.......«/†                                          †/«.......
......«/†@                                          @†/«......
.....«/†@¶                                          ¶@†/«.....
....«/†@¶@                                          @¶@†/«....
...«/†@¶@#                                          #@¶@†/«...
..«/†@¶@## 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.               @¶@†/«....
.....«/†@¶                                          ¶@†/«.....
......«/†@                                          @†/«......
.......«/†                                          †/«.......
........«/                                          /«........
.........«                                          «.........