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who had come to Shallan instead of needing to be recruited. Ishnah had wiggled her way into being Shallan’s right-hand woman, and was the most skilled member of her Unseen Court. The most damning fact was Ishnah’s previous fascination with the Ghostbloods. Thinking of her as a traitor made Shallan’s insides squirm, but... |
crem to get by. “So, I started giving them some of my stipend, ostensibly to help them pull themselves up and out of that life.” She put her hand to her forehead. “Stormfather, I’m an idiot. Even I can hear how naive that sounds, saying it out loud. I should have known they just saw an opportunity in me. Everyone’s a m... |
And how would we feel? Shallan asked. If someone forced us to expose all our flaws, all our lies, and hung them in the open like an unfinished painting? “We’ll deal with this when we return, Ishnah,” Shallan said. “And I promise, I will help you clear it up. You’ve made a misstep, but we all make those as we seek our t... |
least likely to be the spy. And, Ishnah had been helpful in identifying Ialai’s method of death. Besides, Mraize would know she had wanted to join the Ghostbloods—and would recognize that she’d draw suspicion. It was probably one of the other two. And Beryl was the obvious choice. Shallan hadn’t failed to notice the wa... |
how downright sunny Beryl can be. Shallan folded her arms, thinking back to her own troubles with Soulcasting. Could it be that all along, the problem hadn’t been her, but Jasnah’s training method? They’d assumed two orders using the same power would be analogous. The Skybreakers and the Windrunners seemed to fly the s... |
accept what she really was? Become the person she deserved to be? Formless—who had been hiding deep inside these last few days—stirred. She’d thought him forgotten, but he had been waiting. Watching … “Help,” Shallan whispered. “Brightness?” Beryl asked. Radiant stood up straight, no longer lounging. “You are to be com... |
of bed—after collapsing into it drunk. He was never properly shaved, but also never ended up with a full beard. Vathah climbed the few steps up to the prow of the barge, the section where the mandras were harnessed. Radiant marched up after him. A female peakspren sailor instructed Vathah to heft the long pole so that ... |
reading. So, here we are.” “Indeed,” Radiant said, kneeling and scrubbing alongside him. “You are an observant man, Vathah.” “Observant enough to know you want something from me. What is it?” “I’m merely curious,” she said. “The Vathah I know would have avoided work and found a place to relax.” “Relaxing isn’t relaxing... |
the deck. “Figure if I learn to Lightweave well enough, maybe I’ll turn into someone else…” That stabbed her straight through. Strength, Shallan, Radiant thought. Strength before weakness. “Wouldn’t that be a blessing?” Vathah continued. “To become someone else? Someone new?” “You can do that without Lightweaving,” Sha... |
think what you did was worse. You’re always willing to give others more charity than you extend yourself. Shallan didn’t respond. I’m figuring it out, Shallan, Veil said. Why you keep working with Mraize. Why you won’t tell Adolin. What this is all about. It has to do with what you said earlier. When— “Not now,” Shalla... |
transport intended to move large groups of people. The end construction was little more than a large wooden rectangle: over a hundred feet long, sixty feet wide, and around forty feet thick to support three decks. They had built high walls and a roof on the rear portion of the upper deck. The front third was exposed to... |
always enjoyed heights. How he’d have loved the view from this deck … Work on this vessel had helped sustain her during the months following his death. Of course, it hadn’t been her math that had finally made this ship a reality. They’d learned about the interactions between conjoined fabrials and aluminum during the e... |
drooping alongside his face. “You must think us very disorganized, Admiral,” Navani said to him in Thaylen. “No captain’s cabin and barely a handful of bolted-down desks for a command station.” “She is an odd ship, to be sure,” the elderly sailor replied. “But majestic in her own way. I was listening to your scholars t... |
guide us toward a new horizon, Brightness. That is where we’ll find success against these invaders.” She gave Kmakl a fond pat on the arm, then hastened off toward Dalinar. He stood near the front center of the deck, and Highmarshal Kaladin was striding toward him accompanied by a bespectacled man. This must be the Win... |
