Hunting Thingamajigs

"Indeed," Brian said, needing to catch his breath for a moment after repeatedly dodging the basilisk. He paused a moment and hurled another rock farther out. And then he waited. Nothing happened.

"You lot are not catburglars," Michael sighed. "You are so limited. Here." He flicked his wand and cast a spell. A number of rocks levitated and floated over the lake and hovered there, creating a stepping stone bridge in thin air. "That, my friends, is how its done. Keep your eyes open and your wand drawn, and watch where you step. But lets cross and get the hell out of here."

"i'm right behind you," Brian said.

"You dont have a choice,' Michael said, pointing to the rope that held them together.

Jim nodded as Cassidy let go of thew sword and headed out and across the stepping stone, " don't have to ask me twice " she said diving behind Michael as he crossed Jack went last while Jim went behind Brian. Cassidy was glad that once over she could pause to catch her breath her hands shook a little from the fight but she breathed out and they stopped " which way now?" She asked as Jim moved to her side along with Jack both had there wands out along now with cassidy. Jim took out his flask and let her take a mouthful to calm her nerves.

Michael and Brian looked around to see things in a clearer light now. Brian saw a doorway in the distance.

"That is entirely too easy," Brian said.

"Indeed," Michael said. He fired his wand. "Reveal!" Immediately he saw a spell cast across the doorway. It looked like a shimmering barrier. "Damn," he sighed. "That's not good. That prevents anyone magical from crossing. You put a fingertip over that barrier and it will turn you into a fireball instantly."

"How do we get past?" Brian asked.

"You dont' happen to have the artifact that acts as the key, do you?"

"Oh sure," Brian sighed. "Just happened to pack it in my pocket. What are we looking for?"

"It could be anything," Michael shrugged.

Jim looked around and saw a single torch on the wall talking it down he walked over to Brian " what about this, its the only thing around and it seems out of place with the natural light an all" he said handing it to Brian and stepping back to watch what happened next . cassidy stood with Jack looking around she saw the barrier and sighed she looked around to but didn't see anything and kicked a stone with her foot. Jack moved to the door but staid back from the barrier.

"no way to disable it ether" he told them and watched Jim with the torch.

Michael began looking and feeling the walls. He paused. "Here it is, but that thing isn't going to fit in there." He had found a slot in the wall. It was rather small and narrow. A torch wasnt going to fit into it. Brian looked around, looking for something else.

"No," Brian said, "But this will." He pulled on the torch ring. It gave a bit, but it clearly hadn't been removed from the wall for awhile. Brian was sure it was the key, but getting it out of the wall might be another matter. It was stuck.

"You know, if you exercised, you'd be able to get that," Michael teased.

"He exercises anymore and we'll all be musclebound," Angus said.

Jack walked over to it and pulled it gave way and he handed it to Brian smirking a little as he looked at Angus " some of us are naturally buff" he said brushing cobwebs and brick dust off his hands. Cassidy shook her head and watched quietly so did Jim.

" well I for one prefer to be as I am , women prefer brains over brawn" he said and jack laughed out loud.

" some do, some do Jim" he said and smiled as he watched Brian with the torch ring intrigued to what would happen next.

"Give me that," Michael said. His keen hearing was sharply alerted to the chirping of bats. "Head up. Lets be sure none of those are Escobar's security guards. Kill them if they cause trouble. Well, try, anyway. Vampires don't die that easily." He took the ring and put it into the slot. The glow over the doorway disappeared. He picked up a rock and tossed it through. Nothing. He took a deep breath and was about to step through when Brian stopped him.

"I need you to get them out if we've missed something," Brian said. He volunteered to go through first himself because he believed in Michael's skills more than his own. He stepped through before anyone could stop him. Michael's heart felt like it was going to stop before he saw Brian was alright.

"Well done," Michael said. "But dont' do it again." He turned to the others. "Let's go." He motioned them forward."

Jim , Jack and cassidy waited they could hear the bats but not see them quickly at the sound of Michael's voice they ran for the door and through it into the other room and closed the door blocking out the sound of the bats on the other side. Jack , Jim and cassidy looked around and it was Jim that found another passage way behind a statue against the wall in front of them. " Brian over here" he called.

Michael led them through the passage carefully and it turned into a maze of passages that just weren't on the map. That meant they were working on Michael's terms now, and Brian was happy to turn it over to him. The passages became tricky and trecherous. Michael often stopped them to think, to get it mapped in his head. It seemed to Brian like they had been walking for a coupe of hours.

"I think I know where we are," Michael said as they came to an abrupt dead end.

"The end?" Brian asked.

"No, my boy. We are, I think, right under the castle itself. And I believe our way in is..." he paused and managed to open another passageway. "Here. Careful." He went in and found they were at the far end of the wine cellar. "Search. Be careful. If you dont' know what it is, don't touch it." They proceeded through the wine cellar, and Brian found a whole shelf of bottles of wine that were either cracked, broken, or rotted. And they were so thick with dust he had almost missed them. He rifled through the bottles and heard one rattle. He frowned. He pulled the rattling bottle off the shelf and shone his wand up against it. Inside the bottle was some sort of a glistening gold amulet.

Brian whispered for Michael who went over in a hurry, and Brian showed him the bottle

"How the hell did that thing get into the bottle?" he frowned, seeing how narrow the neck was.

"One of two ways," Michael said. "Either by a charm, or it was put together in there, like old ships in bottles. One or the other. But I think you just found what we came here for. Nice." He motioned for the others.

Cassidy, Jim and Jack all followed behind in the cellar they searched not sure what they would find cassidy found an old leather bound book and placed it shrunk in her pocket to give to Robert or Michael later on. Jack moved around the room and kicked a bottle sending it tinkling on the stone ground in front of him before the top popped and red thick liquid oozed out.

" Brian?" He said and stepped back " Does that look like blood to you? " he asked