#574 Cease Fire- Frank Herbert

#574 Cease Fire- Frank Herbert

Corporal Hulser was stationed at an Observation Post in a remote area. He used to be a chemist and was probably too smart to be a military grunt. At the moment, he was under attack by something that his sensors thought was too small to be a human. He survived the attack but was struck by a brilliant idea.

“It was one of those things that had to remain dormant until the precisely proper set of circumstances.”

It took some convincing by his superiors, but his idea, if successful, could end the war. He thought of a way to project onto a field, and explode any organic munitions, including gas, oil, coal, etc. This would make attacks by weapons using these things impossible. He was given the green-light to produce this projector in a project called Operation Big Boom.

When his invention proved successful, the military brass were not happy. They knew the harsh truth that better weapons didn’t put an end to war. Once one side made something, so would the other. This would only change the way war happened.

“Violence is a part of human life. The lust for power is a part of human life As long as people want power badly enough, they’ll use any means to get it—fair or foul!”

Rating: 7-9-9-7 Total= 32