and I’ll send word for the Edgedancers to hasten the evacuation.” Kaladin nodded. “I’m running low on Light, sir.” Navani slipped her notebook from her pocket as Dalinar raised his hand and pressed it against Kaladin’s chest. There was a faint … warping to the air around them, and for a moment she thought she could see... |
they had thrived. How? She knew the tower had once been occupied by a powerful spren named the Sibling. A spren on the level of the Nightwatcher or the Stormfather—and capable of making a Bondsmith. She had to assume the spren, or perhaps something about its relationship with a human, had allowed the tower to function.... |
few hundred left. Use your flying machine to rescue them, and we’ll talk. Alethi bloodlust has cost me many loved ones over the years, but I’d be a fool not to admit the value in pointing it—like the proverbial sword’s blade—at someone else.” “It will be done,” Dalinar said. Navani didn’t miss that—despite claiming ear... |
kill. They were symbols of an organized army, helmed by men and women who knew the best way to end you—if only you’d do them the favor of wandering in their direction. “You look preoccupied,” Dalinar said as he stepped over, trailed by an honor guard of ten men. “I’m thinking about symbols and why we use them,” Navani ... |
eyes. But now it was time for Dalinar to leave. So, Navani carefully tucked away her anxiety and embraced him. He plainly wasn’t thrilled to get a hug in front of his soldiers, but he didn’t say anything. After that, the two of them went to meet the governess who had brought little Gav, with his trunks of things. The y... |
“I don’t want to ruin your image,” Navani said. “A woman can hug her mother, can’t she? My reputation won’t come crashing down because I showed affection.” Still, she didn’t lean in for another. Instead she took Navani’s hand. “I apologize. I haven’t had much time for family lately. I always told myself that when I fin... |
and the Thaylens—did it differently. Not many of the original highprinces remained. They’d been forced to replace Vamah, Thanadal, and—most recently—Sadeas with distant scions loyal to Dalinar and Jasnah. But building a reputation and a princedom in exile was a difficult task. Roion’s son struggled for precisely that r... |
her. Dalinar had done the same thing. Not as deliberately, but with equal effect. But what banner did Navani want to fly? She turned with Sebarial and walked toward the tower. She’d originally come to the Shattered Plains to chase something new. A different life, one that she wanted rather than one she thought she shou... |
Sincerity might not come easily for you, but when she finds it in you, she’ll value it even more for the scarcity.” “Yes … All right. Thank you.” He waddled off, and Navani watched him go with genuine fondness. That was incredible, considering her former opinion of the man. But he’d stood with them, whether through int... |
her as she stepped through his newly made door. Falilar, the engineer, was already inside measuring what they’d discovered: a large room hidden entirely in the stone. “Brightness,” Brightness Anesa said, walking alongside her. “What was the purpose of sealing off an entire room like this?” Navani shook her head. This w... |
her younger scholars—rush into the room, holding a blinking red light. The mysterious spanreed. The one she’d received weeks ago from the unknown person who was so angry about fabrials. It was the first time they had tried to contact her since that day. Sanitation reports would wait. Other Shards I cannot identify, and... |
tapping the paper. “Either she’s one of them, or she wants us to think she is.” “Brightness,” Falilar said, “this can’t be correct. The decay is almost nonexistent.” “So they’re near to us,” Navani said. “Extremely near,” Falilar said. “Inside the tower. If we could figure out a way to make more precise scales … Regard... |
the spanreed ruby for me to find.” The person on the other end didn’t reply. I have many duties, Navani wrote. You interrupted me on my way to an important meeting. I have a few more minutes now to talk. Please. Tell us how you know what we don’t. The truth is evident to me, the pen wrote. It is not obvious to us, Nava... |
for a pathway out of this conundrum by seeking the ideal person to act on my behalf. Someone who embodies both Preservation and Ruin. A … sword, you might say, who can both protect and kill. Adolin glanced up as he heard the call from the watchpost at the front of the barge. Land sighted. Finally, he thought, giving Ga... |
last night. As usual, she’d had a few more cups than Adolin. Shallan had a strange relationship with drink, one that varied based on her persona. But since she could burn off the effects using Stormlight, she theoretically could never be drunk unless she wanted to be. It baffled him why she would sometimes go to sleep ... |
