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¨¨¨¨¨¨~»†% 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. #§%†»~¨¨¨¨
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