll take you out to some safer excursions. Get you used to the New Republic's system, and get others used to you. You say you're ready, and I hear you. But you're just ready to start along the path of being an Iconoclast Mistborn. Tell you what- when you turn 18, I'll take you out and have you join me in a battle. Or maybe we could try and kill Straff Venture- no, would probably make things too awkward with Elend. Maybe go kill another inquisitor?"
"I would like to kill Tevidian." Vin said.
Kelsier laughed. "What a thing to do for your 18th birthday! I didn't suggest it because… well, he's your dad."
"He's not my dad anymore. Can we go and test the 14th metal?" Vin asked.
"Of course." The two resumed their jumping across the rooftops, before reaching a small building- a former warehouse that used to be at the edge of the slum, now the headquarters of the Department of Allomancy. The two walked in, and found Terion at a desk, several lamps illuminating the room. A small silvery bar of metal sat on the desk.
"Ah, Premier Kelsier, Vin. Here is Duralumin- 96% aluminum, 4% copper. I believe this will be the last new allomantic metal for some time- chromium's properties are poorly understood, and the metal is rare enough that it will take a lot of time to gather enough to do experimentation. With the external temporal metals… well, there are some things that are just plainly undiscovered, and while Monsieur Marsh and the Keepers have been helpful in pointing me in the right directions, it seems as if neither of the external temporal metals were ever discovered." Terion handed the silvery bar to Kelsier.
Kelsier nodded. "I will get you more chromium, but for now, try out testing the properties of the alloys you made. One of them has to have a non-allomantic use." Terion nodded, and Kelsier turned to Vin.
The two walked out of the forge onto the misty streets of the Brassworks, illuminated by a lamp hanging from the door of the Department of Allomancy. "So I tried this, burned, but it didn't do anything- just burned quickly, like Chromium when not touching an Allomancer or Feruchemist." he said.
Vin nodded, as Kelsier filed away some of it onto his handkerchief. He swallowed it down with a flask of water, and filed more flakes off, and handed it to Vin to do the same. Kelsier searched for the metal paired to aluminum, and found it. He burned it.
Nothing happened. It burned quickly, like aluminum and chromium when just burning. And then Vin cried out in pain. Kelsier whirled, turning to the girl, catching her in his arms, not sure what to do. She gasped, and moaned in pain. But as soon as it started, the pain seemed to stop, and she got back to her feet, steadying herself against Kelsier.
"Are you ok?" Kelsier asked, quietly.
"Yes, just stunned. I was burning tin when I burned duralumin, and… my tin's gone." Vin said.
"What happened?" Kelsier asked, letting Vin go.
"It was like tin, tenfold. My own heartbeat thudded in my head, the chill air turned to a searing cold. Kelsier, this could be the aluminum of Allomancy that you were looking for." Vin said.
Kelsier burned some pewter, and felt, in a flash, he grew much stronger, and much more resistant to what little was going on in the outside world. The gears started to move. "If you're feeling well enough, we could try jumping the Channerel?"
Vin smiled, "I would love that."
The two Mistborn replenished their metals, and Pushed away, to jump the largest river in the city.
*Terris Kahl means 'Free Terris'. -ik means something like 'state of', and so Terris Kahlik would mean 'Terris is now free'.
Mistborn: Smoke and Ash
Revolution in The Final Empire
Vedzan tapped tin, sharpening his eyesight, to peer into the distance, the waves of nausea and ash from Torinost doing nothing to dissuade him. Yes, there it was. A small canal boat was being pulled by horses through the northern plains of the western dominance, with a small group of Ministry soldiers, dressed in the Aspirant colors of red, both on deck, and guarding the horses.
The idiot should know better. But, well, that would make his job harder, wouldn't it? The Ashen Hand Chiefdom was the primary aggressor in the region, with General Yeden mainly holding to the cities along the banks of the Terris River. And they rarely ranged this far south of Torinost.
Vedzan waved to his men, all Terrismen like him- but few were the eunuchs of Tathingdwen. Most of his men were those who had lived in rural Terris, and chafed under the rule of The Final Empire. They had never bowed their heads, like the Stewards, or the Synod. And for the past 20 years, they had fought with him, while the Synod hid and enjoyed its rule.
Vedzan had escaped the castrations that many Keepers had been subject, as he was born in a town outside Tathingdwen where the Obligators had judged that its inhabitants had no trace of rebellion or feruchemy, and he had been smuggled into Tathingdwen. He was a bit shorter than most Terrismen as such, standing at around six and a half feet tall, but he made up in muscle. He was strong, he had always been, and he had raced, boxed, and lifted weights in the exercise yards of Tathingdwen when he was a teen. He was very muscular, and as such, he could store much more strength, and draw on more of it.
Swords and pikes were the weapons of the nobles and skaa. His men got out their longbows and Terris Jezails, the weapons of Terrismen. When the canal boat got in range, they would open fire on all in sight with the Jezails, and then light it up with flaming arrows. He would make sure the Aspirant Empire knew who had killed this bastard. They were hunting Prelan Darian Vedes, a key manager of the Breeding Program who had slipped the Synod's loose net.
The boat approached slowly, and Vedzan got down on his hands and knees, and crawled down the hill towards the canal, being careful to stick behind rocks, and stay in shade. When he got halfway down the hill, he stopped, and waited behind a boulder.
The canal boat finally passed directly below the hill, and the gunshots started. Soldiers went down, them whirling and turning, before seeing the shadows of rifle barrels in the scrub on top of the hill. They attempted to mount a defense, hiding behind the main cabin of the boat, firing arrows at the top of the hill. And this was where Vedzan came into play.
Vedzan tapped steel, racing down the hill at the speeds only a feruchemist could. The Ministry soldiers noticed him, and aimed their arrows towards him. But by the time they fired, he had already reached the bank. Vedzan crouched, and launched himself forwards. He stored weight and tapped a large amount of speed and strength, sending himself flying right onto the boat. He increased his weight even more as he neared the wall of the cabin, and tapped gold, just in case, as he raised his arms over his head.
The wall splintered as Vedzan tore into the cabin. There were several obligators inside the cabin, and they screamed as Vedzan pulled himself inside. An obligator hit him with a dueling cane, but Vedzan swiped at his legs, sending him sprawling. Vedzan stood up to his full height, brushing splinters off his arms. The Obligators spilled back, attempting to run as Vedzan pulled detailed diagrams of obligator's eye tattoos, and he found the man he had never seen before.
"Darian Vedes!" he roared, drawing on strength as he backhanded an Obligator, sending him flying into a wall.
Vedes realized Vedzan was here for him and him specifically, and he had made it to the door- although the bastard was hesitant about going into the hail of lead outside. The Obligator turned around, and saw Vedzan lumbering towards him, and decided that the firing line was safer. He attempted to hurry out the door, but Vedzan tapped steel, and grabbed the Obligator's collar on his ornate robes, hauling him back into the cabn. Vedzan spun him around, grabbing the front of the Obligator's robes.
Vedzan looked upon Vedes' face. Twenty seven Terriswomen were made into Breeders under his management. He watched them procreate with the wretched breeder terrismen they had, hundreds of times. Three of the Terriswomen committed suicide. One his sister in law. Vedzan looked up Vedes' soul, and found it lacking.
Vedzan tapped strength and weight, pinning the Obligator in place. He raised his fist, making sure Vedes saw it.
"Terris Kahlik*, Motherfucker." Vedzan said, before tapping speed and slamming his fist straight through Vedes' skull.
Smoke rose on the horizon, meeting the falling ash as the canal boat burned. Vedzan and his men had killed them all, stacked their bodies inside the canal boat, and set it aflame, denying them the graveyards and catacombs typical of the nobles and Steel Ministry.
And now, they rose east, upon the backs of horses, some brought with them, some stolen from the canal boat, towards the Terris River, and the haven of the New Republic. They rode for half the day, before reaching a military garrison that marked the beginning of the New Republic, at the beginning of nightfall.
Vedzan was quickly approached by the officer of the garrison while resting and cleaning up after the day's ambush, who apparently had a message for him. Carrier pigeon from Luthadel, and then from horse to this small garrison.
Vedzan frowned. Rindel? It must be urgent for him to send a message by carrier pigeon, as opposed to a letter to the Terris Kahl safehouse in Mantiz. And then Vedzan found that the letter carried the personal seal of Premier Kelsier himself. Vedzan opened it up, and found a surprising turn of events.
Dear Vedzan, leader of Terris Kahl.
I have noticed your work, and I must say, I am impressed. It is not often a Terrisman spills blood against those who have wronged them for a thousand years. Your organization should be heroes of Terris, not scoffed at by the Synod. I would recommend returning to Tathingdwen, and increase the influence of Terris Kahl in the city. I believe you will find many who are receptive to your message, as I did in Luthadel, despite what everyone said and believed.
Were Terris Kahl to attempt to overthrow the Synod, they would find no complaints from the New Republic- perhaps even aid in their endeavors. But I would recommend getting as many Keepers on your side beforehand- a soft coup is best, and the New Republic's health depends on the Keepers' survival. I do not want to see Terris burn. I am aware all the Keepers in Luthadel are at the very least heterodox to the Synod, so I am willing to send some of them back in exchange for some Keepers who may be more of a hassle than an asset in your plan.
I know this is a lot to ask for you, but the health of our two nations are intertwined. We care for the health of Terris, but find Synodic Terris sickly. We are certain Iconoclast Terris would be much healthier, and able to both defend itself and aid the New Republic in both times of war and the inevitable times of peace. Please memorize and destroy this letter after receiving it.
The Premier Minister of the New Republic, Kelsier, Mistborn.
Vedzan smiled, as he put the memory of this letter into his coppermind, and re-read it, before tossing it into a cooking fire.
Well, the Premier's recognized me, and wants me to rule Terris- without destroying the Keepers as an organization. I'll have to work in Tathingdwen with the Synod, but I might need some aluminum to prevent myself from throttling them. I still have a lot of networks in Tathingdwen, and the Premier wants me to get other Keepers on board, although Rindel's better for that.
Vedzan grinned. Yes, things were looking up indeed.
Straff Venture smiled as Enfram Entrone squirmed under his lambasting of the pathetic man.
"You thought you could stay in Luthadel, could you? Just fly into the arms of the dimwitted skaa shepherded by their anarchist allomancer half-breeds, and keep ruling all your estates?"
Straff gave Enfram time to respond, but all he did was huff, and drum his fingers against the table nervously.
"And then you learn exactly why the skaa can never rule a state of their own, and barely manage to slip away with your life, and a few candlesticks. And then you come to me." Straff's grin was wide.
"You come to my Empire, to my city, and to Keep Venture. All to beg me for aid. Well you know what? I'm in a good mood today. There's some forests in the north that've been taken over by bandits who killed their last nobles- you can have them. You just need to defeat the bandits first, and then you can get whatever they haven't snatched up. Like trees. And old and ugly skaa. Maybe even a few kids that couldn't hold a spear." Straff was almost laughing.
And now Enfram protested. "Emperor Venture, House Entrone requires an initial investment, of some sort. I know you purged House Devaneux, could you perhaps some of their properties? Keep Devaneux lies empty, I am aware."
Straff laughed. "Keep Devaneux shall lay out of your hands! Unless of course, you could cough up enough boxings to purchase it." Straff snickered.
"There has to be something House Entrone could have." Enfram paled.
"Just testing the limits of my good mood, are you? Well you're in luck. There's an old Hays townhouse no one else wants to buy. You can have it. Take it, or leave it."
Entrone frowned, and then stopped. "I'll take it." he said Ah, what a shame. But Straff hadn't laughed like that in years, so as all things were considered, the exchange was complete.
Maybe even 'Lord' Entrone could come to balls- and Straff could not only use his influence from being Emperor to prevent the other nobles from talking to him, but also mock him. That would be nice.
"Now get out of my sight." Straff turned around, and waved the Lord away.
"Yes, Emperor Venture." Enfram said before he slinked away.
Now why did Straff feel like something was off? He patted his pockets, feeling his coin pouch, and the note inside, still in his pocket. He shook his head, and then walked to his mistress's quarters.
Spook walked through the dark and quiet streets of Urteau. It was an unusual city- vast ditches in the ground dominated the city, and they looked as if they were almost carved from the earth. There used to be canals, Terringdwel had said, before they went dry, the Urtan River diverted for some reason at the Lord Ruler's personal behest. There were a few bridges crossing them, but skaa were forbidden to use them- if Spook was caught out past the curfew, he would get in a lot of trouble that would end the Republic's spying venture in the city.
And so Spook had to descend into the streetslots, and climb out their other side, dodging guard patrols on his way. But eventually, he reached his goal. The western side of the city had a vast slum, called the Harrows. On the backside of a tenement, he found a door, with light streaming out of it, and he knocked eight times.
"Who's there?" a voice asked from inside.
"The Luthadel Flame." Spook replied.
"Burns Bright Tonight." the voice from inside said.
"Umm… From Now to Forevermore?" Spook hoped he had got that right.
The door opened, and Spook hurried in. It was a skaa speakeasy, selling cheap and easily made liquor, as well as providing a place for gambling and card games. There was no one behind the bar, and so Spook turned to the man who had invited him in.
The source of the voice was a brown-haired skaa, with a similarly brown beard, and bright blue eyes, in red trousers. "You're a little young." the man commented.
"Don't worry, I'm not the main operative. He wants to tell you that he'll be meeting you at a small dilapidated townhouse, the former Hays residence, in the northern city, at 6 pm tomorrow."
The man nodded. "Good, I know where that is, and I can hand over the speakeasy to Olid for that time. Now what's your name, boy?"
"Spook, what's yours?"
"My name is Quellion, Spook. Welcome to Urteau."
Kelsier got out of the salon at about six, and the red sun was setting over Luthadel. He wiped his hands- sticky with glazed sugar- on his handkerchief, and remembered the coincidences that allowed them to have the sweet white substance- three months ago.
It was your typical summer day in the New Republic. The state had taken shape from its early months, and Kelsier was walking along Canal Street in the Hotel District, due to a policy that he should exercise his legs once a day, when he saw something upon the side of the wall that stopped him dead. Someone had painted a mural. And he knew instantly who it was.
Mare's eyes looked down at the flower in her hands. Two more flowers were in her long dark hair. A blue upside-down bell, with a white center. She sat, relaxed, a light smile on her face, in a flowerbed, all composed of the same type of flower, surrounded by green ferns and bushes. Her leg, foot bare, dandled off the bed, where green vines trailed down from the flowerbed. Another cluster of flowers sat at the bottom of the mural, red and star-shaped. What were possibly yellow flowers in the background dissolved into golden specks, and a bright golden halo appeared behind her head. It was painted on a canvas of a very bright yellow, and on the bottom right, below the vines, appeared the name 'Ironis'.
Kelsier felt a tear, warm and wet, fall down his nose, and down onto the ash-dusted street below. They came as he choked, a small pain in his throat. He put his hand against hers, and made a prayer, as he matched Mare's faint smile. I'm doing it Mare. The Central Dominance is free. The Keepers have come to Luthadel. And- if there is any evidence that I have made things better, even just the slightest amount, is this mural here.
Kelsier dried his face, and cleaned his nose with his handkerchief. The artist was talented, although he didn't get it perfectly right. Kelsier didn't know if there was any depiction of Mare. The artist must've been a Larstaist- Mare's religion she accepted from Sazed, having returned from the dead a second time to be followed by a small group of inspired people in Luthadel. The artist must've had to a chat with Sazed about direction for their painting. There were a few people who were really getting into art. Even some who called themselves monks, who lived off bumming money and a room from friends or some intrigued merchants or nobles, and created paintings, songs, or books and poems.
Kelsier thought as he moved on, was Mare a saint to them? He knew they preached that he would return clear skies and green meadows to the world, which tied them into the greater Survivorist movement. He was just vaguely disappointed in himself for not managing to successfully advert that, but that was what he was doing for the years between the Pits and the Victory at Fountain Square. Shaping himself up into a worshipable figure, then martyring himself. But that death didn't come, and thought of Marsh's words. Finish the job. Making things better was an endless task, and that's what Marsh meant, but there was only one way to finish the job. And that was clear skies and green meadows.
As for Mare as a saint? He was mostly okay with it. They were remembering her, even if they never met her. Her legacy inspired them all. A final tear trickled down his face, but he dabbed it up before it could fall.
Kelsier continued down Canal Street, before he arrived at his destination. The Traveler Returning Hotel, one of the largest hotels that managed to survive, and primarily hosted travelers from other lands, primarily Terris. A string with many triangular-shaped colorful flags hung from the balconies, and the flag of Terris hung from one of them, while the flag of the New Republic hung from the other. Kelsier wondered if it was for in recognition, for non-Teris visitors to the hotel, or by some of the Terris Kahl he had been hearing about from the Terrismen?
But today, it was a visitor from somewhere outside the the grasp of any of the imperial successors, one whose state was within reach of the New Republic. And that was the Southern Islands. Through Austrex and Lancagne, was nothing but ocean between the Austrex Commune and Southern Islands. Kelsier should have known they'd have managed to form a state. They were the last ones to rebel en masse against the Final Empire, stopping 200 years ago. Although the only claimants they could have sided with were the Steel Inquisitors or the Aspirant Empire… and the islands were heavily dominated by nobles. It could be either revolution or a noble state. But nobles willing to side with the Republic, of their own accord?
Kelsier entered the Traveler Returning hotel. It had downgraded some, but the wallpaper, decorations, and some furniture remained from its height. There were a few Terrismen chatting in the lobby, and they stopped to look at him. He wondered what the Terrismen thought of him- the former imperial peoples and the Terris were culturally disconnected, and Kelsier had only found himself in Terris for a short time period during his years wandering across the Final Empire, kindling hope, and the Terris didn't really seem receptive to his speeches of liberation.
But now they had to take their destiny into their own hands. The revolution in Tathingdwen was relatively peaceful, apparently- the most violence that had occurred were many keepers ganging up on the two Steel Inquisitors, a battle that did cost some lives, but ended with the Inquisitors slain. All the Terrismen had just… began following the Synod, and had arrested the Obligators who hadn't fled the city. And after that, well, they publicly guillotined them, but a lot of the soldiers and nobles in the city, if they didn't try to fight back, were allowed to leave.
The Terrismen despised the Obligators the most of all, for it was them who were their visible oppressors. A thousand years of castrations and breeding people like animals had ensured that they would have no mercy for them. With the nobles, a few haughty and arrogant nobles going to Terris every summer for hikes in the hills did not make a lasting grudge.
But Kelsier was not here to meet a Terrisman. A finely dressed, gray-haired nobleman had recognized him. "Light blond hair, hawk-faced, scars on arms. That's him." he muttered, from across the room.
A smile grew on the nobleman's face, and he walked up to Kelsier. He bowed, and said, "Lord Kelsier, I am Daren Fathvell, Ambassador of the Oligarchy of the Southern Islands, here at your service."
Kelsier waved him off. "Premier Minister or just Premier will do. There are no lords in Luthadel." Kelsier said.
"Of course, Premier Kelsier. Why don't we sit down? I have a nice bottle of Isdath to smooth over any problems." Isdath was a very nice brand of sweet red wine, grown in the hills outside of the city of Isdathleux, the capital of the Southern Islands.
"That would be good." Kelsier said, smiling. Daren nodded his head, and led Kelsier over to some of the fancy chairs, where he uncorked the bottle.
"Old vintage, 920." Daren said, as he poured the wine into some glasses.
"That was the tail end of a fairly large-scale rebellion in Luthadel. Its higher-ups were mostly composed of allomancers, and they got further than most. But the Inquisitors definitely feasted well when it was crushed." Kelsier commented.
"Wouldn't know anything about that." Daren said, but then he seemed to recall some memory. "Ah, that was around the time of the last House War, that ended Fathvell's loss of the lordship of the Southern Islands."
"But you got back in control some decades later. Now, tell me Daren, why are you here, in the heart of Iconoclasm, on behalf of nobles?" Kelsier asked the man.
"I… errr, it's not all nobles, you see. We've given skaa merchants land and estates, and we've even given skaa rebels seats in our government."
Kelsier raised an eyebrow. "What sort of skaa rebels?" he asked.
"Pirates. They're descendants of those who survived the Great Surinsulindic Rebellion's crushing." Daren said.
"That sounds promising. What's the makeup of your government, and why is it that way?" Kelsier asked him.
"Well, we have an Assembly, like you, but it only has nine seats. Three are dedicated for nobles, three are for skaa merchants, and three are for skaa pirates." Daren said.
"And what exactly qualifies someone for a seat on your Assembly?" Kelsier asked.
"Uhh… wealth." Daren replied.
Kelsier raised an eyebrow, and Daren started to look uncomfortable. And then Kelsier laughed it off. "It's not the best political system, but it's miles better than the Pretender or Aspirant Empires, or whatever the hell the Steeled Empire has. And the skaa are free?"
"Yes, the skaa are not owned by anyone. And, and, they are paid." Daren clarified.
"All right. So what's your proposal, and why are coming to me, over the Aspirant Empire?" Kelsier asked the man.
"Well… we had a falling out with Tevidian. Didn't send him reinforcements due to unrest in the highlands and among the pirates. And then Austrex fell, and he branded Lord Fathvell a heretic, and excommunicated him." Daren took a long sip of his Isdath. "House Fathvell had to decentralize power, or risk falling entirely. It hashed something out with the other houses, but unrest continued. It hashed out an agreement with wealthy and prominent skaa landowners, granting them independence from their sponsor houses, but the pirates grew in strength, and the waters of the Southern Sea became unsafe. And then we brokered peace with the cooperative pirates, pardoned them and made them traders in exchange for promises to not… well, be pirates. And now, we're finally looking out again. But we've found little trading opportunities. Fareau is under the full control of the Inquisitors, and we war with them in Cape Solom and the Remote Dominance. The ports of the Aspirant Empire are closed off to us. And the only ports that are open to us are Lancagne and Austrex, and right now… well, the Austrex Commune isn't that receptive towards anyone not the Republic. I've come here to bargain trade rights, and hopefully an alliance, with the New Republic." Daren explained.
"And why have you come, asking for trade with us?" Kelsier asked. "The Southern Islands are rich."
"We are rich… in expensive goods. It's all plantations. After the last rebellion, the Lord Ruler closed most of our mines, and put extensive laws on what we could or couldn't make or grow. Imported enough grain and foodstuffs from the Southern Dominance. We can't eat silk, tobacco, or dyes, Kelsier. The last meals I had before I left were wine grapes and fish." And here it was. They were poor in everything else, and had come begging- although in the guise of a trader with bolts of silk, who was starving.
"I understand. So we send you grain, machinery, ores, and other foodstuffs, and you send us the luxuries?" Kelsier asked Daren.
"Yes. We have silk, tobacco, spices, sugar, dyes, cotton, and wine, and I know the New Republic has voices asking for these luxuries. We hope you will be able to talk Baz'en Wraithkiller in Austrex into allowing us access to the Commune's ports" Daren said.
Kelsier thought it over. An alliance was on the table, as well. But these were nobles, no matter how much theoretical rights they handed the skaa. In a nation defined by wealth… well, who had the most wealth? The nobles who had lorded over the southern islands for the past thousand years, or some skaa whose fortunes, were at most, a few decades old, and depended on the charity of the nobles? Maybe not an alliance, but he knew that if the nobles were reduced to eating fish and wine grapes, the skaa must be even more reduced. Denying wouldn't hurt them, and after all, they were not an imperial claimant.
Kelsier gives Daren his answer, and works on passing a bill in the Assembly, hashing out a deal, which is fully entrenched by the time he eats that glazed donut three months later.
[ ] Trade Only. Deliberately aiding the Oligarchy is not a good idea, as the New Republic has designs on its territory, after it manages to defeat the imperial claimants. The Oligarchy likely knows this. It also might be hiding something the New Republic doesn't want known about domestic conditions. Enough foodstuffs, metals, and machinery for the Oligarchy to eke out some measure of self-sufficiency, but allow the Republic to gain an economic hold on the Oligarchy.
[ ] Non-Aggression Pact. An actual alliance is out of the question- the Oligarchy is barely holding onto its mainland territories of half the Remote Dominance and Cape Solom, but aiding the Oligarchy in building up its domestic production capabilities would go to it being to hold onto its territory, and push back the Steeled Empire.
Kelsier finished wiping his hands, and after putting his handkerchief away, dropped a coin, and began Pushing himself to the northeast, finding himself crossing the Old Wall Bridge, and skirting the edge of the Palatial District, through the Argent Quarter. It was wonderful how many people were out at night, although few of them saw him dashing through the mists.
Kelsier landed upon a roof, he saw Keep Venture blazing in the mists ahead of him. Well, it didn't really blaze like it used to. More than half of the keep was dark, with many of its decorations and artifacts sold off to regain a measure of prosperity Elend's House had in Luthadel.
But he knew Vin would be in there. He smiled, and prepared to see his daughter.
Vin had her head in Elend's lap, but the young man, once again, had his nose in a book. The room was well-lit, it being a small sunroom, although at this time, the only view you had out the window was that of the mists. Elend said it was his favorite reading room when he was a boy, and he took her there often, when they had some free time.
"There's just so much to read." Elend commented in awe. Sheesh, if he only knew.
"The Keepers are doing so much to bring back ancient knowledge. If only Kell didn't insist on having me stuff my head with it." Vin complained.
"It's not just you. Classes are walk-in at the University, and he has Terringdwel tutoring Spook as well, much to both their chagrins." Elend said.
"At least you're having fun." Vin said.
"So much history is in here. And I thought the Book of the False Dawn was as far as you could get… although that was something I learned the moment I heard the Lord Ruler was dead, slain by the Survivor." he said.
"What's this one about?" Vin asked.
"Government. The Lord Ruler was a monarch, pure and simple, and I'm thinking… I don't know. It seems like governments and politics are happening very fast these days, and history is being made rapidly. Like… the New Republic. Six months old, and it's relatively stable, is one of the two most powerful nations in the world, after the largest imperial successor, and it's doing things that have never done before. Everyone above the age of 20, and it's working- although I would say that the executions of some of the most prominent nobles, and the fleeing of half of Luthadel's nobles, along with a stigma against nobles gained from the centuries of misrule has led to the New Republic finding itself with a majority of skaa in the Assembly- theoretically, it should be easy for a noble, with their pre-existing wealth and power, to buy votes, or dissuade others from voting." Elend rambled.
"Enfram Entrone tried that, didn't he? And he ended up on the noose." Vin commented.
"Yes. I think… the current system of the New Republic is a stable one, but it's not the most humane." Elend said.
"Mmm. I don't think you can get much better. There's eight nations on Scadrial, and I can't really name a better one. Terris, maybe, but they're actively searching for Obligators who were involved in the Breeding Program, and executing them publicly. I don't know much about Vershad and his state, but there's probably not many nobles in the Crescent Dominance. Maybe the Ashen Hands Chiefdom, if you count that as a state? But I've heard of them executing nobles who attempted to seek refuge from the two cities that the Koloss sacked via suffocating them in ash. Violence is a part of life, Elend. The New Republic's done the best job you can ask them to." Vin had studied international politics today, and was excited to show off her newfound knowledge.
Elend sighed. "I know, Vin, it's just that… there's a better world that can be made, I know that. If we ended the executions, I know many terrible men would walk free. But could they at least be a bit more lenient, or use guillotines?"
Vin commented, "That's what the New Republic's doing. Building a better world, for all of us. Oh, that's why he's so insisting on having me tutored! He's insistent that education is the future, and so… I'm the next generation."
Vin heard a rapping at the window, and jumped to her feet almost as instantly as she heard that. And the window opened, the clasps unlocked to allow Mistborn to enter the room. And Kelsier stepped through.
"How's your day been?" Kelsier asked, smiling, as Vin ran up to him.
"Oh, I suffered through my tutoring lessons. Do you know who Vershad is?" Vin asked him.
"Oh, learned about international politics? I hope you're ready to have many more lessons about it, as the New Republic grows. But Vershad… he's a skaa leader, one of four worldwide, counting the Chief of the Ashen Hands. He's the only skaa who's crowned himself king, and I hear from the Keepers he was a powerful bandit chief prior to the Collapse, given support by a Terris Scholar sent to the Dominance to catalog the traditions and unique developments of the Wasted Men. All I know is he calls his Kingdom that of the Burning Crescent." He had actually met with the Terris Keeper who organized the Keeper's scholars, and knew a lot about events in the Dominance- second to the peoples living in the dominance at the edge of the burnlands.
"Could he help us with the Pretender Empire?" Vin asked.
"No, the population of the Crescent Dominance is very low, and there's a range of hills that mark the border between the Pretender Empire and Crescent Dominance. I presume he's also preoccupied with fighting the Steeled Empire. The Urtan Heights- the mountains between the Steeled Empire and Pretender Empire- end before reaching the Crescent Dominance, so there's no natural borders between the Steeled Empire and Burning Crescent." he explained.
Vin nodded, and went to grab a few metal vials, and her mistcloak. Leaving Kelsier alone in the room with Elend. "How's your reading going?" the Premier asked the young lord.
"Well, there's a lot coming out of the University as of late. The Terrismen really kept a lot safe from the fires of the Steel Ministry."
"Is that Hadren?" Kelsier asked, catching the title.
"Yes, yes it is." Elend said.
"Republics and Empires, I presume. Such a shame that he got a hook through his throat."
"Yes sir, for so long revolutionaries and philosophers have been cut down before they've reached their height." Elend commented.
"Oh come on, Elend. You're very talented. Leave Philen and Penrod in the Monarchists behind, and come join the Iconoclasts. Lords are on their way out, and you're here at the beginning of a new era. A king shall never reign in Luthadel again, and you could be the next generation of revolutionaries and Assemblymen."
Elend sat, silently, for a moment. "I will consider it." the young lord said.
"Wonderful." Kelsier smiled. And then Vin came back, having changed into her Mistborn clothes.
The two Mistborn threw themselves out the window into the night. Kelsier was considerate enough to close the window using iron, but it hit the windowsill and bounced back, leaving it slightly ajar. Mist and chill winter night air began to seep into the room, and when it reached Elend, he shrugged, got up, and closed the window fully.
Vin and Kelsier raced across the rooftops of Luthadel, heading south. "Do you have a new metal?" Vin asked.
"Yep, and I have no idea what it does!" Kelsier grinned.
Vin laughed, and raced on ahead.
The two launched themselves over thoroughfares, passing by Kredik Shaw looming out of the mist, and into the field of chimneys and the few smokestacks of the Industrial District. Kelsier led Vin past Southbridge, and to the Brassworks. Where the Brassgate slums used to be- now cleared, its inhabitants having taken better housing elsewhere, either the mansions and townhouses of the nobles, or having set up the new Brassgate, outside the walls of Luthadel.
Now, vast factories, set up after the Revolution, churned out a myriad of goods, weapons, alone matching the rest of Luthadel by sheer output. It was the Brassworks, and where several departments resided- the Department of Allomancy, the Department of Military Engineering, the Department of Republican Industry, and the Department of Republican Engineering. The smokestacks increased in number as they headed south.
Tonight, they were heading to the Department of Allomancy- where Terion was working late, as he often did. Vin was excited to see the new metal, but she knew Kelsier wouldn't let her know anything about it beforehand. It was likely the paired metal to aluminum, or the paired metal to chromium. Most likely aluminum, although there was always the small chance one of the temporal external metals had been discovered.
But something was nagging at Vin, and so, as they perched atop one of the smokestacks in the district. And so, she expressed her feelings. "Why do you leave me out?" Vin asked.
Kelsier said, "I try to include you. You have an open invitation to all the Assembly meetings, my meetings with various government members, and the Directory's weekly meetings. I know you find the Assembly meetings boring- I do too- but you could join the other meetings."
"Not those meetings. Sometimes you head out, to lead armies, or kill some people who need killing. Mistborn things. And I'm not invited" Vin asked.
"Ah. Vin, I…" how could Kelsier risk her?
"I don't need protection. I've done enough training. I killed that Elariel Mistborn during my fight with Shan Venture. I've killed Steel Inquisitors, for Heaven's sake. These weekly training sessions are good, but it's not enough for me. I'm Mistborn. I'm born to kill people, Kelsier."
"I know. It's just that…"
"Mare. I remind you of her, you've said this. We've been together for a year and a half now, and I'm almost an adult- 5 months until I turn 18." Vin said.
Kelsier nodded. "Alright." he said, smiling.
"Wait, really?" Vin asked, excited.
Kelsier laughed. "You're going to need to start attending the meetings of the Directory, first, and I'll ask Terringdwel to switch to some more practical lessons, while I'll take you out to some safer excursions. Get you used to the New Republic's system, and get others used to you. You say you're ready, and I hear you. But you're just ready to start along the path of being an Iconoclast Mistborn. Tell you what- when you turn 18, I'll take you out and have you join me in a battle. Or maybe we could try and kill Straff Venture- no, would probably make things too awkward with Elend. Maybe go kill another inquisitor?"
"I would like to kill Tevidian." Vin said.
Kelsier laughed. "What a thing to do for your 18th birthday! I didn't suggest it because… well, he's your dad."
"He's not my dad anymore. Can we go and test the 14th metal?" Vin asked.
"Of course." The two resumed their jumping across the rooftops, before reaching a small building- a former warehouse that used to be at the edge of the slum, now the headquarters of the Department of Allomancy. The two walked in, and found Terion at a desk, several lamps illuminating the room. A small silvery bar of metal sat on the desk.
"Ah, Premier Kelsier, Vin. Here is Duralumin- 96% aluminum, 4% copper. I believe this will be the last new allomantic metal for some time- chromium's properties are poorly understood, and the metal is rare enough that it will take a lot of time to gather enough to do experimentation. With the external temporal metals… well, there are some things that are just plainly undiscovered, and while Monsieur Marsh and the Keepers have been helpful in pointing me in the right directions, it seems as if neither of the external temporal metals were ever discovered." Terion handed the silvery bar to Kelsier.
Kelsier nodded. "I will get you more chromium, but for now, try out testing the properties of the alloys you made. One of them has to have a non-allomantic use." Terion nodded, and Kelsier turned to Vin.
The two walked out of the forge onto the misty streets of the Brassworks, illuminated by a lamp hanging from the door of the Department of Allomancy. "So I tried this, burned, but it didn't do anything- just burned quickly, like Chromium when not touching an Allomancer or Feruchemist." he said.
Vin nodded, as Kelsier filed away some of it onto his handkerchief. He swallowed it down with a flask of water, and filed more flakes off, and handed it to Vin to do the same. Kelsier searched for the metal paired to aluminum, and found it. He burned it.
Nothing happened. It burned quickly, like aluminum and chromium when just burning. And then Vin cried out in pain. Kelsier whirled, turning to the girl, catching her in his arms, not sure what to do. She gasped, and moaned in pain. But as soon as it started, the pain seemed to stop, and she got back to her feet, steadying herself against Kelsier.
"Are you ok?" Kelsier asked, quietly.
"Yes, just stunned. I was burning tin when I burned duralumin, and… my tin's gone." Vin said.
"What happened?" Kelsier asked, letting Vin go.
"It was like tin, tenfold. My own heartbeat thudded in my head, the chill air turned to a searing cold. Kelsier, this could be the aluminum of Allomancy that you were looking for." Vin said.
Kelsier burned some pewter, and felt, in a flash, he grew much stronger, and much more resistant to what little was going on in the outside world. The gears started to move. "If you're feeling well enough, we could try jumping the Channerel?"
Vin smiled, "I would love that."
The two Mistborn replenished their metals, and Pushed away, to jump the largest river in the city.
*Terris Kahl means 'Free Terris'. -ik means something like 'state of', and so Terris Kahlik would mean 'Terris is now free'.
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- Pronouns
- He/Him
Blessed be the New Republic
- Pronouns
- He/Him
"And the Son of Man said: Gaze upon the People's Works. We have Done what the Lords said was Impossible, and the Lords have been put to Shame when Faced with the Might of our New Republic."
Vill Dav jumped across the gray stucco rooftops of Tavira. The mists felt good against his skin, suffused with the salty sea breeze, cool in the surinsulindic winter air. He wasn't sure if there were any Mistborn in the city- there had to be, given House Fathvell and the other's pedigrees, but he had yet to see the tell-tale lines of a Mistborn's coin pouch. It was good for him, because, for now, he ruled the rooftops.
He just hoped a Mistborn never showed up to teach him oh how wrong he was. While he didn't have tin, he had found something else that served a great role in a similar effect for eyesight. Vill's family doctor had found that belladonna extracts, used by noble women to dilate their pupils so they would look prettier at balls, could be used to look into the inside of eyes. Vill thought it was creepy. But that discovery allowed him to jump and dance through the mists, almost like a Mistborn.
Well, pretty far away from it. Mistborn could sense allomancy, Mistborn could pull metal towards them instead of just push it away, they could touch other's emotions, they could fall from the second story without breaking their legs, they could mask their allomancy- and they could burn atium. Well, now that the Pits of Hathsin were destroyed by the Iconoclasts, and atium was running out, he wouldn't have to worry about that for much longer. Vill pushed off a windowclasp, hearing a snap as he hurtled across the cobbled roadway as the windowclasp broke. Did Mistborn have to deal with that?
Vill wasn't a noble- perhaps if he was, he would be Mistborn. He was skaa. But not your typical skaa- and his father, Dondel, insisted they weren't, but Vill knew better. Only because some noble had elevated Vill's father to a licensed skaa merchant before Vill was born. And then Vill had discovered he was a Coinshot, and Dondel had Vill swear to never even burn steel- and Vill hadn't, knowing full well that everyone he knew would be killed by the Inquisitors- and perhaps his power eaten by Steel Inquisitors, if the Republic was right.
But Vill had collected allomancer's steel, just in case. And then the Lord Ruler died, six months ago, and their problems changed. For a while it looked like the Lord Prelan would be able to impose his rule in Austrex, but then the city had a revolution, and the Lord Prelan fled to the Western Dominance, excommunicating the Lord Fathvell who ruled the Dominance for not sending aid- although Lord Fathvell claimed that he had only got the request for troops after Austrex fell.
In a week, skaa allomancers were legal(or at least not forbidden), Dondel was a lord, and Vill was able to practice as a Coinshot. There had been ups and downs since- he hadn't gone hungry, but he had lost some weight before the trade agreement with the Republic was hashed out. He should be more thankful, many skaa had starved during the worst periods. But all he could do was look north, and wonder, for the Republic had never starved.
Vill had found himself across the street from the darkened Gubernatorial Manor, which was where the Assembly sat during the day. He spotted movement in some of the windows- tineyes, or seekers. Vill wasn't exactly sure on the laws, but they were probably noble allomancers, guarding the Manor, and as long as he stayed away from the Manor, he would be safe.
What was that? Vill looked into an alley, following one of the ghostly blue lines that emanated from his chest. Barren earth, but something glinted in the ambient light. He wondered how that worked when the stars were covered with the mists, but he jumped down to investigate. And he had struck gold. A boxing, coated and smudged in ash- but it didn't have the spires of Kredik Shaw on the front, or the calligraphic symbol of the Final Empire on the back.
In place of Kredik Shaw was a building, Imperial Style, that Vill did not recognize. On the back, was a symbol he did recognize- the New Republic's Consulate had it on their flag they flew above the building. Vill thought it was calligraphy as well, or maybe a new situational symbol in the steel alphabet- it looked like the symbol A, but mirrored down the middle, and made more aesthetically pleasing. How did a Republican boxing get from Luthadel, or maybe Austrex, all the way to Tavira? Well, it wouldn't be hard, given the trade and visitors.
These were legal tender, he thought? It had to be, right? The Oligarchy still used Lord Ruler Imperials, but if it was the same material, and the same size, well it was the same coin, basically. Although the New Republic had Irons, coinage made of pure iron, that apparently had replaced clips, with clips becoming a smaller denomination of coinage. A Republican Iron or Clip would not be legal tender, but a Boxing or Ten-Boxing would be.
Vill Dav burned steel, looking for more coinage in the alley, but found none. He shrugged, thankful for what he had found, dropped a nail, and pushed himself back atop the rooftops, heading back towards the Dav townhouse.
The crimson sun rose over Luthadel on Bronzeday morning. Luthadel had really changed since he had arrived in the city, a couple years ago. Had he not known better, it was a completely different city, all thanks to the Survivor. And many agreed with his statement- some even called the city Republican Luthadel, in honor or celebration of the New Republic.
As for the Republicaness of the New Republic, well, he had certainly seen worse, and not much better. It was somewhat more of a city-state than a whole nation, but from what he knew about the politics and geography of the former Final Empire, that was the result of the Final Empire's infrastructure being built around various cities that served as commercial and industrial hubs, as opposed to a quirk of Republicanism he had seen in the government in the past. Luthadel was very overrepresented, but even so, you did have around 100 Assemblymen from outside the city, either from its suburbs, the Central Dominance, or its territories outside of that, primarily along the Terris River. You even had a few from the aligned nations of the Austrex Commune and Ashen Hands Chiefdom.
No, it was doing fine in that regard. The main issue was Kelsier, the Premier. The Premier had shaped himself up as a messianic figure, and he was certain Kelsier would have died. But the Premier didn't. As a result, he had a large cult of personality around himself, one that the Premier had attempted to combat, but also cultivated to ensure that Kelsier would remain in power. Although it wasn't that bad- especially as the last ruler in Luthadel had blatantly stated he was a god among men, and had created the world, and enforced a brutal caste system that no one gained from.
For cultivating a cult of personality, it was strange how the Premier wasn't really interested in ruling. Kelsier wanted to restore the clear skies that once had hung above Scadrial, and the green plants that once blanketed its hills and plains. Kelsier was a complicated man, and while he knew all men were complicated, Kelsier was a strange mix of altruistic and selfish, manipulative but pushed you towards bettering yourself. In the meantime before he could restore Scadrial to how it once was, however, he was working on the Great Change, and that… that was interesting.
The Premier had realized culture itself was malleable. And, in the wake of a thousand years of oppression, was teaching the people a new culture. Having them pick last names for themselves, having them learn to read, providing them revolutionary pamphlets to read, providing them furniture for their homes, even beds of their own. Well, cots, but that was better than mats on the floor.
He had arrived at the Assembly Hall, a former theater he had never visited, due to the absolutely terrible nature of Final Empire sanctioned entertainment. But now, it was home to a different kind of entertainment. Politics.
The room was somewhat empty- it was only eight thirty, as the clocks outside said, and there was only a few groups of Assemblymen in the hall, chatting. What was happening to him? He had gotten up early, on a Bronzeday, to participate in politics? Maybe the Great Change was having an effect on him as well.
A Terris Steward near the door was sitting with a small notebook- probably checking to make sure that someone unauthorized wasn't sneaking in on the back of the latest crop of elected officials. And so, he walked up, and announced his name.
Nazh was not having a particularly good morning. He had woken up around six, and was sipping some holly tea, lowering his mask- and holding his breath while doing so- he wondered if Khriss would object to him introducing coffee to Scadrial. The holly tea got him awake and alert, but it took more of it, and it definitely didn't taste as good. He decided against it.
The ash would probably kill the coffee. He thought. Shadows know it could kill my lungs.
There were plenty of reasons why he woke up early. One was Khriss's insistence on him joining the Department of Transportation, as opposed to any other Department, where he wouldn't have to sit in a quiet room plotting out routes and giving orders on how often to clear a canal of ash, and then he had become Deputy Minister of the entire Department. If only he had joined the Department of Military Transportation- that would get him the maps Khriss needed, but it was too much intervention for her.
At least he had talked her into coming into the Physical from Port Hathsin. That was the start, and an agreement that she would do her best to save this world, despite how bleak and covered in ash it was.
At least Luthadel's gotten a lot better since I first arrived. He took another sip of his tea.
And then he heard a name from Gholwyl at the door.
"Hoid Cephand. Took the late Master Trest's seat, elected a week ago. You're good to go in." Gholwyl said.
Nazh barely managed to get his mug down before he started coughing on the tea. He managed to re-affix his mask- more of a strip of cloth he could tie around his head- before he got more than a breath or two of unfiltered air in, and as he coughed, he saw him, and was approaching him.
Tall, thin, dark-haired, hawk-faced. It wasn't just a coincidence- Hoid was a valid name in the Final Empire, but he would not be spared by fortune this time.
Shadowsshadowsshadows. Nazh thought as he coughed, and Hoid approached.
He managed to clear his airways enough to speak. "You…" he hissed, before returning to his coughing.
Hoid stopped in front of him, and exclaimed "Me!" jovially.
"What are you doing here?" Nazh demanded, having mostly cleared his airways.
"Well, I took the late Assemblyman Trest's seat after he unfortunately succumbed to old age, and I presume you were elected as well, my curmudgeonly acquaintance." Hoid said, sitting down in the seat next to Nazh.
"You know what I mean." Nazh barked.
"Well, Nazrilof…"
"Nazh Hoffman." Nazh quickly corrected him. He didn't want to have to explain his secrets, not yet.
"Ah, my mistake, Monsieur Hoffman. Well, the same thing you are here for, I presume."
"The betterment of the world." Nazh said.
"The betterment of the world." Hoid replied, with a far-off look in his eyes. Good, the man was willing to be serious for once in his ten thousand year long life.
"How long have you been in Luthadel?" Nazh asked.
"Two years. Five, in The Final Empire. Was an informant for various nobles and thieving crews, pulling strings, trying to not visibly die when some noble got angry at me. Covered for the Premier a couple times, back when he was planning his rebellion. Found the business drying up as information became less controlled, so I pulled a couple more strings when the district seat emptied, and got elected. How long have you been in Luthadel?"
"Wait… no, Dox told me the Premier had met you." Nazh had worked with Dockson more than once, being under the Ministry of Republican Ministry, and he mentioned that if Nazh wanted rare maps, he could visit the Keepers, or an informant named Hoid who Kelsier had met, and who Dockson complimented about his large breadth of knowledge.
"What? No, I never met the Premier." Hoid said. "Did I?" he asked, quizzically.
"Did someone finally out-disguise you?" Nazh asked, smiling.
"No, no. I was aware it was the unusually haughty lord who was asking too much about Renoux." Hoid said.
"All right, if you say so. As for me, closer to a year. Asked Dockson to join the Department of Republican Transport because of my collection of maps, when it was first created, and quickly became its Deputy Minister, and worked with Dox a lot. He recommended me to run in an election, and supported me when I did, two months ago." Nazh shrugged. "Now I'm here. So, how do you plan to better the world?" Nazh asked.
"Small amounts of encouragement delivered in the right places. The sort of thing being an informant, or Assemblyman, is best for." Hoid said.
"You were here before. Surely you must know how to solve the most important issues." Nazh said.
Hoid leaned forwards, knotting his fingers together, deep in thought. "Sometimes," he spoke, "What some men might call fate has something already laid out, and an intervention would have vast consequences, even if you think it, in your heart, it is best to intervene. If you walked up to the Premier and told him the truth, the way of things would be damaged, and Scadrial might be damned." Hoid leaned back, and turned to Nazh. "And so, small bits of encouragement. Also, He might know. We're safe, distanced from the Premier. But were we to have a bit more of an impression on him, or speak to him about something we shouldn't know, well, He might learn. Right now, He cannot be everywhere, and a few early Assemblymen would not catch His eye. Remember, Nazh- your thoughts are yours and yours alone."
