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% The Glass factory. %
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..-;%*¤### 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. ###¤*%;-..
...-;%*¤## ##¤*%;-...
....-;%*¤# %% #¤*%;-....
...-;%*¤## %% %% ##¤*%;-...
..-;%*¤### ------- % % ------- ###¤*%;-..
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....-;%*¤# %% #¤*%;-....
...-;%*¤## ##¤*%;-...
..-;%*¤### 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. ###¤*%;-..
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