The lights of the city drifted out of view, just barely glowing on the horizon now. The breeze was a gentle one, complimenting the warm summer night. The stars winked from high above, tauntingly close and in several multitudes across the dark sky. These balmy evenings were Matt's favorite kind. The city of Openwater was now completely out of sight, leaving the night sky clear. The Milky Way was shining brightly, outlined by a beautiful brown cloud of stars. Matt was walking out of Openwater for a very specific reason. It was a special night, known as Nuit du Feu de l'Étoile, or the Night of the Star Fire. This was always on the fifth night of summer, and all looked forward to it. In just one hour, Openwater's electricity would be cut, as would all the rest of the cities on the planet Laguna. The Lagunians felt the night was the most important part of their lives. Laguna was a planet discovered orbiting a star close to Earth, so close, that they used Earth's way of measuring time. Matt sat down on the damp grass and waited. The city's lights were to be off in fourty minutes now, and when they would go off, the Star Fire would light.

...

Matt wearily opened his eyes, then quickly woke up to the beautiful sight of the Star Fire. The Star Fire was like Earth's aurora borealis, but unlike Earth, the Star Fire occured everywhere. It was truely a sight to behold. The waves of solar particles danced across the sky in brilliant waves of red, blue, and green. The reflection on Muriel Lake was bright, almost casting shadows. Matt saw how the Star Fire got its name; the sky looked like it was on fire.

...

"So, ye got the papers?" The office was dark, lit only by the Star Fire outside. "Boss, I.. er.. dun't have the papers." the smaller man said meekly. "So then.. get the papers! Whatter ye waitin' fer, an invitation?!" the boss growled. "But.." The smaller man was now shaking. "How can I make this more clear to ye?! The papers are essential to our plan. If the plan fails, the telescope fires. And we dun't want that.. do we?" The boss leaned in close, and the man could smell his rather sour breath. "Uh.. no. No, we dun't!" The man said with a weak smile. "Guud. Then get goin', we're runnin' outta time." The boss leaned back into his chair with a satisfied sigh.

The singing and dancing. All of it so loud. The Nuit du Feu de l'Étoile Celebration was huge. People were dancing in the streets, grasping great goblets of silver wine. Sehth looks not to the left, nor to the right. The mission was clear: Openwater's king was to be dead by midnight. By tradition, Sehth wore a deep blue tunic, and blazing white pants. Most in Openwater did not care for a low servant like they assumed Sehth to be, and were rather rude to him. He was pushed out of the way constantly, doors were slammed in his face. Laguna's star Lusitanee shone high above, almost noon. Sehth sighed. There was a long way to go before the Castle, and waiting around wouldn't do much good.

...

Lusitanee set on the horizon, reflecting off the Sixteenth Sea in several shades of red and orange. Many people were crowded around the Castle's large cliff walkway, looking off into the brilliant sunset. Several stars were peeking out of the redness in the sky, almost as if shy to show themselves. The Castle grounds were to close in one hour. That was not a worry in Sehth's mind, as he was dressed in traditional servant clothing. In his mind, Sehth was preparing a Binding. There are three different Bindings, each different from each other. The first kind, known as Trap, bound objects to each other. Nothing would be able to seperate them for fourty-five minutes. This would likely be useful for binding guards together. The second kind, known as Snare, allowed summoning of a specific element, such as fire, water, air, cosmos, life, and darkness. The third kind, which no-one has ever masted, was known as Chasm. This power would enable the user to walk on any surface without gravity getting in the way. If one using Chasm were to walk on a wall, the wall would be like the floor to them, and there would be no percivable difference in gravity. Sehth was preparing Snare, and ready to summon the cosmos element. Cosmos harnesses the power of the stars, and is more powerful at night. Sehth walked calmly into the Castle, cosmos now flowing through him, heart pounding in his chest. The vestibule was elegant; great golden chandeliers hung from high above, complimenting the great velvet carpet below. The entire corridor shone a great white, made with only the finest polished quartz. Beautiful, but no taste, Sehth thought to himself. The far side of the vestibule was coming up, with great oak doors at its end. The doors were decorated with milky white pearls and gold leaf, showing off the great riches of the king. Sehth shook his head, then pushed the doors open and entered the Great Hall.

...

Sehth silently summoned his sword.. It seemed to form out of mist, wet with condensation. The sword was a beautiful one, decorated with fine emerald runes, and the blade itself shining a brilliant gold. The guards suspected nothing, they knew not that he was a Weilder. He cooly made his way over to the throne, leaving the sweet smell of night air in his wake, caused by the cosmos in his blood. The king was to be dead. Sehth had his orders, and he would not question them.

Sehth's sword sparked as it was driven through the king's chestplate. His mission was complete; it didn't matter anymore if Sehth died. The king's eyes widened in pain and shock. Sehth turned away, ready to flee the Castle at any moment. "..Wait.." the king managed. Sehth turned slightly. "Tell my daughter.. that she will.. be.. a Wei.." the king then fell silent, letting out his last breath in a small, haunting sigh. Sehth nodded. As dishonorable as he now was, a person's dying wish was not something to be ridiculed. Sehth would tell the now Princess the king's message, whatever it was, anyway.

...

"W-what..? Father, dead?" The Princess turned away. "I refuse to believe it. Father is stronger than that." Sehth tested the waters. "Stronger.. than a Weilder?" The Princess immediately becomes hostile. "What are you suggesting? We hunted down every last Weilder in the kingdom!" The Princess was now furious. "I know.. but it's always a possibility. Keep the message the king had for you in mind." Sehth slowly faded away, out of the Princess' bedroom and out into the damp night air.

...

Sehth ran down the empty streets of Openwater, getting more fatigued with each step. Soon, the city would be abuzz with the news: the king is dead!

8 Years Later--

"Qweb, why are you in such a rush?" Anna chuckles, following the running bladehound. It was evening on the seventh month, almost time to be heading back home. There was always something so alluring about staying out at night, despite the dangers of Seawanderers. Anna was in the only costal forest, called Deltero. She wasn't there for any particular reason other than to explore, and that was reason enough for her. The moon shone brightly overhead, Anna's only company besides Qweb. "Qweb, we should be heading back.." Anna said, not truely meaning it. How could one not want to stay out on such a beautiful night? A shadow moves in her vision suddenly. A Seawanderer? Not possible.. they didn't go out as far as Deltero.. did they? The shadow turns towards Anna, and that's when she saw the defining feature of a Seawanderer: Two brightly glowing cyan eyes on top of a seemingly formless figure. Anna could do nothing more than whimper in fear as the beast stepped toward her, gaining a cold, empty smile.

---

The city of Koldith shone welcomingly in the dawn light, seemingly within a hand's reach. Dalinar was looking forward to having something to eat and a bed to sleep on. The former was obviously more important than the latter, but one didn't seem to overpower the other after being stranded for weeks in the Kothlian Desert. How long had it been since he had seen a city, a town, or even civilization for that matter? It didn't matter now; Koldith was so close.. just a couple more steps..

---

"What happened 'ere?" The boss asks, expecting a quick but detailed answer. They, too, were in Deltero, not far away from the coastline. "I assume a young'n got eaten by a Seawanderer. Quite deadly, they are." says the man next to the boss. "I see. I'm glad we don't 'ave to be 'ere at night, then." The boss walks off towards the coastline, leaving the dead body of Anna behind.