††††††††
†††† ††††
†† ††
† †
† †
† 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. ,,,:~^†@£#
††
†† ††
† †
†† ††
††