"You lied to me," Lillia folded her arms and looked at Kyle dejected.
"We had dinner didn't we?" he replied innocently.
"I was hoping for something much more romantic than hotdogs on the run." She looked up at the wall of fog that towered above them, "So why are we here? I doubt you dragged me all the way here for a sweet kiss under the view, though a girl can hope."
"When I do that it'll be under a much better view," Kyle smiled towards her. His smile however soon faded as he looked at the dense wisps of grey with a stern melancholy. "Lillia he's still alive out there."
"Who is?" she raised her brow but could already feel the pit in her stomach grow.
"Kalvara...," Kyle rubbed his head in a mix of frustration. "I just can't believe that he'd die and if he's alive, he could help us."
"Nope!" Lillia crossed her arms immediately. "The last time you tried to ask for his help he proposed to you. I'm not going to let that happen!"
"Even if he did ask me again I wouldn't, besides as I am now he'd probably be put off. Though I basically look like I used to, I still have parts of me that never changed back."
"Well... I mean- it's not like no one would like those parts...," Lillia blushed slightly unable to look at him. She snapped herself back to being serious, "Regardless I can't let you do that on your own. Nothing good ever happens when you're alone."
"Why do you think I took you with me?" He reached out and held her hand in his. "Lav you never gave up on me. Even when I went too far, you always had faith in me to do better. I need to see if this will work. To see if there's a way through this all and I want you to be there with me."
Lilla's face began to heat up to the extreme, "Okay but you can't leave my side."
"Thank you," Kyle took a deep breath and faced the fog. "We'll just go in a bit and then I'll call to him. If he's truly alive he'll find me."
"Yeah because he's a stalker," Lillia mumbled.
"What was that?"
"Ah nothing!" She cleared her throat, "But wouldn't it be better to have Riften or at least Arvel with us?"
Kyle shook his head, "No, if those two knew what I was going to do they'd definitely try to stop me."
"And I wouldn't?"
"Well you're joining me instead aren't you?"
"Yeah...," she gave in.
Kyle took a silver spun rope from a bag beside him and nailed one end into the ground, "Here tie this around you and don't let it go. This is our lifeline. I got it from Lady Marigold. If nothing happens we'll just follow this back here."
"You promise?" Lillia looked at him intently.
"Of course," he smiled again. The look she gave him was obviously not convinced. "Don't worry I have other plans as well just in case we lose the rope."
"I still think we should have at least taken Riften...."
"I already went through all the trouble of throwing him off the trail with our dinner plan." He waved the idea away.
"Yeah I'm still not happy about that."
"Fine, I promise to do anything with you when we get back," he swore with his hand pressed above his heart.
Lillia's eyes became dangerously passionate, "Anything?"
"W-within reason," he couldn't help back away a little.
She grabbed his hand, "Then what are we waiting for!" and with that they, for the first time, crossed the boundary of the world.
Stepping through the barrier was an odd sensation. To Kyle it felt like leaving a part of him behind, a part he never knew was there and one that had always protected him. If he were still the same as before he would have turned back immediately. Holding Lillia's hand and knowing who he was however, the next step was much easier.
"You've never done this before right?" he asked, letting out a shiver as the temperature in the fog had dropped drastically.
"Nope, I would have told you if I had." She continued to walk with him, talking to ease any nervousness that remained. "Though Valandus did tell me a story about when he did."
"Really, Valandus passed the boundary?" Kyle couldn't help but snigger.
"Yeah, the Captain always made him do all the odd jobs. Thinking back I think it was his way of forcing him to experience what he needed to."
"True, unlike Reina, Valandus isn't as self-motivated. Anyway what did he say?"
"The thickest part is the first hundred metres. You can't see anything but fog and even the ground doesn't feel right. But when you pass it, the world suddenly changes." Whether it was well timed or by pure luck, they hit the point Valandus had spoken of. The world opened and the fog receded to a lighter mist. The view before them was still shrouded but on top a hill they could see the stretches of trees beyond as wisps of white floated between, and in the distance the shadows of a mountain sat barely seen. Though they had entered at night it had suddenly become day.
Kyle blinked and drawing a deep breath felt a pang of nostalgia, "This is Keg Vally isn't it?" He pointed to the mountain. "It's hard to see from here but that odd shape, I remember us laughing at it when we first came."
"Oh you're right," Lillia nodded. "This is where we fought that horde of frenzy bears. Do you remember the one we fought after we first met?"
"How could I forget, back then we both almost died. If the Captain and Reina hadn't made it our story may have ended then and there."
"Yeah... that feels like so long ago now. So much has changed," she smiled sweetly and squeezed his hand. "There's no time like the present. Go do your thing and if it doesn't work we're turning around."
