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###@£†/~^. .^/ THE SPIRE ~/. .^~/†£@###
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££@@†~^^^. /~^ ONCE UPON A TIME, THERE WAS A /^~ .^^^~†@@££
##@£@†/~^. /^~ BENEVOLENT SPIRE, TOWERING WELL ^/~ .^~/†@£@##
##@£@†/~^. ^/~ ABOVE OUR TALLEST TREES. IT WAS ^~/ .^~/†@£@##
£†/~^^.... ^~/ CLAD IN WHITE SCALES, AND SHAPED ~^/ ....^^~/†£
###@£@†/~^ ~^/ LIKED A MUSHROOM. ~/^ ^~/†@£@###
#£££@†/~^. ~/^ WE LOVED IT DEARLY. /~^ .^~/†@£££#
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##@£@†/~^. /^~ IT PREDATED US BY MANY YEARS, ^/~ .^~/†@£@##
£@††//^... ^/~ AND WE DID NOT KNOW ITS ORIGINAL ^~/ ...^//††@£
##@£@†/~^. ^~/ BUILDERS. THEY HAD USED ITS ~^/ .^~/†@£@##
##@£@†/~^. ~^/ HOLLOW BODY FOR MANY STRANGE ~/^ .^~/†@£@##
@@/^...... ~/^ PURPOSES - A WOMBLIKE PLACE OF /~^ ......^/@@
£†~~...... /~^ GESTATION, A STORAGE OF STRAGE /^~ ......~~†£
£@@@/^.... /^~ FLUIDS, A TEMPLE TO SOME KIND OF ^/~ ....^/@@@£
£@/~~^.... ^/~ ARCANE DEITY. ^~/ ....^~~/@£
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##@£@†/~^. ~^/ WE WERE GRATEFUL FOR ITS ~/^ .^~/†@£@##
££@@@†/~^. ~/^ PRESENCE, AND HONORED IT THE /~^ .^~/†@@@££
##@£@†/~^. /~^ ONLY WAY WE KNEW HOW: BY /^~ .^~/†@£@##
#@@/^..... .^~ BREAKING IN. ^~. .....^/@@#
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@£@†††/~^. .~/ THIS PLACE WE CALLED OUR CITY: ^/~ .^~/†††@£@
@@@/^..... ^/~ WAVY AND FRACTURED, WITH EACH /^~ .....^/@@@
£†~....... /^~ COURTYARD ON A DIFFERENT HEIGHT, /~^ .......~†£
##@£@†/~^. /~^ ROADS BECOMING ROOFS BECOMING ~/^ .^~/†@£@##
##@£@†/~^. ~/^ DRAINS. AND SOME PLACES, LIKE ~^/ .^~/†@£@##
##@£@†/~^. ~^/ THE SPIRE, NOBODY HAD ACCESSED ^~/ .^~/†@£@##
##@£@†/~^. ^~/ FOR MANY YEARS. ONCE ITS WALLS ^/~ .^~/†@£@##
£@/^...... ^/~ ARE JUST TOO HIGH, AND THE /^~ ......^/@£
@£@@†//~^. /^~ INTERNAL ROUTES TO LABYRINTHINE, /~^ .^~//†@@£@
##@£@†/~^. /~^ A PLACE AMONG OTHERS IS EASILY ~/^ .^~/†@£@##
#@@£@†/~^. ~/^ OVERLOOKED. ^~/ .^~/†@£@@#
##@£@†/~^. ^~/~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~^/~ .^~/†@£@##
£@†///~~^. ^/~ SO, BASICALLY, THAT SUMMER THE /^~ .^~~///†@£
£††††//~^. /^~ FOUR OF US SNUCK AND CLIMBED AND ~^/ .^~//††††£
£@//~^.... /~^ CRAWLED FOR WEEKS, SEARCHING FOR ~/^ ....^~//@£
