Loraine Irwin
Location: Akatsuki (Night Train)
Phase: Early Morning, Before Sunrise
Date: April 11th, 2056
Weather: Clear Skies, Chilly.
On a train such as this, people with an (extra) abnormal air to them must exist in some form.
It is a conclusion that is easy to reach, when one gathers members of the supernatural community, there's always one or two of them that seem to stick out even from amongst their peers.
And in this situation, where at least half of the members of the supernatural community did not come from Ishana, it was a chance, perhaps, to see those sorts of things that you wouldn't be able to see in the city of Sorcery.
Like a (theoretical) vampire.
Having already done most of a once over on the first train car, and with Nina having yet to respond to your frantic attempts to keep her from causing an international incident (again), you follow your instincts and move to check out the second car of the train, the only other one that you seemed to be allowed to access at the moment, and...
...Almost immediately, you see something that is, quite frankly, an absurd event.
The Leaders of Ishana, the Ten Sages, only had six members to their number; and out of those six members, two of them had, at some point in the past, left the island seemingly without any intention of returning to it over thirty years ago.
Those two members, Zwei "The Conjuror of the Blue Blaze," and Vier "The Boundless," were collectively known in Ishana as the "Lost Authorities."
It was a very specific title that was treated as separate from the title of "Ten Sage," because of one simple thing, a thing that you knew about from all your years of sticking your nose where it didn't belong, and a thing that most members of the Current Sages quite simply would never admit to being true.
Namely...
The sorcery used by those two, was something that not only lacked any form of written record on the island, but, according to testimony from their old colleagues, didn't make any sense even when it was being utilized right in front of other users of sorcery. Exorcist, magus, shaman, unions with scanning abilities, it didn't matter, not a single person who saw what they had done... Had any real understanding of what was even happening in front of them, let alone how to replicate it.
Zwei had seemed to be able to use "blue flames that consume all other phenomena," while Vier, also called the Weakest Sage, had apparently been capable of...
Something.
Even you had never found that answer, although the sheer fact that such a question even existed at all made you doubt the nature of her title as "Weakest Sage."
But... Whatever it was... The remaining sages all had a desire to bring the other two back to Ishana, and while you had never seen either one before now, you had certainly seen pictures... And heard the rumors that she was working as a teacher in some other part of the world, but...
"Lady Vier, I've finally found you-! Upon my arrival, Lord Zehn wished for me to request your immediate return to Ishana, he stresses that the situation is serious, and that your presence is in fact necessary."
"Yeah... Sorry kid, but I'm gonna have to go with no. Those guys don't want me, they want to figure out how I tick is all, and I've got no time to be poked and prodded and stolen from; tell em I got a teaching job somewhere else when you go back; it's not the first time they've tried to play the island is in danger card. Nothing is getting past that barrier. Zwei enhanced that barrier!"
A scoff.
"Honestly, does he think I'm an idiot? I get sweet-talked into going back there, and they're never letting me out again... And I'm not really a fan of that outcome... You can tell Kuon I said hi though if you wind up going back after tasting freedom... She's the only decent Sage there."
The sight of her sitting cross legged, youthful as ever in a black sweater and jeans that punctuated those seemingly college age looks, sipping orange juice out of a bottle while lecturing a dark-haired young man that you didn't recognize, but nevertheless seemed to be from Ishana was... Bizarre...
Mainly because she dressed like a normal person, but also because...
"Hey there, you an Ishana kid too? Loraine?"
She had seemed to instinctively notice you the instant you had walked through the door, and smiling at you in a mostly kind way...
Had even seemed to know your name.
"Want to sit with us? Something to drink? I've got orange juice and water, soft drinks don't really work out on antique train rides."