Months had passed since his sister left the Heartlands, yet something felt wrong to Cairo. At first he dismissed it, occasionally pulling his sister's pendant out of his pant pocket to glance at the stalwart shining stone. It hadn't changed in brightness since the day he received it. He assumed the wrong feeling was simply the atmosphere in the family, things had been kind of off since his sister had left. The Adults made an effort not to openly discuss their unease and concerns, but the mood still permeated to the whole family. It was the first time in most of their lifetimes that such a thing happened in the family.
However, Cairo had more specific concerns. Originally, despite knowing the dangers of going on a Path, he still felt more confident that his sister was embarking with her great family partner, Wrest. It was common knowledge that Pathfinder Families passed down Lineage Paths that increased their successor's chance of survival significantly. However, Cairo learned only after his sister's departure that Wrest was not the inheritor of his Family's Main Pathway, and due to that he declared his intention to be a Trailblazer like his role model, his Uncle, "The Beast of Wight". It was only because of this decision that Wrest was able to embark on a pathway with his sister, Lillia.
Cairo knew that his sister asked him not to place blame on Wrest for her decision, but Cairo simply couldn't. In his eyes, Wrest may have not been the one to make the decision for her, but his very involvement in her life was in itself a temptation. He felt that Wrest knew better, and that he should have never begun to associate with a Civil Duty Family. Pathfinders were dangerous, those who returned from their paths often caused the largest shifts in the powers of the large factions. Very few stories were told about the First Generations and the bloodshed that led to the dominance of the Founding Families, but the little that was known was enough to make normal Civilians glad that the powers were safely balanced.
Cairo had a hard time coping with his nerves, he was beginning to have troubles with his practices. He kept fracturing the stones he was carving, splitting the wood he was working, and bending the nails he was hammering. His fingertips were covered in cuts and bruises, having to take brakes to ease his nerves. Checking the pendant had become a nervous tick of his, brows furrowed as he examined the light level on the pendant. Some days, the light seemed different, occasionally getting dimmer, sometimes even growing brighter. Cairo was only recently beginning to accept the fluctuation as normal, after all, even the most experienced Pathfinders occasionally sustained an injury or received a boon that increased their life force. Needing to find a better distraction for his mind, he decided to find some study materials, especially Pathfinder Records.
Pathfinder Records were a fundamental study material for Pathway Tutors, to help their students change the way they think in stressful situations. Their scarlet leather covers were notorious in the Heartlands, where copies could be found in the regional libraries, or the originals in the Grand Citadel Library. The Records were initially an incentive for successful independent pathfinders to share their experiences and receive a subsidy, helping other independents in their future endeavors.
The Pathfinder Records were a major reason for the growth of Pathfinders in the middle class, significantly increasing the number who returned as well. Cairo, while never asking for a tutor in the past, felt like it might be useful to get more precursor knowledge. He was never the type of person to just resign to his emotions, rather he felt staying productive to be the best method for perseverance. He shifted his focus slightly, instead of focusing on decorative crafting projects, he began to analyze the Pathfinder Records and identify cases where the author's lack of handiness limited their survival capabilities.
From a line of Master Craftsmen, Cairo understood that a man was only as useful as his tools allowed him to be, and to know how to make high-quality tools was even more important.
For him and his family, the acquisition of materials was simple, and as easy as placing an order, or purchasing them at a market. That wasn't the case in the Pathways though, butchering animals and monsters, harvesting plants, locating deposits, and processing materials were skills that modern craftsmen had distributed out to other professions.
Cairo would often close himself off in his private workspace, studying records, and building his fundamentals. He would come out occasionally when materials were being shipped, asking questions to the various professionals who supplied his Family's workshops directly, even requesting a few shipments of raw goods. While it occasionally brought him looks and even a nervous laugh or two, no one had much to say about it, everyone in his family had a habit of distracting themselves with more work when tensions were high.
The counters slowly amassed red leather, primitive clay pots and poorly woven grass ropes. The relatively empty space was now covered in large cloths with piles of raw crafting materials like hides, furs, bones, tusks, lumber, charcoal, pots of oils and liquids. Occasionally, a primitive looking contraption would separate the paths of the bazaar-looking room. Mud Brick Ovens and Furnaces, with spouts and shoots, melting down materials and firing clay. Cairo was furiously scribbling in a large leather-bound book that he had spent a week processing the materials for. His self-made pen with charcoal-based ink was flying across its poorly made paper pages.
Cairo was no genius, but he was amazing at analyzing and problem solving, so he decided that recording his findings, and writing ideas for improvements often helped him grasp concepts better, while also maintaining a written record to make up for his imperfect memory. Otherwise, like every other practice, it was all about muscle memory. Repetitions and reiterations, revolutions and innovations, Cairo marched on a path of rediscovering the essence of ancient craftsmanship.
