He needed the other side to give him a promise.
Tau'an hesitated. His decision would affect the fate of all those behind him. There were not only military personnel here, but also large numbers of archaeologists, scholars, and administrative officials. "We can become your prisoners, but we need a promise from your human ruler. You will not threaten our lives. You will guarantee our safety."
"Of course," the human figure said. "No one wants you to die. Even the death of a single one of you is something our governor would rather not see. We do not wish to go to war with you. We have already won the war, and we do not want a single one of our people to be harmed."
The other side did not want to fight them. That seemed to be the goodwill they were conveying.
And they had seized this Forge World. They truly had the right to wage war against them.
The humans coming to negotiate with them already showed considerable sincerity. After all, if they truly wanted to wipe them out, they could simply have gone to war with them directly. They would not have been able to stop them.
As for tricking them into laying down their weapons before massacring them? It was possible, but he had to assess the value of doing so. After assessing it, he concluded that they were a rational race. They understood that a massacre had no meaning. Taking them prisoner instead would give them more bargaining chips against the Eastern Fringe.
After all, in his view, even if they were prisoners and received the worst possible treatment, they would probably only be confined in cramped rooms and have their freedom restricted.
"Lay down your weapons."
Tau'an looked at the Fire Warriors around him. Though