Summary:The Bands of Mourning

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This page contains a chapter by chapter summary of The Bands of Mourning We hope this summary will make it easier to find specific areas of the book, as well as providing a quick plot refresher for anyone who doesn't want to take the time to reread the entire book.

Prologue

Waxillium calls to his sister, Telsin, who is sneaking off to town, skipping out on evening recitation. She refers to him by his Terris name: Asinthew. He trails along and she meets up with three others: Kwashim, Idashwy (girls), and Forch, a tall boy who is also a Twinborn and also a Coinshot. They have to sneak by his Grandmother's office. She has been called there for an emergency, so she probably won't be watching. Forch shows very little emotion. Wax has a crush on Idashwy, which seems to be reciprocated. They all head out through the Tin Gate into a different world. Wax learns that a constable is visiting his Grandmother, and he is compelled to return and find out more. He eavesdrops on the conversation. They discuss a recent arson in the Village. The constable warns that arson often covers up other crimes and that she should accept the constabulary's help. She refuses, insisting the situation is in hand. He leaves behind a bullet, infuriating Vwafendal. She catches Wax eavesdropping, and they discuss his progress in the Village. He is having trouble fitting in. He surreptitiously grabs the bullet as he leaves.

Wax meditates in the evening recitation. Afterwards, he asks Tellingdwar about crime in the Village. There was a murder 15 years back. Tellingdwar admonishes Wax to remember that all people are the same, even Terris. Wax goes to bed and tries to read as it starts to rain. He spies some movement outside and decides to investigate. He follows a trail to an old dormitory. After he enters, Forch attacks him. Wax panics and runs the wrong direction, finding himself in another room where a boy is tied down and bleeding. Forch used the escapade with the girls as an alibi. He again attacks Wax, this time Pushing nails at him. Wax tries to swallow some steel, but the pouch is Pushed away, and Forch continues to attack and wound Wax. Wax manages to swallow a little steel and saves himself after being dropped out a window by Forch. He realizes he still has the bullet, so he runs back upstairs and Pushes the bullet at Forch. Forch Pushes back, but Wax releases some of the metal in the bullet, allowing the bullet to fire. It hits Forch in the head. His grandmother and others arrive, and he knows they will hate him for bringing violence into the Village and for being right. He decides that the Village is not for him.

28 years later Wax and Wayne go on a raid with the constabulary. The gang is no match for their combined powers. Wax heads off to his wedding.

Part 1

Chapter 1

As Wax and Wayne go to an awaiting carriage, a man in a brown suit asks Wax for a moment of his time, so he decides to forgo the slow carriage and Push his way there, enjoying his flight across Elendel. He lands on a water tower next to a Survivorist church, where Steris is waiting. He and Steris talk while his valet Drewton helps him shave and change. Steris plans for disturbances and delays, knowing they will come anyway with a man like Wax, and prepares accordingly. Wax is feeling fond of Steris, especially for the way she helped him heal the last six months. The man in the brown suit shows up again and reveals that he is a Kandra. Wax is still mad at Harmony and refuses to meet with him. He is still struggling with killing Lessie. Steris cries tears of joy. As the ceremony begins, Wax starts feeling sick -- going through with this means giving up Lessie. He's not ready, but he refuses to shirk his duty. The water tower outside tips over and crashes into the glass dome. Wax grabs Steris and Pushes away.

Chapter 2

Everything in the church is soaked. There are no serious injuries. The water tower's legs only broke on one side, but it's not clear that it's an assassination attempt. Wax attempts to console Steris, who has anticipated some disruption of the wedding and has booked another church in two months. Wax cannot avoid admitting to her that he is glad it's put off for now.

Marasi looks for Wayne and finally finds him in the kitchen, masquerading as a chef and terrifying the kitchen staff. Marasi shares that the bolts on one side of the tower were loosened. Wayne admits to arranging an accident at the wedding, although he didn't expect something quite so dramatic. Wayne encourages Marasi to go after Wax, but she's not interested any more. Wayne decides to give up on Ranette, who has had a girlfriend for 15 years, and they drink a toast to moving on. The Kandra shows up again and asks Marasi for help since his first choice has rejected him. He asks her what she knows of Investiture and Identity.

Chapter 3

Wax returns home and sees signs of uninvited guests, so he Pushes himself upstairs, Vindication at the ready. It's the Kandra again, who has been invited there by Wayne. He introduces himself as VenDell of the Sixth generation. Marasi and MeLaan are also present. VenDell has asked Marasi for assistance since Wax refused. He is sets up some sort of device that turns out to be a slide projector they call an evanoscope. He says that Harmony wants to allow mankind to struggle in order to "survive what is coming." Marasi suspects this Trell is involved, but VenDell has no further information on that or Lessie's strange spikes. A chart of the Feruchemical powers is displayed on the wall, and they discuss the lesser-known spiritual properties. Research is underway, but difficult, since there are few Ferrings with those abilities. VenDell explains that everyone has a spiritual aspect or Identity, and that Investiture is the power of Allomancy and Feruchemy. So one possibility would be to store (divest) Identity, making them a "blank slate," and therefore be able to use someone else's metalmind. Another possibility is to store Identity and fill another metalmind with some other attribute, creating a metalmind that anyone could use since it isn't keyed to any one Identity. Other possibilities exist, used in combination with Hemalurgy, to give someone extraordinary powers, maybe even the Lord Ruler's. They discuss the Bands of Mouring, the Lord Ruler's metalminds -- objects of mythology that could supposedly grant someone his powers. Another Kandra, ReLuur, took some photographs of murals depicting the bracers on a pedestal, a statue that resembles the Lord Ruler, and other items bearing script of an unknown language. ReLuur returned from his expedition with a spike missing, so it's unclear what he saw and what happened because missing a spike makes a Kandra somewhat insane. The quest is to find the missing spike to save ReLuur and maybe find the Bands of Mourning while they're at it. Wax initially refuses to go with Marasi until he sees another picture of his sister being held prisoner. In broad daylight. With her head that just happens to be facing the camera.

