"But what is it?" asked Lily nervously, for she could feel the strange power emanating from the artifact acutely, and instinctively mistrusted it. "What does it do?"
Shooing them out of his study, Belloc said, "In an hour or so I will show you. For now, however, I have to free the thing from the stone, and that is tedious work that will require all my concentration."
It took much longer than an hour, but at last the wizard came down and called his household together. Burli, who preferred the predictability of metal and fire, followed last, muttering under his breath about the unnatural meddlings of wizards.
It was late afternoon and getting dark outside, although the dark cloud and heavy rain made it seem later than it really was. Belloc led, carrying his staff in the crook of his arm, its crown bound in cloth. Stopping near the front gate, he turned and stopped, removing the cloth to show them that the crown of his staff bore the Vhurd-aq.
It shone like newly-cast silver, and its two eyes, which were made of moon-quartz or some other such translucent stone gleamed faintly. The periapt itself was carved or moulded into the likeness of some great sea-beast, with wide, flat spines along its crown and back, open mouth exposing rows of jagged teeth.