Lily Green, a girl with dark green hair and fluorescent green locks was crouching as she pulled out a flower in outskirts of town. It was getting pretty late, and she had to hurry back, before the creatures come out. She checked if her gas mask was still tightly tied on her head. The air outside of the cities was poisonus and misty. Because of the mist, it was rarely sunny. Even inside of the town was poisonus, and whenever people went out of their homes, they were wearing gas masks and were in a hurry. Air conditioners kept the air inside the buildings clean. It was always gloomy, cold, misty wather. And because of the mist, it's easy to get lost in outside of the city without a radar.

Why is she out here in the first place? It's simple. Doctors in the town need special plants that can't grow inside the city for medications for the Plague, a sickness that pops out every now and then, or to discover some other plant that might show to be useful. Just like this one. Lily has never seen it. It had five petals, quite starlike, golden color was blending in the orange in the center, from which rose a pestle and five anthers circling it.
And why exactly her? She volunteered. She loved and dreamed of adventures, but she never dared to go far off. Some say that mist takes on forever, through the whole world, and that leacving the cities is never a good idea. Those whoo go too far never come back, and nobody ever finds out what happened to them. Some get lost in the mist, and some are killed by the creatures.
"What a pretty little flower you are," said Lily, wrapping it into a newspaper and putting it into her bag, as she rode her big, old rusty motorbike back to the city. The bike was so old that some parts could not be replaced, and it still had visible rowels, and the engine would roar loudly whenever she would start it. The radar built on it showed her the way back, or in this poisonus mist she would never find her way back. Suddenly, out of the gray, shrouded by smoke, jumped out a vampire. Lily dodged it and speeded up. She passed through a group of them, obviously coming out of wherever they live. She stayed out too long again. The door will close if she doesn't get there in time.
She dodged two of these pale, bald vampiers with sharp, grabby claws and pointy ears and teeth. She never got a good look at them, but they always creeped her out. Her radar showed only one hundred meters to the gates.
"Come on, baby, you can do it," said Lily to her old motorbike, whose engines started coughing out black smoke again. However, it did not last. It turned down instantly and Lily flew off the bike, spinning in the air and rolling in the dust, hitting the ground so hard it cleared air from her lungs. For a good minute she layed there, trying to breathe. The shadows in the mist were slowly approaching, walking strangely, like their feet were both on the wrong side of the body. Lily stood up, picked up her gas mask and took a deep breath. As pale monsters got out of the mist, Lily turned around and ran towards the gate as fast as she could. And the vampires ran after her. When she cought a glimpse of the gates, they were already closing. Just as she got close, they closed right in front of her nose, but someone saw her trouble, as a big gun and a pocket of bullets fell in front of her feet. She put the mask on her face, breathing again, and shooting the three vampires that got close. "Stay back!" yelled Lily, even though she knew they were just mindless, bloodthirsty monsters. "I have a gun and I obviously know how to use it!"
'One, two, three, four, five,' Lily counted the vampires. 'And more will probably come if they spill my blood.' One of the vampires roared at her and she shot it between eyes. "Aim for the head," always said her father. "Nothing can live without a head, not even those blasted vampires."
That was before he got turned into one. Oh, the irony.
Lily watched as the vampire she just shot was replaced by another. Few more joined the crowd, but none attacked. "Are you going to stand like this the whole night?" No reaction. 'Well, that's fine by me,' she thought.
All of the sudden all eight vampires attacked. she shot three of them, when she had to fill another round of ammo. Someone from the walls shoot the rest of them. "It's okay, Lily, we're covering you!" yelled an old man from the walls, her grandfather.
"Thank you!"
"Don't just stand there! Fill your ammo, stupid girl!" That would be her best friend, Jessica. Lily tied the mask on her face (finally) and put the ammo in the gun, just before she was attacked by two more. She shot one, while Jessica shot the other one. "On your left!" Lily turned around and shot the pale bastard just as he was going to grabb her. For the first time, she could see it's eyes. It was blinded with rage, as red as blood, yellow where it should be white, with black, sharp teeth pointing out of it's wide opened gub. "It used to be human," said Lily for herself.
