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.