"You knew Him." Nazh said. "And your encouragement is greater than Khriss advises me to make. How do you do it?"
"I hide, Nazh. Disguises, and something else. As for my encouragement, Khrissalla is correct. Fortune gives me guidance in my encouragement, and I can do much more than you can, unguided."
"Can you guide me?" Nazh asked.
Hoid smiled. "It has been too long since I have been asked that. But as long as our goals align, and we find ourselves in this room seven days out of eight, I believe that can be done."
And then the Premier arrived.
Kelsier walked into the Assembly Hall, having woken up just ten minutes prior. He was lucky he had that alarm clock specially made by a clocksmith- he had to cut back on his Copperday excursions with Vin to end around one in the morning to feel hale enough by the morning. And, of course, that he was Mistborn, and could travel from his house in Oldgate to Victory Square in a few minutes. He was snacking on a sausage a sausage monger had given to him for free, and burning Pewter to banish the grogginess he was feeling.
Assembly Hall was looking a bit fuller than usual, which was good, because last week's election winners were supposed to have their first day today. Kelsier had to make some laws in the past about no-shows, which was never fun. An Assemblyman who didn't show up… it made him feel as if he had done something wrong. The Assembly needed to work harmoniously, with the other Ministries of the New Republic. The fates of a hundred million depended on it.
Kelsier finished his sausage, and wiped his hands on his handkerchief. He walked to the front of the room, and to the left- where Iconoclastic Iconoclasts set, as opposed to the Commercant Iconoclasts in the center. He sat down next to Marsh and Dox, and smiled at them. Marsh was reading, while Dox was doing calculations in a notebook.
"How are you doing?" Kelsier asked the two.
"Oh, fine." Marsh commented.
"Kell… I need to talk to you." Dox said.
"What's bothering you?" he asked Dockson, getting up, and sitting next to the man.
"I feel wasted, here, Kell. I'm best when accounting the finances and resources of the New Republic in the Ministry of Republican Labor, not so much listening to arguments and voting for 8 hours a day. I already spend most of my time here doing work for my primary job, but it's always easier in my study."
Kelsier felt a shock. He didn't like it, but he understood. After all, Ham wasn't an assemblyman, his commanding and training of the Army of the Center being too vital and too separate from the Assembly for him to have participated during the early days of the New Republic. The Ministry of Republican Labor served an integral role in the management and growth of the New Republic, perhaps even more so than the Ministry of War.
But it hurt. Dox had spent the past six months here, participating and weighing in on the most important bills.
"Alright. You are needed elsewhere- but stay the day, and if you have spare time, or could work here, your presence would be nice." Kelsier told Dox.
"I can attend one or two a week, and lend my full presence if I have most of the days of the week dedicated to Ministry work." Dox said.
"Good." Kelsier sighed.
"Kel?" Marsh asked.
"What's on your thoughts?" Kelsier asked his brother, and made sure to look him in the eyes. He had thought he had lost Marsh once, and he would make sure that wouldn't happen again, by making sure he treated Marsh like a man.
"About Assemblymen who are high up in the Ministries, I was thinking that, while you might like it, full focus on the ministries is best, right now. I understand you view the Assembly as the most important institution of the New Republic… but we're at war. The resources of half the Final Empire are marshaled against us, but we're not acting like it. We've fallen into complacency. The pressure the Pretender and Aspirant Empires are putting on us will only increase. The Assembly has been everything I've ever dreamed of, but we need to use our freedom wisely. For our enemies seek to cast down everything we've built, and reinstate the Final Empire." Marsh clearly had been thinking about this for a while.
Kelsier furrowed his brow. "What's your solution?" he asked Marsh.
Marsh did the same, his furrowed brow just peeking above his blindfold. "You won't like it, but I hope you can accept this, at the very least. First, we cut down the number of Assemblymen- it's grown fairly disjointed, and needs supervision, management, and lots of funding that can go to other Ministries, primarily the Ministry of War and Ministry of Republican Labor. Maybe down to two hundred, or just a hundred? You made mention of equalizing the voting districts nation-wide based on population several times in the past, and this would be the perfect time for that, as well as getting Assemblymen from outside Luthadel in. A lot of the current Assemblymen are talented individuals, and would flourish in the Ministries, or are even already a part of the ministries, and we could easily funnel them from the Assembly to the ministries."
"Yes… I agree with this, even if I don't like it." Kelsier said, running his hand along his chin. "But other than the reform and equalization of the voting districts, I don't see how we could have Assemblymen focus on working for the Ministries, at least without a months-long propaganda campaign."
Dox spoke up. "I have a proposal, that you will like even less. In addition to cutting down on the size of the Assembly, I suggest prohibiting the leaders of Ministries and departments from having seats in the Assembly, which would force them to focus on their Ministerial duties. Breeze won't like it, but… well, as Marsh said, we're in a state of war, and our survival depends on the success of the New Republic."
Kelsier clasped his hands together. "No, I don't really like that. The Assembly is a marketplace of ideas and cooperation between the Ministries, and if we remove Ministers and Deputy Ministers from the Assembly, I can't really see a good way for cooperation to be achieved between the Ministries. The Assembly separated from the Ministries would be useless."
"Either way, both proposals would solve our issue, and allow us to reorient towards the most pressing matter at hand- war. I have no doubt in the future we will be able to focus on the Assembly again, but for now, we must turn our plowshares into swords." Marsh said.
[ ] Ministerial Priority. While we must focus on the Ministries in this time of war, we cannot neglect the Assembly, as it is the thing that sets us apart from the tyrannies that have risen from the ashes of the Final Empire. We will reform the Assembly to be smaller but also more equal as opposed to Luthadel-Centric, and use it to its full extent in facilitating cooperation between the Ministries. A republic, if you can keep it.
[ ] Separation of Powers. The New Republic is under threat, and for its own good, we must forgo portions of our democracy. In addition to reforming the Assembly to be smaller, we shall prevent all Ministers and Deputy Ministers from being Assemblymen, so they can focus on their Ministry duties. As long as the Directory exists, cooperation between Deputy Ministers and the Departments is unneeded, as the central Ministries can cooperate instead.
Enough of the Assembly's four hundred and twenty something members had arrived, and so Gholwyl had moved to the stage, to officiate the beginning of today's session.
"The hundred and eleventh meeting of the Assembly of Luthadel has started, on the final day of the thirteenth month, on Bronzeday. Today's session will begin with the Spying bill, authored by the Premier Kelsier, co-authored by the Directory. The Premier Minister will be reading the bill."
Claps rose from the Assembly, and from the theater boxes up above, occupied by members of the public who had arrived early enough to secure a seat. He thought he could see Kless Haught in a window up above, but he wouldn't let that ruin his day. Kelsier stood up, smiling, and waved to the Assembly. He lightly Pushed on a coin, sending him hurtling atop the stage. He turned, grinning, looking at the entire Assembly, laid out before him. From left to right, he could make out faces, and the political clubs.
Occupying the left and center of the Assembly were the Hathsinists, his club, but there was quite a distinction between the Iconoclasts on the left, and the moderates in the center, nicknamed the Commercantists, by their detractors. The Iconoclasts themselves had a few factions within themselves- the Scarred, Kelsier near-worshippers who seemed to be more supportive of his policies than he himself was. They were led by Garv Witness.
And there was his faction proper, its leaders being Dox, Marsh, Nazh Hoffman, Haws Mistson, Hettel Smith, and Jasten Docker. Some said there was a distinction between those who were loyal to him and went with everything he said, and more moderates such as Marsh and Nazh, but as long as he was moderating himself, their visions were unified.
And that vision was common sense. The Great Change was their foremost goal. While the physical chains of the Final Empire were cast off, the mental chains still held. Last names, shorter hours, holidays, political education, education in general, and public betterment. But also the unification of the world under the New Republic, state direction of the economy through either state-owned factories and businesses or worker cooperatives, equal rights for everyone and the institutions for everyone to be able to use those rights in the spirit of Egality, and popular democracy in general. They might have had to use political centralism to carry out those goals, but it was for a good cause.
The Commercantists were led by Breeze. Kelsier could understand the appeal of private property, but could not agree with restricting voting to landowners(who were mostly nobles), or handing out factories and barges to merchants, then tasking them with hopefully not short changing the government. They championed the idea of the free market, but Kelsier knew that were the market free, those with the largest amount of wealth would become dominant- the nobles. Liberty above equality would undoubtedly lead to an unhealthy nation, and in such times of war, the nation needed to be strong. They were also against the Great Change, viewing it as unnecessary. Getrue Trader, Thurts Docker, and Lord Habren were members of them.
And then the Right. The Monarchists. Who, against all odds, wished to restate the Final Empire. No, that was unfair. They wished to return to the time before the Final Empire, when lords ruled a hundred nations, always fighting amongst themselves. Reversing the gains skaa had made, putting the nobles back in charge, and maybe crowning a king- although all the club's leaders seemingly wished to be King, or perhaps Queen, of Luthadel, so there was a moderate amount of infighting. They were led by Elend Venture, Ferson Penrod, Chanim Haught, and Philen Frandeau. Kelsier was glad to see that they had lost a small amount of ground in last week's votes. There would never be another Lord in Luthadel.
Kelsier could also see a lot of new faces from last week's round of voting, and wondered who they would side with. He recognized a new face- the informant he had spoken to to check if his plan had leaked into the skaa underground, what was his name? Ah right, Hoid. Kelsier wondered what the informant had been doing since the Revolution. Probably still trying to be an informant, in a society where that profession was declining. And he had done what many informants had done- run for Assemblyman.
And then the lights dimmed, and a limelight turned to illuminate him on stage. Kelsier grinned, as he began his speech, in the limelight once more.
After today's Assembly meeting, Kelsier decides to meet with some people he saw in the crowd today. Top 2 votes win.
[ ] Hoid Cephand. While they had met before, it was under less-than-ideal conditions, as both were disguised in some way. An open meeting between the two would clear up some misunderstandings, and in fact, the Assemblyman already extended an invitation to the Premier for a meeting between the two. But what did he mean when he insisted the best place was a copse of trees on a hill fifty miles south of Tenes, next to the Habren estate?
[ ] Nazh Hoffman. Dox has nothing but praise for the man's work ethic, not so much for his personal character- he's always seemingly irritable, and goes for the pessimist argument more often than not. Meeting him would peel back the layers of this complicated man, and maybe even meeting the Premier could cheer him up. He's also mentioned that he's working for someone, who wants maps of the Final Empire, and that his twin loyalties do not conflict. Who could that be?
[ ] Kless Haught. Kelsier can't shake the suspicions he has about the woman. Half a Great House, albeit a lesser one, defecting to the New Republic less than a day after the death of the Lord Ruler? Spy or not, she has another agenda, one separate to the New Republic. And so, talk to her, hopefully catch her out on her lies. As well as see how the Nobility is doing in Luthadel, now that the Final Empire is gone.
Baz'en wanted to kill her foremost political enemy. It would be so easy. One coin accelerated to lethal speeds via allomancy, one knife in the dark.
But the Premier had told her that would not be allowed, under any circumstances. She had argued, of course, bringing up Renholm's history, and ties to the nobility, but Kelsier had dismissed her, saying that she had no clear evidence he was a traitor. She would have ended his life long ago, but Baz'en had picked up a certain reputation in the weeks between the Lord Ruler's death and the Austrex Uprising.
A knife in the dark or a coin out of nowhere would be easily traced back to her, as if she had killed him in the broad light of day in a public square. Even something that looked like an accident would immediately make her suspect.
She had killed a Steel Inquisitor during the Uprising, ripping out its back spike, in front of thousands, albeit with knowledge from the Victory at Fountain Square. Why was dealing with the Austrex Commercantists so difficult? She looked at her enemy. Renholm Callenos, leader of the Commercantists, talking about taxes. Bah, probably wanted to skim off the top.
At least a majority of Austrex loved her, and wished for Baz'en Wraithkiller to remain in power. She knew if she lost that support, Renholm would gain power, become the First Minister, and likely attempt to have her killed. Although his paramilitary was notably bereft of allomancers, he could undoubtedly employ mercenary Hazekillers, although Hazekillers couldn't stand against greater numbers. She settled on reasoning that, if she lost power, she could very easily get it back again, as the Premier wasn't that tolerant towards empowered Commercantists.
She looked around the Assembly, the former opera theater full of allies and enemies. To the left, with her at the front, were the Austrex Iconoclasts. Her followers, many of them dating back to her time in the Mist Riders, and new allies. Eufraso Steelburner, her closest confident. Marsik the Smoker, somewhat of a pacifist, but that was on the average for Smokers. As long as he didn't insist on toning down the deserved Readressment of the nobility. And Fatren of Vetitan, from Vetitan on the Verdigris Plateau- the liberator of Verdigris, and a believer that any other ideology would devolve back into the Final Empire. There were dozens more, but those were the notable figures out of the Iconoclasts.
And then on the right, were the Austrex Commercantists. The wretched liberals. As a gang, the Boxings, they bribed their way to success, and stuck to boring financial crimes, and didn't even try to defraud the Steel Ministry or any large noble houses. Renholm was half-skaa, but was raised a noble.
Their party was mostly composed of skaa merchants and even some nobles who had escaped the executioner's noose, but Abellna Callenos, Renholm's niece, was his lieutenant from his days doing financial crimes against lesser houses. They also had Druffel of Vetitan, Fatren's brother, who was somehow on good terms with Fatren despite their political differences. Druffel was also a good speaker, and was part of the reason the Commercantists were as popular as they were, despite Renholm's constant rants about how the poor could not be trusted running a state.
And then there was the 45th Assemblyman- Captain Goradel of the Republican Army, not belonging to either party, the tiebreaker, and the New Republic's foremost representative in Austrex. He wasn't too much of a bother- he mainly pushed for increasing the size of the military to aid the New Republic in its fight against the Aspirant Empire, and improving the Commune's military capabilities. The Powder Mill he built had given Austrex cannon and flintlocks, which was helpful.
But every new battalion led to a political race to, first, get a politically loyal captain in charge, and then make sure it was outfitted with the best equipment. Every expansion cost a lot of time and money, both of which were better spent combating the Austrex Commercantists behind the scenes.
Renholm finally finished up his blabbing, and his bill would go up for a vote. Sure as hell waited below she wouldn't be voting for it, and all the proper Iconoclasts wouldn't either. Baz'en was finally starting to see the future of Austrex. She had about 3/5ths the Austrex army of 40,000, with Renholm having 2/5ths and gaining thanks to his wealth, with Captain Goradel having a thousand strong battalion.
There were two ways she could see Austrex's future going. If she waited, as the Premier commanded, they would have equal forces, and Renholm would attempt to seize power, one that would require the New Republic to intervene to put down his rebellion. Were she to begin to counter Renholm's influence covertly, such as assassinating captains of his divisions, stealing his finances, and general illegal sabotage, she could prevent that civil war, and focus on building up the military and combating the imperial successors. She knew she had to serve justice to the Empire of Steel, but Tevidian's head was also a good prize.
And it came time to vote. "Nay." 23 people said, thankfully enough, but the absentations would have been enough either way.
What does Baz'en choose to do?
[ ] Act against them. It is better to ask forgiveness in the future than permission now. Baz'en cannot let his treachery and opportunism go unanswered. The Premier can be swayed to see that Renholm was plotting to seize power, which would have led to a lasting conflict that would have required the intervention of the Republican Army.
[ ] Trust in the Premier. He knows what he is doing, he set up these institutions for a reason. Renholm will inevitably overstep, and it will become clear to all that he is a traitor. Although at that point, he will have gained enough power that he will be able to put up quite a resistance against the Iconoclasts.
Eli was forced out into the arena, having no weapon but his chains bound to his wrists, with weights on the end. And Pewter. He thought. He felt the sand of the arena beneath his feet, warm from the sun burning overhead, and reddish from the iron stains of aged ash.
There were fifteen others in the arena, all young men and even some women, all skaa Allomancers like him. The Steel Inquisitors had abducted them all in the night, and Eli was certain they'd eat his soul, like the Iconoclasts said they did. But they didn't. Not yet, anyways.
And so, the lesser Obligators had take his blasphemous self, had fed him a bar of his allomantic metal, a weapon of sorts, and thrown him out into a gladitorial arena. The others also had weapons, but no typical ones. While none possessed chains like these, one had a trident, one with a dagger worn like knuckledusters, a saw-toothed sword, a steel whip, and the only one like his were steel claws at the end of chains, not bound to its bearer's wrists.
All had two things in common. They were nothing like one another, and all were made of metal. Eli scanned the arena. Typically, or at least he had heard, nobles would sit in the stands, but there were few attendees of them today, and what few there were, were Obligators. They sat in shaded stands, beneath canvas, silent. Some glancing at one another, some glancing at the lord proceeding over this.
The Steel Inquisitor sat fully exposed to the sun, in its black robes he had never seen them outside of, thankfully, its eye tattoos and bald heard very visible in the hot sun. It was wearing something else, however. It wore a steel raven mask, one with circles where the spikes jutted from its eyes, exactly the size of the eye spikes. Ravens. The creature that ate the body of the first murder victim.
How did it not get hot? Eli questioned, before ending that line of reasoning. Reasoning was useless against the divine. The Steel Inquisitor looked at the eight combatants, before staring at Eli. He felt its steel gaze against his blasphemous soul, but he did not look away.
"Begin." the Inquisitor announced.
Several of the others began moving. Eli gripped his chains in a way that he could easily maneuver the weights as the weapon he thought there were. But did he really want to do this? What terrible purpose did the Steel Inquisitors have planned for the victor? The oblivion of death skaa were greeted with could be nice, and would save him from having to play a part in the Grace's plans.
And then the woman with the knuckleduster knife charged him, a wild grin on her face. "Ash and Blood!" Eli screamed, raising his chains in defense of his self. He knocked the knuckleduster knife off her hand, assuredly breaking a few fingers in the process. She lunged at him viciously, and Eli stepped back, to bash her head in with the weights.
Blood splattered onto sand as the woman fell to the ground, motionless. And Eli made a terrible realization. Why was he hesitant to use his allomancy? He was skaa, oblivion waited for him no matter what. The Inquisitors could only kill him, and Eli guessed that allomancy would be allowed in this arena based on how they fed him that bar.
And the damned man used allomancy, knowingly, for the first time.
He felt such strength in his bones, he was alert, and ready for any attacks. He had gotten out unscathed with that scuffle, and he would try and do the same. He kept an eye out on all the other combatants, and watched as the fought and killed one another, blood staining the already ash-stained sand.
The brawl ended, as someone else who was holding back intervened against the survivors. It was the man with steel claws on chains. Fourteen lay dead or dying on the red sands, and yet the audience was silent. The claw-bearer approached Eli, and he noticed the claw-bearer was bleeding in several places, and had a large gash in his side.
Eli readied his stance as the claw-bearer attacked. The two parried each other's chains, sparks flying into the air. Eli found himself at a disadvantage. The shackles around his wrists limited him, while the claw bearer had free movement with his chains. Eli decided he would equal this out, by wrapping the claw bearer in his chains. He did so, and the two were bound together, struggling and fighting, equal- but Eli was not sure how to kill the man like this.
Eli tried burning his metal higher, and found he was able to, if he were to focus on it. He yanked his arm out, pulling the chains, which began to compress the claw-bearers' flesh. Eli kept pulling, no matter how the man screamed. A link snapped, and Eli pulled his arm free, before punching down, killing the man.
A small cheer went out from the audience, as Eli disentangled himself from the corpse. "Blood and ash…" Eli mumbled, looking at how he was the only survivor of 16 fighters. He had killed before, but never like… this. That cheer was the first sound he had heard from the audience this entire time, he sourly noted.
Another link snapped, as Eli pulled himself free. And he moved away from the corpse, and sat on the ground, ripping his chains off. The audience was back to its silence. Could he use his metal to escape? No, Inquisitor. He was bleeding in several places, but not bad.
And then he felt a sudden wave of nausea as he calmed down. He breathed deep breaths, but it grew, and grew, until he threw up. The metal bar fell to the red sand below, half- dissolved… but not from the acid inside Eli's stomach.
And then the Inquisitor spoke. "Rise." Eli rose. "Go to the middle of the arena." the Inquisitor commanded. Eli did. And then the Inquisitor jumped, like only Inquisitors could. A small triangular bladed piece of metal, the size of a coin, fell into the sand, and the Inquisitor landed atop it, gently, right in front of Eli.
"Look up." the Inquisitor said. Eli did. The Inquisitor was much taller than Eli, standing at around seven feet tall. And then the Inquisitor cupped Eli's face in its hands, and stared into his eyes, with Eli looking right at those circles of steel in the raven's mask. From here, he could see the mouth of the Inquisitor, twisted into an all too-wide grin. Its breath was sour. But Eli did not look away, did not attempt to pull away. All he felt was anger.
"Some of my brethren might call you a coward." the Inquisitor spoke. "Not so. You are careful, pewterburner. You were limited, to hamper the strength your power gives you. Some did not even burn their metal, and yet you learned to flare yours. And you have anger for me. Good. Passion makes you strong." The Inquisitor raised a hand, and Eli saw the hand descending to his head before all went black.
Mistborn: Smoke and Ash
Revolution in The Final Empire
Vill Dav jumped across the gray stucco rooftops of Tavira. The mists felt good against his skin, suffused with the salty sea breeze, cool in the surinsulindic winter air. He wasn't sure if there were any Mistborn in the city- there had to be, given House Fathvell and the other's pedigrees, but he had yet to see the tell-tale lines of a Mistborn's coin pouch. It was good for him, because, for now, he ruled the rooftops.He just hoped a Mistborn never showed up to teach him oh how wrong he was. While he didn't have tin, he had found something else that served a great role in a similar effect for eyesight. Vill's family doctor had found that belladonna extracts, used by noble women to dilate their pupils so they would look prettier at balls, could be used to look into the inside of eyes. Vill thought it was creepy. But that discovery allowed him to jump and dance through the mists, almost like a Mistborn.
Well, pretty far away from it. Mistborn could sense allomancy, Mistborn could pull metal towards them instead of just push it away, they could touch other's emotions, they could fall from the second story without breaking their legs, they could mask their allomancy- and they could burn atium. Well, now that the Pits of Hathsin were destroyed by the Iconoclasts, and atium was running out, he wouldn't have to worry about that for much longer. Vill pushed off a windowclasp, hearing a snap as he hurtled across the cobbled roadway as the windowclasp broke. Did Mistborn have to deal with that?
Vill wasn't a noble- perhaps if he was, he would be Mistborn. He was skaa. But not your typical skaa- and his father, Dondel, insisted they weren't, but Vill knew better. Only because some noble had elevated Vill's father to a licensed skaa merchant before Vill was born. And then Vill had discovered he was a Coinshot, and Dondel had Vill swear to never even burn steel- and Vill hadn't, knowing full well that everyone he knew would be killed by the Inquisitors- and perhaps his power eaten by Steel Inquisitors, if the Republic was right.
But Vill had collected allomancer's steel, just in case. And then the Lord Ruler died, six months ago, and their problems changed. For a while it looked like the Lord Prelan would be able to impose his rule in Austrex, but then the city had a revolution, and the Lord Prelan fled to the Western Dominance, excommunicating the Lord Fathvell who ruled the Dominance for not sending aid- although Lord Fathvell claimed that he had only got the request for troops after Austrex fell.
In a week, skaa allomancers were legal(or at least not forbidden), Dondel was a lord, and Vill was able to practice as a Coinshot. There had been ups and downs since- he hadn't gone hungry, but he had lost some weight before the trade agreement with the Republic was hashed out. He should be more thankful, many skaa had starved during the worst periods. But all he could do was look north, and wonder, for the Republic had never starved.
Vill had found himself across the street from the darkened Gubernatorial Manor, which was where the Assembly sat during the day. He spotted movement in some of the windows- tineyes, or seekers. Vill wasn't exactly sure on the laws, but they were probably noble allomancers, guarding the Manor, and as long as he stayed away from the Manor, he would be safe.
What was that? Vill looked into an alley, following one of the ghostly blue lines that emanated from his chest. Barren earth, but something glinted in the ambient light. He wondered how that worked when the stars were covered with the mists, but he jumped down to investigate. And he had struck gold. A boxing, coated and smudged in ash- but it didn't have the spires of Kredik Shaw on the front, or the calligraphic symbol of the Final Empire on the back.
In place of Kredik Shaw was a building, Imperial Style, that Vill did not recognize. On the back, was a symbol he did recognize- the New Republic's Consulate had it on their flag they flew above the building. Vill thought it was calligraphy as well, or maybe a new situational symbol in the steel alphabet- it looked like the symbol A, but mirrored down the middle, and made more aesthetically pleasing. How did a Republican boxing get from Luthadel, or maybe Austrex, all the way to Tavira? Well, it wouldn't be hard, given the trade and visitors.
These were legal tender, he thought? It had to be, right? The Oligarchy still used Lord Ruler Imperials, but if it was the same material, and the same size, well it was the same coin, basically. Although the New Republic had Irons, coinage made of pure iron, that apparently had replaced clips, with clips becoming a smaller denomination of coinage. A Republican Iron or Clip would not be legal tender, but a Boxing or Ten-Boxing would be.
Vill Dav burned steel, looking for more coinage in the alley, but found none. He shrugged, thankful for what he had found, dropped a nail, and pushed himself back atop the rooftops, heading back towards the Dav townhouse.
The crimson sun rose over Luthadel on Bronzeday morning. Luthadel had really changed since he had arrived in the city, a couple years ago. Had he not known better, it was a completely different city, all thanks to the Survivor. And many agreed with his statement- some even called the city Republican Luthadel, in honor or celebration of the New Republic.
As for the Republicaness of the New Republic, well, he had certainly seen worse, and not much better. It was somewhat more of a city-state than a whole nation, but from what he knew about the politics and geography of the former Final Empire, that was the result of the Final Empire's infrastructure being built around various cities that served as commercial and industrial hubs, as opposed to a quirk of Republicanism he had seen in the government in the past. Luthadel was very overrepresented, but even so, you did have around 100 Assemblymen from outside the city, either from its suburbs, the Central Dominance, or its territories outside of that, primarily along the Terris River. You even had a few from the aligned nations of the Austrex Commune and Ashen Hands Chiefdom.
No, it was doing fine in that regard. The main issue was Kelsier, the Premier. The Premier had shaped himself up as a messianic figure, and he was certain Kelsier would have died. But the Premier didn't. As a result, he had a large cult of personality around himself, one that the Premier had attempted to combat, but also cultivated to ensure that Kelsier would remain in power. Although it wasn't that bad- especially as the last ruler in Luthadel had blatantly stated he was a god among men, and had created the world, and enforced a brutal caste system that no one gained from.
For cultivating a cult of personality, it was strange how the Premier wasn't really interested in ruling. Kelsier wanted to restore the clear skies that once had hung above Scadrial, and the green plants that once blanketed its hills and plains. Kelsier was a complicated man, and while he knew all men were complicated, Kelsier was a strange mix of altruistic and selfish, manipulative but pushed you towards bettering yourself. In the meantime before he could restore Scadrial to how it once was, however, he was working on the Great Change, and that… that was interesting.
The Premier had realized culture itself was malleable. And, in the wake of a thousand years of oppression, was teaching the people a new culture. Having them pick last names for themselves, having them learn to read, providing them revolutionary pamphlets to read, providing them furniture for their homes, even beds of their own. Well, cots, but that was better than mats on the floor.
He had arrived at the Assembly Hall, a former theater he had never visited, due to the absolutely terrible nature of Final Empire sanctioned entertainment. But now, it was home to a different kind of entertainment. Politics.
The room was somewhat empty- it was only eight thirty, as the clocks outside said, and there was only a few groups of Assemblymen in the hall, chatting. What was happening to him? He had gotten up early, on a Bronzeday, to participate in politics? Maybe the Great Change was having an effect on him as well.
A Terris Steward near the door was sitting with a small notebook- probably checking to make sure that someone unauthorized wasn't sneaking in on the back of the latest crop of elected officials. And so, he walked up, and announced his name.
Nazh was not having a particularly good morning. He had woken up around six, and was sipping some holly tea, lowering his mask- and holding his breath while doing so- he wondered if Khriss would object to him introducing coffee to Scadrial. The holly tea got him awake and alert, but it took more of it, and it definitely didn't taste as good. He decided against it.
The ash would probably kill the coffee. He thought. Shadows know it could kill my lungs.
There were plenty of reasons why he woke up early. One was Khriss's insistence on him joining the Department of Transportation, as opposed to any other Department, where he wouldn't have to sit in a quiet room plotting out routes and giving orders on how often to clear a canal of ash, and then he had become Deputy Minister of the entire Department. If only he had joined the Department of Military Transportation- that would get him the maps Khriss needed, but it was too much intervention for her.
At least he had talked her into coming into the Physical from Port Hathsin. That was the start, and an agreement that she would do her best to save this world, despite how bleak and covered in ash it was.
At least Luthadel's gotten a lot better since I first arrived. He took another sip of his tea.
And then he heard a name from Gholwyl at the door.
"Hoid Cephand. Took the late Master Trest's seat, elected a week ago. You're good to go in." Gholwyl said.
Nazh barely managed to get his mug down before he started coughing on the tea. He managed to re-affix his mask- more of a strip of cloth he could tie around his head- before he got more than a breath or two of unfiltered air in, and as he coughed, he saw him, and was approaching him.
Tall, thin, dark-haired, hawk-faced. It wasn't just a coincidence- Hoid was a valid name in the Final Empire, but he would not be spared by fortune this time.
Shadowsshadowsshadows. Nazh thought as he coughed, and Hoid approached.
He managed to clear his airways enough to speak. "You…" he hissed, before returning to his coughing.
Hoid stopped in front of him, and exclaimed "Me!" jovially.
"What are you doing here?" Nazh demanded, having mostly cleared his airways.
"Well, I took the late Assemblyman Trest's seat after he unfortunately succumbed to old age, and I presume you were elected as well, my curmudgeonly acquaintance." Hoid said, sitting down in the seat next to Nazh.
"You know what I mean." Nazh barked.
"Well, Nazrilof…"
"Nazh Hoffman." Nazh quickly corrected him. He didn't want to have to explain his secrets, not yet.
"Ah, my mistake, Monsieur Hoffman. Well, the same thing you are here for, I presume."
"The betterment of the world." Nazh said.
"The betterment of the world." Hoid replied, with a far-off look in his eyes. Good, the man was willing to be serious for once in his ten thousand year long life.
"How long have you been in Luthadel?" Nazh asked.
"Two years. Five, in The Final Empire. Was an informant for various nobles and thieving crews, pulling strings, trying to not visibly die when some noble got angry at me. Covered for the Premier a couple times, back when he was planning his rebellion. Found the business drying up as information became less controlled, so I pulled a couple more strings when the district seat emptied, and got elected. How long have you been in Luthadel?"
"Wait… no, Dox told me the Premier had met you." Nazh had worked with Dockson more than once, being under the Ministry of Republican Ministry, and he mentioned that if Nazh wanted rare maps, he could visit the Keepers, or an informant named Hoid who Kelsier had met, and who Dockson complimented about his large breadth of knowledge.
"What? No, I never met the Premier." Hoid said. "Did I?" he asked, quizzically.
"Did someone finally out-disguise you?" Nazh asked, smiling.
"No, no. I was aware it was the unusually haughty lord who was asking too much about Renoux." Hoid said.
"All right, if you say so. As for me, closer to a year. Asked Dockson to join the Department of Republican Transport because of my collection of maps, when it was first created, and quickly became its Deputy Minister, and worked with Dox a lot. He recommended me to run in an election, and supported me when I did, two months ago." Nazh shrugged. "Now I'm here. So, how do you plan to better the world?" Nazh asked.
"Small amounts of encouragement delivered in the right places. The sort of thing being an informant, or Assemblyman, is best for." Hoid said.
"You were here before. Surely you must know how to solve the most important issues." Nazh said.
Hoid leaned forwards, knotting his fingers together, deep in thought. "Sometimes," he spoke, "What some men might call fate has something already laid out, and an intervention would have vast consequences, even if you think it, in your heart, it is best to intervene. If you walked up to the Premier and told him the truth, the way of things would be damaged, and Scadrial might be damned." Hoid leaned back, and turned to Nazh. "And so, small bits of encouragement. Also, He might know. We're safe, distanced from the Premier. But were we to have a bit more of an impression on him, or speak to him about something we shouldn't know, well, He might learn. Right now, He cannot be everywhere, and a few early Assemblymen would not catch His eye. Remember, Nazh- your thoughts are yours and yours alone."
"You knew Him." Nazh said. "And your encouragement is greater than Khriss advises me to make. How do you do it?"
"I hide, Nazh. Disguises, and something else. As for my encouragement, Khrissalla is correct. Fortune gives me guidance in my encouragement, and I can do much more than you can, unguided."
"Can you guide me?" Nazh asked.
Hoid smiled. "It has been too long since I have been asked that. But as long as our goals align, and we find ourselves in this room seven days out of eight, I believe that can be done."
And then the Premier arrived.
Kelsier walked into the Assembly Hall, having woken up just ten minutes prior. He was lucky he had that alarm clock specially made by a clocksmith- he had to cut back on his Copperday excursions with Vin to end around one in the morning to feel hale enough by the morning. And, of course, that he was Mistborn, and could travel from his house in Oldgate to Victory Square in a few minutes. He was snacking on a sausage a sausage monger had given to him for free, and burning Pewter to banish the grogginess he was feeling.
Assembly Hall was looking a bit fuller than usual, which was good, because last week's election winners were supposed to have their first day today. Kelsier had to make some laws in the past about no-shows, which was never fun. An Assemblyman who didn't show up… it made him feel as if he had done something wrong. The Assembly needed to work harmoniously, with the other Ministries of the New Republic. The fates of a hundred million depended on it.
Kelsier finished his sausage, and wiped his hands on his handkerchief. He walked to the front of the room, and to the left- where Iconoclastic Iconoclasts set, as opposed to the Commercant Iconoclasts in the center. He sat down next to Marsh and Dox, and smiled at them. Marsh was reading, while Dox was doing calculations in a notebook.
"How are you doing?" Kelsier asked the two.
"Oh, fine." Marsh commented.
"Kell… I need to talk to you." Dox said.
"What's bothering you?" he asked Dockson, getting up, and sitting next to the man.
"I feel wasted, here, Kell. I'm best when accounting the finances and resources of the New Republic in the Ministry of Republican Labor, not so much listening to arguments and voting for 8 hours a day. I already spend most of my time here doing work for my primary job, but it's always easier in my study."
Kelsier felt a shock. He didn't like it, but he understood. After all, Ham wasn't an assemblyman, his commanding and training of the Army of the Center being too vital and too separate from the Assembly for him to have participated during the early days of the New Republic. The Ministry of Republican Labor served an integral role in the management and growth of the New Republic, perhaps even more so than the Ministry of War.
But it hurt. Dox had spent the past six months here, participating and weighing in on the most important bills.
"Alright. You are needed elsewhere- but stay the day, and if you have spare time, or could work here, your presence would be nice." Kelsier told Dox.
"I can attend one or two a week, and lend my full presence if I have most of the days of the week dedicated to Ministry work." Dox said.
"Good." Kelsier sighed.
"Kel?" Marsh asked.
"What's on your thoughts?" Kelsier asked his brother, and made sure to look him in the eyes. He had thought he had lost Marsh once, and he would make sure that wouldn't happen again, by making sure he treated Marsh like a man.
"About Assemblymen who are high up in the Ministries, I was thinking that, while you might like it, full focus on the ministries is best, right now. I understand you view the Assembly as the most important institution of the New Republic… but we're at war. The resources of half the Final Empire are marshaled against us, but we're not acting like it. We've fallen into complacency. The pressure the Pretender and Aspirant Empires are putting on us will only increase. The Assembly has been everything I've ever dreamed of, but we need to use our freedom wisely. For our enemies seek to cast down everything we've built, and reinstate the Final Empire." Marsh clearly had been thinking about this for a while.
Kelsier furrowed his brow. "What's your solution?" he asked Marsh.
Marsh did the same, his furrowed brow just peeking above his blindfold. "You won't like it, but I hope you can accept this, at the very least. First, we cut down the number of Assemblymen- it's grown fairly disjointed, and needs supervision, management, and lots of funding that can go to other Ministries, primarily the Ministry of War and Ministry of Republican Labor. Maybe down to two hundred, or just a hundred? You made mention of equalizing the voting districts nation-wide based on population several times in the past, and this would be the perfect time for that, as well as getting Assemblymen from outside Luthadel in. A lot of the current Assemblymen are talented individuals, and would flourish in the Ministries, or are even already a part of the ministries, and we could easily funnel them from the Assembly to the ministries."
"Yes… I agree with this, even if I don't like it." Kelsier said, running his hand along his chin. "But other than the reform and equalization of the voting districts, I don't see how we could have Assemblymen focus on working for the Ministries, at least without a months-long propaganda campaign."
Dox spoke up. "I have a proposal, that you will like even less. In addition to cutting down on the size of the Assembly, I suggest prohibiting the leaders of Ministries and departments from having seats in the Assembly, which would force them to focus on their Ministerial duties. Breeze won't like it, but… well, as Marsh said, we're in a state of war, and our survival depends on the success of the New Republic."
Kelsier clasped his hands together. "No, I don't really like that. The Assembly is a marketplace of ideas and cooperation between the Ministries, and if we remove Ministers and Deputy Ministers from the Assembly, I can't really see a good way for cooperation to be achieved between the Ministries. The Assembly separated from the Ministries would be useless."
"Either way, both proposals would solve our issue, and allow us to reorient towards the most pressing matter at hand- war. I have no doubt in the future we will be able to focus on the Assembly again, but for now, we must turn our plowshares into swords." Marsh said.
[ ] Ministerial Priority. While we must focus on the Ministries in this time of war, we cannot neglect the Assembly, as it is the thing that sets us apart from the tyrannies that have risen from the ashes of the Final Empire. We will reform the Assembly to be smaller but also more equal as opposed to Luthadel-Centric, and use it to its full extent in facilitating cooperation between the Ministries. A republic, if you can keep it.
[ ] Separation of Powers. The New Republic is under threat, and for its own good, we must forgo portions of our democracy. In addition to reforming the Assembly to be smaller, we shall prevent all Ministers and Deputy Ministers from being Assemblymen, so they can focus on their Ministry duties. As long as the Directory exists, cooperation between Deputy Ministers and the Departments is unneeded, as the central Ministries can cooperate instead.
Enough of the Assembly's four hundred and twenty something members had arrived, and so Gholwyl had moved to the stage, to officiate the beginning of today's session.
"The hundred and eleventh meeting of the Assembly of Luthadel has started, on the final day of the thirteenth month, on Bronzeday. Today's session will begin with the Spying bill, authored by the Premier Kelsier, co-authored by the Directory. The Premier Minister will be reading the bill."
Claps rose from the Assembly, and from the theater boxes up above, occupied by members of the public who had arrived early enough to secure a seat. He thought he could see Kless Haught in a window up above, but he wouldn't let that ruin his day. Kelsier stood up, smiling, and waved to the Assembly. He lightly Pushed on a coin, sending him hurtling atop the stage. He turned, grinning, looking at the entire Assembly, laid out before him. From left to right, he could make out faces, and the political clubs.
Occupying the left and center of the Assembly were the Hathsinists, his club, but there was quite a distinction between the Iconoclasts on the left, and the moderates in the center, nicknamed the Commercantists, by their detractors. The Iconoclasts themselves had a few factions within themselves- the Scarred, Kelsier near-worshippers who seemed to be more supportive of his policies than he himself was. They were led by Garv Witness.
And there was his faction proper, its leaders being Dox, Marsh, Nazh Hoffman, Haws Mistson, Hettel Smith, and Jasten Docker. Some said there was a distinction between those who were loyal to him and went with everything he said, and more moderates such as Marsh and Nazh, but as long as he was moderating himself, their visions were unified.
And that vision was common sense. The Great Change was their foremost goal. While the physical chains of the Final Empire were cast off, the mental chains still held. Last names, shorter hours, holidays, political education, education in general, and public betterment. But also the unification of the world under the New Republic, state direction of the economy through either state-owned factories and businesses or worker cooperatives, equal rights for everyone and the institutions for everyone to be able to use those rights in the spirit of Egality, and popular democracy in general. They might have had to use political centralism to carry out those goals, but it was for a good cause.
The Commercantists were led by Breeze. Kelsier could understand the appeal of private property, but could not agree with restricting voting to landowners(who were mostly nobles), or handing out factories and barges to merchants, then tasking them with hopefully not short changing the government. They championed the idea of the free market, but Kelsier knew that were the market free, those with the largest amount of wealth would become dominant- the nobles. Liberty above equality would undoubtedly lead to an unhealthy nation, and in such times of war, the nation needed to be strong. They were also against the Great Change, viewing it as unnecessary. Getrue Trader, Thurts Docker, and Lord Habren were members of them.
And then the Right. The Monarchists. Who, against all odds, wished to restate the Final Empire. No, that was unfair. They wished to return to the time before the Final Empire, when lords ruled a hundred nations, always fighting amongst themselves. Reversing the gains skaa had made, putting the nobles back in charge, and maybe crowning a king- although all the club's leaders seemingly wished to be King, or perhaps Queen, of Luthadel, so there was a moderate amount of infighting. They were led by Elend Venture, Ferson Penrod, Chanim Haught, and Philen Frandeau. Kelsier was glad to see that they had lost a small amount of ground in last week's votes. There would never be another Lord in Luthadel.
Kelsier could also see a lot of new faces from last week's round of voting, and wondered who they would side with. He recognized a new face- the informant he had spoken to to check if his plan had leaked into the skaa underground, what was his name? Ah right, Hoid. Kelsier wondered what the informant had been doing since the Revolution. Probably still trying to be an informant, in a society where that profession was declining. And he had done what many informants had done- run for Assemblyman.
And then the lights dimmed, and a limelight turned to illuminate him on stage. Kelsier grinned, as he began his speech, in the limelight once more.
After today's Assembly meeting, Kelsier decides to meet with some people he saw in the crowd today. Top 2 votes win.
[ ] Hoid Cephand. While they had met before, it was under less-than-ideal conditions, as both were disguised in some way. An open meeting between the two would clear up some misunderstandings, and in fact, the Assemblyman already extended an invitation to the Premier for a meeting between the two. But what did he mean when he insisted the best place was a copse of trees on a hill fifty miles south of Tenes, next to the Habren estate?
[ ] Nazh Hoffman. Dox has nothing but praise for the man's work ethic, not so much for his personal character- he's always seemingly irritable, and goes for the pessimist argument more often than not. Meeting him would peel back the layers of this complicated man, and maybe even meeting the Premier could cheer him up. He's also mentioned that he's working for someone, who wants maps of the Final Empire, and that his twin loyalties do not conflict. Who could that be?
[ ] Kless Haught. Kelsier can't shake the suspicions he has about the woman. Half a Great House, albeit a lesser one, defecting to the New Republic less than a day after the death of the Lord Ruler? Spy or not, she has another agenda, one separate to the New Republic. And so, talk to her, hopefully catch her out on her lies. As well as see how the Nobility is doing in Luthadel, now that the Final Empire is gone.
Baz'en wanted to kill her foremost political enemy. It would be so easy. One coin accelerated to lethal speeds via allomancy, one knife in the dark.
But the Premier had told her that would not be allowed, under any circumstances. She had argued, of course, bringing up Renholm's history, and ties to the nobility, but Kelsier had dismissed her, saying that she had no clear evidence he was a traitor. She would have ended his life long ago, but Baz'en had picked up a certain reputation in the weeks between the Lord Ruler's death and the Austrex Uprising.
A knife in the dark or a coin out of nowhere would be easily traced back to her, as if she had killed him in the broad light of day in a public square. Even something that looked like an accident would immediately make her suspect.
She had killed a Steel Inquisitor during the Uprising, ripping out its back spike, in front of thousands, albeit with knowledge from the Victory at Fountain Square. Why was dealing with the Austrex Commercantists so difficult? She looked at her enemy. Renholm Callenos, leader of the Commercantists, talking about taxes. Bah, probably wanted to skim off the top.
At least a majority of Austrex loved her, and wished for Baz'en Wraithkiller to remain in power. She knew if she lost that support, Renholm would gain power, become the First Minister, and likely attempt to have her killed. Although his paramilitary was notably bereft of allomancers, he could undoubtedly employ mercenary Hazekillers, although Hazekillers couldn't stand against greater numbers. She settled on reasoning that, if she lost power, she could very easily get it back again, as the Premier wasn't that tolerant towards empowered Commercantists.
She looked around the Assembly, the former opera theater full of allies and enemies. To the left, with her at the front, were the Austrex Iconoclasts. Her followers, many of them dating back to her time in the Mist Riders, and new allies. Eufraso Steelburner, her closest confident. Marsik the Smoker, somewhat of a pacifist, but that was on the average for Smokers. As long as he didn't insist on toning down the deserved Readressment of the nobility. And Fatren of Vetitan, from Vetitan on the Verdigris Plateau- the liberator of Verdigris, and a believer that any other ideology would devolve back into the Final Empire. There were dozens more, but those were the notable figures out of the Iconoclasts.
And then on the right, were the Austrex Commercantists. The wretched liberals. As a gang, the Boxings, they bribed their way to success, and stuck to boring financial crimes, and didn't even try to defraud the Steel Ministry or any large noble houses. Renholm was half-skaa, but was raised a noble.
Their party was mostly composed of skaa merchants and even some nobles who had escaped the executioner's noose, but Abellna Callenos, Renholm's niece, was his lieutenant from his days doing financial crimes against lesser houses. They also had Druffel of Vetitan, Fatren's brother, who was somehow on good terms with Fatren despite their political differences. Druffel was also a good speaker, and was part of the reason the Commercantists were as popular as they were, despite Renholm's constant rants about how the poor could not be trusted running a state.
And then there was the 45th Assemblyman- Captain Goradel of the Republican Army, not belonging to either party, the tiebreaker, and the New Republic's foremost representative in Austrex. He wasn't too much of a bother- he mainly pushed for increasing the size of the military to aid the New Republic in its fight against the Aspirant Empire, and improving the Commune's military capabilities. The Powder Mill he built had given Austrex cannon and flintlocks, which was helpful.
But every new battalion led to a political race to, first, get a politically loyal captain in charge, and then make sure it was outfitted with the best equipment. Every expansion cost a lot of time and money, both of which were better spent combating the Austrex Commercantists behind the scenes.
Renholm finally finished up his blabbing, and his bill would go up for a vote. Sure as hell waited below she wouldn't be voting for it, and all the proper Iconoclasts wouldn't either. Baz'en was finally starting to see the future of Austrex. She had about 3/5ths the Austrex army of 40,000, with Renholm having 2/5ths and gaining thanks to his wealth, with Captain Goradel having a thousand strong battalion.
There were two ways she could see Austrex's future going. If she waited, as the Premier commanded, they would have equal forces, and Renholm would attempt to seize power, one that would require the New Republic to intervene to put down his rebellion. Were she to begin to counter Renholm's influence covertly, such as assassinating captains of his divisions, stealing his finances, and general illegal sabotage, she could prevent that civil war, and focus on building up the military and combating the imperial successors. She knew she had to serve justice to the Empire of Steel, but Tevidian's head was also a good prize.
