##@@%%\~,. .,~\%%@@##
#@@%%\~,.. ..,~\%%@@#
@@%%\~,... ...,~\%%@@
@%%\~,.... ....,~\%%@
%%\~,..... .....,~\%%
%\~,...... ...,,,\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\,,,... ......,~\%
%%\~,..... .,\ 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..... ,~. .....,~\%%
@%%\~,.... ...,,,\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\,,,... ....,~\%%@
@@%%\~,... ...,~\%%@@
#@@%%\~,.. ..,~\%%@@#
##@@%%\~,. .,~\%%@@##
#@@%%\~,.. ..,~\%%@@#
@@%%\~,... ...,~\%%@@