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Brandon Sanderson - [Stormlight Archive 01]

Page 80

by The Way of Kings Prime (ALTERNATIVE VERSION) (pdf)


  yet. I didn’t make the connection, though I had, of course, heard of

  Windrunners.”

  Windrunners. Merin had heard of them too, in legends and stories. One

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  of the Ten Epellion, Epoch Warriors dedicated to the preservation of the

  peace of men.

  “But—” he began, but Renarin cut him off again.

  “And Lady Shinri,” Renarin said, turning to her. “I realize that your ex-

  perience is limited, but how did you feel when you touched the Oathgate’s

  opal? What did you see?”

  She glanced at him, obviously still uncomfortable. “I didn’t see anything,”

  she challenged.

  “Ah, but you did,” Renarin said. “You felt things, knew things, that

  others do not—if just for a moment. Tell me, Shinri, when were you born?”

  Shinri frowned. “We need to go,” she said, tone growing cool. “If we

  don’t get to the Oathgates, then—”

  “Please,” Renarin said firmly. “Please answer my question.”

  Merin frowned slightly. Something about Renarin had changed. It wasn’t

  just his strange actions, it was something about the boy’s temperament.

  He seemed far more confident, less withdrawn. The old Renarin would

  never have been able to command a conversation, yet this one forced even

  a courtly-trained lady into acquiescence.

  “The sixty-fifth year of the century,” she said. “On the tenth day of

  Mar-Kav.”

  “You, Merin?” Renarin asked.

  “The same year,” Merin said. “Nine-hundred and sixty-five. On the tenth

  of Mar-Nolh.”

  Renarin nodded. “And I was born on the seventeenth of Mar-Taln,

  during the same year. Merin, Shinri, and Renarin. Jade, opal, and onyx.

  Three births in the same year. Perhaps, rather than asking if I am mad, we should be wondering something else. What happened seventeen years ago

  that awakened the old powers again?”

  Merin stood quietly, unable to shake off the aura of those words. He

  stood, holding Shinri’s bracelet, rubbing his thumb against the smooth

  green stone . . . just like Renarin did with the shard of onyx held at his side. The air floated and curled in its uncaring way, its dancing performed only for Merin. The others could not see. Was it too much to believe that

  Renarin saw something in those insane and scattered marks, something

  plain and clear to him, but invisible to everyone else?

  “We have to go,” Shinri said, her voice shocking Merin out of his stupor.

  “Just a moment,” Merin said. “Renarin, my opal?”

  Renarin reached into a cleft in the wall’s stone, retrieving the dark black opal Merin had shoved desperately through the hole between their cel s once

  THE WAY OF KINGS PRIME 575

  he realized the men intended to take him. Merin accepted the black stone,

  then rammed the Shardblade’s pommel against the edge of the stone door,

  knocking free the previous owner’s opal. The metal clasps immediately bent back, resting open, like the maw of an insect. Merin placed his own opal

  inside, and the claw-like silver tines bent closed, locking the stone in place.

  The change was immediate. The Blade glistened, shimmering like it was

  made of a silvery liquid. It stretched slightly, thinning and adopting a slight curve. The patterns shimmered, forming the familiar glyphs that had once

  lined Merin’s Blade, then outlining them in the same wave-like pattern.

  The weapon’s hilt lengthened and formed to fit his grip, changing from

  awkward to familiar in the passing of a few heartbeats. When the process

  was finished, the weapon Merin held was indistinguishable from the one

  that had been taken from him a few weeks before, that day after they had

  discovered Aredor’s body.

  Merin raised the Blade, its presence comforting him like that of an old

  friend. The silvery metal glistened, and for the first time Merin realized that he had been wrong about the blade’s markings. The patterns weren’t those

  of rivers or waves, as he had once assumed. No, they were imitations of the air patterns around him. If the winds were somehow solidified and trapped

  in metallic form, they would look something like the Blade’s design. It had known him, even before he had known himself.

