#@£¤¤=\~:, ,:~\=¤¤£@#
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#@£¤¤=\~:, ,:~\=¤¤£@#
@£¤¤¤=\~:, ,:~\=¤¤¤£@
@¤¤¤¤=\~:, ,:~\=¤¤¤¤@
#@£¤¤=\~:, WINDS ESKER ,:~\=¤¤£@#
£¤¤¤¤=\~:, ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ,:~\=¤¤¤¤£
##@¤¤=\~:, ,:~\=¤¤@##
£¤\\\:,,,, THERE WAS THIS PLACE THAT FOR TWO YEARS ,,,,:\\\¤£
#@£¤¤=\~:, I COULDN'T GO TO. REGARDLESS HOW MUCH ,:~\=¤¤£@#
#@£¤¤=\~:, DISCUSSED WITH OTHERS, OR POINTED OUT ,:~\=¤¤£@#
£¤==~:,,,, ON MAPS, I COULD NOT THINK OF IT WHEN ,,,,:~==¤£
£¤¤¤¤=\~:, ALONE. I WOULD OFTEN TRAVEL PAST THE ,:~\=¤¤¤¤£
£¤¤=~,,,,, FORK, WHERE A RIGHT TURN WOULD SURELY ,,,,,~=¤¤£
¤=\\~~,,,, TAKE ME THERE, BUT EVEN THEN, SOMETHING ,,,,~~\\=¤
££¤¤¤=\~:, KEPT ME AWAY. ,:~\=¤¤¤££
##@¤¤=\~:, ,:~\=¤¤@##
#@£¤¤=\~:, WHEN I FINALLY GOT THERE, AFTER SOME ,:~\=¤¤£@#
£££¤¤=\~:, HEAVY SUBCONSCIOUS BATTLE I MUST ,:~\=¤¤£££
¤=~:,,,,,, ASSUME, THE PLACE WAS SURREAL. AN ,,,,,,:~=¤
£¤¤¤¤=\~:, ESKER, LIKE A NEEDLE-THIN RIFT OUT IN ,:~\=¤¤¤¤£
£¤¤¤\\~~:, THE LAKE, BUT TEN METERS HIGH AND ,:~~\\¤¤¤£
#@£¤¤=\~:, ADORNED IN BIRCH, WILLOW, BRACKEN, AND ,:~\=¤¤£@#
@@£¤¤=\~:, BLUEBERRIES. ,:~\=¤¤£@@
#@£¤¤=\~:, ,:~\=¤¤£@#
¤¤\\:,,,,, WALKING ATOP THAT SPINE, I CAME TO ,,,,,:\\¤¤
¤=~,,,,,,, NOTICE THE VIEW TO EITHER SIDE. THERE ,,,,,,,~=¤
£¤¤=~~,,,, SHOULD BE SHORES, OF COURSE, BUT I ,,,,~~=¤¤£
##@¤¤=\~:, DIDN'T RECOGNIZE THEM. FIRST OFF, THEY ,:~\=¤¤@##
@@£¤¤=\~:, WERE MUCH TOO CLOSE, AS THE LAKE SHOULD ,:~\=¤¤£@@
¤¤=\:,,,,, STRETCH FOR A HUNDRED METERS MORE ON ,,,,,:\=¤¤
##£¤¤=\~:, BOTH SIDES. BUT NOW I FELT I COULD ,:~\=¤¤£##
##@£¤¤=\~: ALMOST REACH OUT AND TOUCH THEM. AND :~\=¤¤£@##
#@£¤¤=\~:, THEN, WHEN I REALIZED WHICH SHORES THEY ,:~\=¤¤£@#
@¤¤¤¤=\~:, WERE, I HAD TO STOP. ,:~\=¤¤¤¤@
£¤¤\:,,,,, ,,,,,:\¤¤£
##£¤¤=\~:, THEY WERE OF THE RIGHT LAKE. BUT THIS ,:~\=¤¤£##
@¤¤\\\\~:, LAKE IS LARGE, FRACTURED, AND ,:~\\\\¤¤@
@¤¤\:,,,,, BIPARTITE. LIKE A PAIR OF LUNGS CARVED ,,,,,:\¤¤@
@££¤¤=\~:, INTO THE GRANITE, AND WITH NO LESS THAN ,:~\=¤¤££@
#@£¤¤=\~:, FIVE COMMUNITIES ANCHORED AT VARIOUS ,:~\=¤¤£@#
¤¤==\\:::, POINTS. AND SO, STUDYING THESE ,:::\\==¤¤
£¤=~,,,,,, IMPOSSIBLY CLOSE SHORES, I SLOWLY ,,,,,,~=¤£
¤=~:,,,,,, UNDERSTOOD THEM AS BELONGING MANY MILES ,,,,,,:~=¤
