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.