She hadn't yet gotten used to it.

This warm sensation over her pale skin. The clear blue of the sky above, without a cloud in sight.

It felt like she had stepped into an entirely different world.

The clouds were gone.

The terrible rain had ended.

There was untainted, unblighted life all around.

She still hadn't been able to grasp it. To normalize this new world in her mind. It was so utterly unfamiliar, and so beautiful.

When she'd first set foot in the fields beyond the purified Land's End, for a few moments she had simply run through them. As tired as she had been, as much as her legs ached, she couldn't help herself.

When she couldn't anymore, she fell onto her back and lay there, staring up at the blue sky.

A blue sky.

She hadn't known it was supposed to be blue. Not really. She knew that the grey and dreary blighted sky of Land's End wasn't right, but she hadn't known what to expect of a sky that wasn't pouring down tainted rain.

She'd fallen asleep not long afterwards.

This was sometime later. She hadn't seen anyone else yet, but the Umbral Knight had told her there were people beyond Land's End, somewhere out there. And she trusted them.

She trusted all of the spirits. Her friends.

She trusted Fretia.

"Lily!"

It was the Umbral Knight's voice.

Lily's blue eyes widened in surprise as the armored figured appeared before her, sword drawn and at the ready. While her spirits could certainly manifest on their own, normally they awaited her to need them when it came to a fight.

So she couldn't help but be a little frightened, her heartbeat quickening, when the Umbral Knight appeared so suddenly on their own.

"Something isn't right, here!" they insisted, reaching back with their free hand to place it on her slight shoulder, "I think-"

A white light appeared beneath them. And in moments, it surrounded them.

Lily couldn't help but panic, trying to understand what was occurring. But, somehow, it didn't feel like an attack.

It felt like----

[hr]

----a cry for help.

Lily clutched her hands to her chest.

This wasn't an unfamiliar place. Not really.

A chapel in ruins was hardly something she had never seen before. But there wasn't a hint of blight, or any sign of its purification, here. This wasn't the purged kingdom of Land's End.

It was somewhere different.

The Umbral Knight had long since picked up on her fear and confusion, their blade held ready.

"There's enemies outside. But I suspect some kind of barrier is in place, they can't get through, at least for the moment," they said, free hand still upon her small shoulder.

Her eyes had fallen elsewhere.

A young girl, perhaps around her age. She looked like she'd been hurt, though Lily couldn't tell exactly how from here. Beside her was a boy, who was older and looked like he was a little more stable. Not unharmed, but somewhat less immediately in danger.

The Umbral Knight followed her gaze.

"You want to help them, don't you?" they asked.

Lily nodded.

"Then you have nothing to fear, I'll keep you safe."

She didn't know how to heal injuries. But if there was something [i]impure[/i] they were suffering from, then maybe---

Lily approached, the Umbral Knight by her side. She was a little nervous, being so close to people she had never met before, but she wanted to help them.

The boy was injured, but there was something inside the girl. She guessed it was poison. Had something hit her that was poisoned?

The Umbral Knight knelt with her, their voice gentle when they spoke.

"We're willing to help, but if there's anything you can tell us about what's going on," they began, addressing the still-conscious boy, "Then we'll be able to act all the more swiftly."

Lily concentrated, the blue gem hanging from her neck glowing as she raised her hand.

Compared to the Blight, whatever toxin was coursing through the girl's veins was much less invasive.

It vanished in moments.

[@PKMNB0Y]