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.