A/N: Hey everyone! This summer is really heating up so don't forget to stay hydrated out there! Anyway, this chapter is one that I've really been looking forward to writing. I'm trying to challenge myself to produce longer and longer chapters moving forward but we'll see how it goes. Have you guys seen playthroughs of that new video game Stray? It looks so good!

*Disclaimer*

*As always, I own only my OCs. The main plots and recognizable characters are from the brilliant minds of Bethesda's Elder Scrolls franchise writers.*

*Dialogue for Savlian Matius lifted from the Elder Scrolls: Oblivion.*

Chapter VII- It's Been a Long Day and We're Still Here

"How long have we been at this?" Lumi shouted to the woman beside her. The guard had lost her helmet at some point during the fight and her black hair stubbornly poked out of its braid in grimy strands that clung to her tan face. Lumi was sure she looked even worse, having lacked a helmet from the start. Her hair felt stiff and her scalp itched something fierce. I can't wait to be able to take a bath after this. Just the thought of clean water and a bar of soap was invigorating to the Nord at this point. She could feel the semi-dried blood from the last few hours of fighting and the sweat from the past days of travel mixing into a disgusting paste that made her skin itch under the armor she wore. Armor that was already torn around her shoulder and covered in an impressive display of daedra blood and singe marks. She'd need time to repair the leather or it would have to be used for scrap repairs and Lumi couldn't imagine the Blades thanking her for that. The guard let out a growl as the pair worked to maneuver a gaggle of imps into the path of another group of soldiers waiting nearby.

"Hard to say, maybe an hour? Two, tops." The dark-haired woman replied, slicing the leg of an imp that tried to bolt away. Its screech was quickly silenced as her blade dispatched it with an elegant side swipe. That was a clean move.

"Whoever said time flies was a lying bastard and I'm going to force feed them mazte until they admit it," Lumi declared, pushing back the rest of the imps as they jumped away from their fallen companion.

The guard laughed loudly as she swung her silver blade toward a nosy clannfear. Lumi watched her finish off the clannfear with wide eyes. She seemed to dance around the imps as she made sure nothing else attacked them. By Talos, can that woman can fight. Lumi wondered briefly how long she had to have trained to get that good. And if it was just talent? Oh, Farkas would love to spar with her.

"You know, I think they mentioned that it only flies when you're having fun, and uh, I can't say that this is exactly that. No offense to your company," the woman answered, cheeks flush as she focused on the imps. They were nearly to the other guards.

"None taken. What's your name, anyway? I can't keep thinking of you as 'Guard with the braid that can kick my ass.' Way too long and not very rhyme-able for the bards," Lumi asked, grunting with satisfaction as the guards they were pushing the imps to finally gained enough ground to strike back.

"The name is Prinna Gregotis. And you, fierce lady Nord?" The guard, Prinna, replied, grinning. She took a moment to smile toothily back at Prinna, eyes bright.

"Lumi."

"Well, Lumi, if we survive this, I think that you and I are going to get along just fine," Prinna declared, adjusting her grip on her sword. All around them, the city burned and guards pushed at overeager daedra. Lumi tilted her head to the side, laughing. She raised her blades, brown eyes locking on a flame atronach.

"I agree."

Prinna turned to follow Lumi's eyes and smiled.

"Good luck with that one, my lady. May your swords ring with the screams of your enemies!" The Imperial clasped her arm before raising her own blade and charging off. Lumi turned to face the atronach. Flame atronachs truly were beautiful, she thought. Even as the daedra flung flaming projectiles around, it moved with an undeniable grace that couldn't be ignored. Too bad I need to kill this one. I'd love to be able to draw an atronach. It would be a wonderful challenge to try and capture the flames that cloaked the daedra's rocky figure. Maybe she could ask one of the conjurers at the College at Winterhold about it if she got back to her own time. Crouching low, Lumi began making a wide circle around the atronach, watching intently as it targeted guards already busy fighting off other enemies. The face of the atronach was curled into a smile that made her fingers itch to take her bow and find the nearest rooftop.

