..,~\^¤¤@# #@¤¤^\~,..
.,~\^¤¤@## ##@¤¤^\~,.
..,~\^¤¤@# #@¤¤^\~,..
...,~\^¤¤@ @¤¤^\~,...
....,~\^¤¤ ¤¤^\~,....
.....,~\^¤ ...,,,\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\,,,... ¤^\~,.....
....,~\^¤¤ .,\ 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..... ,~. ¤¤^\~,....
...,~\^¤¤@ ...,,,\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\,,,... @¤¤^\~,...
..,~\^¤¤@# #@¤¤^\~,..
.,~\^¤¤@## ##@¤¤^\~,.
..,~\^¤¤@# #@¤¤^\~,..
...,~\^¤¤@ @¤¤^\~,...
....,~\^¤¤ ¤¤^\~,....