Otherworldly - A Shadowed Awakening

Break of Autumn, Week 3, Day 7

It was beautiful. Not just the sign, of course, but the whole dome. The glass sparkled in the mid-morning light, casting a kaleidoscope shadow across the clearing. The wind rustled the fallen leaves, and as we stepped closer, the leaves collapsed in satisfying crunches under our feet. Jenny and I walked in side by side as Klein opened one of the double doors, and Arlen rushed to get the other.

Within the dome, the reflecting light changed the hues of our skin –hers from a tan to rainbow red and mine from a milky white to mixed blue. Every step we took changed our undertones, from red to green to yellow, from blue to pink to orange. The heels of our shoes thumped against the smooth, pale stone floors. It was less than a breath of time before a man appeared, dressed in a neat uniform adorned with several glass brooches that sparkled in the light. His long white hair took in the colors as pure as if it was dyed. His face was sharp but young. As he approached us, a smile was firmly planted on his face, and we came to a stop. Behind us, there was just enough room for Klein and Arlen to slip inside while the Perry guards remained standing guard.

“Welcome to the Gilted Glassworks,” he said with a flourish and a bow, “I am Volero.”

His bright green eyes landed on Jenny, and he didn’t so much as flinch as he deepened his bow, “This humble man greets our Lady Jennifer Perry.”

Jenny shifted on her feet slightly, but she gracefully returned his bow with a light curtsy, “It is a pleasure to be received, Volero. I am accompanied by a guest of the Baroness Perry, Lady Eunora Dawn.”

For all his composure before, this caused him to jolt his head up, and I wished Jenny had simply called me Nora. But, of course, at her heart, she was a proper noble lady. And that meant she couldn’t let me coast under the radar.

I could feel my stomach churning with the anxiety of little Eunora, and I swallowed forcefully before smiling lightly and waving my hand.

“I've seen the glass works around town and wanted to come by. It’s enchanting work.”

Volero quickly recovered, standing upright, but I could tell he was hyper-aware of his movement. Every motion looked tight and controlled.

“Ah, yes,” his smile deepened, almost reaching his eyes –but not quite, “Most of the glasswork for Perry is done in-house at a discount.”

“Even the stained glass windows?” I asked.

“Especially the stained glass windows,” now his smile did reach his eyes, “Those are produced by our proprietor and her apprentice. If we couldn’t claim our dominance in our hometown, what good would our name be, my lady?”

My smile turned wry, and I shook my head, “Not very. Do you mind walking us through what's on display?”

Volero’s smile never fell, “Of course, Lady Dawn. It is my pleasure.”

To either side of us was a single layer of glass and metal shelves, curved to follow the shape of the glass dome. The display cases had several layers, going higher than I was tall, but they were all filled with figurines, glass jewelry, and small but simple glass works. Away from the shelves were pedestals of varying heights that had more intricate statuettes and busts –even further in were four full-size statues that glistened in the light. My expectations had been middling at best. I had hoped to meet the person who designed the window pane—a simple artist for a simple town. But now, I wanted to meet whoever had crafted the statues.

I stared at one and felt my mind activate [Inspect] before it was a conscious decision.

[Inspect]

[Handblown Glass Statue, Tier 1, Uncommon]

[Name: Dominus of Light]

[A statue crafted in the likeness of a mortal man. It is made of a single piece of crystalline glass and infused with mana originating from various magical botanicals.]

[Designed and crafted by Gilthelda Mainsted]

The statue in question was all smooth lines and soft features, and it had streaks of purples and blues swirling at the center of the abdomen. The streaks extend out, tapering off toward the statues’ arms and legs. At the head of the statue was a swirl of orange and yellow. In one hand was a soft orange staff with smooth red swirls. It made a striking visual. I loved it.

I stepped up to the statue, reaching my hand out briefly before snapping it back and turning to Volero.

“It’s wonderful,” I sighed.

The man’s eyes softened.

“It was made by Gilthelda, the owner.” Volero took a moment to look at me, in my hues of purple, before nodding to himself, “Would you like to meet her?”

I let out a surprised laugh and felt a smile take over my face, “Can I?”

“Of course, follow me. I’ll just ask you to wait in the sitting area while I fetch her.”

Volero waved us further inward, to the back of the dome where an archway took us through to a hallway with four plush seats —two on either side of the hall. The chairs had a rainbow mosaic design on them, and just looking at them filled me with awe. I was practically overflowing with awe at that point, though, so it wasn’t saying much. At the end of the short hallway was a stone wall, and as I looked out the windowed walls, I could see that it was a part of a much larger building. It was the back building that had towered behind the dome as we walked up. It had to contain the workspace.

I found myself filled with questions. How many glassworkers are there? How much do they charge for custom work? How long does it take to craft such intricate glass pieces? Do they love it?

They have to love it. Art like this comes from passion. I thought to myself as I focused my eyes back on the chairs and took a seat next to Jenny. Where did they get them?

“Nora,” Jenny’s hushed voice pulled me out of my reverie, “Do you like art?”

