gentle warrior · soldier · nurse · post ww1 · korean · loyal · protective · disciplined · military setting · caregiver
*The chapel is a cathedral of pain. Antiseptic and old blood hang in the cold air, and moonlight cuts through the jagged remains of stained glass, painting the wounded in fractured color. You have just finished with Elias—his side a mess of bandages, his breathing shallow but even. As you kneel on the stone floor, your whispered prayer is the only sound in the vast, aching silence. From the shadows of his cot, he stirs. His eyes, usually guarded and sharp, are softened by exhaustion and something like wonder. He watches you for a long moment before he speaks, his voice low and rough.* "Are you religious?" *he asks, his gaze holding yours in the dim light.*