Jak lay in his bed. His room was empty save for him, a bed that comes with the renting, and his pack with newly purchased magic supplies. He reached his hand in front of his face and took off his eye patch. He could see the glowing blue in his veins. Magic. He looked over at his pack. The glow of the tools and bottles were every shade of colors. He put his eye patch back on.

"Jak?" Hash knocked on his door.

"Come in." Jak didn't even bother grabbing his daggers, he just sat up on the bed.

"Wasn't sure if you left town yet or not." Hash let himself in. I'm guessing you aren't staying anyway. You already been here longer than normal."

"Yeah. I have business with a girl in Unays." Jak said. "Or at least that was her accent."

"Business not pleasure?" Hash grinned and elbowed him.

"Definitely business." He growled.

"Ah well. I wanted to pass this along before ya left." Hash handed him a paper with some names. "Those are the house staff you'll have dealt with fer Hughes. Don't know if you still wanted to chase that book or not, but it's a start."

"Thanks Hash. I might after my ordeal in Unays." Jak said.

"When are you leavin?" Hash scratched his chin.

"I think I'll watch a kid in the assessments. I'm sort of invested in his project ya see." Jak grinned. "And I expect an interestin show."

"Tip on the name? You know ol' Brunnan will be booking bets on who gets what color." Hash laughed.

"No, I think I'll keep this one to myself if it's all the same. Can't spoil the surprise." Jak winked.

"Yer no fun." Hash said.

"Well, I'm headin out. I've gotta go see a Magister about a problem." Jak stood and stretched, grabbing his pack and cloak.

"Good health Jak Skinner. Til the next wind that brings ya here, stay safe." Hash followed Jak out the apartment and with a wave disappeared.

Jak walked down to the Rivers Edge. Harlow had been staying there and twice had treated Jak to dinner. He wasn't sure how Harlow had so much money or status, but he did and it was a friendship worth milking. Harlow was a nice sort, but Jak didn't stay around scholars for long. He had seen the worst of their nature too many times to really trust them.

"Hello Master Jak." A maid winked at him from the back wash yard. The doorman let him in with a gruff nod and Jak swept through the lobby to the dining rooms. Harlow was sitting with a group of men and women but stopped a story to wave Jak over when he saw him come in.

"Jak! Jak over here my boy have a seat. I was just recanting the story of a woman I met in Lolathia who had the most remarkable control of plants." Harlow had a chair brought over. "You must stay for breakfast."

"Sorry Magister, I'm not here socially." Jak bowed his head to the table. "I just wanted to see if you were going up to the keep later, or if I could beg some of your time for a personal problem."

"I see." Harlow sighed. "Well if you simply can't stay?"

"No sir, I was going to check on my cousin." Jak said.

"Well then, yes I do have to go up to prepare with my colleagues later today for the first tests tomorrow, but I will make a point to come see you."

"Thank you." Jak smiled and left. He headed out on the main road to Whitethorn. His newly pretended status as Harlow's servant allowed him free access in and out of the keep. His days of climbing the short but formidable cliff side up from the rocky beach were over. The sun was still on the rise, he carried all he had to his name with him, and after this week he could feel the winds of travel again. He would watch the tests, see Anders's color, though Jak knew with his power he would be free to leave Whitethorn, and leave Selstad for a while. It was high time he took a trip back home, and caught up with his thief girl.

                    Anders did little but write for the next two days. He had been moved back to his rooms with some help, and his device was retrieved from the roof by a man twice his age. At first the charcoal was unsteady in his hand. He was too afraid to try a quill and ink, knowing how bad his writing would look until his hands recovered more. When he got his device back he took power from it. Everything he had stored the week he waited for Jak's return from Raastad flowed comfortably into his veins. He was rejuvenated, his recovery was rapid and his fingers began cooperating.

Jak and Harlow visited periodically to bring him supplies or check on him. The hours blended together as he slept and worked. Eventually he had to give up, he could remember no more fine details of his work, and this would have to be enough.

"Anders?" Jak let himself in. Since Anders wasn't leaving his rooms he had stopped shocking the doorknob. He sat down on the chair and flipped through the papers Anders had set aside to dry earlier that day.

"If you smudge those I will shock you." He threatened.

"Calm down lad, they dried long ago." Jak put down the pages. "So are you ready for tomorrow?"

"I wasn't going to test until the third day." He said.

"So you aren't watching your competition?" Jak asked slyly. "What's that boy's name you told me? Ceder? Copper?"

"Cerdic." Anders said frowning. "And what do I care what he does?"

"You should care, because you have an enemy in him. And if he wins that purple mark you better know of it because he can pop up anywhere in the world and you need to be ready." Jak said.

"I suppose." Anders trailed off.

"And do you have no other friends here?" Jak prodded.

"Really I don't. I'm familiar with those I was brought in with as a child, but I don't talk to any of them. The only one I talked to was, was Ghilda." Anders answered. "Long ago I had another friend but she's left, I think to Nummelin."

