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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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