And it came time to vote. "Nay." 23 people said, thankfully enough, but the absentations would have been enough either way.
What does Baz'en choose to do?
[ ] Act against them. It is better to ask forgiveness in the future than permission now. Baz'en cannot let his treachery and opportunism go unanswered. The Premier can be swayed to see that Renholm was plotting to seize power, which would have led to a lasting conflict that would have required the intervention of the Republican Army.
[ ] Trust in the Premier. He knows what he is doing, he set up these institutions for a reason. Renholm will inevitably overstep, and it will become clear to all that he is a traitor. Although at that point, he will have gained enough power that he will be able to put up quite a resistance against the Iconoclasts.
Eli was forced out into the arena, having no weapon but his chains bound to his wrists, with weights on the end. And Pewter. He thought. He felt the sand of the arena beneath his feet, warm from the sun burning overhead, and reddish from the iron stains of aged ash.
There were fifteen others in the arena, all young men and even some women, all skaa Allomancers like him. The Steel Inquisitors had abducted them all in the night, and Eli was certain they'd eat his soul, like the Iconoclasts said they did. But they didn't. Not yet, anyways.
And so, the lesser Obligators had take his blasphemous self, had fed him a bar of his allomantic metal, a weapon of sorts, and thrown him out into a gladitorial arena. The others also had weapons, but no typical ones. While none possessed chains like these, one had a trident, one with a dagger worn like knuckledusters, a saw-toothed sword, a steel whip, and the only one like his were steel claws at the end of chains, not bound to its bearer's wrists.
All had two things in common. They were nothing like one another, and all were made of metal. Eli scanned the arena. Typically, or at least he had heard, nobles would sit in the stands, but there were few attendees of them today, and what few there were, were Obligators. They sat in shaded stands, beneath canvas, silent. Some glancing at one another, some glancing at the lord proceeding over this.
The Steel Inquisitor sat fully exposed to the sun, in its black robes he had never seen them outside of, thankfully, its eye tattoos and bald heard very visible in the hot sun. It was wearing something else, however. It wore a steel raven mask, one with circles where the spikes jutted from its eyes, exactly the size of the eye spikes. Ravens. The creature that ate the body of the first murder victim.
How did it not get hot? Eli questioned, before ending that line of reasoning. Reasoning was useless against the divine. The Steel Inquisitor looked at the eight combatants, before staring at Eli. He felt its steel gaze against his blasphemous soul, but he did not look away.
"Begin." the Inquisitor announced.
Several of the others began moving. Eli gripped his chains in a way that he could easily maneuver the weights as the weapon he thought there were. But did he really want to do this? What terrible purpose did the Steel Inquisitors have planned for the victor? The oblivion of death skaa were greeted with could be nice, and would save him from having to play a part in the Grace's plans.
And then the woman with the knuckleduster knife charged him, a wild grin on her face. "Ash and Blood!" Eli screamed, raising his chains in defense of his self. He knocked the knuckleduster knife off her hand, assuredly breaking a few fingers in the process. She lunged at him viciously, and Eli stepped back, to bash her head in with the weights.
Blood splattered onto sand as the woman fell to the ground, motionless. And Eli made a terrible realization. Why was he hesitant to use his allomancy? He was skaa, oblivion waited for him no matter what. The Inquisitors could only kill him, and Eli guessed that allomancy would be allowed in this arena based on how they fed him that bar.
And the damned man used allomancy, knowingly, for the first time.
He felt such strength in his bones, he was alert, and ready for any attacks. He had gotten out unscathed with that scuffle, and he would try and do the same. He kept an eye out on all the other combatants, and watched as the fought and killed one another, blood staining the already ash-stained sand.
The brawl ended, as someone else who was holding back intervened against the survivors. It was the man with steel claws on chains. Fourteen lay dead or dying on the red sands, and yet the audience was silent. The claw-bearer approached Eli, and he noticed the claw-bearer was bleeding in several places, and had a large gash in his side.
Eli readied his stance as the claw-bearer attacked. The two parried each other's chains, sparks flying into the air. Eli found himself at a disadvantage. The shackles around his wrists limited him, while the claw bearer had free movement with his chains. Eli decided he would equal this out, by wrapping the claw bearer in his chains. He did so, and the two were bound together, struggling and fighting, equal- but Eli was not sure how to kill the man like this.
Eli tried burning his metal higher, and found he was able to, if he were to focus on it. He yanked his arm out, pulling the chains, which began to compress the claw-bearers' flesh. Eli kept pulling, no matter how the man screamed. A link snapped, and Eli pulled his arm free, before punching down, killing the man.
A small cheer went out from the audience, as Eli disentangled himself from the corpse. "Blood and ash…" Eli mumbled, looking at how he was the only survivor of 16 fighters. He had killed before, but never like… this. That cheer was the first sound he had heard from the audience this entire time, he sourly noted.
Another link snapped, as Eli pulled himself free. And he moved away from the corpse, and sat on the ground, ripping his chains off. The audience was back to its silence. Could he use his metal to escape? No, Inquisitor. He was bleeding in several places, but not bad.
And then he felt a sudden wave of nausea as he calmed down. He breathed deep breaths, but it grew, and grew, until he threw up. The metal bar fell to the red sand below, half- dissolved… but not from the acid inside Eli's stomach.
And then the Inquisitor spoke. "Rise." Eli rose. "Go to the middle of the arena." the Inquisitor commanded. Eli did. And then the Inquisitor jumped, like only Inquisitors could. A small triangular bladed piece of metal, the size of a coin, fell into the sand, and the Inquisitor landed atop it, gently, right in front of Eli.
"Look up." the Inquisitor said. Eli did. The Inquisitor was much taller than Eli, standing at around seven feet tall. And then the Inquisitor cupped Eli's face in its hands, and stared into his eyes, with Eli looking right at those circles of steel in the raven's mask. From here, he could see the mouth of the Inquisitor, twisted into an all too-wide grin. Its breath was sour. But Eli did not look away, did not attempt to pull away. All he felt was anger.
"Some of my brethren might call you a coward." the Inquisitor spoke. "Not so. You are careful, pewterburner. You were limited, to hamper the strength your power gives you. Some did not even burn their metal, and yet you learned to flare yours. And you have anger for me. Good. Passion makes you strong." The Inquisitor raised a hand, and Eli saw the hand descending to his head before all went black.
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Discord in the House of God
- Pronouns
- He/Him
"The Flame that Raged across Scadrial Burned in the Hearts of Skaa and Noble Alike, and not only did it Spread to the Hearts of the Terris. The Drifter, when He least expected it, Found the Flame Licking at his Heart."
Snow fell from the sky. The wagon rumbled through the streets of Tathingdwen, across its large ill-fitting cobbles, pulled by oxen, their breath forming into mist in the air. The wagon driver was skaa, and dressed in a thick cloth coat, and amidst the crates and barrels and bolts of cloth, were two Terris Keepers and a skaa, sitting, talking, wrapped in a large cloth to keep out the cold and snow. It was the first snowfall of the year, depositing large white sheets over the landscape.
The wagon came to a stop in a large square, and while the weather was absolutely terrible, there were a few stalls and fewer customers. "Alright, out you go, this is Gofmynn Square." The passengers rose, bringing some accrudaments with them, thanking the wagon driver for bringing them from the New Republic.
Vedzan stepped out to meet them, as the wagon trundled away, in a simple long-sleeved skaa shirt, making up the difference via Feruchemy.. "Rindel, Fisal, it is good to see you. Who is our friend?" he asked.
"Captain Demoux, sir." Demoux saluted him. He was in a Republican Army officer uniform, though one tailored for the cold of the Northern Domiance's winter. He was young, maybe in his early twenties? Certainly the youngest of the lot, but Vedzan started fighting when he was younger, who who was he to judge?
"Joined Yeden's army before the Revolution, and he has had a lot of military experience. The Premier picked him to accompany us to Terris, thought he would be useful." Rindel said.
"Good man." Vedzan nodded at the Captain. "It's getting cold, I have a place in the Skaa Quarter if you want to have a warm meal."
"That would be nice, I think." Fisal said.
Half an hour later, they were in a house along the Feddek Thoroughfare, overlooking the Exercise Yards. The skaa quarter was the old garrison, and as the Terrismen had plenty memories of its oppression, plus the fact the architecture was very far from the Terris standard, made the garrison very undesirable real estate for Terrismen, although that made it open to skaa and even a few nobles from the New Republic. The Synod had no control, here.
The exercise yard was occupied, even on such a dreary day. Some young terris were having an absolutely brutal snowball fight. The peak of the fight was over, and their wool coats were covered in snow. One was even slumped over a snow-covered rock, possibly unconscious, back covered in thrown snowballs. Vedzan remembered doing the same, but back in those days, half the yard was fenced off, Garrison soldiers only. Oh, he had such hate for the soldiers back then.
The house was an old Garrison building, and had many large rooms. Perfect for Vedzan's plan- revolution in the House of God. Vedzan was sitting in a wooden chair with some padding, taken from some manor house in the Tathingdwen Valley or the Terris Gift, legs on a stool, hands holding a bowl of stew- with chicken. Meat had become a lot more common since the Revolution, enough for the wealthy- in this case, the Keepers, to afford at least one meal a day that had some meat in it. It was hot, but that's what his brassmind was for. Vedzan looked more like a rural Terrisman than a steward- short dark hair, a bit of stubble, but he was wearing the robes of a city Terrisman, and had a large amount of bracelets on his arms and legs, and a few vital ones under his clothes.
"I suppose we should all swap stories." Rindel proposed. Rindel was wearing trousers and a button shirt, had short-cropped brown hair, and was slouching in his chair. "I know Vedzan and Fisal know me, but I don't know if Fisal knows Vedzan, and Captain Demoux hardly knows any of us, and vice versa."
"Ah, well I'll go first." Demoux said. He was wearing his officer's uniform, and had somewhat longer light brown hair. "I grew up in Tenes, south of Luthadel, and worked in a grinding mill. It was a hard life, worked all day, but we all had hard lives."
"Indeed true, that." Vedzan commented.
"And then… the Survivor came. To a speakeasy, bringing us words of passion and fire. I was there, drinking in the late hours after work, and me and several others were convinced, and went with his men to the Arguois caverns, where I became a Captain under General Ham. Kelsier visited when the command shifted from Ham to General Yeden, and tested the soldiers for the base allomantic metals- while I myself do not have allomantic ability, many soldiers tested positive for some allomantic ability- and yes, I have tested myself for gold, electrum, aluminum, and chromium, but I have not been able to burn any of the metals."
"When Kelsier told us the time was right, Yeden led us to attack Holstep- and we defeated its garrison, and took the city over. Valtroux sent its Garrison, and the Luthadel Garrison was also sent, but by that time… well, the Lord Ruler was dead, and the garrisons clued on that they were no longer protected by the Lord Ruler. Our numbers swelled massively from deserters, and we liberated Haverfrex and Valtroux, and just… kept snowballing. I've had a year of training, and half a year of real military experience, fighting the Aspirants along the Terris river, so this is my first winter in these icy conditions." Demoux said, taking a deep swig of stew.
"The typical story, a lot of those who served under General Hammond back in the Arguois Caverns in 1021 have quite a high rank in the Republican Army." Rindel smiled.
"I think it would be a shame to reveal that we Keepers have fought our entire lives against the Lord Ruler." Fisal said. Fisal was an older man, old enough to be an Elder, but he was definitely heterodox- heterodox enough to agree to aid Vedzan and Terris Kahl in dethroning the Synod. He was wearing a city Terris's robes, and some gray stubble sprouted from his head, but he had the traditional metalminds of a Steward, in bracelets and earrings. It looked like he was storing sight and health at the moment.
"I wouldn't say that about the Keepers in general… but you, didn't you kill a couple of Obligators?" Vedzan asked Fisal.
"I did, and I think it would be best were I to share my story next. I was your typical steward, working for a noble house, doing accounting, managing the household, educating his child, but that was years ago. For the past decade, I masqueraded as a traveling steward, one on some business trip for his master. Under that cover, I studied architecture- pre-ascension accounts, ruins, and that of the various cultures of the different Dominances." Fisal said. He was sitting straight-back in his chair, so he was still somewhat of a steward.
"But I frequented a couple of towns, in the northern Central Dominance and along the Terris River. I had contacts with the skaa underground, and was… friends with an informant. Earlier this year, he found me after a long time apart, and approached me with a job. Get a murderer- a skaa- out of the Dominance. The murderer was nothing more than a boy. Hunted by the Obligators all the same. The House he was subject to had fallen, and he had been sold- he killed his guard, a lesser noble, and escaped. I ventured with him, before the Obligators caught up with us."
"They had captured the informant, Temmir, and had tortured him. But he left one thing out- my Feruchemy. I was able to kill the Obligator and his boatman, and fled with the boat, the boy, Kem, and Temmir. I made it back to Tathingdwen, and petitioned the Synod to take them in. Both are competent individuals, and the boy is making out to be a great scholar. They refused my request. As I was panicking over what to do next, I got the news that the Lord Ruler was dead the day after, and my problems changed." Fisal said. He had gotten animated and passionate- at least, for a Steward.
"And these people are still in the city?" Captain Demoux asked.
"Yes, I believe Temmir's become an important figure of the skaa population of Tathingdwen, and Kem is taking lessons from Keepers and Stewards in his free time, but the boy isn't even fifteen yet." Fisal said.
"Ok, so an ally among the skaa in the city as well- good news. But tell me Fisal, what conclusion did you draw from that formative experience?" Rindel asked.
"I believed that we should teach and cultivate relations with the skaa underground while the Final Empire still stood, casting off the chains of docility and servitude. I did not believe the Final Empire could be overthrown, but when it was…" Fisal grimaced. "The Synod has not done enough with our first freedom in a thousand years, I think."
"Have you converted to Iconoclasm, Fisal?" Vedzan asked the Keeper, smiling.
"I am not sure what I am. But the Synod practically ignores the rest of Terris, leaving it to the Stewards and skaa to manage the flow of resources between Terris and Luthadel. They send Keepers into the lands of the Final Empire indiscriminately- we lost several good men before they wisened up that any Feruchemists sent to the Steeled Empire would be broken down for their powers. While the Breeding Program has stopped, the children of Tathingdwen will be its last generation, and the Synod is doing its best to ignore that. Synodic Terris exists entirely off of benevolence on behalf of the New Republic, and were that to end, we would perish quickly. It is clear that the chains forged by the Lord Ruler still bind us, and no one other than the Iconoclasts has a way to break those chains." Fisal had slipped off his stewardly nature, and made several animated hand gestures.
"I hadn't even thought that about the children." Demoux said, wide-eyed.
"What's better? How I got involved with Terris Kahl, or how Terris Kahl was created?" Rindel asked.
"Terris Kahl's history. I have a good idea of it, but the Good Captain here only has a vague idea of it from its activities in Mantiz." Fisal said.
"Ah, my life story. Well, listen up well, for this is the story of Terris Kahl, and the story of me." Vedzan leaned back, placing the now-empty bowl of stew on the ground. The three others were enrapt. Vedzan smiled- if all went well, in a hundred years, Terris children would be told this story, the story of how Terris broke its chains.
He started. "I was born in rural Terris, and like most rural Terrismen, I was raised by my family, and was not castrated, as the risk of both Feruchemy and rebellion was deemed too low in my town for it to be enchained by the Breeding Program. Like every action the Final Empire took, this was the wrong assessment, as I am living proof of that." the three men smiled.
"I was the son of a sheepherder, my father, and a clothworker, my mother. I had several siblings, but I am not close with them- my family discovered I was a Feruchemist when I was twelve, with myself having a vague knowledge of my abilities for several years before that. The Synod has ties to most villages, and generally the Elder is a non-Feruchemist member of the organization, or at the very least possess ties. I found myself being brought to Tathingdwen by a Keeper, and truth be told, it was scary for me- I found myself a completely unfamiliar city, when I was young, and theoretically hunted by the Steel Ministry- although the right paperwork was filled out, which meant I did not have to undergo castration unless I joined the Stewards. But I was a Feruchemist, and that was enough to earn me a death sentence."
"As for my family, I have visited them twice since- once when I left Tathingdwen, and once soon after the Final Empire fell, for their safety- but I will get to that." Vedzan said.
"I was trained as a Keeper, under the guise of an apprentice Steward. I was a bad Keeper, and a worse Steward. I found myself more often than not running away from my lessons to play, and then race, lift weights, and box in the Exercise Yards. Before I left Tathingdwen, I rose high in the underground boxing rings in the city, and I even managed to defeat 'Feny' Werring in a match."
"You defeated Feny? That man was the undefeated champion of boxing for decades!" Fisal exclaimed, very unsteward-like.
"Ah, I got lucky." Vedzan humbled himself. "It was near the end of his career, anyways, he started losing more matches after that one, before he retired."
Vedzan thought for a moment, before settling where he left off before this diatribe. "I was at my poor performance as a steward-in-training. To tell you the truth, I had no intentions of becoming a fully-fledged steward, although for selfish reasons. I liked my manhood too much to lose it, and I know I left several expectant mothers in my wake- although the Obligators always found them and induced abortions. When I was 19, the Final Empire started to catch on that I was not going to be a steward, and began an 'investigation' into my 'potentially rebellious' behavior. The Keepers helped me flee the city, and I took a few hot-headed friends with me as well."
"We went north, to the town of Wayedeth, in the Wayedeth Valley in Northern Terris. I trained further as a Keeper, and this is where I came into my own- I began setting up an underground, of sorts, with other hotheads- protecting other rebellious individuals, and investigating what we could of Terris- icebound ruins, cultural traditions, and collating the information stored in my copperminds. It is here Terris Kahl began. More and more flocked to my organization, but I could not hide everyone- and so, we split, various cells going to various locales across Terris. I remained in Wayedeth's surroundings, primarily in a ruined settlement in a nearby forest- there, we began to shape a library, and the cells all had communication with me, and none with each other. The Synod loathed this, and attempted to dissuade me, but I refused, and my master left the town." This was somewhat of a boring period, but it was all mostly boring, with occasional spats of incredible excitement.
Rindel smiled, for he knew what was coming next. "Around here, about seven years after I began, Rindel arrived, the Keeper of War. It was Rindel who turned my scattered resistance into Terris Kahl, and in fact he named it, but he deserves to tell his own story. We were able to begin training, and fighting- many Terrismen have experience with bows, through hunting, and it was bows that worked the best, for our style of long distance ambushes. And we began fighting. It was slow work- a lone courier or patrol in the hills, long nights spent in cold caves and snowbound ruins. But we pushed the Final Empire back, God Willing. We managed to liberate towns, either making them too difficult to reach, or leading their people into fertile valleys that were hard to reach, forcibly depopulated by the Final Empire to maintain its grip over us." Vedzan smiled.
"Something happened, before the Revolution." Fisal said. "I heard about it, the Synod spoke of dealing with Terris Kahl, lest it sink all our hopes."
"They spoke of trying to kill me? The sinful wretches." Vedzan spat. "I found the smoking gun. I pieced it all together- the twisted truths of the Lord Ruler's religion, carved texts in the deep valleys, and the recesses of our own copperminds. The Lord Ruler was Terris. A God-Damned Feruchemist, for God's sake! Ultimate power, from a mix of Allomancy and Feruchemy. No divine power at all, he just got lucky, and conquered the world." Vedzan ranted.
"It may seem trivial now… But I knew first. I preached it, word got out, and the Inquisitors were tracking me down. And then the Lord Ruler died, slain by the Survivor of Hathsin at the Victory. But I was ready to go down fighting, because if that piece of information got out… it would either save or damn Terris. It would have shaken the Final Empire to its core. But, well… if the Lord Ruler managed to maintain power, he could've sentenced our people to death. I abandoned the cell structure of Terris Kahl, gathering all the Terris Kahl members together, and was making preparations to seize Wayedeth when I got the news the Lord Ruler died, and the Synod had liberated Tathingdwen. I had an army, and I used it- I liberated the three northern valleys, where Terris Kahl was active. A good portion of Northern Terris is run by people I've worked with for over a decade."
"I ventured south, visiting my family one last time, before stopping in Tathingdwen, and had a tense meeting with the Synod, before I headed south with some of my cadre, to track down Obligators involved in the Breeding program, before they escaped. I put my experience to good use, and technically worked with the Republican Army. And then the Premier sent a letter to me, which started this plan."
Vedzan frowned. "To think, I was the first to find out the Lord Ruler was Terris, and the Synod and Keepers on the 'straight and narrow' often accuse me of being just like him through my willingness to fight him, and in the same breath say I wish to put Terris under foreign domination. I know all of us may not agree, but something is deeply rotten in the House of God."
"Something is. We are too slow to adjust, we always were." Fisal said. "The Synod has no real ability to rule, but I suppose that is part of our plan. Rindel should go next."
"Wow… I had heard of Terris Kahl, but I didn't know that at the same time as Kelsier was overthrowing the Final Empire." Demoux said.
Rindel leaned forwards, and cleared his throat. "I am a more typical example of a Keeper, although I had several… misunderstandings during my training as a Keeper. I was born in Tathingdwen, was adopted by someone with heavy ties to the Synod, trained as a Steward, and headed off to work for a minor noble house. I picked warfare as my subject, and was competent at studying military history. But I believed I was a spy for the Synod, and that was the start of my problems. Wasn't a very good spy, you see. I was run out of the estate after about two years when the Lord discovered my second logbook, the Final Empire revoked my Steward License on suspicion of corruption, and sent me to the copper mines."
"Boors didn't know who they were dealing with, though. I am the Keeper of War, I know how to raise an uprising. Organized a strike, broke out of the mine with a few others, killed a few guards, headed to Wayedeth, as an outlaw. And there I met Vedzan, and the early Terris Kahl. It was my military expertise that allowed Terris Kahl to take shape into its modern form, and I traveled from cell to cell, training and synchronizing our efforts. We would have never liberated the villages we did without me." Rindel said.
"Amen." Vedzan said. "Terris Kahl could not have done what we did without your knowledge of tactics and war. And the Premier appreciated your skills?" he asked Rindel.
"Oh, he absolutely did." Rindel grinned widely. "For context, after the death of the Lord Ruler, I found myself traveling south, initially to aid Vedzan in his search for Obligators who escaped the Synod's grip during the Tathingdwen Uprising. Then, the stories of the Revolution intrigued me, and when I heard that the Republic was looking for Keepers, I found myself heading south, and I worked with the University of Luthadel for months. The Republican Army has 10,000 rifles all thanks to me, and I contributed heavily on powder mills and cannon production. The Aspirant Empire and Pretender Empire have cannon, but mostly they're working with trebuchets- although eh, doesn't really matter much for sieges with city walls, other than Luthadel's, not existing. Really only matters for battles, right now, but as the palisades go up, and the spring campaigns begin… war will change, like it was in the days of the Conqueror."
"That is only supporting our observation that Terris requires stable leadership." Fisal said. "Warfare is changing, and we cannot let Terris fall behind in the dust. If the Imperial Successors wanted to, they could strike at Tathingdwen, and we would be unable to stop them."
"So, we must come up with a plan." Rindel said, excitedly.
"The day Premier Kelsier laid down his plan on how he would carry out the Revolution, he had a charcoal board. I suppose we don't have one of those sitting around?" Demoux asked.
"No, no charcoal board- and it's perhaps best if we don't write down our plans. Might end up on the receiving end of the Synod's guillotines. You have to remember- we are powerful people, figures the Synod is paying attention to- we cannot just openly state we are intending to overthrow them. But we also have resources. Feruchemy, yes, but men, territory, followers, skills." Vedzan explained. "That is why covering our pasts was important, finding out our life experiences."
Fisal spoke first. "In that case, I shall restate Temmir's ties to the skaa quarter- if we got him on our side, we could have all the skaa on our side in the inevitable conflict."
"And we have Terris Kahl as well. Where are those you brought south, those that were headquartered in Mantz?" Demoux asked.
"In the city, but divided. There are more from the Wayenedeth Valley in the north as well, but altogether, not so many." Vedzan answered. "If we can, we should relocate people from the north south. A revolutionary cadre would be nice to have."
"So, we have definite support from the skaa, and Terris Kahl. I presume we should just begin printing a newspaper, or pamphlets, to get regular Terrismen in the city more towards our ideas." Rindel proposed.
"It would be smart for us to form a militia. Not just for use in the city, but to train the seeds of a Terris army for, first, self-defense, and then for eventually aiding the New Republic in its wars." Demoux suggested. "I can train them, but weapons… who controls the copper and iron mines, and where is it refined?"
"Most are owned by the Synod, but maintained by the New Republic. The ore is generally sent down to Luthadel. We could likely get some iron, but I don't see your ideas on copper. Copper weaponry? That is not particularly effective, I think." Fisal said.
"Oh, just thinking about how the Premier wants Terris to achieve economic independence, and control over the copper mines would help." Demoux said.
"Hmm, yeah, were we to set up forges, then the copper would flow through our hands. We could do the same thing with the iron, and through that, produce weapons domestically, building up quite a military potential." Rindel said.
"I do not believe we could gain ground among the Synod, in our wars of ideas. The Premier did plan on us courting Keepers to our side, and it might be best were we to be able to take control over the Synod in some way, but it would be difficult." Fisal said.
"It would be more difficult, it would be possible, and avoid a war in Terris, although I'm not sure if that's the best option for us." Vedzan replied.
"Who in Tathingdwen would be the most receptive to Iconoclasm?" Demoux asked.
"The woolen mill workers, definitely." Rindel replied. "The Synod has not improved conditions in the textile district, I think, and there is much grumbling among the weavers and spinners." he said.
"So it seems we should decide on our options." Vedzan said. "If all goes right, we could build up enough power and influence to bloodlessly coup the Synod, taking power and sidelining the Synod into a purely . But what I've learned is that nothing ever goes right. The Synod will catch on, and work against us." Vedzan waited for any comments, and when none arose, he continued.
"Or we could follow the path Kelsier laid down. Building an army in secret, and taking Tathingdwen in a surprise attack. It is possible, although we should expect the Synod to take some preparations- the Final Empire knew of his rebellion a couple months after it started- it only didn't crush it because of failures in the past, fighting through the Arguois caverns, and the Lord Ruler was so self-assured the Empire could not fall, and he would never die." Vedzan said.
"I would prefer it were our colleagues not to be slain. While we could take Tathingdwen quickly, if we built up a militia or reorganized Terris Kahl, the Synod would undoubtedly build up a militia or even an army to combat us. We saw during the uprising that Keepers would be willing to fight, if they felt threatened- Kelsier has a plan for them." Fisal said.
"He didn't mention preserving the Synod, did he?" Rindel asked.
"No, but the Synod is composed of Keepers." Fisal said.
"Could do both." Demoux suggested. "A buildup of influence combined with military buildup. Start a strike, uprising, in Tathingdwen, while marching an army on the city from the north. Make it known to the Synod that they will lose, and demand their surrender, in exchange for a peaceful transition."
"Would take more effort than just focusing on one approach. Could also spiral out of control. And it depends how stubborn the Synod is. History is full of times where the cards were stacked against a group, and they had the option of folding, but they didn't, continuing into defeat and ruination." Rindel stated.
"So what do we do?" Demoux asked.
"We will discuss it more. Have the whole day, and a bit of the night- hopefully we can come to a conclusion, or compromise. I do not believe we can have dissent among ourselves." Vedzan said.
And the discussion raged for the rest of the day, although the days in the Terris winter were short, and raged well into the long winter night. By the end, although not all were happy with the plan, no one was upset enough to leave the group.
[ ] Revolution. The revolutionaries come to the conclusion that following in Kelsier's proven steps is best. Military buildup, in secret, combined with the spreading of hope and ideas among the poor and needy of Tathingdwen, before launching a second uprising that will see the city freed. The Synod will know of the revolutionaries building up an army, and build up their own army. There will be bloodshed, but it will see Terris cast off its chains much quicker, perhaps in a matter of months.
[ ] Slow and Steady… The revolutionaries shall take full advantage of the Synod's lack of firm control of anything outside Tathingdwen, and its lack of institutions, by gaining control over large swaths of Terris, and becoming the main hands through which goods pass, as well as setting up institutions that have the potential to see the revolutionaries taking over Terris, without a single drop of blood spilled. The Synod will see the revolutionaries' attempts of building a state, and be motivated into racing to build their own government. This will take the longest, perhaps a year, but see Terris free without bloodshed.
[ ] Why Not Both? The revolutionaries shall work on both plans, brandishing both the crook and the flail, the stick and carrot. They shall work on sowing discontent and forming a military force that could seize the city, but as well as work on establishing industrial networks in Terris. This balanced approach could mean that Terris will be able to provide both men and material to the Republican war effort in the south, but the Synod will definitely be incensed at the revolutionary's attempts to pick up their slack, and move them to also build up their abilities. But when Terris Kahl turns its army on the Synod, it is hoped that, while it could be a pyrrhic victory for either side, the Synod will see reason, and capitulate. While the time estimate is unknown, it is in between the other options.
Marsh watched through eyes of steel as the nobles hung, doing the hempen jig. He could see the blood pumping through their veins, and as their hearts slowed as they were slowly starved of air, the blood stilled. The crowd jeered at the noble, occasionally throwing rotten fruit and small rocks at the bastard. He had been convicted of rape of a young skaa servant girl. Made him sick. Some of the crowd had been subjects of this noble, or his House. Most weren't, merely holding a passionate hatred for their lifelong oppressors.
His spikes' demands lessened, but they didn't go away fully. He thought supervising these executions would sate their thirst for blood, even taking the place of the executioner sometimes, and it did, for a time, but their demand had… grown.
In this case, he had tied the noose, and kicked the stool out from under the nobleman's feet. He watched the man struggle for air, and his heart stop, as he died. But he took no pleasure from it. He didn't have the same rage the crowd that watched the executions did for the noblemen. No, he never did. Only when an Obligator was strung up, but those were a rare breed in the New Republic. His hate for them had only grown- they turned him into a thing of fear and death, in addition to ending his poor mother's life.
He refused to be an Inquisitor, though. He had grown his blond hair back, got his tattoos removed with the help of his Feruchemical gold, wore thick coats and a blindfold to hide his spikes, although the tips were there every time he combed his hair, or even attempted to do something as simple as lie in a bed, or sit in a high-backed chair. He could only sleep in a hammock comfortably. Marsh had done everything he could to return to his old life, or a new approximation of it, in Kelsier's Luthadel.
He disliked Kelsier. No, he loved his brother. He disliked himself, for quitting, leaving the skaa rebellion just before Kelsier took up its banner, and ended the thousand year long reign of terror. But Marsh remembered: he came back, and sacrificed himself to penetrate deep into the heart of the Steel Ministry. Without him, the Lord Ruler would've slipped away, as eight Inquisitors butchered the exhausted Kelsier and unpracticed Vin in Fountain Square, and God knew that the New Republic would have a lot more enemies and traitors within it if it weren't for Marsh's management of the Ministry of Republican Justice and the Department of Redressement.
His brother believed in him, too. Believed he was his brother and not a demon in the skin of man, treated him as he always did. He only wished Kelsier was right. His spikes throbbed to an unknown, wild, capricious, painful rhythm, as they demanded blood. He grit his teeth, as he left the hanging, attempted to satiate them by tying another noose and hanging another bastard. But he knew it wouldn't be enough. No, these men were damned to die. They wanted murder.
Kelsier and Vin arrived at Keep Haught. It was the only of the keeps in the city that looked like it did before the Revolution- not diminished like Keep Venture, not seized and turned into something new and great like Keep Elariel, or burned and abandoned like Keep Erikeller. Keep Haught was in Southbridge, and was indeed the center of higher industries in Luthadel. It was the center of the allomantic industry, as well as the most elite forges and weapons production- it was also home to the Obligator's paper mill, which was powered with an engine- and that engine, copied, allowed for so many labor-saving retrofits.
Southbridge wasn't too different today- but it had changed. Smokestacks were most common in the district, with cannon, rifle, and powder production having been primarily established here, mostly in the south of the district. It, and portions of the Brassworks, were turning into something else. They called it the Southbridge Arsenal. Kelsier hoped it would be developed more, and one day, the entire Republican army would have rifles, effectively an entire army of Coinshots, and artillery would be at their backs.
But he was not here for industry, at least not directly. House Haught still stood, the Keep's unchanging nature standing in defiance of the destruction of the Final Empire. While the Keep itself was Luthadel standard, all spires with stained glass with nothing special, the grounds held more than gardens and topiaries, although those were dying in the early winter weather, but the leaves were obviously being swept up.
Several large factories and mills sat along the Channerel, water wheels turning with the flow of the river. Haught's most prized possessions. Unlike most of their factories, Haught employed lesser nobles as workers in their most elite mills. And so, no readressment was needed, and House Haught managed to keep ahold of them. They had also purchased a large portion of their seized properties back, displaying the issues with a free market when the richest people were nobles.
And so, the Premier and his daughter walked right up to the door, a person-sized one outfitted in the grand doors that only opened during the balls, or when someone important, with a large retinue, came to visit. As far as he knew, they hadn't opened since the last ball, at Keep Venture, before the House War he instigated, truly began to rage. And he knocked, for while he was suspicious of Haught, as long as they held the peace, he saw no reason to spill blood.
The door opened. Someone Kelsier could identify as a lesser noble was waiting there, and this lesser noble immediately identified him- although he was certain that all but the most isolated hermit in the entire New Republic could identify him. "Premier Minister Kelsier, and Madame Vin, the Lady Haught expects you. I am the Chamberlain of House Haught. Please follow me- I shall lead you to Kless Haught."
Kelsier and Vin stepped into the Keep, perhaps the first time he was invited into a Keep, as Kelsier, the half-skaa, with the House knowing. Portraits decorated the walls, elaborate carpets made up the floor, and artisanal furniture made up the day. "Hasn't changed much, but some of the more expensive decor is gone." Vin commented. She had been here before, in the guise of Valette Renoux.
"An acceptable set of circumstances, when compared to the other noble houses in the New Republic." the Chamberlain said.
Kelsier had to admit, that was true. Out of all the noble houses, Haught's finances were the best, and it was sort of the nucleus of the remnant nobility, although getting all nobles to put aside their differences in the name of something approaching common interests was an exercise in futility- he knew that from experience.
And then the Chamberlain led them to one of the dining halls, where Kless Haught sat at the end of a table- one of the spots next to her was occupied by Assemblywoman Chanim Haught, and two spots were at the other end of the table. It wasn't too long, they didn't have to raise their voices. There were two spots at the front that were set, facing away from the door, in a similar position to those at the other end- the seat at the end of the table for Kelsier, and a seat next for it, opposed to Chanim, for Vin. Four seats sat between the two young women. Covered platters of food sat in the middle of the table, along with two bottles of wine. Several servants, likely also lesser nobles, stood to attention.
"May your discussion be fruitful." the Chamberlain said, exusing himself to tend to other tasks.
"Please, let us be seated." Kless Haught said. Kelsier sat, and as he was already burning copper, he started burning bronze. He couldn't detect anything from either Chanim- who was a registered Mistborn- and Kless Haught, who was openly a coinshot. Kless Haught was likely burning steel, while Chanim was likely burning copper, bronze, tin, and iron or steel, the copper smoking Kless's burn. But the Directory had kept something secret. Vin and Marsh could pierce copperclouds. Vin could see all the metals they were burning, and then Kelsier burned tin and steel, and saw that Chanim and Kless carried only coins, and some jewelry that seemed to be more functional than aesthetic, and wouldn't injure the wearer, but prove and asset in a fight. This was likely the largest concentration of Mistborn in a room in the entire New Republic.
"Let us partake of the bounty of Luthadel. I know you are a man not much for prayer, so let us skip that." Kless said, ordering the servants to place platters in front of Kelsier, lifting off the tops to reveal a steaming mixture of cut up meat and vegetables, and soup with noodles- more of a skaa dish than a noble dish, at least among the city skaa who could afford meats- and the meat quality was higher than the typical tripe or blood sausage. Kelsier smiled. The nobles had caught on to his eating food with his hands when invited over to tick them off. Kless liked to make sure things were controlled, and so had prepared food to prevent that from occurring. Vin started eating immediately, her lifehood of food scarcity still present in her behavior.
"So, Kless, why do you think I am here?" Kelsier smiled at the woman. And Kless smiled back.
"Because you doubt, Premier, House Haught's devotion to the New Republic, in spite of all we have done." he wasn't expecting her to be so blunt about it. Well, an invitation was an invitation,
"I do doubt you, Haught, and if I do not doubt your actions," he did. "I doubt your sincerity. You can understand. Let me tell you of my perspective. Revolutions are bloody, and I was fully expecting most powerful nobles in the city to fall to my soldiers, or revolutionaries. So when I got back from running around the Central Dominance, stopping the tide of fleeing wealth, recruiting some experts, or inspiring smaller towns to revolt, I was just expecting to hear the younger or lesser members of the Great Houses had been captured or surrendered, and the more powerful members had fled or died." Kelsier took a sip of the stew. Damn, that was better than he expected.
"They mostly did." Vin aided.
"Exactly. And then I heard you, against all expectations, had led a majority of House Haught to surrender. And you cannot blame me for suspecting you of some scheme, when most of the nobles were panicking because they were certain they would be butchered by the skaa. And you, you, sauntered up to Victory Square, filled with a hundred thousand revolutionaries finally receiving the promise of readressment, and you asked Minister Dockson exactly what would happen to the properties of House Haught, were you to willingly surrender." Kelsier was frustrated with the woman, for simply not telling him.
Kless Haught spoke. "So you want to know why I chose such a dangerous option, as opposed to flee? I know it is best if I am honest in this, so here you go- your answer, Premier. My marriage was for power, gaining my House an ally among the Great Houses. But I proved more competent than Alstir Haught, and well… the Lords of Haught didn't quite like that. It was always a struggle, keeping the House going, preventing my idiot husband from accessing the finances… and then the House War started, Alstir aligned with Venture, and I loathe Straff."
"You will not lack for sympathetic ears in Luthadel." Chanim added.
"Do you mind asking for the reason why?" Kelsier asked Kless. She must've really hated Straff, but why not go to the Aspirants?
"When I was younger, he kept trying to seduce me. I rejected his advances, but he wouldn't take no for an answer. And so, I was forced to choose between him and Alstir Haught. You would be unable to empathize with this, but you also have a lost love, although in harsher circumstances than a denying father. As for why…" Kless drummed her fingers on the table, thinking of the answer. Was she not sure?
"I heard a speech. By Minister Hammond- I was at Keep Elariel during its fall, testing the waters. And it's not impossible for Coinshots to fly. Hammond rallied against the injustices of the nobility, but also highlighted that the nobility were a prison of the system, same as the skaa, and even the Lord Ruler- I believe the example he gave was that Rashek couldn't visit a speakeasy. The revolutionaries didn't like it, but after I raced back to Hastings, and Alstir screamed at me to get on the boat. I said no, grabbed Chanim, and rallied Haught and some lesser nobles in the district in defense of the Keep, while Alstir slipped away to Urteau with the house heads, and a good portion of the finances. He's still alive. Sent me a few letters. Burned them all. I will have nothing to do with the Pretenders in Urteau."
Kelsier put his fork down, clinking on the mostly-empty plate. "Any future letters, you give to me, or Minister Marsh. Inaction is an action, in my eyes. What did you read in them? And who did you get them from?"
"Oh, just about how he wants me out of harm's way away from the conniving half-breeds lording over millions of raging skaa anarchists, but primarily, he wants Chanim more than me. As for the culprit, it was the late Lord Entrone. I told Minister Marsh, and that drove him to investigate the bastard, and, well, his investigations bore fruit. I have my suspicions on who else has connections to the Imperial Successors, but they are primarily based on what cliques I am barred from. Nothing actionable… but keep an eye on Penrod. That is all I am willing to say on this matter- I am not sure myself, and this is more of a matter for the Republic's intelligence than House Haught." Kless said.
Kelsier chewed that over as he chewed his meal. Kless wasn't the sort of woman to be convinced by a speech- perhaps it could have been the straw that broke the camel's back. Something was missing, but he knew he would not get an answer to ask. And what of her saying she had received letters from Alstir, but had burned them? That's what someone who was overcompensating would say. And she had admitted she had read some of the letters, but he would too.
And the mention of Penrod? Very deliberate, but was it Kless being charitable, or attempting to distract him? Either way, he'd have OreSeur investigate Penrod and Kless's ties to Urteau more closely- although as the two highest ranking nobles in Luthadel after the Revolution, the kandra already was.
Conversation moved to small talk or politics, while Vin and Chanim, while they didn't click with one another, had much in common, being both young women Mistborn forced out into the open thanks to the Revolution.
After the early dinner, Kelsier and Vin left Keep Haught, with Kelsier not fully having settled on anything. He didn't have the full story, and Kless Haught didn't want him knowing the full story, and that made her suspicious. She likely knew that, but why wouldn't she lie, prepare a convincing cover story instead? There was more here, definitely, but was that malicious or not?
[ ] Investigate Ferson Penrod. Kless Haught is innocent, at least of collusion with any of the Imperial Successors. She loathes both Straff and Alstir, and is unlikely to be working with either. Penrod was apparently an ally of Straff Venture before the Revolution, but his 'good behavior'(for a nobleman) has prevented him from coming under suspicion sooner. Poke around. Read the reports from OreSeur. See what can be found.
[ ] Investigate Kless Haught. Kless Haught is guilty, if not of collusion with the Pretender Empire. Collusion with one of the other Pretender Empres, hiding of assets, treason. She is hiding something, something she does not wish to reveal, and Kelsier will not be sated until he finds out what something is. The Department of Readressment will be mobilized for this investigation, for the good of the Republic.
Kelsier spotted the hill in the distance, as the horse moved beneath him, galloping swiftly upon the dirt track, although not as swift as the speeds Allomancy could provide. It hadn't taken long to get here- there was a spikeway connecting Luthadel to Tenes, and once the Tenes Garrison captain realized who he was, he practically threw the horse at Kelsier. The hill, crowned with white aspens with yellow leaves, rose above the plains of the Central Dominance.
He didn't encounter any Mistborn along the spikeway- there were still a few in Luthadel, and several more across the New Republic, but all had to be registered with the Department of Allomancy- there just wasn't space in the New Republic for the deadly wildcard nature of a Mistborn.
Kelsier wished more of the Mistborn were willing to fight in the war- it was next to impossible to force a Mistborn to fight against their will, they needed to willingly agree to it. Skaa, or half-skaa Mistborn would be willing, but they were incredibly rare- he had only known himself and Vin- Gemmel, his old master, and Baz'en, First Minister of Austrex, claimed they were both skaa, but Kelsier personally had his doubts.
They had tested tens of thousands of skaa for allomantic abilities at this point, but they just hadn't found any Mistborn. Whether they just didn't exist, hadn't been or weren't able to be tested, knew of their powers but just wanted to live a normal life, or had been found and impaled by the Inquisitors for their ability to burn Atium, Kelsier didn't know.
At least the New Republic had several mercenary Mistborn, but while most normal mercenaries were settling into their Republican life, Mistborn were stubborn individualists, and they still kept their mercenary contracts. The Pretender Empire had a lot of Mistborn, he knew that- it was their main military advantage they had, over the New Republic and the other Imperial Successors.
Kelsier slowed the horse to a trot as he reached the base of the hill, tied it to a white-barked aspen, and burned steel- a handful of faint blue lines appeared, pointing to… the earth? Kelsier looked around, and noticed that half the hill had been carved away, but the hill had collapsed over the gap, and trees and bushes grew atop the rubble. A mine, then, of some sorts. The Central Dominance was always rich in metals. He burned tin, and heard the sounds of a man at work. Kelsier dropped an iron- the clip having been reduced in size, and been made piss poor for Allomancy in the process- and pushed off it, over the pale white trees.
Near the peak of the hill, he found Hoid in a small clearing, swaying blue lines pointing to the man. He had grown his hair back from his previous baldness, and it was a dark brown. He was digging, spade cutting through tree roots and moving rocks up. Hoid turned to Kelsier, and a smirk dawned on his hawkish face. "Greetings, Premier. I was beginning to think you would never arrive. I have an extra shovel." Hoid pointed at a rucksack, upon which a shovel leaned. "We can speak while we toil." he proposed.
Kelsier sighed. He knew Hoid was somewhat eccentric when he proposed this meeting place, he just hoped it would be the fun sort of eccentric. He picked up the shovel, burned pewter, and joined Hoid in splitting tree roots. One question was on his mind. "What are you digging for?" he asked the ex-informant.
"Something the University of Luthadel, and the Keepers of Terris, will find particularly interesting." Hoid gave as a response. But Kelsier knew how to play this game.
"How do you know it's here?" he asked Hoid.
Hoid chuckled. "I placed it here."
Ok, something he had gotten as an informant, that wasn't particularly valuable, but illegal. And so he had buried it- so likely a book, or documents. Maybe he was the fun sort of eccentric?
"So, why did you stop being an informant? You were pretty successful, if you could regularly afford smoking tobacco." Kelsier asked.
Hoid smirked. "As it happens, I was driven out of business by the New Republic. With the fall of the nobility, combined with the unfettered flow of information… well, pickings became scarce, and I decided I could put my skills to better use as an Assemblyman."
Kelsier nodded. "Do you want to ask me anything?" he asked the hawk-faced man- everyone had questions for him, and Hoid wouldn't be any different.
"I do, actually. How's Vin?" Hoid asked.
Now that was atypically personal. There were some, out of the Survivorists and Marewill Larstaists, that respected Vin, but it was a handful of women, viewing her as a role model to cast off the shackles men had placed on women. Why was Hoid asking? He had told Marsh, Ham, Saze, and Dox about his decision with her, so he found no issue telling Hoid- and it wasn't really about her. "Her and I made the decision to start readying her for working with the Republican Army, and having her get involved with the government."
Hoid nodded. "Good, she'll need the training, and the New Republic will need her abilities." Now that made more sense- she was the only other skaa Mistborn in the New Republic, and of course she would be loyal. But didn't Hoid abstain on the couple of foreign policy votes over the last week? He thought the Assemblyman didn't care for war.
The iron of his shovel struck stone. "I don't think whatever it is you're looking for is here." Kelsier said.
"Of course it is- this rock is three feet deep, while the bedrock's typically seven feet deep, here. Needed a way to prevent some iron or steel-burning Obligator running the mine from finding the chest, and rock is a decent insulator of Allomancy. One isolated deposit wouldn't be enough to dig up, not yet." Hoid explained.
Kelsier nodded, as when he burned steel, the lines were thin and scattered, looking very much like the deposit he saw near the base of the hill. The two men cleared the dirt atop the rock, and managed to clear away the edges enough for the two to grab the stone, and lift it. Kelsier burned Pewter, and Hoid seemed a bit stronger than he looked. The stone was thin, and supported by several other rocks on its sides- below it, was bare earth, with some invertebrates squirming in it.
The two shoved the rock onto some scrub brush, and Hoid brushed away soil, revealing the tell-tale verdigris of a copper-based metal. Bronze, he figured, based on the spots of copper-colored metal here and there. Hoid attempted to get a grip on the box, but the dirt was too thick. Hoid scrambled up out of the hole, and turned to him. "You'd save us both a bit of trouble were you to use your power." he said to Kelsier.
