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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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