§£^=~..... .....~=^£§
###¶£^=~.. ..~=^£¶###
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¶££==~.... ....~==££¶
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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. .~. .......=£¶
§££££^=~.. ......============================...... ..~=^££££§
##¶§£^=~.. ..~=^£§¶##
###¶§^=~.. ..~=^§¶###
¶¶¶§£^=~.. ......============================...... ..~=^£§¶¶¶
¶¶£^~..... .~= 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..... .~. ..~=^£§¶##
#¶£££^=~.. ......============================...... ..~=^£££¶#
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