Kelsier got out of the hole, and straddled it, center of his body over the bronze chest. He Pulled at the strongest strand pointing at the box- there were a large amount of blue lines pointing to it, so it was likely full of metal. The box shifted, but it wasn't enough. Kelsier flared steel, and burned pewter to support himself, and the box lifted some, but it was still stuck.
Kelsier grimaced, stepped out of the pit, stopped burning everything but pewter and steel, and got a bar of duralumin out. He shaved some shavings off of it, swallowed it with a gulp from his ceramic flask of water. He turned to the pit, and gripped a nearby withered tree, tugged on the line, and burned duralumin. The box was yanked out of the ground, as Kelsier felt like he was being ripped by the steel, and the box flew straight towards him.
He dodged, as the box slammed into the tree, throwing white splinters around. Hoid walked up, sipping from a metal flask of his own. "Well, I've never seen that before," he commented. "New metal?"
"Yep… useless on its own though, like aluminum. Hopefully that didn't damage anything in it."
Hoid scoffed. "If it did, that would mean that I failed to preserve its contents. Would you like to open the box, Premier Kelsier?"
"I would, I'm wondering what exactly was dangerous enough that you had to bury it here, but also not valuable enough for you to sell." Kelsier commented.
Hoid smiled. "Well, go and see."
Kelsier leaned down, and popped the lid off the box. A strange black substance coated the sides of the box, but it was cracked and hardened with age. A light verdigris patina covered the insides of the contents- which were all bronze. Text decorated bronze plate after bronze plate, bound in metal books, stacked upright, filling the box. He recognized the language, even if he didn't know it himself- it was Khlenni, the homeland of the Conqueror, and the kingdom that once ruled the Central Dominance. Smaller boxes sat at the top of the bronze books, and Hoid picked one up, and popped the lid off, and fished something out of it.
"Look at this. Khlenni Souverain, the last mold made." Hoid said. He held up a coin, about the size of a boxing, made of gold. The side profile of a face decorated the coin, and a name- one that he recognized- was written down on the coin.
"Alendi," Kelsier vocalized. "So that was his name. Rashek scrubbed it from history, you know. The Keepers only had one throwaway mention of it, one among many potential names of the Lord Ruler, and recently, the Conqueror, once we separated the two. What's all the rest of this?"
Hoid smiled, and began talking, playing with the coin in his hand while he did so. "What I've gathered is the religious, historical, and cultural knowledge of Khlennium. What is here vastly outstrips anything that could be found via digging- even excavating what's left of Khlennium, where the Terris and Channerel Rivers merge, although the Lord Ruler was… thorough, with its remains. From its birth as the northern frontier of Tilancium, to its conversion to a Saranite faith, to its command over the lands that now make up the Final Empire, to… Kelsier, do you think Khlennium died with the Ascension?"
"I'm not sure. Its language did, so did its religion, but its architecture and culture still live on today as the previously dominant Imperial-backed fashion." Kelsier responded.
"Yes, but that's just the facts. You must find the answer on your own to this quandary." Hoid explained.
Kelsier frowned. "Wait, this doesn't add up. How were you able to find all this in the first place, without aid from the Keepers? It also seems older than you are- I passed by Tenes in my youth once or twice, and I hadn't heard of a mine being here, and you look younger than me." he asked the Assemblyman.
Hoid shrugged. "I buried it where we found it." he said, if that answered the question.
"Have you least gotten tested for Allomancy?" he asked Hoid.
Hoid chuckled. "No, I have no Allomantic potential."
"That's not true. From what the Keepers have found, there was a lot of admixture in the early days of the Final Empire, before the caste system was so solidified and the skaa were as enslaved as they were, and Allomancy was always present on Scadrial, to some ability- once, the skaa were ordinary people, living their lives, before the Lord Ruler enslaved them." What did he say that made Hoid smile?
"Oh no, absolutely zero Allomantic potential in me. I won't be heading back to Luthadel today, there's still some wealthy people who need valuable information- and no, I loathe the Pretender Empire, and the rest of the Imperial Successors are worse. I wouldn't sell out the New Republic, as long as there are no lords in Luthadel." Hoid said.
"And there never will be." Kelsier said.
Hoid responded, "Amen, and may that always be true." and placed the coin box back in the large box, gingerly placing the lid back on top. Kelsier burned pewter, hoisting the box under his arm, and moved to walk down the hill, when a thought crossed his mind.
He turned around, and spoke. "How did you know the coin was called a souverain?" Kelsier asked.
Hoid turned to him, and grinned. "Je sais lire li Klhennais, Premier." he said in Khlenni, turned, and walked away, slinging his rucksack and shovels over his shoulder, whistling.
Kelsier shivered as a breeze carrying yellow aspen leaves tingled his skin, even though he was burning pewter to offset the cold, and walked back down to his horse, more questions in his mind than answers.
The entire time Kelsier is on his way back, questions churning through his mind. By the time he was on the spikeway once again, the unanswerable questions he had banished, and the one answerable question floated to the forefront of his mind. Was Khlennium dead?
[ ] Yes. The Final Empire killed it, and consumed its corpse. That holds true for the other cultures and nations of Classical Scadrial, and it is foolish to look to the past, when the now needs to be focused on. The most the past can provide is ancient knowledge of practical purposes, whether that be military, governance, or relating to the Hero of Ages. This option will lead to the New Republic ignoring the past, focusing more on the present.
[ ] No. Khlennium lives. The city was the capital of the Final Empire in its first decades, only razed after the conquests ended and the refugees stopped streaming into the Final Empire from other lands. Its population was relocated to Luthadel before that, though, and the skaa and the nobles everywhere are descended from the people who once lived in Classical Scadrial. The cultural knowledge of the past is valid as a source of inspiration for the present. This option will lead to the New Republic seeking inspiration in the past, to aid their efforts in the present, mostly among the Great Change.
Sazed had his finger on the copper wire. It ran off the desk, across the stone floor, and out the door, then down the hall. Red sunlight streamed through the windows, illuminating his workspace very well. Sazed felt the copper wire, with his Feruchemical sense. Empty. But it would not be for long.
Tindwyl was in another room, preparing to send a message to him, instantaneously- Rindel had proposed this experiment, before he had left back to Tathingdwen, and it was an very intriguing experiment, testing the new limits of Feruchemy. Rindel had speculated that you could connect Luthadel to Tathingdwen with this, but Sazed felt that was too… out there.
It would require nearly five hundred kilometers' worth of copper wire, all connected before use. It could not be severed, or else it would fail entirely. It would also be useless for sending a message to more than one place. And if someone not storing identity, there was no way for anyone else to remove it, and the metalmind would be ruined, unless it were to be reforged, although Sazed didn't think there would be any Feruchemists who would stoop to that level of sabotage, no matter what Vedzan was planning with Terris Kahl.
In addition, leaving five hundred kilometers' worth of copper wire exposed was unwise, even if the land was in the New Republic, poverty's grip still held tight the uncountable millions of the Final Empire, despite all the Republic had done. Luthadel and the larger cities of the New Republic had managed to provide, if not plenty, more than the basic needs, from their seizing the bountiful wealth of the nobles. Perhaps in a generation or two…
Power blossomed in the copper wire, without Sazed needing to put any memories of his own in it. Sazed took it out, picked up a pencil, and wrote down on a piece of paper Tindwyl's message. Test Five, out of sight, out of hearing, out of mind. Sazed wrote down, below that, Test Five, Message Received. He then stored Identity. He felt… less. He found the Great Change's ideals clashing with those of the Synod's orthodox Keepers they swapped out Rindel and Fisal for, in the absence of his own, but he ignored it, and put that message in the Coppermind, quickly scanning the paper to remember what he sent, and stopped storing Identity.
And then came footfalls, down the hall, that Sazed recognized, after spending years working with him. The Premier. He rounded the corner, and Sazed instantly noticed the large verdigris-covered box under his arm- he must have been burning pewter to hold it, were it full of something dense.
"Hey, Saze. How goes experimentation with the long coppermind?" Kelsier asked.
"This is merely a formality. This method is too difficult to put into practice, with too little gain. While I am not exactly sure on the limit, I think that a copper wire stretching from the north to south pole- or at least that distance, would work. The issue lies in the providing of enough copper, the extreme weakness of the coppermind to disruption, or the fact any Feruchemist could put in a keyed memory, rendering it useless and having to be completely replaced." Sazed said to the Premier.
"Damn. There goes the dream of instantaneous communication between the major cities of the world." Kelsier cursed.
"I would not say that we are out of options. The Department of Military Engineering's experiments with the optical telegraph and balloons are showing a quite a lot of potential for long-distance speedy communication- although I can understand your want for instantaneous communication, Feruchemy is not the answer. What is in that box?"
Kelsier looked at it, and slowly said, "You may want to assemble the Keepers, in one of the lecture halls. This is allegedly a complete encyclopedia of Khlennium."
"How, in God's 256 names, did he get a complete encyclopedia of Khlennium?" Tindwyl remarked.
The Keepers were in one of the lecture halls- multiple tables had been pushed together, tubs of chemicals had been procured from the Department of Republican Engineering, and some students were scrubbing the verdigris from the books. The books were being disassembled, and their metal pages were placed in squares outlined by charcoal lines drawn on the tables.
Scholars were running about, with thick tomes that had guides to translating Khlenni. Tindwyl was working on translating a book, due to her greater knowledge of Khlenni, while Sazed was working on identifying and translating the artifacts- coins, religious artifacts, and one crown that was bedazzled with jewels.
Kelsier was cleaning some of the coins of their verdigris and tarnish, when he spoke. "The Assemblyman Hoid invited me to a meeting atop a hill south of Tenes. When I arrived, he was digging, and I aided him in excavating this. He said he found all of this, but was the one to bury it. I took it as he found some information and buried it, but… and Deputy Minister Hettel said this amount of verdigris means this box was buried for a long time… and Hoid knew Khlenni." Kelsier was panicking- Sazed had never really seen the Premier like this. He had seen him angry, he had seen him sad, but never confused.
"Perhaps he found all of this buried in another location, and re-buried it to keep it safe?" Salys, a Keeper specialized in all things relating to art, said.
"But he knew this coin was called a souverain, and then when I asked him how, he siad something in Khlenni. Something lire li Khlennais, I didn't catch the first part." Kelsier said, shocked.
"Ah, he said he could read Khlenni. Yes, he must've known a Keeper. Rouge, I presume, given the Synod remains unaware of this discovery." Tindwyl said. "There were a few, not associated with Terris Kahl, wandering the lands outside of Terris. It was likely one completely distanced from the Synod, or one who died shortly after whenever this occured."
"There must have been someone who managed to collect and preserve the treasures of Khlennium against the tyranny of the Lord Ruler. It is such a shame that they seem to have left no personal identifiers- they knew what they were doing, preserving this knowledge for a thousand years, to outlast even the Lord Ruler." Salys said, both hands copying two pages at the same time, fully utilizing her ambidextrousness.
"While that seems the most likely outcome… I don't know. How likely is a Fullborn to arise naturally? Could any of the Lord Ruler's children have been Fullborn?" Kelsier asked.
"Mmm. Rare, but the Lord Ruler's children would have had both the Allomantic and Feruchemical potential- the Feruchemical lines back then were not so divided… do you think Hoid is one of the Lord Ruler's children?" Sazed asked.
"It sounds ridiculous. But… if it's true, then he told the truth for everything, except when I asked him if he was an Allomancer. He was insistent on having no allomantic potential." Kelsier said.
"That is the least likely outcome, I think." Sazed said. "Were he fullborn, he would have been killed, or have established a dominion of his own." Kelsier passed Sazed another one of the coins- although this one was different. It was an early Clip, with the youthful race of Rashek decorating it, but with Khlenni surrounding it. Sazed almost dropped it when he sensed unkeyed power in it.
"Wait. Kelsier, this holds a Feruchemical storage." Sazed said, holding up the Clip to the Premier.
"And here's the identifier! Tap it!" Kelsier eagerly urged Sazed.
Sazed drew the memory out, and…
Ash fell from the sky. A city was laid out before him- Khlennium. The greatest city in the world. His, along with the portion of the world that hadn't burned, at least in the north. Two rivers joined below the cathedral he was atop of, which sat atop an island in the middle of the rivers. The cathedral was to a god foreign to Khlennium, but truly, Preservation, Terr. But for all it got right, what it got wrong meant it was blasphemy against the true faith. Even his own religion was wrong, albeit in smaller ways.
Smoke rose up into the sky, from countless smokestacks. The wonders of industry… and its threat. It was the engines of this city that allowed him to conquer the world, supporting his armies in their campaigns. Now all that was left was finding homes for the millions of refugees, and then he could reshape his Empire to be perfect. If that meant taking away guns and engines, he would do so.
Khlennium had seen better days. The plentiful green parks and trees of the city were dying, despite the work its inhabitants did to clean up the ash that always fell from the sky. Was a shame, but there was always a price to be paid. Brown grass sprouted up atop dead grass, the sort that now dominates the world, as it was the only one able to survive in this ashen world.
He burned steel, and the blue lines filled his vision. He Pushed off the spires of the cathedral, into the city. As he reached the top of his arc, he saw through the ash and smoke, to the endless fields and towns beyond. They were struggling, they just needed more time to adjust to the ash, but the growing pains would take their toll. He also saw the walled settlement where he kept one of his koloss garrisons- the sword of Damon, hanging above the head of the Khlenni, just in case they tried something.
He landed upon tracks, and turned to see an engine charging down them, metal wagon wheels turning rapidly, steam belching from a funnel atop a dark green boiler. It sounded its horn, but he laughed as he stored weight, and pushed off of the engine, making it lurch. He turned, and hurtled down the tracks, laughing as he greatly exceeded the speeds of the engine. With Mistborn, who needed trains?
Sazed dropped the coin, gasping, searching… tapping Identity to steel himself. He moved to take several deep breaths, before speaking. "It was the Lord Ruler, not too long after the Ascension." he explained. "He was atop the tallest Khlenni cathedral, surveying the city, and I felt every thought of his. It was before his simplification campaigns, and the city was bedecked with smokestacks, and I saw a train. He referenced Terr, and stated that the Khlenni religion worshiped Terr as well, but it needed to be erased, because it was wrong in his eyes, as well as the Terris religion."
"God damn. Khlennium at its height, it's a shame I'm not a Feruchemist. But he wouldn't bury this box." Kelsier commented.
"I also saw a train… are any of the Keepers here good at drawing?" Sazed asked. "I recommend having spare Identity on hand. "I am not the best to catalog this, I think." Sazed said.
"I am." Salys said, coming over. Sazed stored Identity, putting the memory back in the clip, and his shock faded. Salys took it, a shocked expression dawned on her face, and she swore. "Ash and blood! This is clearer than any memory I've ever seen. But a good look at a train… Minister Dockson will be happy about this, and the Department of Republican Engineering." Salys got a large piece of paper, and began sketching the train, and the view Rashek had of Khlennium.
"What's a train? A baggage train wouldn't be enough for all this awe." Kelsier asked.
Sazed answered the Premier's question. "An engine of steam and steel, that was faster than even a galloping horse. It was limited to metal tracks, but it could pull vast quantities of goods or people behind it. It was, in essence, a boiler and steam engine on wheels, that turned its own wheels. While I am not certain, I think that the one in this coppermind shall remain beyond our grasp for now, but, well, today is the best time to plant a tree. We are fortunate, though- there were only scattered offhand mentions of trains in ancient records, and a vision of a train in action is the most we have so far."
"Now, my question is, who plucked a memory out of the Lord Ruler's head?" Darzon asked, the fourth Keeper in Luthadel, one specialized in agriculture.
Kelsier grimaced, and spoke. "Whoever it was, was likely craftier than the Lord Ruler- although anyone who could do that to the Lord Ruler makes me wonder why they let the Lord Ruler live?"
The Keepers agreed with that, and then Kelsier turned to Sazed, before whispering a request. "About the other Heros of Ages… expand your researches to cover all aspects of religions. Common mythologies, similar gods, in addition to messiahs and prophets… if Rashek, may he rot in Hell, is correct on all religions being a part of a greater whole… then it is worth investigating, at the very least."
Sazed nodded. A logical next step in his studies, but one partly motivated by the Lord Ruler's thoughts. He had already been taking notes on similar mythological tropes he noticed, he would surely find more Antecendre secrets were he to focus on it fully.
Mistborn: Smoke and Ash
Revolution in the Final Empire
Snow fell from the sky. The wagon rumbled through the streets of Tathingdwen, across its large ill-fitting cobbles, pulled by oxen, their breath forming into mist in the air. The wagon driver was skaa, and dressed in a thick cloth coat, and amidst the crates and barrels and bolts of cloth, were two Terris Keepers and a skaa, sitting, talking, wrapped in a large cloth to keep out the cold and snow. It was the first snowfall of the year, depositing large white sheets over the landscape.
The wagon came to a stop in a large square, and while the weather was absolutely terrible, there were a few stalls and fewer customers. "Alright, out you go, this is Gofmynn Square." The passengers rose, bringing some accrudaments with them, thanking the wagon driver for bringing them from the New Republic.
Vedzan stepped out to meet them, as the wagon trundled away, in a simple long-sleeved skaa shirt, making up the difference via Feruchemy.. "Rindel, Fisal, it is good to see you. Who is our friend?" he asked.
"Captain Demoux, sir." Demoux saluted him. He was in a Republican Army officer uniform, though one tailored for the cold of the Northern Domiance's winter. He was young, maybe in his early twenties? Certainly the youngest of the lot, but Vedzan started fighting when he was younger, who who was he to judge?
"Joined Yeden's army before the Revolution, and he has had a lot of military experience. The Premier picked him to accompany us to Terris, thought he would be useful." Rindel said.
"Good man." Vedzan nodded at the Captain. "It's getting cold, I have a place in the Skaa Quarter if you want to have a warm meal."
"That would be nice, I think." Fisal said.
Half an hour later, they were in a house along the Feddek Thoroughfare, overlooking the Exercise Yards. The skaa quarter was the old garrison, and as the Terrismen had plenty memories of its oppression, plus the fact the architecture was very far from the Terris standard, made the garrison very undesirable real estate for Terrismen, although that made it open to skaa and even a few nobles from the New Republic. The Synod had no control, here.
The exercise yard was occupied, even on such a dreary day. Some young terris were having an absolutely brutal snowball fight. The peak of the fight was over, and their wool coats were covered in snow. One was even slumped over a snow-covered rock, possibly unconscious, back covered in thrown snowballs. Vedzan remembered doing the same, but back in those days, half the yard was fenced off, Garrison soldiers only. Oh, he had such hate for the soldiers back then.
The house was an old Garrison building, and had many large rooms. Perfect for Vedzan's plan- revolution in the House of God. Vedzan was sitting in a wooden chair with some padding, taken from some manor house in the Tathingdwen Valley or the Terris Gift, legs on a stool, hands holding a bowl of stew- with chicken. Meat had become a lot more common since the Revolution, enough for the wealthy- in this case, the Keepers, to afford at least one meal a day that had some meat in it. It was hot, but that's what his brassmind was for. Vedzan looked more like a rural Terrisman than a steward- short dark hair, a bit of stubble, but he was wearing the robes of a city Terrisman, and had a large amount of bracelets on his arms and legs, and a few vital ones under his clothes.
"I suppose we should all swap stories." Rindel proposed. Rindel was wearing trousers and a button shirt, had short-cropped brown hair, and was slouching in his chair. "I know Vedzan and Fisal know me, but I don't know if Fisal knows Vedzan, and Captain Demoux hardly knows any of us, and vice versa."
"Ah, well I'll go first." Demoux said. He was wearing his officer's uniform, and had somewhat longer light brown hair. "I grew up in Tenes, south of Luthadel, and worked in a grinding mill. It was a hard life, worked all day, but we all had hard lives."
"Indeed true, that." Vedzan commented.
"And then… the Survivor came. To a speakeasy, bringing us words of passion and fire. I was there, drinking in the late hours after work, and me and several others were convinced, and went with his men to the Arguois caverns, where I became a Captain under General Ham. Kelsier visited when the command shifted from Ham to General Yeden, and tested the soldiers for the base allomantic metals- while I myself do not have allomantic ability, many soldiers tested positive for some allomantic ability- and yes, I have tested myself for gold, electrum, aluminum, and chromium, but I have not been able to burn any of the metals."
"When Kelsier told us the time was right, Yeden led us to attack Holstep- and we defeated its garrison, and took the city over. Valtroux sent its Garrison, and the Luthadel Garrison was also sent, but by that time… well, the Lord Ruler was dead, and the garrisons clued on that they were no longer protected by the Lord Ruler. Our numbers swelled massively from deserters, and we liberated Haverfrex and Valtroux, and just… kept snowballing. I've had a year of training, and half a year of real military experience, fighting the Aspirants along the Terris river, so this is my first winter in these icy conditions." Demoux said, taking a deep swig of stew.
"The typical story, a lot of those who served under General Hammond back in the Arguois Caverns in 1021 have quite a high rank in the Republican Army." Rindel smiled.
"I think it would be a shame to reveal that we Keepers have fought our entire lives against the Lord Ruler." Fisal said. Fisal was an older man, old enough to be an Elder, but he was definitely heterodox- heterodox enough to agree to aid Vedzan and Terris Kahl in dethroning the Synod. He was wearing a city Terris's robes, and some gray stubble sprouted from his head, but he had the traditional metalminds of a Steward, in bracelets and earrings. It looked like he was storing sight and health at the moment.
"I wouldn't say that about the Keepers in general… but you, didn't you kill a couple of Obligators?" Vedzan asked Fisal.
"I did, and I think it would be best were I to share my story next. I was your typical steward, working for a noble house, doing accounting, managing the household, educating his child, but that was years ago. For the past decade, I masqueraded as a traveling steward, one on some business trip for his master. Under that cover, I studied architecture- pre-ascension accounts, ruins, and that of the various cultures of the different Dominances." Fisal said. He was sitting straight-back in his chair, so he was still somewhat of a steward.
"But I frequented a couple of towns, in the northern Central Dominance and along the Terris River. I had contacts with the skaa underground, and was… friends with an informant. Earlier this year, he found me after a long time apart, and approached me with a job. Get a murderer- a skaa- out of the Dominance. The murderer was nothing more than a boy. Hunted by the Obligators all the same. The House he was subject to had fallen, and he had been sold- he killed his guard, a lesser noble, and escaped. I ventured with him, before the Obligators caught up with us."
"They had captured the informant, Temmir, and had tortured him. But he left one thing out- my Feruchemy. I was able to kill the Obligator and his boatman, and fled with the boat, the boy, Kem, and Temmir. I made it back to Tathingdwen, and petitioned the Synod to take them in. Both are competent individuals, and the boy is making out to be a great scholar. They refused my request. As I was panicking over what to do next, I got the news that the Lord Ruler was dead the day after, and my problems changed." Fisal said. He had gotten animated and passionate- at least, for a Steward.
"And these people are still in the city?" Captain Demoux asked.
"Yes, I believe Temmir's become an important figure of the skaa population of Tathingdwen, and Kem is taking lessons from Keepers and Stewards in his free time, but the boy isn't even fifteen yet." Fisal said.
"Ok, so an ally among the skaa in the city as well- good news. But tell me Fisal, what conclusion did you draw from that formative experience?" Rindel asked.
"I believed that we should teach and cultivate relations with the skaa underground while the Final Empire still stood, casting off the chains of docility and servitude. I did not believe the Final Empire could be overthrown, but when it was…" Fisal grimaced. "The Synod has not done enough with our first freedom in a thousand years, I think."
"Have you converted to Iconoclasm, Fisal?" Vedzan asked the Keeper, smiling.
"I am not sure what I am. But the Synod practically ignores the rest of Terris, leaving it to the Stewards and skaa to manage the flow of resources between Terris and Luthadel. They send Keepers into the lands of the Final Empire indiscriminately- we lost several good men before they wisened up that any Feruchemists sent to the Steeled Empire would be broken down for their powers. While the Breeding Program has stopped, the children of Tathingdwen will be its last generation, and the Synod is doing its best to ignore that. Synodic Terris exists entirely off of benevolence on behalf of the New Republic, and were that to end, we would perish quickly. It is clear that the chains forged by the Lord Ruler still bind us, and no one other than the Iconoclasts has a way to break those chains." Fisal had slipped off his stewardly nature, and made several animated hand gestures.
"I hadn't even thought that about the children." Demoux said, wide-eyed.
"What's better? How I got involved with Terris Kahl, or how Terris Kahl was created?" Rindel asked.
"Terris Kahl's history. I have a good idea of it, but the Good Captain here only has a vague idea of it from its activities in Mantiz." Fisal said.
"Ah, my life story. Well, listen up well, for this is the story of Terris Kahl, and the story of me." Vedzan leaned back, placing the now-empty bowl of stew on the ground. The three others were enrapt. Vedzan smiled- if all went well, in a hundred years, Terris children would be told this story, the story of how Terris broke its chains.
He started. "I was born in rural Terris, and like most rural Terrismen, I was raised by my family, and was not castrated, as the risk of both Feruchemy and rebellion was deemed too low in my town for it to be enchained by the Breeding Program. Like every action the Final Empire took, this was the wrong assessment, as I am living proof of that." the three men smiled.
"I was the son of a sheepherder, my father, and a clothworker, my mother. I had several siblings, but I am not close with them- my family discovered I was a Feruchemist when I was twelve, with myself having a vague knowledge of my abilities for several years before that. The Synod has ties to most villages, and generally the Elder is a non-Feruchemist member of the organization, or at the very least possess ties. I found myself being brought to Tathingdwen by a Keeper, and truth be told, it was scary for me- I found myself a completely unfamiliar city, when I was young, and theoretically hunted by the Steel Ministry- although the right paperwork was filled out, which meant I did not have to undergo castration unless I joined the Stewards. But I was a Feruchemist, and that was enough to earn me a death sentence."
"As for my family, I have visited them twice since- once when I left Tathingdwen, and once soon after the Final Empire fell, for their safety- but I will get to that." Vedzan said.
"I was trained as a Keeper, under the guise of an apprentice Steward. I was a bad Keeper, and a worse Steward. I found myself more often than not running away from my lessons to play, and then race, lift weights, and box in the Exercise Yards. Before I left Tathingdwen, I rose high in the underground boxing rings in the city, and I even managed to defeat 'Feny' Werring in a match."
"You defeated Feny? That man was the undefeated champion of boxing for decades!" Fisal exclaimed, very unsteward-like.
"Ah, I got lucky." Vedzan humbled himself. "It was near the end of his career, anyways, he started losing more matches after that one, before he retired."
Vedzan thought for a moment, before settling where he left off before this diatribe. "I was at my poor performance as a steward-in-training. To tell you the truth, I had no intentions of becoming a fully-fledged steward, although for selfish reasons. I liked my manhood too much to lose it, and I know I left several expectant mothers in my wake- although the Obligators always found them and induced abortions. When I was 19, the Final Empire started to catch on that I was not going to be a steward, and began an 'investigation' into my 'potentially rebellious' behavior. The Keepers helped me flee the city, and I took a few hot-headed friends with me as well."
"We went north, to the town of Wayedeth, in the Wayedeth Valley in Northern Terris. I trained further as a Keeper, and this is where I came into my own- I began setting up an underground, of sorts, with other hotheads- protecting other rebellious individuals, and investigating what we could of Terris- icebound ruins, cultural traditions, and collating the information stored in my copperminds. It is here Terris Kahl began. More and more flocked to my organization, but I could not hide everyone- and so, we split, various cells going to various locales across Terris. I remained in Wayedeth's surroundings, primarily in a ruined settlement in a nearby forest- there, we began to shape a library, and the cells all had communication with me, and none with each other. The Synod loathed this, and attempted to dissuade me, but I refused, and my master left the town." This was somewhat of a boring period, but it was all mostly boring, with occasional spats of incredible excitement.
Rindel smiled, for he knew what was coming next. "Around here, about seven years after I began, Rindel arrived, the Keeper of War. It was Rindel who turned my scattered resistance into Terris Kahl, and in fact he named it, but he deserves to tell his own story. We were able to begin training, and fighting- many Terrismen have experience with bows, through hunting, and it was bows that worked the best, for our style of long distance ambushes. And we began fighting. It was slow work- a lone courier or patrol in the hills, long nights spent in cold caves and snowbound ruins. But we pushed the Final Empire back, God Willing. We managed to liberate towns, either making them too difficult to reach, or leading their people into fertile valleys that were hard to reach, forcibly depopulated by the Final Empire to maintain its grip over us." Vedzan smiled.
"Something happened, before the Revolution." Fisal said. "I heard about it, the Synod spoke of dealing with Terris Kahl, lest it sink all our hopes."
"They spoke of trying to kill me? The sinful wretches." Vedzan spat. "I found the smoking gun. I pieced it all together- the twisted truths of the Lord Ruler's religion, carved texts in the deep valleys, and the recesses of our own copperminds. The Lord Ruler was Terris. A God-Damned Feruchemist, for God's sake! Ultimate power, from a mix of Allomancy and Feruchemy. No divine power at all, he just got lucky, and conquered the world." Vedzan ranted.
"It may seem trivial now… But I knew first. I preached it, word got out, and the Inquisitors were tracking me down. And then the Lord Ruler died, slain by the Survivor of Hathsin at the Victory. But I was ready to go down fighting, because if that piece of information got out… it would either save or damn Terris. It would have shaken the Final Empire to its core. But, well… if the Lord Ruler managed to maintain power, he could've sentenced our people to death. I abandoned the cell structure of Terris Kahl, gathering all the Terris Kahl members together, and was making preparations to seize Wayedeth when I got the news the Lord Ruler died, and the Synod had liberated Tathingdwen. I had an army, and I used it- I liberated the three northern valleys, where Terris Kahl was active. A good portion of Northern Terris is run by people I've worked with for over a decade."
"I ventured south, visiting my family one last time, before stopping in Tathingdwen, and had a tense meeting with the Synod, before I headed south with some of my cadre, to track down Obligators involved in the Breeding program, before they escaped. I put my experience to good use, and technically worked with the Republican Army. And then the Premier sent a letter to me, which started this plan."
Vedzan frowned. "To think, I was the first to find out the Lord Ruler was Terris, and the Synod and Keepers on the 'straight and narrow' often accuse me of being just like him through my willingness to fight him, and in the same breath say I wish to put Terris under foreign domination. I know all of us may not agree, but something is deeply rotten in the House of God."
"Something is. We are too slow to adjust, we always were." Fisal said. "The Synod has no real ability to rule, but I suppose that is part of our plan. Rindel should go next."
"Wow… I had heard of Terris Kahl, but I didn't know that at the same time as Kelsier was overthrowing the Final Empire." Demoux said.
Rindel leaned forwards, and cleared his throat. "I am a more typical example of a Keeper, although I had several… misunderstandings during my training as a Keeper. I was born in Tathingdwen, was adopted by someone with heavy ties to the Synod, trained as a Steward, and headed off to work for a minor noble house. I picked warfare as my subject, and was competent at studying military history. But I believed I was a spy for the Synod, and that was the start of my problems. Wasn't a very good spy, you see. I was run out of the estate after about two years when the Lord discovered my second logbook, the Final Empire revoked my Steward License on suspicion of corruption, and sent me to the copper mines."
"Boors didn't know who they were dealing with, though. I am the Keeper of War, I know how to raise an uprising. Organized a strike, broke out of the mine with a few others, killed a few guards, headed to Wayedeth, as an outlaw. And there I met Vedzan, and the early Terris Kahl. It was my military expertise that allowed Terris Kahl to take shape into its modern form, and I traveled from cell to cell, training and synchronizing our efforts. We would have never liberated the villages we did without me." Rindel said.
"Amen." Vedzan said. "Terris Kahl could not have done what we did without your knowledge of tactics and war. And the Premier appreciated your skills?" he asked Rindel.
"Oh, he absolutely did." Rindel grinned widely. "For context, after the death of the Lord Ruler, I found myself traveling south, initially to aid Vedzan in his search for Obligators who escaped the Synod's grip during the Tathingdwen Uprising. Then, the stories of the Revolution intrigued me, and when I heard that the Republic was looking for Keepers, I found myself heading south, and I worked with the University of Luthadel for months. The Republican Army has 10,000 rifles all thanks to me, and I contributed heavily on powder mills and cannon production. The Aspirant Empire and Pretender Empire have cannon, but mostly they're working with trebuchets- although eh, doesn't really matter much for sieges with city walls, other than Luthadel's, not existing. Really only matters for battles, right now, but as the palisades go up, and the spring campaigns begin… war will change, like it was in the days of the Conqueror."
"That is only supporting our observation that Terris requires stable leadership." Fisal said. "Warfare is changing, and we cannot let Terris fall behind in the dust. If the Imperial Successors wanted to, they could strike at Tathingdwen, and we would be unable to stop them."
"So, we must come up with a plan." Rindel said, excitedly.
"The day Premier Kelsier laid down his plan on how he would carry out the Revolution, he had a charcoal board. I suppose we don't have one of those sitting around?" Demoux asked.
"No, no charcoal board- and it's perhaps best if we don't write down our plans. Might end up on the receiving end of the Synod's guillotines. You have to remember- we are powerful people, figures the Synod is paying attention to- we cannot just openly state we are intending to overthrow them. But we also have resources. Feruchemy, yes, but men, territory, followers, skills." Vedzan explained. "That is why covering our pasts was important, finding out our life experiences."
Fisal spoke first. "In that case, I shall restate Temmir's ties to the skaa quarter- if we got him on our side, we could have all the skaa on our side in the inevitable conflict."
"And we have Terris Kahl as well. Where are those you brought south, those that were headquartered in Mantz?" Demoux asked.
"In the city, but divided. There are more from the Wayenedeth Valley in the north as well, but altogether, not so many." Vedzan answered. "If we can, we should relocate people from the north south. A revolutionary cadre would be nice to have."
"So, we have definite support from the skaa, and Terris Kahl. I presume we should just begin printing a newspaper, or pamphlets, to get regular Terrismen in the city more towards our ideas." Rindel proposed.
"It would be smart for us to form a militia. Not just for use in the city, but to train the seeds of a Terris army for, first, self-defense, and then for eventually aiding the New Republic in its wars." Demoux suggested. "I can train them, but weapons… who controls the copper and iron mines, and where is it refined?"
"Most are owned by the Synod, but maintained by the New Republic. The ore is generally sent down to Luthadel. We could likely get some iron, but I don't see your ideas on copper. Copper weaponry? That is not particularly effective, I think." Fisal said.
"Oh, just thinking about how the Premier wants Terris to achieve economic independence, and control over the copper mines would help." Demoux said.
"Hmm, yeah, were we to set up forges, then the copper would flow through our hands. We could do the same thing with the iron, and through that, produce weapons domestically, building up quite a military potential." Rindel said.
"I do not believe we could gain ground among the Synod, in our wars of ideas. The Premier did plan on us courting Keepers to our side, and it might be best were we to be able to take control over the Synod in some way, but it would be difficult." Fisal said.
"It would be more difficult, it would be possible, and avoid a war in Terris, although I'm not sure if that's the best option for us." Vedzan replied.
"Who in Tathingdwen would be the most receptive to Iconoclasm?" Demoux asked.
"The woolen mill workers, definitely." Rindel replied. "The Synod has not improved conditions in the textile district, I think, and there is much grumbling among the weavers and spinners." he said.
"So it seems we should decide on our options." Vedzan said. "If all goes right, we could build up enough power and influence to bloodlessly coup the Synod, taking power and sidelining the Synod into a purely . But what I've learned is that nothing ever goes right. The Synod will catch on, and work against us." Vedzan waited for any comments, and when none arose, he continued.
"Or we could follow the path Kelsier laid down. Building an army in secret, and taking Tathingdwen in a surprise attack. It is possible, although we should expect the Synod to take some preparations- the Final Empire knew of his rebellion a couple months after it started- it only didn't crush it because of failures in the past, fighting through the Arguois caverns, and the Lord Ruler was so self-assured the Empire could not fall, and he would never die." Vedzan said.
"I would prefer it were our colleagues not to be slain. While we could take Tathingdwen quickly, if we built up a militia or reorganized Terris Kahl, the Synod would undoubtedly build up a militia or even an army to combat us. We saw during the uprising that Keepers would be willing to fight, if they felt threatened- Kelsier has a plan for them." Fisal said.
"He didn't mention preserving the Synod, did he?" Rindel asked.
"No, but the Synod is composed of Keepers." Fisal said.
"Could do both." Demoux suggested. "A buildup of influence combined with military buildup. Start a strike, uprising, in Tathingdwen, while marching an army on the city from the north. Make it known to the Synod that they will lose, and demand their surrender, in exchange for a peaceful transition."
"Would take more effort than just focusing on one approach. Could also spiral out of control. And it depends how stubborn the Synod is. History is full of times where the cards were stacked against a group, and they had the option of folding, but they didn't, continuing into defeat and ruination." Rindel stated.
"So what do we do?" Demoux asked.
"We will discuss it more. Have the whole day, and a bit of the night- hopefully we can come to a conclusion, or compromise. I do not believe we can have dissent among ourselves." Vedzan said.
And the discussion raged for the rest of the day, although the days in the Terris winter were short, and raged well into the long winter night. By the end, although not all were happy with the plan, no one was upset enough to leave the group.
[ ] Revolution. The revolutionaries come to the conclusion that following in Kelsier's proven steps is best. Military buildup, in secret, combined with the spreading of hope and ideas among the poor and needy of Tathingdwen, before launching a second uprising that will see the city freed. The Synod will know of the revolutionaries building up an army, and build up their own army. There will be bloodshed, but it will see Terris cast off its chains much quicker, perhaps in a matter of months.
[ ] Slow and Steady… The revolutionaries shall take full advantage of the Synod's lack of firm control of anything outside Tathingdwen, and its lack of institutions, by gaining control over large swaths of Terris, and becoming the main hands through which goods pass, as well as setting up institutions that have the potential to see the revolutionaries taking over Terris, without a single drop of blood spilled. The Synod will see the revolutionaries' attempts of building a state, and be motivated into racing to build their own government. This will take the longest, perhaps a year, but see Terris free without bloodshed.
[ ] Why Not Both? The revolutionaries shall work on both plans, brandishing both the crook and the flail, the stick and carrot. They shall work on sowing discontent and forming a military force that could seize the city, but as well as work on establishing industrial networks in Terris. This balanced approach could mean that Terris will be able to provide both men and material to the Republican war effort in the south, but the Synod will definitely be incensed at the revolutionary's attempts to pick up their slack, and move them to also build up their abilities. But when Terris Kahl turns its army on the Synod, it is hoped that, while it could be a pyrrhic victory for either side, the Synod will see reason, and capitulate. While the time estimate is unknown, it is in between the other options.
Marsh watched through eyes of steel as the nobles hung, doing the hempen jig. He could see the blood pumping through their veins, and as their hearts slowed as they were slowly starved of air, the blood stilled. The crowd jeered at the noble, occasionally throwing rotten fruit and small rocks at the bastard. He had been convicted of rape of a young skaa servant girl. Made him sick. Some of the crowd had been subjects of this noble, or his House. Most weren't, merely holding a passionate hatred for their lifelong oppressors.
His spikes' demands lessened, but they didn't go away fully. He thought supervising these executions would sate their thirst for blood, even taking the place of the executioner sometimes, and it did, for a time, but their demand had… grown.
In this case, he had tied the noose, and kicked the stool out from under the nobleman's feet. He watched the man struggle for air, and his heart stop, as he died. But he took no pleasure from it. He didn't have the same rage the crowd that watched the executions did for the noblemen. No, he never did. Only when an Obligator was strung up, but those were a rare breed in the New Republic. His hate for them had only grown- they turned him into a thing of fear and death, in addition to ending his poor mother's life.
He refused to be an Inquisitor, though. He had grown his blond hair back, got his tattoos removed with the help of his Feruchemical gold, wore thick coats and a blindfold to hide his spikes, although the tips were there every time he combed his hair, or even attempted to do something as simple as lie in a bed, or sit in a high-backed chair. He could only sleep in a hammock comfortably. Marsh had done everything he could to return to his old life, or a new approximation of it, in Kelsier's Luthadel.
He disliked Kelsier. No, he loved his brother. He disliked himself, for quitting, leaving the skaa rebellion just before Kelsier took up its banner, and ended the thousand year long reign of terror. But Marsh remembered: he came back, and sacrificed himself to penetrate deep into the heart of the Steel Ministry. Without him, the Lord Ruler would've slipped away, as eight Inquisitors butchered the exhausted Kelsier and unpracticed Vin in Fountain Square, and God knew that the New Republic would have a lot more enemies and traitors within it if it weren't for Marsh's management of the Ministry of Republican Justice and the Department of Redressement.
His brother believed in him, too. Believed he was his brother and not a demon in the skin of man, treated him as he always did. He only wished Kelsier was right. His spikes throbbed to an unknown, wild, capricious, painful rhythm, as they demanded blood. He grit his teeth, as he left the hanging, attempted to satiate them by tying another noose and hanging another bastard. But he knew it wouldn't be enough. No, these men were damned to die. They wanted murder.
Kelsier and Vin arrived at Keep Haught. It was the only of the keeps in the city that looked like it did before the Revolution- not diminished like Keep Venture, not seized and turned into something new and great like Keep Elariel, or burned and abandoned like Keep Erikeller. Keep Haught was in Southbridge, and was indeed the center of higher industries in Luthadel. It was the center of the allomantic industry, as well as the most elite forges and weapons production- it was also home to the Obligator's paper mill, which was powered with an engine- and that engine, copied, allowed for so many labor-saving retrofits.
Southbridge wasn't too different today- but it had changed. Smokestacks were most common in the district, with cannon, rifle, and powder production having been primarily established here, mostly in the south of the district. It, and portions of the Brassworks, were turning into something else. They called it the Southbridge Arsenal. Kelsier hoped it would be developed more, and one day, the entire Republican army would have rifles, effectively an entire army of Coinshots, and artillery would be at their backs.
But he was not here for industry, at least not directly. House Haught still stood, the Keep's unchanging nature standing in defiance of the destruction of the Final Empire. While the Keep itself was Luthadel standard, all spires with stained glass with nothing special, the grounds held more than gardens and topiaries, although those were dying in the early winter weather, but the leaves were obviously being swept up.
Several large factories and mills sat along the Channerel, water wheels turning with the flow of the river. Haught's most prized possessions. Unlike most of their factories, Haught employed lesser nobles as workers in their most elite mills. And so, no readressment was needed, and House Haught managed to keep ahold of them. They had also purchased a large portion of their seized properties back, displaying the issues with a free market when the richest people were nobles.
And so, the Premier and his daughter walked right up to the door, a person-sized one outfitted in the grand doors that only opened during the balls, or when someone important, with a large retinue, came to visit. As far as he knew, they hadn't opened since the last ball, at Keep Venture, before the House War he instigated, truly began to rage. And he knocked, for while he was suspicious of Haught, as long as they held the peace, he saw no reason to spill blood.
The door opened. Someone Kelsier could identify as a lesser noble was waiting there, and this lesser noble immediately identified him- although he was certain that all but the most isolated hermit in the entire New Republic could identify him. "Premier Minister Kelsier, and Madame Vin, the Lady Haught expects you. I am the Chamberlain of House Haught. Please follow me- I shall lead you to Kless Haught."
Kelsier and Vin stepped into the Keep, perhaps the first time he was invited into a Keep, as Kelsier, the half-skaa, with the House knowing. Portraits decorated the walls, elaborate carpets made up the floor, and artisanal furniture made up the day. "Hasn't changed much, but some of the more expensive decor is gone." Vin commented. She had been here before, in the guise of Valette Renoux.
"An acceptable set of circumstances, when compared to the other noble houses in the New Republic." the Chamberlain said.
Kelsier had to admit, that was true. Out of all the noble houses, Haught's finances were the best, and it was sort of the nucleus of the remnant nobility, although getting all nobles to put aside their differences in the name of something approaching common interests was an exercise in futility- he knew that from experience.
And then the Chamberlain led them to one of the dining halls, where Kless Haught sat at the end of a table- one of the spots next to her was occupied by Assemblywoman Chanim Haught, and two spots were at the other end of the table. It wasn't too long, they didn't have to raise their voices. There were two spots at the front that were set, facing away from the door, in a similar position to those at the other end- the seat at the end of the table for Kelsier, and a seat next for it, opposed to Chanim, for Vin. Four seats sat between the two young women. Covered platters of food sat in the middle of the table, along with two bottles of wine. Several servants, likely also lesser nobles, stood to attention.
"May your discussion be fruitful." the Chamberlain said, exusing himself to tend to other tasks.
"Please, let us be seated." Kless Haught said. Kelsier sat, and as he was already burning copper, he started burning bronze. He couldn't detect anything from either Chanim- who was a registered Mistborn- and Kless Haught, who was openly a coinshot. Kless Haught was likely burning steel, while Chanim was likely burning copper, bronze, tin, and iron or steel, the copper smoking Kless's burn. But the Directory had kept something secret. Vin and Marsh could pierce copperclouds. Vin could see all the metals they were burning, and then Kelsier burned tin and steel, and saw that Chanim and Kless carried only coins, and some jewelry that seemed to be more functional than aesthetic, and wouldn't injure the wearer, but prove and asset in a fight. This was likely the largest concentration of Mistborn in a room in the entire New Republic.
"Let us partake of the bounty of Luthadel. I know you are a man not much for prayer, so let us skip that." Kless said, ordering the servants to place platters in front of Kelsier, lifting off the tops to reveal a steaming mixture of cut up meat and vegetables, and soup with noodles- more of a skaa dish than a noble dish, at least among the city skaa who could afford meats- and the meat quality was higher than the typical tripe or blood sausage. Kelsier smiled. The nobles had caught on to his eating food with his hands when invited over to tick them off. Kless liked to make sure things were controlled, and so had prepared food to prevent that from occurring. Vin started eating immediately, her lifehood of food scarcity still present in her behavior.
"So, Kless, why do you think I am here?" Kelsier smiled at the woman. And Kless smiled back.
"Because you doubt, Premier, House Haught's devotion to the New Republic, in spite of all we have done." he wasn't expecting her to be so blunt about it. Well, an invitation was an invitation,
"I do doubt you, Haught, and if I do not doubt your actions," he did. "I doubt your sincerity. You can understand. Let me tell you of my perspective. Revolutions are bloody, and I was fully expecting most powerful nobles in the city to fall to my soldiers, or revolutionaries. So when I got back from running around the Central Dominance, stopping the tide of fleeing wealth, recruiting some experts, or inspiring smaller towns to revolt, I was just expecting to hear the younger or lesser members of the Great Houses had been captured or surrendered, and the more powerful members had fled or died." Kelsier took a sip of the stew. Damn, that was better than he expected.
"They mostly did." Vin aided.
"Exactly. And then I heard you, against all expectations, had led a majority of House Haught to surrender. And you cannot blame me for suspecting you of some scheme, when most of the nobles were panicking because they were certain they would be butchered by the skaa. And you, you, sauntered up to Victory Square, filled with a hundred thousand revolutionaries finally receiving the promise of readressment, and you asked Minister Dockson exactly what would happen to the properties of House Haught, were you to willingly surrender." Kelsier was frustrated with the woman, for simply not telling him.
