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.