Chapter 6: The Architect of Subtraction
Kael traveled deeper into the Canyonlands, his movements slow and deliberate. The internal suppression of the Law of Fear meant he assessed every crumbling ledge, every hissing vent of pressurized Aether, with clinical disinterest. He was focused solely on the Law of Resonance, charting the fluctuations of the Aetheric flow.
The air here pulsed with tangible energy. The Canyonlands were not just geologically fractured; they were the Aetheric Scars of the First Eclipse, where the very fabric of the Loom was exposed.
He located the perfect refuge: a hollowed-out section of rock deep within a massive natural vault, shielded by layers of dense, non-conductive quartz. Here, the local Aetheric turbulence was chaotic enough to mask his suppressed Shard signature, yet stable enough to allow for complex meditation.
Kael spent a full day in this refuge, focusing on recovery. He wove a continuous, low-level Law of Resistance over his skin to repel dust and minor irritants, its minimal soul-cost paid for by a near-unnoticeable degradation of his peripheral vision—a trade he accepted immediately.
He needed to transition from being a reactive weapon to a proactive Patternmaster. His sole curriculum was the Patternmaster Cygnus's journal.
Cygnus's journal was not a record of spells; it was a philosophical treatise on manipulating the Loom of Existence. The diagrams were less about force and more about geometry—how to shape the Aether Threads into stable, reusable patterns.
Kael, using his cold, focused mind (now stripped of the distractions of empathy and memory), began the dangerous process of harvesting the most advanced laws.
He identified two crucial high-level Laws he needed for true survival:
Law of Concealment (Invisibility): A pattern that causes light, sound, and Aether to flow around the target, rendering them undetectable. Essential for navigating civilization.
Law of Scission (Aetheric Blade): A precise, externalization Law that shears Aether Threads themselves. A highly destructive offensive power that targets the source of an enemy's strength, not their physical body.
Kael knew stealing these laws would require immense payment. He prepared for the theft as one prepares for surgery—a necessary, painful amputation.
Kael focused on the journal's diagram for Concealment: a complex, multi-layered mesh that redirected all forms of external energy.
He pushed the Echo of the Void to replicate the pattern, feeling the terrible surge of the Eclipsed Shard demanding its due. The Law was about misdirection and deception.
The Shard harvested the Aether Thread governing his Law of Trust.
The consumption was immediate and profound. Kael had always possessed a guarded nature, but now, the very concept of reliance or faith in another person or system vanished. Trusting a friend, an ally, or even the basic consistency of the world became a logical impossibility. Every future interaction would be viewed as an elaborate, high-risk calculation of utility and betrayal.
Kael didn't feel regret. He felt efficiency.
The Law of Concealment was imprinted.
He tested it. He focused the Law onto a small, loose stone. Using a minimal amount of Aether drawn from the turbulent Canyon air, the stone shimmered and then vanished from sight and Aetheric perception.
Law 7: Law of Concealment (Invisible Pattern). Acquired at the cost of Trust.
The second Law, Scission, was the Patternmaster's pride—a focused, controlled Law of Separation. It was complex because it required extreme precision; one errant thread and the Scission Law could cut the Weaver's own Aether Thread.
The Echo of the Void surged again, demanding a fundamental Law related to precision, focus, and long-term planning.
The Shard harvested the Aether Thread governing his Law of Patience.
Kael felt a terrifying internal shift. The ability to endure long, slow processes, to wait for the perfect moment, was ripped away. He became fundamentally and aggressively impatient. Every task, every necessary pause, every moment of inaction became an unbearable, illogical waste of time. He was forced into a state of perpetual, driven urgency, which perfectly suited the Shard of Time, a power that demanded constant, violent acceleration.
The Law of Scission was imprinted.
He tested it on the wall. He did not touch the stone. He simply extended a fingertip and pushed the Law of Scission forward.
The Aether Thread anchoring a large chunk of basalt wall was instantly, cleanly severed. The stone chunk, detached from the Loom, didn't shatter; it simply lost all its physical integrity and crumbled into a neat pile of inert dust.
It was a thousand times more efficient than his earlier, chaotic Law of Destabilization.