  “Can we go now?” Shinri asked testily.

  “Yes,” Merin said. “Lead us to the Oathgates.”

  The first guard died before the other four realized they were under

  attack. Merin cut down a second man, pushing his way into the Oathgate

  chamber as the last three men reacted. As instructed, Renarin ducked

  around the corner behind Merin, leaping at one of the soldiers and drawing his attention. Merin struck at the other two. One man raised his sword,

  the fear starting to dawn in his eyes.

  Few men, nobleman or citizen, could face a Shardbearer and maintain

  still nerves. Apparently, a Shardbearer had guarded the room before—but it was the same man who had been ordered to bring Merin’s head. The other

  soldiers were just regular men.

  Merin’s Blade sheared his opponent’s weapon in half, then continued

  on through flesh. Merin turned on the last soldier, who held his sword in

  sweaty palms. He probably knew what to do—the way to attack a Shard-

  bearer was to strike quickly, hoping that luck or skill would guide the blow.

  A regular man could not defeat a Shardbearer in an extended fight.

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  The soldier was a younger man. Merin could see his tension, see him

  preparing for his strike—the last one he would make.

  Shinri’s voice suddenly snapped in the air. Merin gritted his teeth in

  annoyance as the woman entered the room, oblivious to his suggestion that

  she remain outside until the fighting was complete.

  Merin’s opponent shot a glance at the soldier Renarin was fighting. Both

  men lowered their weapons and backed from the room, keeping wary eyes

  on Merin. A moment later they were gone, dashing down the hallway,

  screaming for aid.

  “What was that?” Merin demanded, lowering his weapon.

  “I suggested that they go for help,” Shinri said, walking into the room.

  “We’ll be through the Oathgates before they return, and our escape route

  will hardly remain secret for long with these corpses laying around.”

  Merin didn’t look down, ignoring her gesture. “Let’s go,” he said, turning and walking into the central chamber. The white marble floor was wondrous, yet the ten sculpted gateways—resplendent with cuts of stones and gems,

  many of which Merin couldn’t name—made even the marble look drab.

  “Why do you do that?” Shinri asked curiously, joining him among the

  Oathgates.

  “What?” Merin asked.

  “You refuse to look at them,” Shinri said. “The men you kill.”

  Merin gritted his teeth, not turning, careful to face away from the car-

  nage near the room’s entrance. “That’s what they taught us,” he said. “Two years ago, when I was trained as a spearman. The veterans told us to focus on the fighting, not the dead at our feet. They said never to look down.”

  “I see,” Shinri said curiously, studying his face with the infuriatingly

  knowing look all the courtly women seemed to have mastered.

  “Merin, we need to talk,” Renarin said, sheathing his sword and tugging

  on Merin’s cloak. “We have to decide
where we’re going.”

  Merin frowned. “What decision is there to make?” he asked. “We’re

  going to Kholinar.”

  “Maybe,” Renarin said. “We need to talk, though.”

  “Choose quickly,” Shinri advised. “I intend to be in Thalenah before

  those soldiers return, and you’ll need me to open the gate for you.”

  Merin allowed himself to be drawn to the side. “What?” he asked. “Why

  not Kholinar?”

  “The city is likely to be besieged,” Renarin said. “King Ahven would

  have been a fool not to send forces to watch both Kholinar and Orinjah.

  They’re both in laits.”

  THE WAY OF KINGS PRIME 577

  “So?” Merin asked.

  “Laits make wonderful positions for cities because of the rivers and the

  climate,” Renarin said, “but they’re horribly difficult to defend. Trapped in a steep valley, your opponent always has the high-ground advantage. A

  small containing force can usually hold a much larger one within a walled

  city, given that city is in a lait. If I’d been Ahven, I would have immediately sent forces to hold Kholinar and Orinjah to keep Elhokar from receiving

  reinforcements. It makes tactical sense.”

