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.