@££@§†-~..                                          ..~-†§@££@
#@££@§†-~.                                          .~-†§@££@#
@££@§†-~..                                          ..~-†§@££@
££@§†-~...                                          ...~-†§@££
@££@§†-~..                                          ..~-†§@££@
#@££@§†-~. ...~~~††††††††††††††††††††††††††††~~~... .~-†§@££@#
@££@§†-~.. .~†            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.....             ~-. ..~-†§@££@
££@§†-~... ...~~~††††††††††††††††††††††††††††~~~... ...~-†§@££
@££@§†-~..                                          ..~-†§@££@
#@££@§†-~.                                          .~-†§@££@#
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