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.