Kless Haught spoke. "So you want to know why I chose such a dangerous option, as opposed to flee? I know it is best if I am honest in this, so here you go- your answer, Premier. My marriage was for power, gaining my House an ally among the Great Houses. But I proved more competent than Alstir Haught, and well… the Lords of Haught didn't quite like that. It was always a struggle, keeping the House going, preventing my idiot husband from accessing the finances… and then the House War started, Alstir aligned with Venture, and I loathe Straff."
"You will not lack for sympathetic ears in Luthadel." Chanim added.
"Do you mind asking for the reason why?" Kelsier asked Kless. She must've really hated Straff, but why not go to the Aspirants?
"When I was younger, he kept trying to seduce me. I rejected his advances, but he wouldn't take no for an answer. And so, I was forced to choose between him and Alstir Haught. You would be unable to empathize with this, but you also have a lost love, although in harsher circumstances than a denying father. As for why…" Kless drummed her fingers on the table, thinking of the answer. Was she not sure?
"I heard a speech. By Minister Hammond- I was at Keep Elariel during its fall, testing the waters. And it's not impossible for Coinshots to fly. Hammond rallied against the injustices of the nobility, but also highlighted that the nobility were a prison of the system, same as the skaa, and even the Lord Ruler- I believe the example he gave was that Rashek couldn't visit a speakeasy. The revolutionaries didn't like it, but after I raced back to Hastings, and Alstir screamed at me to get on the boat. I said no, grabbed Chanim, and rallied Haught and some lesser nobles in the district in defense of the Keep, while Alstir slipped away to Urteau with the house heads, and a good portion of the finances. He's still alive. Sent me a few letters. Burned them all. I will have nothing to do with the Pretenders in Urteau."
Kelsier put his fork down, clinking on the mostly-empty plate. "Any future letters, you give to me, or Minister Marsh. Inaction is an action, in my eyes. What did you read in them? And who did you get them from?"
"Oh, just about how he wants me out of harm's way away from the conniving half-breeds lording over millions of raging skaa anarchists, but primarily, he wants Chanim more than me. As for the culprit, it was the late Lord Entrone. I told Minister Marsh, and that drove him to investigate the bastard, and, well, his investigations bore fruit. I have my suspicions on who else has connections to the Imperial Successors, but they are primarily based on what cliques I am barred from. Nothing actionable… but keep an eye on Penrod. That is all I am willing to say on this matter- I am not sure myself, and this is more of a matter for the Republic's intelligence than House Haught." Kless said.
Kelsier chewed that over as he chewed his meal. Kless wasn't the sort of woman to be convinced by a speech- perhaps it could have been the straw that broke the camel's back. Something was missing, but he knew he would not get an answer to ask. And what of her saying she had received letters from Alstir, but had burned them? That's what someone who was overcompensating would say. And she had admitted she had read some of the letters, but he would too.
And the mention of Penrod? Very deliberate, but was it Kless being charitable, or attempting to distract him? Either way, he'd have OreSeur investigate Penrod and Kless's ties to Urteau more closely- although as the two highest ranking nobles in Luthadel after the Revolution, the kandra already was.
Conversation moved to small talk or politics, while Vin and Chanim, while they didn't click with one another, had much in common, being both young women Mistborn forced out into the open thanks to the Revolution.
After the early dinner, Kelsier and Vin left Keep Haught, with Kelsier not fully having settled on anything. He didn't have the full story, and Kless Haught didn't want him knowing the full story, and that made her suspicious. She likely knew that, but why wouldn't she lie, prepare a convincing cover story instead? There was more here, definitely, but was that malicious or not?
[ ] Investigate Ferson Penrod. Kless Haught is innocent, at least of collusion with any of the Imperial Successors. She loathes both Straff and Alstir, and is unlikely to be working with either. Penrod was apparently an ally of Straff Venture before the Revolution, but his 'good behavior'(for a nobleman) has prevented him from coming under suspicion sooner. Poke around. Read the reports from OreSeur. See what can be found.
[ ] Investigate Kless Haught. Kless Haught is guilty, if not of collusion with the Pretender Empire. Collusion with one of the other Pretender Empres, hiding of assets, treason. She is hiding something, something she does not wish to reveal, and Kelsier will not be sated until he finds out what something is. The Department of Readressment will be mobilized for this investigation, for the good of the Republic.
Kelsier spotted the hill in the distance, as the horse moved beneath him, galloping swiftly upon the dirt track, although not as swift as the speeds Allomancy could provide. It hadn't taken long to get here- there was a spikeway connecting Luthadel to Tenes, and once the Tenes Garrison captain realized who he was, he practically threw the horse at Kelsier. The hill, crowned with white aspens with yellow leaves, rose above the plains of the Central Dominance.
He didn't encounter any Mistborn along the spikeway- there were still a few in Luthadel, and several more across the New Republic, but all had to be registered with the Department of Allomancy- there just wasn't space in the New Republic for the deadly wildcard nature of a Mistborn.
Kelsier wished more of the Mistborn were willing to fight in the war- it was next to impossible to force a Mistborn to fight against their will, they needed to willingly agree to it. Skaa, or half-skaa Mistborn would be willing, but they were incredibly rare- he had only known himself and Vin- Gemmel, his old master, and Baz'en, First Minister of Austrex, claimed they were both skaa, but Kelsier personally had his doubts.
They had tested tens of thousands of skaa for allomantic abilities at this point, but they just hadn't found any Mistborn. Whether they just didn't exist, hadn't been or weren't able to be tested, knew of their powers but just wanted to live a normal life, or had been found and impaled by the Inquisitors for their ability to burn Atium, Kelsier didn't know.
At least the New Republic had several mercenary Mistborn, but while most normal mercenaries were settling into their Republican life, Mistborn were stubborn individualists, and they still kept their mercenary contracts. The Pretender Empire had a lot of Mistborn, he knew that- it was their main military advantage they had, over the New Republic and the other Imperial Successors.
Kelsier slowed the horse to a trot as he reached the base of the hill, tied it to a white-barked aspen, and burned steel- a handful of faint blue lines appeared, pointing to… the earth? Kelsier looked around, and noticed that half the hill had been carved away, but the hill had collapsed over the gap, and trees and bushes grew atop the rubble. A mine, then, of some sorts. The Central Dominance was always rich in metals. He burned tin, and heard the sounds of a man at work. Kelsier dropped an iron- the clip having been reduced in size, and been made piss poor for Allomancy in the process- and pushed off it, over the pale white trees.
Near the peak of the hill, he found Hoid in a small clearing, swaying blue lines pointing to the man. He had grown his hair back from his previous baldness, and it was a dark brown. He was digging, spade cutting through tree roots and moving rocks up. Hoid turned to Kelsier, and a smirk dawned on his hawkish face. "Greetings, Premier. I was beginning to think you would never arrive. I have an extra shovel." Hoid pointed at a rucksack, upon which a shovel leaned. "We can speak while we toil." he proposed.
Kelsier sighed. He knew Hoid was somewhat eccentric when he proposed this meeting place, he just hoped it would be the fun sort of eccentric. He picked up the shovel, burned pewter, and joined Hoid in splitting tree roots. One question was on his mind. "What are you digging for?" he asked the ex-informant.
"Something the University of Luthadel, and the Keepers of Terris, will find particularly interesting." Hoid gave as a response. But Kelsier knew how to play this game.
"How do you know it's here?" he asked Hoid.
Hoid chuckled. "I placed it here."
Ok, something he had gotten as an informant, that wasn't particularly valuable, but illegal. And so he had buried it- so likely a book, or documents. Maybe he was the fun sort of eccentric?
"So, why did you stop being an informant? You were pretty successful, if you could regularly afford smoking tobacco." Kelsier asked.
Hoid smirked. "As it happens, I was driven out of business by the New Republic. With the fall of the nobility, combined with the unfettered flow of information… well, pickings became scarce, and I decided I could put my skills to better use as an Assemblyman."
Kelsier nodded. "Do you want to ask me anything?" he asked the hawk-faced man- everyone had questions for him, and Hoid wouldn't be any different.
"I do, actually. How's Vin?" Hoid asked.
Now that was atypically personal. There were some, out of the Survivorists and Marewill Larstaists, that respected Vin, but it was a handful of women, viewing her as a role model to cast off the shackles men had placed on women. Why was Hoid asking? He had told Marsh, Ham, Saze, and Dox about his decision with her, so he found no issue telling Hoid- and it wasn't really about her. "Her and I made the decision to start readying her for working with the Republican Army, and having her get involved with the government."
Hoid nodded. "Good, she'll need the training, and the New Republic will need her abilities." Now that made more sense- she was the only other skaa Mistborn in the New Republic, and of course she would be loyal. But didn't Hoid abstain on the couple of foreign policy votes over the last week? He thought the Assemblyman didn't care for war.
The iron of his shovel struck stone. "I don't think whatever it is you're looking for is here." Kelsier said.
"Of course it is- this rock is three feet deep, while the bedrock's typically seven feet deep, here. Needed a way to prevent some iron or steel-burning Obligator running the mine from finding the chest, and rock is a decent insulator of Allomancy. One isolated deposit wouldn't be enough to dig up, not yet." Hoid explained.
Kelsier nodded, as when he burned steel, the lines were thin and scattered, looking very much like the deposit he saw near the base of the hill. The two men cleared the dirt atop the rock, and managed to clear away the edges enough for the two to grab the stone, and lift it. Kelsier burned Pewter, and Hoid seemed a bit stronger than he looked. The stone was thin, and supported by several other rocks on its sides- below it, was bare earth, with some invertebrates squirming in it.
The two shoved the rock onto some scrub brush, and Hoid brushed away soil, revealing the tell-tale verdigris of a copper-based metal. Bronze, he figured, based on the spots of copper-colored metal here and there. Hoid attempted to get a grip on the box, but the dirt was too thick. Hoid scrambled up out of the hole, and turned to him. "You'd save us both a bit of trouble were you to use your power." he said to Kelsier.
Kelsier got out of the hole, and straddled it, center of his body over the bronze chest. He Pulled at the strongest strand pointing at the box- there were a large amount of blue lines pointing to it, so it was likely full of metal. The box shifted, but it wasn't enough. Kelsier flared steel, and burned pewter to support himself, and the box lifted some, but it was still stuck.
Kelsier grimaced, stepped out of the pit, stopped burning everything but pewter and steel, and got a bar of duralumin out. He shaved some shavings off of it, swallowed it with a gulp from his ceramic flask of water. He turned to the pit, and gripped a nearby withered tree, tugged on the line, and burned duralumin. The box was yanked out of the ground, as Kelsier felt like he was being ripped by the steel, and the box flew straight towards him.
He dodged, as the box slammed into the tree, throwing white splinters around. Hoid walked up, sipping from a metal flask of his own. "Well, I've never seen that before," he commented. "New metal?"
"Yep… useless on its own though, like aluminum. Hopefully that didn't damage anything in it."
Hoid scoffed. "If it did, that would mean that I failed to preserve its contents. Would you like to open the box, Premier Kelsier?"
"I would, I'm wondering what exactly was dangerous enough that you had to bury it here, but also not valuable enough for you to sell." Kelsier commented.
Hoid smiled. "Well, go and see."
Kelsier leaned down, and popped the lid off the box. A strange black substance coated the sides of the box, but it was cracked and hardened with age. A light verdigris patina covered the insides of the contents- which were all bronze. Text decorated bronze plate after bronze plate, bound in metal books, stacked upright, filling the box. He recognized the language, even if he didn't know it himself- it was Khlenni, the homeland of the Conqueror, and the kingdom that once ruled the Central Dominance. Smaller boxes sat at the top of the bronze books, and Hoid picked one up, and popped the lid off, and fished something out of it.
"Look at this. Khlenni Souverain, the last mold made." Hoid said. He held up a coin, about the size of a boxing, made of gold. The side profile of a face decorated the coin, and a name- one that he recognized- was written down on the coin.
"Alendi," Kelsier vocalized. "So that was his name. Rashek scrubbed it from history, you know. The Keepers only had one throwaway mention of it, one among many potential names of the Lord Ruler, and recently, the Conqueror, once we separated the two. What's all the rest of this?"
Hoid smiled, and began talking, playing with the coin in his hand while he did so. "What I've gathered is the religious, historical, and cultural knowledge of Khlennium. What is here vastly outstrips anything that could be found via digging- even excavating what's left of Khlennium, where the Terris and Channerel Rivers merge, although the Lord Ruler was… thorough, with its remains. From its birth as the northern frontier of Tilancium, to its conversion to a Saranite faith, to its command over the lands that now make up the Final Empire, to… Kelsier, do you think Khlennium died with the Ascension?"
"I'm not sure. Its language did, so did its religion, but its architecture and culture still live on today as the previously dominant Imperial-backed fashion." Kelsier responded.
"Yes, but that's just the facts. You must find the answer on your own to this quandary." Hoid explained.
Kelsier frowned. "Wait, this doesn't add up. How were you able to find all this in the first place, without aid from the Keepers? It also seems older than you are- I passed by Tenes in my youth once or twice, and I hadn't heard of a mine being here, and you look younger than me." he asked the Assemblyman.
Hoid shrugged. "I buried it where we found it." he said, if that answered the question.
"Have you least gotten tested for Allomancy?" he asked Hoid.
Hoid chuckled. "No, I have no Allomantic potential."
"That's not true. From what the Keepers have found, there was a lot of admixture in the early days of the Final Empire, before the caste system was so solidified and the skaa were as enslaved as they were, and Allomancy was always present on Scadrial, to some ability- once, the skaa were ordinary people, living their lives, before the Lord Ruler enslaved them." What did he say that made Hoid smile?
"Oh no, absolutely zero Allomantic potential in me. I won't be heading back to Luthadel today, there's still some wealthy people who need valuable information- and no, I loathe the Pretender Empire, and the rest of the Imperial Successors are worse. I wouldn't sell out the New Republic, as long as there are no lords in Luthadel." Hoid said.
"And there never will be." Kelsier said.
Hoid responded, "Amen, and may that always be true." and placed the coin box back in the large box, gingerly placing the lid back on top. Kelsier burned pewter, hoisting the box under his arm, and moved to walk down the hill, when a thought crossed his mind.
He turned around, and spoke. "How did you know the coin was called a souverain?" Kelsier asked.
Hoid turned to him, and grinned. "Je sais lire li Klhennais, Premier." he said in Khlenni, turned, and walked away, slinging his rucksack and shovels over his shoulder, whistling.
Kelsier shivered as a breeze carrying yellow aspen leaves tingled his skin, even though he was burning pewter to offset the cold, and walked back down to his horse, more questions in his mind than answers.
The entire time Kelsier is on his way back, questions churning through his mind. By the time he was on the spikeway once again, the unanswerable questions he had banished, and the one answerable question floated to the forefront of his mind. Was Khlennium dead?
[ ] Yes. The Final Empire killed it, and consumed its corpse. That holds true for the other cultures and nations of Classical Scadrial, and it is foolish to look to the past, when the now needs to be focused on. The most the past can provide is ancient knowledge of practical purposes, whether that be military, governance, or relating to the Hero of Ages. This option will lead to the New Republic ignoring the past, focusing more on the present.
[ ] No. Khlennium lives. The city was the capital of the Final Empire in its first decades, only razed after the conquests ended and the refugees stopped streaming into the Final Empire from other lands. Its population was relocated to Luthadel before that, though, and the skaa and the nobles everywhere are descended from the people who once lived in Classical Scadrial. The cultural knowledge of the past is valid as a source of inspiration for the present. This option will lead to the New Republic seeking inspiration in the past, to aid their efforts in the present, mostly among the Great Change.
Sazed had his finger on the copper wire. It ran off the desk, across the stone floor, and out the door, then down the hall. Red sunlight streamed through the windows, illuminating his workspace very well. Sazed felt the copper wire, with his Feruchemical sense. Empty. But it would not be for long.
Tindwyl was in another room, preparing to send a message to him, instantaneously- Rindel had proposed this experiment, before he had left back to Tathingdwen, and it was an very intriguing experiment, testing the new limits of Feruchemy. Rindel had speculated that you could connect Luthadel to Tathingdwen with this, but Sazed felt that was too… out there.
It would require nearly five hundred kilometers' worth of copper wire, all connected before use. It could not be severed, or else it would fail entirely. It would also be useless for sending a message to more than one place. And if someone not storing identity, there was no way for anyone else to remove it, and the metalmind would be ruined, unless it were to be reforged, although Sazed didn't think there would be any Feruchemists who would stoop to that level of sabotage, no matter what Vedzan was planning with Terris Kahl.
In addition, leaving five hundred kilometers' worth of copper wire exposed was unwise, even if the land was in the New Republic, poverty's grip still held tight the uncountable millions of the Final Empire, despite all the Republic had done. Luthadel and the larger cities of the New Republic had managed to provide, if not plenty, more than the basic needs, from their seizing the bountiful wealth of the nobles. Perhaps in a generation or two…
Power blossomed in the copper wire, without Sazed needing to put any memories of his own in it. Sazed took it out, picked up a pencil, and wrote down on a piece of paper Tindwyl's message. Test Five, out of sight, out of hearing, out of mind. Sazed wrote down, below that, Test Five, Message Received. He then stored Identity. He felt… less. He found the Great Change's ideals clashing with those of the Synod's orthodox Keepers they swapped out Rindel and Fisal for, in the absence of his own, but he ignored it, and put that message in the Coppermind, quickly scanning the paper to remember what he sent, and stopped storing Identity.
And then came footfalls, down the hall, that Sazed recognized, after spending years working with him. The Premier. He rounded the corner, and Sazed instantly noticed the large verdigris-covered box under his arm- he must have been burning pewter to hold it, were it full of something dense.
"Hey, Saze. How goes experimentation with the long coppermind?" Kelsier asked.
"This is merely a formality. This method is too difficult to put into practice, with too little gain. While I am not exactly sure on the limit, I think that a copper wire stretching from the north to south pole- or at least that distance, would work. The issue lies in the providing of enough copper, the extreme weakness of the coppermind to disruption, or the fact any Feruchemist could put in a keyed memory, rendering it useless and having to be completely replaced." Sazed said to the Premier.
"Damn. There goes the dream of instantaneous communication between the major cities of the world." Kelsier cursed.
"I would not say that we are out of options. The Department of Military Engineering's experiments with the optical telegraph and balloons are showing a quite a lot of potential for long-distance speedy communication- although I can understand your want for instantaneous communication, Feruchemy is not the answer. What is in that box?"
Kelsier looked at it, and slowly said, "You may want to assemble the Keepers, in one of the lecture halls. This is allegedly a complete encyclopedia of Khlennium."
"How, in God's 256 names, did he get a complete encyclopedia of Khlennium?" Tindwyl remarked.
The Keepers were in one of the lecture halls- multiple tables had been pushed together, tubs of chemicals had been procured from the Department of Republican Engineering, and some students were scrubbing the verdigris from the books. The books were being disassembled, and their metal pages were placed in squares outlined by charcoal lines drawn on the tables.
Scholars were running about, with thick tomes that had guides to translating Khlenni. Tindwyl was working on translating a book, due to her greater knowledge of Khlenni, while Sazed was working on identifying and translating the artifacts- coins, religious artifacts, and one crown that was bedazzled with jewels.
Kelsier was cleaning some of the coins of their verdigris and tarnish, when he spoke. "The Assemblyman Hoid invited me to a meeting atop a hill south of Tenes. When I arrived, he was digging, and I aided him in excavating this. He said he found all of this, but was the one to bury it. I took it as he found some information and buried it, but… and Deputy Minister Hettel said this amount of verdigris means this box was buried for a long time… and Hoid knew Khlenni." Kelsier was panicking- Sazed had never really seen the Premier like this. He had seen him angry, he had seen him sad, but never confused.
"Perhaps he found all of this buried in another location, and re-buried it to keep it safe?" Salys, a Keeper specialized in all things relating to art, said.
"But he knew this coin was called a souverain, and then when I asked him how, he siad something in Khlenni. Something lire li Khlennais, I didn't catch the first part." Kelsier said, shocked.
"Ah, he said he could read Khlenni. Yes, he must've known a Keeper. Rouge, I presume, given the Synod remains unaware of this discovery." Tindwyl said. "There were a few, not associated with Terris Kahl, wandering the lands outside of Terris. It was likely one completely distanced from the Synod, or one who died shortly after whenever this occured."
"There must have been someone who managed to collect and preserve the treasures of Khlennium against the tyranny of the Lord Ruler. It is such a shame that they seem to have left no personal identifiers- they knew what they were doing, preserving this knowledge for a thousand years, to outlast even the Lord Ruler." Salys said, both hands copying two pages at the same time, fully utilizing her ambidextrousness.
"While that seems the most likely outcome… I don't know. How likely is a Fullborn to arise naturally? Could any of the Lord Ruler's children have been Fullborn?" Kelsier asked.
"Mmm. Rare, but the Lord Ruler's children would have had both the Allomantic and Feruchemical potential- the Feruchemical lines back then were not so divided… do you think Hoid is one of the Lord Ruler's children?" Sazed asked.
"It sounds ridiculous. But… if it's true, then he told the truth for everything, except when I asked him if he was an Allomancer. He was insistent on having no allomantic potential." Kelsier said.
"That is the least likely outcome, I think." Sazed said. "Were he fullborn, he would have been killed, or have established a dominion of his own." Kelsier passed Sazed another one of the coins- although this one was different. It was an early Clip, with the youthful race of Rashek decorating it, but with Khlenni surrounding it. Sazed almost dropped it when he sensed unkeyed power in it.
"Wait. Kelsier, this holds a Feruchemical storage." Sazed said, holding up the Clip to the Premier.
"And here's the identifier! Tap it!" Kelsier eagerly urged Sazed.
Sazed drew the memory out, and…
Ash fell from the sky. A city was laid out before him- Khlennium. The greatest city in the world. His, along with the portion of the world that hadn't burned, at least in the north. Two rivers joined below the cathedral he was atop of, which sat atop an island in the middle of the rivers. The cathedral was to a god foreign to Khlennium, but truly, Preservation, Terr. But for all it got right, what it got wrong meant it was blasphemy against the true faith. Even his own religion was wrong, albeit in smaller ways.
Smoke rose up into the sky, from countless smokestacks. The wonders of industry… and its threat. It was the engines of this city that allowed him to conquer the world, supporting his armies in their campaigns. Now all that was left was finding homes for the millions of refugees, and then he could reshape his Empire to be perfect. If that meant taking away guns and engines, he would do so.
Khlennium had seen better days. The plentiful green parks and trees of the city were dying, despite the work its inhabitants did to clean up the ash that always fell from the sky. Was a shame, but there was always a price to be paid. Brown grass sprouted up atop dead grass, the sort that now dominates the world, as it was the only one able to survive in this ashen world.
He burned steel, and the blue lines filled his vision. He Pushed off the spires of the cathedral, into the city. As he reached the top of his arc, he saw through the ash and smoke, to the endless fields and towns beyond. They were struggling, they just needed more time to adjust to the ash, but the growing pains would take their toll. He also saw the walled settlement where he kept one of his koloss garrisons- the sword of Damon, hanging above the head of the Khlenni, just in case they tried something.
He landed upon tracks, and turned to see an engine charging down them, metal wagon wheels turning rapidly, steam belching from a funnel atop a dark green boiler. It sounded its horn, but he laughed as he stored weight, and pushed off of the engine, making it lurch. He turned, and hurtled down the tracks, laughing as he greatly exceeded the speeds of the engine. With Mistborn, who needed trains?
Sazed dropped the coin, gasping, searching… tapping Identity to steel himself. He moved to take several deep breaths, before speaking. "It was the Lord Ruler, not too long after the Ascension." he explained. "He was atop the tallest Khlenni cathedral, surveying the city, and I felt every thought of his. It was before his simplification campaigns, and the city was bedecked with smokestacks, and I saw a train. He referenced Terr, and stated that the Khlenni religion worshiped Terr as well, but it needed to be erased, because it was wrong in his eyes, as well as the Terris religion."
"God damn. Khlennium at its height, it's a shame I'm not a Feruchemist. But he wouldn't bury this box." Kelsier commented.
"I also saw a train… are any of the Keepers here good at drawing?" Sazed asked. "I recommend having spare Identity on hand. "I am not the best to catalog this, I think." Sazed said.
"I am." Salys said, coming over. Sazed stored Identity, putting the memory back in the clip, and his shock faded. Salys took it, a shocked expression dawned on her face, and she swore. "Ash and blood! This is clearer than any memory I've ever seen. But a good look at a train… Minister Dockson will be happy about this, and the Department of Republican Engineering." Salys got a large piece of paper, and began sketching the train, and the view Rashek had of Khlennium.
"What's a train? A baggage train wouldn't be enough for all this awe." Kelsier asked.
Sazed answered the Premier's question. "An engine of steam and steel, that was faster than even a galloping horse. It was limited to metal tracks, but it could pull vast quantities of goods or people behind it. It was, in essence, a boiler and steam engine on wheels, that turned its own wheels. While I am not certain, I think that the one in this coppermind shall remain beyond our grasp for now, but, well, today is the best time to plant a tree. We are fortunate, though- there were only scattered offhand mentions of trains in ancient records, and a vision of a train in action is the most we have so far."
"Now, my question is, who plucked a memory out of the Lord Ruler's head?" Darzon asked, the fourth Keeper in Luthadel, one specialized in agriculture.
Kelsier grimaced, and spoke. "Whoever it was, was likely craftier than the Lord Ruler- although anyone who could do that to the Lord Ruler makes me wonder why they let the Lord Ruler live?"
The Keepers agreed with that, and then Kelsier turned to Sazed, before whispering a request. "About the other Heros of Ages… expand your researches to cover all aspects of religions. Common mythologies, similar gods, in addition to messiahs and prophets… if Rashek, may he rot in Hell, is correct on all religions being a part of a greater whole… then it is worth investigating, at the very least."
Sazed nodded. A logical next step in his studies, but one partly motivated by the Lord Ruler's thoughts. He had already been taking notes on similar mythological tropes he noticed, he would surely find more Antecendre secrets were he to focus on it fully.
Vote closed
- Pronouns
- He/Him
The End of the Beginning
- Pronouns
- He/Him
"One Day, Those Who Dream Found that The City Would Not Remain Safe. Tyrants and Kings Strove to Undo All Their Work, and Cast Luthadel Down. For What Use are Wonders If They Could Not Protect Them?"
It was a boring assembly session. There was a heated argument over what measurement a bole would be. The Assembly had finished the work of the rest of the bill over the past week- placing taxes on private textile factories, as well as calculate the proper sales tax, as well as issuing some policies to increase the supply of cloth in Luthadel, and reopening some shuttered textile factories, allocating the necessary funds to refit them to increase worker betterment.
But the size of the bole had come up. Kelsier had pushed the argument back as far as he could, getting every essential part of the bill done first. And everyone had an opinion. Except him and Marsh. Marsh had already left, throwing an iron down and accessing a trapdoor in the ceiling, heading up to the rooftop.
Leaving Kelsier to preside over the debates. Not only did you have the length vs width argument, but also metric vs imperial debate. When taking the latter into account, two positions became four, and a small argument became sizable.
"I tell you, a width of a metre is perfect! Our wagons and barges' insides is measured in an even number of metres, and so all our goods should be at well!" Hettel argued.
"Just under half of textile factories are state-owned, and the merchants heavily use the imperial system. We cannot fail to consider this, and so we must make the bolt 50 inches in width!" Philen argued.
Kelsier sighed, stepped up, and made his way onto the stage, finding the iron Marsh lodged between two floorboards. He picked it up, Pulling it with iron into his hand. Most mistborn and mistings neglected iron, but he made sure to practice and use both metals. Saved his life once or twice before. And so, he pulled at a bar in the roof, stretched across it to support the weight of all the props and actors if they needed to hang from ropes.
He lurched towards the ceiling, hand bursting open the trapdoor, as he stopping Pulling, rising to the edge of the opening, scrabbling onto the floor of the attic. It was nothing special, just an empty, short-roofed floor, but he could still hear the ramblings of the Assembly below. He found a window, one with a few flakes of snow below it.
Kelsier ran the iron through his fingers. The funny thing was, it wasn't made of iron. Most irons were- steel was too expensive and too needed for weapons to make coins out of steel. But this one was, and he didn't know why. You grew to recognize metals when you worked and fought against Allomancers, even more so as an Allomancer.
Kelsier stepped out the window, pulling himself onto the roof. The shingles were covered with snow, and slippery. Luckily they weren't particularly sheer. Marsh sat next to the flagpole at the peak, seemingly unconcerned about the snow. Kelsier sat down next to his brother, first cleaning off the snow beneath his rear. It made him realize how far he had come. In past years, he welcomed the reprieve the gray snow blanketing the city brung from the all-pervasive blackness of Luthadel. But now many buildings were covered in bright-colored paints, he wished it was not so. Another couple of days and it would be gone. At least it covered the black streets and roofs.
Kelsier held up the steel coin. "So what's this, Marsh?" he asked his brother.
Marsh turned to look at him. "New minting. The Department of Finance was tasked by the Department of Allomancy to make a batch of irons made of Allomancer's steel. For skaa allomancers, without reliable access to pure allomantic metals. Some would like more coins like these, such as brass and bronze coppers, maybe electrum boxings or ten-boxings. In my opinion, we could make our ten-boxings out of electrum. Would be a good use for all our silver."
Kelsier smiled. "Of course, anything for the novice Allomancers. And I suppose the worry of them falling into the hands of our enemies are unfounded- only our allies trade with us, although that might be a temporary state of affairs."
Marsh nodded, and went back to looking out over the city. Mount Tyrian was not visible, and neither were any of the suburb cities, and the new gate cities were too short to see behind the walls. Past the walls was square farm patches, lying fallow as the frost would kill the crops, and other than some cattle and barns, the barren land faded into the ashen haze. It was like beyond the walls, there was nothing, Luthadel being a solitary island, its two million inhabitants being alone in a sea of mist.
If only that were the case. Kelsier had tread across the Final Empire for three years, starting from his escape from the Pits of Hathsin, and had seen the peoples and cities of elsewhere. From the farmost reaches of the Empire, to Urteau, Austrex, Tathingdwen, and Tremredare. And now those cities hosted independent nations of their very own. And half of them were hell bent on taking Luthadel.
"Bloody hell, we're up against most of the world." Kelsier commented.
"Half. as long as we have our allies, our enemies only can marshal half of the hundred million that live in our world." Marsh said.
"You're right, Marsh. Every city that falls to us, every province, frees hundreds of thousands more. We'll turn the tide soon enough."
The two sat there in silence, but Marsh had begun to fidget, fingering the spikes that lay beneath his coat in nervousness. Marsh, after a while, turned to Kelsier, and blurted out, "Kelsier, I have to tell you something."
"What is it? I can guess- relating to your spikes?" Kelsier smiled at his brother.
Marsh swallowed, and spoke. "Yes, but not in the way you think. They… they have demands. For bloodshed. I attempted to sate them by watching the executions, but then as their demands grew that failed to scratch the itch I have, so I moved onto doing some of the executions myself. Lately, that hasn't been enough… I've killed small animals, Kel. Rats and pigeons, just to scratch that bloody itch. I know their demands will grow, Kel, and I'm afraid I'm turning into an Inquisitor. So I ask you this- can I remove my spikes?"
Kelsier felt as if he was struck. Marsh had furiously railed against any attempt for others to use the leftover hemalurgic spikes from the Inquisitors slain at the Victory at Fountain Square, while also avoiding questions of what effects the spikes had on him, so he always knew there was more. When they cut open some of the Inquisitors, their organs were in places where they shouldn't have been, so he knew they had a physical effect.
But all it would take is one of those spikes of atium to grant a Feruchemist the same level of immortality the Lord Ruler had. He still had two, in storage in crusted blood at the Department of Allomancy, in hopes that maybe they would figure more out about the third of the Metallic Arts in the meantime. But it seemed like that was not a possibility, if Marsh had contracted moral insanity from them.
But only one response was possible, for Kelsier. "I worry that removal of your spikes would lead to your death." he said.
Marsh, in response to this, pulled out a bronze spike, crusted with blood, from a pocket in his coat. "Zinc. Didn't really need it, given I already have brass. The lynchspike's removal is the only one that can lead to death, at least if healing is not allowed. I stored up enough health in my goldminds beforehand, and I can repeat the process until I remove enough spikes. It would take some time, in which others would have to pick up my duties, so I would like your consul, first."
Kelsier breathed in, and smiled. "Of course. While the dream of an artificial Mistborn seems to be a noble one, I see that we are not yet ready for that. Keep a few spikes, and see what occurs. Maybe it isn't the spikes themselves, but the overabundance of them?" he suggested.
Marsh sighed, tension Kelsier didn't notice earlier leaving him. "In that case, then I will ask the University to aid me. The Keepers will certainly wish to hasten my recovery. A few unkeyed goldminds would aid me greatly, and there are no known records of a Steel Inquisitor coming back into the arms of the human race."
"You could gain Allomantic gold, to heal your injuries instantly. We have enough of that strange hemalurgic atium for a small spike." Kelsier suggested.
"No! I mean… it would be contrary. Add a spike, kill someone, to just take it away again…" Marsh said. Oh poor Marsh, the reluctant Hemalurgist.
"Should we just melt down the two remaining atium spikes? If you're this hesitant, then Hemalurgy might just be a temptation that sends men down roads best untrod." Kelsier asked.
"No… no, I can't make a decision right now." Marsh sighed. "Ask me when I am well."
Kelsier nodded, and the two watched the city for some more time, the brothers enjoying each other's company.
And then the boring assembly session suddenly became very much not boring. A young Coinshot by the name of Rolend had burst through the doors, almost hyperventilating. Kelsier quickly stood up. "What is it, Rolend?" he asked the coinshot.
Roland sucked in enough air to croak out his message- "We found the atium," another deep breath, "beneath Kredik Shaw."
The Assembly erupted into chaos.
Kelsier had arrived to that room once again, with a small stone hut placed in a domed, decorated room that was the Lord Ruler's reminder of home. Where it all began, and where it all ended, four years ago. It was covered in what Sazed had recognized as the Classical Terris alphabet, and did contain some knowledge of Terris before the Ascension, and the murals were helpful as well.
But all it contained for him was pain. The joy in his heart as he approached what must have been the Lord Ruler's treasury of atium, only for the door to reveal the Lord Ruler himself. He couldn't fight back, how could he? A normal man, a Tineye, and a Smoker, against the Lord Ruler, and two Steel Inquisitors. Redd had died then and there, and Kelsier and Mare had been sent to the Pits. And then that time with Vin- he had been very stupid, but she had been saved by Sazed, and it gave him Alendi's logbook, and the knowledge that copperclouds could be pierced. Marsh had confirmed that, a balm upon his grieving heart.
But he wasn't here for the hut today. A large opening was present in one wall of the chamber, behind a mural of some cloud-wreathed mountains. A large hole had been carved into the wall, between two of the metal inlays that decorated the walls of the room. Felt, the man he had put in charge of finding the atium, was there to explain to him exactly what had happened.
"So, we combed through every inch of Kredik Shaw. Used Coinshots, Lurchers, architects, in an attempt to find hidden rooms and secret passages, and we did. Rooms that have been sealed off for centuries, hidden archives, even some small amounts of atium, and in one case a mass grave. But we found something here- the architects said there was space missing behind this wall right here," Felt waved at the opening, "and we brought in a work crew to break through the wall, but then they found a door, we pulled it open, and I sent Rolend to tell you."
Felt continued, "I am sorry to say, sir, that so far, we haven't found atium in it. But we have found something else."
"What have you found?" Kelsier asked Felt.
"Cans upon cans of food and other supplies. But it's best if you go down to gaze upon the cavern yourself." Felt said.
"I am here too. You will not be alone in this venture." Sazed walked into the room, carrying a notebook.
"Good to have you here, Saze." Kelsier smiled at the Keeper.
"My help is needed, I think. I do not know what lies below, but that is why I shall go with you."
The two men picked up lanterns, and descended to trespass once more upon holy ground, a spiral staircase winding its way down into the depths. "Why do you think there is a hidden supply of food and supplies down here?" Kelsier asked.
"My theory is that it was for siege. If Luthadel rose in revolt, Kredik Shaw could hold out long enough for reinforcements." Sazed said.
"No, that can't be. Why would it be secreted away like this? And would the Lord Ruler really be at risk if he was alive while Luthadel rose as it did?" Kelsier criticized.
"It must be for the city, then. Or perhaps the atium is sequestered in some corner…" Sazed postulated.
There was no answer. Only sight could give them the answer. And then they exited into it, the stairs ending in a small landing. "Bloody hell…" Kelsier exclaimed.
The cavern went on forever. Shelves extended as far as the eye could see, and he saw piles in the distance, containing the supplies. Sazed walked over to the closest shelf, and picked up a can. "Dried beef." he said as read the inscribed letters on the top.
"So I guess it is for if Luthadel came under siege?" Kelsier guessed.
"I would assume so. So many plans… turned to ash, and now it falls to us to make use of them." Sazed said.
Kelsier burned tin and steel, and the faint outlines brightened, as lines clouded the sides of his vision. But one pointed straight ahead, to the other side of the cavern, straight down the middle of the aisle. It burned brighter than the ones pointing to the cans and shelves. "There's something this way." Kelsier pointed.
The two men walked, Sazed stopping occasionally to make note of the foods on the shelves. There was pork, chicken, and mutton. But there were also powdered milk, dried fruits and vegetables. These were the sorts of canned foods used for the military, albeit the highest quality variety. But overwhelmingly, the cavern was dominated by large cans of grain- wheat, barley, rye, millet, and some other varieties- seemingly collated from all the foods supplied to the army. All the foodstuffs was dry- long-term storage. The possibilities churned through Kelsier's mind. Feeding the hungry, saving it for a rainy day. Or using it to feed the Republican Army, marching in winter, to liberate and save millions of skaa sooner.
But Kelsier noticed something. Footprints lay in the dust ahead of him- faint, but present. "See those footprints, Saze?" he asked the Keeper.
"Perhaps one of the workers came in here earlier?" Sazed asked.
"No, they're older. See the layer of dust below them." Kelsier pointed out.
"Then an Obligator, before the Revolution." Sazed commented.
"Or during…" Kelsier commented.
And Kelsier's theory proved true. They found a metal plaque at the end of the cavern, next to large piles of many goods. Wood, stone, metals, enough to build an entire district of Luthadel. Accompanied by some racks full of hammers, nails, and other tools. There was even a vast pool, more of a cistern, filled with clear water.
"Damn it!" Kelsier cursed, as he noticed the small plaque, the lack of dust on the wall above it in a square, and four holes at the edge of the square, where screws once were. It was a much larger plaque, but it was taken. "Someone came in here, unscrewed it, and left everything as it once was." Kelsier bitterly said.
"Not everything is lost." "The lesser plaque seems to hold a matter of interest, I think." Sazed held up his lantern to it, and Kelsier read it.
A map of the Final Empire. With Austrex circled, and numbers, strangely enough, at the bottom. "Austrex? What's in Austrex?" Kelsier asked.
"I expect the only way to find out is to go there yourself. These, numbers, however…" Sazed leaned down, placing down his lantern and writing in his notebook. "885 must be when this cavern was finished, and they've rotated the goods out since. But what does 17 48 mean? Can't be a date…" the Keeper pondered.
Kelsier was distracted, following the blue lines only he could see. Not from the jumbles of cans on the shelves, no, they were too regular. Rows, even, suspended some distance in the air. An in the side of the cavern, shelves gave way to racks. Pikes, swords, crossbows, shields, crossbow bolts, and armor.
The sheer amount, though… he thought he could outfit 50,000 men- a massive amount, but . But something nagged at him. The most complicated question. Why? Why did the Lord Ruler stockpile a cavern with enough food to feed Luthadel comfortably for a year, along with resources and weapons? He died unprepared, Kelsier overcoming him with guile and misdirection. The Lord Ruler was self-assured in his own immortality and the immortality of the Final Empire.
Deluded by his own lies. So he wouldn't have built this cache. Backup plans were unneeded to him. And yet… here was a backup plan. What could frighten the Lord Ruler into doing this?
Kelsier wasn't sure on what he would do with the goods, but he did know one thing for certain: he had to go to Austrex, and see what was there.
[ ] Supply the Troops. The Final Empire has given the New Republic the tools to destroy it! We will march in the dead of winter, bringing ruin to the lords who rule over Scadrial! The New Republic will march on the back of this cache, gaining a vast head start in this year's campaigns over the Imperial Successors.
[ ] Keep it in Reserve. Something is wrong. Such secrecy, such difficulty to enter, and all for extra supplies? Nothing known, other than perhaps a great natural disaster, could lead the Lord Ruler to build and stockpile a cache. That disaster may still be in the future, and it would be wise to keep the cache full, in event of that disaster. This will be unpopular with the Assembly.
Sazed was making a steady headway on his work. He was storing eyesight and hearing, but his spectacles weren't good at seeing far. It all took time, but, as the University of Luthadel's facilities grew, the time required grew less. His main challenge was staying organized, more than anything else. There was plentiful ink and paper, and his past worries and paranoia of the Final Empire finding him through the myriad of laws against unlicensed literacy, masterless stewards, and the laws against Feruchemists were gone. In fact, he had too much paper.
Everything he wrote down from his copperminds he knew he would require later. He didn't want to waste paper by throwing it away, or at least that's what he told himself. At the very least he didn't want to rewrite the entirety of his notes searching for a line that he wasn't sure where he read it.
He had an entire chest of drawers filled with small wooden trays that could be stacked upon one another for his notes, and the other Keepers had similar. Rindel and Fisal left most of their behind, so there were six of those drawers. Kelsier's requests for information surrounding religions and the Well of Ascension made it a near-constant effort, although the three other Keepers also worked near-constantly with the New Republic. Sazed still had a master, he thought, while the other Keepers chose to aid the New Republic.
And so for now, he was working on a book of his own. A collation of all the religions in his copperminds, placing together pages, to eventually print several copies of and place it in the Library. Tindwyl and Salys sometimes contributed it- political backgrounds were necessary to give context to the religions, and many religions possessed art- the stained glass windows that were archetypal of the Final Empire were inherited from the Khlenni religion being a prime example.
Occasionally, he found an interesting tidbit, and he copied it down onto his notes for Kelsier's request, which he was considering adding as a segment anyways. Many religions did appear to be related, although there were always a few that seemed disconnected from the greater whole, or where there simply wasn't enough information available to draw a conclusion. But there were definitely religious families of sorts, and a pervasive undercurrent of dualism.
Sazed wasn't sure how to feel about this. It pulled away the mystery of religion, to group various religions into families, to trace a common origin. But why was there a common origin? Why were there so many shared features of religions? What about the well-recorded ones that seemed to be oddly separate from the rest?
Most religions agreed that the world had been created from the clash of two forces. Order and Chaos, Protection and Destruction, Receptive and Active. Opposites, but interwoven and complementary. Sometimes forces, sometimes gods. And then, when Chaos threatened to grow unbound, Order gave up a part of itself. Some said its life, some said its mind, some said its presence. This he identified as the Terris religion's God, and the Final Empire's God. Few actively worshiped the other force. Appeased it, yes, sacrificing anything from food to animals to people to stave its hand from throttling their peoples and nations.
The Hero of Ages was a very common figure, he knew this. He had expanded beyond the Urtan-Cazzi, Tilance, and Terris legends of the figure, to the Saranites, the scattered tribes of the Farmost Dominance, to the people that predated the Bennet, the Nelazan, and the people of the Remote Dominance, as well as peoples whose lands were now trackless desert. The Rabzeen was found all across Saran, of course, in different forms, and there was an echo of the figure in the former religions of the Remote Dominance. Sazed had also found what Kelsier had predicted.
They were repeating figures. And Sazed was able to identify historical figures who possessed the title. One of the leaders of the Empire of Tilance, Induerator Scaevola, over 3,000 years ago, did claim the title of Amanessor, but the notes he and Tindwyl had were annoyingly vague in explaining what this figure did to claim the title, other than surmounting some crisis that nearly ruined the Empire. The book Scaevola wrote had apparently been lost, even if it was referenced elsewhere. Even longer ago, over 4,000 years ago, a Universal King of the Saranites claimed to be the Rabzeen, but the obelisk raised by him to proclaim his deeds did not say exactly what he did, other than 'Freed the Life-Giving Sun from Chaos's Gullet'.
Sazed copied down the obelisk's translation from his copperminds, and read it. And then he caught something. This was from the north face of the obelisk, apparently.
'The King of the Four Corners of the World, the Easten Lakes, the Northern Lake, the Southern River, and the Western Shore, Son-of-the-Sun, Scion of His Fathers and Father of His Scions, Blessed By the God be His Name, the Metallic, Rich in Victories and Women, Nod the Rabzyn in the 18th year of His rule, Went to a Northern Land of Endless Mountains, Following the Words and Records of the Priests and Ancestors. There, He Mantled the Power of Order, and He Saved the Sun.'
There were others, but Sazed could not confirm their historicity, but he found that there was also likely a grain of truth in it.
Was this a mention of the Well of Ascension? Was that what made a Hero of Ages? In that case, did all of these men take up power at the Well of Ascension? It wasn't exact… but they seemed regular. Sazed would expect them to be offset more, by centuries… but they weren't. But it wasn't exact. There was a 2,000 year gap, in which no mention of a Hero of Ages, Amanessor, or Rabzeen came along.
Did this have to do with the Terris Religion? Could this be why the Terris Prophecies were so well-developed? Was there another Terris Hero of Ages?
The door slammed open, and Sazed jumped, feeling it more more than hearing it. Turning, he saw Nazh. "Oh, Deputy Minister Hoffman! It's been a week or two. How was your… are you okay?" Sazed took off his glasses, and stopped storing his eyesight and hearing to get a better look at Nazh.
Nazh had seen better days. His face was bruised, his clothes were in tatters, and small cuts decorated his body. His clothes were dirty, and ash-stained. Beneath his characteristic cloth mask that covered his mouth and nose, what looked like weeks of stubble covered his face. He clearly hadn't had an opportunity to bathe, but he had at the very least cleaned his skin, likely with a wet washcloth. "I… I have had worse, but no, I am not doing okay. Are you the head Keeper in Luthadel? I have news, for the Synod."
"Darzon is, but he is out in the fields again, I think." Sazed responded to the man.
"You'll have to do. I am sorry to tell you this, but Keeper Vorzeth is dead." he said, solemnly.
Sazed startled once again. "How did he die?" he asked the Deputy Minister. Vorzeth studied nature, and last he heard he had gone into the Eastern Dominance in search of ancient relics or information.
"He was slain by an Inquisitor. We put up a good fight… but he got cornered, and he was mortally wounded, the Inquisitor draining his goldminds in the fight. I am sorry, but my medical knowledge was not good enough to save him. But I bring his work, and his last will and testament. And if there is a silver lining, I have a coppermind he handed me, along with what he found in Chathram. I do not think it is worth the life of a Keeper, but he thought so, and I believe the Premier Minister would as well." Nazh sighed at the end, and reached down, to pick two small cloth bags out of a satchel he possessed. "He said he found them in a grave that predated the Ascension."
