"I have," replied the dwarf darkly," and this is no warlock's stone. These accursed things are used to summon trolls."
"Summon trolls?" echoed the wizard, "How is this accomplished?"
"I have no idea how it is done. But I do know that on occasion these stones glow bright, and trolls come from near and far, as though they'd been called to it. It takes days. Weeks sometimes. Meanwhile, they just stand around like stone statues, until of a sudden they leave to do their devilry."
"A Summoning Stone!" breathed Belloc almost inaudibly. "I had forgotten. But that was so long ago! I had not realised that any had survived. Nor did they appear like this; this stone has been changed from what it was, and they were not used to summon trolls."
"Whatever its origin," said Celedhan, "someone obviously tried to destroy the thing. They should have tried burying it."
"Stones like this have a way of being found," said Belloc. "And it was foolish to try and burn it, if indeed that was truly the intent of whoever left if here."
"Well," said the dwarf, "the remains of this fire are at least two weeks old. Whoever left it is long gone now, as are our chances of finding its owner." He handed the stone to Belloc, glad to be rid of it. The wizard wrapped it in a cloth and tucked it away within his robes. "Warlocks are not the only ones who can make use of such a treasure," he said.