Timeless Assassin

Chapter 1017: Farewell My Lord

(Kaelith’s POV, The Sky Above Ixtal)

Kaelith continued gathering power until the divine blade above his head expanded outward and stretched across the heavens, swallowing cloud, light, and horizon alike, as only when the arc of condensed force completely blanketed the sky did he finally lower his arm and release it.

"Good riddance... my old home."

He muttered quietly as the attack descended.

*FWOOSH*

The blade fell in a single, absolute line, cleaving through the upper atmosphere first, as it parted through layers of air so violently that the sky itself seemed to fold inward, before detonating outward in a ring of compressed shock that raced around the globe faster than sound itself.

*SONIC BOOM*

For the briefest fraction of a second, Ixtal remained whole.

Then a glowing seam appeared, as a thin white line split the planet from pole to pole, racing across oceans and continents alike, as it sliced through mountain ranges and cityscapes as though they were scratches on fragile glass, before widening under its own unbearable pressure.

*CRACK*

The crust did not explode immediately.

It bowed.

Tectonic plates that had rested in uneasy balance for millennia were forced in opposite directions, the dividing force driving deep into the mantle, as it split the surface and forced the planet’s own compressed heat to surge upward in violent response.

*BOOM*

Molten rock burst from widening fissures in unstoppable torrents, as oceans heaved into towering walls before flash-boiling into expanding clouds of superheated vapor, while entire landmasses folded along failing fault lines before splitting into uneven continental slabs.

*THRUMMM*

The planet’s own gravitational pull weakened as the hemispheres began to drift apart, causing the molten core to rupture through the expanding internal gap and spill outward in blinding arcs of incandescent plasma, as rivers of liquid metal sprayed into open space while the two halves of Ixtal tore away from one another like jaws forced open beyond their limit.

*CRUMBLE*

Finally, it was the atmosphere that fled, as oxygen and vapor were ripped from the surface in violent streams, dragging debris and bodies alike into the void as pressure collapsed so abruptly that those not destroyed in the initial rupture felt their lungs seize and their blood convulse under forces their flesh was never meant to endure.

Within moments, the once-unified sphere lost all identity as a planet, as it was instead reduced to an expanding storm of scattered rock, cooling magma and drifting dust illuminated faintly by distant starlight, which Kaelith gazed down upon with a cold satisfaction in his eyes.

"A regrettable outcome.... However, retribution was inevitable this time."

He muttered, before opening a fourth dimensional portal to return to the Eternal Garden, as he did not linger around to pay his last respects to his old homeland.

—-----------

(Moments Earlier, Chaosbringer’s POV, Ixtal work office)

It had begun as an ordinary day for Chaosbringer, one spent buried beneath reports, resource allocations, and reconstruction updates, when without warning a suffocating pressure descended across the entire planet, pressing down upon Ixtal with such overwhelming authority that he did not need confirmation to understand who had arrived.

Kaelith.

The realization struck instantly, and with it came the quiet certainty that Ixtal did not have long left to exist.

"I see... I still had so much left to do," he murmured softly, his gaze lingering over the scattered documents across his desk.

"So much left to teach the next generation, and yet it seems I will not be afforded that luxury."

There was no panic in his voice.

No denial.

Only cruel acceptance.

Within a single breath, he reconciled himself with the inevitability of death and shifted his focus from survival to purpose, because if the planet was destined to fall within minutes, then those minutes had to be used wisely.

"Forgive me, my Lord," he added quietly, a faint smile tugging at his lips.

"It appears I will not have the privilege of bidding you farewell in person after all."

He said before sweeping all the non-essential documents from his desk in one decisive motion, as he let them scatter across the floor, before pulling the primary data slate closer and navigating swiftly through secured command layers.

*Tap*

*Tap*

*Tap*

*Enter*

[Protocol Shadow Servant is now active.]

[Protocol Dead Hand is now active.]

The confirmations illuminated the screen in steady lettering, as it was only then that Chaosbringer allowed himself a measured exhale, as a quiet sense of relief settled over him.

"With this, even if I’m gone, the information and administrative network of the Cult won’t be erased overnight.....

The Lord....

He won’t be alone."

Chaosbringer muttered, as he opened the front view camera of the data slate and began combing his hair to perfection, as he tried to look his absolute best for the last message he was about to record for the Lord.

There was no fear in his eyes, no desperation, only a faint regret of not being able to serve Leo longer, as he spoke with a professionalism befitting the number two man of the Cult.

"My Lord, by the time this message reaches you...

If it reaches you at all...

I would be long gone."

He began, as he stood before the camera with his back straight despite the crushing pressure shaking the foundations of the building around him.

"The planet of Ixtal is currently under attack by the Eternal Sovereign, Kaelith.

And it is my assumption that by now the surface has already fractured beyond recovery, and that within minutes the planet will cease to exist as a celestial body....."

He informed, as he let out a brief sigh.

"Unfortunately, it seems like I failed to predict this outcome in advance.

And hence have not prepared adequate countermeasures for it.

And as a result, it pains me to inform you that I have failed to prevent Ixtal’s destruction."

He said, as a faint tremor ran through the walls and dust began to drift from the ceiling above.

"My Lord, I implore you.... When you see this message, do not allow your rageful nature to seize control.

Think about this situation pragmatically, as ’The Boss’ of the Uprising Guild once would.

Do not charge blindly toward vengeance.

But rather, calculate. Prepare. Win,"

He said, as he adjusted his collar lightly, maintaining composure even while the office lighting flickered under the strain.

"I have followed you faithfully for my entire life and never once asked for anything in return, because for me, serving under you was the greatest honor my existence could amount to.

However, as you rose to the position of Cult Master and began approaching the upper echelons of universal power, I gradually came to understand that I alone was not enough to be the administrator you truly required,"

He said, as a faint, almost self-aware smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

"I was a mortal. A weakling compared to the forces you now contend with.

And we both knew that my death was inevitable sooner or later, whether by age or by war.

Therefore, when you see this message, do not mourn me.

Instead, be happy that I died while still in my prime, with my mind intact, and while I was still serving you until my final breath, exactly as I wished,"

He said, as the ground beneath him rumbled violently and cracks began to crawl across the reinforced flooring.

"In my stead, I leave behind a cadre of thirteen operatives—Shadows One through Thirteen.

Each has been personally trained by me in governance, logistics, intelligence, finance, diplomacy, and crisis management.

Individually, none surpass me.

However, collectively, they exceed my capabilities many times over.

Use them well, my Lord, and they will ensure that the Cult’s administrative and political backbone remains unbroken,"

He said, as he steadied the data slate with one hand while fragments of plaster fell from above.

"I suppose this is it,"

He said, as a large section of the ceiling collapsed in the distance and a wave of dust rolled through the room.

"It has been a privilege to serve you. If there is a next life, I hope to be born in your service once again.

And if there is none, then perhaps we shall meet in a place far kinder than the one we are currently leaving behind.

However, this life or the next, if there is a higher power, then my only wish is to be by your side again, in whatever capacity destiny chooses me to place me in."

He said, as the walls around him began to buckle under unbearable strain.

"Until then... this is Chaosbringer signing out.

So Farewell My Lord.

Please take care of yourself on my behalf, for I will no longer be able to."

He said, as the upload bar reached completion and the transmission locked, while the structure around him gave way to collapsing steel and stone, the room around him imploding inwards as he was buried under tonnes of concrete and steel, and given an instant death.