The final rune settled into place with a soft pulse of violet light.
For a long moment I stood at the center of the island, studying the massive formation carved across the surface. The teleportation circle stretched from one end of the barren island to the other, thousands of intricate runic channels intersecting and branching like a vast geometric web.
Faint currents of spatial law moved through the structure, occasionally flashing with subtle ripples of sealing energy that stabilized the entire array.
Eighty percent had become ninety.
Ninety had become complete.
The formation was ready.
Behind me the others stood in a loose semicircle, watching the runes glow faintly beneath the evening sky. The ocean winds moved across the island, carrying the scent of salt through the air as the final adjustments faded from the formation.
Ragnar was the first to break the silence.
"So… this thing is finished?"
I stepped back from the center of the circle and nodded.
"Yes."