our trip—then spend the remainder to load up the barge.” Ua’pam’s cousin would wait at the town to guard their supplies. Adolin’s group only needed to carry enough to get to and from Lasting Integrity. Assuming everything went well with Shallan’s investigation of the town. As they waited, Adolin found himself feeling i... |
same beside him—and her form was perfect. Even Zahel on his worst day wouldn’t have found reason to reset her stance. Adolin slowly moved through the kata, and she followed—holding nothing but empty air, but moving in lockstep with him as he thrust, then reset, then turned. Conversation on the other side of the enclosu... |
wasn’t thinking straight, Veil thought. That’s kind of the point of drinking.… She can’t use Stormlight very well, Shallan thought. Don’t blame her. At least the pain was fading. When she’d taken in Stormlight to put on her illusory face, it had healed some of the agony. Stormlight was precious, however, and she’d used... |
facing it than a peakspren!” He turned to his sailors, who seemed eager. A couple of weeks on the same barge could make anyone bored of the scenery, including sailors. Soon, Veil was blessedly alone. So far this trip, she’d been alone only when using the chamber pot in the draped-off section beneath the tarp. Even that... |
second time it had been moved. The night she’d gotten drunk. Inside, Radiant groaned in annoyance. Sorry, Veil thought, taking over. But we can’t watch it all the time. Besides, we want the spy to feel comfortable using it, right? So that we have more chances to catch them? Regardless, she couldn’t deny it felt creepy ... |
away and vanish—then it quickly grew back. He even spotted a couple of highspren, like tears in reality in the shape of people. He gave them a wide berth, though they seemed to be just another pair of merchants. Spren clothing was as eclectic as their building materials. He passed one peakspren wearing a Veden uniform ... |
doing this right. I don’t know how to be supportive.” He wasn’t good with relationships. He never had been. He could admit that to himself now. He’d been in dozens, and they’d all fallen apart—so he had all kinds of experience doing this wrong, but very little doing it right. He wanted to do it right. He loved Shallan,... |
on shelves, not in stacks and piles like many other shops. “You are Alethi,” he said, inspecting Adolin. He spoke with a sharp nasal accent. “And you are male. You have no need for books. This is.” “I wanted to ask after your deadeye,” Adolin said, nodding to the Cryptic. “A friend she was,” the shopkeeper said, his vo... |
moments. This experience … she’d done this before. She’d been here, kneeling on the ground, holding a cube that glowed from the corners. Exactly like this. She reached to the top of the cube, feeling the smooth metal, and expected it to be dimpled. She cocked her head, inspecting her fingers as she lifted them up and r... |
when I show initiative?” “Initiative is wonderful, and your possession of it is commendable. However, our organization survives based on principles of hierarchy. A group of hunters working together could turn upon one another far too easily. “And so, I respect my babsk, and you respect me. We do not strike against our ... |
Yet he called them gloryspren. HA! Veil thought. Oh, storms, Radiant thought. Veil’s plan worked. She’s going to be insufferable now. Insufferable? I’m incredible. Mraize has fallen into a common trap—that of being so clever, you start forgetting your fundamentals. Always question your information. “Understood,” Shalla... |
said. “They could be wearing manifested clothing they traded for while here. Oh! You mustn’t assume that what you see here relates to what you know from your life, human highprince.” “We could ask them, right?” Godeke said. “See if they’ll talk to us?” The two exchanged a look, and then Adolin shrugged. Why not? He wal... |
It seemed his confrontation with the honorspren might happen sooner than he’d planned. * * * Shallan finished sketching by the light of gemstones, still sitting underneath the canopy. The locked chest beside her held the strange communications device, now re-created in her sketches. She’d attracted a few spren out of t... |
but I worry. Adolin agrees, though I don’t think he sees what I do.” “What do you see?” she asked softly. “Something else looking out of your eyes, sometimes. Something new. It comes out when … when I try to talk about your past. So I’m afraid to do it. Sometimes you tease that you want me to say more. Then those other... |
