Summary:The Bands of Mourning
[[Category: Spoilers for Book shorthand incorrect]]
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 Mourning, 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.
Chapter 9
At the train station, Wax gets attended to by a physician. The local captain tells him that the robbery was perpetrated by the Nightstreet Gang, a notorious gang in the area. Wax talks to the captain about the gang as he worriedly searches for Wayne. Matieu asks Wax for help in catching the ones that got away, but Marasi reminds him that he already has a task. Wax finally sees moving blue lines and finds Wayne in an empty compartment, hiding in the luggage compartment in the floor. MeLaan is there with him, topless.
Marasi is incensed at Wayne and MeLaan, but Wayne was just "moving on" from Ranette. With the noise from the tracks (and their own noise), MeLaan and Wayne had no idea there was a fight going on. MeLann asks about the attack, and he tells about the cube that acted as a Leecher would. Marasi reveals the cube she got from the guy with the cane. Wax decides to continue on to New Seran despite the unusual attack. Steris is off doing needlework -- something she does when she's really upset. Wax comforts her.
Chapter 10
The group arrives at New Seran on a cargo train and are impressed by the beauty of the city with its waterfalls, terraces, and streams. Their hotel is on a higher tier in the city, and Wax doesn't want to wait for a gondola, so he steelpushes himself and Marasi to the top tier, intending to go back and get the others. As they walk toward the hotel, Wax spies a headline on a broadsheet. One of his old nemeses, Ape Manton, is apparently in New Seran. He starts to investigate, but then turns back, again remembering their primary goal of the trip. For him, it's finding his uncle.
The owner of the hotel introduces the group to their suite. She becomes quite unnerved at their strange behavior (Wax ripping out windows, MeLaan talking about breast size, etc.) and Steris's list of calamities that may befall the hotel while they're there. She insists that the staff be prepared. Marasi and Wayne prepare to search graveyards for the missing spike, while the others prepare to go to the party.
Chapter 11
Wax rides toward the party given by Kelesina Shores. Steris tries to calm his nerves. Wax doesn't want to wait in the long carriage line, so they get out and walk. Steris has prepared a list of conversation starters and people to use them on so they can get information about the Bands of Mourning. Wax grudgingly looks through the book and is impressed by Steris's thorough preparation. He wonders how she had time to do so. They come across a beggar and Wax gives him a bank note. The beggar tosses back a coin as "change." They enter and Wax has to check his weapons.
Wayne and Marasi enter a bank right before closing time. Wayne goes over his plan with Marasi to distract the employees while she searches the ledgers. She interrupts the performance and throws her weight around as a constable.
The banker reluctantly hands over the records to Marasi, but only after getting confirmation from Elendel that they are legit. Her plan is to check the deposits of grave workers against their wages to see if there are any irregularities. She finds that apparently all the cemetery workers are crooked, stealing and selling corpses' personal effects. Marasi goes off to "employ" one of the workers.
Chapter 12
Wax notices that little has changed from his youth in the atmosphere at parties. He doesn't miss his guns very much after all because they aren't the appropriate weapons in this political/social battlefield. He goes to order drinks for him and Steris, and he inadvertently tips with the coin from the beggar. The bartender points out that it's a strange coin, and Wax grabs it back, examining it for the first time. It's made of two different metals, has an inscription of a man with one spiked eye, and has the same symbols from the pictures ReLuur took. He discusses the coin with Steris and contemplates looking for the beggar, but he figures that he's probably already gone. Steris suggests they go talk to Lord Gave Entrone as a way to get warmed up. Entrone is interested in archaeology. He does an excellent job of goading Wax by insulting both him and Steris, and Wax handles it poorly. Next he tries to dance with Lady Felise Demoux, but before he's able to, Khriss cuts in. She seems to know a lot about using metals and about Wax's powers in particular. She quizzes him on what happens when he uses his powers in combination, then suddenly breaks off, leaving him a card with an address in Elendel but no name. He tries to figure out who it is, to avail. He's concerned that it's someone from the Set. Wax tries some "seltzer" that has lemon flavoring and lots of sugar. Steris suggests their next target: an informant named Devlin Airs.
Marasi and Wayne pass through the gates of the Seran New District Cemetery, past a statue of the Survivor depicting the moment of his death. They came here because the gravekeeper, Dechamp, is definitely stealing from corpses and this graveyard is the one that handles unidentified bodies. Wayne convinces Marasi that deception would work better in this setting, so Wayne puts together a quick disguise for both of them. Wayne offers a deal to Dechamp and tells about which body he wants that has an item of "sentimental value." They head off to the grave after Wayne makes a payment. Dechamp starts digging up a fresh grave.
