¨,«\†£§@@@ @@@§£†\«,¨
¨,«\†£§@@@ @@@§£†\«,¨
¨,«\†£@@## ##@@£†\«,¨
¨,«\†£§@@# #@@§£†\«,¨
¨,«\†£@@## ##@@£†\«,¨
¨,«\†££§§@ 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. ##@@§£†«,¨
¨¨¨¨¨¨«†§@ @§†«¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨¨«†§§§ §§§†«¨¨¨¨¨
¨,«\\††§§@ @§§††\\«,¨
,«\†£§@@## ##@@§£†\«,
¨¨¨¨¨«†£§@ @§£†«¨¨¨¨¨