$/~^...... ......^~/$
$$/~^..... .....^~/$$
#$$/~^.... ....^~/$$#
##$$/~^... ...^~/$$##
###$$/~^.. ..^~/$$###
####$$/~^. ...^^^////////////////////////////^^^... .^~/$$####
###$$/~^.. .^/ THE SPIRE ~/. ..^~/$$###
##$$/~^... ~/^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~/~^ ...^~/$$##
#$$/~^.... /~^ ONCE UPON A TIME, THERE WAS A /^~ ....^~/$$#
$$/~^..... /^~ BENEVOLENT SPIRE, TOWERING WELL ^/~ .....^~/$$
$/~^...... ^/~ ABOVE OUR TALLEST TREES. IT WAS ^~/ ......^~/$
/~^....... ^~/ CLAD IN WHITE SCALES, AND SHAPED ~^/ .......^~/
~^........ ~^/ LIKED A MUSHROOM. ~/^ ........^~
^......... ~/^ WE LOVED IT DEARLY. /~^ .........^
~^........ /~^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~/^~ ........^~
/~^....... /^~ IT PREDATED US BY MANY YEARS, ^/~ .......^~/
$/~^...... ^/~ AND WE DID NOT KNOW ITS ORIGINAL ^~/ ......^~/$
$$/~^..... ^~/ BUILDERS. THEY HAD USED ITS ~^/ .....^~/$$
#$$/~^.... ~^/ HOLLOW BODY FOR MANY STRANGE ~/^ ....^~/$$#
##$$/~^... ~/^ PURPOSES - A WOMBLIKE PLACE OF /~^ ...^~/$$##
###$$/~^.. /~^ GESTATION, A STORAGE OF STRAGE /^~ ..^~/$$###
####$$/~^. /^~ FLUIDS, A TEMPLE TO SOME KIND OF ^/~ .^~/$$####
###$$/~^.. ^/~ ARCANE DEITY. ^~/ ..^~/$$###
##$$/~^... ^~/~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~^/ ...^~/$$##
#$$/~^.... ~^/ WE WERE GRATEFUL FOR ITS ~/^ ....^~/$$#
$$/~^..... ~/^ PRESENCE, AND HONORED IT THE /~^ .....^~/$$
$/~^...... /~^ ONLY WAY WE KNEW HOW: BY /^~ ......^~/$
/~^....... .^~ BREAKING IN. ^~. .......^~/
~^........ ...^^^////////////////////////////^^^... ........^~
^......... .........^
~^........ ........^~
/~^....... ...^^^////////////////////////////^^^... .......^~/
$/~^...... .~/ THIS PLACE WE CALLED OUR CITY: ^/~ ......^~/$
$$/~^..... ^/~ WAVY AND FRACTURED, WITH EACH /^~ .....^~/$$
#$$/~^.... /^~ COURTYARD ON A DIFFERENT HEIGHT, /~^ ....^~/$$#
##$$/~^... /~^ ROADS BECOMING ROOFS BECOMING ~/^ ...^~/$$##
###$$/~^.. ~/^ DRAINS. AND SOME PLACES, LIKE ~^/ ..^~/$$###
####$$/~^. ~^/ THE SPIRE, NOBODY HAD ACCESSED ^~/ .^~/$$####
###$$/~^.. ^~/ FOR MANY YEARS. ONCE ITS WALLS ^/~ ..^~/$$###
##$$/~^... ^/~ ARE JUST TOO HIGH, AND THE /^~ ...^~/$$##
#$$/~^.... /^~ INTERNAL ROUTES TO LABYRINTHINE, /~^ ....^~/$$#
$$/~^..... /~^ A PLACE AMONG OTHERS IS EASILY ~/^ .....^~/$$
$/~^...... ~/^ OVERLOOKED. ^~/ ......^~/$
/~^....... ^~/~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~^/~ .......^~/
~^........ ^/~ 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. ^/. .........^
~^........ ...^^^////////////////////////////^^^... ........^~
/~^....... .......^~/
$/~^...... ...^^^////////////////////////////^^^... ......^~/$
$$/~^..... .^/ IN TWENTY FOURTEEN, THE TOWER IS /~^ .....^~/$$
#$$/~^.... ~/^ TOPPLED AND EATEN BY MACHINES. /^~ ....^~/$$#
##$$/~^... /~^ AFTER A WHILE, SOMETHING NEW IS ^/~ ...^~/$$##
###$$/~^.. /^~ CONJURED IN ITS PLACE. IT'S A ^~/ ..^~/$$###
####$$/~^. ^/~ TINY MAW AT FIRST, SHORTER THAN ~^/ .^~/$$####
###$$/~^.. ^~/ US, AND WE LET IT BE. OUR ~/^ ..^~/$$###
##$$/~^... ~^/ JOURNEYS STILL END AT ITS FEET. /~^ ...^~/$$##
#$$/~^.... ~/^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~/^~ ....^~/$$#
$$/~^..... /~^ BUT THEN WE ARE BETRAYED. THE ^/~ .....^~/$$
$/~^...... /^~ NEW TOWER EATS US. OTHERS ARE ^~/ ......^~/$
/~^....... ^/~ 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 ^/~ .......^~/
$/~^...... /^~ OUTSIDE, AND WE GET BEATEN UP A ^~/ ......^~/$
$$/~^..... ^/~ FEW TIMES, AND STOP GOING. ~^/ .....^~/$$
#$$/~^.... ^~/~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~/^ ....^~/$$#
##$$/~^... ~^/ IIRC IT'S CURRENTLY OWNED BY /~^ ...^~/$$##
###$$/~^.. ~/^ SOME ENERGY DRINK BARON WHO USES /^~ ..^~/$$###
####$$/~^. /~^ IT TO HOLD ALL HIS FOURTY EIGHT ^/~ .^~/$$####
###$$/~^.. .^~ CARS..... ^~. ..^~/$$###
##$$/~^... ...^^^////////////////////////////^^^... ...^~/$$##
#$$/~^.... ....^~/$$#
$$/~^..... .....^~/$$
$/~^...... ......^~/$
/~^....... .......^~/
~^........ ........^~