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,,,,##,,## ,,,^^^††††††††††††††††††††††††††††^^^,,, ,,,###,,,,
###,,,,,,, ,^† 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. ^-, #,,,,,,,,,
#,,,,,,,## ,,,^^^††††††††††††††††††††††††††††^^^,,, ,,########
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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. †-^ ,,,####,,#
###,,,,### -†^----------------------------------†^- ##,,##,,,,
,#,,##,,## †-^ 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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