  Merin frowned. “I don’t mean to offend, Renarin, but I thought you

  didn’t know very much about tactics.”

  “My problem has never been knowledge, Merin,” Renarin said. “Leader-

  ship isn’t as much about what you know, but about how confidently you

  display it. That’s immaterial now, however. I just . . . don’t think we should go to Kholinar. We’ll be trapped.”

  Merin’s frown deepened as he noticed the onyx in Renarin’s hand and the

  quick, tense exhales of wind coming from his nostrils. “Is this a guess . . .

  or something else?”

  “A little of both,” Renarin said. “Like I said—I made my projections

  on too small a scale, which limited my view. I don’t think we should go to Kholinar.”

  “Where then?” Merin asked.

  “Lakhenran,” Renarin said confidently.

  “Lakhenran?” Merin asked. “That’s part of Jah Keved—a conquered

  kingdom. Why would you want to go there!”

  “I don’t know,” Renarin said with equal confidence.

  Merin sighed, shaking his head. “It isn’t that I don’t trust your opinion, but . . . I don’t know, Renarin. Can you really do what you say? I mean,

  see the future?”

  “It’s not like that,” Renarin said. “It’s like . . . I can see the very edges of something massive, some enormous wealth of information. I dare not

  get too close. It’s tremendous, and if I step inside, I fear what I might see.

  Yet, standing on the edges, I get hints of things. Possibilities. I see them in the way the numbers arrange, the way the permutations fall when random

  elements are incorporated. You have to trust me.”

  Merin turned, eyeing Shinri, who stood nervously beside the Thalenah

  Oathgate. If soldiers returned, she would obviously have no qualms opening her own Oathgate and leaving Merin and Renarin behind.

  Merin turned back to Renarin. Kholinar, with the safety of Lord

  Dalenar’s wisdom, had seemed like such an obvious choice. But, at the

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  same time, there was going to be grave disappointment within those wise

  eyes.

  “My father won’t be there anyway,” Renarin said. “He’s marched on

  Crossguard already.”

  Renarin seemed so certain of himself now, so different from the quiet,

  unassuming boy of before. “All right,” Merin said. “We’ll go to Lakhenran.

  I hope you’re right about this.”

  Merin turned back toward the Oathgates, but Renarin caught his arm.

  “There’s something else,” Renarin whispered. “We need to take her

  with us.”

  Merin froze. “What?” he demanded quietly.

  “Lady Shinri,” Renarin said. “She must not go to Thalenah. Even if we

  only consider political reasonings, we need to keep her with us—she has

  power over the Oathgates, Merin, and she’s the wife of the man invading

  our homeland. We can’t let her just let her slip away.”

  Merin felt his stomach turn. “You can’t be suggesting what I think you

  are,” he said through gritted teeth. “The woman just saved my life!”

  “And we should show our thanks by making certain she doesn’t fall

  into enemy hands,” Renarin said. “I’ll take care of it. Just be ready to back me up.”

  Merin closed his eyes. There wasn’t time for arguing, however. The room

  would soon be flooded with Veden soldiers, and Shardblade or no, Merin

  couldn’t fight an entire palace worth of soldiers.

  “Lady Shinri,” he said. “Please open the Gate to Lakhenran.”

  “Lakhenran?” She asked with surprise. “What wind takes you that

  direction! Why not just go to Veden City itself!”

  “Just do it, please,” Merin said.

  She sighed, walking over to a rectangular Gate constructed of a ruddy

  bronze metal, inset with smooth, bubble-like red gems. She reached out to

  the large opal at the side of the Gate, and lay her hand upon it.

  She made a sudden intake of breath, visible only to Merin, and held it.

  Her eyes closed, and her face adopted a strangely excited look.

  It’s like Renarin said, Merin realized. She sees things within the opal, things like the wind, or Renarin’s numbers.

  Misty-white smoke fell from the top of the Gate, coating its center like

  an undulating sheet. The Gate was active. Merin took a breath and strode

  forward, through the sheet, and stepped into an empty, dome-like room

  lit by several windows.