"This is no good. They are going to be attracked by the noise!" yelled Lily.
"You must tell them to open the gates!" Jessica practically screamed at Lily' grandfather
"They ain't gonna be openning the gates for no one! They don't give a damn!" yelled back the grandfather.
"Oh shit Lily. There is at least thirty of them coming this way!"
"Crap!" said grandfather.
"There's not much you can do!"
"Fuck, I ain't giving up on ye, Lily!" yelled grandfather. "Imma shoot them all!"
"Shut up and shoot!" yelled Jessica, as the hell broke loose. Thirty wild creatures coming from all sides, roaring, spitting, cursing, screaming, scratching, all to get one little lost girl: Lily. She dodged every single of their attacks, she shot at least fifteen of them... And now she only had one bullet. There were exactly fifty dead vampires in front of the gates, and one girl standing there, covered in their black blood. "Are there more coming?"
"I can't see any movements. You're safe for now."
"Get me more bullets. I've only got one bullet."
"On it."
Another shadow approached. Lily pulled out a gun, and just as the vampire stepped out of the mist, she pulled a trigger, shooting it between the eyes. Except, this was not a vampire. This was a man. He stood in front of her, his face slightly shocked, standing in one spot. He didn't even flicnh, he just stopped moving. He didn't have a gas mask, and Lily had a pretty good look on his face. He had bronze complexion, which was really unusual, since there is no sun (and he's not wearing a mask when he should be), he had golden eyes and long, red hair. Suddenly, the bullet fell out of his forehead, and the wound healed in front of Lily's very eyes. The man tiltet his head right and left, followed by the sound of crackling bones. Then, he looked straight through Lily's mask. "What the..." she didn't get to finish that sentence. A vampire grabbed her from behind and bit her. She screamed, and man suddenly appeared in front of her, grabbing the vampires head and with a simple grip, he squeezed it's head and it blew like a watermelon. "Lily!"
In shock, Lily lost the ground under her feet and with a thud, she lost her conscience.
.A.
She woke up, looking at the short cieling over her head. the rays of sunlight were falling on her green eyes, and Lily stood up, getting out of the small bed with white sheets. 'Where am I?'
Confused, she looked around. This didn't look like any place in her city. This wierd room was oval, covered with rocks, with crude and imbossed surface. There were no windows and doors, only an opening that led to bright outside world. So she went outside.
At first, it was hard to get used to the sunlight - it was almost never bright in her city. This is one of those rare days when...
And then she noticed she was not in the city. Nowhere near the city, in fact, though she could still see the ball of mist in the horizon. 'Is that my... My gasmask!' she gasped, and turned around to run inside, only to see the man she shot. "What?" He had a red mark on his forehead where she shot him, like he hit his head somewhere.
"That's very rude, don't you think? I save you from those nasty monsters, and I don't even get thanks."
"Um... Sorry. And thank you." Lily covered her mouth automatically. She didn't even notice that movement. It was just something she did when she didn't have a gas mask on her face.
"Oh, don't worry, you won't be needing that hideous mask of yours here. Air is perfectly clean."
"Yeah, I noticed that." Lily smiled and took few moments to take few deep breaths. The air was fresh and nice, a bit wierd since she wasn't really used to this kind of air, but somehow, she felt better while breathing this air than the ony from their conditioners.
"Where am I?"
"In the Outlands."
"That doesn't really help much."
"Well, you've been living in isolation of that smokefull village of yours."
"We believed that the mist is all over the world."
"You believed wrong." Lily sighed. Her neck started itching, and she raised her hand to...
"No!" yelled the man and grabbed her hand. "You must not scratch it. You were bitten by one of those plague carrying monsters."
"Oh no. Oh no. When they bite you, you become like them!"
"Don't worry, I've neutralized the poison, the only thing you need to do is not to touch it."
"Neutralized? How?"
"With that flower you had in your bag. I'm surprised how can anything grow in that smoke."
"It purifies itself. Most of the plants only manage in our greenhouses, but it's unbelievable how nature can survive anything."
