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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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