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.