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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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