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.