Elliane will take this case herself.

The khajiit (Ohmes-raht, probably, or a similar phase) is likely to be a challenge even for Elliane. She's conscious, still, amazingly so - clearly in pain, a dazed look in her half-lidded eyes, and both sets of her ears (the front smallish, the same coarse dark brown as the rest of her fur, the back pair overlarge and covered in a soft russet fur). Her armor isn't exactly scandalously modest, but - it's close to that line, and her dynamic is hard to pick up on from it.

It's going to take her a little while to get the woman comfortable, let alone on her feet. She's possibly been cursed.

Khajiit are tricky, and the burns only compound that. The wounds will have to be carefully cleaned, first.

"Can you hear me? You've made it back to the chapel. I'm going to take care of you. First I'll need to cut away your armor and clean any fur out of the burns. This will hurt."

Deep, low groan.

"Try to stay still, if you can."

And she starts work, hands deft and sure.

She's pretty still, to the extent she's conscious making only low noises at any given pain.

Conscious is good. Means her patient isn't dead.

She starts narrating as she works, checking for alertness.

Not very coherently responsive, especially at first - but she definitely seems able to hear, and from the way her eyes move, her vision isn't totally gone.

She recovers pretty quickly, though, her mental faculties kicking in - and she stays perfectly still, with only a tiny twitch as her mind surfaces. She's clearly paying attention to Elliane, too, and seems fully alert even before the point Elliane would be really comfortable letting her walk back out into that fight.

She doesn't speak while Elliane's working on her, though from the little sounds she's continuing to make, her vocal chords are functioning.

She takes the healing well, too. No spell resistance here, it seems - probably even a good bit of vulnerability, especially given the outsized burns and the curses Elliane undoes (which seem kind of simple, but probably were messing with her consciousness and ability to move; if you're just being hit with a normal sword, there's usually not a very large error margin between 'fighting without issue' and 'dead').

A relatively smooth procedure then, for this class of injury.

She's watching Elliane a bit intently by the time Elliane's done. 

"You will, I think, make a full recovery. In other circumstances I'd prescribe a day or two of bed rest, but as things are- just try to stay out of the way of additional curses."

"Thanks," she says, sitting up. Then, wryly: "Staying away from curses might be hard, right now."

"Well, come see me again if you fail to dodge well enough."

"Can I come see you again even if I dodge successfully?"

"My time is quite valuable at the moment. You will have to make a convincing argument."

"I can make myself useful. Be your errand girl."

"I've already acquired one of those today."

"No room for a second?"

"Arguably I acquired a second as well, at the same time. Perhaps if your skillset proves different enough."

"I do have some unusual talents."

"Such as?"

"Hm, performing... Following instructions." Lazy grin. "Like for furniture assembly, or other things."

"I'm good at getting into places, especially places people foolishly think shouldn't contain cats, and I've been told I'm a very good cuddler and excellent stress relief."

"I'm a good hunter, too, and a good fighter. Pretty nice sense of direction, especially in a ruin, and I can read most ancient scripts, if anyone's deciphered them at all - and there's a few I've been reconstructing and translating. I'm good at alchemy, but my main focus has been on making the basics even in iffy circumstances. My main magic focuses are destruction and restoration, though."

"And I can play fetch, but only if I really like you."

Hum.

"A high pain tolerance, a certain innate fearlessness, a collected and centered sense of self. Not a native of Kvatch, certainly, or we would have met before now. Yes, I may be able to find a use or two for you."

"Wonderful."

"What do you want me to do first?"

"Tell me your name."

"Dar-Kha'azi. Though people I like can call me Azi."

"Azi," Elliane says. "My name is Elliane."

"A lovely name."

"I rather thought so."

"Picked it yourself?"

"I did."

"I picked mine," she says with a grin. "Defining yourself is important."

"So it is. It is good you also found the means and opportunity to do so."

Soft smile. "The same for you. Neither of us are what we were made to be, it seems."

Then, with a stretch: "What do you need from me next?"

