71. Rider of Storms

Kaladin awakens from a severe nightmare and learns that another node has been discovered in the market well. He uses Navani's gravitational fabrial to descend rapidly through the tower's atrium and confronts multiple Fused, including the relentless Pursuer. After dueling Leshwi, he dives into the well, destroys the node's sapphire, but becomes trapped underwater when the Fused seal the well. He escapes through an alternate underwater passage and emerges exhausted into the tower's lower levels, where his Stormlight healing inexplicably fails and he flees into the highstorm.

Kaladin wakes screaming from nightmares of shadow and torment, with Syl comforting him. He discovers his spear and Navani's fabrial are missing; Dabbid took them to attempt stopping the Fused alone before Kaladin could wake. The Sibling warned of a node being corrupted in the market well. After retrieving his equipment, Kaladin sprints through the tower and launches himself into the atrium from eleven stories up, using the fabrial to control his descent and create the illusion he still has full Windrunner powers. He flies over the Breakaway market toward the well but encounters the Pursuer, who attacks him repeatedly. Kaladin manages to wound the creature multiple times with a scalpel, forcing it to retreat and recover. He signals Leshwi to engage him in single combat, which she accepts, buying him time to send Syl ahead to locate the node's sapphire. During their aerial duel, Kaladin is wounded and realizes the fabrial makes him predictable and immobile in the air. When Leshwi lowers toward him, he deceives her about surrendering and instead launches directly toward the well with Syl's guidance. He plunges into the water and fights a female Fused guarding glowing gemstones embedded in the shaft wall. Using superior maneuverability in the liquid environment, Kaladin strikes the sapphire loose and destroys the fabrial cage, but as he rises toward the surface, the Pursuer slams a heavy wooden lid over the well and places human guards atop it as weights. Trapped in the air pocket between water and lid with his Stormlight depleting, Kaladin succumbs to panic similar to his nightmares. He recalls Hav's teaching about battlefield panic and realizes the water must flow from somewhere else. He dives back down into complete darkness, uses a dropped gemstone to orient himself downward, and follows a tunnel deeper until he finds an exit into a reservoir chamber beneath the tower. After extracting Stormlight from nearby lamps and slowly climbing stairs using the fabrial, Kaladin reaches the ground floor but emerges directly among singer troops. A brief combat erupts; he steals a spear, wounds guards, and flees toward the tower's front entrance. Chased by soldiers and a Heavenly One, with his healing inexplicably failing, he runs into the raging highstorm outside.