¨~~***§§¶¶ ¶¶§§***~~¨
¨¨¨¨¨~~*§§ §§*~~¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨~~**§¶# #¶§**~~¨¨¨
¨¨~~~~~~*§ §*~~~~~~¨¨
¨¨¨~~~***§ §***~~~¨¨¨
¨~~**§¶### ¨¨¨~~~****************************~~~¨¨¨ ###¶§**~~¨
¨~~***§¶## ¨~* 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..... ~~¨ #¶§§***~~¨
¨¨¨~****§§ ¨¨¨~~~****************************~~~¨¨¨ §§****~¨¨¨
¨~~***§¶## ##¶§***~~¨
¨¨¨¨¨¨~*§¶ ¶§*~¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨~***§§ §§***~¨¨¨¨
¨~~***§¶## ##¶§***~~¨
¨¨~~~****§ §****~~~¨¨