92. Water Warm as Blood

Szeth participates in a Skybreaker test to capture escaped convicts near the Purelake. He discovers the true nature of the test when he realizes the nobleman overseeing the prison is corrupt, leading him to draw his Shardblade for the first time and kill the man. Master Ki accepts him as her squire, and he swears the Second Ideal.

Szeth arrives with other Skybreaker hopefuls at a town on the north border of the Purelake for a test. A nobleman requests they find and execute escaped convicts with foreheads tattoos. Ki explains the Skybreakers now have legal authority in the region and possess writs for the convicts' executions. Szeth grows suspicious of the arrangement and lingers while others depart. He enters the Purelake and encounters one of the escaped convicts—a malnourished, filthy man who attacks him. After a struggle in the water, Szeth subdues the man with his sheathed Shardblade, paralyzing him. The convict admits they killed a guard during their escape and mentions "Nu Ralik," but denies outside help. Szeth questions the convict about collusion with nobility before leaving him to drown. He visits the prison and finds a single guard dead in the dark, filthy facility, confirming his suspicions. Upon returning to town, he confronts the nobleman about the inadequate security, lack of food, and misused funds. The nobleman dismisses him rudely. Szeth then asks Ki if she has a writ for the nobleman's execution—she does. Szeth draws his Shardblade for the first time, experiencing its overwhelming power and a wave of corrupting darkness that consumes the nobleman entirely and leaves Szeth's arm blackened and pained. The surrounding onlookers react with horror. Ki reveals the Skybreakers suspected the nobleman's corruption and arranged the test to expose him, explaining they could only act once he failed in his duty. Szeth swears the Second Ideal of the Skybreakers and receives Stormlight from Ki, restoring his strength.