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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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