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.