##¶£*%/~:,                                          ,:~/%*£¶##
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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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