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.