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.