@@£¤¤=\~:, AWAY. ,:~\=¤¤£@@
¤¤\~:,,,,, ,,,,,:~\¤¤
£¤¤¤¤=\~:, I EXAMINED THE RIDGE, THE TREELINE ,:~\=¤¤¤¤£
##@¤¤=\~:, ABOVE. WAS THIS WHAT YOU SAW OPPOSITE, ,:~\=¤¤@##
@¤¤¤\~,,,, FROM THOSE OTHER SHORES? I COULDN'T ,,,,~\¤¤¤@
¤¤¤¤=~~,,, REMEMBER. ,,,~~=¤¤¤¤
##@£¤=\~:, ,:~\=¤£@##
#@£¤¤=\~:, CARRYING FORWARD, ON THE VERY TIP OF ,:~\=¤¤£@#
£¤=~~~~~:, THE ESKER, I FOUND THE RUINS OF SOME ,:~~~~~=¤£
##£¤¤=\~:, OLD BUILDING. THERE WERE OVERGROWN ,:~\=¤¤£##
##£¤¤=\~:, MARBLE STAIRCASES, STONE FLOORS BENEATH ,:~\=¤¤£##
#@£¤¤=\~:, THE MOSS, AND STRANGE SLABS INSERTED ,:~\=¤¤£@#
£¤=~~:,,,, INTO THE SLOPE LIKE DAMS AGAINST THE ,,,,:~~=¤£
@¤=~~~~~:, GROUND ITSELF. ,:~~~~~=¤@
##£¤¤=\~:, ,:~\=¤¤£##
##@£¤=\~:, SITTING THERE, I COULD SEE ACROSS THE ,:~\=¤£@##
¤¤=\\~,,,, NARROWED LAKE MY ENTIRE PATH TO WHERE I ,,,,~\\=¤¤
#@£¤¤=\~:, SAT: FROM THE STAIRWELL OF MY HOUSE, ,:~\=¤¤£@#
#@£¤¤=\~:, THROUGH THE OLD WOODS BEHIND THE TILE ,:~\=¤¤£@#
#@£¤¤=\~:, FACTORY, THE BRIDGE OVER ROUTE ,:~\=¤¤£@#
##@£¤=\~:, TWENTY THREE AND THEN BACK UNDER IT, ,:~\=¤£@##
£¤=\~,,,,, THROUGH THE FANCY VILLAS, OVER THE ,,,,,~\=¤£
#@£¤¤=\~:, FIELDS, AND THEN THAT RIGHT TURN AT THE ,:~\=¤¤£@#
¤==~,,,,,, FORK. ,,,,,,~==¤
@@£¤¤=\~:, ,:~\=¤¤£@@
¤¤¤=\:,,,, AND THEN THE STAIRS UP ON THE RIDGE. ,,,,:\=¤¤¤
££¤¤\:,,,, THINKING BACK, THIS WAS PROBABLY IT. ,,,,:\¤¤££
#@£¤¤=\~:, HIDDEN IN A GROVE, THERE WERE STAIRS ,:~\=¤¤£@#
¤¤\:,,,,,, MUCH LIKE THE ONES I CURRENTLY SAT ON, ,,,,,,:\¤¤
¤¤\~,,,,,, OLD AND WORN DOWN, THAT LEAD YOU UP ,,,,,,~\¤¤
##@¤¤=\~:, ONTO THE ESKER. THE POINT OF ENTRY. HAD ,:~\=¤¤@##
##@£¤=\~:, I INSTED OPTED TO WALK THE PATH AT ITS ,:~\=¤£@##
¤¤\:,,,,,, FOOT, I'M SURE MY EXPERIENCE WOULD'VE ,,,,,,:\¤¤
##£¤¤=\~:, BEEN DIFFERENT INDEED. ,:~\=¤¤£##
@£¤¤¤=\~:, ,:~\=¤¤¤£@
##@£¤¤=\~, ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ,~\=¤¤£@##
##@£¤¤=\~: :~\=¤¤£@##
£££¤¤=\~:, ON THE LAKE, THERE WERE PEOPLE IN ,:~\=¤¤£££
¤==~~~,,,, BOATS. I WONDERED, COULD THEY EVEN SEE ,,,,~~~==¤
@@£¤¤=\~:, ME? IF I SHOUTED, WOULD THEY TURN TO ,:~\=¤¤£@@
¤====\:::, STARE RIGHT THROUGH ME? ,:::\====¤
¤¤=~~~~:,, ,,:~~~~=¤¤
£¤==\~~,,, ,,,~~\==¤£
@@£¤¤=\~:, ,:~\=¤¤£@@
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