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The World Eater Virus was not something that occured naturally, that was something that the Mechanicum understood. It could not be natural as it would have consumed the host planet dozens of times before its discovery. Thus it was placed forward that it was made during the Dark Age of Technology. As to the purpose, such a debate was something that few even dared to broach. After all, it was a weapon that might have been made specifically by the Men of Iron to be used against organics like mankind.
The moment the virus touches another organism, it does not matter what format the organism used as its base, the weapon would begin to multiply and replicate as the air became infected. After all, the Virus was meant to infect Worlds, not people. It did not infect man like other diseases but instead ate them like a predator does to its prey to transform it into more flesh.
Once the process started upon the world there was no way to stop it. Only to try and avoid its infection by taking cover within heavily reinforced bunkers across the battle lines or hiding underneath a shield system that zapped the virus dead. The Mitu had tried the latter, but their lack of knowledge about the Virus made it impossible to predict until it was too late that this was the form their death would come.
Some cities did survive of course. Let it be a blessing of whatever they worshiped or the whim of the universe they were able to close themselves off from the outside. Most did not though.
It did not matter if they were Man, Scorch, or Sloog all were quickly eaten up. All of the crews who went upon the planet quickly lost their lives only to become metal husks sitting upon the surface. A black miasma now settled around their corpses as the Virus’s fast lifespan caused the vast majority of its existence to die without being able to reproduce.
When the ten minute mark finally arrived there was nothing but the miasma. Some of the cities survived but they were but refuges against the darkness that had now consumed their planet.
And at that moment one of the engines belonging to the landing ships activated.
In the next instant an entire planet became like a star.