  Renarin approached the Gate behind him. Merin could see him through

  THE WAY OF KINGS PRIME 579

  the patch of disturbed smoke, standing beside the still-enraptured Shinri.

  Renarin met Merin’s eyes, then reached out and grabbed Shinri by the

  shoulder, pushing her through the Oathgate before him.

  Shinri yelped in surprise, her eyes snapping open and she stumbled—and

  nearly fell—through the smoke. Renarin came through afterward, still

  holding firmly to Shinri’s arm.

  “What is this!” the girl screamed, struggling. “Let me go!” She twisted

  in Renarin’s grip, turning to flail against him with a barrage of feminine punches. Renarin held her as best he could, but the woman was amazingly

  agile. She squirmed and writhed in his grip, trying to leap toward the

  still-open Oathgate and escape.

  Merin sighed. Almighty forgive me, he thought. Because this certainly doesn’t feel very noble . . .

  “Enough!” Merin snapped, raising his Shardblade, point-first toward

  Shinri. “Close the gate, Lady Shinri. We don’t want the Vedens knowing

  which Gate we chose.”

  Shinri froze, eyes falling on the glimmering Blade just a few inches from

  her chin. She looked up, enraged anger flaring in her eyes. “How dare you!”

  “Listen,” Merin said. “The soldiers are coming on the other side. You

  don’t have time to escape through another Oathgate anyway. Close the

  portal. Otherwise they’ll pour through and take us captive. You think

  they’ll let you have another chance to escape after this?”

  Slowly, something coalesced in Shinri’s eyes—her rage cooling to an icy

  hatred, then dropping behind a vei
l of control. Her face grew flat, and she shook off Renarin’s hands with a dignified motion. At that moment, Merin

  noticed something odd—her sleeve was turned inside out, and the inside

  lining of the cloth was unraveled in a twisted mess.

  “You’re no better than him,” Shinri said, laying her hand on the Gate’s control opal. This time she did not close her eyes. The smoke dissipated,

  and the Oathgate fell still.

  Merin breathed in relief. A moment later, the doors to the Oathgate

  chamber burst open, and two tenset worried soldiers piled into the room.

  “Congratulations,” Shinri said. “You’ve managed to lead us from one

  prison into another.”

  chapter 64

  JASNAH 14

  Taln’s disappearance didn’t stop the influx of soldiers and

  recruits—apparently, the momentum of the Herald rumors were too

  strong to be bothered by something so trivial as the actual Herald’s absence.

  The army was a frighteningly diverse group. Many of its members showed

  surprising, even alarming, faith in Taln’s ability to defeat their pursuers. If these believers had been in charge, the army would have turned to follow

  its god—not to help, but to watch in wonder as their Herald destroyed the

  infidels.

  Jasnah listened to such sentiments with stupefaction. Most of those

  who spoke hadn’t even heard of the army a few weeks before, yet they

  were already fanatically devoted to their ‘god.’ Granted, most of them were Elinrah believers, and while orthodox Vorinism had given up on the myth

  of the Returns long ago, Elinrah still taught men to watch for signs of the coming Heralds. Yet Jasnah couldn’t help thinking that if these people’s

  faith was truly as powerful and as loyal as they claimed, they wouldn’t be willing to transfer it to Taln so flippantly. They were exactly the sort of chaotic element that made her uncomfortable with religion.

  Others in the army were far more skeptical. The mercenaries formed the

  keenest edge of this sentiment, and Vinde—Kemnar’s lanky second—had

  difficulty keeping the zealots from turning on their more secular comrades.

  THE WAY OF KINGS PRIME 581

  Even with Vinde’s policing force—formed from some of the army’s more

  stable elements—there were occasional brawls. Of course, some of that

  could be blamed on the overall tension in the army; for while there were a good number of both zealots and skeptics, the majority of the people were

 

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