Halfway down the corridor, Mordo stopped.
The dark-faced Black sorcerer turned around and gave Lucian a stiff nod. "Wong will make the arrangements the Sorcerer Supreme requested. There are still patrols and defenses to attend to at the Sanctum. I'll take my leave."
With that, Mordo turned and strode into another stone passage.
Lucian watched him go. The man had been visibly guarded the moment he saw him, his whole body tense. Clearly, he was full of doubts about an outsider who had suddenly appeared taking over as Sorcerer Supreme.
Let him go. Keeping him around would only get in the way. With both hands in his coat pockets and not a ripple on his face, Lucian tipped his chin toward Wong beside him. "Shall we continue?"
"This way, please."
Wong didn't have nearly as much on his mind as Mordo. He led Lucian through a heavy archway and straight into an extremely spacious library.
Tall mahogany bookshelves reached all the way to the stone vault overhead, and the air carried the mingled scent of aged parchment and hay. Wong rummaged through several wooden shelves by the wall, picked out three yellowed parchment scrolls, and carried them back to Lucian in his arms.
"You already know how to open portals, right?" Wong handed over the scrolls, his manner quite gentle. "These are essentially advanced textbooks. Most spells require supporting hand gestures. You can try following the scrolls, and if there's anything you don't know, I'll teach you."
"Thanks."
Lucian took the scrolls securely in his left hand and extended his right in one smooth motion, his tone easygoing. "It may be the Sorcerer Supreme's order, but I have to say, Wong, you've handled this very well."
Wong smiled a little sheepishly at the praise. He raised his other hand to