Chapter 51

This chapter contains two interleaved scenes: Szeth arrives at Talmut's monastery in Shinovar with Kaladin and discovers his people have fallen under the influence of an Unmade, then confronts Rit, a shaman who wields Talmut's Honorblade; meanwhile, Adolin commands forces defending an Azish control building against a massive Singer assault, where he encounters a Heavenly One seeking vengeance against him.

Szeth and Kaladin Lash themselves to Talmut's monastery atop a ridge in the Nirovah Valley, finding the military encampment abandoned. Szeth explains Shin theology regarding stone and the purpose of the monastery as a watchtower established by the Heralds to prepare for the enemy's eventual return. They discover people hiding in barracks, terrified of the soil and working only at night under orders from a shaman, suggesting influence from an Unmade. Inside the monastery's great hall, Szeth encounters Rit-daughter-Clutio, the shaman who participated in his banishment nine years prior. Rit has claimed Talmut's Honorblade, claiming Talmut broke and brought the Desolation, and challenges Szeth to prove himself worthy. Szeth gives Nightblood to Kaladin and prepares to face her in combat. In a parallel sequence, Adolin commands Azish forces defending a control building against Singer assault. Stormforms unleash lightning while direforms breach the Azish lines. Adolin descends into battle in full Shardplate with Maya, his Shardblade, disrupting the enemy's breakthrough and buying time for his forces to regroup. As three Heavenly Ones approach, May's archery team forces them to retreat. During the renewed assault, a Heavenly One—the same one Adolin and Shallan fought in Shadesmar, bearing a scar from their previous encounter—breaks from formation and attacks Adolin directly, apparently seeking revenge.