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##£/~..... WINDS ESKER .....~/£##
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####£§/~^. THERE WAS THIS PLACE THAT FOR TWO YEARS .^~/§£####
#£/~~..... I COULDN'T GO TO. REGARDLESS HOW MUCH .....~~/£#
#@##£§/~^. DISCUSSED WITH OTHERS, OR POINTED OUT .^~/§£##@#
###§§~^^.. ON MAPS, I COULD NOT THINK OF IT WHEN ..^^~§§###
#@##£§/~^. ALONE. I WOULD OFTEN TRAVEL PAST THE .^~/§£##@#
####£§/~^. FORK, WHERE A RIGHT TURN WOULD SURELY .^~/§£####
@###£§/~^. TAKE ME THERE, BUT EVEN THEN, SOMETHING .^~/§£###@
#££§§§/~^. KEPT ME AWAY. .^~/§§§££#
#@##£§/~^. .^~/§£##@#
@#££§§/~^. WHEN I FINALLY GOT THERE, AFTER SOME .^~/§§££#@
#@##£§/~^. HEAVY SUBCONSCIOUS BATTLE I MUST .^~/§£##@#
##§///~^.. ASSUME, THE PLACE WAS SURREAL. AN ..^~///§##
#@##£§/~^. ESKER, LIKE A NEEDLE-THIN RIFT OUT IN .^~/§£##@#
#@##£§/~^. THE LAKE, BUT TEN METERS HIGH AND .^~/§£##@#
@#£££§/~^. ADORNED IN BIRCH, WILLOW, BRACKEN, AND .^~/§£££#@
##£§~..... BLUEBERRIES. .....~§£##
#££££§/~^. .^~/§££££#
###£/^.... WALKING ATOP THAT SPINE, I CAME TO ....^/£###
##§~...... NOTICE THE VIEW TO EITHER SIDE. THERE ......~§##
#@##£§/~^. SHOULD BE SHORES, OF COURSE, BUT I .^~/§£##@#
##£/^^.... DIDN'T RECOGNIZE THEM. FIRST OFF, THEY ....^^/£##
#@##£§/~^. WERE MUCH TOO CLOSE, AS THE LAKE SHOULD .^~/§£##@#
@@##£§/~^. STRETCH FOR A HUNDRED METERS MORE ON .^~/§£##@@
#@##£§/~^. BOTH SIDES. BUT NOW I FELT I COULD .^~/§£##@#
#§~....... ALMOST REACH OUT AND TOUCH THEM. AND .......~§#
@###£§/~^. THEN, WHEN I REALIZED WHICH SHORES THEY .^~/§£###@
#@##£§/~^. WERE, I HAD TO STOP. .^~/§£##@#
###£§~~~^. .^~~~§£###
@@##£§/~^. THEY WERE OF THE RIGHT LAKE. BUT THIS .^~/§£##@@
@###£§/~^. LAKE IS LARGE, FRACTURED, AND .^~/§£###@
#@##£§/~^. BIPARTITE. LIKE A PAIR OF LUNGS CARVED .^~/§£##@#
#@##£§/~^. INTO THE GRANITE, AND WITH NO LESS THAN .^~/§£##@#
###£§/^^.. FIVE COMMUNITIES ANCHORED AT VARIOUS ..^^/§£###
##§~...... POINTS. AND SO, STUDYING THESE ......~§##
@@##£§/~^. IMPOSSIBLY CLOSE SHORES, I SLOWLY .^~/§£##@@
####£§/~^. UNDERSTOOD THEM AS BELONGING MANY MILES .^~/§£####
##£§/~^^.. AWAY. ..^^~/§£##
#£§/~~^... ...^~~/§£#
##£/~^^... I EXAMINED THE RIDGE, THE TREELINE ...^^~/£##
#@##£§/~^. ABOVE. WAS THIS WHAT YOU SAW OPPOSITE, .^~/§£##@#
#£££/^.... FROM THOSE OTHER SHORES? I COULDN'T ....^/£££#
##@##£§/~^ REMEMBER. ^~/§£##@##
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#£§§§//~^. CARRYING FORWARD, ON THE VERY TIP OF .^~//§§§£#
#@##£§/~^. THE ESKER, I FOUND THE RUINS OF SOME .^~/§£##@#
####£§/~^. OLD BUILDING. THERE WERE OVERGROWN .^~/§£####
#§§§§~.... MARBLE STAIRCASES, STONE FLOORS BENEATH ....~§§§§#
#@##£§/~^. THE MOSS, AND STRANGE SLABS INSERTED .^~/§£##@#
#@##£§/~^. INTO THE SLOPE LIKE DAMS AGAINST THE .^~/§£##@#
#@##£§/~^. GROUND ITSELF. .^~/§£##@#
@###£§/~^. .^~/§£###@
#@##£§/~^. SITTING THERE, I COULD SEE ACROSS THE .^~/§£##@#
#@##£§/~^. NARROWED LAKE MY ENTIRE PATH TO WHERE I .^~/§£##@#
#@##£§/~^. SAT: FROM THE STAIRWELL OF MY HOUSE, .^~/§£##@#
#@##£§/~^. THROUGH THE OLD WOODS BEHIND THE TILE .^~/§£##@#
####£§/~^. FACTORY, THE BRIDGE OVER ROUTE .^~/§£####
#£§~^..... TWENTY THREE AND THEN BACK UNDER IT, .....^~§£#
@#£§§~^... THROUGH THE FANCY VILLAS, OVER THE ...^~§§£#@
#@##£§/~^. FIELDS, AND THEN THAT RIGHT TURN AT THE .^~/§£##@#
@@##£§/~^. FORK. .^~/§£##@@
@#£//~~~^. .^~~~//£#@
##@#£§/~^. AND THEN THE STAIRS UP ON THE RIDGE. .^~/§£#@##
##@#£§/~^. THINKING BACK, THIS WAS PROBABLY IT. .^~/§£#@##
@#£§§~~^.. HIDDEN IN A GROVE, THERE WERE STAIRS ..^~~§§£#@
#@##£§/~^. MUCH LIKE THE ONES I CURRENTLY SAT ON, .^~/§£##@#
@@##£§/~^. OLD AND WORN DOWN, THAT LEAD YOU UP .^~/§£##@@
##££///~^. ONTO THE ESKER. THE POINT OF ENTRY. HAD .^~///££##
##£§~~^... I INSTED OPTED TO WALK THE PATH AT ITS ...^~~§£##
#@##£§/~^. FOOT, I'M SURE MY EXPERIENCE WOULD'VE .^~/§£##@#
#@##£§/~^. BEEN DIFFERENT INDEED. .^~/§£##@#
#£/~^^.... ....^^~/£#
#@##£§/~^. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ .^~/§£##@#
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#@##£§/~^. ON THE LAKE, THERE WERE PEOPLE IN .^~/§£##@#
#@##£§/~^. BOATS. I WONDERED, COULD THEY EVEN SEE .^~/§£##@#
##§/~..... ME? IF I SHOUTED, WOULD THEY TURN TO .....~/§##
@#£§~~^... STARE RIGHT THROUGH ME? ...^~~§£#@
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