That only leaves the nobility. Some of them will vote for Penrod—he’s the strongest nobleman in the city; many of the members of the Assembly are longtime political allies of his. But, even if he takes half of the nobility—which he probably won’t—Cett will win. Cett only needs a two-thirds majority to get the throne.
Eight merchants, eight skaa. Sixteen men on Cett’s side. He was going to win. What could Elend possibly do?
Penrod finally finished his opening announcements. “But, before we vote,” he said, “I would like to offer time to the candidates to make any final addresses they wish. Lord Cett, would you care to go first?”
In the audience, Cett shook his head. “I’ve made my offers and my threats, Penrod. You all know you have to vote for me.”
Vin frowned. He seemed certain of himself, and yet … She scanned the crowd, eyes falling on Ham. He was talking to Captain Demoux. And seated next to them was one of the men who had followed her in the market. A priest of the Survivor.
Vin turned, studying the Assembly. The skaa representatives looked uncomfortable. She glanced at Elend, who stood up to take his turn at the front of the lectern. His earlier confidence had returned, and he looked regal in his sharp white uniform. He still wore his crown.
It doesn’t change things, he’d said. Between us. …
I’m sorry.
Something that would use her reputation to gain him votes. Her reputation was Kelsier’s reputation, and only the skaa really cared about that. And there was one easy way to gain influence with them. …
“You joined the Church of the Survivor, didn’t you?” she whispered.
The reactions of the skaa Assemblymen, the logic of the moment, Elend’s words to her before, all of them suddenly made sense. If Elend joined the Church, the skaa Assemblymen might be afraid to vote against him. And, Elend didn’t need sixteen votes to gain the throne; if the Assembly deadlocked, he won. With the eight skaa and his own vote, the others would never be able to oust him.
“Very clever,” she whispered.
The ploy might not work. It would depend on how much hold the Church of the Survivor had on the skaa Assemblymen. Yet, even if some skaa voted against Elend, there were still the noblemen who would probably vote for Penrod. If enough did, Elend would still deadlock the Assembly and keep his throne.
All it would cost was his integrity.
That’s unfair, Vin told herself. If Elend had joined with the Church of the Survivor, he would hold to whatever promises he had made. And, if the Church of the Survivor gained official backing, it could become as powerful in Luthadel as the Steel Ministry had once been. And … how would that change the way Elend saw her?
This doesn’t change anything, he had promised.
She dully heard him begin to speak, and his references to Kelsier now seemed obvious to her. Yet, the only thing she could feel was a slight sense of anxiety. It was as Zane had said. She was the knife—a different kind of knife, but still a tool. The means by which Elend would protect the city.
She should be furious, or at least sick. Why did her eyes keep darting toward the crowd? Why couldn’t she focus on what Elend was saying, on how he was elevating her? Why was she suddenly so on edge?
Why were those men subtly moving their way around the edges of the room?
“So,” Elend said, “by the blessing of the Survivor himself, I ask you to vote for me.”
He waited quietly. It was a drastic move; joining the Church of the Survivor put Elend under the spiritual authority of an external group. But, Ham and Demoux both had thought it a good idea. Elend had spent the better part of the previous day getting the word out to the skaa citizens about his decision.
It felt like a good move. The only thing he worried about was Vin. He glanced at her. She didn’t like her place in the Church of the Survivor, and having Elend join it meant that he—technically—accepted her part in the mythology. He tried to catch her eye and smile, but she wasn’t watching him. She was looking out into the audience.
Elend frowned. Vin stood up.
A man from the audience suddenly shoved aside two soldiers in the front row, then leaped supernaturally far to land up on the dais. The man pulled out a dueling cane.
What? Elend thought in shock. Fortunately, months spent sparring at Tindwyl’s command had given him instincts he didn’t know he had. As the Thug charged, Elend tucked and rolled. He hit the ground, scrambling, and turned to see the beefy man bearing down on him, dueling cane raised.
A flurry of white lace and skirts fluttered through the air over Elend. Vin slammed feet-first into the Thug, throwing him backward as she spun, skirts flaring.
The man grunted. Vin landed with a thump directly in front of Elend. The Assembly Hall echoed with sudden screaming and shouts.
Vin kicked the lectern out of the way. “Stay behind me,” she whispered, an obsidian dagger glittering in her right hand.
Elend nodded hesitantly, unbuckling the sword at his waist as he climbed to his feet. The Thug wasn’t alone; three small groups of armed men were moving through the room. One attacked the front row, distracting the guards there. Another group was climbing onto the dais. The third group seemed occupied by something in the crowd. Cett’s soldiers.
The Thug had regained his feet. He didn’t look like he had suffered much from Vin’s kick.
Assassins, Elend thought. But who sent them?
The man smiled as he was joined by a group of five friends. Chaos filled the room, Assemblymen scattering, their bodyguards rushing to surround them. Yet, the fighting in front of the stage kept anyone from escaping in that direction. The Assemblymen clogged around the stage’s side exit. The attackers, however, didn’t seem concerned with them.
Only with Elend.
Vin remained in her crouch, waiting for the men to attack first, her posture threatening despite the frilly dress. Elend thought he actually heard her growl quietly.
The men attacked.
Vin snapped forward, swiping at the lead Thug with a dagger. His reach was too great, however, and he easily fended her off with a swipe of his staff. There were six men in total; three who were obviously Thugs, leaving the other three to likely be Coinshots or Lurchers. A strong component of metal-controllers. Someone didn’t want her ending this fight quickly with coins.
They didn’t understand that she would never use coins in this situation. Not with Elend standing so close and with so many people in the room. Coins couldn’t be deflected safely. If she shot a handful at her enemies, random people would die.
She had to kill these men fast. They were already fanning out, surrounding her and Elend. They moved in pairs—one Thug and one Coinshot in each team. They would attack from the sides, trying to get past her to Elend.
Vin reached behind herself with iron, Pulling Elend’s sword from its sheath with a ringing squeal. She caught it by the hilt, throwing it at one of the teams. The Coinshot Pushed it back at her, and she in turn Pushed it to the side, spinning it toward a second pair of Allomancers.
One of them Pushed it back at her again. Vin Pulled from behind, whipping Elend’s metal-tipped sheath out of his hands and shooting it through the air by its clasp. Sheath passed sword in the air. This time, the enemy Coinshots Pushed both items out of the way, deflecting them toward the fleeing audience.
Men shouted in desperation as they trampled and tried to force their way out of the room. Vin gritted her teeth. She needed a better weapon.