Unfortunately, the fighting was far too dense for her bow to be of any real use in battle. Close combat was an affair reserved for the intimacy of the blade. Or fireball. As she ducked between guards, Lumi briefly recognized the sound of Prinna jeering at an unseen foe. She pitied whatever was on the end of the Imperial woman's blade. Yet thoughts of Prinna quickly fled her mind, however, as the shriek of a nearby Imp made her ears ring harshly. A grimace twisted her features at the feeling of something wet dripping out of her ear. Her heart sped up as nothing but a tin-sounding ring echoed around her. Shit. Shit. Shit. She twisted around, panic threatening to make the Nord freeze in place. Breathe. Need to breathe. Fortunately for her, in what felt like a blink, the horrible ringing was swiftly silenced by a veritable wave of sounds from the battle. Lumi hoped there was no lingering damage. Her ears hurt and it felt like her heartbeat was thrumming wildly through them with every breath. Why are those things so loud? One would think the claws would be enough of a weapon. With a shake of her head, Lumi continued to make her way around the edges of the battlefield. She needed to extend every sense to avoid getting a limb chopped off before she could reach her target, sore ears included. If anyone were to ask her later, how exactly it was that she managed to pick her way through the fighting and debris until she was at the back of the flame atronach, she would confidently attribute everything to her time digging around the forest floor for herbs, and sheer, dumb luck.

As it was, Lumi eventually found herself partially hidden behind a large chunk of what looked to be a former home. The atronach was paying her no mind as it sent well-aimed volleys of fireballs at her comrades. Perfect. The Nord steadied herself, taking a moment to correct her grip on the hilts of her blades. It's now or never. Breathing deeply, Lumi emerged from her cover, crouching low, feet quickly moving over the rubble-covered ground. However, just as she reached the atronach, it turned, sensing her approach. The two stared at one another for a heartbeat before the air was sucked out of Lumi's lungs as the atronach shrieked in anger. This close, the heat coming off of the daedra was truly volatile, like an uncontrolled deluge of sharp, burning heat that nipped at the exposed skin of her face unpleasantly, absolutely nothing like the carefully kindled warmth of a dragon. The atronach raised a rocky hand, flame welling up from the cracks of its joints to pool together in a liquid mass of deadly heat. Oh shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. With so little space between them, dodging the atronach was infinitely more challenging for the Nord. For every step she took, the atronach would follow with a swift glide. Bormahu had to be with her as she barely dodged the blasts of flames. Each seconds-long break between strikes was a shaky reprieve for the Nord, whose eyes swiveled wildly as she looked for the atronach's weak point. Frustration surged through her at her own lack of experience in fighting atronachs. It didn't matter that they weren't a common sight in Skyrim, or that conjurers were annoying as hell to deal with and she preferred to shoot them from distance before they could, well, conjure. Her ineptitude could get others killed if she didn't figure out how to take that thing down fast.

A flash of light was Lumi's only warning as the atronach suddenly pressed forward, arm outstretched. Searing pain wiped the Nord's mind clean of any thoughts. The molten fingers of the atronach pressed down harshly onto her shoulder, directly where the leather was already torn wide open from a lucky strike earlier in the day. The sword in that hand immediately dropped as the muscles in her arm seized and spasmed violently. I have to get away. I have to get away! Lumi's chest heaved as the pain rippled through her, blooming like an unholy flower from the glowing hand pressed to her shoulder, a gross dichotomy to the soft light of restoration magic. The atronach gripped her fiercely, a cruelly beautiful smile on its fine face as she twisted frantically. The concentrated heat tore through her, ripping apart every thought that wasn't pain or fear.

"Let me go!" She screamed, face inches from the atronachs. It shrieked back, blisteringly hot air hitting her face like a molten hammer.