Chapter 13
Wax reminds himself that he is here to address the Set itself rather than stopping its lesser minions. So he has to play by their rules -- going to parties and holding his temper. He waits his turn with the informant and shows him the strange coin. He pretends that he's interested in the monetary value of the coin. Devlin has seen them around on the black market. He reports that many of the nobility are involved in some sort of building project involving Allomancers that's been kept very quiet. He warns Wax that a civil war is coming and moves off. Wax finds himself facing Kelesina. Wax pretends to be a novice to put her at ease. Then he baldly asks about the strange coin. She gets very nervous, and Wax continues to act naive about it, but when he asks her to dance, she makes an excuse and leaves the party. Steris arrives and thinks of a diversion so Wax can follow her. She downs an emetic she had brought along in case someone poisoned them and proceeds to vomit on the table.
Marasi wanders around the graveyard while Dechamp digs. She finds a statue of the Ascendant Warrior in the poor person section. She goes back to the grave site, and it appears that he's almost down to the bodies. Suddenly Wayne grabs her and pulls her into the grave. Then she hears gunfire.
Chapter 14
Marasi and Wayne hide in the grave in a speed bubble. Wayne has been shot four times and takes some time to heal. The gunman, presumably from the Set, are firing everything they've got, probably because they know Wayne is a Bloodmaker. Wayne drops the bubble, and they wait until the shots stop, then Marasi fires a couple of shots as a diversion. Wayne moves to the other side of the grave and puts up another bubble just as a stick of dynamite comes flying in. He drops it again and they scramble over to a different grave, hoping for the mists and explosion to cover their movement. Wayne then uses a combination of dueling canes and speed bubbles to defeat the gunmen.
Steris is resting in a guest bedroom. The Terris steward watches over her and offers to send for their carriage. The speech is starting. Wax heads out and Steris insists on going along. They start wandering the halls and stare down a servant. Wax is about to scout ahead when Steris offers him a handgun she smuggled in, taped to her thigh. Wax is surprised and impressed.
Wayne searches gravekeeper's shack and finds a hidden cache of booze. The constabulary has arrived, and an Allomancer among them reports no metal in the grave. Wayne also finds a ledger book, and after Marasi looks through it, she has an idea. They have one more task to do.
Chapter 15
Templeton Fig admires his stuffed animal collection as he waits on word from the graveyard. The flames from his fire in the fireplace stop moving. The door of the room opens and the body of Dechamp is deposited onto the floor. Fig is terrified. "Death" taps on his window and demands the return of his spike. Fig says that "they" demanded he recover the spike and send it to Dulsing. The fire moves again, and the constables come.
Wayne takes off his disguise and asks Marasi how "Death" really sounds. Dulsing is a small, remote village, so they are puzzled why the spike got sent there.
Wax continues to prowl the hallways and finds Kelesina's rooms, which are vacant. He overhears some of the speech in which Lord Severington complains against the oppression of Elendel. Wax hears his uncle through a door talking to Kelesina. He gets closer and hears his uncle encouraging Kelesina to continue to try to distract him with side quests. Wax wonders if everything happening recently were distractions set up by his uncle. His voice sounds strange -- "smaller." They are trying to recover the device (metal cube) from Wax. Edwarn finds out that ReLuur might not actually be destroyed. Wax hears the steward coming and Pushes up against the ceiling to hide. She walks past and enters the room with the voices. He drops to the floor and the two women are shocked to see him, but his uncle isn't there! Some sort of box is on table.
Chapter 16
Edwarn's voice is projecting from the box. Wax picks it up and screams at his uncle about his sister. The steward, apparently tapping Pewter, knocks him over and slaps his gun out of his hand, which she uses to shoot Kelesina. The maid is also there, and she starts running around screaming that Wax has killed her. The steward searches then shoots Kelesina again. Wax grabs the box and flees, but she catches up with him and starts to choke him. MeLaan shows up and punches her, freeing Wax. The steward punches MeLaan but gets a mangled hand in return -- MeLaan is wearing aluminum bones. Then she rips off one arm with a sword attached and runs her through. Wax recovers a gold bracelet from the body. He finds Steris hiding in the bushes and takes her away, complimenting her on her work at the party. He realizes that he is attracted to her, and that brings back thoughts of Lessie. He dismisses them and kisses Steris as they soar over the city.
