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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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