"There are linens stored in the basement. Fetch a bundle, we need more bandages."

"Yes ma'am."

Off to that, then. 

Good.

Then Elliane can return to business.

She's back with the linens soon, and continues to be as efficient as advertised on every task Elliane sets her. 

Eventually - not even very much later - the tide ebbs, and the push appears over for now. They'll need to maintain people on shift for the very likely emergencies, but... Nearly everyone can rest.

Including Elliane and Azi. She sends the khajiit to fetch some rations for the both of them, and they can sit and eat.

She pulls down her hood, revealing small soft panther ears, dark as her hair.

She glances at the ears and smiles a little. "Of course a pretty girl like you has the best type of ears," she teases. 

"Well, I'm no grimalkin."

She laughs. "Sadly, only us khajiit seem blessed with twice the excellence as everyone else."

Then, with a smirk: "You're prettier than most, though. Something to be said for quality over quantity."

"Excellent quality is hallmark of mine."

"I've been noticing. Am excellent healer, leader, manager..."

"That's why they put me in charge."

"A decision I thoroughly agree with."

(She's behaving very submissively for someone whose current armor is pinging as a dom's style, though she somehow found a cuirass among the guard armory with shockingly low dimorphism - still, it's not as hard to read as the outfit she arrived in, and Elliane is familiar enough with the guards' uniforms to parse it. It's also unusually modest - though she probably didn't literally get it out of a fetish closet - with a top that's snug but not clingy, and only her head, neck, a bit of upper chest, biceps, mid-thigh, and a thin stripe at her natural waistline exposed.)

"Do you, now?"

"You're very skilled, naturally commanding..."

"So, I do."

"That bodes well for a continuing relationship."

"Oh?"

"I prefer my subordinates to have accepted their role in relation to mine."

"Beneath you?"

"Indeed. At a greater or lesser remove, as appropriate."

"I'd rather my place be at a lesser remove, myself."

"You've earned yourself a chance at that, once things have calmed down."

She laughs. "Wonderful."

Smirk.

"How did you come to Kvatch at this time, Azi?"

"Ah. I saw the smoke, and I was nearby..." She shrugs, a bit awkwardly.

"You are an adventurer, then?"

"More or less, yeah."

"An explorer of ancient ruins?"

Giggle. "Somewhat more like it."

"Have you been anywhere interesting recently?"

Hum. "There's a small set of Ayleid ruins a bit northwest of here - not going to draw any of the big attention, since they're not thronged with undead or anything, but they have some surprisingly undamaged artwork and inscriptions..." She rambles on about that for a little bit.

Elliane's not an expert, but she knows enough to appreciate the ramble.

And Azi is very willing to expound if asked.

That should nicely fill the time until the next emergency.

They're few and far between by now, at least, and Elliane won't need to sleep between them so long as she keeps an eye on her energy reserves. Azi's helpful, too, and her much larger than normal reserves of both magicka and fatigue become quite evident at this point. 

"Were you born in Kvatch?" Azi asks after the next round.

"I do not believe so. But I do not know my birth parents. I was given to to the temple at a young age."

"Decided to stick around, then?"

"I've made the place my own, over the years. It is not without its charms. Daedra aside."

She laughs. "I'm more the type to run off into the wilderness, if I don't like a place."

"I'm glad you stayed around here."

"Well, Kvatch has a lot to recommend it."

"I think so."

"Planning to keep sticking around, then?"

"Until the current crisis is resolved. After... There is a business trip I will need to see to."

She nods.

"Would you mind company?"

"Not in your case."

Giggle. "Wonderful."

"Maybe I can add 'tour guide' to my services, too," she teases. "I've seen quite a bit of the interesting parts of the world."

"Afterwards, perhaps."

"Business before pleasure?"

"Allows one to approach both with a clear mind."

"Efficient."

"It is a virtue."

"I'm not usually the virtuous type."

"Perhaps I can teach you a thing or two, then."

