Lord of Annihilation

Chapter 261: Interlude. Part 1

Inside a small dimly adorned room situated in the depths of a magnificent castle, a woman wearing dark-golden robes prostrated herself before a small, crystal orb.

Her body lied in a perfect posture with her two arms lowered in worship and her forehead touching the stony ground in reverence.

The crystal orb, placed upon an ornately adorned pedestal made from a strange, multi-colored stone, quivered a few times before floating into the air.

"Slave." A sagely voice exited the crystal. 

The instant that the genuflecting woman heard that voice, her body imperceptibly quivered. Not daring to raise her head, she softly answered.

"Your slave hears and obeys, Your Lordship." 

"Pull out your forces from that race which is undergoing the Ascension. They have passed." The old voice ordered.

"this slave does not understand, Your Lordship. Currently, thirteen different races are undergoing their first ascension. Which one is Your Lordship referring to?" The gold-robed woman hesitantly spoke.

"Daring to talk back, huh? You sure have grown bold. Seems like a session of disciplining is due." The voice mocked, as the gold-robed woman's body trembled.

"I-I th-this slave wouldn't dare, Your Lordship!!" she hastily screamed, alas, it was too late.

Endless light flowed from out of the crystal orb forcing the gold-robed woman to lay paralyzed to the ground. Once she was immobilized, mysterious golden lines manifested within the dim room, turning into thread-like objects.

These threads of Rules then started to bear down onto the paralyzed woman, cutting her body and polluting her Rules.

"ARHG!!!" An unimaginable degree of pain filled her entire body, as the gold-robed woman felt her very existence being attacked.

Her soul was helpless against the attack, as the person attacking her was a true Lord. Even she, an existence that was on the level of a Half-Lord, was helpless against this power.

This torture of crippling her Rules went on for a few minutes, before coming to a stop. The gold-robed woman helplessly collapsed onto the ground unable to support herself. 

Shining golden blood trickled down from her wounds, as her body missed large patches of flesh and skin.

"Remember that pain, Ka'lor'ah. The next time you talk back, it won't just end with pain. Now get it done." With that, the voice disappeared and the floating crystal orb returned to the pedestal.

Lying on the floor and breathing weakly, Ka'lor'ah softly replied.

"it will be done, Your Lordship."

Dozens of minutes passed, as Ka'lor'ah remained in that position while tending to the wounds dealt to her soul. 

Her Rules were corrupted and fragmented, meaning that it would take her some time to completely fix them.

For now, she resolved the most threatening injuries before climbing onto her feet with great difficulty. Bowing to the stationary orb one last time, she turned around and limped out of the room.

Limping over the long empty corridors, Ka'lor'ah had to support her body against the stone walls to maintain her balance. Struggling for some time, she eventually exited the endless corridor and arrived at a majestic throne room.

Hobbling over to her golden throne, Ka'lor'ah climbed the crystal stairs, before carefully seating herself on the grand crystal throne.

The moment her body was placed on the throne, Ka'lor'ah felt the pain diminish by a great amount. The Rules causing the pollution also seemed to slacken, granting her more time and freedom to resolve them.

'Even with the crystal throne assisting my body, it will take me a full year to recover from these injuries. That old man was too vicious!' Ka'lor'ah complained within her mind.

"Guardians." Ka'lor'ah then called out to her servants.

The grand doors guarding the entrance to the throne room opened and a half-transparent, floating jellyfish-like creature flew in. 

"You called, Your Majesty?" the creature asked in subservience. 

"What is the progress of ascension of the race called Mankind?" Ka'lor'ah asked.

The half-transparent jellyfish lowered its head, seemingly in thought. A few seconds later, it raised its head and reported.

"Currently, the race called Mankind seems to have around 10 million of its kind alive. That is less than 90% of its initial size. Their territories have also shrunk down by a large amount, currently occupying less than ten-thousandth of their original area."

"They are facing a Rank 5 Ordeal; a race of survival against the Formicians. Currently, Mankind seems to be in the lead with two out of the three Greater Queens already killed." The creature spoke in surprise.

Hearing this, Ka'lor'ah suddenly interrupted the creature and asked.

"That quickly? Weren't the three Greater Queens still alive last week?"

"Indeed, Your Majesty. However, the latest report from the last Greater Queen informs us of their current situation." 

"Any idea how they died?"

"No, Your Majesty. According to the report, the two Greater Queens had left to investigate some disturbance in the Formician territories. Following that, they did not return. No messages were sent to the remaining Greater Queen either."

"Either the opponent found a method to block their telepathy, or they died too quick, Your Majesty." The creature humbly guessed.

"Were their bodies recovered?" Ka'lor'ah asked.

"No, Your Majesty. The Formicians were facing an assault by another force, forcing the last Greater Queen to remain behind and command the battle."

"I see" Ka'lor'ah nodded her head and sunk into her thoughts.

