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