Jak rode hard on the main road towards Whitethorn. He had fresh clothes, fresh supplies, a good horse under him, and to his dismay, a lighter box of coin. Still, it would be worth it if he could put this whole mess behind him soon.

He was able to tether his horse safely under the cover of trees within reach of both fresh water and tall grass. He took his pack with him. If the horse was stolen fine, but he paid for his magic contraband and he wasn't ready to let it out of his sight. Once this mess was cleaned up, his next goal was to hunt down the thief girl.

The climb was easy. The wind wasn't biting as hard today, and it was only midday so the light shone on the rocky Cliffside. His pack weighed him down, but that was expected.

He went in the window after making sure no one was in the hallway and dawned his robes. He grew uneasy as he didn't run into anyone. No soldiers, no mages, no one. He made it to Anders's door to hear voices softly talking. Who would he be talking to? Jak wasn't about to walk in on someone he didn't know, so he took a blank piece of parchment and slid it under the door. He then went down to the end of the hallway and around the corner to the stairwell to wait.

"Jak? It's ok." Anders called from his doorway. He cautiously rounded the corner back into the hallway to see Anders waving him over.

"I heard voices." Jak said.

"Yes, and it's time you two met. We're right on top of the problem, come help me tell this tale and I have much to fill you in on." Anders lead Jak inside to see a short man in a white and gold coat sitting on the chair.

"This is your cousin?" The little man had a northern accent, he stuck his hand out for Jak. "Call me Harlow, it is nice to meet you."

"Cousin, right." Jak raised an eyebrow at Anders. It wasn't his worst cover story, but it was far from his best. At least the mage had the forethought to make something up at all.

"Now my boy, you were telling me about this journal?" Harlow sat attentively on the edge of his seat.

"Yes, well Jak found it, but I translated it. It was in old Selscript. Do you still have those translations?" Anders looked to Jak.

"Aye, I do." Jak handed the papers from his pack to Harlow.

"Let's see here." Harlow examined the notes for a moment, frowning.

"See here, this reference to a spirit gate? That had quite a few scratched out notes about how to gather enough power. And my device," Anders pulled his wire and rock contraption from a leather bag. "My research on this was stolen. This is what I was talking about the night we met."

"Fascinating." Harlow took out two lenses connected with a wire frame and perched them on his nose. Jak stared at the lenses for a while. They had a red tint to them.

"Is that a lens of truesight?" Jak asked before thinking.

"Why it is! How did you come to know of them?" Harlow looked at Jak curiously.

"Oh, I, read of them once." He leaned against the wall, determined to keep his mouth shut before he really gave himself away.

"Yes, very handy for seeing magic. Very hard to make as well." Harlow inspected Anders's device, which the young mage held up for him. "Quality work my boy. I would be excited to read about your process on this! Now, your notes on this were stolen?"

"Yes, but one day last week I came back and there they were, sitting on my bed. I was able to finish my work." Anders said. "But the worry was the notes were stolen to construct a similar device. If my theories are correct, our thief could have taken them to construct something similar. It would be able to store the needed power for the gate."

"You may be correct my boy, that could be where the stolen power is." Harlow continued looking at the translations.

"Stolen power?" Jak looked to Anders.

"Gods you haven't been here." Anders smacked his forehead. "The weaker mages and some of the soldiers have taken ill. Some have died from it. Only I don't think it's an illness, I think their power is being drained to the point of making them sick."

"Then why the soldiers too?" Jak asked.

"I have had a theory on that." Harlow spoke up. "I believe everyone is born with an alignment to a magical element. Some of us have a strong enough manifestation of it that we can use it as an extension of our bodies. Anders, you clearly have the element of lightning, and you have a lot of it. I for instance do not have enough to manifest into noticeable power."

"That would explain some of the soldiers being affected. They have just enough that it's being drawn out and making them sick." Anders said.

"Precisely." Harlow beamed. "If you are yet unsure what you want to do when you win your robes, I welcome you as an assistant. I am always glad to bring a sharp scholar such as yourself under wing."

"Thanks Harlow." Anders smiled. "But I do have plans. Anyway, we need to find out where they are storing the power, or who the mage is. Short of you walking every inch of the keep Harlow I don't know how we'd find the device."

"Then we need the mage. I can help with that." Jak pulled the book Jesser gave him from his pack. "This is Hughes's old contact book for Whitethorn. Mages he worked with on various subjects, including the spirit magic. Look here, everything is labeled. Guess the old guy had so many contacts he had to organize them."

"Magnus Hughes? How does he play into this?" Harlow asked.

"His household sent Jak to get the journal." Anders said. "But this wasn't until after his death."

"Curious." Harlow mumbled. "But you have a book of his? Mages he knew of that dabbled in this lore?"

"Here." Jak handed the book to Harlow.

"Yes, these are familiar names. I dare say I heard some of these five and ten years ago at the previous assessments. Any of them could be our mage." Harlow said.

"What are the names?" Anders asked. "Maybe we can find them right now, see who isn't affected by the spell."

"Well, the problem is all of them are." Harlow looked up at Anders. "When I went through the sick room it was not just the patients leaking power, it was all of them. The problem was, for the patients, the magic was being taken faster than their bodies produced it. You also are leaking power Anders, but you are not sick because your power restores itself at a greater rate than it is being taken."

"So there isn't a way to tell?" Jak asked.

"Well, the spell as you have mentioned here will drain everyone in the area, there is no way to choose who. But perhaps there is something we can find out if we confront them in person." Harlow said.

"Who are we looking at then?" Anders asked.

"Ruwan, fire mage, red, formerly named Hilltop. Ghilda, water mage, blue, formerly named Chancer. Dunnovan, water mage, yellow, formerly named Hanover. Yda, stone mage, blue, formerly named ga Torgin. It looks like those are the only ones with knowledge in that area." Harlow read from the book.