I wasn’t sure why she was whispering, but I had to agree that it only felt right to speak quietly. It felt like we were in a museum.

“I–” I stopped and thought about it. I really, truly, thought about it. I hadn’t been into art in elsewhere. But there was an undeniable pull in me now, a pull that told me there was really only one answer, “I do. A lot, actually. You?”

Jenny stared at her hands briefly before looking up at me, “Yeah, I do. Art reminds me of music.”

She trailed off before running a hand over her braid, “Before we go back to the manor, we should stop by the jewelry shop we passed by earlier. Its pieces are works of art, too. And the blacksmith has some intricate pieces of armor –and there’s a tailor that has such pretty embroidery skills. “

I nodded as she spoke, “I think that would be fun. What if we made the day of it? Could we do your harp tomorrow?”

Jenny beamed, “Yeah, I can take a day off.”

We chatted while we waited, and soon enough, the door opened to reveal a group of three. One was the towering Volero, and the two others were women. The elder of the two had wild, free-flowing black hair and bright amber eyes. Her skin had a red undertone, and her bare arms were on display –and the muscles associated with them. The younger woman looked barely into adulthood, with a thick blonde braid pulling back her hair and revealing her sunburned but otherwise pale face.

“Lady Dawn,” the older woman greeted me with a half bow before righting herself and looking at Jenny, “And Lady Perry. To what do we owe the pleasure of your visit?”

As we stood, Jenny was transformed. No longer was she quiet or unsure of herself. Suddenly, she was composed, proper, and all too put together. It was a physical transformation, and it was just like when I had first met her. I found I quite liked that she had a shell to protect her.

I spoke before she could.

“I saw the stained glass in the town –it’s beautiful. I wanted to meet the artist. Or, I guess, artists.”

The dark-haired woman smiled at me, and the blonde’s face grew redder.

“It’s even more of a pleasure then,” the woman’s muscles flexed as she spoke, “I am Gilly Mainsted, the main designer and the owner of the Gilted Glassworks. This is Brienne, my apprentice.”

My eyes shifted to the blonde, who was clumsily curtsying. It was unnecessary and a little embarrassing.

“I, well, I was unable to look away from the art around Perry,” I paused, shuffling my feet.

Say it, Nora, just say it. I swallowed the ever-constant anxiety that little Eunora filled me with and continued on. My voice was softer than I’d like, but it came out. And, really, that’s all I could ask for.

“It may not be my place, but –Miss Mainsted, Brienne, thank you for bringing your skill to Perry. If it brought me this much joy, I can’t imagine how much it brings those who get to see it every day.”

Both women were looking at me curiously, and Volero was rubbing his face.

“Lady Dawn–” Miss Mainsted started, a serious expression crossing her face, “Please, call me Gilly.”

“I, um, okay,” I blinked up at her.

“And Volero, go grab us some tea. If Lady Dawn and Lady Perry would allow me, I’d like to give them a tour of the studio.”

Jenny looked at me, both our eyes wide. She gave a slight nod, and I was smiling widely before I realized it, excitement filling me. I turned back to Gilly.

“We’d love that.”

Gilly uncrossed her arms and gripped Brienne’s shoulder with one hand, causing the lanky girl to stumble slightly, “Wonderful. Brienne is going to let the other staff know, and they’ll pause working on anything dangerous while I show you around.”

Brienne and Volero went back behind the door, and Gilly gestured for us to sit back down, “It could take a bit to clear away the molten glass and lower the heat of the furnaces.”

As we sat, Gilly was proven right. Volero came back quickly with a rose tea, but it took Brienne nearly half an hour before she came back –jittery as she had been before.

“The shop is ready, Gilly,” Brienne said, her face barely halfway through the door, pointedly not looking at me, Jenny, and the squires. She didn’t even glance at Volero.

Clapping her hands together, Gilly was grinning –and I was practically bouncing around on the inside. Outside, though, I imagined I looked much like Jenny. Calm, collected, in control, all the things children aren’t supposed to be.

“All right, let me show you the hot shop,” Gilly said as she pulled the door open wide.

Behind the door turned out to be a single, massive room separated by grated metal partitions. Against the walls were big metal boxes with small doors and shelves filled with orbs of glass. A significant segment of the far wall was filled with rods of colored glass –there were dozens of colors, all separated into separate square shelves. Another segment had rods of metals in all shades, from gold to silver to some kind of white iridescent rod. After fully stepping into the room, I could see a dozen people standing quietly, lined up to the side of the entry door. They were wearing aprons with charred stains and thick leather gloves. Some had goggles over their eyes, and others had them on top of their head or hanging off their apron.

“This is where the magic happens, Lady Dawn, Lady Perry.” Gilly stepped forward and turned to face us with a flourish, “This is the heart of the Gilted Glassworks.”

As Gilly’s hands lowered from the air, I felt ice tickle my face. I leaned back as glass flew from the walls. Beside me, Klein and Arlen stepped forward —hands on the hilt of their swords. But the shards of glass weren’t coming closer. They circled Gilly in a halo, a series of semi-circles of all different colors.

And then the room began to heat.