How they underestimated him! He was a humble person by nature, but he also knew this. He knew that he was much more capable than the others seemed to think. But no matter. They would at some point come to realise his worth. Of course, this was not to say that he thought himself better than them, goodness no! Both were masters in their professions, possibly the top in the world. Unfortunately, though, he had a very independant streak in him which he was yet to find the spell to get rid of. He couldn't counth the amount of times he had gotten himself into trouble after wondering out of safe areas on his own. Not that he had ever gotten himself in over his head, but he still knew that life would be a lot easier if he would just accept the fact that it was often a good idea to stay with his group.

But he could worry about this tendency later. He had a castle and it's mysteries to uncover.

Even now he could hear his friends murmuring about his whereabouts. He also noted that the decoy he had sent ahead had done the trick. He had sent a shadow up one of the passages up ahead, albeit quite noisily. He knew the mercenary would not be fooled by this ploy for too long, so if he was to get anything worthwhile done he would have to move.

Carefully, quickly and silently he made his way down his chosen passage to the left. He soon found what he had suspected would be there. There was a large stone inside a transparent, oblong container which was suspended in the air by thin strands of copper. He suspected this to be the source of the eerie glow which was emanating from the lanturns in the main passage. He also knew that the only type of stone that could perform such a function would be Gerine, a rare and magical stone found only in this area. It could prove useful in his forthcoming mission. Their forthcoming adventure...

The stone would definitely be protected by all manner of spells and traps. It would take a few minutes to find out what spells were in place, but this was a simple matter calling only for a detection spell. The spell would detect all spells of moderate to high power in the surrounding area. He always knew it would be useful to have this spell at hand. He performed quickly, as he knew time was running short.

He discovered two very strange things on completion of the spell. Firstly, there were actually NO spells anywhere near to the artifact (besides his own protection and enhancement spells). Secondly, and more peculiar than the first discovery, was that the spell showed that there was an immensely powerful spell enveloping his companions. Obviously not of earthly origin, but then from where?

It seemed that this question would have to wait though, as he could hear muffled footsteps coming closer and closer. Now... time to think of an excuse...