@†=~~..... .....~~=†@
†=~~...... ......~~=†
=~~....... .......~~=
~~........ ........~~
~......... .........~
~~........ ...~~~============================~~~... ........~~
=~~....... .~= 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..... ~~. .......~~=
†=~~...... ...~~~============================~~~... ......~~=†
@†=~~..... .....~~=†@
&@†=~~.... ....~~=†@&
¶&@†=~~... ...~~=†@&¶
#¶&@†=~~.. ..~~=†@&¶#
##¶&@†=~~. .~~=†@&¶##