The distraction was very effective, and by the time half a year since his sister's departure had passed, he rarely checked the pendant anymore. The only exception was when he pulled out the pendant to study it. While he was never amazing at engraving, due to a lack of practical necessity, he found the engravings on the sun-resembling pendant inspiring. The symbols hidden within the shape of the pendant weren't recognizable to him, but he felt their profound meaning. It was unlikely that Cairo would ever be able to craft a mystical item himself, even if he went on a path, seeing as receivable boons and powers are seemingly random, not something that could be chosen. That was unless he received a pathway from a Mystical Craftsmen Vassal of a Great Family, which was contradictory to his initial reasoning.
Putting down his pen, he flipped through the pages of the self-made book, landing on a drawn depiction of the pendant, surrounded by notes analyzing the patterns and symbols in the engravings. Cairo reached into his pocket, fishing out the pendant, and placing it next to the drawing to begin comparing the two.
"Huh?"
The Usually Bright and Shining amulet had grown dangerously dim. Cairo sat in silent shock, unsure of what it meant.
'The Light is still present, so she isn't dead…'
His expression began to stiffen, uncontrollable worries flooded his mind.
'There are several possibilities, it could be a grave injury, most likely. An Injury grim enough to cause significant dimming of her life force. Or it could be something else, perhaps she has been trapped or imprisoned? Considering the dimness, she could possibly even be in a state of coma, or semi-permanent sleep. There are too many possibilities…'
Then another thought pushed its way to the front of his mind.
'When did it change?'
It had been at least two weeks since he last analyzed the pendant, the last time he made the mistake of transcribing the profound symbols down into his book, which caused him to suffer from headaches and migraines for almost the entire last two weeks. He only looked at the necklace in passing when putting it away or putting it in his pocket, so he did not hold the pendant to see the light's brightness level.
His thoughts sunk into the deep mire of panic, blankly staring at the pendant, hoping for its brightness to return. For what seemed like hours, Cairo sat in silence, trapped in his thoughts.
Cairo was terrified at the prospect of entering the unknown mist that bordered the heartlands. Despite all the effort he had put into mentally preparing himself, he didn't feel anywhere near being capable of saving himself in danger, let alone another person.
As the morning sun slid through the tiny workshop window, its blinding beams jolted Cairo out of his state of shock. Unknowingly, Cairo had made his decision a long time ago. He wouldn't hedge his bets, he would rather take the step regardless of the cost. Despite his sister's wishes, he would go, and he would find her, no matter the costs.
***
A dangling sun pendant swayed slightly in the gentle breeze, swinging in a circular motion, it occasionally drifted in a specific direction. Clad in leather boots, a heavy jacket with several pockets and a wool lining, Cairo hesitantly marched toward the northeast edge of the Heartlands.
Unfortunately for Cairo, he couldn't bring too many things with him. Some unknown phenomena barred certain material items from passing the misty border, with the exception of materials like cotton and leather which were made from organic materials, which caused most Pathfinders to begin their paths emptyhanded. The only other cases pertained to materials that came from the worlds beyond the misty border, which meant that Cairo should be able to bring his sister's pendant with him, but he wouldn't be able to bring any of his tools or weapons. While it didn't exactly reinforce his confidence, Cairo was beginning to feel thankful for his wilderness survival studies. Depending on his environment it wouldn't be too difficult to prepare some simple tools and weapons to curb immediate dangers.
As his surroundings grew more shabby and decrepit, Cairo's nerves began to numb, he pressed forward like one of those rumored automatons that the pathfinders spoke of. Like a moth to a flame, Cairo's eyes were glued to the dim light of the sun pendant, as he fluttered forward.
A short time later, the rundown slums suddenly vanished from view, and rusted railing that announced the end of his homeland separated him from the Misty wall that loomed a few kilometers away. The Pendant's swaying had led him to this stretch of the border, a relatively undeveloped and unexplored stretch of the border to the east of the Dupere family's territory.
Making his way down the weathered metal ladder, Cairo hesitantly put one foot in front of the other, his shaking hands only made it difficult to interpret the Pendant's directions. He felt like the mist was reaching out from the confines of the border, trying to grasp his limbs, and lick at his skin. Voices whispered imperceptibly in his ears, their tones felt frenzied and frantic, muttering warnings and ominous prophecies. Sometimes they sounded like disembodied monsters, sometimes he thought they were the voices of his family members, yet he numb from the panic, only pushing forward through his own instinct.
Finally, Cairo disappeared into the fog, vanishing from the Heartlands. No one knew where he went or what had happened. He simply vanished into the ether, unsure if he would ever return.