"You're not such an air head after all, are you?" Lily rolled her eyes. Why is this guy treating like a child? He can't be that much older than her, five years maximum. She's eighteen, for the heaven's sakes!
Okay. She is a child.
"My name's Lily Green," she said.
"Lovely name. It suits you. I am Leon," said Leon with a smile. He had such a beautiful smile.
"Leon...?"
"Just Leon, no last name. Do you mind if I ask you a question?"
"No."
"What were you thinking when you fought all those monsters on your own?"
"I wasn't on my own. My grandfather and my friend helped me."
"Not with the last one, as I could recall."
"That would be your fault."
"Mine?" said Leon in disbilief. "Why mine?"
"First, I thought you were a vampire. When I shot you, I figured out you were a human. Well, looked like one. I was confused. First of all in the middle of the mist, without a gas mask? And then your wound healed. How did you do that?"
"I am immortal."
"That seems to be obvious," replied Lily, looking at his forehead, now without a trace of her bullet.
"If it's so obvious, why do you ask?" Lily paused before her reply.
"Good point."
"Thank you. You are very kind."
"I have a question for you. What were you doing there?"
"I like wander around your towns from time to time. I am curious, since some of you do come out into the sun. I saw your figure in the smoke, but you didn't come out. You rushed back, so I followed you."
"Wow. Imagine if I only took few steps outside. That would be a remarkable discovery!" Lily then gasped, and her eyes opened wide. "I've got to tell them it's safe outside!"
"No."
"Thank you for everything, Leon. Really. But I must go, the other citizens must know of this."
"Lily, no."
"Just imagine! No more gas masks, no more bad weather, no more mist, no more fear! This changes everything."
"Lily, are you even listening to me?"
"Goodbye, Leon. But, oh, I will come back, when..." Leon grabbed Lily's shoulder.
"Listen to me! You can't go back, and you can't tell your townsmen about the outside world!"
"What? Why not?"
"Because it is your own fault for shrowding yourself in the smoke. You were overusing the technology that we immortals gave you, and you created small castles all over the world, completely surrounded by smoke that's blinding you. Only those who are brave eneough to step out of their beloved homes deserve to live in the outside world."
"What?" Lily pushed Leon away. "Who do you think you are? How dare you decide other people's fate? You can't deem poeple worthy of unworthy of air to breathe!"
"Yes, I can. Your race has brought a destruction upon this world. Rest of us won't let that happen again." Lily gasped. She then furiously turned around. "You can't go back. Your town is miles away."
"I can walk," she said.
"You don't know which way."
"It's right there."
"Oh, saints and seducers, why are you so stubborn!" Leon jumped off the rock and followed her as she was climbing down from the rocky hill.
"Why are you following me?"
"Because I can't let you go back."
"You can't stop me."
"Lily, don't make me use violence on you." Lily stopped. She remembered what he did to that vampire that bit her. She clenched her teeth and gripped her fingers. 'It's just an empty threat. He wouldn't really.' But just as she took another step, he appeared behind her and grabbed her, Lily tried to fight back, but soon figured out it was pointless. She was like a toy to him. "Okay, okay, let me go."
"Oh, really? Or do I have to teach you a lesson?" 'Teach me a lesson? Sounds... Kinky.'
"Oh heavens, you don't have to teach me a lesson!" she said, throwing the images out of her mind. Leon put her down.
"Good. I thought I'd have to put you in chains."
"Chains!" her voice cracked, and then she blushed.
"Listen, I know you care about your friends in your town, but I can't let you go there. I'm sorry."
"You keep saying 'town', while I call it a city?"
"City?" he laughed. "That is nowhere near city. There are big, beatufiul cities all over the world, full of sunshine and life, and not these gloomy towns of yours."
"Oh. Is there anything else out there?" Leon looked into her eyes and smiled radiantly.
"Yes. There is the whole world, just waiting to be discovered, waiting to show their secrets to a brave soul." Lily looked towards her town again.
"There is absolutely no way I can go back?"
"No. I could never let you do that." Lily sighed.
"Then, i guess I'll have to go forward." Leon laughed again. He had such a beautiful laugh.
"I knew you were not an airhead the moment I saw you."