Sazed took them in his hands, placing them on his desk. He opened one, lifting a Clip and a tarnished silver coin that predated the Ascension. A palm tree was on one side of the coin, and a face of one of the last kings of Saran on the other. The clip held an accessible feruchemical store. Sazed nodded solemnly, placing the two coins back in the bag. Poor Vorzeth… but what was so precious that Vorzeth considered dying over?
Sazed opened the second bag, and gasped.
"No, it can't be…" Sazed felt a shiver go down his spine. "These would be a thousand years old. There is no way they will be able to sprout." Several mummified fruits, unassuming, sat at the bottom of the bag.
Nazh spoke, with a wan smile visible beneath his mask of cloth. "Vorzeth thought differently. You have the seeds for Kelsier's dream of a green world, or perhaps the last embers of the old in your hands. Take care of them. As for me… shadows, I'm going to take a long, hot bath, change my clothes, tell Ham about how the Inquisitors are covering their back spikes with a metal shell, and then go meet with my employer. I got what I needed from Chathram, the least I can do is aid the New Republic in the process."
Nazh left the room as Sazed stared at the dried fruits for several minutes, before carefully placing them in a completely dry bowl, before getting up, stepping into the hall, and then tapped his steelmind as he ran to get Darzon.
Spook adjusted his mask. His sweat clung to it, pressing it against the bridge of his nose. He was sweating so much, despite the chill of the night. After all, he was in Palace Venture, the heart of the Pretender Empire, and surrounded by what had to be a thousand nobles. At least his mask merely hung on the nose. Many noblemen and noblewomen wore masks that covered their full faces. Monsters, in ceramic faces of black and white, although some grew more elaborate, with some masks being sequined, or possessing horns or teeth or beaks.
OreSeur wore the mask of a demon. Dark black face, a grotesque sneer, with white tusks and horns. It was a joke. One only Spook and OreSeur got. A demon in the guise of a man in the guise of a demon. Spook shivered. Although he was given permission to burn tin tonight. He was in disguise, and there were so many nobles here, someone burning tin would be looked over, or even smoked by Smokers.
Times like this he was glad he was skaa. He wished he could be in the mists, in his trousers and button down linen shirt, and not in these breeches that made it impossible to sit down, and this baggy shirt with too many frills. He glanced at the large stained glass windows, hoping to see the mists swirling outside, or even the snow. But all he saw was the limelight, burning through the glass.
Spook walked through the crowd, picking up on conversations. Listening for mentions of Luthadel, or Penrod. OreSeur, in the guise of Enfram Entrone, mingled freely, temporarily free of the distaste many had for him, as he was anonymous, and, thanks to his excellent impersonation abilities, could keep the nobles guessing about who he was until whenever he decided to reveal it.
Some were not disguised- well, everyone was, it was a rule of the ball. But some clearly accentuated several features, wore revealing masks, or presided over the meetings. The Emperor, Straff Venture, was clearly visible, despite his mask covering his upper face, from his near-uniform costume, beard, and height. The Princess, Shan Venture, wore a domino mask, and was cavorting with the sons and daughters of the nobility.
Suddenly, Straff stood up on the balcony, ringing a fork against his glass. The conversation silenced. "Welcome to the first Midwinter Masquerade. I see everyone who has reason to be here is here. May your time be rewarding." he said, before standing back down. So little, and yet everyone started chatting double fold anyways.
Spook went through the crowd, searching for hints of conversation about the Republic. And he found that few spoke about it. Oh, it was the crux of their conversations. Noblemen spoke of their contracts to provide for the army, noblewomen spoke of the wealth promised. The young men spoke of positions of officers, the young women spoke of their loves going to war. Spook was certain he was the only one here who had seen a battle, when he traveled with Clubs to aid in the liberation of Austrex. There was no glory in war. But he supposed that there was money to be made.
He found an interesting trail. OreSeur left a trail of people discussing the Luthadel nobility, and the traits there. Listening in to OreSeur's conversations, he found that if he could not get any information about Luthadel from a group, he would try anyways, performing a faux pass, leading to the group discussing Luthadel anyways. And Spook did pick up some interesting tidbits. 'Letters from Penrod', something about the Haught Mistborn, and one of them being a spy for the Pretender Empire. He didn't know what it amounted to, and after an hour, it seemed that OreSeur had exhausted that, and conversation moved onto more personal things, after enough wine was consumed.
Spook grabbed a napkin-full of 'Allomantic snack cakes', the ones marked as safe for non-Allomancers. Brass, bronze, tin and zinc. He sat in a chair in a dark corner, and listened to the party. But he wasn't the only wallflower.
A young nobleman looking to be around the age of twenty walked up, with a small plate and a cup of wine, and sat next to him. "Tineye, are you?" he asked. He was wearing a mask that covered the upper face, same as him, but it was pitch black. He was wearing breeches and a coat of some sort, but they were also black. His head was topped with short brown hair, a tricorn covering it up. He looked pretty fashionable.
"Uhhh…." Spook responded.
"I'm an Allomancer myself. Heard you burning, and saw you weaving through the crowd. Put up to it by your father. Given a task, and forced to complete it. Shackled to someone else's interests, when you can thrive alone. Captive knives, that's all we are to the lords." the stranger said.
"That's not why I'm here, exactly…" Spook said.
"Whatever your story is, it is certainly similar. It's all the same. Whichever relative it was, you were told to listen for anything that could interest your House, although they probably don't trust you with anything big. Despite many lords being Allomancers themselves, they have us do their dirty work. For instance, Emperor Venture is a Tineye, like you, but you won't see him going around and listening to people's conversations. Rumor has it that Shan is Mistborn, but she won't be traipsing around the rooftops at night, shooting coins at people. It's not like this everywhere, though. In the Republic, the lords there use their powers, to their full extent." the stranger said.
Spook's heart pounded in his chest. "Don't talk about the Republic here." he hissed to the stranger.
"It's not what they say it is." the stranger shook his head. "Besides, who knows who we are? Tonight is a night for sedition, and you should know that the conversation tonight strays from the typical orthodoxy."
Spook nodded. He had picked up on many loose conversations like that, ignoring them because they weren't what he was looking for.
"Say, what's your name?" the stranger asked Spook.
Spook was about to blurt it out, reconsidered, and then smiled as the realization hit. "Spook." he said to the stranger.
The stranger chuckled. "Well, I should have expected that. In that case, Spook, you may call me Mist. Good name for a Tineye, isn't it? Always in the shadows, you are, like a ghost. Well, not the Old Spook up there." Mist gestured to Straff, standing below the raised deck that occupied half the ballroom, very visible in the center of the ballroom.
And then the Spook heard something. He craned his head, towards the raised deck, trying to hear through the crowd. Mist did the same, seemingly copying Spook, although he doubted Mist could hear anything. Spook picked up on something. The hiss of fire.
A man arrived at the banister, sweaty and breathing heavily. He raised something up. Spook's eyes went wide. A grenade! The man yelled "For House Elariel!" as he threw the grenade, right towards Straff.
"Oh, Hell." Mist said, quickly dropping a coin behind him, and Pushing against it, soaring through the air into the middle of the room. Nobles were panicking, running, and while some stood where they did, perhaps Coinshots and Lurchers, no one dared to push or pull the grenade.
Spook ducked under a table, keeping his eyes on the grenade, flaring tin to focus on its movement and arc. No, it would land straight on Straff Venture. Who was just standing there, looking up at the grenade, unconcerned. The reason for that was apparent. Mist landed on a table next to Straff Venture, and pushed on the grenade, causing it to rocket upwards. But he didn't slam it into the ceiling. It hung, suspended, among the chandeliers, until its fuse ran out, and it exploded.
Then Mist flared steel, sending all the shrapnel rocketing into the ceiling. A chandelier was caught in the blast, and Mist was clearly straining to hold its twisted remains in the air. Crystal rained down into the crowd. But Mist held everything suspended. The waiters cleared the center of the room from guests, and Mist stopped his pushing to let the metal fall back down to earth. Mist stood on the table, shrapnel falling around him, but none of it hitting.
After some skaa cleaned up the shrapnel, crystal, and wax, the masquerade resumed, but the tone was subdued. The Elariel had been caught, Spook gathered, but killed attempting to escape. OreSeur found him after a few minutes, and the two left the masquerade. The two got into their carriage, and Spook removed his mask, feeling the cool winter mist on his face. OreSeur did too, although Spook knew the face he saw was a mask.
"Well, as the Emperor said, that was certainly rewarding." OreSeur said. "Instability among the nobility, especially among the Great Houses that were diminished by the Revolution, expecting better treatment."
"I spoke to the Mistborn, by chance." Spook started. OreSuer raised an eyebrow. "He spoke to me of the injustice in the ways nobles treat young allomancers, and said that he looked up to the New Republic as it is led by Allomancers who used their abilities to their full extent."
OreSeur smiled. "A Mistborn with Republican sympathies? Dangerous."
"Could he defect?" Spook asked.
"It could be just talk. I know how young men are, as you are learning. But I will check." OreSeur said.
Spook found that the information he picked up on, OreSeur had already gathered. But he did feel pride for speaking to that Mistborn, and finding that seed of doubt.
Now they just needed to cultivate it.
The wind picked up. It rattled the windows, throwing flakes of snow into it. It was dark already, despite the clocks pointing to it being late afternoon. But it was bright and warm inside the print shop, a fire roaring in the hearth, and multiple oil lamps cast a warm light across the room.
Two strong Terrismen tended to the press, printing pamphlet after pamphlet in the steel alphabet. Rindel sat at his desk, listening to the background noise, as he wrote some of tomorrow's printing. And then, as it often did, he felt what he was doing, his finger on the wheel of something greater than him.
Rindel controlled the news in Tathingdwen. Not all the news, but a good portion of it. The Tathingdwen Kahlik was a daily paper, a new issue being released every day, and cheap enough that every household could afford a copy. They were running at a slight loss, but it was a necessary loss.
Their only competitor was the Synodic Newsletter produced by the Synod. And copies were only released on Copperday. Seven out of the eight days of the week, the Tathingdwen Kahlik was the only option for the up-to-date Terrisman to stay informed. And while it was a single page, they quickly had to escalate to printing on both sides. After all, what news was in Terris? Turns out, quite a lot.
The liberation of Terris and the suddenly free flow of information and introduction of native Terris landowners had made large amounts of splashes. It was all hasty and uncontrolled. Synodic Terris, he realized, didn't exist. The Synod truly only controlled Tathingdwen, the Valley, and the Terris Gift, and a few mines outside of that region. The rest of Terris was a patchwork. Terris Kahl had free reign over the Wayendeth Valley, and was the second largest polity in Terris. But there were others, some cities with control over surrounding areas, and they were a mix of republics, theocracies, and little monarchies. There was also the Wethcowd, which was under control of the Kingdom of the Burning Crescent, the only place in all of Terris that could be called verdant.
This mix of polities and influential people led to news. The going-ons of these locations and the people who were their leaders was always interesting, For instance, the leader of the only bit of the Welgcowd out of foreign hands was pleading for aid to retake the forest, while a landowner in the western vale's sheep had reached tremendous proportions.
And then there was international news. The Synod had their informational networks, but they only made public the most notable news. The Tathingdwen Kahlik regularly reprinted or rewrote articles found in Republican broadsheets. It took a few days to make the trip from Luthadel to Tathingdwen, but generally the Synodic Newsletter didn't print news before they did.
Tomorrow's edition was a big one. It was on the front page of the Republican Flame, the official paper of the New Republic. Straff Venture had experienced an assassination attempt at a Midwinter Masquerade. By an Elariel, so not ideologically motivated. But any sign of instability in the New Republic's enemies was lapped up. It wouldn't be lapped up in Terris, but it would go in the paper anyways.
There were four sections of the Tathingdwen Kahlik. Local news, from Tathingdwen, the Valley, and the Terris Gift. Terris news, from the rest of Terris, or international news impacting Terris. International news, from the world outside. And the ads. The ads were equally important. They were what rendered the paper a slight loss. And they worked. People would actually go and investigate businesses in the ads, if they had the need. And so, business allies of Terris Kahl, or businesses owned by Terris Kahl, would receive a discount or even ads free of charge. The Synodic Newsletter didn't have ads, but there was talk among the Synod, Fisal said.
Everything they did, backlash and complaint grew. They just had to hope upon winning out, at least in Tathingdwen, to strongarm the Synod into accepting Terris Kahl's rule of Terris. But Rindel was the Keeper of War, and he had read that no enemy took an assault lying down.
Heavy knocks sounded at the door, and Rindel got up to answer it. Vedzan near-burst in, the wind sweeping through the room as Rindel closed the door against it. "God damn!" Vedzan said, taking his scarf off. "It's practically a blizzard out there."
"How did the training go today?" Rindel asked, grabbing a jug of Terris beer he had sitting next to the fire.
He poured four glasses- two for him and Vedzan, and two four the workers, who he suggest take a break for a while. "Well. Trained outside for a few hours, before the blizzard set in. Half of the men went home, with Captain Demoux continuing to train the rest in the gymnasium. He had things under control, so I came back." Rindel nodded, as he was expecting Vedzan to return. "Temmir's doing well- many of the skaa are comfortable with factory and mining jobs, and we're getting a lot of use out of them."
Rindel and Vedzan went upstairs, and while Vedzan was the upstairs hearth, Vedzan spoke. "We should make a decision about our weapons soon. I do not believe we should neglect our home front, and produce matchlocks to begin building up an army that would defend Terris."
"Two separate armies, at least right now, is a bad idea. Especially when one used tactics that are more traditionally Terris. As we are looking for loyalty right now, until the Synod relinquishes their loose control over Terris, a second army more susceptible to being usurped by the Synod would not be a good idea right now." Rindel argued.
"I don't see why we can't just mobilize Terris Kahl's troops in the Wayendeth. They've proven loyal even now the Lord Bastard's dead, and we could even bring them into Tathingdwen to help on other projects." Vedzan suggested.
"While producing matchlocks is possible in Terris, all gun-related production is expensive and hard to develop. It's best if we focus on it after we gain control of Terris, importing the flintlock mechanisms in the meantime." Rindel said.
"Terris is built for hit and run warfare. We need an army for home defense, as the encroachment of the Crescent and the Koloss shows." Vedzan argued.
"Terris needs to aid the New Republic in the wars that consume the world. Even the limited number of men Terris could provide is small, wars can be won or lost for want of a single man." Rindel waxed poetic.
"This is getting nowhere. Is compromise on the table? The skaa troops we train, Demoux trains them in skaa methods, the Terris troops we train, we train them in Terris Kahl methods?" Vedzan reached out for a compromise.
"Yes, that would work." Rindel smiled.
The two rogue Keepers clinked glasses, and toasted to the health of Terris.
Relaxing in the heat of the fire, Rindel asked Vedzan, "How goes your quest to spread Feruchemy to the children of every woman in Tathingdwen?"
"Oh, have invitations from two women later today. Although it's become so regular, it's becoming almost boring." Vedzan smiled.
"I'll fill out if you want, although, well, I can't spread Feruchemy." the words soured in Rindel's mouth. "I still don't know how we'll solve this, even when we gain control over Terris. All but the youngest babes are castrated, the Final Empire did quash Feruchemy in many villages it deemed at no risk of Feruchemy or a rebellious mindset, and the Synod participated in this devil's marriage, by having Feruchemists join the stewards, and as the stewards were castrated, the few Feruchemists born in the rest of Terris ended up having their balls below the knife anyways."
Vedzan slumped. "Tathingdwen alone will be a monumental task. The few fertile married couples in the city pale in comparison to even the amount of skaa in the city, and a few men in twenty years won't be enough. We cannot restart the breeding program, it will be a brilliant day in hell before I do that. I think I'm on the right track- but even a Feruchemist can't lay with every woman between the ages of 20 and 40 in Tathingdwen. Plus, adultery is punishable by death by stoning."
"And so is killing a Feruchemist." Rindel smiled, but it quickly turned down. "Perhaps there's a solution that doesn't upset every man in the city, or run the risk of inbreeding in a generation. The legalization of polygamy is, of course, necessary, but many couples do want children, even if they wouldn't be happy being cuckolded. Is there some way to impregnate a woman without laying with her?"
"There should be, shouldn't there… I'll try, although it'll be months before I'll be able to tell. This hopefully should get more women onboard, and I can start asking the husbands." Vedzan said.
"If it's possible, then we should be able save Terris, and prevent Feruchemy from being wiped out. Once you find out, if its possible, we can ask other fertile Feruchemists to donate. Even if they're not willing to lay with a woman, they might be willing to do this." Rindel postulated.
"I will. Any cost is worth paying to save Terris." Vedzan said, almost distracted by the endlessly changing fire.
Kelsier sat on the roof of Clubs' shop, reminiscing about the past, and pondering the future. The mist swirled around, with only a few torches burning along the canal to the north. In one hand, he nursed a bottle of whisky. In the other, he held a large glass vial, filled with the crusted blood of a hog. In it, was a spike of gold. It was the promise of immortality, or at least invulnerability. For it bore a charge of Feruchemical gold, the power taken from some poor Keeper by a Steel Inquisitor.
He had done this a dozen times before, always backing away from the edge, putting it off for another day. But that conversation with Marsh, and the realization of the inevitable war that would consume the world, put him in a strange mood. He would be leading the charge into battle a hundred times, and he became aware of his own morality.
So many had died around him. His mother, Redd, Mare, Trap, and nearly Marsh. While he was harder to kill than all of those, it could happen. With the advent of guns and cannons, all it would take was one lucky shot in his skull, and he would die. And he couldn't stop thinking about what would happen next.
Dox and Marsh would pick up where he left off, assuredly. But the hopes of everyone relied on him. If he died, he didn't know if the people of the New Republic could move on. But what about his friends? What about Vin? He could not abandon them.
And… he wasn't sure if there was a Heaven, or a Hell. He snorted at the irony of it, an atheist searching for divine power. They hadn't tested Hemalurgy to any extent, really- just listening to the word of Marsh. And Kelsier knew Marsh was being untruthful, or at least obfuscating it, a reaction to the bloody violation of his humanity. From what he gathered, Inquisitors were like Koloss, both inhuman creations of Hemalurgy. Both were bloodthirsty, and their behaviors were more likely a character of their transformation.
Small amounts of spikes should be fine. And this combination would be powerful. Full gold. Infinite health. The thing that allowed the Lord Ruler to shake off mortal wounds, survive decapitation, and be burned to a crisp without a scratch. He could afford the gold, too.
Ah, if only he had one of the Inquisitor's Feruchemical atium spikes. Kar, the Inquisitor in charge of the Steeled Empire, reportedly had one- he had been alive for twice as long as a man should live, allegedly, so he was definitely compounding. But that thought made him consider atium. The slowly-dwindling metal. It had been shouted down every time it was proposed, but he would have to restart production at the Pits of Hathsin… he shivered.
How could he subject anyone to that, to what he and Mare went through? Well, maybe nobles fit only for execution… no. Not even that. It would have to be treated like a normal mine, or even above a normal mine. If that was the case, best start now, establish the infrastructure to allow a constant supply of Atium in the upcoming war.
Or the Pits of Hathsin could forever remain empty. He had everything he needed to combat atium. Electrum didn't make atium useless, but definitely helped. Except… atium could provide immortality. How much suffering was he willing to cause to pay for living forever?
But he could at least live out the rest of his life. If he died, especially in some battle, he couldn't live with himself. He could ensure he survived to the days of clear skies, and… Vin. She needed one of these spikes as well. He was further instructing her in iron and steel, and with her he was experimenting with the new useful metals, chromium, duralumin, and electrum.
If she died in battle… no, he couldn't bear the thought. He looked down to the spike. Would he give Vin this spike? No, not yet. Not without further testing. He found that he needed to test this spike, to see whether it could preserve Vin's life. For if he didn't, when would Marsh be feeling well enough to evaluate use of Hemalurgy?
The spike could always be taken out. He found the base of his sternum, counted up his ribs, to one of the spots Marsh showed him. One, two three. Kelsier ripped the spike out of the crusted blood, and brushed it off, wetting it with his ceramic canteen and wiping it off with his handkerchief.
Would he do it? He needed to leave Luthadel soon, and who knew when an assassination attempt could occur? Austrex was more unstable than Luthadel, some lesser noble with false dreams could get lucky.
He found that the urge to put the spike in exceeded the urge to put it back. Kelsier guzzled the last of the whisky, coughing as it burned its way down. He felt nice and numb. Perfect for Hemalurgy. Kelsier unbuttoned his coat and shirt, and he flared pewter, maneuvering the spike right in front of that spot. Kelsier lifted it, and plunged it into his flesh.
And the Son of Man Fell to Temptation.
Vote for who or where you want to see a slice of the life of the Former Final Empire, of people we haven't seen much. Vote for three. The top one or two votes will be chosen.
[ ] Tevedian Tekiel
[ ] Kelsier's Crew
[ ] Elend
[ ] The Republican army.
[ ] The Synod
[ ] The Oligarchy of the Southern Islands
[ ] The Pretender Empire
[ ] The Steeled Empire
[ ] The Aspirant Empire
[ ] The Kingdom of the Burning Crescent.
[ ] Write-in.
End of the Prologue for Mistborn: Smoke and Ash.
Mistborn: Smoke and Ash
Revolution in the Final Empire
It was a boring assembly session. There was a heated argument over what measurement a bole would be. The Assembly had finished the work of the rest of the bill over the past week- placing taxes on private textile factories, as well as calculate the proper sales tax, as well as issuing some policies to increase the supply of cloth in Luthadel, and reopening some shuttered textile factories, allocating the necessary funds to refit them to increase worker betterment.
But the size of the bole had come up. Kelsier had pushed the argument back as far as he could, getting every essential part of the bill done first. And everyone had an opinion. Except him and Marsh. Marsh had already left, throwing an iron down and accessing a trapdoor in the ceiling, heading up to the rooftop.
Leaving Kelsier to preside over the debates. Not only did you have the length vs width argument, but also metric vs imperial debate. When taking the latter into account, two positions became four, and a small argument became sizable.
"I tell you, a width of a metre is perfect! Our wagons and barges' insides is measured in an even number of metres, and so all our goods should be at well!" Hettel argued.
"Just under half of textile factories are state-owned, and the merchants heavily use the imperial system. We cannot fail to consider this, and so we must make the bolt 50 inches in width!" Philen argued.
Kelsier sighed, stepped up, and made his way onto the stage, finding the iron Marsh lodged between two floorboards. He picked it up, Pulling it with iron into his hand. Most mistborn and mistings neglected iron, but he made sure to practice and use both metals. Saved his life once or twice before. And so, he pulled at a bar in the roof, stretched across it to support the weight of all the props and actors if they needed to hang from ropes.
He lurched towards the ceiling, hand bursting open the trapdoor, as he stopping Pulling, rising to the edge of the opening, scrabbling onto the floor of the attic. It was nothing special, just an empty, short-roofed floor, but he could still hear the ramblings of the Assembly below. He found a window, one with a few flakes of snow below it.
Kelsier ran the iron through his fingers. The funny thing was, it wasn't made of iron. Most irons were- steel was too expensive and too needed for weapons to make coins out of steel. But this one was, and he didn't know why. You grew to recognize metals when you worked and fought against Allomancers, even more so as an Allomancer.
Kelsier stepped out the window, pulling himself onto the roof. The shingles were covered with snow, and slippery. Luckily they weren't particularly sheer. Marsh sat next to the flagpole at the peak, seemingly unconcerned about the snow. Kelsier sat down next to his brother, first cleaning off the snow beneath his rear. It made him realize how far he had come. In past years, he welcomed the reprieve the gray snow blanketing the city brung from the all-pervasive blackness of Luthadel. But now many buildings were covered in bright-colored paints, he wished it was not so. Another couple of days and it would be gone. At least it covered the black streets and roofs.
Kelsier held up the steel coin. "So what's this, Marsh?" he asked his brother.
Marsh turned to look at him. "New minting. The Department of Finance was tasked by the Department of Allomancy to make a batch of irons made of Allomancer's steel. For skaa allomancers, without reliable access to pure allomantic metals. Some would like more coins like these, such as brass and bronze coppers, maybe electrum boxings or ten-boxings. In my opinion, we could make our ten-boxings out of electrum. Would be a good use for all our silver."
Kelsier smiled. "Of course, anything for the novice Allomancers. And I suppose the worry of them falling into the hands of our enemies are unfounded- only our allies trade with us, although that might be a temporary state of affairs."
Marsh nodded, and went back to looking out over the city. Mount Tyrian was not visible, and neither were any of the suburb cities, and the new gate cities were too short to see behind the walls. Past the walls was square farm patches, lying fallow as the frost would kill the crops, and other than some cattle and barns, the barren land faded into the ashen haze. It was like beyond the walls, there was nothing, Luthadel being a solitary island, its two million inhabitants being alone in a sea of mist.
If only that were the case. Kelsier had tread across the Final Empire for three years, starting from his escape from the Pits of Hathsin, and had seen the peoples and cities of elsewhere. From the farmost reaches of the Empire, to Urteau, Austrex, Tathingdwen, and Tremredare. And now those cities hosted independent nations of their very own. And half of them were hell bent on taking Luthadel.
"Bloody hell, we're up against most of the world." Kelsier commented.
"Half. as long as we have our allies, our enemies only can marshal half of the hundred million that live in our world." Marsh said.
"You're right, Marsh. Every city that falls to us, every province, frees hundreds of thousands more. We'll turn the tide soon enough."
The two sat there in silence, but Marsh had begun to fidget, fingering the spikes that lay beneath his coat in nervousness. Marsh, after a while, turned to Kelsier, and blurted out, "Kelsier, I have to tell you something."
"What is it? I can guess- relating to your spikes?" Kelsier smiled at his brother.
Marsh swallowed, and spoke. "Yes, but not in the way you think. They… they have demands. For bloodshed. I attempted to sate them by watching the executions, but then as their demands grew that failed to scratch the itch I have, so I moved onto doing some of the executions myself. Lately, that hasn't been enough… I've killed small animals, Kel. Rats and pigeons, just to scratch that bloody itch. I know their demands will grow, Kel, and I'm afraid I'm turning into an Inquisitor. So I ask you this- can I remove my spikes?"
Kelsier felt as if he was struck. Marsh had furiously railed against any attempt for others to use the leftover hemalurgic spikes from the Inquisitors slain at the Victory at Fountain Square, while also avoiding questions of what effects the spikes had on him, so he always knew there was more. When they cut open some of the Inquisitors, their organs were in places where they shouldn't have been, so he knew they had a physical effect.
But all it would take is one of those spikes of atium to grant a Feruchemist the same level of immortality the Lord Ruler had. He still had two, in storage in crusted blood at the Department of Allomancy, in hopes that maybe they would figure more out about the third of the Metallic Arts in the meantime. But it seemed like that was not a possibility, if Marsh had contracted moral insanity from them.
But only one response was possible, for Kelsier. "I worry that removal of your spikes would lead to your death." he said.
Marsh, in response to this, pulled out a bronze spike, crusted with blood, from a pocket in his coat. "Zinc. Didn't really need it, given I already have brass. The lynchspike's removal is the only one that can lead to death, at least if healing is not allowed. I stored up enough health in my goldminds beforehand, and I can repeat the process until I remove enough spikes. It would take some time, in which others would have to pick up my duties, so I would like your consul, first."
Kelsier breathed in, and smiled. "Of course. While the dream of an artificial Mistborn seems to be a noble one, I see that we are not yet ready for that. Keep a few spikes, and see what occurs. Maybe it isn't the spikes themselves, but the overabundance of them?" he suggested.
Marsh sighed, tension Kelsier didn't notice earlier leaving him. "In that case, then I will ask the University to aid me. The Keepers will certainly wish to hasten my recovery. A few unkeyed goldminds would aid me greatly, and there are no known records of a Steel Inquisitor coming back into the arms of the human race."
"You could gain Allomantic gold, to heal your injuries instantly. We have enough of that strange hemalurgic atium for a small spike." Kelsier suggested.
"No! I mean… it would be contrary. Add a spike, kill someone, to just take it away again…" Marsh said. Oh poor Marsh, the reluctant Hemalurgist.
"Should we just melt down the two remaining atium spikes? If you're this hesitant, then Hemalurgy might just be a temptation that sends men down roads best untrod." Kelsier asked.
"No… no, I can't make a decision right now." Marsh sighed. "Ask me when I am well."
Kelsier nodded, and the two watched the city for some more time, the brothers enjoying each other's company.
And then the boring assembly session suddenly became very much not boring. A young Coinshot by the name of Rolend had burst through the doors, almost hyperventilating. Kelsier quickly stood up. "What is it, Rolend?" he asked the coinshot.
Roland sucked in enough air to croak out his message- "We found the atium," another deep breath, "beneath Kredik Shaw."
The Assembly erupted into chaos.
Kelsier had arrived to that room once again, with a small stone hut placed in a domed, decorated room that was the Lord Ruler's reminder of home. Where it all began, and where it all ended, four years ago. It was covered in what Sazed had recognized as the Classical Terris alphabet, and did contain some knowledge of Terris before the Ascension, and the murals were helpful as well.
But all it contained for him was pain. The joy in his heart as he approached what must have been the Lord Ruler's treasury of atium, only for the door to reveal the Lord Ruler himself. He couldn't fight back, how could he? A normal man, a Tineye, and a Smoker, against the Lord Ruler, and two Steel Inquisitors. Redd had died then and there, and Kelsier and Mare had been sent to the Pits. And then that time with Vin- he had been very stupid, but she had been saved by Sazed, and it gave him Alendi's logbook, and the knowledge that copperclouds could be pierced. Marsh had confirmed that, a balm upon his grieving heart.
But he wasn't here for the hut today. A large opening was present in one wall of the chamber, behind a mural of some cloud-wreathed mountains. A large hole had been carved into the wall, between two of the metal inlays that decorated the walls of the room. Felt, the man he had put in charge of finding the atium, was there to explain to him exactly what had happened.
"So, we combed through every inch of Kredik Shaw. Used Coinshots, Lurchers, architects, in an attempt to find hidden rooms and secret passages, and we did. Rooms that have been sealed off for centuries, hidden archives, even some small amounts of atium, and in one case a mass grave. But we found something here- the architects said there was space missing behind this wall right here," Felt waved at the opening, "and we brought in a work crew to break through the wall, but then they found a door, we pulled it open, and I sent Rolend to tell you."
Felt continued, "I am sorry to say, sir, that so far, we haven't found atium in it. But we have found something else."
"What have you found?" Kelsier asked Felt.
"Cans upon cans of food and other supplies. But it's best if you go down to gaze upon the cavern yourself." Felt said.
"I am here too. You will not be alone in this venture." Sazed walked into the room, carrying a notebook.
"Good to have you here, Saze." Kelsier smiled at the Keeper.
"My help is needed, I think. I do not know what lies below, but that is why I shall go with you."
The two men picked up lanterns, and descended to trespass once more upon holy ground, a spiral staircase winding its way down into the depths. "Why do you think there is a hidden supply of food and supplies down here?" Kelsier asked.
"My theory is that it was for siege. If Luthadel rose in revolt, Kredik Shaw could hold out long enough for reinforcements." Sazed said.
"No, that can't be. Why would it be secreted away like this? And would the Lord Ruler really be at risk if he was alive while Luthadel rose as it did?" Kelsier criticized.
"It must be for the city, then. Or perhaps the atium is sequestered in some corner…" Sazed postulated.
There was no answer. Only sight could give them the answer. And then they exited into it, the stairs ending in a small landing. "Bloody hell…" Kelsier exclaimed.
The cavern went on forever. Shelves extended as far as the eye could see, and he saw piles in the distance, containing the supplies. Sazed walked over to the closest shelf, and picked up a can. "Dried beef." he said as read the inscribed letters on the top.
"So I guess it is for if Luthadel came under siege?" Kelsier guessed.
"I would assume so. So many plans… turned to ash, and now it falls to us to make use of them." Sazed said.
Kelsier burned tin and steel, and the faint outlines brightened, as lines clouded the sides of his vision. But one pointed straight ahead, to the other side of the cavern, straight down the middle of the aisle. It burned brighter than the ones pointing to the cans and shelves. "There's something this way." Kelsier pointed.
The two men walked, Sazed stopping occasionally to make note of the foods on the shelves. There was pork, chicken, and mutton. But there were also powdered milk, dried fruits and vegetables. These were the sorts of canned foods used for the military, albeit the highest quality variety. But overwhelmingly, the cavern was dominated by large cans of grain- wheat, barley, rye, millet, and some other varieties- seemingly collated from all the foods supplied to the army. All the foodstuffs was dry- long-term storage. The possibilities churned through Kelsier's mind. Feeding the hungry, saving it for a rainy day. Or using it to feed the Republican Army, marching in winter, to liberate and save millions of skaa sooner.
But Kelsier noticed something. Footprints lay in the dust ahead of him- faint, but present. "See those footprints, Saze?" he asked the Keeper.
"Perhaps one of the workers came in here earlier?" Sazed asked.
"No, they're older. See the layer of dust below them." Kelsier pointed out.
"Then an Obligator, before the Revolution." Sazed commented.
"Or during…" Kelsier commented.
And Kelsier's theory proved true. They found a metal plaque at the end of the cavern, next to large piles of many goods. Wood, stone, metals, enough to build an entire district of Luthadel. Accompanied by some racks full of hammers, nails, and other tools. There was even a vast pool, more of a cistern, filled with clear water.
"Damn it!" Kelsier cursed, as he noticed the small plaque, the lack of dust on the wall above it in a square, and four holes at the edge of the square, where screws once were. It was a much larger plaque, but it was taken. "Someone came in here, unscrewed it, and left everything as it once was." Kelsier bitterly said.
"Not everything is lost." "The lesser plaque seems to hold a matter of interest, I think." Sazed held up his lantern to it, and Kelsier read it.
A map of the Final Empire. With Austrex circled, and numbers, strangely enough, at the bottom. "Austrex? What's in Austrex?" Kelsier asked.
"I expect the only way to find out is to go there yourself. These, numbers, however…" Sazed leaned down, placing down his lantern and writing in his notebook. "885 must be when this cavern was finished, and they've rotated the goods out since. But what does 17 48 mean? Can't be a date…" the Keeper pondered.
Kelsier was distracted, following the blue lines only he could see. Not from the jumbles of cans on the shelves, no, they were too regular. Rows, even, suspended some distance in the air. An in the side of the cavern, shelves gave way to racks. Pikes, swords, crossbows, shields, crossbow bolts, and armor.
The sheer amount, though… he thought he could outfit 50,000 men- a massive amount, but . But something nagged at him. The most complicated question. Why? Why did the Lord Ruler stockpile a cavern with enough food to feed Luthadel comfortably for a year, along with resources and weapons? He died unprepared, Kelsier overcoming him with guile and misdirection. The Lord Ruler was self-assured in his own immortality and the immortality of the Final Empire.
Deluded by his own lies. So he wouldn't have built this cache. Backup plans were unneeded to him. And yet… here was a backup plan. What could frighten the Lord Ruler into doing this?
Kelsier wasn't sure on what he would do with the goods, but he did know one thing for certain: he had to go to Austrex, and see what was there.
[ ] Supply the Troops. The Final Empire has given the New Republic the tools to destroy it! We will march in the dead of winter, bringing ruin to the lords who rule over Scadrial! The New Republic will march on the back of this cache, gaining a vast head start in this year's campaigns over the Imperial Successors.
[ ] Keep it in Reserve. Something is wrong. Such secrecy, such difficulty to enter, and all for extra supplies? Nothing known, other than perhaps a great natural disaster, could lead the Lord Ruler to build and stockpile a cache. That disaster may still be in the future, and it would be wise to keep the cache full, in event of that disaster. This will be unpopular with the Assembly.
Sazed was making a steady headway on his work. He was storing eyesight and hearing, but his spectacles weren't good at seeing far. It all took time, but, as the University of Luthadel's facilities grew, the time required grew less. His main challenge was staying organized, more than anything else. There was plentiful ink and paper, and his past worries and paranoia of the Final Empire finding him through the myriad of laws against unlicensed literacy, masterless stewards, and the laws against Feruchemists were gone. In fact, he had too much paper.
Everything he wrote down from his copperminds he knew he would require later. He didn't want to waste paper by throwing it away, or at least that's what he told himself. At the very least he didn't want to rewrite the entirety of his notes searching for a line that he wasn't sure where he read it.
He had an entire chest of drawers filled with small wooden trays that could be stacked upon one another for his notes, and the other Keepers had similar. Rindel and Fisal left most of their behind, so there were six of those drawers. Kelsier's requests for information surrounding religions and the Well of Ascension made it a near-constant effort, although the three other Keepers also worked near-constantly with the New Republic. Sazed still had a master, he thought, while the other Keepers chose to aid the New Republic.
And so for now, he was working on a book of his own. A collation of all the religions in his copperminds, placing together pages, to eventually print several copies of and place it in the Library. Tindwyl and Salys sometimes contributed it- political backgrounds were necessary to give context to the religions, and many religions possessed art- the stained glass windows that were archetypal of the Final Empire were inherited from the Khlenni religion being a prime example.
Occasionally, he found an interesting tidbit, and he copied it down onto his notes for Kelsier's request, which he was considering adding as a segment anyways. Many religions did appear to be related, although there were always a few that seemed disconnected from the greater whole, or where there simply wasn't enough information available to draw a conclusion. But there were definitely religious families of sorts, and a pervasive undercurrent of dualism.
Sazed wasn't sure how to feel about this. It pulled away the mystery of religion, to group various religions into families, to trace a common origin. But why was there a common origin? Why were there so many shared features of religions? What about the well-recorded ones that seemed to be oddly separate from the rest?
Most religions agreed that the world had been created from the clash of two forces. Order and Chaos, Protection and Destruction, Receptive and Active. Opposites, but interwoven and complementary. Sometimes forces, sometimes gods. And then, when Chaos threatened to grow unbound, Order gave up a part of itself. Some said its life, some said its mind, some said its presence. This he identified as the Terris religion's God, and the Final Empire's God. Few actively worshiped the other force. Appeased it, yes, sacrificing anything from food to animals to people to stave its hand from throttling their peoples and nations.
The Hero of Ages was a very common figure, he knew this. He had expanded beyond the Urtan-Cazzi, Tilance, and Terris legends of the figure, to the Saranites, the scattered tribes of the Farmost Dominance, to the people that predated the Bennet, the Nelazan, and the people of the Remote Dominance, as well as peoples whose lands were now trackless desert. The Rabzeen was found all across Saran, of course, in different forms, and there was an echo of the figure in the former religions of the Remote Dominance. Sazed had also found what Kelsier had predicted.
They were repeating figures. And Sazed was able to identify historical figures who possessed the title. One of the leaders of the Empire of Tilance, Induerator Scaevola, over 3,000 years ago, did claim the title of Amanessor, but the notes he and Tindwyl had were annoyingly vague in explaining what this figure did to claim the title, other than surmounting some crisis that nearly ruined the Empire. The book Scaevola wrote had apparently been lost, even if it was referenced elsewhere. Even longer ago, over 4,000 years ago, a Universal King of the Saranites claimed to be the Rabzeen, but the obelisk raised by him to proclaim his deeds did not say exactly what he did, other than 'Freed the Life-Giving Sun from Chaos's Gullet'.
Sazed copied down the obelisk's translation from his copperminds, and read it. And then he caught something. This was from the north face of the obelisk, apparently.
'The King of the Four Corners of the World, the Easten Lakes, the Northern Lake, the Southern River, and the Western Shore, Son-of-the-Sun, Scion of His Fathers and Father of His Scions, Blessed By the God be His Name, the Metallic, Rich in Victories and Women, Nod the Rabzyn in the 18th year of His rule, Went to a Northern Land of Endless Mountains, Following the Words and Records of the Priests and Ancestors. There, He Mantled the Power of Order, and He Saved the Sun.'
There were others, but Sazed could not confirm their historicity, but he found that there was also likely a grain of truth in it.
Was this a mention of the Well of Ascension? Was that what made a Hero of Ages? In that case, did all of these men take up power at the Well of Ascension? It wasn't exact… but they seemed regular. Sazed would expect them to be offset more, by centuries… but they weren't. But it wasn't exact. There was a 2,000 year gap, in which no mention of a Hero of Ages, Amanessor, or Rabzeen came along.
Did this have to do with the Terris Religion? Could this be why the Terris Prophecies were so well-developed? Was there another Terris Hero of Ages?
The door slammed open, and Sazed jumped, feeling it more more than hearing it. Turning, he saw Nazh. "Oh, Deputy Minister Hoffman! It's been a week or two. How was your… are you okay?" Sazed took off his glasses, and stopped storing his eyesight and hearing to get a better look at Nazh.
Nazh had seen better days. His face was bruised, his clothes were in tatters, and small cuts decorated his body. His clothes were dirty, and ash-stained. Beneath his characteristic cloth mask that covered his mouth and nose, what looked like weeks of stubble covered his face. He clearly hadn't had an opportunity to bathe, but he had at the very least cleaned his skin, likely with a wet washcloth. "I… I have had worse, but no, I am not doing okay. Are you the head Keeper in Luthadel? I have news, for the Synod."
"Darzon is, but he is out in the fields again, I think." Sazed responded to the man.
"You'll have to do. I am sorry to tell you this, but Keeper Vorzeth is dead." he said, solemnly.
Sazed startled once again. "How did he die?" he asked the Deputy Minister. Vorzeth studied nature, and last he heard he had gone into the Eastern Dominance in search of ancient relics or information.
"He was slain by an Inquisitor. We put up a good fight… but he got cornered, and he was mortally wounded, the Inquisitor draining his goldminds in the fight. I am sorry, but my medical knowledge was not good enough to save him. But I bring his work, and his last will and testament. And if there is a silver lining, I have a coppermind he handed me, along with what he found in Chathram. I do not think it is worth the life of a Keeper, but he thought so, and I believe the Premier Minister would as well." Nazh sighed at the end, and reached down, to pick two small cloth bags out of a satchel he possessed. "He said he found them in a grave that predated the Ascension."
Sazed took them in his hands, placing them on his desk. He opened one, lifting a Clip and a tarnished silver coin that predated the Ascension. A palm tree was on one side of the coin, and a face of one of the last kings of Saran on the other. The clip held an accessible feruchemical store. Sazed nodded solemnly, placing the two coins back in the bag. Poor Vorzeth… but what was so precious that Vorzeth considered dying over?
Sazed opened the second bag, and gasped.
"No, it can't be…" Sazed felt a shiver go down his spine. "These would be a thousand years old. There is no way they will be able to sprout." Several mummified fruits, unassuming, sat at the bottom of the bag.
Nazh spoke, with a wan smile visible beneath his mask of cloth. "Vorzeth thought differently. You have the seeds for Kelsier's dream of a green world, or perhaps the last embers of the old in your hands. Take care of them. As for me… shadows, I'm going to take a long, hot bath, change my clothes, tell Ham about how the Inquisitors are covering their back spikes with a metal shell, and then go meet with my employer. I got what I needed from Chathram, the least I can do is aid the New Republic in the process."
Nazh left the room as Sazed stared at the dried fruits for several minutes, before carefully placing them in a completely dry bowl, before getting up, stepping into the hall, and then tapped his steelmind as he ran to get Darzon.
Spook adjusted his mask. His sweat clung to it, pressing it against the bridge of his nose. He was sweating so much, despite the chill of the night. After all, he was in Palace Venture, the heart of the Pretender Empire, and surrounded by what had to be a thousand nobles. At least his mask merely hung on the nose. Many noblemen and noblewomen wore masks that covered their full faces. Monsters, in ceramic faces of black and white, although some grew more elaborate, with some masks being sequined, or possessing horns or teeth or beaks.
OreSeur wore the mask of a demon. Dark black face, a grotesque sneer, with white tusks and horns. It was a joke. One only Spook and OreSeur got. A demon in the guise of a man in the guise of a demon. Spook shivered. Although he was given permission to burn tin tonight. He was in disguise, and there were so many nobles here, someone burning tin would be looked over, or even smoked by Smokers.
Times like this he was glad he was skaa. He wished he could be in the mists, in his trousers and button down linen shirt, and not in these breeches that made it impossible to sit down, and this baggy shirt with too many frills. He glanced at the large stained glass windows, hoping to see the mists swirling outside, or even the snow. But all he saw was the limelight, burning through the glass.
Spook walked through the crowd, picking up on conversations. Listening for mentions of Luthadel, or Penrod. OreSeur, in the guise of Enfram Entrone, mingled freely, temporarily free of the distaste many had for him, as he was anonymous, and, thanks to his excellent impersonation abilities, could keep the nobles guessing about who he was until whenever he decided to reveal it.
Some were not disguised- well, everyone was, it was a rule of the ball. But some clearly accentuated several features, wore revealing masks, or presided over the meetings. The Emperor, Straff Venture, was clearly visible, despite his mask covering his upper face, from his near-uniform costume, beard, and height. The Princess, Shan Venture, wore a domino mask, and was cavorting with the sons and daughters of the nobility.
Suddenly, Straff stood up on the balcony, ringing a fork against his glass. The conversation silenced. "Welcome to the first Midwinter Masquerade. I see everyone who has reason to be here is here. May your time be rewarding." he said, before standing back down. So little, and yet everyone started chatting double fold anyways.
Spook went through the crowd, searching for hints of conversation about the Republic. And he found that few spoke about it. Oh, it was the crux of their conversations. Noblemen spoke of their contracts to provide for the army, noblewomen spoke of the wealth promised. The young men spoke of positions of officers, the young women spoke of their loves going to war. Spook was certain he was the only one here who had seen a battle, when he traveled with Clubs to aid in the liberation of Austrex. There was no glory in war. But he supposed that there was money to be made.
He found an interesting trail. OreSeur left a trail of people discussing the Luthadel nobility, and the traits there. Listening in to OreSeur's conversations, he found that if he could not get any information about Luthadel from a group, he would try anyways, performing a faux pass, leading to the group discussing Luthadel anyways. And Spook did pick up some interesting tidbits. 'Letters from Penrod', something about the Haught Mistborn, and one of them being a spy for the Pretender Empire. He didn't know what it amounted to, and after an hour, it seemed that OreSeur had exhausted that, and conversation moved onto more personal things, after enough wine was consumed.
Spook grabbed a napkin-full of 'Allomantic snack cakes', the ones marked as safe for non-Allomancers. Brass, bronze, tin and zinc. He sat in a chair in a dark corner, and listened to the party. But he wasn't the only wallflower.
A young nobleman looking to be around the age of twenty walked up, with a small plate and a cup of wine, and sat next to him. "Tineye, are you?" he asked. He was wearing a mask that covered the upper face, same as him, but it was pitch black. He was wearing breeches and a coat of some sort, but they were also black. His head was topped with short brown hair, a tricorn covering it up. He looked pretty fashionable.
"Uhhh…." Spook responded.
"I'm an Allomancer myself. Heard you burning, and saw you weaving through the crowd. Put up to it by your father. Given a task, and forced to complete it. Shackled to someone else's interests, when you can thrive alone. Captive knives, that's all we are to the lords." the stranger said.
"That's not why I'm here, exactly…" Spook said.
