Lord Stergis

"Is that our brother over there?" Jim asked.

"Yes it's him." Daniel replied.

"He'll be a real delight when that wears off tomorrow." Jim commented.

"That's what we were saying when you walked in the door." Replied Richard  taking a long gulp of his lager.

 Then he got up to get a pint for all of them again. When he returned the three of them sat laughing and drinking having a great time. It was nice not having any business for today. It didn't happen for them very often, not all together like this. Someone or all of them were off hunting demons or saving someone, keeping the peace. It had been months since they were all together, a rare treat. They talked about past demons and problem elves as the time crept away.

"Hey I didn't know you guys were here." Yorku greeted them, with a bit of a slur.

"I think you were a little preoccupied to notice when we got here." Richard replied joking with his buddy.

"Care for a pint my friend?" Daniel offered.

"Sure why not?" Yorku replied with a little less slurring.

Daniel returned with one pint for all of them. It was a good time for the warlocks. They didn't have to protect, hunt or battle anything. Tonight they didn't have to be heroic or magical warriors. For the moment they were able to just be four friends having drinks and good conversation. The four of them went on like this for hours, it had gotten dark long before they had noticed. They weren't worrying about gremlin troubles or goblin wars. Before long the crowd had died down, it was almost time to close up. They had  left the tavern together. They walked  until they got to the crossroads of the village and  went to their separate cottages for the night.

The next morning came frightfully early for the warlocks. Jim woke getting up slow and steady. His head felt like someone was banging it with a large rock. Sitting  there in bed for a few minutes, to get his thoughts together. Then he thought of the other guys, who would need his magical services. He  went to his closet of magical items and filled three separate pouches. He filled them with the supplies he would need and headed out the door as quickly as possible. He needed to go to Yorku's first. He needed it more than the rest of them.

 He walked along the trail,  his young friend didn't live that far away, less than a fifteen minute walk. It felt as if he just left his own cottage when he arrived at Yorku's small but charming cottage. Jim stopped  to admire the symbol on his friend's front door. It was a cresent moon with a broomstick behind it. Then he knocked on the door louder than normal. He waited a few minutes and heard nothing, so he knocked  hard. Suddenly he heard grumpy noises coming from inside of the small house. Jim waited as Yorku slowly opened the door.

"What do you want?" Yorku spat at Jim.

"Good morning to you too, sunshine. I have brought a cure for the nausea, dizziness and the pounding headache you probably have." Jim replied with a cocky smile.

Yorku said nothing but simply leaped toward his friend and gave him a  hug of gratitude, then the two of them went into the barely furnished cottage, and sat in chairs that were a little past worn out. Jim got to work right away, setting up his supplies. He pulled out three white pillar candles, arranging them in a large semi- circle. He then asked the younger warlock to step inside of the candle formation. Yorku did as he was requested. He trusted Jim and the others with his life. Then Jim sprinkled this bright neon green powder around the semi-circle. He handed e young warlock a vile of dark purple liquid. Jim looked at him with a dead on stare.

"You need to clear your mind and your thoughts. Put yourself into an altered state of being. Then drink this down. It will help." Jim explained to him.

"Okay Jim, If you say so." Yorku replied to the elder warlock. When he finally had gotten to an altered state and downed the foul smelling liquid, Jim began to chant.

"Healing powers of earth and sky, I need to ask for your help this time. Lend us your powers so he may thrive, and protect the creatures of all kinds."

Jim then thanked the gods for their help and closed the circle. He waited for the magical healing powers to take effect on his friend. In less than a half hour Yorku admitted he felt much better, so the two headed off to see the next warlock. They headed east to Daniels house almost to the very end of the village. It hadn't taken them very long and it was a rather beautiful day to be out. When the two of them reached Daniels, he was more than glad to see them. He didn't get much company other than the brethren which wasn't that often.

 They usually don't pop over to visit. It usually means something is going on. Almost as soon as he saw them at the front he flung the door open, inviting them in right away. Jim explained his healing ritual and Daniel was happy to have anything for the splitting headache he still felt. Once again Jim got out three white pillars, and instructed Daniel with the vile of purple liquid. He did just as Jim requested, and the rite went smoothly.

 Richard once again thanked the gods and closed the circle. Then the three of them headed off to see Richard who lived outside of the village just before the edge of the forest. He lived in a nice small cottage over looking the forest trails. He enjoyed being this close to the forest, nature and the creatures he would see running around. Once in a while faeries would fly past the kitchen window, or elves walking through his backyard. 

The three warlocks knocked on the door and Richard let them in right away, he  felt the effects of last night just as they did. Jim explained the healing ritual and reluctantly Richard agreed. Once the last rite was performed and the circle closed, the four warlocks headed off to do a perimeter sweep of the forest.By the time they had checked on most of the villages and the forest, it had gotten to be late afternoon. All seemed well with the forest and the towns. Things were peaceful, all seemed well.

