"How?" Hedrick spread his arms wide, as if presenting the entire absurdity before him. "Let's assume, purely for argument's sake, that I leave—tell me, how exactly would that miraculously solve everything?" He lowered his arms slowly back onto the armrests, leaning forward slightly. "Orion, you've lived your whole life pampered and sheltered. You've never tasted a real war, never stood on a battlefield… but you're not an idiot—not that catastrophically foolish."
Then he locked his gaze into both of Orion's eyes with piercing intensity. "Tell me then, based on everything you've spent your whole life studying, what are the Behemoth forces doing at this exact moment?"
"….." Orion slowly eased himself into his seat, back stiff. "That doesn't matter."