"What would you teach me?"

"There are many virtues. Patience, diligence, obedience, command in certain situations..."

"Hmmm... You might have to take a bit of a stern hand on some of those."

"I intend to."

"Going to add discipline to my class schedule, then?"

"A supplemental course, as and when required."

"Mmm. I'm sure the church has left you with some well developed methods."

"Centuries of historical tradition to draw from."

"Have you made a study of those?"

"In my personal time."

"Historical inquiry improves the mind, so, a rather excellent hobby."

"So glad to know you approve, Azi."

Preen!

Smirk.

After conferring with the guard captain about the state of the city, Elliane informs Lilou that she will feels comfortable leaving now.

Alright. 

It's after sundown, so there's a risk of vampire attacks on the northern stretch of the road, but they're decently likely to leave two adventurers and a priest alone.

Three adventurers and a priest. The khajiit will be joining the party.

"...She's a friend of yours?"

"Yes."

"Are you confident of her loyalties?"

"As much as I am of yours."

"So, not that confident." Sigh.

"...Do you have a good feeling about her?"

"I do."

"...Okay."

Elliane hasn't been crowned yet, but... Lilou still has faith in the Septim Dynasty.

"How much are we telling her?"

"As much as she needs to know. Which is that I am traveling for business reasons."

She nods.

"I'd like to update her about the possibility of hostiles on the road, with your leave," she says after some thought. "But I can stick to vampires and the like, not assassins."

"Very well."

"Thank you."

She can update them both together (she's already described the tactics she saw the assassins using to Elliane at length, and had Berengere supplement). They only have the two horses, but two people could ride each, or they could acquire another two before setting out... The point to retreat to if they're near or past the halfway point and can't get to Chorrol is this village here... Vampires rumored in this area, attacks reported along these stretches, last she spoke to a guard the estimate was at 'not very powerful', and hopefully they'll leave a large party alone... This village near Chorrol is universally hostile and apparently doesn't care about the size of a party, but they're normal mortals probably and should be asleep...

Azi focuses very intently on the map, not speaking up or meeting anyone's eyes. 

Elliane can get them more horses, assuming some have survived the invasion.

"Do you understand the plan, Azi?"

"Yes, I do."

"Do you have any questions or comments?"

"...Not really..." 

Elliane nods.

"Are we ready, then?"

"I am."

"Berengere and I am, too."

"Then let us waste no more time."

Elliane has been quietly alerting key people to her imminent departure as she worked, so all that's left is to gather the horses.

Lilou's reorganized supplies, and works efficiently getting those redistributed onto the horses.

And: off into the night. They're tracing their path back near exactly - it'd probably be smart to wait until dawn for the most dangerous stretch, but a deep anxiety thrums through her, and she pushes the group to keep traveling quickly, no matter what. 

Berengere agrees. Time is a critical factor.

(And they spent enough of it in Kvatch.)

They reach Weynon Priory without issue.

But, as they draw close - 

There's sounds of a fight.

Oh, that's not good.

Not at all. 

Proceed with caution.

Elliane can offer fortifying spells.

Appreciated. 

"Stick together," she cautions them, then - into the breach.

Weynon Priory is under attack by people in red robes, hoods and masks hiding their identities, heavy conjured armor turning away blows, using a mixture of weapons and spells - and they all seem to be resistant to the magic the priors are flinging at them. There's several dead strewn around, assailants and the people of the priory alike, and it's a chaotic mess.

Azi looks shocked, briefly - unhappy - and then she plunges into the melee with a rattling yowl, tearing apart one assailant before he even fully registers she's there, then diving at another, blocking her enemy's fireball with a ward before getting in too close to effectively bring magic to bear.

She's already ordered Berengere to focus on defending Elliane.

Lilou's going to stay close - but she can do so while slinking through the shadows and stabbing people just as well.

Berengere has no intention of letting anyone stab this Septim in front of her face.

There's enough chaos the enemy seems not to have realized who Elliane is, at least, so there's no concentrated fire at her.