Desperate strength flowed through the Nord. If she didn't end this now, she would die and then others would too. The realm would bleed. Shit. Okay, okay, I can do this. Sharp sobs wracked her frame as she gripped her remaining sword tightly and forced herself to stop trying to pull away. The daedra had no time to react as, rather than continue attempting to flee, Lumi leveled her sword with her chest and used her bad arm to pull the atronach into an embrace. Lumi didn't try to hold back her screams as the skin and muscles in her burnt shoulder pulsed with every shriek of the atronach. The burning creature grasped harshly at Lumi's arms as the sword was pushed even further into the daedra's body. The hilt of the blade rapidly grew hotter and hotter but Lumi was unable to abandon it as the larger body of the atronach began to curl and sink onto her. The air grew strangely taught as the heat from the atronach pooled into the ruined cavern of its chest. Using what was left of her strength, Lumi frantically shoved the rapidly heating corpse of the atronach away and ran for cover. The sound of an explosion met her already sensitive ears like a warhammer before she could get behind the rock that she'd initially used for cover at the start of the fight. Heat seared her back and neck before quickly dissipating. Thank Talos that's done with. The Nord stumbled forward as her breathing began to even out. She hadn't even realized how hard it had gotten to actually take in air while fighting the atronach. As such, the cool air flowing into her lungs was sweet like honey. With the fear fading and a burnt shoulder, Lumi knew her adrenaline was going to be the best fuel to last her through the rest of the fight. She could only hope as she grabbed her two swords from the smoking remains of the daedra that they wouldn't be at this all night.

Rather unfortunately for the guards and Lumi, the fighting had lasted well into the evening. As the last daedra fell to a young guard, the city was bathed in a garish display of red and yellow. All around the battered company, once beautiful structures splintered and burned. The guards gathered together around the young man, whose face was bisected by a fresh wound that stretched just under his eyes. That is definitely going to scar. Lumi's swords were heavier than dragon scale as she finally allowed herself a moment to rest. Her shoulder throbbed with every breath as the burnt flesh protested being moved. Martin better be in that chapel or I swear to Bormahu I will travel to whatever afterlife the Imperials believe in and drag him back by the ear. It was thoughts of completing the quest given to her by Jauffre that had been her biggest motivator throughout the battle, serving as a welcome distraction from the throbbing of her shoulder. Now that the fighting had ceased, she was eager to find the Imperial heir and take him to Jauffre as quickly as possible. There was no telling just what Dagon could have been getting up to while they were stuck in Kvatch. The Amulet was a sitting duck in the priory, even with generations of Blades to guard it until they could return. She prayed that the apprehension filling her was simply a result of battle and not some strange forewarning of what was to come.

"Ha ha! We wiped the bastards out!" Savlian crowed, wiping sweat from his brow. The scattered cheers of various guards echoed in the ruined expanse of the courtyard, pulling Lumi from her thoughts of doom with a wince as her ears smarted. While the cries were loud, she noted that many of the remaining guards were, like herself, too weary to join in, instead looking around with varying expressions of dismay and grief. She spotted Prinna staring mutely at their surroundings, brown eyes dull and shuttered. The Nord gripped her swords a little tighter as she started toward her friend. By Talos… Shock made her silent as she truly took in the battlefield. Devastation was everywhere. The bodies of dozens of guards and citizens were littered haphazardly across the square and into the courtyard of the chapel. Nearby shops and homes were in complete ruin, with not even the stone bases of the buildings spared. The remains of no doubt pristine gardens poked out from under fallen wood and rock. Towards the center of the complex, an ash covered statue was broken in half, the head and torso lost somewhere amongst the rubble. Tall flames licked at the decimated structures and the resulting smoke made breathing difficult. If you managed to get a good breath in, the sickly-sweet scent of rot beginning to set in would make you wish you hadn't. It was clear that a Gate must have opened directly into the heart of the city and taken the townspeople totally by surprise. The thought left bile in her throat.

What truly made her skin crawl, however, was not what even the daedra had done. Among the wreckage, there was evidence of a skilled destruction mage that had been hard at work while they were fighting their way through the other side of the city. Large chunks of rubble were covered in generous deposits of still-steaming hoarfrost, while the tell-tale signs of severe fire damage were everywhere in the warped and twisted corpses of imps, clannfear, and even a few dremora. Lumi knew basic destruction magic. Living in the north, it was damn useful to know how to light a fire without starter or oil after all. Despite its obvious application though, she much preferred the practical usage of restoration magic.

