#@@&%†\~~¨ ¨~~\†%&@@#
&&%††\~¨¨¨ ¨¨¨~\††%&&
#&†\~¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨~\†&#
##@&%†\~~¨ ¨~~\†%&@##
@&††\~¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨~\††&@
@&&%%†\~~¨ 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. ¨~~\†%&@##
&&††~~~~~¨ ¨~~~~~††&&
#@%††~¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨~††%@#
&%†~~¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨~~†%&
@%%\~¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨~\%%@
@@%\\\\~~¨ ¨~~\\\\%@@