Captar 9: The First Step into the Void
Rahmat Ali wore the Star-Stitch Sandals. As soon as he tied the glowing laces, the ground beneath his feet turned into a path of starlight. He felt as light as a feather.
"The first rule of the Void, Artisan," the stranger said, "is that you must not look down. If you doubt the path, the path will disappear."
Rahmat took his first step. Every time his foot touched the empty air, a platform of shimmering light appeared beneath him. He was walking across the sky! Below him, he could see the tiny, glowing lights of a thousand different worlds.
Suddenly, a dark shadow flew past him. It was a Void Wraith—a guardian of the forbidden paths. It didn't like intruders.
"Keep walking, Rahmat!" Maya's voice whispered in his ear, even though she wasn't there.
The creature circled back, its eyes burning like cold blue flames. Rahmat's heart raced, but he remembered his craft. He realized that as long as he believed in the stitches he had made, the shoes would not fail him.