The following morning, Lorelai and Iris sat together on one of the beds. Iris was seated behind Lorelai, brushing her long, black hair for her. Lorelai relaxed, letting Iris have her fun. There was suddenly a knock on the door.

"Come in!" Iris called, her focus not leaving her current job.

The door opened and the two girls glanced over, seeing the guys coming in. "Morning," Noctis greeted. "We were gonna get some breakfast at one of the restaurants. Wanna come?"

"Sure, just let me finish with Lori's hair," Iris answered, still brushing the girl's black hair to the side in her usual style.

The four men stood by, patiently waiting. Lorelai hummed in content. "This brings back memories," she quietly said. "My mother used to brush my hair every morning."

"Your mother... she was queen over Siderum, right?" Gladio asked.

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah, but despite her duties as queen, she still made time for me too."

Prompto couldn't help thinking of what happened the previous night. "So... you feeling okay? After last night, I mean."

Lorelai's eyes widened ever so slightly and she hung her head down. "I'm fine, really." She met his gaze with a reassuring smile.

Though she actually was still a bit distraught, she wasn't going to worry any of her friends with it. There was nothing they could do about it anyway. Lorelai would just press on like she always did. Once Iris was finished, the group headed out to one of the restaurants of Lestallum. They all sat down at a table and ate breakfast together. They talked and laughed like they normally did during meals. Lorelai had actually managed to forget about Ardyn for the time being.

They suddenly heard a commotion nearby. "Quickly, I need someone to head there before dark," a female voice said. "Get those lights back up and running."

The gang all turned their heads to look, seeing a familiar woman with a group of people around her. They all wore protective suits, signifying that they worked at the power plant. Iris squinted her eyes, recognizing the woman.

"Holly? Holly, over here!" Iris waved her hand, catching the woman's attention.

Holly met the brunette's gaze and smiled. She left the small crowd of people and approached the table. "If it isn't little Iris, and my favorite hunters too."

"What's all the commotion about?" Gladio asked her.

Holly frowned and sighed. "Just some bad news. We were just notified that the lights at the Cauthess Rest Area have shut down. I sent for someone to get them repaired, but if they can't get it done by sundown, daemons will ravage that outpost for sure."

Lorelai sipped her drink and grinned. "No sweat. I, for one, will head there myself and keep the daemons at bay."

"Oh?" Holly questioned. "And you are?"

"Lorelai. I'm a hunter."

Holly looked her up and down with astonishment. "You? A hunter? You're too pretty for such an occupation."

"Believe it, Holly," Iris told her. "Lori here is the Star, one of the best hunters out there."

"Wow, really?!" Holly replied with amazement. "Well, if you're sure you can handle it."

"We'll all be going as well," Ignis informed her. "We'll keep the outpost and its citizens safe."

"Thanks a ton," Holly said with a sigh of relief. "I'd see to the repairs myself if I could, but I've got so much work here to do that I can't spare the time."

"We'll take care of it," Lorelai assured.

After Holly left them, the men all looked to Lorelai. "That was a bold claim," Noctis stated.

Lorelai shrugged. "Hey, it's my job to help people. Besides, shedding light onto the darkness is my specialty. We should head out as soon as we're ready."

After finishing breakfast, the group gathered their things. They said goodbye to Iris and left Lestallum. The drive down to the Cauthess Rest Area was long, taking nearly all day. The sun was low in the sky by the time they arrived. Everything seemed normal at the outpost at the moment. A woman was currently checking the lights and the cables that connected them. Holly had sent her and she had arrived mere minutes before the gang. Looking around, Lorelai took notice of a woman who stood at the edge of the woods.

"Emma!" she cried out into the forest. "Emma!"

With the boys following her, Lorelai rushed over to the woman. "What's wrong? Who's Emma?"

The lady sobbed and replied, "My daughter! We got separated and now it's almost sundown! She won't make it through the night!"

Lorelai's eyes were wide. She almost instantly darted out into the woods. "Wait up, Lora!" Prompto shouted.

The four men sprinted behind the girl, trying to keep up with her. Not far from the outpost, Lorelai spotted a little girl with blond hair wearing a pink dress. The child was sitting on a rock, crying. Lorelai skidded to a stop in front of the young girl.

"Emma?"

The child lifted her head, gazing up at Lorelai. "I... I lost... my mommy!"

"Shh, it's alright," Lorelai told her, bending down to meet her gaze. "We're taking you back to your mother." Emma immediately hugged Lorelai's leg. Lorelai scooped up the girl, noticing the darkness closing in on them. "Hang onto me."

Emma wrapped her arms around Lorelai's neck, burying her face in her shoulder. Holding Emma up with one arm, Lorelai summoned her scythe in the other. Daemons were already emerging.

"Uh, looks like we've got company," Prompto nervously said.

The men summoned their weapons and Noctis groaned in annoyance. "We don't have time for this. We've gotta get back to the outpost."

Lorelai's eyes darted around at the daemons slowly surrounding them. She then glanced at the blond girl, hearing her soft, fearful cries muffled by her shoulder. This reminded her of when Cor had saved her own life in the past. Determined to not let the darkness consume an innocent child, Lorelai knew the best way to handle the situation. Her scythe dispersed and she calmly walked past the men, who all watched her with confusion.