Back at the hotel, Wayne is reading a novel about a rocket ship while Marasi paces. Wax and Steris arrive through a window and they quickly share some of the information they've acquired. They leave in a hurry. The constables are coming for them.
Wayne sits in the dark smoking a cigar. MeLaan asks if he's going to go back to Elendel. It won't look good that the emissary from there (presumably) killed the host of a political rally. Wax hates Harmony because he betrayed him. He decides to head to Dulsing.
Part 3
Chapter 17
Marasi is enjoying the adventure of a stagecoach ride in uncivilized land. She has moved on from Wax, but still admires him. Wax reveals that he was first a "gentleman adventurer" before becoming a lawman. After no success in finding treasure, he turned to bounty hunting and was eventually credentialed. They discuss whether the Bands of Mourning are real. Wax goes back to sleep, so Marasi finishes her report and fiddles with the cube. She finds a tiny switch and flips it, then burns cadmium to see if anything would happen. This causes the stagecoach to lurch because it isn't massive enough for the speed bubble to follow Marasi. She reports that the cube vibrated while she was burning. They decide to stop and experiment with the cube.
Wax plays around with the cube, burning steel, and they figure out that it somehow extends someone's Allomancy. Wax gives it back to Marasi because the cube's ability would be very handy with a Pulser. Wax remembers the gold bracelet and gives it to Wayne, who marvels that it is indeed a gold metalmind that he can use. However, only he -- as a Bloodmaker -- can use it, so it's not definitive proof of the Bands of Mourning, but does suggest that Mr. Suit is using Hemalurgy. MeLaan spots an innocuous-looking roadblock ahead, and Wax decides that they need to proceed on horseback.
They ride in, not encountering any patrols because the guarded area is so large. They come upon a large, nondescript building, guarded by soldiers and still under construction. Wayne tries to figure out a way in, and Steris agrees to stay behind with the horses. Wax and Wayne decide to use the "Spoiled Tomato" plan, which consisted of Wax Pushing Wayne to the building. Wayne lands as quietly as possible (in rocks) and heals before he dies from the fall. The metalmind has tons of healing in it. He eludes some guards and approaches the building. He makes another guard "trip" over a wire, cutting off some floodlights and causing a commotion. Wax, Marasi, and MeLaan join him in the darkness and confusion. They sneak into the building and see a large ship, damaged. They split up: Marasi and MeLaan are to search for the spike, Wax and Wayne for Mr. Suit.
Chapter 18
Marasi and MeLaan creep around and find some finished rooms. They speculate on where the spike could be. MeLaan thinks the Set still has it somewhere because they would want to study it. Marasi sees the limping guy from the train. She suggests they go inside the ship.
Wax and Wayne decide to climb up onto the construction catwalks to get a birds-eye view of the place. They climb a ladder because Wax figures there is a Seeker there, so he can't just Push up. They run into an engineer, and Wayne knocks him out.
Professor Irich shuffles along in the ship, feeling himself die. He thinks of Suit and "Sequence" desiring weapons, but he wants a miracle. His muscles are growing weaker and weaker. He walks through the ship, discussing its secrets with the academics brought in by the Set. The main problem is they don't know how the ship moves. The crew has been tortured, but they haven't revealed anything. He hears a voice call for him, and searches in vain to find the source. He happens upon a cube device that has apparently fallen out of storage compartment. He can now claim that he had recovered the lost cube and get in better standing with Suit. He leaves the ship.
Marasi watches as Irich leaves the ship and enters a room. They wait to see if he comes back out.
Wax wonders about the ship. It doesn't have a mast. How does it move? He sees the limping man come back out of the ship, looking anxious about something. Wax wonders what the girls did in there. He figures that the limping man is an important underling of Suit and will lead them to him. He goes into a different room, set apart from the rest, and sees his sister in there. Wayne restrains Wax, who wants to recklessly go after her, and suggests another disguise using the engineer's clothing.
