Orin Bloodline

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The Orin Bloodline is a lineage supposedly first described in the Book of Lore, but mostly known through more contemporary sources. The exact passages in the modern Book of Lore which refer to the Orinblooded is a matter of considerable debate.

Background

According to secondary sources, Orin is described as a bloodline "impossibly ancient" even during the Age of Myth. Though descendants of the lineage were not uncommon, it was particularly those members with green eyes who were especially powerful. Their blood had special properties, allowing it to function "both as a lock and a key". Green-eyed Orinbloods are supposed to be so powerful they can alter the course of events.

Characteristics

Supposedly, Orinbloods do not innately possess any additional magical potential, but when they do have the spark, they are always much higher on the Star Scale than non-Orinbloods(though several high-star non-bloods have been recorded, indicating there may be no correlation). Even outside of magic, Orinbloods tend to be exceptional individuals. Typically in possession of excellent genetic stock and resistant to abnormalities, they tend to excel at whatever they put their minds to. This trait was so common that even individuals not known to belong to the lineage were often called Orinbloods colloquially.

Original Mention

The legend of the Orinbloods begins with the Book of Lore, which tells of the Hero of Light whom was half human, half Dragon, and also a green-eyed Orinblood. Most sources also state the Hero was off-peek, though the star-ranking system was not invented until the Age of Mages. According to the story(as recorded in secondary sources), this singular confluence of factors made the Hero powerful enough to decide the outcome of the final conflict between dark and light. This is stated to be the reason the One King chose to delay the conflict and to break the world, as only He could decide the outcome.

Orin and Draconic Blood=

Though obviously no real records survive, the prevailing notion is that during the Age of Myth dragons and humans had very little contact, let alone any forms of sexual contact. Thus the Hero of Light is regarded as the first-ever human/dragon hybrid, with many scholars speculating the Hero was deliberately created to be so powerful. This is commonly accepted as the origin of the taboo against human/dragon relations that persisted all through Antiquity and into the Mage Wars. Some scholars even go so far as to claim that for creating the Hero of Light, the One King cursed the dragons; creating their current rules on how their mating works. The dragons however dismiss this as "preposterous".

Known Orinbloods

What writings survive from Antiquity do not distinguish between those individuals or of the Orin lineage, and those who merely exceptional enough to be called "orinblood" as a compliment.

The first recorded Orin was Nathan Searlin. As he had at least 100 children, he created quite a few others to carry on the bloodline.

Though not conclusively proven related to Nathan, Eieber is also Orin in addition to likely having draconic blood. Though the bulk of Eieber's magical abilities stemmed first from that accident at the Mage Tower and later from his Slayer Dragon power, his lineage and genetic makeup would very well have made him powerful.

Hunter Jusenkyou, Emily Jusenkyou, and Naomi Jusenkyou were all Orinbloods(by virtue of Naomi and Emily being Hunter's daughter). Both Hunter and Emily were of the green-eyed variety, with Hunter regarded as the most powerful mage in history until the birth of his youngest daughter, Naomi. Much speculation has been made about the power Naomi could have achieved, were she born with green eyes.

Though downplayed, Conri and Rebecca Jusenkyou were part of the Orin lineage, having descended from Hunter. While Conri had the "Jusenkyou Eyes", Rebecca had one blue and one green eye. Many later scholars draw allusions between Rebecca and Naomi; though Becca was not known to be an especially powerful mage.

Rowen

The land of Rowen is regarded as as having an extremely high percentage of Orins, with some claiming as many as one in four. Being an insular nation with strong family traditions and probable roots in Antiquity, this may be an exaggeration but not far from the mark. If Lina Rowen were also an Orin, it would well explain the preponderance of abilities in she and Hunter's descendants.

Magical Properties

The blood of Orins has special magical properties, most easily described as being able to act as both a lock and a key. On a baser level, this allows the Orins to "unlock" their own potential to a greater degree. When used in enchanting or ritual spell-casting, it can create extremely powerful wards. Nearly any enchantment can normally be broken simply by funneling enough energy into the matrix. Not so for enchantments created using Orin blood, these can only be dismantled by another Orinblood or with the use of their blood. Thus the lock and the key.

Other Legends or Mentions

Library

One legend surrounding the Great Library of Arindell states that 1,000 Orinbloods were scarified to create the powerful permanent enchantment that operates the library. Their bodies were supposedly interned beneath the great foundation stones of the building. An expedition in the early Second Age succeeded in digging beneath one of the stones, but no remains were conclusively identified. Reports from the dig state soil conditions beneath the stone were "not conducive" to the long-term preservation of human remains, and no grave goods could be conclusively identified. Later research into the dig would conclude the stone dug beneath was either not an original foundation stone, or that it the excavation methods were not precise enough. This allowed the myth to endure.

Dark Messiah

It was long believed that the Dark Messiah would be "born of the Orin bloodline mixed with the [[Inami|undying ones". When he finally rose in the New Day era, this proved true.