Standing before the daemons, Lorelai lifted her hand up above her head. From her palm, an orb of light formed. She flung it forward, causing a bright flash of blinding light to occur. The daemons shrunk back in fear and Lorelai hurried past them, forming more orbs and driving back the creatures with her light magic. The men followed and the group reached the outpost again. Lorelai stood before the woman and set Emma on her feet. Emma immediately jumped into her mother's awaiting arms.

The woman smiled through teary eyes. "Thank you! Thank you for bringing Emma back!"

Lorelai returned her smile. "You're welcome."

The outpost remained in darkness, the lights still not fully repaired yet. The people all gathered at the diner, too frightened to go outside. Emma's mother took her by the hand and pulled her inside with the other people where it was safest. The people were terrified and the woman Holly sent was still trying to get the lights up and running. The problem was the daemons that were beginning to surround the outpost. The gang were all rapidly trying to think of a solution.

"There's... so many of them," Prompto muttered.

"We've gotta hold them off 'til the lights are back on," Gladio said. "Otherwise, this place will be ripped apart."

Lorelai looked all around, scanning her surroundings. She caught sight of Emma inside the diner, pressed up against one of the glass windows and watching with fear. Just seeing that child's face gave Lorelai strength. She knew what she needed to do, though it was something she'd never done before. Lorelai lifted both hands up toward the sky and her eyes glowed white. In the air above her, an orb of light formed. Lorelai slowly separated her hands, making the orb spread out into a wall of light. Soon enough, Lorelai held her arms straight out in opposite directions, a complete dome of light having been created.

The entire outpost was protected within the dome, but the sheer size and energy needed to sustain it put a strain on Lorelai's body. She stood frozen in place as she concentrated on keeping her barrier up. Even her eyes still glowed white from the use of her magic. She had never created a light wall of that size before and it proved to be quite difficult. The boys gazed up at the barrier in awe.

"Whoa..." Noctis mumbled.

Lorelai's low grunts and moans snapped them out of their daze. "I... sure hope... the lights are... fixed soon."

Unfortunately, the immense size of the light wall took away its usual brightness. The daemons took notice of the dim light emitted from the barrier and continued their assault. Goblins, imps, and hobgoblins beat against the wall, trying to get into the outpost. The guys kept their weapons ready in case they needed to fight. They glanced around at the enemy numbers.

"Lora, the daemons aren't giving in!" Ignis informed her.

"Why isn't your barrier working?!" Prompto fearfully questioned.

"The barrier's... too big..." Lorelai struggled to answer. "Its light... isn't as strong..."

Two iron giants suddenly rose up alongside the other monsters. Noctis growled under his breath. "Two big ones, and they just keep coming."

"Incoming!" Gladio shouted.

One of the giants raised its sword and slammed it down against the barrier. The blade thunked and bounced off the light wall. Lorelai winced and let out a short, pained shriek. The four men snapped their heads around to look at the girl.

"Guys..." Lorelai said, struggling to stand and keep the barrier up. "Stop them... They'll break the barrier!"

All four of them rushed toward the iron giants. Lorelai allowed them to slip past the wall and into the fray. They killed off many of the smaller daemons while also distracting the two giants. Gladio glanced at the woman still working on the repairs.

"Hey, lady, hurry it up!" he yelled over the fighting. "Get those lights on!"

"I'm trying!" she yelled back.

One of the iron giants hit the barrier again, cracking it while Lorelai also took the damage. "Hurry... I don't know... how much longer... I can hold it!"

With another hit, the light wall cracked further. Lorelai yelped in pain, her entire body trembling from the strain of sustaining the barrier. She panted and forced herself to keep going. Emma watched on from the diner. The child suddenly darted out past the people and straight to Lorelai. She hugged her leg, forcing Lorelai to look down, her glowing eyes meeting the young girl's gaze.

"You can do it, lady!" Emma said. "I believe in you!"

Lorelai forced a small smile as Emma's mother hurried out of the diner to her daughter. The woman pulled the little girl away and held her tightly, the two both watching and encouraging Lorelai to keep going. And that's exactly what she did. She managed to tough out all the damage her barrier was taking. In an instant, the lights cut on.

At that exact same moment, one of the iron giants landed one more hit on the wall, finally shattering it. The daemons all shrank back and fled, the lights around the outpost finally driving them off. Lorelai fell to her knees, breathing heavily. She had used every ounce of her magic power and was now completely drained. Emma squirmed out of her mother's grip and rushed to Lorelai's side.

"Are you okay, lady?!" she cried.

Lorelai opened her mouth to speak, but she was too weak to voice her words. She instead cracked a happy smile. She knew she had done it, with the help of her friends, of course. The lights had been repaired and the outpost was safe from daemons once more. Lorelai was pleased that they had succeeded without harm coming to any of the citizens, and that she had done something with her magic that she'd never done before. Lorelai could hear the approaching voices of her friends as she steadily lost consciousness.