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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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