The Holy Grail stretched from earth to sky like a mountain. Beneath it, Murphy gripped the ring in his hand and began his preparations.
First, he needed to give the Magic Web a way to hunt newborn gods on its own.
The solution came easily. In fact, he had already witnessed its power in the future.
He gave the Magic Web a command: whenever someone's power reached the level of a god, it would capture them.
The means of carrying it out was ready at hand:
With a thought, he brought a lake into being around the Holy Grail.
White mist drifted over the water. There was no sun, yet the daylight was dazzling. Lush grass and flowers covered the shore, and an ancient castle could just be seen atop the distant mountains.
This was Avalon, the gods' prison and graveyard.
This was the Spirit World.
A Black Ship appeared on the lake, countless chains gliding across its hull.
At a single command, it could lock onto any new god whose magical power exceeded the limit and carry them away.
The lake would remain hidden in the Spirit World, ready to strike at any moment.
Next, he needed to make the birth of new gods as unlikely as possible. That meant keeping the world's magic at its current low level.
A moment later, he brought Miriam before him.
He looked at the leader of the wizards, now head of the Order of Merlin. She looked back at him.
"Lord Murphy, did you do all this?"
"Did you complete your mission?"
Murphy nodded. "It took a long time, but I succeeded."
"What else do you need me to do?"
"The gods have been driven back for now, but they haven't been destroyed," Murphy said. "To keep them confined, I need to