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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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