The First Clearborn

“Some say the Veil never touched her. Others say it did—and recoiled.”
—Whispered in Clearborn gatherings, passed down in rain-slick journals

In the early years after The Fracturing, when the Veil was newly formed and the Hollow Beneath had not yet fully settled into ruin, a child was born in a fog-bound cottage on the edges of Mirelight. Their name was Neris—though some stories claim they had no name at all, only a resonance so faint it was like breathing into still water.

This is the myth of Neris of Mirelight, the first Clearborn, and the one who would later be credited with writing—or inspiring—the Clearborn Accord, the most controversial document in Mistkin society.

The Birth

It is said that Neris was born during an unnatural quiet: no rainfall, no resonance bloom, not even mist. Their birth cry didn’t ripple through the Veil as most Mistkin newborns do. Instead, those nearby described a strange stillness in the air, as if something ancient had paused to listen—and then looked away.

Some versions claim the Veil refused to echo her. Others say Neris chose silence, resisting the natural pull even as an infant. Her parents, worried she was broken, brought her before the Echoweavers. They found nothing wrong—only…nothing. A stillness beyond explanation.

Legacy

As she grew, Neris did not participate in Echo Offerings. She never entered the Hollow. She did not shimmer with resonance like other Mistkin. Yet, she watched. She listened. She questioned the cost of surrendering one’s self to something unseen.

In time, she vanished—or left—or died. But afterward, pieces of her words began to circulate: in journals, in etched bone charms, in hidden glyphs passed hand to hand. These fragments became what’s now called the Clearborn Accord, though no version of it ever names her directly.

Clearborn followers believe she was a prophet—or perhaps not Mistkin at all. Others say she was the Veil’s first regret. But whether Neris was real, half-real, or symbolic, her story endures.