Law 8: Law of Scission (Aetheric Blade). Acquired at the cost of Patience.
Kael had survived, healed, and gained two pivotal, high-level Laws. But he was now a hollowed-out weapon, devoid of fear, empathy, patience, memory, or trust. He was approaching a metaphysical tipping point.
His internal awareness, the Law of Resonance, was now detailed enough to perceive the inner geometry of the Eclipsed Shard.
The emerald octahedron in his chest was now covered in eight facets, each a functioning lens for a stolen or innate Law. His soul-fracture was rapidly approaching maximum capacity.
A chilling realization struck him:
The Void-fracture does not consume randomly. It consumes the aspects of his soul that are antithetical to the Law it is harvesting. Gaining the Law of Resistance required losing Empathy (the openness to others). Gaining the Law of Scission required losing Patience (the refusal to act).
The Eclipsed Shard was not just a power source; it was a sculptor, refining Kael into a being capable of carrying a piece of the divine Law—a being stripped of the very mortal weaknesses that would cause immediate self-destruction.
I am not a Mistborn. I am the Architect of Subtraction.
Kael knew he could not stay. The constant, driven impatience dictated by his newest loss would not allow it, and the Aetheric environment of the Canyonlands was becoming unstable.
As the 'Silent Hour' approached, the Aetheric flow in the canyon increased to a massive, screaming turbulence. The intense energy began to manifest physical anomalies.
Kael watched in cold awe as the Law of Time he was carrying began to violently interact with the Law of Flesh—the pervasive law of life and growth—radiating from the surrounding deep-vein Aetherium.
A nearby patch of desiccated desert moss, infused with wild Aether, began to grow rapidly, aging years in seconds, then regressing, then aging again—a horrifying loop of hyper-accelerated life and death imposed by the clashing Laws.
Kael realized the truth of the Eclipse Realms. The Veil was thin here. His Shard of Time was violently attempting to impose its Law on the ambient Aether, causing chaotic effects because the environment already carried fragments of other Laws.
The greatest danger is not the Crimson Hand, but the Shard itself.
He needed a point of absolute, stable Aether—a nexus where the turbulence was controlled. The Patternmaster's journal contained a crude map, showing a massive, black depression deep in the Canyonlands: The Obsidian Zenith. An ancient, abandoned city where the Aether was said to flow like a deep, predictable river. It was the only place he could truly master the Shard.
Kael, using the newfound Law of Scission to cleave a path through unstable rock walls, prepared to exit the refuge. The air was thick with static electricity, making his body hair stand on end.
Suddenly, his internal Law of Resonance screamed a warning.
Two high-density Aetheric signatures were approaching rapidly, not from the top of the canyon, but from the depths. They were moving with a synchronized, terrifying Law of Harmony.
Kael looked up and saw them descending through the narrow canyon mouth.
It was Lord Cygnus, the Patternmaster, and Jareth, the Spindle Adept, who had finally recovered from his displacement.
Cygnus was wrapped in a protective, flowing weave—a suit of pure Aetheric armor that glowed with purple energy. He was injured, but furious.
Jareth was no longer relying on the unstable Law of Velocity. The two men were moving together, their Aether Threads interwoven into a joint Law of Synergy—a combat pattern of flawless, mutual support.
Cygnus looked down at Kael, his eyes blazing with the cold contempt of a god watching an insect.
"The quarry stops running. Good," Cygnus's voice was calm. "You have consumed my knowledge, slave. You are an aberration. But you are full of holes. We will harvest the Shard, and in exchange for your insolence, we will consume every remaining Thread of your worthless soul."
Cygnus and Jareth both raised their hands simultaneously, weaving a complex, dual-purpose Law: The Double Helix of Binding and Scission.
Jareth wove the Binding pattern, aiming to immobilize Kael with sheer Aetheric mass. Cygnus wove the Scission pattern, aiming to sever Kael's vital Aether Thread once he was caught.
Kael was facing his first combined, high-level Patternmaster-Adept attack. He had no time to retreat.
He clutched the short-sword, his heart beating a cold, steady rhythm in his chest. He was stripped of all mortal weakness. He was just the Law of Time and a shield of stolen knowledge.
He ran forward, directly into the combined attack.