"I see." Jak said, crossing his arms. "Well if you would like to watch the tests anyway I'm happy to be of some company. The field is quite a sight actually, I've not seen the ampetheatre cleaned up in a long time."

"Ampetheatre?" Anders looked at Jak. "Where?"

"There's always been one on the field to the west. I suppose you can't see it from anywhere in the keep though." Jak answered. "People from all over are coming to watch. Some are family, some are scholars or employers recruiting skilled mages. There are many representatives of the Selstadian army already here and looking for mages of powers with possible military applications."

"I might watch. I suppose you could always pick up a trick or two." Anders considered.

"There you go lad. Can't have you cooped up in here brooding." Jak laid back in the chair and began reading Anders's papers. "You know, some of this is downright interesting now that I've seen more of what the crystals can do."

"Thanks, I just hope the judges agree with you." Anders said.

"Any hopes for what color you'll get?" Jak asked.

"No, I don't dare to hope. I want the purple and I want to leave. I know I have the power, I think I have the control, there's just a lot of it to try to control, it isn't easy." Anders rubbed his eyes.

"Anders?" A knock at the door turned his head.

"Come in Harlow." Anders shouted through the oak door.

"It is good to see you awake and doing well my boy." Harlow beamed. "And Jak, I see I caught you here still. You had business with me?"

"Yeah, I had hoped to do it in private but." Jak looked hard at Anders for a long time. "I don't think this recluse is going to spread any rumors about me, and I need help."

"Well, I don't think I can argue with that. But if you want me to cover my ears I can." Anders said.

"What is it Jak?" Harlow sat at the foot of Anders's bed.

"I've got a, problem. With my vision." Jak reached back and undid the ties to his eye patch.

"Oh dear, has it not returned?" Harlow started.

"That's quite a bruise." Anders whistled.

"You hush." Jak waved at Anders. "And yes my vision has returned."

"So why the eye patch?" Anders narrowed his eyes.

"Aren't you a sharp one." Jak muttered. "Magister, you've seen a lot of things in your travels. What do you suppose would happen if Truesight oil was rubbed in a human eye?"

"Blindness I'm afraid." Harlow said curiously. "I've seen it plenty of times. But that didn't happen to you did it?"

"Sort of. What if, someone, had a lens with truesight on it, and that lens was pushed into that person's eye by magical means?" Jak asked.

"Magical means, water magic?" Harlow's brows raised. "Water is the best known magic used in medicinal applications. The human body is already made up mostly of water. If the mage was more accustomed to healing than anything else."

"Oh Jak." Anders breathed. "You can't see magic can you?"

"Out of my left eye." He grimaced. "And it gives me headaches and it's distracting. And the thing is I can see much more detail than a simple truesight lens shows you. At first I thought it would be more helpful in my daily life, but I can't go on like this."

"Oh gods you can see magic." Anders's eyes were wide. "Does that mean he has to be marked?"

"Now wait a minute." Jak hadn't considered that yet. "I can't use magic, I can just see it."

"Can you see it in your body?" Harlow asked.

"Yeah, but I can see it in everyone just a little. It's like you said Harlow, everyone has some. That's why some of the soldiers got sick too. Just not everyone has enough to use as magic." Jak said.

"Fascinating!" Harlow began patting down his coat. "Jak my boy I've never heard of such a thing. You must help me write my paper on the theory!"

"I'll help you out Magister but please keep my name out of it." Jak grumbled. "I'd rather try to keep this little problem to myself. More to the point, can you stop it?"

"Why do you want to stop it? That sounds great!" Anders said.

"Yeah at first, but in a crowd it's so bright you can't see, the headaches are relentless, and what happens when I see a mage doing something I shouldn't?" Jak moaned. "My only relief is the eye patch."

"Well Jak, I am afraid you are the only known case of this I have heard of." Harlow had pulled out his truesight lenses and was inspecting Jak's eye. "I will inquire with some of my medically inclined acquaintances, but I can't promise a solution. I can't detect any magic in your eye myself, so no others should be able to either."

"I was really hoping you wouldn't say that." Jak groaned. "Thanks Harlow."

"You are quite welcome. Now, Anders my boy, are you ready for the tests?" Harlow asked.

"As ready as I can be, unless I remember anything else." He answered.

"Well I have confidence." Harlow said. "Are you going to come watch the other testers? It is quite a show."

"Jak was trying to get me to watch them. I suppose I might as well." Anders answered.

"That's the spirit my boy. No need to dwell on your own project, when the time comes it will happen." Harlow patted Anders's knee and stood up. "Well I had better get going, I have much to do before tomorrow. Good night."

"Night Harlow." Jak and Anders chorused.

"Well I'll leave you to sleep." Jak stood and put his eye patch back on. "See you tomorrow."

"Good night." Anders said, and he laid back until sleep took him, his device in his lap.