@@†/^..... ~/^ A SECLUDED PLACE TO DO DRUGS AND ~^/ .....^/†@@
££@†/~.... ~^/ PLAY MUSIC ON OUR HANDHELDS. ^~/ ....~/†@££
£††///~~^. ^~/ INSTEAD WE FOUND VAST LUNGS ^/~ .^~~///††£
##@£@†/~^. ^/~ DRAINED OF THEIR CATALYST /^~ .^~/†@£@##
@@@†//^... /^~ SLUDGE, AND A BIRDS-EYE VIEW TO /~^ ...^//†@@@
£££†//^... /~^ MAKE SENSE OF OUR ROAMINGS FOR ~/^ ...^//†£££
@@@£@†/~^. ~/^ YEARS TO COME. ~^/ .^~/†@£@@@
##@£@†/~^. ~^/~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~^~/ .^~/†@£@##
##@£@†/~^. ^~/ A CENTRAL SPINE, A STAIRCASE ^/~ .^~/†@£@##
#@@///^^^. ^/~ AROUND IT, THE SEVEN TOROIDAL /^~ .^^^///@@#
£@/~~~^^.. /^~ LUNGS STACKED OUTSIDE, AND THE /~^ ..^^~~~/@£
##@£@†/~^. /~^ CONTROL ROOM ON TOP. THE SOCKETS ~/^ .^~/†@£@##
##@£@†/~^. ~/^ FOR ITS EYES. THE SMALLER SPIRES ~^/ .^~/†@£@##
##@£@†/~^. ~^/ FOR RADIATING CONSCIOUSNESS ^~/ .^~/†@£@##
#££@†~~... .~/ INVITATIONS. ^/. ...~~†@££#
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##@£@†/~^. .^/ IN TWENTY FOURTEEN, THE TOWER IS /~^ .^~/†@£@##
£@@†~^.... ~/^ TOPPLED AND EATEN BY MACHINES. /^~ ....^~†@@£
£@@@/~.... /~^ AFTER A WHILE, SOMETHING NEW IS ^/~ ....~/@@@£
##@£@†/~^. /^~ CONJURED IN ITS PLACE. IT'S A ^~/ .^~/†@£@##
##@£@†/~^. ^/~ TINY MAW AT FIRST, SHORTER THAN ~^/ .^~/†@£@##
##@£@†/~^. ^~/ US, AND WE LET IT BE. OUR ~/^ .^~/†@£@##
##@£@†/~^. ~^/ JOURNEYS STILL END AT ITS FEET. /~^ .^~/†@£@##
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##@£@†/~^. /~^ BUT THEN WE ARE BETRAYED. THE ^/~ .^~/†@£@##
£†/^^^.... /^~ NEW TOWER EATS US. OTHERS ARE ^~/ ....^^^/†£
###@@†/~^. ^/~ SUCKED INSIDE. NEW BUILDINGS ARE ~^/ .^~/†@@###
@@@//~~^^. ^~/ MANIFESTED OVERNIGHT, ONLY TO ~/^ .^^~~//@@@
@@†//~~... ~^/ DISAPPEAR IN THE EVENING FOG. /~^ ...~~//†@@
£††//~^... ~/^ FOR A WHILE ITS SOME KIND OF /^~ ...^~//††£
#@@£@†/~^. /~^ TIMESHARE SCAM. GOONS ARE PLACED ^/~ .^~/†@£@@#
£@/^...... /^~ OUTSIDE, AND WE GET BEATEN UP A ^~/ ......^/@£
##@£@†/~^. ^/~ FEW TIMES, AND STOP GOING. ~^/ .^~/†@£@##
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££££@†/~^. ~^/ IIRC IT'S CURRENTLY OWNED BY /~^ .^~/†@££££
##@£@†/~^. ~/^ SOME ENERGY DRINK BARON WHO USES /^~ .^~/†@£@##
##@£@†/~^. /~^ IT TO HOLD ALL HIS FOURTY EIGHT ^/~ .^~/†@£@##
#@£†~~.... .^~ CARS..... ^~. ....~~†£@#
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