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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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