They had been trekking through dense forestland in silence for a while now. With the sun suspended low above the horizon, it would have been a relatively peaceful and pleasant journey throughout if not for the occasional scuffles they had with man-eating vegetation, ravenous savage beasts, and Miklos's few unfortunate tumbles into tenacious quicksand much to the despairing sighs of his companions.

Miklos was already feeling much better, so under the guise of habitually surveying his surroundings with mock attentiveness for any incoming hostiles, he stole opportune curious glances at his rescuers, all of whom were doing a splendid job at paying attention in his stead. The girl, Rei, appeared to be younger than Luca, yet the quiet confidence which she exuded in her unassuming steel-grey eyes and steadfast, calculated movements matched the intensity of the fire burning steadily in the older male's perpetual presumptuous gaze, to which everything besides himself was subjected to. At present, however, both showed no outward signs of emotion on their faces as they skilfully navigated their way across uneven terrain.

As for Krea, her abrupt decision to take a nap at the most critical moment during the incident with the vynax spiders left Miklos more than a little intrigued. Perhaps no more than three to four years older than himself and youngest of the three, he approximated, Krea was characterized by. . . Well, Miklos didn't quite know how to put it himself. It was as though she were a mere visage of a person, and the essence of the individual had been shrunk and locked tightly within the fragile frame of her outer-shell. If she was speaking, it was an unnatural disturbance of normality, yet when she was not, she seemed to possess the curious ability to blend into nothingness. Twice when Miklos made eye contact with the girl, she had averted her gaze so quickly that it had him wondering if the incident ever happened at all.

It was then that his train of thoughts strayed to the outright lie he had cooked up back at the lair of the vynax spiders. So easily it had slipped out.

My name is Miklos, his thoughts echoed, replaying the irretrievable words in his head. Why had he told them that?

Why shouldn't I, if I can't remember my own? The boy is dead anyway. Good riddance to him.

A pang of guilt throbbed in his chest.

Hsssssst. . .

"Hey, watch it," Luca barked from behind.

Miklos regained visual focus on what was ahead of him in time to see a slimy, three-headed viper attempt at a quick bite on his lower jaw, before it was hastily yanked from its overhanging branch by an invisible force. Suspended mid-air, the reptile tied itself into an elaborate knot and was subsequently propelled into the undergrowth with a rapid flick of Luca's wrist.

"I-I had that," Miklos protested.

"No, you did not," Luca countered, giving him a cursory glance. "I presume you arrived in the Wildlands in the usual fashion - bound and blindfolded. How did you release yourself from your bonds?"

"The other boy helped."

Luca snorted. "I suspected as much." A thought seemed to occur to him. "The beast that they sent to bring you here - was it a horse? Is it still alive, perhaps?"

"Luca, I don't think Loric was serious when he said that we ought to bring in the horses as well," Rei interrupted. "They are not adapted to the Wildlands, they won't be of much use to us."

"Loric? Who's-" Miklos started to ask, but she turned towards him and pinned him with a serious stare.

"Look, you can't depend on us to babysit you all day. Do not forget that you are now an exiled mage inhabiting these treacherous lands, and you will have to earn your keep at the guild. Everyone does."

"Who said I needed babysitting?" Miklos snapped. "Wait, guild? What guild?" he asked in confusion.

"Orichon," Rei answered.

"What?" Miklos almost choked on his words. "You people are members of Orichon?" He stared at them incredulously.

The trio's presence had been a great contributor towards Miklos's survival thus far, and he was content to stick around them if it meant that any nasty predicament he got himself into could be easily reversed. With the latest revelation, however, nervousness inked into his mind as he reassessed his situation. As far as the people of the kingdom were concerned, Orichon and its 'stinking rogue mages' were nothing but the source of various troubles and disturbances throughout the kingdom. They raided towns and villages, plundered, and stole, before dissolving mysteriously into some unknown sanctuary.

"Welcome home," Rei announced, jolting him out of his uneasy thoughts.

Emerging from the last of the trees and into open plains, what was previously obscured by the thick forest canopy now revealed itself in its teeming magnificence and grandeur. From where they stood, a mile of dark earth blanketed by rolling fields of desolate ashen-brown grass stretched and yawned, eventually coming to an abrupt halt at the foot of one of the Wildlands' many structural terrors: A volcano. Except it was apparent even to Miklos that the prime of its time had been long gone, lost in a past filled with violent and spectacular rages. Still it was no less impressive, what with the imposing dark gray basalt which distinguished the entire rocky construct from everything else in the landscape. Miklos allowed his gaze to travel upwards along the steep slopes and contours, resting on the stone-capped top of the volcano from which smoked twirled lazily out of tall arch openings.

