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.