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.