Healing Hands had saved her skin more times than she could count and was much more palatable to her more superstitious kinsmen. However, she knew enough to understand that only a master in destruction could be capable of the damage she saw before her. Someone like the mages at the College or the Psijic Order. The work before her was not from the average guard. Unease filled Lumi at seeing such methods used, even if they were necessary to help others. Destruction magic was incredibly difficult to control. It needed precision to not result in mass casualties. Whoever did this was either an expert or damn lucky. With a shake of her head, she stepped forward, only to pause as the ground beneath her foot gave way with a strangely familiar crumbling noise. Her eyes drifted down and Lumi froze, throat seizing violently. It was a hand. A completely charred hand. The weight of her foot had caused it to crumble into ash. The remains of curled claws told her that what was beneath her had not been any type of man, mer, argonian or khajiit, but more likely a daedroth or imp. It didn't help the tightening of her chest, or the way that her vision started clouding at the edges in a painful white that burned and seemed to glow as she blinked. The mage. The mage had done this. She felt like she was going to faint. She blinked and had to hold back a scream as the daedra was replaced by someone she never wanted to see again.

Ingrid.

She would never be able to forget the sight of Ingrid, no matter how hard she tried. The beautiful Nord had always been so sweet when Lumi came around to Helgen with Ralof and Hadvar, answering her questions about brewing and alchemy with a genuine eagerness to help grow another's knowledge. For a time, she'd even fancied herself in love with the woman who was so smart, helping her bossy twin brother Vilod make a brand-new brew all on their own. Helgen Inn's special juniper berry mead. The crush had faded long before they had grown up but the admiration and respect for her friend was a constant that could never go away. In truth, Lumi had a strong feeling that Ralof was interested in marrying Ingrid when the civil war was settled. She could see him working the inn with her and her brother, maybe building a house outside of the city and having a pair of kids that Lumi would undoubtedly end up babysitting half the time. No one could have anticipated the damn World Eater coming back.

Ingrid had been just outside of her inn when Alduin had attacked, watching the execution no doubt. Vilod had not been much of a supporter of the Stormcloaks, but Ingrid was. She knew watching that execution would have been horrible for her friend, but there wasn't a way that she wouldn't have seen it through. Not when her friends were on the block. After Alduin attacked, she had lost sight and thought of the older woman, intent on trying to escape herself. It had only been when Lumi had jumped into the inn, that she'd found her. At first, the younger Nord hadn't realized what had happened until she saw the familiar silver and blue band on her finger. The one Ralof gave her. He'd saved up for it for over a year, so proud to present it to her. Lumi had thought it matched her eyes perfectly, the gem a beautiful silvery-blue that gleamed like stars in the moonlight. All that had been left was a charred husk that crumbled just like the hand under her foot.

Something thumped her back and Lumi moved. Faster than she could breath, the Nord had the bloody blade of a sword pressed against her attacker's neck. She blinked repeatedly but her eyes refused to focus. All she could see was that broken hand. The silver ring with the blue stone. Tears pricked at her eyes. A strange rush filled her aching ears.

"Lumi, are you alright?!"

A familiar voice echoed faintly over the buzzing in her ears. Where had she heard that voice before?

"Lumi. Lumi it's Prinna. You need to breathe." The voice spoke again, a little louder.

Prinna? She wasn't at Helgen, she was sure. Why was Prinna-

"Shit!" She cursed loudly, heart thumping a furious tempo under the dirtied armor. She threw herself far away from the concerned face of the fierce guard. Her hands shook violently and her chest burned. What the hell is happening to me? Her friend looked concerned as she made her way closer, only stopping as Lumi flinched violently.

"Hey, it's okay. It's okay, Lumi. You're here in Kvatch. It's nighttime. The battle is over." The Imperial soothed, hands open and flat.

Lumi blinked harshly, eyes stinging as tears threatened to spill over. Her hands shook, swords dropping from them to lay in the dirt. Aela would be cursing her out for treating her blades like that. Confusion filled her. Why the hell was this affecting her so much? She'd seen the aftermath of destruction magic numerous times before. Hell, she'd used it in combat once or twice herself. But the logic of her experience didn't matter now as her heart continued to race and the images of Ingrid's smile and that charred hand flashed with every blink of her eyes. I'm useless like this. Utterly useless. In front of her, Prinna hadn't moved. The Imperial's dark eyes were kind and soft in a way that hurt to look at, knowing she was the reason behind it. Eyes like that should be looking at a child or a citizen, not a fully capable warrior who had seen worse! Lumi tipped her head down, refusing to make eye-contact any longer.