“A criminal, on the run, has stolen a precious memento from the king—his beloved goblet, perhaps. A memory of his lost wife. Would it be reasonable for this thief to stroll up to the palace one day and try to normalize relations between him and the king? Would that instead not be idiocy?” “We took nothing from the hono... |
Notum said, “to wander Shadesmar as dead souls, unable to think or talk. Our bodies are used, screaming, as weapons by the descendants of the ones who killed us. It was not a simple mistake that led us to this state, but a coordinated and calculated betrayal of oaths. “Your people are criminals. The sole reason there w... |
near. Perhaps we will meet again along the path, human prince, and I can dissuade you from this course.” He continued on. Ua’pam and Zu were already on the barge, and they’d apparently arranged for Adolin’s party to set up in one of the several camps established outside town. So Adolin joined the others as they unloade... |
This highland valley was mostly barren, supporting just the most rugged of rockbuds and the occasional clump of squat trees, their branches interwoven to create a storm-resistant snarl. Though leaves on these trees would retract before storms, the branches remained firm and interlocked. There wasn’t a single lifespren ... |
that, Ancient One.” “Yes, I realize how much work she does to make others underestimate her.” Raboniel said it to Satisfaction. “She is dangerous, and that is good.” She looked to Venli and blinked her red eyes once, humming softly to Satisfaction. Timbre thrummed within Venli. Raboniel knew too much. She’d plainly dis... |
Radiant can cast a stone into the sky, but the shanay-im can soar without worry of ever dropping.” Venli hummed to Craving, though she wasn’t certain she agreed. Although she had been timid about using her Radiant powers in Kholinar, they excited her. Timbre said that she would be able to move stone, shape it. She glan... |
for this incursion. The soldiers of the Pursuer had also joined them—and they were a group Venli knew by their fearsome reputation. They’d been harsh to the humans of Kholinar, but were among the strongest and proudest singer troops, with distinctive uniforms always worn with pride. Now those intermingled with Leshwi’s... |
thing!” Zu grinned at Adolin, then winked, as if her bravado were partially just to unnerve her spren. Even after weeks traveling with her, Adolin didn’t know what to make of the strange Stoneward. She lightly leaped off the outcropping and slid down the smooth obsidian, graceful as an Edgedancer. Below, she slapped Ua... |
you.” “It’s limited for most of us at the start,” Shallan said, nodding toward Vathah, who was walking alongside the Cryptics. “The first time I caught him Lightweaving, he didn’t believe he’d actually done it. It seems to surprise him each time he makes it happen.” “I’ve tried his way,” Beryl said with a grimace. “He ... |
exhausted of the struggle today. So, reluctantly, Veil took over. And for now she stuck close to Beryl, trying to catch her in a lie. Unfortunately, a short time later, Adolin came tromping up. Like an axehound looking for something to chase. However, even Veil had to admit that with his floppy hair and his can-do atti... |
agree with your worries. We have exactly one chance to present ourselves properly to the honorspren. They are a hostile group—indeed, one that has self-selected toward hostility. We can surmise that the spren most willing to listen to our arguments have already joined the Knights Radiant. “Your ploy of acting weak and ... |
… I don’t know, she feels different. Off.” He noticed! Shallan thought in a panic. He noticed, Veil thought with relief. “She has been retreating more and more these days,” Radiant said. “She claims to be tired. But … there is something going on with us. I can try to make her emerge.” “Please.” She tried. She sincerely... |
They didn’t have to do this alone. If only they could persuade Shallan of that fact. We must assume that Odium has realized this, and is seeking a singular, terrible goal: the destruction—and somehow Splintering or otherwise making impotent—of all Shards other than him. There was more than one way to protect. Kaladin h... |
arm, and her face looked so sad he had to turn away. He didn’t like to talk to her about his past, the years between then and now. During those years she’d lost her loving boy, Kal. That child was dead, long ago buried in crem. At least by the time he’d found her again, Kaladin had become the man he was now. Broken, bu... |