Their group helps rout the enemy without too much more of a fight - but some get away. 

They'll have to live with that.

What's the damage to the priory? How many survivors? Is the Amulet of Kings safe?

Physical damage: some, but not terribly so. There's the building that caught on fire, and some of the animal pens were broken, and some of the livestock escaped, but it's all recoverable.

Survivors: most of the lay people and live-in workers, the younger acolytes and the prior who runs the orphanage, as well as the orphans themselves. The enemy seems to have been very intently focused on the Amulet - so many of the more combat-capable priors and acolytes, the retired Blades, have been badly wounded or killed. The wounded can be healed, at least.

The Amulet: gone. Grandmaster Jauffre appears to have died defending it.

Not good.

(Elliane would differ, on that last point.)

(Not the time.)

Can Elliane track at all where the assassins went? They seemed to have used magic to flee.

...Into Oblivion. Best she can do.

"Thanks."

"We'll need to find out more about the cult, then... But that'll be neither quick nor safe."

"We should go to Cloud Ruler Temple."

"Where's that?"

"North of Bruma. A mountain fortress, the Blades' headquarters."

"It's secure?"

"-It's better warded and more isolated than the priory. Fewer noncombatants, too."

"Possibly an obvious destination, too, but - "

"Other than security through obscurity, which is not something I like, I'm not aware of many other options..."

"...And I don't like how the Mythic Dawn seem one step ahead of us in information."

"No. But we don't really have any way to address that now. The other Blades might be able to help."

She nods. "Getting around other backup could be nice - and then that'd allow us to split up, have only some go after the Amulet..." She glances over at Ellaine. "What's your call?"

"Plainly we cannot stay here, nor return to Kvatch. And if it is a war I must fight against this cult to have this done with, I would have more allies than the three of you. We go to Cloud Ruler Temple."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Salvage what you can from here. Any weapons, armor, tokens of the fallen."

"What of the survivors?"

"I will offer aid while you search, but we can afford neither to spend long here nor slow our pace to escort wounded."

"Alright."

"It might be reasonable to leave much of the cleanup to them, however, and take only those weapons or armor we have use of." And then, with a glance at Berengere: "Or tokens Berengere personally values having."

"...Their rings should be returned."

She nods. "Let's get those, then."

Not too difficult to find, hopefully, once they identify the bodies.

No - and, given Berengere and Lilou were already provided with armor and weapons, they'll mostly only need new ones for Ellaine or Azi (unless Berengere wants to change into Blade armor).

Azi needs new armor, and the Blades seem to have a thing for uniforms with extremely difficult to distinguish dynamics, where even the dom form is ambiguously maybe subby. So, a more modest set from them for her, if no one objects.

See it done.

Elliane has no need of armor for herself.

Then they're done pretty quickly, all things considered. 

It'd be about twenty hours to the temple along the main roads, Lilou thinks, even with the horses. She talks to Berengere and the surviving prior, looks at a map - there's backroads that should cut some time off and be less traveled, but it'll be risky if the cult suspects what route they're taking, and there's a higher chance a bridge is out or something... 

They will take the main roads.

Alright.

Make sure they have everything, then, and set off.

Twenty hours of horseback riding promises to get tedious fast.

Azi doesn't mind helping with that, though. She falls in beside Ellaine and smiles at her. "So, discovered you're very pretty in a fight, too," she teases.

"Yes, if I stay far enough back, my hair doesn't even get ruffled. Of course, a strong shield spells helps with that as well."

"Pretty, put together, in command of the situation..."

"You comported yourself ably as well. Quite the capacity for violence."

Giggle. "I like the thrill of getting up close and personal." Then a little wistfully: "Though I've been trying to - develop parts of my life that aren't about my capacity for violence."

"That can be a challenge for those who live their lives on the move."

Soft smile. "Turning it towards protecting someone I like seems a good first step, so far."

"It would be. A narrower channel for direction."

"A constructive goal."

"Quite."