Chapter 19
Marasi watches Irich, hoping that he put the cube with the spike. After he leaves, they simply walk to the door he came out of, pretending they belong to the project. Marasi is extremely nervous and can't understand how everyone else can remain so calm. They walk down a hallway and find a locked door. MeLaan picks the lock with some metal picks hidden in her hand. It appears to be Irich's room because the furniture accommodates his disability. Marasi finds a safe, and MeLaan works on opening it. Marasi explores a bit and opens another door. She smells an odor of filth like a slum and sees some cages. Something in one of the cages slams against the bars, and Marasi sees one of the "monsters" from ReLuur's drawing. It holds out a human hand and says, "please."
Wayne walks out in his engineer's outfit, going over his role. He walks up to a guard and starts barking gibberish at him to get him to stand aside. He passes into the room with Telsin and finds Irich and the Coinshot brute with her. He bluffs them with more gibberish, and they leave. Wax knocks out the guard.
Marasi realizes that the strange face is a mask. MeLaan reports that she got the safe open. Marasi leaves the "creature" and recovers the spike and cube. Kandras won't touch another Kandra's spike, and it's clear that she disapproves of the one instance in which it happened.[1] Marasi grabs some keys and lets out the person in the cage. He opens another door and they go into a room with blood stains all over the place.
Wax reunites with his sister, and she hugs him, weeping softly. She asks for a gun, and Wax hands her a spare. The Coinshot enters the room, and Telsin promptly shoots him.
Marasi insists on taking the masked man with them. She's concluded that the ship is from some other people away from the Basin. He goes over to the safe and retrieves a disc with a cloth strip. He ties it on and looks relieved. Marasi worries how they'll be able to sneak him out with the mask and odd clothing, but then she hears gunshots.
Chapter 20
Telsin is thirsty for revenge against her captives. Wax grabs her and Pushes to the top of the ship, which is sheltered almost like a fort. Then he meets back up with Wayne. There's a lot of shooting going on, and Wayne throws up a speed bubble so they can plan. They see MeLaan peeking out a door and Telsin climbing down the ship. Wax sends Wayne for Telsin while he gets the other two. Wayne gets caught by gunfire, and they keep shooting him as he tries to heal and get away. Wax goes on an Allomantic frenzy, getting hit by an aluminum bullet, but manages to rescue him. They are safe in the ship for now, but they are besieged by the heavy gunfire outside. Three Allomancers in fancy suits show up, and Wax dispatches one of them with the Thug-killer shotgun. Wax is in serious trouble, but luckily Marasi throws up a speed bubble on one guy, allowing Wax to avoid getting shot. He steps to the side, waits for the bubble to drop, then shoots him.
Marasi watches as Wax now makes use of the cube, and she gives supporting fire. The masked man keeps pointing at the ship, indicating they should go there, but Wax tells them to take cover back in the hallway. Marasi is shot in the side. She's in shock -- the masked man takes the initiative and they head toward the ship.
Wax uses Ranette's ball and cord device to deal with riflemen in the rafters and kill another Allomancer. He sees Marasi being dragged to the ship. He charges his cube and throws it toward a bunch of soldiers, disarming them, and Wayne attacks. Wax kills three more guys with aluminum guns, then he hears a horn sound. Dozens more soldiers are coming from the village nearby. Wax retreats to the ship.
Marasi fights the pain that has now blossomed from her gunshot wound. Wax and Wayne make a desperate plan to escape the building, but in the meantime, Marasi is going off with the masked man. He pulls on something behind a panel in the wall and a rope ladder falls. They all get up the ladder into another compartment with bolted down chairs. The masked man puts on a different medallion and can suddenly speak their language. He gives each of them a medallion to strap on. It consists of an iron metalmind that anyone can fill. Then he instructs Wax to grip some straps and Push. The room is actually a separate boat. Wax's Push lifts it into the sky.
Chapter 21
Wax Pushes against a metal plate on the main ship, raising the smaller craft into the air as he holds onto the straps. The masked man bears a solemn farewell to the ship. He gets the "primer cube" from Wayne and touches it to Wax's skin, activating it. Then he puts the cube in place and activates "wings" and fans for control. He tells Wax he can stop Pushing. He addresses him with divine titles since he is metalborn. Wax retrieves Steris and some more supplies and lets the horses go. Back on the flying boat, Wax is again blown away by how much the world is changing due to advances in conventional and Allomantic technology. Wax wants to go to Elendel, but Telsin wants to beat Edwarn to the "weapon" he may be close to finding. Wax wants to check on Marasi before he decides.
