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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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