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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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