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#@**=«~... .~= The Spire «=. ...~«=**@#
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###@**=«~. =«~ Once Upon A Time, There Was A =~« .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. =~« Benevolent Spire, Towering Well ~=« ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... ~=« Above Our Tallest Trees. It Was ~«= ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. ~«= Clad In White Scales, And Shaped «~= ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. «~= Liked A Mushroom. «=~ .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. «=~ We Loved It Dearly. =«~ ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... =«~««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««=~« ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. =~« It Predated Us By Many Years, ~=« ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. ~=« And We Did Not Know Its Original ~«= .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. ~«= Builders. They Had Used Its «~= ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... «~= Hollow Body For Many Strange «=~ ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. «=~ Purposes - A Womblike Place Of =«~ ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. =«~ Gestation, A Storage Of Strage =~« .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. =~« Fluids, A Temple To Some Kind Of ~=« ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... ~=« Arcane Deity. ~«= ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. ~«=«««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««~= ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. «~= We Were Grateful For Its «=~ .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. «=~ Presence, And Honored It The =«~ ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... =«~ Only Way We Knew How: By =~« ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. .~« Breaking In. ~«. ..~«=**@##
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###@**=«~. .«= This Place We Called Our City: ~=« .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. ~=« Wavy And Fractured, With Each =~« ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... =~« Courtyard On A Different Height, =«~ ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. =«~ Roads Becoming Roofs Becoming «=~ ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. «=~ Drains. And Some Places, Like «~= .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. «~= The Spire, Nobody Had Accessed ~«= ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... ~«= For Many Years. Once Its Walls ~=« ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. ~=« Are Just Too High, And The =~« ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. =~« Internal Routes To Labyrinthine, =«~ .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. =«~ A Place Among Others Is Easily «=~ ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... «=~ Overlooked. ~«= ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. ~«=««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««~=« ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. ~=« So, Basically, That Summer The =~« .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. =~« Four Of Us Snuck And Climbed And «~= ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... =«~ Crawled For Weeks, Searching For «=~ ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. «=~ A Secluded Place To Do Drugs And «~= ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. «~= Play Music On Our Handhelds. ~«= .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. ~«= Instead We Found Vast Lungs ~=« ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... ~=« Drained Of Their Catalyst =~« ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. =~« Sludge, And A Birds-Eye View To =«~ ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. =«~ Make Sense Of Our Roamings For «=~ .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. «=~ Years To Come. «~= ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... «~=««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««~«= ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. ~«= A Central Spine, A Staircase ~=« ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. ~=« Around It, The Seven Toroidal =~« .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. =~« Lungs Stacked Outside, And The =«~ ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... =«~ Control Room On Top. The Sockets «=~ ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. «=~ For Its Eyes. The Smaller Spires «~= ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. «~= For Radiating Consciousness ~«= .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. .«= Invitations. ~=. ..~«=**@##
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##@**=«~.. .~= In Twenty fourteen, The Tower Is =«~ ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... «=~ Toppled And Eaten By Machines. =~« ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. =«~ After A While, Something New Is ~=« ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. =~« Conjured In Its Place. It'S A ~«= .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. ~=« Tiny Maw At First, Shorter Than «~= ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... ~«= Us, And We Let It Be. Our «=~ ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. «~= Journeys Still End At Its Feet. =«~ ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. «=~««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««=~« .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. =«~ But Then We Are Betrayed. The ~=« ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... =~« New Tower Eats Us. Others Are ~«= ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. ~=« Sucked Inside. New Buildings Are «~= ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. ~«= Manifested Overnight, Only To «=~ .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. «~= Disappear In The Evening Fog. =«~ ..~«=**@##
#@**=«~... «=~ For A While Its Some Kind Of =~« ...~«=**@#
##@**=«~.. =«~ Timeshare Scam. Goons Are Placed ~=« ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. =~« Outside, And We Get Beaten Up A ~«= .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. ~=« Few Times, And Stop Going. «~= ..~«=**@##
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##@**=«~.. «~= Iirc It'S Currently Owned By =«~ ..~«=**@##
###@**=«~. «=~ Some Energy drink Baron Who Uses =~« .~«=**@###
##@**=«~.. =«~ It To Hold All His Fourty Eight ~=« ..~«=**@##
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