Far in the distance, three riders on odd, bipedal reptilian-looking creatures traversed the plains swiftly, heading straight towards the rocky mountain. They disappeared through the gates of an elongated stone building - the only ostensible artificial extension of the volcano that Miklos could see.

"That's-" Miklos started slowly, "-impressive," he admitted. Entirely fascinating was more like it, but he was adamant not to place into them the impression of an easily excitable thirteen-year-old, so he gave no more of a reaction than was warranted.

Something tugged at his thoughts, reminding him to address a matter of importance.

"Wait one moment," Miklos narrowed his eyes. "I don't get this. What is going on?"

"You don't look like you get anything at all, really," Luca smirked.

The younger boy scowled at him, and an unexpected hint of a giggle escaped Krea who had been deathly silent all this while. Thus, the sudden break in the dam compelled Miklos to peer at her in surprise. In a flash, she looked away and reconstructed her emotional barrier with a series of nervous glances towards the horizon.

"What is the Orichon doing here?" Miklos persisted. "Last I checked, no one survives for more than a day in these lands, and the entire kingdom considers every mage they have ever exiled to the Wildlands dead-"

"Not if we can get to them first," Rei interrupted. "All this," she gestured towards the volcano, "has been made possible by the efforts of those who were exiled here long before you and I were born, when the decree was passed that all mages were to be captured and exiled to pay for the sins of our kind. We adapted, and we survived. That's all there is to it."

This is insane, the thought clamored in his head. He must have let on that he finally had a grasp of the truth of the matter, for it incited yet another one of Luca's wry comments about his intelligence.

"Great, it would seem that you do have a functioning mind, after all," he remarked drily.

---

They arrived at a set of thick wooden doors built into the rock. Stiffened and strengthened with iron bands, parts of the ebony-colored wood appeared severely charred and inflicted with suspicious-looking claw marks. Clearly, they had seen better days.

"There are four entrances," Rei explained, "and they will be locked when dusk falls. No one is supposed to leave the guild then."

Miklos had his own speculations as to why that would be so.

Further to the left, growls and all manner of bizarre bestial noises erupted in quick succession from the building where Miklos had seen the riders enter earlier. Slightly alarmed and rather curious, he would have allowed himself to gravitate over to investigate if not for the fact that the only openings on the structure were located high up on its walls.

Coincidentally, the double doors swung outwards just as Rei was about to perform the deed herself. With the sheer height of the volcano barring down on him, Miklos stiffened and held his breath. He hoped Orichon's members weren't cannibals.

"Oh, it's you three! Welcome back."

The individual who emerged had short black hair that was pulled back to reveal a fine, warm face. He smiled amiably at them, gave the trio a nod each, before drawing his attention upon the newcomer.

"Hello," he greeted Miklos.

"Uh, hi," Miklos responded, fidgeting while his eyes roamed over the interesting, oddly colored vials that the stranger carried on a belt around his waist. A brown leather knapsack was strung over his shoulder, and Miklos couldn't help but stare at it curiously in an attempt to divine its contents.

"That your brother, Luca?" he joked. "His hair - it looks exactly like yours. Maybe darker," he added after a brief contemplation. "Slightly."

Miklos turned towards Luca, scrutinizing his neat ash-blonde hair with narrowed eyes.

"No, he does not," they both said unanimously. "You have terrible eyesight," Luca continued.

The stranger grinned. "Well, I best be off. See you in a while," he waved and started off.

"Wait," Rei stopped him. "Finn, why are you going out alone? Where is Eloise and Cyril?" she asked, frowning. "It's almost dusk."

"I'll be fine," Finn called over his shoulder.

"If you say so," Rei sighed. "Come, we're bringing Miklos to Loric."

"No can't do. The both of you are going straight to Leina. And before you ask," Luca directed his words at Miklos, stopping him short of his incoming question, "she's in charge of the infirmary."

Miklos shut his mouth.

"The boy doesn't have to go," Rei responded, pushing against the wooden doors. "His venom burns are already healing well by themselves," she pointed out without glancing back, and entered with Krea trailing close behind.

Luca looked down at Miklos's arms in surprise having only noticed it now. In place of bright, crimson-red patches that covered the entire length of Rei's arms, Miklos's had faded to a pale pink. Even those on his face where the wounds had been most severe had dulled in color and vibrancy. The person in question found it no more surprising than a broken pitcher, but was vaguely impressed by Rei's quick, observant eye.

"Interesting," Luca mused. Keenly, he studied Miklos while the boy shifted under his scrutiny.

"Well, are you ready to go in?" Luca broke the silence. 

"No."