Marasi contemplates death, and she's embarrassed by her near nudity as Wax stops by to check on her. MeLaan heals the wound, ingesting and replicating Marasi's flesh so the patch would take. Wax and Marasi discuss what to do next. They have retrieved the spike and Telsin, but the real goal of the trip was to stop Suit. Marasi shows a map of the "second site" from the book she lifted from the desk in the building. Wax heard his uncle say he was headed there when he was eavesdropping at the party. Wax asks Marasi to talk to Allik and see what he knows. Allik recognizes the location (which he calls the "Sovereign's temple"), and they suspect that Suit took crewmates along to help find it. Allik wants to go find them. Wax questions him about this Sovereign. He came to them about 10 years after the Ice Death (that occurred the same time as Harmony's Ascension) and taught them how to make the medallions. Marasi is convinced the Sovereign was the Lord Ruler even though the timeline doesn't jibe -- the records must be flawed. Wax and Allik discuss how the medallions work. They all have Nicrosil so that the wearer can be Invested and therefore use the other metal. Medallions with four or more metals don't work, and strapping on multiple medallions doesn't work either. Allik's people have some other enemy he refers to as "Deniers of Masks." Wax decides to head for the temple.
Chapter 22
Marasi talks with Allik while the others sleep. He uses wind currents to make their flying more efficient. The Bands of Mourning allow someone to draw forth all Feruchemical attributes. Allik explains their customs with masks. Some called "Hunters" grow into their masks. The Hunters come from the time before the freezing and are trying to destroy the Bands. The "Fallen" wear unpainted masks because they have offended "Jaggenmire," which is apparently their name for Ruin and Preservation. He says that "ettmetal" supports the ship and is also found in the cube. He also tells Marasi that some people from his land find the Basin an attractive target for invasion. Marasi lets Allik put back on a warming medallion, and she tries the Connection one, hoping to speak to Allik in his language. It doesn't work. The visitor must be the one wearing the band. Wax perks up at that, and he sees a light in the mountains: Suit's expedition.
Chapter 23
They pass over Edwarn's expedition, and Telsin really wants to shoot him. Wax decides that it would be better to interrogate and prosecute him rather than just kill him out of revenge. Wayne somehow gets tangled with Telsin and he accidentally kicks a pack overboard, hitting one of the men below. Wax tells Allik to head in the direction they're hiking. Wax spots something on the ground and Allik lands the craft. They stumble out into the snow and see a one-story, black castle. Wax pushes the boat back into the snow until it's buried. Wayne tries to talk to Allik, hinting that he should call him by exalted names as well since he is metalborn, but Allik isn't wearing the translator anymore. Wayne then finds a large ship nearby with a bunch of corpses -- the expedition from Allik's people, come to destroy the temple. They continue up to the temple entrance where there is a statue of a man with one eyed spiked, like the image on Wax's strange coin. Wax wonders why the Lord Ruler would make a statue of himself with one spiked eye. As the others move on, Wayne hangs back and removes the metal spearhead from the statue, thinking it's a big chunk of valuable aluminum. Inside the temple, they confirm that this is where ReLuur had been. Allik lights the hallway by using the cube, and they all notice a pile of bodies and pools of blood ahead. Wax notices that Wayne has lifted the spearhead. They approach the bodies, and they have Hunter masks on. Wax theorizes that some of the Hunters wanted to recover the Bands, murdered those who didn't want to, and gave up and went home after some were killed by the traps. Wax, MeLaan, and Allik proceed down the hall, MeLaan triggering and enduring the various traps. Telsin insists on going in as well.
Chapter 24
Marasi studies ReLuur's pewter spike and thinks about the person who died to create a kandra with it. She goes over to Steris who is writing about how useless she is. Marasi asks why she even came at all, and Steris points out that this was supposed to be a political enterprise, not an adventure in the mountains. Wayne seems relaxed but has his dueling canes out. Someone approaches displaying a parley flag.
Wax pulls MeLaan from a pit. He's figured out a pattern with the traps, so they are able to trigger the last few without further damage to MeLaan's bones. The last trap is a frozen block of acid. They get to a door with some unrecognizable writing, even for Allik. They decide to return and get the others to help. Wax senses something strange about the temple -- that's it's too much like you would expect it to be. They get back and Edwarn is there with the others.
Chapter 25
Edwarn convinces Wax that they are at an impasse, so they talk. Edwarn claims to know how to open the door. They all walk to the door and Edwarn instructs Wax on which symbols to Push on. He and Wayne ready for a trap, and Wax pushes all three symbols indicated by Edwarn. The door slides open. Edwarn wants to go in first, but Wax sends MeLaan in first to check for traps. They eventually all go in and see a dais like the one in the mural. There is nothing there but broken glass on the floor.
