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% The Glass factory. %
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@¤$%/=,,,, Several Centuries After It Had Last ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, Belonged To Us, We Went On An Outing To ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, The Glass Factory That Bore Our Family ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, Name. It Had Changed Owners Many Times ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, Since Our Ancestors Death, And Then ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, Stood Abandoned For A Long While. ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, Finally, The Natural End Station For ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, The Buildings That Survive: A Museum, ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, And A Gift Shop. ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, There'S A Long Time Since My Family ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, Made Anything. By Many, We Would Be ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, Considered Poor. ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, There Are Two Main Factory Buildings, ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, Domed Things Of Several Floors, Made In ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, Yellow Brick. Large But Narrow Windows, ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, Reminescent Of Some Cathedral. ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, Custom-Made Glass, Of Course, Large And ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, LeadEd, And Ashen. A Bit Too Dark To Be ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, Practical. On The Eastern Building, ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, Some Are Shattered. ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, The Other One Is Publicly Open. There'S ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, A Museum, With Wax Figures Of My Great ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, Great Great Grandfather, Or Something. ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, Various Tools (Or Replicas) Laid Out On ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, Tables, With Explaining Texts. A Lot Of ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, Glass Of Varying Thickness. ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, %% ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, %% %% ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, ======= % % ======= ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, %% %% ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, %% ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, I Quickly Sneak Out, And Climb Into The ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, Other Building. The Contrast Is ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, Overwhelming. It Must Have Stood ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, Derelict For A Long Time, Windows ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, Broken, Metallic Trash And Pools Of ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, Dark Glass All Over The Floor. No ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, Electric Lights, But I Can See By The ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, Light That Shines In Wherever The Dark ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, Windows Are Missing A Pane. ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, However, The Greatest Difference Is The ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, Higher Floors: This Building Has None. ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, It Is One Massive Hall, Stretching Away ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, Infinitely Above Me. Somewhere Up There ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, Is Some Great Iron Latticework, From ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, Where Chains Are Suspended, And Parts ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, Of Machinery Has Been Falling Down. ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, There Is, In The Middle Of The Great ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, Hall, A Thin Spiral Staircase That ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, Leads Up There. I Sneak Over There, And ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, Take A Few Reluctant Steps. After Just ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, A Revolution, I Notice That For Each ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, Step The Building Starts To Glow, The ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, Bricks Turning A Dark Red, And Then ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, Orange, All The Piled Up Debree Being ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, Lit From Behind. ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, I Stop Ready To Run Down And Out, But ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, There'S Someone Else On The Staircase ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, With Me Now, Pressed Close. He'S ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, Looking Like Me, Short Hair And Thin ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, Arms, But With Ears From Some Animal, ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, And More Disturbingly, Completely Made ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, Of Dark Liquid glass. ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, %% ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, %% %% ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, ======= % % ======= ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, %% %% ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, %% ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, My Fear Holds Me In Place While He ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, Starts Operating Levers And Dials Set ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, In The Center Of The Staircase. Slowly, ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, It Starts Spinning, Circling Upwards. ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, It'S An Elevator! I Start To Run ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, Downwards, But Now The Liquid Boy ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, Creature Grabs Hold Of Me. I Try To ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, Shake Him Off, But He'S Too Strong, And ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, Pulls Me Back Up Beside Him. ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, This Time, I Turn Angry Instead. What ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, The Hell? Who Is This Guy, Acting Like ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, This? I Reach Out My Free Arm And Slam ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, A Random Lever. Some Metal Bar Is ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, Suddenly Released Between Us, Hitting ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, Him On The Arm, Forcing My Release. I ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, Shove Him Off Of Me, And He Falls Into ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, The Levers, Messing Them Up. ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, Immediately, A Thin Rusty Chainmail ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, Curtain Is Dropped Around Me. But The ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, Elevator Also Speeds Up Significantly. ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, The Walls Are Flaring Now, Yellow, ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, White, Almost Blue. I Close My Eyes And ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, Curl Into A Ball. But Then, The Glass ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, Boy Screams, A Piercing Sound That ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, Forces My Eyes Back Open. I Watch As He ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, Becomes Too Liquid, His Body Pooling ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, Down In His Now Massive Tail, And The ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, Tip Of It Suddenly Breaks Of In A Glass ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, Drop That Falls Toward The Factory ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, Floor. ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, He'S Crawling On The Stairs, Unable To ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, Keep His Body Upright. Can'T Reach The ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, Levers, Claws At My Chainmail Cage, ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, While His Body Is Turning Into Dark ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, Pearls. Finally, He'S Lost Too Much Of ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, Himself And The Scream Is Cut Short. ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, The Last Of Him Rains Down. ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, I Still Can'T Reach The Levers From ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, Within My Cage. Looking Up, I Try To ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, Make Out The Ceiling, But It'S All A ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, Whirling Sea Of Colours. Below Me Glows ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, The Hellfire Of The Factory Walls, But ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, Very Faint. I Sit Down, Curl Back Up, ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, Become Still. ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, %% ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, %% %% ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, ======= % % ======= ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, %% %% ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, %% ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, A Large Clunk Shakes My Entire Body, ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, And Snaps Me Back Into Reality. I'M ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, Back At The Factory Floor, But The ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, Stairs Are Still Moving Slightly, ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, Clicking In Place, Carrying Me The Last ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, Few Centimeters. I Came From Below, ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, Somehow. The Chainmail Is Retracted, ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, And I Slowly Dismount The Stairs. ,,,,=/%$¤@
¤$%/=,,,,, ,,,,,=/%$¤
$%/=,,,,,, Shaking And Crying, I Make My Way Over ,,,,,,=/%$
¤$%/=,,,,, The Factory Floor, Wading Through Dark ,,,,,=/%$¤
@¤$%/=,,,, Glass Marbles. A Quick Glance Down, And ,,,,=/%$¤@
@@¤$%/=,,, I See There'S Something Faint Inside ,,,=/%$¤@@
#@@¤$%/=,, Them. Embryos? Are These Eggs? ,,=/%$¤@@#
@@¤$%/=,,, ,,,=/%$¤@@
@¤$%/=,,,, I Shudder, And Climb Back Out. ,,,,=/%$¤@
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