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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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