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#£@%*:--¨¨ 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. ¨--:*%@£##
#£@%*:--¨¨ ¨¨--:*%@£#
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#£@%*:--¨¨ £ # # # # £ ¨¨--:*%@£#
£@%*:--¨¨¨ £ # # 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. ¨¨--:*%@£#
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