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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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