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.