,^~=^@¤£##                                          ##£¤@^=~^,
,^~=^@¤¤¤¤                                          ¤¤¤¤@^=~^,
,,,^===@¤¤                                          ¤¤@===^,,,
,^~=^@¤£##                                          ##£¤@^=~^,
,^~=@¤£###                                          ###£¤@=~^,
,^~=^@¤£## ,,,^^^============================^^^,,, ##£¤@^=~^,
,^~=^@¤£## ,^=            The  Spire            ~=, ##£¤@^=~^,
,^~=^@¤£## ~=^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~=~^ ##£¤@^=~^,
,^~=^@¤£## =~^ 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.        ^~, £¤@=^^,,,,
,^~=^@¤£## ,,,^^^============================^^^,,, ##£¤@^=~^,
,^~=^@¤£##                                          ##£¤@^=~^,
,^~=^@¤£##                                          ##£¤@^=~^,
,,,^===@@¤ ,,,^^^============================^^^,,, ¤@@===^,,,
,^~=^@¤£££ ,~=  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.           ^=, £¤^~~,,,,,
,^~=^@¤£## ,,,^^^============================^^^,,, ##£¤@^=~^,
,^~=^@@¤££                                          ££¤@@^=~^,
,^~=^@¤£## ,,,^^^============================^^^,,, ##£¤@^=~^,
,,,,,^=^@¤ ,^= 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.  ~^= ##£¤@^=~^,
,,,,^~~^¤¤ ^~=~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~=^ ¤¤^~~^,,,,
,,,^==@@@¤ ~^=  Iirc It'S  Currently  Owned  By =~^ ¤@@@==^,,,
,^~=^@¤£££ ~=^ Some Energy drink Baron Who Uses =^~ £££¤@^=~^,
,^~=^^^@@¤ =~^ It To Hold All His  Fourty Eight ^=~ ¤@@^^^=~^,
,,^~====@£ ,^~            Cars.....             ^~, £@====~^,,
,,,,,^=@£# ,,,^^^============================^^^,,, #£@=^,,,,,
,^~=^^^^^¤                                          ¤^^^^^=~^,
,,,^^^==^¤                                          ¤^==^^^,,,
,^~=^@¤£##                                          ##£¤@^=~^,
,,,^^=^¤£#                                          #£¤^=^^,,,
,,,^^^=@¤£                                          £¤@=^^^,,,