A five-er inspired (a couple of months ago, actually) by starting a new kotor game and ahem plentifuldrink cough. :) It's a real "meh" ficlet, but a ficlet nonetheless, and so it's now where it belongs.

The scene is seated just between Malak's orders to destroy Taris and its actual destruction.

For some reason, I just really love Karath.


The Entire Planet

Position the fleet. Several hours to position the fleet.

Saul supposed he had brought this on himself. His test of loyalty to the Sith had, of course, been the destruction of Telos. Why shouldn't he have another devastated planet on his resume? What was one more world, a few million more lives? When he had already destroyed so much?

Position the fleet. Several hours.

He had lied about that. The fleet was already in position. Perhaps he had known what it would come to? Planned ahead?

The Admiral stared down at the quarantined planet. There would be no escapes from this devastation. There would be few survivors who would teeter on the very brink of life… perhaps for the rest of their lives.

The fleet was in position. Why shouldn't he have told Lord Malak?

He'd known since the last transmission from the Sith governor. He'd known when the Leviathan had lost contact with the garrison. He had known for hours that Bastila would not be captured alive.

The fleet was in position. So why was he stalling?

Perhaps, guilt? Perhaps a slight question as to the rightness of the act? A hint at the bloodthirsty nature of the order?

A damned distasteful thing, it was. Damned distasteful. But then, he had done many distasteful things in his tenure. Why should Taris be any different?

Saul stared down at the planet of Taris, barely making out the motion of planetary shuttles moving from skyscraper to skyscraper, region to region in the planet-wide city.

He allowed himself a brief moment of imaginings, of picturing for just an instant, the lives of the people in those shuttles, in those skyscrapers, walking those streets. Quaint images of children playing of people struggling to live, putting forth such effort, only for their lives to be extinguished. But they didn't know what was coming, did they? So they went on with their lives, the same as every day before, believing there would be a tomorrow.

But there wouldn't be. Saul Karath was about to steal all of their tomorrows from them. And for what? For the Sith?

Saul willed himself to quell any thoughts of uncertainty.

No. He believed. He believed in the Sith. In Malak. In the future he would bring to the Galaxy.

He had to.

He had already destroyed a planet for it. His planet. His home. He'd chosen his side.

There really wasn't any decision anymore at all.

Admiral Karath clenched his jaw and his fists at his side and strode from the observation deck of his flagship.

There were orders to give.