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.