A technical officer immediately began working the controls. "Saint, the Dual-Stage Cyclonic Torpedo is currently stored in the special weapons vault. Retrieval, loading, and launch will take approximately six hours."
"Begin preparations," Saul said. "In six hours, I want that torpedo ready to launch."
"Yes, sir!"
Saul stepped out of the command vehicle and stood on the open, scorched ground.
He looked up at the sky.
Six hours later, that torpedo would tear through the sky, burrow into the crust, and detonate the planet's core.
Then T'au would break apart in an explosion unlike anything ever seen, becoming countless fragments that would drift through the void forever.
Countless T'au, along with their civilization, their history, and their dreams, would turn to dust.
Saul felt a complicated emotion well up inside him.
It was neither guilt nor regret, but a profound sorrow.
Sorrow at the cruelty of this war, at the fragility of life, and at having to make such a choice.
"Saint?"
A voice interrupted his thoughts. Saul turned and saw Victor standing nearby.
The young soldier was no longer the green recruit he had once been. After months of war, his gaze had grown mature and resolute, and his armor bore the scars of battle.
"What is it, soldier?" Saul asked.
Victor hesitated, then asked, "Saint, there are rumors on the front lines that... we're going to use some kind of special weapon. Is that true?"
Saul looked at the young man and remained silent for a few seconds.
He could have denied it. He could have dismissed him by citing secrecy regulations. But for some reason, Saul felt that this soldier, who had survived countless battles, deserved to know the truth.
"Yes," Saul said. "In six hours, we will use a weapon to destroy this planet completely."
Victor's