Kamar-Taj.
The Hell Lord seemed to have vanished into thin air.
No matter how they searched, they could not find him.
Wong said, "A Hell Lord vanished right under our noses?"
Stephen said, "That's absolutely impossible, unless..."
He stopped.
He understood this new Barrier better than anyone.
A joint creation of the Sorcerer Supreme and the Wizard King, the Barrier was even stronger than the Sanctums Agamotto had built.
And it offered the same resistance from both inside and out.
The Hell Lord had come to Earth without causing trouble, possessing anyone, or having his believers continue their sacrifices.
Instead, there had been no word of him at all.
Even a search by all the sorcerers had turned up no trace.
Unless Satannish had left this world.
Aside from the Sorcerer Supreme, there was only one other way to leave.
"What are you doing, Wizard King?" Stephen's expression darkened.
He had let a Hell Lord in, then taken him back out.
Granted, Kamar-Taj had intended to banish Satannish from Earth anyway.
But John's actions were deeply suspicious.
Wong and the other Sanctum Guardians returned to their Sanctums to continue standing watch.
Stephen stayed at Kamar-Taj.
While he was meditating, blue light opened a Portal.
Kamar-Taj's defensive magic let the visitor come and go as freely as if it were his own back door.
John entered the Library, which also served as the hub connecting the three Sanctums.
The Eye of Agamotto was kept here.
As John walked in, he saw the Eye of Agamotto resting on a stone pillar.
He approached and took a few steps around it.
Turning his head, he said, "Are you testing me?"
Stephen's meditating figure dissolved into bubbles, and his real body emerged from behind a bookshelf.
His gaze fell on the ring on John's