The bridge of the UES Valorous smelled of ozone, burnt coffee, and fear. Xin was strapped into a heavy interrogation chair, his wrists locked in magnetic cuffs that hummed with a high-pitched frequency. He was no longer the glowing star that had held up the ship. He looked small. He looked like a boy who had been dragged through a shipwreck.
Across from him, General Ironwood paced like a caged animal. Every few seconds, the General would look at the monitors showing the empty ocean where the Void-Lord had vanished.
"Where did it go, Xin?" Ironwood barked, leaning down until his scarred face was inches from Xin’s. "You had the payload. You had the kill shot. And you turned it into a sparkler. Why?"
Xin didn't answer. His head was bowed, his long hair matted with dried salt.
"The Arc