"Whatever your story is, it is certainly similar. It's all the same. Whichever relative it was, you were told to listen for anything that could interest your House, although they probably don't trust you with anything big. Despite many lords being Allomancers themselves, they have us do their dirty work. For instance, Emperor Venture is a Tineye, like you, but you won't see him going around and listening to people's conversations. Rumor has it that Shan is Mistborn, but she won't be traipsing around the rooftops at night, shooting coins at people. It's not like this everywhere, though. In the Republic, the lords there use their powers, to their full extent." the stranger said.
Spook's heart pounded in his chest. "Don't talk about the Republic here." he hissed to the stranger.
"It's not what they say it is." the stranger shook his head. "Besides, who knows who we are? Tonight is a night for sedition, and you should know that the conversation tonight strays from the typical orthodoxy."
Spook nodded. He had picked up on many loose conversations like that, ignoring them because they weren't what he was looking for.
"Say, what's your name?" the stranger asked Spook.
Spook was about to blurt it out, reconsidered, and then smiled as the realization hit. "Spook." he said to the stranger.
The stranger chuckled. "Well, I should have expected that. In that case, Spook, you may call me Mist. Good name for a Tineye, isn't it? Always in the shadows, you are, like a ghost. Well, not the Old Spook up there." Mist gestured to Straff, standing below the raised deck that occupied half the ballroom, very visible in the center of the ballroom.
And then the Spook heard something. He craned his head, towards the raised deck, trying to hear through the crowd. Mist did the same, seemingly copying Spook, although he doubted Mist could hear anything. Spook picked up on something. The hiss of fire.
A man arrived at the banister, sweaty and breathing heavily. He raised something up. Spook's eyes went wide. A grenade! The man yelled "For House Elariel!" as he threw the grenade, right towards Straff.
"Oh, Hell." Mist said, quickly dropping a coin behind him, and Pushing against it, soaring through the air into the middle of the room. Nobles were panicking, running, and while some stood where they did, perhaps Coinshots and Lurchers, no one dared to push or pull the grenade.
Spook ducked under a table, keeping his eyes on the grenade, flaring tin to focus on its movement and arc. No, it would land straight on Straff Venture. Who was just standing there, looking up at the grenade, unconcerned. The reason for that was apparent. Mist landed on a table next to Straff Venture, and pushed on the grenade, causing it to rocket upwards. But he didn't slam it into the ceiling. It hung, suspended, among the chandeliers, until its fuse ran out, and it exploded.
Then Mist flared steel, sending all the shrapnel rocketing into the ceiling. A chandelier was caught in the blast, and Mist was clearly straining to hold its twisted remains in the air. Crystal rained down into the crowd. But Mist held everything suspended. The waiters cleared the center of the room from guests, and Mist stopped his pushing to let the metal fall back down to earth. Mist stood on the table, shrapnel falling around him, but none of it hitting.
After some skaa cleaned up the shrapnel, crystal, and wax, the masquerade resumed, but the tone was subdued. The Elariel had been caught, Spook gathered, but killed attempting to escape. OreSeur found him after a few minutes, and the two left the masquerade. The two got into their carriage, and Spook removed his mask, feeling the cool winter mist on his face. OreSeur did too, although Spook knew the face he saw was a mask.
"Well, as the Emperor said, that was certainly rewarding." OreSeur said. "Instability among the nobility, especially among the Great Houses that were diminished by the Revolution, expecting better treatment."
"I spoke to the Mistborn, by chance." Spook started. OreSuer raised an eyebrow. "He spoke to me of the injustice in the ways nobles treat young allomancers, and said that he looked up to the New Republic as it is led by Allomancers who used their abilities to their full extent."
OreSeur smiled. "A Mistborn with Republican sympathies? Dangerous."
"Could he defect?" Spook asked.
"It could be just talk. I know how young men are, as you are learning. But I will check." OreSeur said.
Spook found that the information he picked up on, OreSeur had already gathered. But he did feel pride for speaking to that Mistborn, and finding that seed of doubt.
Now they just needed to cultivate it.
The wind picked up. It rattled the windows, throwing flakes of snow into it. It was dark already, despite the clocks pointing to it being late afternoon. But it was bright and warm inside the print shop, a fire roaring in the hearth, and multiple oil lamps cast a warm light across the room.
Two strong Terrismen tended to the press, printing pamphlet after pamphlet in the steel alphabet. Rindel sat at his desk, listening to the background noise, as he wrote some of tomorrow's printing. And then, as it often did, he felt what he was doing, his finger on the wheel of something greater than him.
Rindel controlled the news in Tathingdwen. Not all the news, but a good portion of it. The Tathingdwen Kahlik was a daily paper, a new issue being released every day, and cheap enough that every household could afford a copy. They were running at a slight loss, but it was a necessary loss.
Their only competitor was the Synodic Newsletter produced by the Synod. And copies were only released on Copperday. Seven out of the eight days of the week, the Tathingdwen Kahlik was the only option for the up-to-date Terrisman to stay informed. And while it was a single page, they quickly had to escalate to printing on both sides. After all, what news was in Terris? Turns out, quite a lot.
The liberation of Terris and the suddenly free flow of information and introduction of native Terris landowners had made large amounts of splashes. It was all hasty and uncontrolled. Synodic Terris, he realized, didn't exist. The Synod truly only controlled Tathingdwen, the Valley, and the Terris Gift, and a few mines outside of that region. The rest of Terris was a patchwork. Terris Kahl had free reign over the Wayendeth Valley, and was the second largest polity in Terris. But there were others, some cities with control over surrounding areas, and they were a mix of republics, theocracies, and little monarchies. There was also the Wethcowd, which was under control of the Kingdom of the Burning Crescent, the only place in all of Terris that could be called verdant.
This mix of polities and influential people led to news. The going-ons of these locations and the people who were their leaders was always interesting, For instance, the leader of the only bit of the Welgcowd out of foreign hands was pleading for aid to retake the forest, while a landowner in the western vale's sheep had reached tremendous proportions.
And then there was international news. The Synod had their informational networks, but they only made public the most notable news. The Tathingdwen Kahlik regularly reprinted or rewrote articles found in Republican broadsheets. It took a few days to make the trip from Luthadel to Tathingdwen, but generally the Synodic Newsletter didn't print news before they did.
Tomorrow's edition was a big one. It was on the front page of the Republican Flame, the official paper of the New Republic. Straff Venture had experienced an assassination attempt at a Midwinter Masquerade. By an Elariel, so not ideologically motivated. But any sign of instability in the New Republic's enemies was lapped up. It wouldn't be lapped up in Terris, but it would go in the paper anyways.
There were four sections of the Tathingdwen Kahlik. Local news, from Tathingdwen, the Valley, and the Terris Gift. Terris news, from the rest of Terris, or international news impacting Terris. International news, from the world outside. And the ads. The ads were equally important. They were what rendered the paper a slight loss. And they worked. People would actually go and investigate businesses in the ads, if they had the need. And so, business allies of Terris Kahl, or businesses owned by Terris Kahl, would receive a discount or even ads free of charge. The Synodic Newsletter didn't have ads, but there was talk among the Synod, Fisal said.
Everything they did, backlash and complaint grew. They just had to hope upon winning out, at least in Tathingdwen, to strongarm the Synod into accepting Terris Kahl's rule of Terris. But Rindel was the Keeper of War, and he had read that no enemy took an assault lying down.
Heavy knocks sounded at the door, and Rindel got up to answer it. Vedzan near-burst in, the wind sweeping through the room as Rindel closed the door against it. "God damn!" Vedzan said, taking his scarf off. "It's practically a blizzard out there."
"How did the training go today?" Rindel asked, grabbing a jug of Terris beer he had sitting next to the fire.
He poured four glasses- two for him and Vedzan, and two four the workers, who he suggest take a break for a while. "Well. Trained outside for a few hours, before the blizzard set in. Half of the men went home, with Captain Demoux continuing to train the rest in the gymnasium. He had things under control, so I came back." Rindel nodded, as he was expecting Vedzan to return. "Temmir's doing well- many of the skaa are comfortable with factory and mining jobs, and we're getting a lot of use out of them."
Rindel and Vedzan went upstairs, and while Vedzan was the upstairs hearth, Vedzan spoke. "We should make a decision about our weapons soon. I do not believe we should neglect our home front, and produce matchlocks to begin building up an army that would defend Terris."
"Two separate armies, at least right now, is a bad idea. Especially when one used tactics that are more traditionally Terris. As we are looking for loyalty right now, until the Synod relinquishes their loose control over Terris, a second army more susceptible to being usurped by the Synod would not be a good idea right now." Rindel argued.
"I don't see why we can't just mobilize Terris Kahl's troops in the Wayendeth. They've proven loyal even now the Lord Bastard's dead, and we could even bring them into Tathingdwen to help on other projects." Vedzan suggested.
"While producing matchlocks is possible in Terris, all gun-related production is expensive and hard to develop. It's best if we focus on it after we gain control of Terris, importing the flintlock mechanisms in the meantime." Rindel said.
"Terris is built for hit and run warfare. We need an army for home defense, as the encroachment of the Crescent and the Koloss shows." Vedzan argued.
"Terris needs to aid the New Republic in the wars that consume the world. Even the limited number of men Terris could provide is small, wars can be won or lost for want of a single man." Rindel waxed poetic.
"This is getting nowhere. Is compromise on the table? The skaa troops we train, Demoux trains them in skaa methods, the Terris troops we train, we train them in Terris Kahl methods?" Vedzan reached out for a compromise.
"Yes, that would work." Rindel smiled.
The two rogue Keepers clinked glasses, and toasted to the health of Terris.
Relaxing in the heat of the fire, Rindel asked Vedzan, "How goes your quest to spread Feruchemy to the children of every woman in Tathingdwen?"
"Oh, have invitations from two women later today. Although it's become so regular, it's becoming almost boring." Vedzan smiled.
"I'll fill out if you want, although, well, I can't spread Feruchemy." the words soured in Rindel's mouth. "I still don't know how we'll solve this, even when we gain control over Terris. All but the youngest babes are castrated, the Final Empire did quash Feruchemy in many villages it deemed at no risk of Feruchemy or a rebellious mindset, and the Synod participated in this devil's marriage, by having Feruchemists join the stewards, and as the stewards were castrated, the few Feruchemists born in the rest of Terris ended up having their balls below the knife anyways."
Vedzan slumped. "Tathingdwen alone will be a monumental task. The few fertile married couples in the city pale in comparison to even the amount of skaa in the city, and a few men in twenty years won't be enough. We cannot restart the breeding program, it will be a brilliant day in hell before I do that. I think I'm on the right track- but even a Feruchemist can't lay with every woman between the ages of 20 and 40 in Tathingdwen. Plus, adultery is punishable by death by stoning."
"And so is killing a Feruchemist." Rindel smiled, but it quickly turned down. "Perhaps there's a solution that doesn't upset every man in the city, or run the risk of inbreeding in a generation. The legalization of polygamy is, of course, necessary, but many couples do want children, even if they wouldn't be happy being cuckolded. Is there some way to impregnate a woman without laying with her?"
"There should be, shouldn't there… I'll try, although it'll be months before I'll be able to tell. This hopefully should get more women onboard, and I can start asking the husbands." Vedzan said.
"If it's possible, then we should be able save Terris, and prevent Feruchemy from being wiped out. Once you find out, if its possible, we can ask other fertile Feruchemists to donate. Even if they're not willing to lay with a woman, they might be willing to do this." Rindel postulated.
"I will. Any cost is worth paying to save Terris." Vedzan said, almost distracted by the endlessly changing fire.
Kelsier sat on the roof of Clubs' shop, reminiscing about the past, and pondering the future. The mist swirled around, with only a few torches burning along the canal to the north. In one hand, he nursed a bottle of whisky. In the other, he held a large glass vial, filled with the crusted blood of a hog. In it, was a spike of gold. It was the promise of immortality, or at least invulnerability. For it bore a charge of Feruchemical gold, the power taken from some poor Keeper by a Steel Inquisitor.
He had done this a dozen times before, always backing away from the edge, putting it off for another day. But that conversation with Marsh, and the realization of the inevitable war that would consume the world, put him in a strange mood. He would be leading the charge into battle a hundred times, and he became aware of his own morality.
So many had died around him. His mother, Redd, Mare, Trap, and nearly Marsh. While he was harder to kill than all of those, it could happen. With the advent of guns and cannons, all it would take was one lucky shot in his skull, and he would die. And he couldn't stop thinking about what would happen next.
Dox and Marsh would pick up where he left off, assuredly. But the hopes of everyone relied on him. If he died, he didn't know if the people of the New Republic could move on. But what about his friends? What about Vin? He could not abandon them.
And… he wasn't sure if there was a Heaven, or a Hell. He snorted at the irony of it, an atheist searching for divine power. They hadn't tested Hemalurgy to any extent, really- just listening to the word of Marsh. And Kelsier knew Marsh was being untruthful, or at least obfuscating it, a reaction to the bloody violation of his humanity. From what he gathered, Inquisitors were like Koloss, both inhuman creations of Hemalurgy. Both were bloodthirsty, and their behaviors were more likely a character of their transformation.
Small amounts of spikes should be fine. And this combination would be powerful. Full gold. Infinite health. The thing that allowed the Lord Ruler to shake off mortal wounds, survive decapitation, and be burned to a crisp without a scratch. He could afford the gold, too.
Ah, if only he had one of the Inquisitor's Feruchemical atium spikes. Kar, the Inquisitor in charge of the Steeled Empire, reportedly had one- he had been alive for twice as long as a man should live, allegedly, so he was definitely compounding. But that thought made him consider atium. The slowly-dwindling metal. It had been shouted down every time it was proposed, but he would have to restart production at the Pits of Hathsin… he shivered.
How could he subject anyone to that, to what he and Mare went through? Well, maybe nobles fit only for execution… no. Not even that. It would have to be treated like a normal mine, or even above a normal mine. If that was the case, best start now, establish the infrastructure to allow a constant supply of Atium in the upcoming war.
Or the Pits of Hathsin could forever remain empty. He had everything he needed to combat atium. Electrum didn't make atium useless, but definitely helped. Except… atium could provide immortality. How much suffering was he willing to cause to pay for living forever?
But he could at least live out the rest of his life. If he died, especially in some battle, he couldn't live with himself. He could ensure he survived to the days of clear skies, and… Vin. She needed one of these spikes as well. He was further instructing her in iron and steel, and with her he was experimenting with the new useful metals, chromium, duralumin, and electrum.
If she died in battle… no, he couldn't bear the thought. He looked down to the spike. Would he give Vin this spike? No, not yet. Not without further testing. He found that he needed to test this spike, to see whether it could preserve Vin's life. For if he didn't, when would Marsh be feeling well enough to evaluate use of Hemalurgy?
The spike could always be taken out. He found the base of his sternum, counted up his ribs, to one of the spots Marsh showed him. One, two three. Kelsier ripped the spike out of the crusted blood, and brushed it off, wetting it with his ceramic canteen and wiping it off with his handkerchief.
Would he do it? He needed to leave Luthadel soon, and who knew when an assassination attempt could occur? Austrex was more unstable than Luthadel, some lesser noble with false dreams could get lucky.
He found that the urge to put the spike in exceeded the urge to put it back. Kelsier guzzled the last of the whisky, coughing as it burned its way down. He felt nice and numb. Perfect for Hemalurgy. Kelsier unbuttoned his coat and shirt, and he flared pewter, maneuvering the spike right in front of that spot. Kelsier lifted it, and plunged it into his flesh.
And the Son of Man Fell to Temptation.
Vote for who or where you want to see a slice of the life of the Former Final Empire, of people we haven't seen much. Vote for three. The top one or two votes will be chosen.
[ ] Tevedian Tekiel
[ ] Kelsier's Crew
[ ] Elend
[ ] The Republican army.
[ ] The Synod
[ ] The Oligarchy of the Southern Islands
[ ] The Pretender Empire
[ ] The Steeled Empire
[ ] The Aspirant Empire
[ ] The Kingdom of the Burning Crescent.
[ ] Write-in.
End of the Prologue for Mistborn: Smoke and Ash.
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Theatre du Globe Scadrial
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Theatre du Globe Scadrial
Welcome to the world of Mistborn: Smoke and Ash. I have been a Brandon Sanderson fan for years, and Mistborn era 1 has remained my favorite work, but other than occasional remembrances and a re-read or two, I left the series alone. And then, amidst sleep deprivation and caffeine overdose in the midst of my collegiate Finals, on July 13th, came an idea that felt divine inspiration, despite me and others pondering it before.
What if Kelsier survived the events of Mistborn: The Final Empire, and went on to found a nation? It took some restructuring, with me first going with the general end of TFE but with Kelsier surviving, to an explicit showdown, with Kelsier going from killing the Steel Inquisitor Bendal in canon, to killing the Lord Ruler after a long and pitched duel in Fountain Square- with the aid of the Eleventh Metal, which in Mistborn: Smoke and Ash, is Chromium, which could potentially be used to defeat the Lord Ruler- everything going as it did, until the Lord Ruler slaps Kelsier's face, and breaks his wrist. Another difference is the suggestion for the Mistborn screenplay, with Shan being Elend's sister or cousin, and the two competing for the position of House Heir. There are some other changes- Vershad escaped the Lord Ruler's grasp, becoming King of the Crescent Dominance, and Yeden follows Kelsier's directives, taking the city of Holstep after Kelsier tests the army for allomantic abilities- not providing many allomancers, but providing enough to give the army an edge in battle against the Holstep Garrison, and then the Valtroux Garrison as they held Holstep for days against them. Everything else is a result of these four divergences. I also have an industry-heavy interpretation of Mistborn, with early industrial technologies being rare, or found in the metalminds of the Keepers- no trains or rockets, just steam and powder for now. There will be more divergences in the future- such as the caches being significantly larger and beneath the largest cities in the Final Empire as they were planned to be originally, and a slight edit to the mists, as they've bothered me ever since I first read Mistborn.
While the Lord Ruler's death only comes perhaps six hours before that in canon, there are far-reaching effects. More nobles and Obligators flee the city, partly due to the Lord Ruler's death being seen by hundreds of thousands in the middle of the day, partly due to the Canton of Orthodoxy retaining its leadership over the Steel Ministry, and partly due to the revolutionaries being fully considered Iconoclasts and fully denying the caste system of the Final Empire, although Kelsier, Marsh, and Vin are able to track down high-level targets such as wealth and skilled professionals fleeing the city.
Tevidian Tekiel retains his position as Lord Prelan, and flees the city to Austrex along with those loyal to the 'true' successor of the Final Empire, before the Republican Army marches on the city, combined with an uprising, displacing him to Fadrex. Kar, the head Steel Inquisitor, slips the city with some other Steel Inquisitors, fleeing to the Coventical of Seran, and then taking over the Eastern Dominance. Straff Venture flees to Urteau as in canon, but proclaims himself Emperor, to distinguish his state as an Imperial Successor.
In Luthadel, Kelsier and his crew are dragging the weight of the world forwards. Through the revolution and the Great Change, society has reached a state one might describe as normal. People work eight hour days seven days a week(out of eight), they are paid for their labor, people have last names, people can vote, and people are free to sell and purchase goods, services, furniture, and properties. Steam engines power mills and boats, and cannons are revolutionizing warfare.
But for every similarity there is a difference. Last names are new, and chosen by the individual, government ministers are unelected, ash still falls from the sky, equality is valued above personal liberty, the New Republic owns a vast majority of factories, transportation, and properties in some way, and the government is bound together primarily by a cult of personality surrounding Kelsier, the Survivor of Hathsin. The concept of separation of powers is disliked as restricting democracy, as government ministers are encouraged to be Assemblymen to establish accountability. Compared to canon, Kelsier will never let anyone threaten his friends and Luthadel, as long as he lives, and he will not let the New Republic stagnate- it must always be moving, it must always be revolutionary for better and for worse.
Here is an in-depth in-universe informational text written by the Keeper Salys, working for the University of Luthadel, with information on the major nations and peoples of Mistborn: Smoke and Ash.
The Map of Scadrial
Nations:
Medium Green: The New Republic
Faded Green: Republican Client States, the Austrex Commune in the south and the Ashen Hands Chiefdom in the North.
Off-White: Synodic Terris
Faded Teal: The Oligarchy of the Southern Isles
Faded Blue: The Pretender Empire
Dark Red: The Aspirant Heartlands.
Light Red: Dominances under Aspirant control- the Western, Southern, and Farmost Dominance.
Faded Black: The Steeled Empire
Pale Yellow: The Kingdom of the Burning Crescent
Bright Blue: Various Koloss Hordes
Geography:
Bright Green: Habitable but Unknown Owner
Grey: Desolate Mountains
Salmon: The Burnlands
White: Unknown Lands
The Final Empire
The Final Empire lasted for one thousand and twenty two years from its founding in the year after the Ascension to the late summer of 1022, ruled by the Lord Ruler, Rashek, for that entire time. The Final Empire is still alive, through its culture, religion, institutions, and infrastructure. Its caste system still lies intact in most nations, the skaa and nobles separated by the vast gulf of lack of education and lack of opportunity.
Religion is heavily influenced by the Final Empire's faith, whether it be through Sliverism's successors, the faiths that pride themselves on being in opposition to Sliverism, or simply what survived the thousand years of oppression to slip through the cracks in the end.
The Nobles and Obligators still lord over a majority of the world and its people through the Imperial Successors, running the Imperial Successors and the Oligarchy, although in spite of their reaction, each of the Imperial Successors has vast changes.
The canals, cities, plantations, and mines of the Final Empire are fought over, and each is pushed to their breaking point to gain an extra ingot of iron, or an extra bag of grain, for wars can be won and lost for want of a single nail. But they are not being maintained as rigorously as they once were, which, I think, invites disaster.
The New Republic
"The House of Ashes burns, by the Survivor of Hathsin's hand. The Thousand Year Reign of Terror has ended. Blessed be the New Republic."
As the Empire Fell, the Republic rose. A thousand years of speculation by scholars who all perished for their beliefs was put into practice, the skaa cast off their chains, and the Republic rejects all that made the Final Empire. As such, the New Republic is very distant from the Final Empire, despite that seemingly being impossible, with less than a year separating the two. Luthadel has an air about it, an air of brightness, of freedom and revolution, where previously it was an air of darkness, of oppression and slavery.
The New Republic is ruled by unelected Ministers, and elected Assemblymen. The Ministries are all very influential within the New Republic. The disorganized nature of the Revolution has led to these Ministries all taking shape somewhat haphazardly- Kelsier's crew finding their respective niches, and turning the small groups each worked with into the Ministries, and often giving the positions of Deputy Minister to the first candidate who is literate and has a basic interest in the subject. The Deputy Ministers who lead the component Departments are appointed by the Ministers, while lesser bureaucrats can be appointed by either Minister or Deputy Minister. Many Deputy Ministers have seats in the Assembly, and they use the Assembly as a platform to organize joint projects between their various Departments.
The Ministry of Republican Labor, is led by Minister 'Dox' Dockson, and is specialized in the civilian industries of the New Republic, of all sorts. Within the Ministry, you have the Department of Agriculture, which manages plantations and the fields outside of Luthadel, and it is led by the Deputy Minister and Keeper Darzon. The Department of Republican Industry is focused on running and improving factories and mines, and is led by Deputy Minister Kinaler Fabron. The Department of Finance mints the coins of the New Republic, is responsible for overseeing and limiting private enterprise, and it is led by Getrue Marchand. The Department of Natural Resources is focused on industries such as logging, fishing, and keeps track of old or new mining sites that could potentially be exploited, and is led by Vet Dubois. The Department of Transportation specializes in the transportation of goods and resources and the maintenance of a fleet of canal ships and the canals themselves, and was led by Nazh Hoffman, but as he has since disappeared since the Assemblial Reformation, something his colleagues say is an event that occurs often, and the position is currently empty.
The Ministry of War is led by Minister 'Ham' Hammond, and is focused on military action and foreign affairs. Within the Ministry, you have foremost the Department of the Republican Armies, under which the Republican Army is managed, maintained, and it is led by Minister 'Ham' Hammond personally. The Department of Military Transportation manages the procurement and transportation of military weapons and supplies to the Republican Armies, and is led by Deputy Minister Shum Arguois. The Department of Military Engineering develops and produces weapons, owning all weapons factories and powder mills in the New Republic, and was led by the Keeper Rindel, but now he has gone back to Terris, and is led by Haws Arsenault. The Department of Foreign Affairs deals with sovereign nations- whether as allies, or more commonly, enemies, and they own embassies in both Tathingdwen and Isdathleux, and they are led by Jasten Docker. The Department of Allomancy produces Allomantic metals, catalogs information on Allomancy and Feruchemy, and is responsible for investigating new metals as well as for finding Allomancers among the populace of Luthadel, oversees the Iconoclast Hazekillers, and is led by Deputy Minister Terion Sauvage.
The Ministry of Republican Justice is led by Minister Marsh, and both maintains public order and serves redressement to nobles who committed innumerable crimes during the Final Empire. Within the Ministry, you have the Department of Redressement, which is devoted to finding nobles who were passed over during the Revolution, rooting out traitors to the Republic, executing them at the weekly hangings, members of the Department being known as 'Redressment Men', with the Department being personally directed by Minister Marsh. The Department of Steel is a sad remnant of the entire Steel Ministry, tasked with working on plumbing the secrets of the Cantons, going through a millennia's worth of paperwork to ensure their inevitable dissolution, and it is led by the Deputy Minister Noorden Steel. The Department of Public Order enforces the laws of the Assembly, through the Constabulary, although they organize public events as well as stop thieves and murderers, and they are led by Deputy Minister Thurts Consteux.
The Ministry of Public Betterment is led by Minister 'Breeze' Ladrian, and improves the life of the people of the New Republic, oversees education, and is solely devoted to improving the standard of living. The Department of Public Works focuses on the main physical things- building less cramped tenements, seizing the largest gardens of the nobles and turning them into public parks, working on the illumination of the streets of Luthadel, providing the skaa with enough furniture and food, and is directed by Minister Breeze himself. The Department of Republican Education specializes in the written word, owning most printing presses in Luthadel, and as such, all periodical publications, along with producing state-printing pamphlets, for the sole purpose of encouraging literacy among the skaa, and the Department is led by Deputy Minister Rudd Brassburner. The Department of the University of Luthadel oversees the new University of Luthadel, and the scientific and historical work its members do benefits all of humanity, being notable in having four Keepers on its staff- including me-, and is led by Deputy Minister and Keeper Sazed. The Department of Republican Engineering is focused on civilian technological engineering, such as steam engine production, non-Allomantic metallurgy, and general mechanical advancement, and is led by Deputy Minister Hettel Miller.
The Assembly is the most democratic institution on all of Scadrial. Elections are frequent, all men and women above the age of eighteen can vote, although Assemblywomen are not common. The Assembly was over 400 members and heavily skewed towards Luthadel previously, each block possessing a vote making the institution oversized and unwieldy. The Assemblial Reform has trimmed the Republican Assembly down to 200, and now there are 8 voting districts for Luthadel, and about 40 for its surrounding cities- equal representation, given Luthadel and its suburbs population of around eight million. As a parliament, the Premier Minister is selected from the Assembly members, so while they are elected, they are not elected to the position of Premier Minister by the citizens of the New Republic. The Premier Minister happens to be Kelsier, who is the Assemblyman of Luthadel's Old City. He is the first and so far only Premier Minister, Mistborn, and has a large cult of personality, to the extent some consider him a prophet. His defiance of the Final Empire, and promises to free the world and bring back clear skies do not help with reducing this, given he considers those promises fact.
The New Republic must prepare for war. The Imperial Successors act as vipers, waiting for spring to strike. And so, they recruit young skaa, who are trained, equipped with pikes produced in the forges of Luthadel, and sent all over the New Republic. There are 340,000 men in total, but the four Republican Armies possess a wildly different amount of men. A recruitment percentage of 2% or so has been achieved in the New Republic proper. The Army of the Center consists of 60,000 soldiers, and is primarily for guarding the Central Dominance from raids, and training before being sent off to the other armies. The Army of the East is the largest, at 140,000 soldiers, being posted along the eastern border of the New Republic- primarily along the border of the Pretender Empire, but also in the garrisons that serve as the borders between the Steeled Empire and the New Republic. The Army of the North is composed of 100,000 soldiers, and fights both the Aspirant Empire and Pretender Empire, while also aiding Synodic Terris against its enemies. The Army of the South consists of 40,000 soldiers, but other than a core led by Captain Goradel, it is locally recruited, and the Austrex Commune's internal issues prevent it from gaining numbers too quickly.
The New Republic is in the informal leadership position of the Republican Alliance, a network of nations connected solely by the New Republic- the Austrex Commune, the Ashen Hands Chiefdom, Synodic Terris, and the Oligarchy of the Southern Islands. The nations are bound together by economic ties more than any political ones, but this has allowed trade to flow all the way from Isdathleux to Tathingdwen. Time will tell whether this alliance can hold up, for it is the only thing that can stop the three Imperial Successors from reclaiming Luthadel and crushing the New Republic in its crib.
The New Republic reigns over most of the Central Dominance, from Luthadel, the largest city in the world, at two million people. The Central Dominance is the smallest Dominance, but also the most populated Dominance. It is this way due to being the center of the Final Empire's flow of resources, as well as its great climate- several Dominances could certainly eclipse it, were they in command of their own resources. The New Republic also has control over a good portion of the Terris River, and through this, has many ties and trades with Terris. In all, the New Republic proper possesses around twenty million people- thanks to the Central Dominance being the most populated Dominance in the entire Final Empire.
The New Republic has several large cities, of which Luthadel, the Heart of the World, is simply the largest of these cities, although none but Luthadel exceed a million people. Luthadel's outskirts are heavily populated, having three cities which sit in the hundreds of thousands- but these cities, plus the countless other smaller cities and towns which occupy the area, are simply considered the suburbs of Luthadel. They are Fellise, Tenes, and Tourneur.
To the south along the Channerel is the city of Courteline, while the farmlands atop the Eastern Plateau are home to Statlin City, both of which are farming cities, and hubs where grain and foods are sent before traveling to Luthadel.
The Northern Central Dominance is more desolate, but the land between the Terris River and Arguois River is as verdant as the rest of the dominance. The cities of Valtroux, Holstep, and Haverfrex use their positions between the mines of the Arguois hills and the farms of the Central Dominance to be manufacturing hubs. The only large city along the Terris River is Mantiz, which, due to poor conditions between two Ashmounts, has an economy mainly based around mining and pastoralism.
The New Republic sits between three vast lakes. Lake Luthadel is the finest of the lot, with its waters being potable, and a slight blue on good days. Two large cities sit on its shores, but they are both owned by the Pretender Empire. Lake Tyrian's waters are always churning, and its waters are inundated with ash, from the presence of the Ashmount Tyrian. Some small cities sit upon its shores, but primarily, it functions as a highway for trade between the Central and Western Dominances. Third and finally, there is the Black Lake, named for its salty and undrinkable waters. No cities period sit upon its shores, with the closest the New Republic has is one at the edge of the salt flats, whose economy is based on harvesting salt.
The Austrex Commune
"Is it the Flame-that-Enlightens, or the Flame-that-Devours?"
The Austrex Commune rose from the port cities of the Final Empire, but not from the stock exchanges and restaurants of the cities, but from the slums and docks. Kelsier's shadow stretches far indeed, and the Austrex Commune is perhaps even more Iconoclastic than the New Republic. The Commune was founded in the weeks following the Revolution, as gangs and revolutionaries rallied against the Aspirant Empire's brutal actions attempting to secure its rule, and when the Republican Army appeared on the horizon, Austrex rose in a night of blood and fire, placing the defenders between the anvil of the revolutionaries and hammer of the army, and sending Tevidian Tekiel and many other Obligators running off to Fadrex.
The Austrex Commune has a similar government structure to the New Republic, and is officially a part of the New Republic, but it has significant autonomy. It has its own Assembly, but lacks its own Ministries- the political parties run most industries, with only the most critical industries being managed by the New Republic's Ministries. Common industries, such as farms, some factories and mines, and dockworkers, are organized into companies, unions, and cooperatives.
The Austrex Commune is dominated by two parties- the Austrex Iconoclasts and Austrex Commercantists. Both are evolved from gangs prominent in the Austrex underground prior to the Austrex Uprising. The Austrex Iconoclasts are led by Baz'en Wraithkiller, who is the First Minister, and the leader of the Commune. She is Mistborn, having led a gang before the fall of the Final Empire. That gang, the Mist Riders, have evolved into the Austrex Iconoclasts, and many of its members were allomancers. She enforces her rule of the country through a paramilitary evolved from the Mist Riders, and has carved out a cult of personality around herself through deliberate echoing of Kelsier's actions, having killed a Steel Inquisitor in the Uprising through ripping out its back spike, and navigating the city in broad daylight in her Mistcloak.
The Austrex Commercantists are led by Renholm Callenos. He is a gold misting, but did not know that until after the Uprising. Before the Uprising, he was the leader of the Boxings, and focused primarily on financial crimes and defrauding of lesser nobles. He was half-skaa, and pushed into the underground of Austrex due to this being released- although he was not actively hunted, due to bribing the local Obligators, as well as Baz'en occupying the time of the Inquisition. His gang, the Boxings, was not directly involved in the Uprising, but managed to achieve legitimacy, integrating several other wealthy underground organizations, and transforming into a political organization, attracting wealthy skaa merchants and craftsmen, as well as former nobles who fear for their lives.
These two political parties are enemies of one another. Baz'en wishes to remove the wealthy's control over the economy, and achieve governmental control of almost everything in the Austrex Commune. Renholm wishes to survive, and enshrine the wealthy's control over the government, stealing the common man's only hope of his life belonging to himself. Factories, mines, forges, and, most concerningly, the army. Every battalion, except a neutral one led by Captain Goradel, is aligned with either the Iconoclasts or Commercantists. This system is incredibly unstable, held together only by the New Republic as an outside force. It will go up in flames, that is certain, and the only thing that can be done is to limit the damage, and ensure victory for the New Republic's preferred faction.
The Austrex Commune controls only one region of the former Final Empire. The land between the Ashmounts Zerinah and Faleast, which is dominated by the Channerel Delta. It was here, millenia ago, that was the birthplace of the Tilancain Empire, but its marble columned works have sank into the silt, and its imperial cities have been razed and built over, several times even before the rise of the Final Empire. It was the home of Hallant, a merchant nation, before its conquest by the Final Empire. And now the Austrex Commune finds itself at the end of empire, with command over seven million people, with the most fertile land in the Southern Dominance.
While the Austrex Commune only has three large cities, Austrex itself is one of the largest in the world. It exceeds a million people in population, due to it being the crux of half the Final Empire's trade, and the resource flow to Luthadel- the reason Tevidian Tekiel attempted to make it his capital in the wake of the Revolution. Austrex's economy is primarily based around this flow of resources, as well as refining agricultural products, from the Channerel Delta or the rest of the Dominance, although it has a little bit of everything, as such a large city. The other city is Lancagne, which was the Final Empire's primary port, and a good portion of the city is built around docks and warehouses. It was home to the Final Empire's fleet, which was a small thing, enough to take on pirates, the sorts of fleets needed to take on the once-regular Southern Islands rebellions being considered not worth maintaining. It is known as a city of sin, where the nobles plied in the trade of alcohol and flesh, to milk the clips from the sailors in the Imperial Navy. Now, these trades of vice continue, now expanded into gambling parlors and drug dens. With the government of the Austrex Commune busy with infighting, Lancagne will languish, along with the hopes of a Republican Navy.
Longsfollow is the third city of the Commune, and the smallest major city. It has been turned into a veritable fortress, for its position on the edge of the border with the Aspirant Empire. It was a large canal town, supplying ships traveling on the relatively desolate stretch of the Middle Cassern, growing and shrinking with the influx and outflux of Canal Skaa. Now, all those Canal Skaa reside there permanently, and its population has exploded following the influx of refugees fleeing from plantations that lie undefended from Aspirant raiding parties, or from the Aspirant Empire itself. Longsfollow is the location of a majority of the Austrex Commune's army, and even has the few cannons and rifles the Commune has produced itself. It lies unknown if this fortress-city can hold up to the Aspirant Empire.
The Aspirant Empire
"We do not simply work to refound the Final Empire. We aspire to restore the Lord Ruler's reign over the world in full. It is what drives us, and all our actions must be made with this in mind."
The Aspirant Empire is the largest of the Imperial Successors, ruling over the better parts of three dominances. It is ruled by the Steel Ministry of the Final Empire, the continuation of the government of the Final Empire, not in full, and with many changes, but the Obligators continue to rule, and aim to restore the Final Empire in full.
The Aspirant Empire was first founded in Austrex following the Revolution in Luthadel, primarily by Tevidian Tekiel, the Steel Ministry taking refuge in the seemingly safe city, as the Steel Ministry could have controlled a majority of the Final Empire. The Southern, Western, Farmost, Southern Islands, and Remote Dominances. Over fifty million people, and the resources of half the Final Empire. But less than two weeks after the establishment of the Aspirant Empire, came the Republican Army, drunk off a hundred cities liberated without a shot fired, and at the same time, the underground of Austrex rose up, with the songs of revolution on their lips.
Tevidian Tekiel fled a second time, up the Cassern river, but not to Tremredare, but Fadrex, a city within staging grounds of Austrex, with previously heavy Steel Ministry presence. And so, the Steel Ministry sat, organized, and planned. The Steel Ministry has taken on a government role, seizing vital industries and infrastructure to be managed under government ownership, although nobles close or loyal to Tevidian Tekiel receive preferential treatment. And the Aspirant Empire prepares for war. The skaa are trained with the pike and sword, and those who are not recruited are worked to the bone in the mines, factories, and farms, or in the forges where iron is cast into cannon, while nobles are coerced into the military, to serve as the commanders of the skaa, or as artillery crews or to utilize allomancy. While they did not obtain their fifty million, the Aspirant Empire possesses a population hovering around twenty-five million.
The Lord Prelan Tevidian Tekiel is the lord of the Steel Ministry, and as such, he is the lord of the Aspirant Empire. But he is not the sole lord. The Cantons still exist, and their High Prelans still reign over them, and the Dominance Lords of the dominances still lord over the regions as well. The Canton of Inquisition is the least powerful Canton, the rivalry between Orthodoxy and Inquisition leading to it being stripped of resources. The Canton of Orthodoxy has taken over most of its functions, with the remaining obligators working towards their dissolution, and there is no High Prelan. The Canton of Finance is led by the High Prelan Arriev, who managed to escape both Luthadel and Austrex during their respective revolutions, which still maintains its power in the minting of currency and allocation of financial resources. The High Prelan of the Canton of Resource was slain during the Austrex uprising, and, interestingly, Tevidian Tekiel promoted the local Fadrex Prelan instead of any exiles, and so, the new High Prelan is Aradan Yomen. The Canton of Resource mainly manages resources- mines, factories, farms, and oversees the flow of resources to the army, thus making it the second most powerful Canton in the Aspirant Empire.
The Canton of Orthodoxy is the most powerful Canton, even though Tevidian Tekiel no longer reigns over it. The position of High Prelan did not exist for the Canton of Orthodoxy, but now the Lord Prelan manages the entirety of the Aspirant Empire, that position has been created. And so, the High Prelan Lusus Izenry occupies this new position. The Canton of Orthodoxy manages politics, intrigue, the Imperial Army, and polices the thoughts and speech of the people of the Aspirant Empire, as well as the former domains of the Canton of Inquisition- policing allomancy. Noble allomancers are heavily pressured into being recruited, for either Ministry or Army work, mostly through financial mechanisms- tax breaks from the large war taxes. The Canton of Orthodoxy also pays a high price for atium, and has amassed a small amount of the resource, although most of that comes from atium the Canton of Finance managed to escape with.
The most unsettling fact is that the Aspirants have learned, somehow, to control small groups of Koloss. It is unknown how they have achieved this. Any enemy they face- primarily the New Republic- will also face these Koloss. It must be known how they control the beasts- either to learn how to shake their control, or usurp it.
The Aspirant Heartlands are a relatively small slice of land, consisting of Fadrex, and the Cassern River down to just a bit before Longsfollow, which has been turned into an Austrex citadel. These lands are where the Aspirant Empire does most of its military buildup, waiting for the coming of spring to assault Longsfollow and push to Austrex- and as the Commune stands, it would fall were that to occur. The Aspirant Empire has around half a million men, and a majority of those, an estimated 300,000 are in the fields outside Fadrex, preparing for the war against the New Republic.
The Dominance Lords also exist, and technically rule a majority of the Dominances. The most powerful, and the one the Aspirant Empire clashes with the most, is Lord Ashweather Cett, of the Western Dominance. From his Keep in Tremredare, he makes himself out to be a Venture of the West, but he is a disagreeable character, and many of his allies are only siding with him out of pragmatism. The Dominance Lords have dominion over their dominances, although that dominion is slowly lapsing. Cett, with his portion of the Western Dominance, has three large cities. Tremredare is the largest in the Aspirant Empire, at over a million people, and is a cultural center in the Dominance, although many Luthadel Obligators and Noblemen refuse to admit the existence of its cultural portfolio, due to the uncouth nature of most Western noblemen. The Western Dominance itself has a bit less than fourteen million people.
However, Tremredare does not care what the Luthadel exiles think. Many young noblemen sit in restaurants, write poetry, and attend plays. Cett is, at the behest of the Obligators in Fadrex, cracking down on this, selectively funding some noblemen who are writing on the glories of war, inspiring many to sign up with the Aspirant Army. Tremredare itself is famed for its textile production, but as a large city, it has a little bit of all manufacturing. Between Tremredare and Fadrex is Chakath, a city known for its wool production, which is now serving as the heart of the game of influence between Cett and the Obligators after the relocation of the eastern branch of House Renoux to the Farmost Dominance in the wake of Teven Renoux's death in Luthadel. BasMardin, an agricultural hub in the center of the Western Dominance, is in the hands of House Hasting, which has allied with Cett for protection from Tevidian Tekiel, who seeks redressement for their slaughter of House Tekiel.
The second most powerful Dominance Lord is Ostice Lekal, ruling in what is left of the Southern Dominance, west of the mountain Zerinah. The region is heavily agricultural, but despite this, it will be facing famine soon. The Aspirant Empire is paying top dollar for grain, needing it to feed armies, and is encouraging the nobles in the Southern Dominance to switch from cash crops to foodstuffs, but Ostice Lekal is not cooperating. Instead, he simply grows both cash crops and foodstuffs, sending needed grain to Fadrex, and what grain he does not export can be sold at a high mark up in the Southern Dominance. The skaa in the region are already going hungry, and this will only worsen as time progresses, with five million in total at risk of starvation. But Ostice Lekal is dying. A wound received in Luthadel during the Revolution festers, and he is bedridden more days than not. His brother, Audil Lekal, and son, Jastes Lekal, fight with one another for the position of preferred heir. Jastes is young, and has Venturist leanings, while Audil is conservative, and aligns more with the Aspirant Empire.
The remnants of the Southern Dominance are home to two large cities. Both are similar, being canal and agricultural hubs, with industry solely relating to refining raw foodstuffs and cash crops into flour, spools of thread, fruits into preserves, and tobacco into snuff. The main difference between the two is that Tersta is a coastal city, while Zerinau is located in the middle of the Dominance, close to the lower Cassern River and the Aspirant heartlands.
The third Dominance is the Farmost Dominance, in the west of the Final Empire. It is the most unstable of the three Dominances of the Aspirant Empire, for many reasons. First, the Dominance Lord, Harden Renoux- a cousin of the late Teven Renoux, from the eastern branch of the House. He found himself inheriting the position of House Lord of House Renoux after Teven's death in Luthadel under suspicious circumstances in Luthadel, and as such, the position of Dominance Lord of the Farmost Dominance. This was a poisoned position. Harden found that Teven had made allies with an illegal skaa organization, his cousin's heterodoxy proving deeper than he ever knew. But he could not haul those responsible out of their homes, for the northern reaches of the Farmost Dominance were under assault from the Koloss, and the skaa formed militias to defend their homes and families against the beastial barbarians, providing much needed manpower against them, as well as allowing him to send recruits to the Aspirant heartlands in the east.
Further investigation into Teven's demise has revealed he was under arrest at the time of the Lord Ruler's death, being killed by a Steel Inquisitor. He was covering for the young skaa Mistborn known as Vin, who now rules the roofs of Luthadel. His inability to purge the Skaa Emancipationist Movement, in combination with Teven's treason, is painting a large target on his back- he is too busy fighting against the Koloss to participate more than sending whatever can be spared for the aspirations of Tevidian to Fadrex, mostly surplus of goods unneeded for war. The Aspirant Empire is considering recalling him for someone who will be able to provide more, casting the Farmost Dominance aside, extracting a temporary benefit at the cost of the lives of millions.
But the Skaa are also an actor. The Skaa Emancipationist Movement was reformist and started out completely pacifist, looking to reinstate laws from a previous era of the Final Empire, laws which were much more lenient on the skaa. Their pacifism and non-revolutionary propaganda was how they avoided being executed during the Final Empire. While they have found themselves in the Aspirant Empire, and those laws can still technically be reinstated, they have grown more cynical after the Revolution and the death of the Lord Ruler. They go further than monarchism, preaching of the Republic. But they cannot revolt, for the Koloss are attempting to take everything they have, and have already butchered a hundred thousand in their sweep down from the Farmost Peninsula. So, they arm themselves for the war, with revolution perhaps a possibility after they slay the Koloss that beat themselves at their northern border. They would revolt were the Dominance Lord to not focus all their efforts on the war with the Koloss, or attempt to purge them- as long as Harden Renoux has the Koloss as his main priority, they will not revolt, for the choice between giving up their arms, what they believe in, dying to the Koloss in the end, and that of revolution, with potential for victory, is an easy one.
The Farmost Dominance stretched from the latitude of Luthadel to about Tathingdwen- beyond it is the Farmost Peninsula, which while technically a part of the Farmost Dominance, has been inhabited by Koloss for so long that the ruins of the Final Empire there are closer to the Ascension than today. The Farmost Peninsula served as one of the borders beyond the edge of the Final Empire, and various forts prevented koloss hordes from ranging south, and regularly launched expeditions to pacify them.
South of that was the bulk of the dominance, although it was not relatively populated, being tundra with some taiga. There were also a handful of koloss warbands, but they never served more than a minor annoyance, at least to the Dominance Lord. And then the Lord Ruler died, and the Aspirant Empire pulled the troops in the garrisons to crush revolts and help grow the Aspirant Army. The Koloss poured south, and destroyed this region.
The Farmost Dominance exists as a small stretch of land between the western mountains and the Far Sea, holding out against the Koloss. It is a humid land, with many thick forests, given its position along the sea, and as such it gets many rainstorms and hurricanes. Not a particularly warm land, however- snowfall is assured in winter. Agriculture tends to be more of a problem of a lack of suitable land than a lack of irrigation. The population is large for an outer dominance, at 6 million inhabitants. It possesses two large cities- the capital, Carinole, the agricultural hub of the dominance, and, to the north, on the edge of the tundra, is Boroff, a city at the edge of the tundra, which was full of trappers- now it is the bulwark of the Farmost Dominance against the Koloss, and where Harden Renoux spends most of his time, organizing and commanding his troops.
The Pretender Empire
"Monarchy is the perfect system. The absolute rule of a single man was what made the Final Empire, and it will be reborn through absolute rule. It has no hope for reunion through oligarchy or ochlocracy."
