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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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