Veil saw more. The way Arshqqam kept her silver hair carefully braided. The engraved ring she wore on her right hand was her only jewelry, and it bore no valuable gemstone, just some milky white quartz. She argued with Adolin—one of the most powerful men in the world—as easily as she might have argued with a water bear... |
Shallan’s agents at the campfire meeting; the other two were preparing breakfast. She looked up sharply from where she’d been sitting behind the others. “I … I really don’t know,” she said, glancing back at her feet and blushing as everyone turned toward her. “You’re a knight,” Radiant said. “At least one in training. ... |
problems; you just need experience giving your opinion in a place where it’s safe for you to fail.” “Yes, Brightness,” she said, relaxing visibly. “Thank you, Brightness.” She bowed and ducked away to go help with breakfast. I am not the expert, Radiant thought. But I increasingly agree with Veil’s skepticism. Shallan,... |
continuing west.” They’d invited the honorspren to join them, since his patrol had been going along the coast nearby. He’d refused every invitation. “I wish you the best then, Notum,” Adolin said. “It was good to see you again. Thanks for your advice.” “I would prefer you take that advice. I assume you have not reconsi... |
The constant sound of clacking beads became a quiet hum as they moved farther from the shore, and Shallan stirred again. The landscape here was so interesting. Plants grew like frost here, coating much of the obsidian—and they crackled wherever she and Adolin stepped, breaking and tinkling to dust. Larger plants grew l... |
Adolin replied. “He mentioned the view up along here is gorgeous.” Veil narrowed her eyes, but really, was she going to be suspicious of Adolin? She forced her attention back to the spy problem as she followed him, but storms, he was right. The view up here was breathtaking. The endless sea of beads reflected distant s... |
said. “You deliberately put me in a position where I’d have to start sketching. And here I was thinking how ingenuous you are.” “I only wanted to see you enjoy yourself,” he said. “You’ve been so serious these last few weeks.” She sketched by instinct, absorbing the sight and bleeding it out on the paper. It wasn’t a c... |
didn’t try to kill me,” Adolin said, “but I probably could have died of embarrassment from the interaction.” She leaned forward immediately, opening her eyes wide. “Oooh…” He glanced at her, then blushed. “Storms. I really shouldn’t have said anything.” “Can’t stop now,” she said, poking him in the side with her foot. ... |
yes, but she was trying so hard to find acceptance. I don’t see an evil child in her now. The others were unkind to Renarin, and she figured she could bond by doing likewise.” “Doesn’t excuse that kind of behavior.” “You used to think he was weird too,” Adolin noted. “Maybe,” Shallan said, as it was uncomfortably true.... |
his, then pulled him closer. Feeling his breath on her neck as he drew close. She kissed him then, and as she did, she caught a glimpse of the sky. The majestic spren had started to fade into the cloud—perhaps feeling ignored now that her attention was on someone else. Well, it wasn’t the spren’s fault. It simply could... |
understood. You took special care of a soldier who had left part of herself on the battlefield. They started out for the day, Adolin leading the column, though Godeke and his spren were scouting ahead. The solemn Edgedancer didn’t have any Stormlight—they’d used the last of it the previous night, making food stores for... |
to the front of the column when the truth struck him. * * * Veil closed the top of the trunk with the communication cube, then locked it. She couldn’t always rely on the spy to return the cube in a different orientation after moving it, so—using a trick she’d learned from Tyn long ago—she’d started dusting it with a fa... |
went chasing after Adolin, but they were far slower than the Ryshadium. Something that large shouldn’t be so fast. She marched double-time beside Godeke and Zu, and they outpaced the Stump and some of the spren. However, while Radiant’s training with Adolin over the last twelve months meant she wasn’t soft, she also ha... |
Spren had been … cagey about whether they could be killed in Shadesmar. He’d seen them carry weapons, and during his earlier trip, Notum’s sailors had admitted that spren could be cut and would feel pain. “Killing” them involved hurting them so much that their minds broke and they became something akin to a deadeye. St... |
