@#@†:~,... ...,~:†@#@
#@†:~,.... ....,~:†@#
@†:~,..... .....,~:†@
†:~,...... ......,~:†
:~,....... .......,~:
~,........ Gray Skies, Swirling With Soot. Stony ........,~
,......... Ground With No Hints Of Vegetation. .........,
.......... ..........
,......... Below The Surface Are The Mines, .........,
~,........ Spiraling Down Into The Crust. Small ........,~
:~,....... Compared To The Caverns They Eventually .......,~:
†:~,...... Reach And Join With. The Temperature Is ......,~:†
@†:~,..... Higher Down Here, And The View Is Not .....,~:†@
#@†:~,.... As Monochrome: A Green Light Beckons ....,~:†@#
@#@†:~,... From Below. ...,~:†@#@
#@#@†:~,.. ..,~:†@#@#
##@#@†:~,. Long Ago, There Was A Lifeform Here. In .,~:†@#@##
#@#@†:~,.. The Center Of The Planetoid, Something ..,~:†@#@#
@#@†:~,... Dormant, Waiting For A Collision With ...,~:†@#@
#@†:~,.... Another Body. But No Planet Was ....,~:†@#
@†:~,..... Reached, And Over Time, The Seedling .....,~:†@
†:~,...... Became A Sludge. ......,~:†
:~,....... .......,~:
~,........ And Elves Came As Miners, And The ........,~
,......... Sludge Was Bottled. .........,
.......... ..........
,......... ######################################## .........,
~,........ # # ........,~
:~,....... # #@#@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@#@# # .......,~:
†:~,...... # @ @ # ......,~:†
@†:~,..... @ @ @##@†@††††††††††††††††††††@†@##@ @ @ .....,~:†@
#@†:~,.... # @ @ @ @ # ....,~:†@#
@#@†:~,... # @ @ The Cargo Ship Is Filled, @ @ # ...,~:†@#@
#@#@†:~,.. $ @ # Prepared For Launch, # @ $ ..,~:†@#@#
##@#@†:~,. † # # Ignition Sequence Started # # † .,~:†@#@##
#@#@†:~,.. : @ # Hours Ago. Elves In The # @ : ..,~:†@#@#
@#@†:~,... : † @ Passenger Cabin, Not Yet @ † : ...,~:†@#@
#@†:~,.... ~ : @ Seated. But Something Is @ : ~ ....,~:†@#
@†:~,..... ~ ~ $ Wrong. There Is Something $ ~ ~ .....,~:†@
†:~,...... , , † Green Around Their Mouths. † , , ......,~:†
:~,....... , , : The Sludge Has Been Sampled, : , , .......,~:
~,........ , , ~ Entertained, And Then ~ , , ........,~
,......... , , , Finally Binged On. , , , .........,
.......... . . . . . . ..........
,......... . . . The Engines Are Burning Hot, . . . .........,
~,........ And The Ship Accelerates ........,~
:~,....... Away. The Elves Have .......,~:
†:~,...... Strapped Themselves In, And ......,~:†
@†:~,..... Are Lying Completely Still, .....,~:†@
#@†:~,.... Like Corpses. ....,~:†@#
@#@†:~,... ...,~:†@#@
#@#@†:~,.. ..,~:†@#@#
##@#@†:~,. .,~:†@#@##
#@#@†:~,.. ..,~:†@#@#
@#@†:~,... ...,~:†@#@