#*~~,,,,,, ,,,,,,~~*#
##$$***~~, ,~~***$$##
#@@#$**~~, ,~~**$#@@#
#@@#$**~~, ,~~**$#@@#
@$*~,,,,,, ,,,,,,~*$@
#@@#$**~~, ,,,~~~****************************~~~,,, ,~~**$#@@#
@@@#$**~~, ,~* The Spire ~*, ,~~**$#@@@
@@$*~~,,,, ~*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~~ ,,,,~~*$@@
@#$*~,,,,, *~~ Once Upon A Time, There Was A *~~ ,,,,,~*$#@
##@#$**~~, *~~ Benevolent Spire, Towering Well ~*~ ,~~**$#@##
##@#$**~~, ~*~ Above Our Tallest Trees. It Was ~~* ,~~**$#@##
@#$*~,,,,, ~~* Clad In White Scales, And Shaped ~~* ,,,,,~*$#@
#**~,,,,,, ~~* 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 ~*~ ,,,,~~~*#@
##@@#$*~~, ,~~ Cars..... ~~, ,~~*$#@@##
@@$*~~,,,, ,,,~~~****************************~~~,,, ,,,,~~*$@@
#@@#$**~~, ,~~**$#@@#
@@@#$**~~, ,~~**$#@@@
@@$**~,,,, ,,,,~**$@@
@#$**~,,,, ,,,,~**$#@
@@$*~~~,,, ,,,~~~*$@@