###&§*\~^¨ ¨^~\*§##
&&§§\^^¨¨¨ ¨¨¨^^\§§&&
##&&§*\~^¨ ¨^~\*§&#
###&§*\~^¨ ¨^~\*§##
#§*\\^¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨^\\*§#
###&§*\~^¨ ¨¨¨^^^\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\^^^¨¨¨ ¨^~\*§##
&§*\^¨¨¨¨¨ ¨^\ 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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