"I'm here," She murmured, throat tight as shame threatened to swallow her whole.

Prinna remained where she stood, Lumi's eyes watching the dirt and blood-covered leather of the guard's boots as they shifted subtly. Around them, it was quiet and still, the other guards assessing the damage they'd sustained in battle and picking through the field for survivors. Even Savlian, who had been cheering so loudly before, was rendered mute as the guards absorbed the scene around them. Like a mockery of her home, wet ash fell in thick clumps that made any exposed skin itch and burn. She let the ash gather on her. If she looked up, Lumi knew what she would see. Prinna and her pity. I don't want it. I don't deserve it. She closed her eyes as the tears finally flowed over. The crunch of gravel beneath boots was the only warning Lumi received before she felt two arms wrap themselves around her, carefully avoiding her injured shoulder. The smell of sweat, blood, and dirt filled her nose as it was shoved between skin and steel. Hair kept longer than her own tickled her face in a way that should have been uncomfortable but wasn't. The same strength that could tear a dremora's arm off was used to gently hold her against the Imperial's armored chest. The fabric of her outer tunic was torn and stained but felt soft to the Nord woman. Gloved hands ran over her hair in a soothing gesture. She could feel the rise and fall of Prinna's chest as she breathed. It helped to ground her. She wasn't in Helgen. She was in Kvatch. Ingrid was gone but Prinna was in front of her. She wasn't alone in the fire. The ringing that had overcome everything else at last faded into nothingness, leaving the soft crackle of flames and the dull flap of fabric in the wind. The murmurs of the guards rose and fell like gentle waves while she stood in Prinna's embrace. It felt like an eternity passed as Lumi listened to Prinna's heartbeat.

Slowly, the Imperial pulled away and shifted so that they faced one another. They were of a height with the other, eyes level. Lumi thanked the gods that the woman in front of her existed.

"It's okay to not be okay, especially after this shit show, Lumi," Prinna said with confidence. The Nord warrior sighed raggedly, the weight of the last day hitting her at last. She refused to buckle again.

"Thank you, Prinna. I'm going to owe you a thousand life debts by the end of this if you keep being so logical," Lumi smiled softly.

"Me, logical? You must be mistaken, lady Nord, if you think that I'm logical," Prinna sniffed primly before laughing.

"In all seriousness though, if you need my help, just ask. No life debts necessary. We're sword sisters now, Lumi. You won't be rid of me that easy."

Lumi felt a lump in her throat at the Imperial's declaration. Sword sisters. The title was an honor, one she hardly felt worthy of. Prinna's face brokered no arguments though. In the Imperial's eyes, it was a done deal and she would just have to accept it. Farkas really would love to meet this one. Two peas in a pod. The women hugged once more and as Lumi pulled back, she could make out the silhouette of an imp against a stone wall. No body, just an ashy silhouette. She shuddered and turned away.

"Everyone!"

Savlian's voice echoed across the rubble-covered ground. All eyes turned to the blood-soaked Imperial. Uneasiness stirred again in Lumi's chest.

"Now that those daedric bastards are dead, we have work to do. It's safe to pull those people out of the chapel. Let's get in there and make sure they're alright. This is only the beginning of the battle for Kvatch but we can discuss the next phase once the civilians are safe."

The next phase? Where else would we even need to fight off daedra? Confusion and dread were close companions in her chest as she and Prinna walked over to the guards gathering under the white-blue glow of the chapel. Whoever had been using magic earlier must have also warded the building. The thought of someone using that much magicka worried Lumi. That would require someone with immense magicka reserves. But even the best mages have their limits, and she privately wondered if the one working with them had met their own that day. The guardsmen were apprehensive as they approached the glowing doors of the chapel, but Savlian simply grabbed the wrought iron of the handle and rapped it against the wood three times. Each crack of metal against iron echoed loudly throughout the ruined city and Lumi saw more than one guard flinch as the handle connected with the wood. The battle for Kvatch had left them all scarred, some in more ways than one. She prayed that the soldiers and townspeople would spring back from the attack and find solace where they could. They deserved peace.

