Perhaps it was only his assumption that others in Kethadria felt the same as he. Kelius, son of two immigrants from Mesopotamia, was destined to continue in his parent’s footsteps – a laborer for his entire life. Were it not for the favorable family to whom his parents had been indentured, the Denais, and for his own apparent affinity for Kethadria’s magics, Kelius would have likely led an uneventful life. But, at five, he had been tested and found worthy, and had worn a Kethadrian crystal of citizenry for the fourteen years since. Now, three years into his apprenticeship at Penelus Thanner, Master Tinker’s workshop, Keli awoke after being mugged in an alleyway.

He had not parted with his crystal even since first laying eyes on it, and had never seen a citizen without it. He had not heard of a crystal even stolen before – not even after a murder. And yet here he was, still alive, but the crystal was missing. Keli groaned as he stood up with difficulty, unsure if the lost crystal or the aches were at fault.