Alloy Godmetal

[Yata he/him]

The Atium didn't exist naturally (and the same for Lerasium).

The Atium is the stealed part of Ruin's power that balanced again the two Shards. It's the whole reason of the Plot of theHoA that Ruin can't overpowered Preservation and destroy Scadrial because of his stealed power.

 

When R&P creates all the life of Scadrial. Preservation put extra investiture to the human to make them sentience. Ruin didn't put extra power and this creates the unbalance between the two.

The Pit is just the place that preservation make to gatherer the portion of Ruin's power after his betreyal.

 

About the Lerasium, we didn't even know how did he come from. It's possible that Preservation leaved it there (at the Well) for his long term plan. As is possible that Rashek made it (through condensation of Preservation's Power) once he know about the Allomancy during his Ascension.

[skaa he/him]

Again, how do we know this? Clearly it isn't the case that there is no god metal without an act like that, otherwise there would be no Lerasium beads. I always assumed that the production of Atium (and Lerasium for that matter) was a natural byproduct of the Shardpool buried at the Well and under the Pits.

I tried looking for WoBs showing that atium is a part of Ruin's power that Preservation took away. This is the only one I've found so far:

BRANDON SANDERSON

Preservation wanted Atium and Malatium to be of use to the people, as he recognized that it would be a very powerful tool—and that using it up could help defeat Ruin. But he also recognized that sixteen was a mythological important number, and felt it would make the best sign for his followers. So he took out the most unlikely (difficult to make and use) metals for his sign to his followers.

This implies that Preservation had some sort of control over the distribution of atium, otherwise there is no point in saying he wanted atium to be useful. Nonetheless, it's not really proof that atium did not exist before Ruin's imprisonment, and I'm having trouble finding WoBs that can conclusively resolve that issue.

Fortunately, the books themselves make it quite clear.

First, a history lesson from the Hero of Ages:

Quote

The pact between Preservation and Ruin is a thing of gods, and difficult to explain in human terms. Indeed, initially, there was a stalemate between them. On one hand, each knew that only by working together could they create. On the other hand, both knew that they would never have complete satisfaction in what they created. Preservation would not be able to keep things perfect and unchanging, and Ruin would not be able to destroy completely.

Ruin, of course, eventually acquired the ability to end the world and gain the satisfaction he wanted. But, then, that wasn't originally part of the bargain.

Preservation's desire to create sentient life was what eventually broke the stalemate. In order to give mankind awareness and independent thought, Preservation knew that he would have to give up part of himself—his own soul—to dwell within mankind. This would leave him just a tiny bit weaker than his opposite, Ruin.

That tiny bit seemed inconsequential, compared with their total vast sums of power. However, over aeons, this tiny flaw would allow Ruin to overcome Preservation, thereby bringing an end to the world.

The important thing to note here is that after the creation of humanity, Ruin became more powerful than Preservation. Even after Ruin was imprisoned, he knew that as long as he is eventually freed he'd have the upper hand and would be able to defeat the mindless remnant of Preservation and destroy the world.

Except, when he was freed, part of his power was still missing.

 

On his way to Luthadel, Marsh had stopped at no fewer than four villages, where he had secretly killed the men guarding their food stores, then set fire to the buildings that contained them. He knew that the other Inquisitors went about the world, committing similar atrocities as they searched for the thing Ruin desired above all others. The thing Preservation had taken from him.

He had yet to find it.

What was that "thing"?

What she had suspected before, she now knew with certainty. Ruin's power was concentrated, hidden somewhere by Preservation. The atium. Ruin was stronger. Or, he would be, once he recovered the last part of his self. Then, he would be able to destroy completely—they would no longer be balanced.

I don't think Ruin would ever want even a bit of his power to be concentrated in metal form, simply because that would weaken him, and as we know Ruin isn't the sacrificing type. The only logical conclusion from that and the above quotations is that Preservation masterminded the atium production in the Pits of Hathsin.

Edited November 21, 2015 by skaa