As it turns out, slaying the pastor of a church during the middle of congregation was not one of Shez's better ideas. Still, everything worked out in the end. Shambhala was brought low, the Avengers of Agartha within slain to a man, and they'd rescued a powerful mage who just so happened to figure out the next step in their quest.

Trudging back to civilization, Shez followed Byleth and Edelgard while Lysithea slept on her back. After they saved her from her hideous fate and explained their quest, she'd uncovered a few papers detailing the Ritual of Zaharas they could use to retake the Crest of Flames, before falling unconscious due to the maladies and mistreatments from her confinement.

Stepping lightly so as to not interrupt the rhythmic breathing of her sleeping beauty, Shez addressed Edelgard. "So what exactly do we have to do for this ritual thing, anyway?"

"I'm afraid arcane matters are rather beyond my purview. Lysithea, however, will be able to tell us more once she is cognizant I'm sure."

"Do we have a healer or something where we're going?"

"Unless she has internal injuries, a healer would be unlikely to be of help," lamented Edelgard. "She's suffering from malnourishment and exhaustion, certainly, but I don't think there are any obvious external ailments."

"How would you know?" asked Shez curiously.

"…Because I suffered much the same," admitted the ex-cultist quietly. "She was not alone in her captivity, not for all of it. But where she resisted their predations entirely, I…" She trailed off in shame.

"You survived," encouraged Byleth, brushing against her gently. "You survived and you went back for her."

Edelgard sighed. "I don't believe that, and I don't believe she would either."

They continued on, the mood much sober than before. Until Shez interrupted with another question. "Where are we going anyway?"

"We have a new stronghold," replied Byleth, almost proudly. "Cloud Ruler Temple."

"First, a quick review," began Jeralt, standing at the head of the war table. "The Avengers of Agartha want the Dragonfires dark so they can open Oblivion Gates and bring Nemesis to Tamriel. They've taken the Crest of Flames to a realm of Oblivion called Zaharas, but we have a ritual to get there." He nodded at Byleth to continue the briefing.

"We have removed their agents from the Imperial City and have seized their main headquarters of Shambhala," she said. "While their mortal operatives have been decimated, we cannot consider them neutralized. Not only does their leader Thales remain at large, but they likely have agents operating in the other cities of Cyrodiil."

"Speaking of," interjected Jeralt, "We've also received reports of potential spies from Bruma surveilling us at night. I've asked the Spider's Web to look into the matter for us."

Shez blanched. "Oh no."

Jeralt looked to her. "Is there a problem?"

"No, not at all. Shamir's a consummate professional and you're right to trust her with this," backtracked Shez. "I'm sure everything will be… just fine…"

Jeralt nodded. "The Spider's Web is known for their subtlety and grace," he said. "I'm sure the matter will be handled with the appropriate discretion."

(Meanwhile, Leonie charged a mark with her spear, shouting at the top of her lungs. "STOP RIGHT THERE, CULTIST SCUM!")

Shez winced just thinking about it.

"We can't forget about the Oblivion Gates," continued Byleth. "Since the Dragonfires were extinguished, there have been reports of them opening throughout Tamriel, though there appears to be no pattern to their appearances."

"As expected from the Prince of Anarchy," contributed Edelgard. "It's how he sows fear and confusion among the populace. A gate might disgorge a few scouts outside a hamlet, or it might unleash an army of daedra in the middle of Bravil. We never know until it happens."

"The Imperial Legion is on standby, but there's a lot of ground to cover," reported Jeralt. "The Knights of Seiros are helping where they can but it's an uphill battle."

"Not to mention they can only be closed from the other side," recalled Shez.

"Right. If we can close any gates, we should, but at the moment our focus must be on deciphering the Ritual of Zaharas," concluded Byleth.

At this, all eyes turned to Lysithea.

The shortest girl looked up at the attention, her mouth stuffed with a sweet roll. She slowly chewed the confectionary thoroughly, giving her time to brush off the crumbs she'd scattered on the papers detailing the ever important ritual.

"It's actually not that difficult to decipher," she said, beginning her presentation. "I'll transcribe the formula in its entirety later, but to summarize, we need to gather items of great magical power to tear open a hole in the barrier between our world and Oblivion. In short, we need to open a smaller, temporary, directed Oblivion Gate of our own."

"That doesn't sound particularly wholesome," murmured Shez.

Lysithea shrugged. "Wholesome or not, that's what the ritual entails."

"Then it seems our next course of action is decided," concluded Edelgard.

"Excuse me. Shez, was it?"

"Hey Lysithea. What's up?"

"I wanted to thank you. Both for sparing my life, and for rescuing me from the cult."

The purplette waved her off. "Don't worry about it. I'd do it again in a heartbeat if I had to."

"Yes, well… I feel as if I should reward you for your efforts. After all, you are a mercenary, correct?"

"Yeah, I am." Shez took a moment to ponder. "Huh. Although, now that you mention it, I didn't even ask to be paid for that last job. I mean, I got a cool new sword and I got to rescue a cute girl so I definitely came out ahead, but still…"

Lysithea blushed. "You think I'm…? No, never mind. I don't have any material wealth to offer, but I'm an accomplished mage and arcane scholar. Perhaps I could offer you a few lessons in magic?"

"That might be nice."