The masters had not told him what to expect upon entering the room. He thought he might have to search for the object, but to his relief, it was displayed on a stand atop the dressing table. It was a necklace with a fine silver chain and a green stone the color of fresh leaves in spring. Rezkin held the necklace up to the light. He appreciated the shimmer and reflective qualities, which could be useful for signaling a partner during a mission, but otherwise he saw no purpose in the item. He understood from his studies that some people decorated themselves with jewels in an attempt to appear important or desirable. He did not see how putting metal and rocks around your neck could improve your quality. Perhaps they had some hypnotic affect. He had learned in survival training that one could use shiny objects to lure fish, so he decided it was possible this necklace had the same effect on people.

The young man shook his head and stuffed the necklace into a pouch at his belt. He frowned as he glanced down at the empty stand. It was obvious something was missing. He surveyed the room and had a sudden inspiration. He would have to move quickly since he was running out of time. Reaching the bed, he selected a long tassel of braided silver thread. He pulled out a few strands and twisted them together as he crossed to the side table. Upon the table was a decorative oil lamp with multicolored glass beads dangling from the top. He tilted the lamp so that he could remove a green glass bead from the back and threaded it on to the silver strands as he moved back to the dressing table. He hung the counterfeit jewelry on the stand and stepped back toward the door. A close inspection would reveal the necklace to be a fraud, but if the guards simply peered into the room, they may not notice the necklace was gone. The ploy could give him extra time if he was too slow in his escape.

Pressing his ear to the door, he listened carefully for the guard to pass and then flew out of the room. He rushed down the hall in the opposite direction from which he had come and, after a brief inspection, darted around the corner. He had planned for time to hunt for the item, so making the replacement had not really put him behind. He was still pushing the limits, though, because he now had only eight minutes to get back to the master before someone checked on the object.