"It's not Ghilda or Dunnovan. I know Ghilda, and Dunnovan is deathly ill in the small sick room." Anders said.

"We can't rule out anyone." Jak said. "We can check on your friend as a formality at least, and the sick dolt could have simply lost control of his own spell for all we know."

"Well it's not Ghilda, but if you must save her for last." Anders growled. "You'll find the culprit before you need to talk to her."

"Easy lad, I'm not tryin' to upset you." Jak said. "Where I come from you trust your friends less than your enemies."

"I'm sorry Anders, I know this is a hard subject. You're sure she hasn't been acting oddly of late?" Harlow asked.

"No." Anders said stubbornly.

"Alright, then we will trust your judgment. We will start with the other three." Harlow patted his shoulder.

"What are the chances of finding these mages in the sick rooms?" Jak asked.

"Ghilda is helping to take care of the sick mages, Dunnovan is one of them. Second floor, far east sitting room. They moved the furniture aside for pallets." Anders said.

"The others?" Harlow asked.

"I don't know. I don't even know them by name." Anders admitted.

"Then I will confer with the guards. They should be able to tell me." Harlow said.

"I'll go fer the sick room ones." Jak said. "I don't like to talk to the soldiers any more than I have to."

"How do we find out if they are the mage we want?" Anders asked.

"Just ask if they know anything about ancient spirit magic. They all do, so either they answer right and we know they aren't the one, or they are the one and they either lie or run." Jak said. "I promise that's how it will work. I've seen it a hundred times."

"Very well. Anders and I shall find out where the others are and check on them while you do that." Harlow got up from his seat.

"Alright, let's find this mage." Jak took a deep breath and opened the door.

Anders followed Harlow through the winding halls of the inner keep. They were much warmer than the halls the mages were confined to, and had more sconces lighting them. Plush red carpets lined the walkaways and he could see soldiers through most doorways.

Every time they passed a soldier Anders expected to be turned away, but instead they stood aside and saluted Harlow. For the first time Anders gave more thought to the little scholar before him. Why did Harlow's word keep him out of the lower levels? And why was he allowed to walk through the keep as he pleased?

"Ah, lieutenant. Would you be kind enough to point us in the direction of a blue mage Yda and a red mage Ruwan?" Harlow beamed up at a tall man just rounding a corner.

"Magister." He saluted. "Let me think, Ruwan has fallen to the sickness, so he will be on the second floor. Yda is on the third floor, outer east wall, north corner."

"Thank you." Harlow turned to Anders. "We should split up, for time. Which would you like to find?"

"I can take Ruwan, I Jak isn't having trouble." Anders answered. Harlow nodded, and they split up once they left the inner halls.

Anders's stomach turned as he walked up to the second floor. His fingers brushed the device in his bag, it was becoming a reflex of comfort for him to do so. The sick rooms were busy, the medics and those who were well enough to help were trying to get broth into the sick mages.

Anders looked around. All he knew about Ruwan was that he would be red and have fire magic. There were probably a hundred red glowing necks in the large sick room, and he had no time to ask each one. He eventually asked one of the water mages who had taken a break from caring for the sick and was sitting along the wall.

"Excuse me, do you know Ruwan?" Anders asked the small plump woman."

"Aye, a shame wasn't it? But he was just too old for the sickness." She said solemnly.

"Then he?" Anders trailed off.

"Yes, in the night poor man." She sighed.

"I see, sorry to bother you." Anders left and ran down the hall to the other sick room. His feet thudding on the stone and his heart pounding.

"Ghilda?" He ran through the doors and searched the room hungrily with his eyes. He didn't see her, or Jak.

"Everyone wants Ghilda today, well she isn't here. Hasn't been in all day." A man nearby grumbled.

"Where is she?" Anders asked panicked.

"How should I know?" He looked up from administering salve to a girl on the floor. "If you have time to yammer you have time to help. Why don't you get more water from downstairs?"

Anders walked out of the room. He wanted Yda to be the culprit more than anything, but couldn't deny it was out of character for her not to help, unless she wasn't feeling well. Maybe Harlow was having better luck.

Anders headed towards the east stairs. Maybe Harlow was in trouble? Why did the little old scholar go alone? Anders picked up his pace. What if it really was Yda, and Harlow was being killed as he was running around after Ghilda? He ran. Flying through the halls and to the northeast corner, he found Harlow leaving a room.

"Harlow!" Anders stopped at the top of the stairs.

"Ah, Anders my boy. I do not believe it was Yda. What of Ruwan?" Harlow walked up to him.

"He, passed. Last night. Have you seen Jak?" Anders was getting frantic.

"No." Harlow answered. "Where are Ghilda and Dunnovan?"

"Dunnovan is sick, I don't know where Ghilda is." Anders said. "You're sure you couldn't see where the magic was going?"

"It rose a few hand widths into the air and disappeared." Harlow answered. "If anything it was all gently leaning different directions, nothing in the same place."

"Where is my power leaking to?" Anders asked.

"Well, let me see here." Harlow took out his lenses and stared at the air over Anders's head. "Oh my, how strange."

"What is it?" Anders asked nervously.

"Yours is leaning sharply to the south." Harlow answered.

"Upstairs! The power isn't fading into nothing, it's traveling somewhere above the sick rooms!" Anders exclaimed.

"My boy, that's it!" Harlow bounced with excitement. "What is above those rooms on the third floor?"

"Soldiers' quarters, I think." Anders replied.

"And above that?" Harlow now headed for the stairs.

"It should be a big empty room. The grey mages are trained to control themselves there." Anders followed after Harlow.

"Well, it's a start." They rushed upstairs and heard the first crack of thunder.