could use many of the same sword forms—and there was something solid about a greatsword that Adolin had always liked. He strode across the black obsidian ground and started shouting. “Hey!” he said, holding the sword out to the side with both hands. “Hey!” That got their attention. The dark figures moved away from Notu... |
he made great sweeps with his sword, more warding blows than actual attacks. As he dodged around the side, some of them glanced the other way as a soldier at the rear barked an order. That cost them. Adolin crashed into the pack’s flank, slamming the greatsword into one man’s side, then ripping it free with a heave and... |
thought, but the enemy was closing in again. He’d brutalized them quickly and efficiently at first—but it was still fourteen on one, and they seemed to realize he was doomed. They pulled tighter around him, forcing him to keep moving and trying to watch all of them at once. There was one man left with a shield, and he ... |
captain shouted them back into place. Maybe if Adolin could get at that man, a figure wearing a blue-on-yellow-patterned overcoat … Adolin tried, but two men stepped in to defend the leader. Boots on stone behind made Adolin spin, block, then spin again. All around him, others danced in a strange motion, moving unexpec... |
pushed around. Never underestimate the strength of a soldier trained to stand fast. He roared at the men, swinging his greatsword before them, breaking their charge as they pulled up short. Yes, a crowd could overwhelm one, and sword skill could only hold them back so long. But training was about more than learning to ... |
nearby rise, spyglasses to their eyes, keeping a cautious watch on the enemy caravan. It was—fortunately—withdrawing. Shallan’s agents were circumspectly going through the pockets of the dead, searching for clues to their origins. She spotted Vathah depositing some spheres into his own pouch, and was going to shout at ... |
one of the horses, during which Godeke—oddly—began moving among the fallen, inspecting their faces. “Godeke?” Shallan asked. “They’re going to be left out here to rot,” Godeke said quietly. “Those others won’t come back for them.” “They tried to kill Notum,” Adolin said. “And me.” “I realize this,” Godeke said. “But we... |
they could march straight for Lasting Integrity. Radiant took over from Shallan again as he gave the commands, and she immediately recognized the wisdom in them. Despite Adolin’s brilliant show of swordplay, their group was quite exposed. Without Stormlight, most of the Radiants barely counted as warriors. Adolin was w... |
back in her youth. Perhaps in her childhood, during those shadowy days she’d forgotten? Could the conspiracy go back that far? Her association with Pattern stretched back to that time, for certain. She’d used him as a Blade to kill her mother. Shallan had suppressed many of those memories, but this fact was indisputabl... |
that the Ghostbloods were watching her when she was a child. If we can discover facts to confirm this, it might help us figure out how to beat them.” “Mm. That makes sense, I suppose!” he said. “I don’t remember much though.” “You were together once, in the garden, with Shallan,” Veil said—fabricating a complete lie. “... |
For now, he kept a strong front. He had Notum stay back, though he was certain the three approaching honorspren had seen him. They rode on those same graceful not-horses that Notum had been riding earlier. His had run off in a panic when he’d been attacked, and they hadn’t been able to locate it. These newcomers wore s... |
as ordered. Humans never respect that, never accept that spren can own anything. We are possessions to you.” “I don’t—” “You will leave,” she said. “We reject your offer! We reject your bonds!” Adolin took a deep breath, each of his arguments dying like shriveled plants starved for rainwater. Until only one dangerous p... |
these new Radiants? Or have you already killed your spren?” “I’m not a Radiant,” Adolin said. “But yes, Maya is my Blade.” “Then we must be certain you are not mistreating her,” the honorspren said. “We care for all deadeyes. Bring her, and two others. Decide quickly.” Adolin ground his teeth. “Allow me to confer.” As ... |
withdraw the Stormlight. Other methods must exist, as proven by the extremely large gemstone fabrials created by the Vriztl Guild out of Thaylenah. If Her Majesty would please repeat my request to the guild, this secret is of vital importance to the war effort. —Lecture on fabrial mechanics presented by Navani Kholin t... |
work of whoever had drenched her. Veil wiped her eyes with her safehand sleeve, and found herself someplace dank and humid. Plants on the stone walls had pulled in at the ruckus, and the sky was a distant crack high in the air. Lifespren bobbed around many thick plants and vines. She was in one of the chasms. Kelek’s b... |