Chapter 26
Wax can tell that the glass wasn't broken recently because of the dust. He warns of other traps in the room. Edwarn is angry and says it's time to end this. Wax recognizes this as a signal to the mole he figured must be with them and guesses correctly that it's his sister, Telsin. They shoot each other, but only her aluminum bullet hits.
Wayne and Marasi attempt to fight back, but Telsin and Edwarn use Allomancy to fight them off and drain their metal reserves. Telsin shoots Wax again, and he escapes through one of the traps, falling into a pit. Wayne escapes the room and Edwarn threatens to kill Marasi, foot on her throat. He doesn't return and Edwarn lets go. Telsin injects MeLaan with something to make her lose her shape and confiscates both of her spikes. Marasi notices a hemalurgical spike in Edwarn's chest. Telsin orders Edwarn to go after Wax. Soldiers arrive and report that they have not seen Wayne. Steris looks down in the pit where Wax has fallen.
Chapter 27
Wax has been deposited into another room with a dais. He is badly wounded, his mind growing fuzzy. He prays to Harmony. He sees people sitting in the room, but he realizes that they are more dead Hunters. He sees a pedestal with a set of bracers as Edwarn follows him into the room. He can't see Wax hidden in the darkness, but he can follow his trail of blood. Edwarn reveals that Telsin recruited him into the Set, not the other way around. Edwarn finally gets to Wax, who has positioned himself so that Edwarn would release a trap, killing them both. Edwarn sees it but triggers it anyway.
Marasi and the rest are marched back out to the entrance, their warming medallions confiscated. A soldier address Telsin as "Lady Sequence" and reports that the weapon (the bomb the Hunters were originally to use) has been found. Telsin orders the soldiers to search the captives, hoping Wayne will come back for them.
The ceiling falls on Wax. His body is crushed, and he can't move. Edwarn has Pushed out of the way, but still has a wound, which he heals. He reveals that he has three "boons," or hemalurgic spikes. Any more might cause interference from Harmony or vulnerability to emotional Allomancy. He tries on the bracers, but they are drained. He prepares to shoot Wax but is knocked aside by Wayne and takes off, afraid of Wayne. Wayne begs Wax to hold on.
The guards are searching Marasi's purse, and she's dismayed to see that Wayne traded ReLuur's spike for the spearhead. Suit comes back with the bracers, and Telsin tries them on. She downs a vial of metals, hoping the bracers will grant Allomantic powers, but nothing happens. Another decoy. Marasi wonders where the real Bands are.
Wax also realizes that the bracers were another decoy. Wayne weeps. Wax figures out what the real Bands are, but he dies before he can speak.
Chapter 28
Wayne is filled with hatred for the world as Wax dies. Wax was the only one who believed in him. He grabs Wax's shotgun and wills his hands to stop shaking.
Marasi tries to figure out where you would hide such an important weapon. She realizes that the temple with all its traps is the perfect decoy. She sees the spearhead right next to her and notices that it's not made of aluminium but of many different intertwined metals.
Wax has died. The physical world is all mist. Harmony is there, walking with him. Wax complains that Harmony should step in more to prevent pain and hardship, but Harmony describes the difficulty in drawing the line. Even if all suffering stops, people would still complain. They walk further, around the planet, and Harmony shows that he is protecting them from some outside threat. Wax brings up Lessie, and Harmony helps him release the hatred for himself for doing what had to be done. Harmony doesn't know what the red haze is threatening the planet. Wax sees a spark back on the planet.
Marasi grabs the spearhead and taps everything. With ridiculous speed, she steals some vials from the guards and burns their metals, Pushing soldiers, Edwarn, and Telsin away. She Pushes herself into the sky and sees the mists emanating from her. She is like the Ascendant Warrior, above what Wax is. But that's not really what she wants. She soars over toward the temple.
Steris is quite surprised to see her sister glowing and flinging people about. Allik is so cold, he has stopped shivering. Fortunately, she has made herself useful by hiding an extra warming medallion in her notebook. She gives it to Allik.
Harmony gives Wax a choice: freedom, or going back for another adventure. Wax chooses to go back, but not before learning that Lessie had asked Harmony to look after him. Wax goes back and Pushes the boulder off of him and heals immediately. Marasi encourages him to finish the job that is meant for him, not her.
