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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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