..&...&.&. &.&.&&&&&.
..&&..&&&& &&&&&....&
&.&.&.&... &....&...&
.&&&&&&&.. .&...&&..&
&&......&. .&&..&.&.&
..&.....&& 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. .&...&&...
....&&&&.. &&&..&.&..
....&...&. ...&.&&&&.
....&&..&& ...&&&...&
&...&.&.&. &..&..&..&
.&..&&&&&& &&.&&.&&.&