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.