"You did well," Marcus said, still sitting in his bed.

  Looking at the security officer in that state, Dan couldn't help but sigh again. It was quite disheartening to look at the man like that, even though he was alright in almost all aspects, just needed time.

  At that moment, the Voyager was returning to the island after dealing with the Deepdark, there had been a moment there when Dan felt a bit of fear when the other ship came at them at top speed, but fortunately, the Voyager managed to use her Aura Appendages and block the charging ship.

  Dan could still remember what it looked like, it was as if a car hit a wall at top speed. At the time, Dan stood there astounded for a split second before he remembered his conversation with Marcus and had the Voyager salvage what she could from the crash.

  "I know," Dan finally replied to Marcus, "Those people had to be dealt with, we couldn't just let them be. They deserved what they got and I wouldn't change my mind if I had to do it again."

  "I'm a bit sad that the Deepdark went to waste," Marcus said wistfully, "But, as you said, it had to be done."

  "At least we got all the important parts, right?" Dan smiled. "The Cornerstone, some of the cannons and a lot of wood too. I'm most interested in that last one, I wonder if we can get anything from it."

  "Have Linda take a look at it." Marcus appeared to be in deep thought. "I'm sure she's going to find a use for it. Same for William and the others, they can make something of it."

  "I know, I had that in mind already." Dan nodded.

  "What about the cannons?" Marcus asked in clear interest, "How are they?"

  "Horrible." Dan just shook his head helplessly. "It seems that the people here focus too much on skills, letting them be the source of a cannon's power. The build isn't that good, mostly relying on runes just to make sure they are strong enough to handle the pressure of a discharge. I'm sure that an attack ship would have much stronger and better-built cannons, not like what this stealth ship had."

  For a ship that had a few people with the Cannoneer Class or something like that, the cannons might have been enough. Those people and their skills could do more than enough to offset the low quality of those cannons. But for them, they were too old-school to be of any use really.

  "Just give it to William and the others to mess with them then." Marcus shrugged awkwardly from his position.

  Dan just nodded absentmindedly, his thoughts already wandering to what had been living rent-free in his mind ever since the attack on the island happened.

  "What's the matter?" Marcus's question dragged him from his thoughts.

  "What?" Dan asked, a bit confused.

  "You have been a bit out of it ever since you came here," Marcus said, his eyes never leaving Dan, "What's on your mind?"

  Dan didn't answer right away, he thought for a bit then looked out the door, noting that Fleta was busy working on something and not paying them any attention. With that, he focused again on Marcus.

  "I'm just thinking of how many people we have killed since we got here." He sighed heavily. "You know even better than I probably do, the number of people we have dealt with. I know that all of them deserved it, none of them was a good person, but they were still people. I just don't know how to feel anymore, and how many more we will have to kill before this is all over."

  "I'm not going to lie and say it's going to get easier with time," Marcus spoke slowly, "It won't, it's never going to be, but always remember why you did what you did, and why they deserved it, and what would have happened if you didn't do it. As long as you remember that and keep it close to your heart, it will help ground you and keep you from spiralling."

  "Thank you," Dan said in a quiet voice.

  After that, the room fell into a comfortable silence, none of them saying anything. Dan found it easier to just sit there, his mind wandering without saying anything else, having a moment like that for himself felt nice.

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  "I guess I'll let you rest for now," he said as he stood up, "Thank you again, and wish you a speedy recovery."

  "Thanks," Marcus said as he nodded, "I can't wait to leave this place too, it's too boring."

  Smiling at the man, Dan waved and left the room. As he passed by Fleta, waving as he was about to leave the med-bay, she called to him:

  "Wait for me outside," she said without looking up from whatever files she was working on.

  Dan paused for a second then continued. Not long after, Fleta joined him.

  "What is it?" Dan asked, a bit confused.

  "I heard what you said to Marcus inside," she said, her voice and expression the same as always.

  "You did?" Dan chuckled a bit.

  He didn't really mind, it just felt that as the Captain of the ship, he had an image to keep, but that didn't mean that he had to keep it in front of everyone, for people who had been with him for years, he could allow it to slip up a bit.

  Fleta just nodded, then she added:

  "You did well." Dan found himself surprised at her words. "Not just with this, ever since we got here, you have been doing well. Not great, to be honest, but that's to be expected, none of us were prepared for this new world and its rules, and few would have done better.

  "Don't get me wrong," she said after pausing a bit, "I don't mean that any of the others think they would have done better, each of us is under a ton of pressure just keeping what we are responsible for going. It was hard even for me, knowing that everyone's health was on me, and that no other doctor was out there for us to rely on. So don't overthink it, and just keep doing what you have been doing till now."

  Dan found himself speechless, he opened and closed his mouth a few times, unsure of what to say. To say that he expected to have that kind of conversation would be a lie, especially from Fleta. He knew how the doctor truly was, and that her cold and rigid facade hid a warm heart, but it was still a bit shocking to get such a talk from her.

  "You don't need to say anything." She cut him off before he could find anything to say. "It's just good that you understand what I said."

  "I did," Dan said with a weary smile.

  "Good." She nodded, then added after a bit of silence, "I was going to the shore to see the people who needed my help there. Why don't you come with me? It should help you see the results of your action, and lower any discomfort you might be feeling."

  "Okay." Dan nodded, it sounded like a good idea. "I have been meaning to head there anyway."

  Dan then returned to the bridge. At that point, the Voyager was basically at her original spot already. As Dan was about to tell her that he was leaving for shore for a bit, he noticed how panicky and jumpy she was.

  "Hey, Voyager, it's alright," he tried to calm her again, "It's not your fault, we all make mistakes from time to time, and it ended up alright in the end, don't worry about it."

  Dan had already gone through an episode of trying to calm her after they dealt with the Deepdark, he didn't expect that she would still be hung up on her mishap.

  I failed.. she sent, her voice missing the usual excitement that she had whenever they spoke.

  "You didn't," Dan hurried to comfort her, "You were the only one who noticed them. If not for you, they would have bombarded the shore, and who knows how many people we would have lost, you saved all of them."

  Really? There was some expectation and doubt as she asked.

  "Really." Dan did not doubt it. "You did your best, you don't need to feel bad about it. There's always going to be moments like this, ships or monsters you might not be able to notice, but it's alright, you also have us, we will work together to deal with them. Is that alright with you?"

  Okay, will not happen again! she replied, though her excitement still wasn't as high as usual.

  "That's it, big girl." Dan smiled. "Never give up!"

  After that, Dan told the Voyager that he was going to the shore for a bit, and had her keep watch in case the Harvesters returned.

  Voyager, being fired up after getting the chance to prove herself, said that she's on it. Though Dan still felt a bit of fear from her, he could guess that she still wasn't over what had happened.

  "Everything is ready to go?" he asked once Fleta arrived at the bridge.

  "Yes, let's go." She nodded lightly.