^^^^^^^^
^^^^ ^^^^
^^ ^^
^ ^
^ ^
^ the glass factory. ^
^ ^
^ ^
^^ ^^
^^^^ ^^^^
^^^^^^^^
,:~^^£&£@# several centuries after it had last #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ belonged to us, we went on an outing to @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# the glass factory that bore our family #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ name. it had changed owners many times @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# since our ancestors death, and then #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ stood abandoned for a long while. @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# finally, the natural end station for #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ the buildings that survive: a museum, @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# and a gift shop. #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# there's a long time since my family #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ made anything. by many, we would be @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# considered poor. #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# there are two main factory buildings, #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ domed things of several floors, made in @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# yellow brick. large but narrow windows, #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ reminescent of some cathedral. @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# custom-made glass, of course, large and #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ leaded, and ashen. a bit too dark to be @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# practical. on the eastern building, #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ some are shattered. @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ the other one is publicly open. there's @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# a museum, with wax figures of my great #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ great great grandfather, or something. @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# various tools (or replicas) laid out on #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ tables, with explaining texts. a lot of @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# glass of varying thickness. #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# ^^ #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ ^^ ^^ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# ~~~~~~~ ^ ^ ~~~~~~~ #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ ^^ ^^ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# ^^ #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# i quickly sneak out, and climb into the #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ other building. the contrast is @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# overwhelming. it must have stood #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ derelict for a long time, windows @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# broken, metallic trash and pools of #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ dark glass all over the floor. no @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# electric lights, but i can see by the #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ light that shines in wherever the dark @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# windows are missing a pane. #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# however, the greatest difference is the #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ higher floors: this building has none. @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# it is one massive hall, stretching away #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ infinitely above me. somewhere up there @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# is some great iron latticework, from #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ where chains are suspended, and parts @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# of machinery has been falling down. #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# there is, in the middle of the great #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ hall, a thin spiral staircase that @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# leads up there. i sneak over there, and #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ take a few reluctant steps. after just @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# a revolution, i notice that for each #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ step the building starts to glow, the @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# bricks turning a dark red, and then #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ orange, all the piled up debree being @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# lit from behind. #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# i stop ready to run down and out, but #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ there's someone else on the staircase @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# with me now, pressed close. he's #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ looking like me, short hair and thin @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# arms, but with ears from some animal, #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ and more disturbingly, completely made @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# of dark liquid glass. #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# ^^ #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ ^^ ^^ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# ~~~~~~~ ^ ^ ~~~~~~~ #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ ^^ ^^ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# ^^ #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# my fear holds me in place while he #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ starts operating levers and dials set @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# in the center of the staircase. slowly, #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ it starts spinning, circling upwards. @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# it's an elevator! i start to run #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ downwards, but now the liquid boy @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# creature grabs hold of me. i try to #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ shake him off, but he's too strong, and @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# pulls me back up beside him. #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# this time, i turn angry instead. what #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ the hell? who is this guy, acting like @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# this? i reach out my free arm and slam #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ a random lever. some metal bar is @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# suddenly released between us, hitting #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ him on the arm, forcing my release. i @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# shove him off of me, and he falls into #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ the levers, messing them up. @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# immediately, a thin rusty chainmail #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ curtain is dropped around me. but the @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# elevator also speeds up significantly. #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# the walls are flaring now, yellow, #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ white, almost blue. i close my eyes and @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# curl into a ball. but then, the glass #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ boy screams, a piercing sound that @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# forces my eyes back open. i watch as he #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ becomes too liquid, his body pooling @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# down in his now massive tail, and the #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ tip of it suddenly breaks of in a glass @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# drop that falls toward the factory #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ floor. @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ he's crawling on the stairs, unable to @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# keep his body upright. can't reach the #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ levers, claws at my chainmail cage, @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# while his body is turning into dark #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ pearls. finally, he's lost too much of @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# himself and the scream is cut short. #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ the last of him rains down. @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ i still can't reach the levers from @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# within my cage. looking up, i try to #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ make out the ceiling, but it's all a @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# whirling sea of colours. below me glows #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ the hellfire of the factory walls, but @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# very faint. i sit down, curl back up, #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ become still. @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ ^^ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# ^^ ^^ #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ ~~~~~~~ ^ ^ ~~~~~~~ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# ^^ ^^ #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ ^^ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ a large clunk shakes my entire body, @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# and snaps me back into reality. i'm #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ back at the factory floor, but the @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# stairs are still moving slightly, #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ clicking in place, carrying me the last @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# few centimeters. i came from below, #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ somehow. the chainmail is retracted, @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# and i slowly dismount the stairs. #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# shaking and crying, i make my way over #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ the factory floor, wading through dark @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# glass marbles. a quick glance down, and #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ i see there's something faint inside @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# them. embryos? are these eggs? #@£&£^^~:,
,,:~^^£&£@ @£&£^^~:,,
,:~^^£&£@# i shudder, and climb back out. #@£&£^^~:,
^^
^^ ^^
^ ^
^^ ^^
^^