/~^....... .......^~/
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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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