drunken has-been at the bar, trying to drum up enough pity to get a free drink. It was more pathetic than interesting. Mraize had explained about this group and their efforts to bring back the Heralds—who had actually never been gone. Gavilar had led them along, used their resources—and their hearts—to further his own ... |
been a Radiant, she couldn’t have sworn a false oath.” Oh, you sweet soft breeze, Veil thought. Bless you for being so naive. We’re not all Bondsmiths or their ilk. The Windrunners or Skybreakers might have had trouble being so glib with a broken promise, but Shallan’s order was founded on the idea that all people lied... |
your understanding. Weeks after destroying the spanreed, Navani still hadn’t made headway discovering the nature of the spren who had contacted them. Their triangulation of the spanreed had led them to a strange dark location on the fourth floor of the tower, near a monastery. The measurements hadn’t been precise enoug... |
lifts.” “But we already have fabrials for that!” he said. “Think of the flexibility this would allow Brightlord Dalinar. Wearing this gauntlet, he could go zip all the way to the top without needing to wait for a lift! Walking outside the tower, and don’t want to go all the way to the central shaft to catch a lift? No ... |
for this device. If someone needed to reach a flying ship that had already taken off, for example. “I like it,” she told Tomor. “It’s a little hard on the shoulder though. I wonder if it would be better as some kind of belt, instead of a glove.” “A belt…” he said, eyes opening wide. “A flying belt.” “Well, a levitating... |
a false alarm. “What is it?” the lieutenant asked as one of his guards jogged over. “Not sure,” he said. “Those men say they’re working at Brightness Navani’s request.” “I apologize, Brightness,” the lieutenant said, stepping back. He let her pass, though his soldiers maintained close proximity to her as she stepped in... |
as she was leaving, Navani noticed Isabi taking a message from one of her spanreeds and looking anxious. Navani stepped over to the girl’s table, mentally preparing herself. What would it be this time? More tariff complaints from the Thaylens? She leaned in, reading over Isabi’s shoulder, and got to the words “explosio... |
search for a proper incursion point. “Come,” she said to Command. Venli followed, joining Raboniel, Rothan, three Deepest Ones, and a soldier she didn’t know. Raboniel didn’t forbid Venli, and none of the others seemed to care that she was there. They made their way around the side of the mountain, passing a pile of wh... |
a dark ocean up to their necks. Then, eyes closed, they vanished beneath the stone. * * * “I feel blind,” Lirin explained as Kaladin sat with him. Today Hesina was taking Kaladin’s patients—the ones with battle shock—to see the tower stables. She insisted that taking care of animals would help, though Kaladin couldn’t ... |
get heard.…” He trailed off, perhaps realizing that excuse didn’t work any longer. Not when his son was one of the most powerful men alive—despite his retirement. Kaladin could change things. He could get doctors some kind of religious appointment, so they could learn to read without feeling like they were breaking soc... |
all right?” Kaladin asked. “Fine,” Teft said. “Cravings?” Kaladin guessed. Teft shrugged. “Thought I’d gotten past the headaches a few months ago. Guess they’re back.” * * * Venli smashed the human soldier’s skull against the stone wall, and the bone cracked with a sickening sound—like a wooden shell breaking. In a fla... |
strong. In truth, she had already been selfish and ambitious. Timbre pulsed comfortingly, but Venli couldn’t accept the sentiment. She bore the humans no love—they had murdered thousands of her people. But Venli herself had doomed many listeners. She didn’t want to kill anyone. Not anymore. She climbed to her feet, sha... |
cleaning woman who had first rushed to help at the sound of the detonation—she had a sinking feeling. She had caused this somehow by asking those two women to study the sphere. Now she’d likely lost it and the lives of two expert scholars. Storms. What had happened? The guards wanted a scholar to inspect the room for o... |
dangerous. She would have to be satisfied with the strength her Regal form gave her. Certainly she was better off than an average singer would have been. The rest of the force, however—in stormform—was stronger than she was, and Raboniel kept an aggressive pace. Each moment became excruciating, and Venli focused only o... |
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