A few minutes passed in her brooding when she raised her head and ordered the creature.

"Pass the order, cease all attacks on Mankind. The Ordeal is effectively over. Inform all the Formicians to self-destruct."

"Understood, Your Majesty." The jellyfish-like creature nodded its head, before immediately sending a message telepathically.

A thought suddenly occurred to Ka'lor'ah, as she curiously asked.

"Was the Race-Transformation procedure completed for the human we received from the Formicians?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. The procedure was completed last night. The creature underwent the transformation, personally created by Your Majesty, with no problems. He is now a Grade 6 life form."

"Bring him to me," Ka'lor'ah ordered.

The jellyfish-like creature nodded its head and left the throne room. Ka'lor'ah closed her eyes and silently tended to her wounds, waiting for the creature with the [Chronometry] soul to arrive.

Nearly ten minutes passed when the doors for the throne room opened once more and the jellyfish creature walked in with Zaine in tow.

The two beings came before the crystal throne and kneeled before Ka'lor'ah.

"Guardian, you may leave us." Ka'lor'ah stiffly instructed.

"As you wish, Your Majesty." The jellyfish-like creature replied and left the room, closing the doors to the throne room in the process.

"You can get up, you know." Ka'lor'ah's voice softened chastised the creature in front of her.

"Your Majesty, but" Zaine, whose entire figure now looked completely different, worriedly answered in response, before being interrupted by Ka'lor'ah.

"Again with that 'Your Majesty' crap. I told you to simply call me Ka'lor'ah!" Ka'lor'ah childishly uttered.

"But the Guardians, refer to you as Your Majesty. It would be incorrect of me to simply call you by your name." Zaine hurriedly replied. 

His figure faintly shook when he recalled the pressure released by those Stage 7 beings.

Although they restrained their auras and treated Zaine with complete respect, courtesy of Ka'lor'ah's orders, the intrinsic difference in their levels of powers, made Zaine feel like he was thousands of meters underwater.

"Ah, that's where you're wrong." Ka'lor'ah giggled before continuing, "The Guardians are my slaves. They have to refer to me as 'Your Majesty'. You, however, are the Champion that I have selected." 

"Champion?" Zaine asked curiously.

Nodding her head, Ka'lor'ah replied.

"Indeed. There is a certain plan that I want to accomplish. A plan that would change this Universe forever! To accomplish this plan, I would require you and your abilities."

"Can you tell me what this plan is about?" Zaine asked.

"Not yet. Reach Stage 6 and I will tell you all about it." Ka'lor'ah answered with a smile.

"Moving on, how does your new body feel?" Ka'lor'ah asked.

Zaine looked at his taller, muscular, and humanoid-like alien body, and spoke while clenching his fist.

"Very different. Powerful too. I feel like I can shatter mountains with a single punch." He answered with awe.

"Damn right, you can! This body is my most perfect work yet! It's at the peak of Grade 6, almost reaching Grade 7."

"With this new body, your path towards Stage 7 will face no obstacles. As long as you work hard at cultivating your soul, your future as a Peak-Level existence is guaranteed." Clenching her own fist, Ka'lor'ah passionately announced.

"Listen well; starting today we will start your training to Stage 7. I will personally mentor you and will spare no expense or resource to aid your growth. All I ask is for you to work hard and assist me in my plan when the time comes."

"Can you do it?!" Ka'lor'ah bellowed.

"YES, I CAN!!" Zaine replied in kind. He had already decided to dedicate his life to this beautiful, mysterious woman when the latter had saved him from the fate of certain death. 

He owed her his life and would do anything to repay this debt.

"That's the spirit. Now get out of here! I will send a Guardian to start your training." Ka'lor'ah cheerfully announced.

She looked on at Zaine with a smiling expression. The smile on her face continued to exist until the doors of her throne room closed once more.

Instantly, a blank looked appeared on Ka'lor'ah's face as he pondered to herself.

'What an innocent and nave little fool. He thanks me for saving his life from the Formicians, but little does he know that the Formicians are my children in the first place.'

'Well, at least with a personality like that, I don't have to fear him betraying me. If I praise him every now and then and treat him in a friendly manner, he will remain as an obedient dog. My obedient dog.'

Closing her eyes, Ka'lor'ah leaned back on her crystal throne and rested her head against it.

'With this, the puppet required for the Great Plan has been secured. Now I simply have to complete the 'Cause-Erasal, Time-Reversal' ritual and wait for him to ascend into Stage 7.'

'It's a pity though. While the 'Time-Reversal part of the plan has greatly simplified, thanks to his unique soul, the 'Cause-Erasal' part is facing issues. If not done properly, the plan will be detected by the Them even before it begins.'

'If only I could get my hands on a talented [Killer]. My plan would become perfect.'

A cruel smile appeared on Ka'lor'ah appeared on Ka'lor'ah's face as she silently muttered.

"You old fogies will soon pay dearly for what you have done to me"

-------------