"Who goes there?" A muffled voice filtered from the door. Lumi could just barely see the way that Savlian's shoulders perked up as the man took a step back and puffed up his chest.

"Acting Captain Savlian Matius and a company of the city guard. We're here to relieve those that have held their post and to aid in escorting any civilians out into the refugee camp that other survivors have set up at the base of the hill. To whom am I speaking?" The captain bellowed.

"Guardsman Tierra, sir,' The voice responded, 'We are clearing the barricade and will let you in promptly."

The guards muttered amongst themselves while Lumi merely shifted her feet, eager to be able to sit for a moment but wanting more than anything to be walking out of the city already. Prinna just worked on adjusting loose straps on her armor. A sense of anticipation filled Lumi. Martin was just behind those doors. Again, she wondered what he was like. The history books really hadn't touched on him beyond the 'he was a hero, blah, blah, blah, the last of the dragon blood, blah, blah, blah.' Historians really disliked informal information, it seemed like. At least in regards to the dragonborn. Though perhaps, it was more to do with the fact that the man had been entirely unknown as a Septim until the last months of his life. In any case, she would have her answers soon. Though how to break the reality of the situation to him was a different situation entirely. One that she could no longer call a future-her problem. Should she wing it? I mean I found out I was the dragonborn after almost getting burnt to a crisp by a dragon so really this should be far less traumatic. Hopefully.

The doors to the chapel opened with a faint creak as a pair of guards revealed themselves. As soon as the doors were fully opened, the two guards stood tall and saluted Savlian. The captain returned their gesture before leading the way indoors. Lumi and Prinna looked at one another, excited to move out of the courtyard. Lumi glanced up as they passed through the doors and into the narthex of the building. She hadn't been inside many Imperial chapels or cathedrals. Most of her time in Cyrodiil was spent in the hill country, looking for herbs. However, even under siege, the building's interior was stunning. Smooth, carved pillars distributed the weight of the ceiling evenly across the structure while large stained-glass windows allowed soft light to filter through the building. It was calming to look at after such a tumultuous day. It is very different from the temples and shrines of Skyrim, that's for sure.

"Lumi, come on, we should get closer and try to hear what Captain Matius is planning," Prinna hissed in her ear. That was a good idea. Lumi followed after the Imperial, but quickly lost her in the mass of people. However, she could see Savlian as he made his way up a small series of steps to the front of the cathedral. She tried to be mindful of those around her as she navigated her way to the captain. Luckily, it didn't take her long to reach him. He had brought along another guard, one she didn't recognize from the company that had been fighting with her for the last few hours. Must be one of the chapel guards. A man in fine but stained robes stood some ways off, his eyes bright.

"Report, Garth," Savlian requested, hands resting behind his back. The man in robes, Garth, she assumed, nodded.

"We've managed to find at least forty-five refugees. As for men-at-arms, those that are still capable of fighting are Tierra, Berich, Inian, and Florus."

"I'm glad to hear that many civilians were able to shelter here. How did you secure the building so effectively?" Savlian asked. Lumi wondered that too.

Garth smiled happily. "Ah that would be thanks to one of our younger priests, Brother Martin. He's a bright man. We would've been goners without his ward."

A blond guard laughed heartily. "Or lightning."

You have got to be kidding me. Lumi swore silently as Father Garth gestured to an Imperial man being talked at by an ancient looking woman with herbs and bandages in her arms. He's the mage. The idiot that had inadvertently triggered the worst panic attack she had ever experienced was Martin Septim. And he's a mage. Great. Now, don't mistake her. Lumi had nothing against mages. Those at the College, while a little nosy, were perfectly nice and patient with all manners of questions. But what she had seen out there reminded her a little too much of memories that she wanted buried far beneath the sandy floor of the Sea of Ghosts. That level of magic was dangerous. Says the woman who can quite literally breath fire if she chose to. Apprehension filled her. She just knew that Sheogorath and Bormahu were sharing a laugh at the internal meltdown currently taking place in her mind.

