The waves gently beat against the shore of Krosig, an island long forgotten by cartographers and historians. The sun had just begun to rise over the abandoned island as the Hierophant took his morning tea in the ruins of a small coastal village. The wind was warm and blowing out of the east with the rising sun. The wind played with his dirty blonde hair as he sat in a stone pavilion right on the beach, book in hand and one leg propped up. The maps in the Library of Khal'Jaren, the Thayne of knowledge, had been a great help to the scholar in his endeavor to find more ruins to explore. This island had been the proverbial jackpot, so far away from anything of note that it had never been discovered by any others, and in fact seemed borderline untouched. The island had vexed him in that it created more questions than it answered. For starters all of the buildings showed little sign of wear, and not a single body or mass grave had been found. The islands inhabitants had simply...vanished.

"Where is Khal'Jaren when you need him?" Vincent found himself grumbling between sips of tea. The Thayne had been appearing to him recently, whispering in his ear, guiding him in his studies. However, others could not see him, leading either Vince, or his handlers, to think he was crazy. He was however, the Hierophant of the Tarot Hierarchy, and that afforded him the right to be crazy. The secret society served the purpose of investigating and discovering remnants and artifacts dating back to the age of the Eternal Tap and making sure they did not fall into the wrong hands. The ever wise seer Leona Stevvains had deemed Vincent to be her Hierophant, she had seen his future and told him of his fate long before he had even studied a single book in Althanas. Now he was a world class scholar no less than a year into his prolonged stay in this world. He had partaken in more than his fair share of adventures during that time, and memories of home were beginning to be overwritten.

He no longer missed his apartment back in Dallas, or his beat up piece of shit car. When he thought of home the image of a library came to mind, where he had a small bedroll tucked away in the corner for long nights of studying. When thinking of family he thought of his best friend Ioder the angel, his boss Leona, and the mercenary Tobias Stalt. Life on Althanas was good, and Vincent felt needed here.

A large horn blast interrupted his thoughts. The mornings shipment was coming in bringing fresh faces and supplies to help with the investigation and it was Vincent's job to greet them. Setting his tea down he grimaced as he moved his propped up left leg off of the pedestal it was resting on and stretched it. His muscles complained as hey stretched it slightly before setting it on the ground. Gritting his teeth he braced both of his hands on the table before him and raised himself into a standing position.

"Hiero, my cane please?" he asked looking up. A nine foot tall caricature of a "man" approached him cane in hand. His golden skin glowed in the sunlight as his green robes fluttered with the breeze. His silver hair and beard framed a face with no distinguishable features aside a large hooked nose and scarlet eyes. As the "man" finally reached Vincent he knelt and handing a simple ornate cane made of mohangany with an owls head carved into the handle on the top.

"Your knee bothering you Vinnie?" the man asked in a deep baritone.

"It's getting better..." Vincent replied, "Thank you Hiero."

"No thanks are needed..." Hiero replied. "I am the Hierophant, you are the Hierophant. I am your advisor in these troubled times in your life."

"Thank you my freind..." Vincent replied as the Hierophant rose to full height. "Come, walk with me while we greet the next shipment."

"Even though you are the only one who can see me?" the Hierophant asked curiously.

"Someone special is on that ship, and I have a hunch about her..." Vincent replied cryptically as he began to walk with a slight limp as he placed a great deal of his weight on his cane.

"Ah..." The Hierophant breathed, "You've mastered the art of mimicking your boss then?"

"Questions, Hiero, Questions." Vincent replied as the both began to grin at their joke.