Though he was curious, Kyle forced the urge to explore down, he had come here for a reason after all. With a soft mumble he prepped himself and then taking a deep breath he let out his voice into the valley, "KALVARA!"
The world shook from the force of his call as not just sound but magic leapt through the air. As the seconds passed and the echo faded however, no reaction replied.
"What now?" Lillia asked.
"We wait," Kyle sat down on the spot and patted the ground for Lillia to join him.
She sat down and leaned into him, "Did your call work?"
"I'm not sure," he sighed. "If it was back then he would have definitely at least felt it, assuming he's alive. With the fog disrupting magic, let's just say my hopes aren't high. If we move further in and tried in a few places then-."
"Nope!" Lillia faced him adamantly. "You promised to go in and out. It's too dangerous even for us."
He gave in, "I know."
An hour passed as the two of them sat and watched the view from the top of the hill. Behind them the intense fog still swirled and the silver rope that tied them remained firm. Ahead, the world was different. There was still life but it was life that had become untamed and crazed due to living in the current environment. Keg valley which was once known for its plethora of friendly fauna had become a hotspot for beasts. It was safe where they sat and within Lillia's barrier the creatures could never find them but the fact remained they were there. Creatures considered monsters once quite rare, lurking in the forest below.
"Even if we somehow come back it's going to take a lot of effort to bring back a semblance of order," Kyle said melancholically.
"I get you, but in a way isn't this the order that naturally came about?" Lillia gestured outwards.
"Maybe..., but how will that order change without demons."
"Ah, I didn't think about that. Yeah that's going to be an interesting one." She frowned and pondered, "I wonder who sits on top the food chain. You think the old dragons are still sleeping somewhere?"
"Probably, though those old geezers might have just decided to keep sleeping. They were the best of the best when it came to ignoring the world."
Lillia laughed, "I guess asking them for help won't get anywhere this time either."
"I'd honestly rather Kalvara. I can at least deal with him." He stood up and after dusting himself off reached for Lillia. "Though it seems he's not coming. Let's go back."
"And then I get my reward?" she looked at him from the side blushing coquettishly.
"As long as it's within reason," he smiled and holding her hand once more stepped back into the thick fog they came from.
"I'll make sure that it'll improve both our moods," she grinned clearly excited.
"I'm starting to get anxious. Maybe you should ask Mai-."
Let go of the rope. The unknown voice caused Kyle to freeze.
"Kyle?" Lillia looked at him concerned.
"Did you hear that?" he asked, already knowing the answer.
"No...," Lillia looked around but saw nothing, only the fog and bare ground beneath them.
Kyle held the silver rope in his hands and looking at Lillia made up his mind, "We need to let go of the rope."
"You're kidding...," she sighed in frustration. "How are we going to get back home then?"
"Don't worry I left a note for Arvel. He'll help us get back."
A wide range of emotions crossed Lillia's face and body as she stamped her foot and puffed her cheeks, going from deep thought to annoyance and even showing a touch of a smirk.
"Fine!" she gave in only to proceed to pull Kyle close, gripping his shirt. "But then you and me are spending some proper alone time together no matter what, and I don't mean teenage romance shenanigans but a proper adult night. I'm sitting on nearly two thousand years of pent up passion here!"
Kyle gulped unsure how to feel about her aggressive behaviour, "I promise."
"Then let's do this," she grabbed the rope and taking it from the both of them, threw it far into the fog. "Now what?"
"I guess we walk and see what happens," still holding her hand Kyle began to move.
The fog began to recede and as it did so, it quickly became apparent that they were not where they had entered. Their view was blocked and aside from a dozen metres of grass, the rest was made up of a long wall that curved away out of sight. The plain and practical stone stood thick and strong with little decoration aside from a red painted line marking its top.
"It's a wall," Lillia pointed out.
"Yes it is," Kyle replied.
"You think something is behind it?"
"Well obviously. Why else build a wall? Though it seems a little off."
"What makes you say that," Lillia raised her eye at him. "It looks fine to me."
"This is Kalvara we're talking about. The wall is a wall but it's a little plain for his tastes. No murals, decorative locks or embedded gems. It's not flashy enough."
"Then you think we're in the wrong place?"
"Maybe... but someone definitely heard us and bought us here. The least we could do is entertain them," Kyle smiled.
Lillia huffed a sigh, "If you were alone right now and I knew what you were doing I'd be so worried. Should we find an entrance or-." She twitched and looked towards the wall. "Someone is coming, should we hide?"
"No, let's see how they react," he pulled Lillia and together they moved closer to the wall. The two of them were dressed quite plainly without their usual armour or military flair, perfect to blend in with the everyday crowd. The question was what kind of crowd were they about to find.