WARNING: This article contains major spoilers for "In Zod We Trust," the sixth episode of Krypton Season 2.

Krypton's second season is much more high-octane than the first, with all-out war gripping the planet as the rebellion seeks to liberate it from Zod. In the wake of resistance leader Jax-Ur slitting the throat of his mother, and general, Lyta, Zod goes on the offensive, forcing the rebels to make a dramatic decision.

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Jax broadcast Lyta's execution across Krypton, intending to deliver a message. Zod earlier attempted to lure the rebels into an ambush, so that was Jax's way of demonstrating there is a price to pay on his side as well. However, Val-El, Seg-El's grandfather, was clearly appalled by Jax's action; he even tried to stop her, knowing Lyta's death would provoke Zod and destroy any chance of peace.

Knowing Zod will retaliate in kind, Val -- now in chains after speaking out against Jax -- makes another epic speech the resistance being better than Zod's army. It isn't a physical uprising, but one based on his philosophy of non-violence. His words resonate among most of the rebellion. As a result, a small-scale civil war erupts, complete with an old-school gun showdown, as Val's supporters turn on Jax and her disciples, and lock them in the cells on the moon of Wegthor.

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When Val makes contact with Zod to try to broker peace, as expected, the dictator doesn't care for an imprisoned Jax being tried by the rebellion; he wants to execute her himself. While the negotiation is under way, Jax and her minions escape, but following a shootout, the only one left standing is Jax, who has convinced Val she just isn't the freedom fighter he once thought she was.

Resigned to her fate, Jax presents Val with one final gift: a detonator to blow up the space elevator and cripple Zod's forces. No elevator means no weapons, supplies and extra recruits to Zod's military stronghold, thus providing the rebels with an equalizer. Kym and Adam Strange try to reason with Val. However, knowing Zod is relentless and he will break any deal they make, Val destroys the elevator, killing thousands of innocents in the process. The rebellion gains a massive advantage, but it comes at a great price. Seg was earlier seen telling Lyta's mother Jayna  that Val surely would have tried to stop Lyta's slaughter, and while he was right about that particular incident, now Val's character is stained with blood, just like Zod's.

Guilt-ridden, Val exiles Jax and tries to form a new rebellion. The space elevator, after all, was a means of ensuring people other than the military prospered. It remains to be seen who will follow Val now because, ultimately, this reprisal makes him no different than Jax or Zod. Seg certainly won't like hearing that, because Val taught him altruism, not bloodshed.

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With Jax lost in the wilderness and Zod looking for revenge, Val may have painted himself into a corner. He's no longer the hero we saw previously; he's accepted that war changes the best of men, even scientists who want to make the universe a safer place.

Airing Wednesdays at 10 pm ET/PT on Syfy, Krypton stars Cameron Cuffe as Seg-El, Shaun Sipos as Adam Strange, Georgina Campbell as Lyta-Zod, Elliot Cowan as Daron-Vex, Ann Ogbomo as Jayna-Zod, Rasmus Hardiker as Kem, Wallis Day as Nyssa-Vex, Aaron Pierre as Dev-Em, Ian McElhinney as Val-El and Blake Ritson as Brainiac.