(eng) Mindy L. Klasky - Glasswright 04 by The Glasswright's Test

Author:The Glasswright's Test [Test, The Glasswright's]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

5

Parion Glasswright took his time choosing the robes that he would wear to greet the Traitor. He had long ago grown familiar with the layers of cloth, accepting that the majesty and power he commanded as guildmaster meant that he was constrained by his garments. He paused in front of a polished mirror and studied the visage that looked back at him.

There were deep lines in that face, furrows etched by age and fatigue and a craving for revenge. Parion had once been considered a handsome man—he knew that much from gossip and from the whispers of women he could trust. He was a feared man, as well; people hesitated to excite his wrath, to summon the famous fury that hovered beneath the surface of his calm guildish demeanor.

His parents had not been glasswrights. His father had been an armorer, spending more time in the Soldiers’ Quarter than in the Guildsmans’ Quarter of his youth. Parion’s mother had been a master in the Embroiderers’ Guild—eyes opened or closed, she could pick out designs more delicate than anyone could imagine.

Parion had learned craft from both of his parents. From his father, he had absorbed the importance of strong arms, of powerful muscles to manipulate heavy iron. Yet from his mother, he had mastered the value of delicacy. He knew that a single stitch taken in a particular way could change the way an entire tapestry appeared. He knew that fine work made the difference in a finished piece. Details mattered.

And as a glasswright, Parion applied those lessons. He needed to craft windows, design armatures heavy enough and secure enough to protect delicate panes of glass. He also needed to paint, to indicate expressions and thoughts, individual lines that could be read by thousands of viewers from the floor of a cathedral.

Parion had taken his parents’ lessons and applied them well. He might have made mistakes. He might have taken missteps, but he had never made the same error twice.

Sighing, the glasswright straightened his garments. He had chosen deepest gold today—a topaz so rich that it shimmered in the light from the window. Let the Traitor be dazzled upon their meeting. Let her measure out the wealth that belonged to the guild, that had come to the glasswrights since they moved away from Morenia. Let her wonder if Parion sent a message of intimidation or one of greeting.

And if she could decipher the emotion behind his welcoming her back to the guild, then she was a better sleuth than he. For Parion himself did not know how he felt.

He knew that he was bound as guildmaster to protect all the glasswrights sworn to him. He knew that he was obliged to honor the apprentices and journeymen and masters who had passed their respective tests, who had joined the guild, free and clear of other obligations. He knew that he must stand strong against the priestly government of Brianta, stand firm to keep his guild a separate creature from the pilgrims’ bureaucratic tangle.

But

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