Cooper Ackie has been watching the battle. The Inquisitors have always been the ones to work in the dark to preserve all that was good. Order must be enforced and yet when it comes to the Grand Galleon.

He has come to realize that there was a sense of unity that had been formed.

“It’s alright. If I get injured then that means that I’d have one of those candies. The Doc will try to put us back to fighting shape.”

“Now, I know that the Doc will do anything to save you all. But try not to get injured and be reckless! Have you seen how tired the Doctor is?”

There was a belief in the Grand Galleon that as long as they stay alive and breathing then the Doctor of Milostiv can patch them up. The Doctor who survived was thrown far away. The Doctor who had befriended an Elven-kin.

Cooper thought of the Doctor as this stern figure. A man who did his best for his patients. The only time he had given up on them was when all options were exhausted. He was the type that befriended the crew. A person who was nosy and kind enough to help his patients.

But despite that, there was a coldhearted side to the Doctor. He had seen the Doctor overdose on his patients when he had made a conclusion that they were too late to save him. The act of mercy killing was an act that the Doctor had been doing more than healing. He never does it without the consent of his patient or loved one. And yet he had done it more than he should have.

If anything his visit to the Doctor felt like a waste of time. He was ready to do anything. The one that had been the most aware about how disease-ridden Galleon could spread.

One of the things that they have been enforcing was the cleanliness of the ship. Those who throw their waste out would be disciplined. It was one of the things that have been heavily enforced. It was one of the things that the Doctor had convinced him to do so to prevent illness.

But ever since the battle started. That rule had not been enforced. The hulls of the Grand Galleon became dirty. There was a constant smell of gunpowder and blood that everyone was wearing the masks that they had learned to make. Each passenger of the Galleon had been supplied with herbs that they needed to smell to keep themselves healthy from all the unholy smell coming outside.

Unlike the previous months, the Grand-Galleon has been riddled with trouble. The homely mood has turned into war and yet despite the darkness, the soldiers were still talking fondly. Those who were injured returned to their cabins while gossiping about how the Doctor pulled them from death.

“Just avoid getting poisoned then. Easy.”

“We shoot them before they can get to us.”

“Doc’s having one hell of a problem. Buddies from the deck survived, but that rot took him. Honestly, if it wasn’t for the Doc cutting the rotten flesh. He’d die much painfully. His lover’s the one holding the gun now.”

It had become a tradition for the Galleon to have its women carry the gun of their lovers. It was one of the only things they could do now that they were out here in the sea.

People were resources that they couldn’t easily replace in the middle of the sea. And although he had said that he might need to save their medicine. It was nothing more than a suggestion to the Doctor. He knew how the Doctor was going to react, but he needed to hear it from the Doctor personally.

If anything he was glad that the Doctor’s presence soothes them. It also helped that the Blinder of Light was part of the Milostiv. Cooper found it strange how fond his people were of the Doctor. Then again it really was hard to reject a person who wanted to help. And knowing that he was the healer of the Galleon made it easier to accept that help.

Those who were truly powerful like the Blinder had people looking at him with expectations of a savior. As long as the Blinder stands wielding the light of the sun with him. The hope for the people will remain steadfast.

But worship and fondness were different. The people were more to trust the Doctor who cared for them than the Blinder who breaks the light. He had come to this realization after Terin Gaspar’s companions ‘failed’ in shielding the Doctor from harm one time. Through this, they earned the ire of the Galleon.

When you are born to save the world like the Blinder. The expectations of the people could weigh like a mountain. Even the failures of the Doctor had made it clear that it was because he was simply human.

During the time when they were at the graveyard of corpses. The Doctor’s preventive measures made Grand Galleon easily come out of that sea of corpses without falling ill. The rest of the fleet had suffered because of this, leading them to dump corpses into the water.

When Arkshelled was born the exchanges of what had happened made it clear to the crew of the Milostiv how blessed they were to have a Doctor that cared. Even during times when the Doctor went to the Island, there were people from the other Galleons to come and ask if they could check them out. Diagnosing and making sure that they were not sick.

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It had come to Cooper Ackie’s attention that he was used to it. Doctor Gabrio found that tending to people had been one of the few joys of his life. It sounded strange to Cooper at first, but then he recalled where he came from. It was during their landing in the strait that he had come to ask Ristina, the surgeon and scholar of the Ark about the Doctor.

He wanted to understand the Doctor and who could know him better than the woman who had spent time working with him in the field before the voyage.