Chapter 29
Suit rehearses what he is going to tell the "Series" about today's events. He enters the Hunters' ship and gives orders to leave immediately. The ship takes off, and he thinks about all the advantages of having this technology.
Jordis, the captain of the ship, tries to encourage her crew as they die of exposure in captivity. Suddenly, Allik shows up and hands out warming medallions. Steris comes into the tent and delivers a bunch of guns. They decide to fight even though they are weakened.
Wax flies up from the temple and sees Steris and Allik with the crew. He is tempted to simply take down the ship, but he is a lawman, not an executioner. The Bands have granted him the ancient, strong Allomancy. He enters his uncle's compartment and notices that he is hiding metal in his mouth. Suit claims to have armed the bomb, so Wax taps zinc to think through all the possible solutions. Suit will disarm the bomb if Wax will drop the Bands and face off with him in a duel. He agrees and Suit gives the order. Wax stows the Bands and removes all his metals except the aluminum gun.
Telsin scrambles toward the small craft used by Wax and company. Wayne shows up to avenge his friend's death and starts shooting her.
Marasi climbs up to the room with the broken glass and checks on MeLaan, who is now essentially a mistwraith, but is at least alive. She goes back down the hallway and outside and sees Wayne firing a shotgun, also holding three spikes.
Suit draws his gun and Wax Pushes himself toward him. They crash together and Wax's reserves are gone; Suit is also a Leecher. Wax is out of steel but can still use his weight metalmind. They crash through the floor together, and Suit uses the hidden coin to Push onto the ground and land relatively safely. Then Wax punches his uncle.
MeLaan is desperate for food and warmth. She wants to hide. Something is very wrong. She feels something hard and metallic, and she absorbs it. Her self returns -- a relief even with the holes in her memory. She forms eyes and sees Wayne.
Chapter 30
Marasi drinks some hot cocoa with Allik as they watch Wax bring the ship back with his enormous powers. The soldiers in the ship surrender. Suit is tied to the statue's spear, gagged and Leeched of metals. Jordis and Wax face off, each demanding possession of the ship and the Bands. Steris steps in and they find a resolution: the Malwish can have the ship, the kandra will take the Bands, and trade will open up between them.
Wax checks the belt on the statue. It's just aluminum. He's glad to be rid of the Bands because they are so powerful as to be dangerous. They are mostly drained but can be recharged. Telsin has slipped away in the chaos, so Wax has a new quarry.
Chapter 31
Wax and Wayne fly into Elendel on the ship. They talk about Wayne using a gun again. Wax asks if he knew that Telsin could heal, and he figured she could. Once he had MeLaan's spikes, he left her, giving her a second chance like Wax had given him. Wax compliments him but secretly wishes that he had killed her. He goes to Steris's room and finds her alone. He thanks her for all her help, although she still feels like baggage. They walk together to the bridge and the ship lands on the top of Ahlstrom Tower. Wax wants the city to know about the ship. Allik removes his mask and offers it to Marasi, which causes quite a stir amongst the crew. Marasi reverently accepts the mask and they all disembark. Governor Aradel reports that he is under heavy criticism due to the events in New Seran, and he hopes that the ship might actually distract from that. Wax asks MeLaan to explain about the Bands and leaves with Steris. He asks her to marry him -- not for political reasons, but for love and companionship. She accepts.
Epilogue
Marasi has been working well with Constable-General Reddi the last two weeks, getting information from the soldiers about the Set. Suit has not talked. Aradel prepares for war with the outer cities.
Suit waits in his cell. A Faceless Immortal with red eyes visits him. He is impressed that Suit has not given any information. Nevertheless, the Set doesn't need him anymore. They have decided to simply end life on this sphere due to the technological advancements that have been made. The visitor engages a bomb, killing them both.
The explosion awakens Wax, who is still honeymooning with Steris in the penthouse. Drewton has carefully laid out all of Wax's possessions recovered from the hotel in New Seran, and Wax sees the strange coin given to him by the beggar. He picks up the coin and notices that it is composed of two metals, one being copper. He taps it and sees through the eyes -- one spiked and one not -- of someone strolling into a village. The villagers are dying from the cold. They have even burned their masks. The traveler goes to the elders, and one woman lifts her cloth mask. He reaches out to her and whispers one word: "Survive." Wax sees a network of scars on the traveler's arm.