The Pretender Empire is the only Imperial Successor with any popular support. It rules the Northern Dominance, stretching slightly into the Central and Eastern Dominances. It is ruled by Emperor Straff Venture, but his rule is not absolute, for the Pretender Empire is ruled by the nobility of the Final Empire, looking to remake the Final Empire, but with the nobility on top.
The Pretender Empire was founded in Urteau by Straff Venture, fleeing to his Keep in the city after the Revolution. Here, he founded the Kingdom of the Northern Dominance- but as his fief grew, and news filtered in from the other Imperial Successors, he decided that he could not be simply a king. He had to be an Emperor, the continuator of the Final Empire. Straff Venture subjugated lord after lord, with words, threats, and force of arms. The Pretender Empire is a patchwork of estates and villas, with all those nobles paying fealty to Straff Venture, and obeying his commands. Nobles who lose favor with Straff Venture may have their land stripped, and handed to allies or neighboring nobles.
The Pretender Empire eagerly marshals for war, as all do in this world. Conscripting skaa, handing out battalions to noble houses with promises of spoils and land, retooling forges for war, and working the skaa not recruited to the bone. The Pretender Empire's government has been constructed out of the Dominance system and the localized government of the Final Empire, the system of alliances of House Venture, and some writers from during the Final Empire, and before it.
As such, House Venture and its allies possess a preeminent role in the country. Straff Venture has several advisors, most commonly consisting of prominent figures in his greatest allies, such as Lord Alistir of House Haught. The Pretender Empire also depends heavily on a class of Obligators to both provide a bureaucratic function, as well as provide legitimacy. But none of these positions and titles are truly standardized. The Pretender Empire is functioning solely to retake Luthadel and the remainder of the Final Empire. When that day comes, perhaps Straff will lay down the sword, and attempt to forge a state that will last a thousand more years.
Straff Venture is Emperor, and the official name of the Pretender Empire, other than the typical 'The Final Empire', is the Venture Empire. His word is law, although he has inherited the law codes from the Final Empire, despite many changes, and a lot of previously theoretically in use outdated laws were trimmed. For instance, skaa are now owned by the noble families who formerly rented them, and the Obligators on owning much of the infrastructure has led to confiscation and repossession of Steel Ministry property by noble families. His named successor is Shan Venture, who is a known Mistborn, and was on the top of the social ladder of young nobles in Luthadel before the Revolution.
There is a wide array of individuals serving in the government of the Pretender Empire. The aforementioned Obligators make up a majority of the bureaucrats, and they serve in administrative roles, but have lost all their properties but a handful of administrative buildings, are no longer are able to arbitrate contracts between noble houses, and are encouraged to rejoin their old noble houses, or seek employment in the service of one. The Canton of Resource is the most influential, having been cannibalized into the Imperial Army, and the obligators organize the construction of the army. For the nobles will have to kneel before Straff in the matter of War, as Luthadel is a prize which cannot be denied. The Obligators are split between the bureaucrats and fanatics- the bureaucrats tend to be older and cynical, while the fanatics are the young, who possess faith. They are heterodox in they wish to spread their faith to nobles, which has led to the mainstream Sliverist sect of Venture-Acceptanism being formed, and popularized as it lends credibility to Straff's rule.
Straff has several key allies. There is House Hasting, led by Agna Hasting. The Lord Hasting was slain during the Revolution, and House Hasting found it impossible to travel to their traditional estates in BasMardin, as it was controlled by Tevidian Tekiel, who would assuredly butcher them in redressement for House Tekiel. While their fortunes may be diminished, they are a favored ally, and they have received many promises of land and gold in the Central Dominance. Many members have signed up for positions of officers in the Pretender Army. But Straff's ally in House Haught- or, Urteau-Haught, as many would say- is his favorite. Why Kless Haught has betrayed him, Alstir Haught and his sons have the largest promises of land, and if land is seized from nobles in the Pretender Empire, more often than not, it ends up in the hands of House Haught. Their manufacturing knowledge has proven useful, and word has it that the Pretender Empire is increasingly making use of steam engines in mines and factories. There are other nobles, but they are diminished, or simply lack enough power to be worth discussing.
The Pretender Army, officially known as the Imperial Army, is a large force, at around 300,000 men, and growing. The Pretender Empire is perfectly willing to conscript any skaa they can get their hands upon, depriving entire villages of young men. While most of it is marshaling for war, small contingents raid the border regions, in hopes of finding weaknesses in the New Republic's defense. Straff intends to lead the army himself, but he has several generals below them, most notable the noble Janarle- the Eastern Army has clashed several times with forces led by him, and Straff's former Guard Captain has a great skill in tactics.
The Pretender Empire is almost entirely located in the Urtan Basin, which makes up the Northern Dominance, as well as a small portion of the Central Dominance. Its population is, in total, around 16 million. As such, it is replete with natural waterways, and the transportation in the Dominance allows Urteau to enforce itself over the entire Dominance easily. Urteau itself is one of the largest cities the Final Empire, at over one million, thanks to this geographical feature. During most of its existence, it was a beautiful city, with transportation easy and abundant thanks to the myriad of canals criss crossing the city. But a hundred years ago, after an earthquake, these canals dried up, being disconnected from the Urtan river to preserve its flow. They are likely being drained, but where to is unknown. The city is a manufacturing hub, even though its importance has diminished since the canals dried up. Furniture production and metal production are two of the largest industries in the city. Urteau was also where House Venture began, nearly a thousand years ago, a cadet house of the King of Urtland.
Samenflow is located at the confluence, and is in fact Old Urtan for confluence, of the Urtan and Channerel rivers. It is the trading hub of the Dominance, thanks to its position at where the waterways of the Dominance meet, and on the route to Luthadel. While it has boomed while Urteau has declined, that is changing- for its former trading infrastructure is being used for war, and many of its more important noble houses have gone to Urteau, seeking the promise of power.
Canarhull is the only sizable city along the northern branch of the Channerel. Its economy is based around the refining of ore mined in the Urtan Heights, as well as the agricultural products of the upper Channerel. Its forges have only increased in business since the Revolution, to better prepare for the war.
Waldsley is located to the north of Urteau, at the confluence of two rivers amidst the vast tree plantations. It is the heart of the lumber industry, and its planks float downriver to Urteau.
Soligan is the easternmost city in the Northern Dominance. It is the agricultural hub of the Dominance, daily bargefulls of grain and cattle coming into the city of the plains that lay between the rivers Urtan and the Channerel. Its canneries are working all hours a day to provide enough food for the Pretender Army.
The final city of the Pretender Empire is Rive-juxta-Lutha. Not located in the Northern Dominance at all, but instead the Central Dominance. The most scenic city in the Central Dominance, it sits upon the shores of Lake Luthadel. Thanks to that scenic charm and a lack of ready economic resources, the city is one of the most noble-heavy cities in the Empire, only having their servants and enough material to support the canal skaa, who have dredged Lake Luthadel for centuries.
The Steeled Empire
"The Devil pulls the strings which make us dance; we find delight in the most loathsome things; some furtherance of Hell each new day brings, and yet we feel no horror in that rank advance."
The Steeled Empire is Hell on Earth. The Inquisition of the Final Empire is utterly unfettered, and it is working to fulfill their terrible Great Work. It lacks either legitimacy or popular support, with power being its only defining factor it has. But power it has in spades.
To explain the Steeled Empire, it is best to start with its history. The Inquisitors that survived the Revolution, and the Uprisings in Austrex and Tathingdwen, over half their number slain, fled to the Coventical of Seran. The Lord Ruler's favored Steel Inquisitor, Kar, took leadership of them, and enforced order upon the Eastern Dominance. The Dominance Lord Tryss Erikell was forced to bow before the Inquisitors, and the Inquisitors gained control. Obligators from the Canton of the Inquisition made their way to the Steeled Empire, but, like the other Imperial Successors, the transition was generally swift, much to the Eastern Dominance's suffering.
The Inquisitor Kar has taken on the title of Grand Inquisitor, which existed in the Inquisition's more active phase, prior to the extinction of the last faiths in the 6th century of the Final Empire. He has full command over the Steel Ministry, and uses it to full effect. Sheriffs, Obligators turned to law enforcement, prowl the streets, a sight not seen in centuries, to haul away dissidents and skaa allomancers to unknown locations. The local members of the Cantons of Resource and Finance manage the mines and farms of the Dominance. The only major noble house in the entire Dominance is House Erikell- their weapons factories and knowledge in weapons creation sparing them, as long as Tryss Erikeller behaves. The nobility is equally at risk in the Steeled Empire, with any who do not fulfill their role or scheming to overthrow the Inquisitorial Government whisked away, to never be seen again.
The cities are places of fear, what hope has refused to be squashed is entirely of the New Republic- rumors of the Survivor of Hathsin emerging to bring down the Steeled Empire, one Inquisitor at a time, the Republican Army coming sweeping down south, liberating city after city, or the road that led to the Lord Ruler's defeat and death being retrod by domestic revolutionaries. In truth, as long as the Steeled Empire does not pose a threat to the New Republic, Kelsier has opted to leave their liberation to the last, after the Pretender and Aspirant Empires are cast down. They may have to wait years yet.
It is unknown what the Steeled Empire is driven by. Religion or ideology, their exact driving force and motives are unknown. It is even unknown whether their religion is the same one the Final Empire practices- they possess significant derivative practices- most likely originating from a cult in the highest ranks of the Steel Ministry. Beaked masks of steel, scars resembling the Prime Minister Kelsier's on their arms, but it is hard to make a distinction between what is done for faith, and what is done for power.
The Inquisitors bristle with more spikes than ever. Assuredly they kill thousands, every skaa they detect using allomancy, knowingly or unknowingly, they haul away to their hemalurgic laboratories, to create new Inquisitors, and add more spikes. This would explain the reports of skaa being stolen away despite being loyal- they are allomancers. In addition, they wear metal shells that pierce the skin of their back, to prevent anyone from ripping out their back spike. Most alarming is that the number of distinct Inquisitors has increased. They are multiplying, making more of themselves, certainly for a nefarious purpose. We are lucky that they are limited, being unable to secure atium, and hopefully have no knowledge of the Republican Metals.
The Steeled Empire wars. They seek to claim the Remote Dominance, with only the Oligarchy of the Southern Islands resisting them in the region- according to the Oligarchy. Refugees seem to have no knowledge of the conflict, even ones from Fareau, although the Oligarchy claims they mainly fight men. The other war is known least about- far to the east, in the Crescent Dominance, Koloss hordes are led by the Steel Inquisitors against the Kingdom of the Burning Crescent, and they do not even annex the land, ravaging it and burning all towns instead. What is known is that they are producing massive amounts of weapons. It is certain they plan on ruling the world, with a fist more iron than even the Lord Ruler's.
The Steeled Empire's territory has 18 million people- 16 in the Eastern Dominance and the small portion of the Southern Dominance they possess, and two million in their territory in the Remote Dominance. A majority of their population lives in the area surrounding the Seran Lakes, at the edge of Dominance, where it meets the Crescent Dominance. The largest city is the City of Seran, the capital of the Dominance, where the North Seran lake empties into the Seran River. It exceeds a million people, and is the capital of the dominance. The city is wealthy, being the locale where a large amount of the resources produced in the Dominance flowed, before being refined for export- a needed thing, given the lack of large river networks in the Dominance. The city of Seran has industry of all varieties, and plenty of agricultural production.
Ribeur is the only other city on the shores of North Seran, and serves primarily as a transportation hub- caravans depart across the barrens of the mid eastern dominance, to transport goods to Chathram, and then, before the Collapse, Luthadel. It is also where the mines of the Urtan Heights shipped their metal, after processing.
Lasserine is the only sizable city on the shores of South Seran. Its people farm on the shores of the lake, and fish in its depths. It is notably impoverished- the city of Seran possesses more agricultural land, and at the end of the extractive routes of the Final Empire.
Fareau was the only point where the Eastern Dominance met the sea. While the Steeled Empire now possesses a large stretch of coastline along the Southern Sea, the only notable city, with any sizable port cities, is Fareau. It lies at the termination of the other navigable river in the Dominance, the first being the Seran River. It was the primary port of the Dominance, but as of late, its ports have gone quiet, raids from the Oligarchy and skaa piracy making it nonviable for them to supply their troops in the Remote Dominance overseas.
Chathram is the closest city in the Eastern Dominance to Luthadel. A vast majority of refugees come from Chathram, and it is said its Keeps can be seen from Republican territory. It is one of the closest cities to an Ashmount, and straddles a thin strip of arable land- between the ash wastes surrounding Faleast, and the salty Black Lake, it is the only reliable land route through the ash wastes. Chathram was notably abandoned for decades immediately following the Ascension, and the ash built up, the city being buried by the time it was reclaimed- and the Lord Ruler decided not to level it. As such, the city was rebuilt, the tallest structures were reclaimed, their vast undersides becoming crypts and sub-basements. There lies an entire city, buried, once plundered for its riches by skaa, but now possession of those ancient artifacts are forbidden, so it lies fallow, for now. The skaa underground makes quite a lot of use out of these tunnels, and rarely, a Keeper has plunged into them, emerging with a great discovery.
The Oligarchy of the Southern Isles
"Happy is the man, I thought, who had the fortune to live on the blessed shores of the Southern Isles. But now I go hungry, for all the silver, gold, silk, and dye in the world cannot feed a man."
The Oligarchy of the Southern Islands was born out of circumstance and compromise. It took weeks for the Southern Islands, ruled by Lord Ioan Teniert, to learn of the Lord Ruler's death, and it took even longer for them to catch onto the going-ons of the world. By the time Lord Ioan Teniert learned what was going on in the world, the New Republic had displaced the Aspirant Empire from Austrex, and he had been excommunicated by the Lord Prelan for failing to aid the Aspirant Empire in its time of need.
Lord Teniert found his grip loosening, and turned to compromise, founding a small body of the three most important nobles in the Southern Islands, including himself. But he found the skaa tradesmen and merchants opposing his rule, and so he freed the wealthiest from service, who founded new houses, and gave the three wealthiest and most important a seat at the table. But then the Oligarchy found itself isolated, skaa pirates, from free towns, having gained a great deal of ground, and being able to harass most of the Oligarchy's shipping. And so he gave the three most important of those a seat at the table, giving them an opportunity to become legitimate merchant-captains.
How did this occur? The Southern Islands have always been the most unstable Dominance. Its nobility have followed their own traditions, descended from the Bennet nobility and high culture that was their mark prior to the Ascension. They were recognized as an Inner Dominance following the Ascension, and had a population twice of the modern day nine million. Due to the Dominance being removed from the mainland, possessing self-sufficiency, and its nobility being divergent led to a half-dozen major uprisings, and hundreds of smaller uprisings in the Dominance over the lifetime of the Final Empire.
Every rebellion resulted in more of the population culled, more and more of their autonomy stripped away. The last large rebellion, two hundred years ago, was both a result and the reason the modern plantation system was instituted. After that, strict limits on the resources plantations were allowed to produce were put in place, to remove their self sufficiency.
The Oligarchy found itself cut off from all trade. While it did find itself with the largest fleet in the two seas, it found itself with no allies. While it was able to secure significant parts of the Southern Dominance, Western Islands, and Remote Dominance, these regions were not enough to avert starvation. For its first few months, the Oligarchy was beset by famine. Not a particularly long one, but only thanks to it establishing a trade agreement with the New Republic was it defeated.
Now, the Oligarchy is the most powerful ally of the New Republic- although most of that strength is borrowed. Like the old Final Empire, the Oligarchy sends raw resources north, including luxury goods of wine, sugar, silk, tea, and tobacco, while the New Republic sends grain and finished goods. The Oligarchy is working on changing this, however- purchasing mining, forging, and agricultural equipment, and purchasing seeds, marshaling its people, not just for war, but for refurbishing old roads, and digging irrigation and clearing fields that have lain fallow for centuries.
While it is good to see a state that is allowed peace, and I think it would be nice if the New Republic could do the same, I doubt their intentions, and many more in the New Republic do as well. The ideological difference between the two states shall inevitably lead to division. It will take several years for the Oligarchy to establish self-sufficiency- but it will also take several years for the immediate enemies of the New Republic to be defeated. They will be a significant opponent, even if they are the weakest of the world's five major nations.
Each faction of the Oligarchy of the Southern Islands has an informal leader. The nobles are led by Lord Ioan Teniert, the skaa merchants are led by Dondel Dav, and the newly legitimized pirates are led by the infamous Baran Black. Each Assemblyman is a leader of a larger faction, whether it be noble Houses, alliances of tradesmen skaa, or fleets of pirate ships. Allegedly this Assembly is held together by wealth and wealth alone, with Ioan Teniert promising more and more cash and land to the Assemblymen.
The Southern Islands are a rich Dominance, and possess the largest population outside the Inner Dominances, at nine million. They are, on paper, wealthy, producing sugar, tea, tobacco, wines, silk, and many other luxury goods.But that means little when they cannot sustain themselves. There are two major islands- the island of Benne, and the island of Alicia, with a majority of the Dominance's population located on Benne. Isdathleux is the capital of the Oligarchy, and is its largest city, nearing one million people in population. It was the capital of the Dominance as well, as well as the terminus of the trade routes within the Southern Islands, as well as to a lesser extent the Southern Sea. It sits bestriding a bay, and is a rich, wealthy city, home to myriad noble families, a unique culture and architectural style, consisting of plaster made of sand and ash.
On the western portion of the island of Benne, on the rocky northern shore, is the city of Lacillia. The second-largest city on the Southern Isles, it has command over a large swathe of the rolling hills which make up most of the landscape of the Southern Islands, and, in addition to the wine, olives, and tobacco, Lacillia is the home of the silk industry of the Southern Isles. It was its main product, has an entire culture based around silk production, and rumor has it, that during the brief famine, the people of Lacillia ate excess boiled silkworms.
Volqas is the only sizable city located on the southern portion of Benne, on the only large swathe of fertile land on Benne- allegedly Mount Volqas, the largest, if not the tallest, mountain of the Southern Island's ranges, built up over millennia before the Final Empire. While not an Ashmount, Volqas has resources only found in volcanoes, such as sulfur- something not commonly found even in the Ashmounts. As the closest city to the highest mountains that make up the spine of Benne, it was also the largest mining hub in the Dominance, for the high-in-demand metals and gems allowed to be mined. Rumor has it that you've had many old mineshafts being opened up, and the city exists as a center of industrial development.
But the Oligarchy has expanded outside of the Southern Islands as well. Cape Solom is its largest territory on the mainland. Cape Solom is very fertile despite its extremely close proximity to the Ashmount Doriel, a mixture of rains and winds coming off the sea pushing the ash east, while enough ash fell upon the Cape that the land is very fertile, were enough ash cleared off it. In total, the region has two million inhabitants, a large portion of the former Southern Dominance's. Its capital is Bilmare, a sizable city on the northern shore, and the home of House Bylerum, which has a seat in the Assembly.
A part of the Remote Dominance is under Oligarchic control as well, primarily in the westernmost portion of the Dominance, although its capital, Esephalas, is located on a peninsula well in the eastern portion of the Dominance. Their land in the east is poor, primarily used for pastoralism. In total, their possessions add up to about a million. Esephalas is the largest city in the Dominance, as well as its capital- and it served as the only extractive hub of the Dominance, as well as the only point of culture. It lies under siege, allegedly, by the Steeled Empire, and has remained under siege for six months. It is a loose one, given it is supplied by sea by the Oligarchy's fleets.
The final domain of the Oligarchy are the Western Islands- although control is loose, given the Final Empire always had a loose grip over that region, since its conquest. The Western Islands are a humid, tropical land, constantly buffeted by the hurricanes coming off the Far Sea, and one of the last to enter the fold of the Final Empire, when entire nations were discovered in lands that were considered too inhospitable for settlement. The Koloss were loosed, but they did not prove as effective- the thick forests of the Islands serving as a great counter to them. But where civilization existed, they burned it down, with the remnants being enslaved, placed into the Farmost Dominance, and rendered into Imperial Compliance. Sapavno-Luca is the largest city, located in the extreme southern portion of the archipelago, and is primarily extractive, exploiting the resources of the regions, to be shipped back to the mainland.
Synodic Terris
"Discord resides in the House of God."
"Discord resides in the House of God."
After a thousand years, Terris is once again free. But I think we are not ready, for the Synod is unable to capitalize on this millennial opportunity. Terris lies divided, surrounded, with only the New Republic willing to aid it.
It is everything we ever dreamed of, the dreams of the Terris people, the Keepers, and the Synod, all fulfilled at once. But perhaps we were naive. The Synod did not lift a hand against the Final Empire until it was already dead, the skaa being the ones who ended it, with aid from a then-rouge Keeper.
Keepers do not roam Scadrial, teaching information to eager-eyed skaa. The Imperial Successors would not allow a Terrisman to travel unmolested. The skaa themselves are more focused on surviving the winter than education. The Synod has decided that until the whole world is safe, they will not teach Scadrial's people. The most effective Keepers are the ones who have ventured into Republican territory, either the four Keepers on loan to the New Republic as a part of the Agreement, or various Rouge Keepers. There they copy down the contents of their copperminds into a physical medium, and experiment with things untested for a millennia.
I am sorry, I think I have gotten ahead of myself. Terris was under the Final Empire's dominion of a thousand years, never fully put into Imperial Compliance. The Breeding Program was the Final Empire's greatest sin, controlling the births of many urban centers, Tathingdwen included- all to destroy Feruchemy and rebellion totally. Even a single suspect death of an Obligator in a village could ensure its deportation to Tathingdwen.
The Synod acted against this- the Keepers kept information safe and secret, and the Synod coordinated the salvation of many newly-discovered Feruchemists across all of Terris, and had a finger in all the Dominances of the Final Empire, by the Keepers joining the Stewardship program, to give them an opportunity to access information across the Final Empire. But the Synod could have done more, and Terris Kahl- Free Terris- formed twenty years ago to, indeed, do more.
As tensions rose over the past decades, Terris Kahl grew, led by the Rouge Keepers Rindel and Vedzan, before the Final Empire's fall, Northern Terris was alight in Rebellion. It was in this that the news that the Lord Ruler died, slain by the Survivor of Hathsin, reached our ears. The Synod acted- we Keepers took to the streets of Tathingdwen openly, and battled the Steel Inquisitors and the Garrison, alongside the people of Tathingdwen, finally seeing their opportunity for freedom. Through this, we gained our freedom, although we lost too many.
The Synod is a council of half a dozen elder Keepers, having reached an age where they were retired from service in the Stewardship, and found themselves Terris Elders, and as Keepers, garnered such respect from being both Elders and Keepers, they lead the Keepers, and today officially lead all of Terris. The Synod directs the actions and laws of the Keepers, and leads the Terris faith. All of Terris looked and still looks up to them, and despite the words of Iconoclasts in Luthadel, they could not be overthrown, not without much grief. The Synod has contacts among all of Terris, and it is known that there are Stewards still outside of Terris.
But the Synod exists as an informal government, unable to capitalize upon this opportunity. Terris remains divided, there being no central government, no army, no tax collectors- just the Synod's efforts to run Tathingdwen. This culminated in The Agreement- the Keeper Sazed came north seeking forgiveness, and Minister Dox Dockson of the New Republic came north seeking to establish an agreement between Synodic Terris and the New Republic.
Terris would continue its shipment of raw resources south- iron and copper, wool and rugs, and what wood and food could be spared. In return, it would receive luxuries, and finished goods- fruits and wine, paper and tools. Terris would receive a small swathe of land, just south of Terris, that the New Republic could not manage- the Terris Gift. Many former Stewards would go south, to manage the New Republic until such a time when the New Republic gains enough expertise to function without them. Four Keepers would volunteer to go to Luthadel, to aid the New Republic in bringing their information to the people of the New Republic, while the New Republic would aid Terris in building up industry- forges, smithies, and mills, as well as protect it militarily. The Republican Army would find itself managing the transportation of resources.
The Keepers Sazed, Tindwyl, and Fisal went, while the Rouge Keeper Rindel joined in of his own accord. Vedzan went south as well, to hunt Obligators who had escaped the Tathingdwen Uprising. The Synod has had months to reshape Terris, and while it has done some work, Terris is still divided. A month ago, the Rogue Keeper Rindel and the Keeper Fisal left Luthadel, with the Keeper Darzon and the Keeper Salys- I- traveling to the city in their place. Vedzan also traveled north, and Terris Kahl has reorganized, for better or worse.
Terris Kahl has spotted the Synod's weakness, that much is clear. They seek to build up a Terris government- already having founded a daily newspaper, a militia, and are seeking ownership of new forges and mills, greatly aiding in their construction. While I may disagree with their Iconoclast-adjacent rhetoric, they greatly emphasize that something must be done to save Tathingdwen from extinction- while the Breeding Program has ended, almost all men in Tathingdwen are castrated. Were this to continue unabated, the city would be a third of its size in a generation, and majority skaa. I fear how far Terris Kahl will go in its efforts to save Terris from itself.
Terris has several notable regions. The Tathingdwen Valley is the archetypal Terris region, and to those who know anything about Terris, their knowledge likely begins and ends here. Tathingdwen had no Dominance Lord, instead being ruled by a High Prelan of the Canton of Orthodoxy, and was never in Imperial Compliance. While noble houses were present in Terris, they were few, and prohibited from either importing too many skaa or employing too many Terris in typical work. The Steel Ministry ran the entire Dominance, in essence. Synodic Terris's population today lies around four million, although that number is uncertain.
Tathingdwen's economy is built around textile production, and the basics of refining iron and copper, with the crushed ore typically being sent south to Luthadel. While forges are being set up, and textile machines are being produced by some Keepers or shipped from Luthadel, the full effects of this have not been seen yet. The Garrison Quarter, abandoned by the Terrismen of the city, has been taken over by skaa, looking for employment in the newly expanding industries of the city, while Terris shy away from such work, at the Synod's behest.
The Terris Gift is one of the New Republic's trades with Terris. The New Republic had great difficulty in controlling the region, thanks to its isolation from Mantiz along the Terris River, and it being inland, away from the river. And so, the region was given to the Synod as part of The Agreement. It is administered by the Synod, but is skaa majority.
Further north is the Wayedeth Valley. Possessing some marginal arable land, it is one of the most populated regions in Terris. It is notable for being home to the only copper mines in the Dominance, and being Terris Kahl's stronghold, the organization controlling most of the region today. Despite that, it is mostly a pastoral region.
The Welgcowd is the only region in Terris that can be called lush. Sitting on the shores of the warm Arctic Ocean, it is a large forest of towering trees, and the communities that lived in them. Because of its distance, strict population limits were placed on the region- easily enforced after a rebellion that burned across the Arctic shore was brutally put down. It explored wood, general forest products, but only the shore was allowed agriculture. Following the Collapse and the Tathingdwen Uprising, the Welgcowd has been conquered by the Kingdom of the Burning Crescent. Many Terris live under his rule, but, at least thanks to intervention from Vershad's Terris wife, they are not persecuted. Instead, they have been put to work, chopping trees and opening up old mines, to fuel his war machine. God save them.
Western Terris is a relatively desolate part of the Dominance. Entirely pastoral, lacking large urban centers and universally, facing down the Koloss. Only in Western Terris were Terrismen allowed weapons, universally to repeal invading Koloss from the Far Peninsula. For all its desolation, Western Terris possesses a majority of the iron mines in Terris- were they to become unusable, it would cripple Terris's resource production. One town has already fallen into Koloss hands, but it was on the other side of the mountains, in a valley facing the Far Dominance. The Koloss are not looking like they will sweep through Western Terris, but could burn cities and towns one by one.
The Kingdom of the Burning Crescent
"Our forces are numerous, our valor is vigorous; our horses forward dash, our lances deeply gash, our spearheads like lightning flash, our sabres like thunder crash. Our hearts are as the mountains strong, like sands in number our armies' throng, and we among Scadrial's heroes and kings belong. Our kingdom none can assail, our subjects from harm shall never ail, by our might our rule shall ever prevail. To him who makes peace with us will safely ensue, but he who makes war with us will repent and rue."
Little is known about the Kingdom of the Burning Crescent. Over the Urtan heights, it is difficult at best to reach the Dominance. During the Collapse it is nearly impossible. Being at the edge of the Burnlands, the Kingdom is an unusual nation.
It is the only skaa monarchist state, a collection of bandit lords having been forged into an army by King Vershad. The Crescent Dominance before the Collapse was the least populated Dominance in the entire Final Empire, with a population lower than even the city of Luthadel. It held little other than ever-present skirmishes against bandit-rebels and the Wasted Men, the only notable export being exotic animals and fruits that like the heat and lack of ash, such as watermelons. It possessed the position of Dominance Lord, but it was a poison pill, the noble families desperately avoiding the title- the taxes required to fund the Lord Ruler's constant military expeditions in the region driving the house claims it often into bankruptcy.
King Vershad got his start as just another bandit lord, although some claim his mind for tactics and dealing perhaps even exceeds the Lord Ruler's. What is known he established a bargain with some skaa settlements, extracting taxes in exchange for casting off their chains. This got the Inquisitors sent after him, allegedly, but he escaped their grasp in a daring maneuver planned by his Terris wife, Fillo. It is unknown how they met, but I have met Fillo's family, and they said her services as a Steward were purchased by a noble family in the Crescent Dominance. It appears she escaped her service, and began working with Vershad.
When the Collapse occurred, Vershad was in the perfect position to take ownership of the Dominance, banding together other bandits, skaa rebels, nobles holding some power, even getting tribes of the Wasted Men under his banner. He proclaimed himself King, but is fond of extravagant titles. It is presumed he has a collection of advisors, most notable the ex-Steward Fillo, but it is unknown who these are.
The Kingdom has been at war ever since the day of its creation. The Steeled Empire wages not a war, not of conquest, but of extermination. Leading great hordes of koloss into their lands, to lay waste to village after village and tribe after tribe. Vershad leads villagers and tribals north, away from their grip, and leads forces in combating the Koloss and the Inquisitors sent against him. He has his capital on the eastern slopes of the Urtan Heights, where the flow of water from the mountains is sufficient for a small amount of agriculture.
The Burning Crescent's heartland is the shore of the Arctic Ocean, having the largest population in the Dominance, although this has expanded thanks to Vershad's conquest of the western extremity of Terris, although not by much more. The Arctic Shore is not that lush, but it is more than the typical eternal desert, and that is what is important.
The Burnlands are the final region they have control over. Full of bandits and tribes, with the line thin, they are desolate regions with only an occasional oasis, tent-city, or old fortresses being inhabited. Some of the people there were never conquered by the Final Empire, living at the edge of the edge of the Burnlands, outside settlements, wandering, following the rain. Nevertheless, Vershad has unified them under one banner, finally. It makes one wonder of what could have driven these free-spirited groups to gather under a banner at last, and if some of Vershad's boasting is true, if he was able to wrangle the Wasted Men.
The Koloss
"...They swarm down from every slope. In number they are like sand on the seashore. Their only attribute greater than their number is their thirst for blood."
At the edges of the Final Empire, are the Koloss. A barbaric blue-skinned race, that eat everything they can get their hands on, from animal, to vegetable, to man. With the fall of the Final Empire, garrisons and walls designed to keep the Koloss contained in the deserts and tundras have been abandoned, and the beasts have surged forth into civilized lands in great hordes.
They are worse than barbarians. They cannot build anything, they cannot feel more than anger and boredom, they eat everything they can find, including the flesh of man and other koloss. They were used to great extent in the Final Empire, to crush revolts, exterminate bandit groups in the Farmost, Remote and Crescent Dominances, and to conquer new societies found, although the lattermost have been few and far between.
Koloss biology is gruesome. Koloss grow throughout their lifespan, about 20 years long. They start off at about five feet, and grow to about twelve feet tall before their hearts give out. They start with baggy blue skin, which fits more tightly around their body as they age. The skin never fits right, always exposing the muscle near their eyes and mouths. In their old age, it stretches thin, pressing their noses against their face, and tears, blood seeping out from these cracks. Their irises are red, and their eyes display a startling lack of intelligence.
Koloss have two emotions: anger and boredom. They have no semblance of government, with groups of Koloss only sticking together to make war, and for their hierarchy to function. There are no 'wild' Koloss. Every Koloss was created from a helpless man or woman, who was an enemy of the Final Empire. They were given some scraps of clothing, and a sword, although more of a wedge of dull iron, by their obligator overseers, before being sent to various fronts.
These swords form the main expression of their brutish hierarchy. Koloss grow throughout their life, from five feet tall to a maximum of twelve. When Koloss find their sword unsuitable, they fight another Koloss with a larger sword, and either die, or succeed in gaining the sword that better suits them. Some younger koloss have been seen with logs, suggesting that excess swords are abandoned, the koloss lacking the long term planning necessary to carry excess swords until young koloss are produced.
A koloss camp is a savage place. The koloss sleep beneath the stars, having no tents, and do not search for nearby buildings or caves to shelter in for the night. In fact, if they camp in a town, they burn the buildings for firewood, even if rain or ash falls from the sky. They strip the land bare, eating all animals they can find, and even leaves and grass when they inevitably run out of flesh.
This loathsome hierarchy is tailored to one singular purpose. War. The koloss seek fights. One horde of koloss will not fight another, only merge and mingle. They march towards the settlements of man, looking to tear them down, and leave nothing standing, only to march forwards to repeat the process.
And they are marching. They will not stop until all the works humankind has ever built have been torn down, or they all die. The world will be stripped bare, and empty of any creature capable of appreciating it.
Perhaps the worst thing about the beasts is that they were likely once human. Dissections have led to the discovery of four iron spikes in their sides, a key sign of the dark art of Hemalurgy. They are abominations, the sacred form of Man twisted into beast. Removing a spike seems to only sicken a Koloss, and they grow sicker the more removed, until they perish. Assuming a Hemalurgic origin of Koloss, the only conclusion that can be made towards their reproduction appears to be that they have learned somehow to fashion more of their kind through Hemalurgy.
Religions
Faith is experiencing a revival in the Collapse of the Final Empire. For a millennia, there have been two distinct faiths in the Final Empire. That of Sliverism, the only legal faith of the Final Empire, and the faith of the Terris, although the latter is a shadow of what it once was. Sliverism has been repudiated to its fullest extent- the Lord Ruler has died, Luthadel is held in the hands of Iconoclasts intent on tearing down everything the Final Empire prided itself on, with those who lorded over the Final Empire having found themselves opposed completely to one another. As such, other faiths are finally growing, for the first time in a millenia.
There are three main religious groups, each with common characteristics- all believe in a paradisiacal heaven where the just are rewarded, an ashen pit where sinners and the wicked go, and in a singular God. Who speaks on behalf of God, and who exactly is just and wicked, depend heavily on the faith.
Sliverism is the name of the faith which dominated the world for a thousand years, the only faith allowed in the Final Empire. But it is not dead. It has the majority of the world under its hold, but it has splintered. Like the three other faiths, it believes in Heaven and Hell, believing that virtuous Nobles and Obligators go to Heaven, while Skaa lacked souls, and dissipated into oblivion after death, while wicked Nobles, Obligators, and all Terris went to Hell. Orthodox Sliverism was never popular among the Skaa and the Terris, with Skaa being legally restricted from worship, although they did so anyways. The Lord Ruler was the only legal mouthpiece of God, with Obligators taking all their temporal power from him.
Acceptantism is the most popular, and most unchanged, being championed by both the Aspirant Empire and Pretender Empire, although there is only a singular major difference between them. Both faiths accept the death of the Lord Ruler, viewing it as part of his plan, to hand leadership over to humankind. The two Empires disagree, however, on who is ordained to be his successor- the Aspirant Empire views Tevidian Tekiel as the chosen successor, while the Pretender Empire views Straff Venture as that successor. May they never get a chance to determine who is correct.
Tribulationism is a small sect, currently- Tribulationists believe that the Final Empire has entered into a period of divine trials, and its adherents need to see them through, to prove their worthiness to the Lord Ruler, and if they are able to, he will return. It is primarily found among faithful Nobles and Obligators across the former Final Empire.
Flagellism primarily hails from the vulgar faith of the skaa, and its divergence from mainstream Sliverism has only widened in the wake of the Collapse. Skaa who were supportive of the Lord Ruler for whatever reason only have one faith to turn to, being banned from worship with the other faiths, and that is Flagellisms. Most of its sects believe that the Lord Ruler's absence was due to unfaithfulness from the skaa, and they must undergo flagellation to debase themselves to show they are sorry enough. It is small, currently, found only in the Imperial Successors.
There are more practices, but primarily they are Sliverism unchanged, practiced as it always has by Skaa, Nobles, and Obligators. The only one worth mentioning is the faith of the Aspirant Empire- perhaps a divergent sect within the highest ranks of the Inquisition, or hidden rituals made public at last. Ritualized bloodletting and raven masks seem to be two newly observed practices of the Inquisitors, and seem to have no other purpose than for faith alone.
The Terris faith is a shadow of what once was. Only a small remnant survived the reign of the Final Empire, Keepers kept a few practices and tenets alive down the years. Some classical inscriptions, found carved in isolated valleys of Terris, have been added to the faith, but it is hard to tell which features mentioned in these inscriptions are true, or exaggerated. Like the three other faiths, the Terris faith believes in a Heaven and a Hell, but believe all can earn their place in Heaven.
The main distinguishing feature of the Terris faith is the blessed nature of Feruchemy. Given to the Terris people by God Himself, Feruchemists are to be respected, and given leadership roles where possible. This is where the Synod takes its mandate- you cannot be a member of the Synod if you are not also a Feruchemist. It has received criticism for this tenet by others- being accused of limiting Terris society by limiting important social roles to a small caste of Feruchemists, but Terris social roles naturally congregate around Feruchemists. However, this national focus of the faith has prevented it from gaining converts among skaa, and other portions of the former Final Empire.
There are reports of Terris offshoot faiths- charismatic preachers spreading new sects in other portions of the Final Empire, starting from the Terris faith- primarily because of its Terris-focused doctrine, and as it is completely separate from the Final Empire's faith, the theology is the best, out of the three faith groups, to base new religious doctrine off of. None of these groups have reached large enough sizes to note.
Survivorism is the third faith group, found most commonly in the New Republic and its allies, and the only one of these that is not that old, taking shape over the course of the past four years following the Premier Minister Kelsier's escape from the Pits of Hathsin, and the growth of his legend. Despite the New Republic's, and the Premier Minister's atheism, it has proven popular- for it is the only major creed the religious among the skaa of the New Republic can take up.
Survivorism views the struggle of Kelsier and the New Republic against the Final Empire and the Imperial Remnants as a holy one, with Kelsier as a divine or near-divine figure- a prophet, to the more knowledgeable among the faithful. Other figures in the government of the New Republic possess some divine tendencies, although it depends on the individual worshiper. The faith has little organization, being a natural development of the nigh-mythological struggle that led to the fall of the Final Empire, with Kelsier, in some ways, taking the place of the Lord Ruler, theologically. There are a few priests, however- these people gravitate towards government roles, serving and leading with a passion unmatched, and binding together communities in support of the Republic. Survivorists tend to support the New Republic above other skaa, Kelsier's position of power ensuring the Republic, in their eyes, a divine right of rule.
Marewill Larstaism's adherents say their faith is back from the dead, for a third time. While many of its tenets are the same as Classical Larstaism, its theology is very different, and it puts into practice its tenants in a very modern way. Marewill Larstaists believe, like Classical Larstaism, that the closest way to God is through art, and a society should support monks who create art for that society. As such, you have a growing group of Larstaist monks who live off the support of others, writing newspapers, making statues, painting houses, or making murals- to benefit as many people through art as possible.
The Marewill Larstaists revere Mare, as a martyr- slain for her faith, and belief that the world was once green and possessed clear skies. A minor belief among the Survivorists, the Marewill Larstaists believe that Kelsier will fulfill her dream of the world being that way once more, as he regularly makes this promise- their brightening of the world is partly to aid him in this goal, as the more beauty the world has, the easier it will be to restore it. They fully believe that paradise awaits, and all they need to do to bring it is paint the world.
Ideologies
Iconoclasm is the primary ideology of the New Republic. It is defined by its opposition to the Final Empire in all purposes, and revolves around the New Republic, with almost all Iconoclasts ruling parties, or heavily supported by the New Republic. Economically, Iconoclasts believe the state should manage the entire economy, although all Iconoclast states supplement this with privately-owned industries, out of pragmatism. Iconoclasm is a very social ideology- Iconoclasm is a vulgar movement, depending on support by an overwhelming majority of the population, with everyone allowed to participate in the government. The Iconoclasts believe in dismantling the entirety of the old system and raising up a new, constructed system in its place- however, this extends beyond the government and the economy.
Iconoclasts wish to tear down the very fabric of society, and raise up something new- the Premier Minister Kelsier viewing a full transformation of the way people live and think as necessary for total liberation. This was the New Republic's primary goal after its creation, with the government tailored towards this process, although recent reforms have led to a military focus. It is total- tenements are demolished and rebuilt with smaller rooms for families, and hotels are seized to be converted into tenements. Excess furniture, taken from abandoned townhouses or seized from nobles subject to reappropriation is given to the skaa, while furniture is made. This extends to every sphere of the social life- parks are made, light is brought to the streets, plantations are reorganized into communes, skaa pick up last names, the written word is used to both spread ideas and encourage literacy, and so much more. It is similar in the Austrex Commune, and all Iconoclasts strive for this- outside the Republican territories, being an Iconoclast can set one apart from one's fellow man, as you tear down the social walls that you lived for your entire life.
There are Iconoclasts in many nations- Terris Kahl has adopted Iconoclasm, although it was fairly Iconoclastic before the Collapse, there is a party in the Oligarchy of the Southern Isles, and there are rebels in the Aspirant and Pretender Empires. Primarily, skaa are very sympathetic to Iconoclasm, and the legend of the Survivor of the Hathsin travels hand in hand with the legend of the New Republic, gaining allies even in the darkest corners of Scadrial. A flame has been lit, which cannot be put out- and the armies of the New Republic march to bring this flame to the remainder of the world.
Primarily, Commercantism is motivated by economic ideas- being that private enterprise should run the entire economy, with minimal government interference in the economy, with private enterprise leading to eternal prosperity for everyone. Commercantism is divided between anti-noble individuals, commonly skaa who possessed some standing as a noble-sponsored craftsman, and forward-thinking nobles who accept the Collapse, but see an opportunity to gain power and prestige using their wealth.
Liberal Commercantism is found in several political parties across the Republican Alliance, in the New Republic, the Austrex Commune, the Oligarchy of the Southern Islands, and even a minor political club in Terris. It is made distinct by its liberal government beliefs- believing in democracy, but a more limited one, believing that a government should function to aid free enterprise, focusing on individual liberty above the equality of the people. Some even suggest limiting representation to only those who own property. As such, it is a minor relatively ideology, although one with potential, as the middle class grows.
Noble Commercantism is the ideology of the Oligarchy Southern Isles, although some would say it arrived at it purely by accident. An elite wealthy ruling class of merchant-families runs the state- while the Oligarchy officially possesses representation for skaa, the skaa lack much wealth compared to the nobles, which limits their power. This was more prevalent in Classical Scadrial, among mainly the Hallant and several city-states across the world. In practice, it is the Final Empire with enough compromises made for it to not collapse when the central authority has. While it has no official supporters, those conditions can likely occur again, possibly spawning more Noble Commercantist nations out of convenience. It will be interesting see where the Oligarchy evolves, as they have control over a lot of resources and land which can be developed, but they are going against the grain of Republicanism.
Venturism lacks a defining ideal, instead being defined by the supporters of Emperor Straff Venture of the Pretender Empire. As such, it has two large subsets. Generally, they agree that the economy should be managed by the Nobility. There are the autocrat Venturists, who support Straff Venture as an absolutist autocrat, and wish to gain prestige in his court, becoming, perhaps, Dominance Lords in the future. They are primarily those who have much to gain- Straff Venture's greatest allies, those he has in his court, those he has made promises of power and wealth to. It is primarily an ideology of the urban nobles, who interacted with the Final Empire near-constantly, and are used to being lorded over, viewing it as required for the existence of a nation. They wish to see all free skaa re-enslaved, and the nobles who sided with the New Republic have their property stripped and given to them.
The others wish for autonomy above all else, viewing the Lord Ruler's death as the perfect opportunity for gaining complete independence from governance. These are the petty tyrants of the plantations, who cannot abide someone else owning their skaa, even in name, cannot abide quotas, and cannot abide taxes. They fear skaa liberation perhaps even more than the autocrat Venturists, as they spend most of their time projecting what little power they have over their enslaved skaa, and are fearful of redressement being done unto them. They support Straff Venture solely to achieve this goal, and as Straff looks for more resources, they may find themselves opposing him.
Continuationism is the ideology of the Aspirant Empire, and the one that can be most accurately said to continue the Final Empire's governance. Economically, Continuationists believe that nobles should run most industries, with government institutions only managing a select few which are too high value to trust in the hands of nobles, with the obligators overseeing every transaction between nobles. They wish to continue the Final Empire, with all its ills. Continuing the social structures, continuing the oppression of the skaa, continuing the whole rotten structure. They have little ideological basis- faith in the Lord Ruler's failed plan is what keeps them afloat. I have nothing but scorn for the Aspirant Empire, and, seeing how everyone else has changed in some capacity to adapt to the changing world, the Aspirant Empire finds itself standing in a house of ashes in a world that despises it. I can only hope the beast goes quietly.
Calendar
The Calendar of the Final Empire is a simple, bureaucratic thing, lacking no imagination. The 256 day long year is split up into sixteen months, consisting of two weeks further consisting of eight days. The only named things are days, with months, weeks, and years simply gathering a number. The days of the week are named after the base eight allomantic metals, starting with Copperday, followed by Bronzeday, Tinday, Pewterday, Ironday, Steelday, Zincday, and the final day of the week is Brassday.
There were no official holidays during the Final Empire. But the bounds of the year is tied to the winter solstice, with the two solstices and equinoxes becoming notable days. The Terris people have holidays, while the skaa are gaining them, a day in autumn being the focus of its greatest holiday- when the Lord Ruler was slain by Kelsier. Many more days have been designated holidays, but we will have to wait to see which turn into days of celebration, and which fade with time.
The Future
Mistborn: Smoke and Ash is the furthest I've ever gotten a project- this update is a crowning achievement of mine, and one I was planning on the very beginning in June, slowly typing away, slowly changing pixels on my custom map or the various flags I've thrown together, but I seemingly just can't worldbuild as fast as I write dialogue. Now that I'm past this, however, the future is looking bright, as I can stand upon the shoulders of this giant.
I will be changing the voting system as the quest continues- one vote per update on an event or choice, as well as trying out allowing people to choose the direction of Smoke and Ash, because I find myself the only one to carry out Kelsier's victory as far as I have, and it would be great if readers could request direction to the story. However, this is a story chronicling the salvation of Scadrial- for better or worse, the New Republic is the best hope for survival for Scadrial, and the weight of the world rests upon Kelsier's shoulders. Characters will not make decisions that go against their characters. Things will not divergence significantly from my plans, and I will stop trying to maximize quest options, instead limiting it- and as the story grows as I write, it'll be a surprise even to me where Mistborn: Smoke and Ash ends up.
Happy Koloss Head Munching Day, and here's to another 19 years of Mistborn!
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