As she was cursing the gods and herself, the familiar frame of Savlian Matius sidled up to the Nord woman. He quietly observed how she subconsciously curled in on herself, body trying to escape the discomfort of the large wound he could see on her shoulder. It was sluggishly dripping blood past burnt and twisted flesh, the leather ripped and charred around the wound. Her already pale skin was waxy though she didn't seem to notice the wound at all as her face pinched with concentration. Dried blood trailed from her reddened ears onto her neck and he was sure that there were far more cuts that he couldn't see from where he stood. Savlian peered back at the men and women he had gathered. They were the remnants of the guard stationed in the chapel and those he had brought with him that were fit to fight. He had hoped to ask the woman next to him to join them, but as he saw her now, he thought she had fought enough for the day. Death bells would follow her should she storm the castle with him, he was sure. With that in mind, Savlian cleared his throat and waited as the Nord blinked and looked at him in surprise.

"Lumi, I think you should sit out the next stage of the battle," Savlian spoke kindly, anticipating the way that her brown eyes widened with shock before she threw her chin up. He watched as she tried to hide her wince when she pushed her shoulders back.

"Captain Matius, I promised my aid and I am more than capable of seeing this through," Lumi protested, unable to hide her frustration and hurt. He raised his hand in a placating gesture.

"Lumi, there is a difference between fighting because you should and fighting because you can. You are hurt.' She made to speak but he shook his head, eyes hard. 'You are hurt and I will not be responsible for killing you. You've done enough, kid."

Lumi pressed, unable to accept his response. "I won't have done enough until the last daedra is washed out of this realm, Savlian. Kvatch is not yet free of Dagon's influence, you said so yourself. How can you ask me to stop fighting just because of a scratch? There are plenty of men and women who have given their lives today. Let me honor them and fight on!"

Savlian's face was stony as he stepped closer. Lumi swallowed, unused to seeing such a stern expression on the boisterous man.

"You call that bleeding, charred excuse of a shoulder that you can barely move without wincing just a 'scratch?' I never took you for a fool, Lumi," He spat scornfully. Lumi's nostrils flared with anger as she hissed.

"I'm not a fool! But I refuse to be a coward who sat on the sidelines while others died," She whispered harshly. Savlian breathed deeply, eyes closing as he gathered himself. He opened his eyes to look down at her, and Lumi was struck by how old he looked in that moment.

"No one here would dare call you a coward. But yes, right now you are acting a fool. Now, I'm asking you to prove me wrong and listen to someone who cares about your well-being because if you go out there again, you won't be walking back. We'll be carting your dead body back on an Arkay-damned stretcher!" He rasped, voice strained

Lumi visibly deflated at his words and Savlian sighed, reaching out to grasp her forearms.

"Please just rest, Lumi. That shoulder needs tending. We'll speak when I return." He released her after she nodded and, with a final moment of eye contact, Savlian left. Lumi looked down at the ground as he went, frustrated beyond reason as tears threatened to escape from her eyes for the second time in an hour. She needed to get a grip. So consumed was she by these thoughts, that she barely noticed when Prinna practically skipped over. The Imperial woman was nearly beaming as she started speaking animatedly.

"Hey, you're already being called the 'Hero of Kvatch' after that stunt you pulled at the Gate!' Prinna stopped as she saw Lumi's face. 'What's wrong?"

"I've been reminded of my own mortality," Lumi responded, eyes stormy. A look of understanding passed over the woman's tanned face.

"Did Captain Matius tell you to stay here?" Prinna asked.

Lumi raised a brow, surprise flitting across her face before it was replaced by a tired chagrin.

"That obvious that I'm a walking liability?" She muttered weakly. Prinna shook her head. Sighing, she gently took Lumi's hand in her own.

"You aren't a liability, but-'she looked at her pointedly, '-you are pushing yourself too far. I know you don't want to hear it, probably the savior complex already getting to you, you stubborn Nord, but you should sit this one out. That shoulder is going to take more than a simple spell to heal. And-'she added, tilting her head and smiling mischievously, '-you happen to be in the dwelling of the greatest healer I know."

