=~^¨¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨¨^~=
~^¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨^~
=~^¨¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨¨^~=
$=~^¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨^~=$
$$=~^¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨^~=$$
#$$=~^¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨^^^============================^^^¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨^~=$$#
##$$=~^¨¨¨ ¨^= The Spire ~=¨ ¨¨¨^~=$$##
###$$=~^¨¨ ~=^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~=~^ ¨¨^~=$$###
####$$=~^¨ =~^ Once Upon A Time, There Was A =^~ ¨^~=$$####
###$$=~^¨¨ =^~ Benevolent Spire, Towering Well ^=~ ¨¨^~=$$###
##$$=~^¨¨¨ ^=~ Above Our Tallest Trees. It Was ^~= ¨¨¨^~=$$##
#$$=~^¨¨¨¨ ^~= Clad In White Scales, And Shaped ~^= ¨¨¨¨^~=$$#
$$=~^¨¨¨¨¨ ~^= Liked A Mushroom. ~=^ ¨¨¨¨¨^~=$$
$=~^¨¨¨¨¨¨ ~=^ We Loved It Dearly. =~^ ¨¨¨¨¨¨^~=$
=~^¨¨¨¨¨¨¨ =~^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~=^~ ¨¨¨¨¨¨¨^~=
~^¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨ =^~ 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..... ^~¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨¨^~=
$=~^¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨^^^============================^^^¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨^~=$
$$=~^¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨^~=$$
#$$=~^¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨^~=$$#
##$$=~^¨¨¨ ¨¨¨^~=$$##
###$$=~^¨¨ ¨¨^~=$$###
####$$=~^¨ ¨^~=$$####