@@£@@%/~:¨ ¨:~/%@@£@@
##£@@%/~:¨ ¨:~/%@@£##
£££@@%/~:¨ ¨:~/%@@£££
@@£@@%/~:¨ ¨:~/%@@£@@
@@@@%~~¨¨¨ ¨¨¨~~%@@@@
#@£@@%/~:¨ 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. ¨:~/%@@£@#
@@%~~:¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨:~~%@@
#@£@@%/~:¨ ¨:~/%@@£@#
##@£@%/~:¨ ¨:~/%@£@##
##@£@@/~:¨ ¨:~/@@£@##
@@@@@%/~:¨ ¨:~/%@@@@@