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.