"Oh?" Lumi quirked her lip, humoring the woman.

"Mhm,' Prinna nodded seriously, 'the great Sister Jin. She's a mean old badger, but you'll find no one better at soothing your ails and that's a damned fact."

Lumi grinned at the enthusiasm of the woman's declaration and the look on Prinna's face was one of victory as the Nord smiled at her. Tugging lightly on their clasped hands, Prinna gestured with her head.

"C'mon, I have to go with Captain Matius soon but I'll take you to Jin."

Lumi shook her head. "That's really not necessary, I'm sure I can find her-" She stopped speaking at the look on Prinna's face.

"That's what I thought," The Imperial smiled sweetly before tugging her along once more.

Dread and embarrassment filled her as Lumi noticed just who exactly they were approaching. It was the elderly woman that had been speaking to Martin earlier. She prayed he was nowhere nearby. She needed to make a good impression if she was going to manage to convince him to go to Weynon Priory. The wizened woman was working away at organizing her stocks when Prinna not so subtly shoved Lumi forward, almost making her crash into a pew that had been moved to create a workbench. The woman, Jin, stopped what she was doing to glare suspiciously between the two younger women. Lumi awkwardly lifted her good arm in a wave.

"Hello, wonderful Sister Jin," Prinna smiled sweetly.

Jin scoffed. "What do you want."

"Well-,' Prinna gestured at Lumi, '- I have to go with Captain Matius but my friend got her shoulder fried and I knew that you could fix it up in no time."

She continued to smile as Jin just looked at her. The old woman sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Come here," She motioned for Lumi to come closer, chuckling lightly at the highly apprehensive look on the young Nord's face.

Jin pointed to a stool that had been brought from who knows where and Lumi sat down without a word. The woman began poking and prodding at her, eyes narrow and face twisted with thought.

"You can leave now, Prinna," Jin shooed her off without looking away from Lumi's shoulder. The guard chuckled at the way Lumi looked. It was almost like the Nord was afraid to breathe wrong around the healer.

"I'll see you after while, Lumi," She waved at her friend before walking to join with Matius and the rest of the guards. Lumi watched as the captain looked over everyone and spoke words she was too far away to understand. In a matter of moments, the guards had opened the doors and left, leaving Lumi to her thoughts. And Jin's prodding.

"What the hell chewed you up out there, shorty?" She grumbled, reaching behind Lumi to measure the extent of the wound.

"A lucky hit from a clannfear," She explained. Jin turned to look at her disbelievingly.

"And a flame atronach," Lumi added, earning a light scoff from the healer.

Jin grumbled to herself before moving away to look Lumi in the eye.

"Good news for you, you'll live.,' Jin deadpanned, 'Bad news, I'm going to need to call in some help to treat this. That armor has to come off for me to get in there and clean that wound properly. I'd bring over Oleta but she's busy working on some of the other guards which means you get the dubious honor of listening to whoever I can drag over that has healing experience and won't turn your shoulder inside out by accident."

Lumi nodded. She was expecting it, in all honesty. The leather armor was going to need some serious care if she didn't just scrap it entirely. She watched as Jin scanned the crowd. Hopefully it would be someone that, as Jin had so eloquently put it, wouldn't turn her shoulder inside out by accident. That would be disgusting. The elderly Imperial seemed to settle on her target as she lifted her hand in a beckoning gesture to someone.

"Ah, get your butt over here, boy. I need someone with brains but Oleta's busy," Jin smiled toothily at her victim.

Lumi tried to peer around the woman but was unable to see anything beyond the busy crowd of people readying to leave the chapel. Her eyes followed a child as she eagerly jumped up and down, her mother smiling softly at her antics. It was remarkable how resilient kids were. Life could throw a million curveballs and they would just get right back up.

"I'm so glad you think so highly of my help, Jin," a deep, raspy voice joked warmly with the woman, causing Lumi to blink in surprise. I really must be tired if I keep missing people coming up on me like this. The Nord turned to face Jin and her helper only to freeze. Oddly familiar blue-gray eyes smiled at Jin from behind long, shoulder-length dark brown waves. It was the man she had spent the last week looking for. Martin Septim.