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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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