“Inquisitor,” she said seriously. “It’s not that he enjoys it like a hobby. Hmm, it would be best to say that the specialty of Doctor Gabrio of Fort Rava is finding many ways to kill people. I had looked into it. But Ruid Duard had taught Gabrio how to open people. Him learning how to heal came a second since the Butcher of Rava was the kind of person who wanted to find the miracle drug that he was after.

“Gab has been taught from a young age how easily it was to take human lives. It was one of the first things that the Butcher taught him. It was because of this that he cares. He wanted to heal people without opening them out. Hence why he chose to become a Doctor instead of a Surgeon. He has been doing it for so many years that there’s a good part of him that wants to make amends.”

“So it’s repentance?”

“Partly. His heart can be colder than ice, but most of the time he has the conviction that dares to help than let it go. He has killed more criminals. Taken more lives because being the disciple of the Butcher of Rava does that.”

“You have a high regard for him, Miss.”

“Of course I do. He’s a good friend and we’ve spent time together and had wonderful nights together. I do want to ask why you are asking this?”

“Because he is from Fort Rava. That is why I dare to ask.”

“I see. Gabrio’s intention to help might be odd to those who don’t understand. But let's make it clear. He really just wants to help people, Inquisitor. That’s all there is to it. Call it repentance or whatever, but all he does is for the sake of his own convictions and of his soul.”

Miss Ristina said with such belief that Cooper couldn’t answer. The questions were stuck on the tip of his throat while the rest were something he didn’t dare ask. As he was about to leave, Miss Ristina stopped him.

“Gabrio’s not that hard to understand, Inquisitor. It’s because he lived among the lowest people on earth, grew up with them, and learned from a Butcher of life that he knows that it can be helped. That it can be done and it can be saved. If you’re looking for faults, then he has a lot. But no one does anything to save someone’s life more than him.”

“You really do think highly of him, Miss.”

“Think of it as my own admiration. It’s simply strange to me as well how a man could grow up like that despite being raised by killers. A man who got sick of so much killing and hurting that he instead strived to do the opposite. He always says this to me back. The world’s already tearing itself apart and I’m here trying to patch some of it.”

Miss Ristina held a belief in him and his action spoke louder than his words. Honestly, he had come to check on the Doctor after hearing how tired he was from the lips of his Inquisitors who had come to fight.

“Did I bother him? Maybe I really should sleep as he said.”

Cooper climbed to the deck. The world outside was surrounded by this constant sound of gunfire and bullets. Heron Silva, the one leading the defenses, saw Cooper and ducked down while his men fired.

“Inquisitor, how are things?”

“Fine. The Doctor’s tired, but it seemed that he wouldn’t be giving up on you fools either. Try and keep your men from letting the poison get to them. That rot will be the death of us all.”

Heron Silva nodded. He reloaded his gun and scanned the smoking horizon. “If we stay in this part of the Long Strait, Inquisitor. It will be hard to keep up. The Vitaes are massacring most of our enemies, but even the Lady of the Ship can barely keep up with all the words of power thrown at us. The Banner of Light invigorates, but as days pass the fight with the Baron has made the banner weaker.”

“We will endure until the herbs for this rot are acquired. The Elven-kin must reproduce it before we lose all men. Our Elven-kin brothers and sisters have been a blessing to this battle.”

“Most of them are trying to board the ship lately. Most of my men are ready to get hit, but if this keeps up then it wouldn't be long until all of us are wounded, Inquisitor.”

“We will hold until Caldor Ando and his team can acquire the herbs. We cannot continue until we have a way of fighting the poison. The fleet is counting on us.”

“I understand, Sir. My men will fight to their death.”

“Don’t get injured. At least try not to.”

“Cooper, I need you here!”

Cooper went to Captain Malfor who was observing the battle. “Have you heard the news from Caldor?”

“There is no news over the spirits. They are fighting hard to reach it. But I’m afraid that the Servants of the Baron are after them.”

“Have you checked on the Doctor?”

“I have. He’s tired, but he can function. I have said my piece and I believe that our men are going to fight hard.”

“God bless that man for his endurance. He has been working to keep our men alive for many weeks now. It would be a disaster if he becomes sick. I doubt that he’d stopped either, Captain.”

Captain Malfor leaned on the railing while looking grimly at the clash of titans from afar.

“We are spending too much time in this Strait. The Icean Spine was a campaign while this is nothing more than monsters desperately trying to end us all.”

Without their guns, they wouldn’t have survived.

Without the banner, they wouldn’t be able to fight.

Without their healer, they wouldn't be able to get up and fight again to survive.

They were running out of time.