Chapter 4

Two hours later, Wax decides that he must go for his sister. He can go to New Seran under the pretext of attending a political event. Marasi can find the spike. Steris invites herself along because it would look odd to not bring the fiancee along, but Wax is hesitant because of the danger. VenDell comes back with tickets and information and asks Wayne for his bones after he's dead since Bloodmaker's bones are interesting. Wax invites VenDell along, but the prospect of going into the field alarms VenDell, and he refuses. He offers Wax a new earring, but Wax is still angry at Harmony. Wayne heads off on a quest of his own. Using various disguises and trickery, he acquires a notebook for Ranette and gets to her house. He lets her know that he's done chasing her, and they shake hands. He makes a last-ditch effort by suggesting a -- romantic interlude -- with Ranette and her girlfriend, which Ranette sternly turns down. He hitches a ride to the train station and joins Wax and company. They head to New Seran.

Part 2

Chapter 5

As Wax travels through the southern cities, he's surprised by the level of civilization. He opens a package from Ranette that contains three sphere-and-cord contraptions and a shotgun with huge ammunition meant to take down Thugs or Koloss. He witnesses a protest against Elendel oppression at one station. He and Steris discuss the political situation in the Outer cities. Elendel routes the main infrastructure through the city in order to impose tariffs on all trade. Wax discovers that Steris is reading a book about sex. She's extremely embarrassed, but she's also frustrated that no one will answer her questions, so she researched it herself. Steris invites Wax to help her balance some books that are off by three clips, and he resignedly starts to look through a stack of ledgers.

Chapter 6

Marasi reviews the notes that VenDell had given them. ReLuur describes some sort of beast with red skin and strange eyes. She reads a little from Spook's book regarding Hemalurgy. He warns against experimentation because spike placement can cause unpredictable results. Wayne is nearby, chatting with people and learning new accents. He stops by and they talk about how awesome Wax is. Marasi feels like she's in his shadow. She turns back to the papers and finds a pouch with an earring meant for Wax. She walks back to Wax and Steris's room and finds Wax exulting in finding the last error in the ledger. She gives him the papers and pouch and heads to her room to sleep, when she realizes the rest of the train is heading off down the tracks ahead of their car. A man shoots at her.

Chapter 7

Wax notices that their car has decoupled and instinctively begins a steelpush. The bullet is diverted from hitting Marasi. There are some guys on horseback outside. They take off when they realize an Allomancer is on the car. Wax combines his powers to advance their car and reattach it to the main train. He battles the bandits, which worry him because they don't look like common thieves. He tries to restore his metal reserve but finds his vials broken. Steris provides him with three that she has brought along just in case. On one of the cargo cars, the robbers use some sort of gas to chase out the guards and blow open a safe. Wax bandages up a guard, and he relates that the robbers used Allomancy to get in the car. A small metal cube lands near Wax, and his metal reserves vanish.

Marasi is in a firefight with Steris reloading for her. One bandit tries to take a hostage, but Marasi immediately guns him down without thinking. She considers killing such a waste, that society has failed if it has to come to this point. Marasi loses track of Steris -- she has gone somewhere in a very determined fashion.

A really big dude who is also a coinshot brawls with Wax. Wax's punches are ineffectual. He escapes out a window and on top of the car and sees four bandits on another car bearing some large item. The big dude follows up with Ranette's mega shotgun that he's confiscated from Wax's abandoned gun belt. When he shoots from the hip, the gun drops from his hand and he is wounded. Wax desperately tries to get his other vial, but the brute has him pinned down until Steris shows up and fires the shotgun, wounding him. But the kick of the gun throws her off the train.

Chapter 8

Wax gets to a vial and drinks it down, although their is some delay before he can burn steel. He goes after Steris and they both splash into the river they were passing over. He uses one of the ball and cord devices to get back on the bridge after retrieving the shotgun from the bottom of the river. Steris is delighted with the whole adventure. They get back to the locomotive thanks to a big steelpush. The bandits are installing some sort of device. Wax kills the one at the controls, who slumps down on the brake. They are only minutes from the next town.

Marasi is still looking for Steris, comforting hysterical passengers as she goes. One man with a cane is calmly standing in the hall, and she tells him to get back to safety. He opens his hand and Marasi raises her rifle, but the train suddenly brakes. The man takes off, and he has dropped a small cube. Marasi collects it.

Wax shoots several bandits and deactivates and Pushes overboard the "device," which was really just a case of dynamite. The giant Coinshot reappears, and Wax manages to attach a ball and cord device to him, yanking him off the train. There are still several more bandits, and Wax is unarmed. They suddenly stop moving. Marasi has them trapped in a speed bubble.

Part 3