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.