As the three witches were in the library with wine and having a good time, the warlocks were still searching for the dark staff .They were tired, annoyed and frustrated. They started to lose hope that they would ever find the right cave or the staff.

"How many more caves could there possibly be up here?" Daniel asked rhetorically.

"I hope not too many more." Stergis replied.

The three of them searched yet another dark and gloomy cave. They were all beginning to think the entire quest was a total failure. Then as they walked further into the deep cave, Stergis sensed something. It was faint at first. Something had told him they needed to go left. He followed the magical instinct and told his friends, who immediately went left. Stergis led him by instinct or warlock's intuition .Daniel and Richard had faith in their new friend and followed behind him with their guard up, just in case they ran into any other creatures in the caves. They rounded a narrow left and saw there was a torch lit. They didn't know if it led to the thief or the staff but they were determined to find out.

"Stay down, stay quiet and stay hidden." Stergis whispered to the other two.

Stergis crept in stealth mode to check it out, possibly see what they were up against this time. When he crept away, Daniel and Richard were having a hushed conversation in slight whispers.

'I think we should offer it to him." Richard whispered.

"You mean an invite to join us?" Daniel asked.

"Yes, but I wanted to talk to you about it first, to make sure that you thought so too, before I asked him." Richard whispered back.

"I think that would be a great idea, once we get out of here." Daniel agreed.

About five minutes later Stergis had returned to report back with them to come up with a plan of action. Both Daniel and Richard turned around quickly when they saw their friend return. They just stared at him for a moment with wide eyes, awaiting to know what he had to tell them.

"I found the staff, I saw where it's being kept." He told the others.

"Did you see him? The one who took it?" Daniel asked, curious as to who or what they're going to be up against in order to retrieve the staff.

"He was there but I didn't get a good look at him just a shadow." Stergis explained to his friends.

"Shall we charge full force at him?" Richard suggested with a twinkle in his eye.

"I'm not sure if that will work. He would probably have his guard up" Stergis pointed out.

"So are you thinking a sneak attack?" Daniel suggested.

"That just might work." Stergis said with confidence that they could pull this off. He gave them a crooked smile.

The three of them huddled together, then took turns spying on the thief so they'd know if he suspected them. Stergis took the first watch, he saw something moving in the shadows but it was too fast for him to see it. He tried to get a good look but the fellow was too fast and the caves far too dark. Richard took the next watch. The thief was either a very short guy or a creature that wasn't human at all. He went back and relayed this information to the others.

"All right guys, it's my turn." Daniel told them in a tone that he meant business. He nodded to the others as he snuck around the cave as quiet as possible. He looked around the cave then headed back to Stergis and Richard, he needed them to join in with a chant that might help them.

"As above, so below. Show me what I need to know." The three of them did the chant repeatedly until it was as natural to them as breathing.

When they performed the chant Daniel had a vision just long enough to see what they were up against. He was completely confused, it wasn't human at all.

"It's not a person that took the staff but a gargoyle. Why would a gargoyle take it?" Daniel asked the other two.

"I don't know but we're going to find out. " Stergis told the other warlocks.

"Daniel do you still have the blue amulet?" Richard asked.

"Yes, why do you ask?"

"It's an amulet of strength and wisdom, two things I think we may need this night."

"He makes a rather good point." Stergis commented.

The three of them stayed huddled up for a few minutes, trying to stay focused and mentally prepare for this part of their quest. Then they leaped around the corner in attack mode.

The gargoyle turned around.

"What do you three think you are doing in my cave, be gone." The gargoyle ordered them in a harsh deep tone.

"I'm here to retrieve my stolen property." Stergis barked at him.

"You'd be the sorcerer then?' The gargoyle asked in a sharp tone.

"Yes my name is Stergis, what's yours?"

"I'm called Grigori." The gargoyle answered him, Stergis wasn't sure that he would or not.

"These guys are Richard and Daniel. They are here to help me get my staff back."

"Stupid human, you don't know what you ask!" Spat Grigori in anger.

The three warlocks just stared at him, unsure as to what he was talking about.

"You stubborn fool this isn't just a staff. You can't hand it over to anyone outside of the bloodline." Grigori ranted and raved. He reminded them of an outraged leprechaun having a fit.

"I know it holds all of the family's magic." Stergis replied.

"That's exactly why you don't give it to an outsider." Grigori shouted at him.

"Why are you so concerned with his blood line anyway?" Daniel asked in a firm tone.

"Do you know what an ancestral inceptor is?" Grigori barked.

Daniel smiled. He knew exactly what it was. "An ancient family guardian?"

"Yes so it is feasible I took the staff for his own damn good?"

"I don't care, it's mine and I'd like it back. I'll fight for it if I must." Stergis told him flatly.

Stergis took the position of a wizards stance ready to battle it out over the dark staff if he had to do so. The two other warlocks did the same. To show he meant what he said, Stergis formed a purple fireball and shot it with force at Grigori, who dodged it at the last second. Before he countered the attack, the gargoyle began to shift into a whole other creature entirely. When he stood there he was no longer a gargoyle but a dark sorcerer.

"You want to play? That's fine with me." Grigori spat the words at him.

He thew a yellow light orb, meant to stop an opponent, but Richard grabbed Stergis pulling him out of the way, saving his life. Stergis was impressed and just stared at him for a moment, speechless.

While the others were distracted, Daniel searched all over the cave for the staff. He was amazed that he couldn't find the staff. He was usually pretty good at lost object retrieval but not this time.

Richard just smiled at Stergis. "Let's get your staff and go home."

"I'm with you on that note," Stergis replied. Then he found the staff and grabbed Daniel too.

"Come on guys, maybe we can get to the bottom of this mountain before the witching hour." Richard stated to them.

The warlocks made their way back through the caves without much difficulty, but once back onto the mountain it took a little more concentration. They tried to move quickly, but with caution, nobody wanted to have to carry someone home with a broken bone or two. They stayed moving, going a lot further than they realized, they had made their way down the treacherous mountain. They were exhausted all of them but they kept going, focusing on getting home. Once they reached their village they were ready to just drop where they stood. Daniel let out a sigh of relief.

"I feel like I could fall over right here." Daniel complained to the others.

"Me too brother, me too." Richard told him.

"Come on we're not far from a good spot to rest, then we'll head home." Stergis advised.

Richard and Daniel nodded in agreement as they followed behind their new friend, Stergis. The three of them walked, practically dragging themselves to a spot close enough to the village to rest. They were all nearly half asleep by the time they lay on the ground.

ell >Cr(z