###£@$†~,¨ ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ ¨,~†$@£###
#£$$~¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨~$$£#
###£@$†~,¨ ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ GRAY SKIES, SWIRLING WITH SOOT. STONY ¨,~†$@£###
#£$~,¨¨¨¨¨ GROUND WITH NO HINTS OF VEGETATION. ¨¨¨¨¨,~$£#
###£@$†~,¨ ¨,~†$@£###
#£$†~,¨¨¨¨ BELOW THE SURFACE ARE THE MINES, ¨¨¨¨,~†$£#
£$†,,,,¨¨¨ SPIRALING DOWN INTO THE CRUST. SMALL ¨¨¨,,,,†$£
###£@$†~,¨ COMPARED TO THE CAVERNS THEY EVENTUALLY ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ REACH AND JOIN WITH. THE TEMPERATURE IS ¨,~†$@£###
£$$~,¨¨¨¨¨ HIGHER DOWN HERE, AND THE VIEW IS NOT ¨¨¨¨¨,~$$£
#££@$††~,¨ AS MONOCHROME: A GREEN LIGHT BECKONS ¨,~††$@££#
###£@$†~,¨ FROM BELOW. ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ LONG AGO, THERE WAS A LIFEFORM HERE. IN ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ THE CENTER OF THE PLANETOID, SOMETHING ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ DORMANT, WAITING FOR A COLLISION WITH ¨,~†$@£###
####£$†~,¨ ANOTHER BODY. BUT NO PLANET WAS ¨,~†$£####
#£@†††~~,¨ REACHED, AND OVER TIME, THE SEEDLING ¨,~~†††@£#
###£@$†~,¨ BECAME A SLUDGE. ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ AND ELVES CAME AS MINERS, AND THE ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ SLUDGE WAS BOTTLED. ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ ¨,~†$@£###
####@$†~,¨ ######################################## ¨,~†$@####
#@†,,¨¨¨¨¨ # # ¨¨¨¨¨,,†@#
£££@$~,¨¨¨ # ######£#££££££££££££££££££££#£###### # ¨¨¨,~$@£££
££$†,¨¨¨¨¨ # # # # ¨¨¨¨¨,†$££
###£@$†~,¨ # # ###£$£$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$£$£### # # ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ # # # # # # ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ # # # THE CARGO SHIP IS FILLED, # # # ¨,~†$@£###
####£$†~,¨ @ # # PREPARED FOR LAUNCH, # # @ ¨,~†$£####
£@$†~¨¨¨¨¨ $ # # IGNITION SEQUENCE STARTED # # $ ¨¨¨¨¨~†$@£
£$$$†,,¨¨¨ † £ # HOURS AGO. ELVES IN THE # £ † ¨¨¨,,†$$$£
###£@$†~,¨ † $ £ PASSENGER CABIN, NOT YET £ $ † ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ ~ † £ SEATED. BUT SOMETHING IS £ † ~ ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ ~ ~ @ WRONG. THERE IS SOMETHING @ ~ ~ ¨,~†$@£###
#££@@$†~,¨ , , $ GREEN AROUND THEIR MOUTHS. $ , , ¨,~†$@@££#
###£@$†~,¨ , , † THE SLUDGE HAS BEEN SAMPLED, † , , ¨,~†$@£###
£$$$~~,,¨¨ , , ~ ENTERTAINED, AND THEN ~ , , ¨¨,,~~$$$£
###£@$†~,¨ , , , FINALLY BINGED ON. , , , ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ ¨ ¨ ¨ ¨ ¨ ¨ ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ ¨ ¨ ¨ THE ENGINES ARE BURNING HOT, ¨ ¨ ¨ ¨,~†$@£###
£@$†~~,¨¨¨ AND THE SHIP ACCELERATES ¨¨¨,~~†$@£
###£@$†~,¨ AWAY. THE ELVES HAVE ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ STRAPPED THEMSELVES IN, AND ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ ARE LYING COMPLETELY STILL, ¨,~†$@£###
###£@$†~,¨ LIKE CORPSES. ¨,~†$@£###
#£@††††~,¨ ¨,~††††@£#
####£@$~,¨ ¨,~$@£####
##@††~,¨¨¨ ¨¨¨,~††@##
#£@†,¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨,†@£#
###£@$†~,¨ ¨,~†$@£###