..:~\**£@#                                          #@£**\~:..
.:~\**£@##                                          ##@£**\~:.
..:~\**£@#                                          #@£**\~:..
...:~\**£@                                          @£**\~:...
....:~\**£                                          £**\~:....
.....:~\** in  the  endless   winter  day,  on  the **\~:.....
......:~\* crystal white  plains... we trudge along *\~:......
.......:~\   the train tracks... themselves slowly  \~:.......
........:~ snowed  over, in the  still  hours since ~:........
.........:          the last supply train.          :.........
..........                                          ..........
..........     bell-like sounds of the blinding     ..........
.......... ground.  rifles  attached to  our wrist, ..........
.......... sharing  in  our  bloodstream. my husky, ..........
..........      my warm-coffee-in-cold-snow...      ..........
..........                                          ..........
.......... the  first  five  shots  you  can  spend ..........
.........: indiscriminately, they hurt  but deal no :.........
........:~ long time  damage  to the  shooter.  the ~:........
.......:~\ next  five  you must spend wisely,  they \~:.......
......:~\* will take days to  heal. the final  five *\~:......
.....:~\** you    must    not    spend    at   all. **\~:.....
....:~\**£                                          £**\~:....
...:~\**£@ weeks  earlier, in the weak autumn dawn, @£**\~:...
..:~\**£@# in  the  blue-gray  fog... something  is #@£**\~:..
.:~\**£@## burning  with  a   deep  crimson  flame, ##@£**\~:.
..:~\**£@#       untameable by water or wind.       #@£**\~:..
...:~\**£@                                          @£**\~:...
....:~\**£                                          £**\~:....
.....:~\**                                          **\~:.....
......:~\*                                          *\~:......
.......:~\                                          \~:.......