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.