Little did they know here was trouble brewing not all that far from home. It was brewing very slowly and it was the worst kind of trouble there could be. It was the unknown kind of darkness they had yet to encounter....

The tall, dark and wicked Lord Stergis was slowly plotting away at another master plan. He was sick to death of being patient. It was time for action. It was time for his long awaited blood boiling revenge. Stergis had enough of them. He rendered them first a pest, and now a problem. That problem will be dealt with in due time. The dark sorcerer walked across the room of his dark lair to the cauldron. He began to swirl the water just right.

 Performing a dark enchantment, he needed to find out what those pesky warlocks were up to, where they were and why. Soon the swirling water created a fog, then he could see the warlocks as the cloudy mist began to lift. There they were the little nature freaks, running through the forest like a bunch of idiots. They were complete fools all of them. He had a damn good reason to dispise them. Stergis, filled with rage that had darkened his now evil soul began hunting through grimores and spell-books. He needed to find a hex, curse or spell to eradicate the warlock brethren for good. He needed to make them suffer dearly for the pain they had caused long ago.

When he was a boy and far too young to have his powers, he had an older sister, Veronia. She was everything to him, they had a bond that ran deeper than blood. They had a spiritual bond, they were kindred souls. Veronia was a teenager and had recently gotten her magic. She was a highly talented natural witch. Her abilities were increasing at a rapid speed. Veronia was sweet, elegant and fun to be with. Everyone that knew her truly loved her. Stergis was barely seven when the tragic event took place. Those good for nothing warlocks came across his sister in the woods. The memory of that day came flooding back to him, almost too fast for him to handle it.

She was attempting to shape shift out there in the forest. It was all so new to her. Veronia didn't know what she might shift into, so she went far out into the woods just in case the shift was something dangerous. Slowly the young sorceress began with a meditative technique, then a ritual for guidance with her magical task. Then she went into a deep trance like state. Putting only positive vibes and good thoughts, happiest of memories Veronia tried with all the positive energy she could force from within. Nothing happened, taking a deep breath she tried again. By the third failed attempt she sat down to take a break, trying to figure out what went wrong.

Clearing her thoughts once more, an idea came to her. Getting up slowly, the young and powerful sorceress began to tap into her dark side. We all have a dark side but it takes true talent to tap into it and use it. Veronia began to channel her true inner evil, buried under layers of kindness and love, she found it. More quickly than anticipated her body began to twist and shift contorting with an agony she had never imagined. She could feel her bones moving into place, she was horrified, hoping the pain would stop. She slumped on the floor reaching for her leather pouch, she grabbed a mirror from inside it. She had transformed into a small gargoyle like demon, with wings black as night almost a scaley feel to them. She had red glowing eyes and large white piercing fangs. She couldn't believe that the ritual worked.

Moments later those fool warlocks showed up and saw her in the woods in her demon form. She was a very talented witch but she didn't know how to shift back into human form. She tried to explain to them she was a seventeen year old girl, but they didn't believe her. That was probably near the moment those warlocks chose to end her life. They murdered her, all because they wouldn't listen to her. Stergis held back the anger. They would pay for their crime. He kept looking, he had to find the right spell, perhaps conjure the right demon. There was a way to be rid of them he just had to find it. The best part was they would never  see it coming.

The dark warlock began going through books looking for spells, incantations and rituals. He was determined to find anything he could that would help destroy the brethren for good. He kept clearing through massive shelves of spell books. Then he came across one that he hadn't remembered ever seeing. It perked his curiosity, so he flipped it open and began to read through it. 

Within it's contents he found spells of the darkest kind. He didn't remember ever owning this book before. He had no idea where it came from. There was even a demon chart inside the cover. Everything you would want to know on the subject was included in here. Demon names, ranking, how to conjure demons and how to destroy them. What demons were good for certain rites. It had everything you wanted to know about the underworld, evil spirits even how to contact the dead.

Stergis then began to wonder if it was pure luck or was he meant to find the book. He sat there fascinated with the treasure he had found. There were hell-hounds, demonic enities and then he found something that perked his interest. It was a creature called a soul vampire, that may become useful later on. These creatures feed on the soul, life essence instead of the mortal's blood. Once the soul is gone the mind and physical body can't function. When the soul is gone, so is the will to live. Stergis had work to do. Someday  he would avenge his beloved sister's death. Even if it resulted in his own demise. He didn't care, those warlocks needed to pay.

Meanwhile, back in the forest the brethren were battling with a goblin that had snuck into warlock territory from a nearby swampland. Finally the had the thing cornered and backed up against a huge white rock. Yorku hurled a huge purple energy at the goblin and as soon as the ball of purple light hit, both disappeared and the goblin now permanently banished from the land.

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