##@£$^\~~. .~~\^$£@##
£^^\~..... .....~\^^£
£^^\~~.... ....~~\^^£
###@£^\~~. .~~\^£@###
###@£$^\~. .~\^$£@###
###@£$\~~. gray skies, swirling with soot. stony .~~\$£@###
##@£$^\~~. 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, . . . .~~\^$$£££
##@£$^\~~. and the ship accelerates .~~\^$£@##
##@£$^\~~. away. the elves have .~~\^$£@##
##@£$^\~~. strapped themselves in, and .~~\^$£@##
#£££$^\~~. are lying completely still, .~~\^$£££#
##@£$^\~~. like corpses. .~~\^$£@##
##@£$^\~~. .~~\^$£@##
##@£$^\~~. .~~\^$£@##
#@£$\~.... ....~\$£@#
##@£$^\~~. .~~\^$£@##
@@@£$^\~~. .~~\^$£@@@