Vis hurries through the empty Sanctum toward Ka's pyramid, uncertain whether the unnatural quiet is caused by Ka or by Kiya's interference. He crosses the dark triangular tunnel without being attacked, then begins the long climb up the brightly lit staircase. As Vis rises higher, more people in Duat gather to watch, and Vis realizes that Kiya's protection is still preventing Ka's servants from stopping him. Even so, he worries that killing Ka may also destroy unknown systems or beings sustained by Ka's power.

At the summit, Vis finds a sealed golden door marked with a scarab. His crook cannot open it, and he sees a swarm of Gleaners moving toward him from below. Remembering that blood activates mutalis, Vis presses his bloodied hand against the scarab, which opens the door. With no time to secure it behind him, Vis runs down the inner staircase, knowing the Gleaners are pursuing him through the narrow passage.

The staircase leads to a vast obsidian chamber that resembles a disordered library rather than a divine throne room. Desks, papers, scrolls, and shelves fill the room, suggesting study and long labor instead of ceremonial grandeur. Vis hastily blocks the door with a desk to slow the Gleaners, then searches deeper into the chamber for Ka.

Near the center of the room, Vis finds a finely dressed man lying motionless on a triangular stone table inscribed with the same glyphs seen on the sarcophagus in Qabr. The table pulses with power, and traces of Will extend from its corners, implying an active mechanism or ritual. When Vis touches the man's chest with the crook and nothing happens, Vis confirms that the man is Ka. Ka appears catatonic rather than alert, leaving Vis shocked that the being who has ruled and brutalized so many looks so ordinary and helpless.

Vis hesitates because he had expected a confrontation and wants answers, not an execution. But as the Gleaners smash through the chamber door, Vis forces himself to remember Ka's crimes, the people suffering under Ka's rule, and the greater catastrophe Ka may enable elsewhere. Accepting that he must judge the cost himself, Vis drives his knife into Ka's heart just as the Gleaners break in.