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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. ¨,«:†§£###
##£§†:«,¨¨ ¨¨,«:†§£##
#£§†:«,¨¨¨ †† ¨¨¨,«:†§£#
£§†:«,¨¨¨¨ †† †† ¨¨¨¨,«:†§£
§†:«,¨¨¨¨¨ ««««««« † † ««««««« ¨¨¨¨¨,«:†§
†:«,¨¨¨¨¨¨ †† †† ¨¨¨¨¨¨,«:†
:«,¨¨¨¨¨¨¨ †† ¨¨¨¨¨¨¨,«:
«,¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨,«
:«,¨¨¨¨¨¨¨ 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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