@@@§%§\«^. .^«\§%§@@@
#@@§%§\«^. .^«\§%§@@#
#@@§%§\«^. .^«\§%§@@#
@§%\«^.... ....^«\%§@
#@@§%§\«^. .^«\§%§@@#
#@@§%§\«^. 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. .^«\§%§@@#
@@@§%§\«^. .^«\§%§@@@
#@@§%§\«^. .^«\§%§@@#
§%%§§§\«^. .^«\§§§%%§
§%%§«..... .....«§%%§
#@@§%§\«^. .^«\§%§@@#