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.