@%†~,,,,,, ,,,,,,~†%@
@££$††,,,, ,,,,††$££@
#@@£%$†~,, ,,~†$%£@@#
@@£$††~,,, ,,,~††$£@@
#@@£%$†~,, ,,~†$%£@@#
#@@£%$†~,, WINDS ESKER ,,~†$%£@@#
#@@£%$†~,, ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ,,~†$%£@@#
@£%%%$†~,, ,,~†$%%%£@
£$†,,,,,,, THERE WAS THIS PLACE THAT FOR TWO YEARS ,,,,,,,†$£
@£%††,,,,, 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 ,,,,,,,†%£
#@@£%$†~,, THEN, WHEN I REALIZED WHICH SHORES THEY ,,~†$%£@@#
@@£%%$†~,, WERE, I HAD TO STOP. ,,~†$%%£@@
££$$†~,,,, ,,,,~†$$££
@£$~,,,,,, THEY WERE OF THE RIGHT LAKE. BUT THIS ,,,,,,~$£@
##@£%$†~,, LAKE IS LARGE, FRACTURED, AND ,,~†$%£@##
##@@£$†~,, BIPARTITE. LIKE A PAIR OF LUNGS CARVED ,,~†$£@@##
£$$$$†~,,, INTO THE GRANITE, AND WITH NO LESS THAN ,,,~†$$$$£
£%$††~,,,, FIVE COMMUNITIES ANCHORED AT VARIOUS ,,,,~††$%£
@@@£%$†~,, POINTS. AND SO, STUDYING THESE ,,~†$%£@@@
#@@£%$†~,, IMPOSSIBLY CLOSE SHORES, I SLOWLY ,,~†$%£@@#
£%%%%$†~,, UNDERSTOOD THEM AS BELONGING MANY MILES ,,~†$%%%%£
£$~~~,,,,, AWAY. ,,,,,~~~$£
@@@£%$†~,, ,,~†$%£@@@
#@@£%$†~,, I EXAMINED THE RIDGE, THE TREELINE ,,~†$%£@@#
@£%%$†~,,, ABOVE. WAS THIS WHAT YOU SAW OPPOSITE, ,,,~†$%%£@
##@@%$†~,, FROM THOSE OTHER SHORES? I COULDN'T ,,~†$%@@##
#@@£%$†~,, REMEMBER. ,,~†$%£@@#
@@@£%$†~,, ,,~†$%£@@@
#@@£%$†~,, CARRYING FORWARD, ON THE VERY TIP OF ,,~†$%£@@#
#@@£%$†~,, THE ESKER, I FOUND THE RUINS OF SOME ,,~†$%£@@#
@£$††~~~,, OLD BUILDING. THERE WERE OVERGROWN ,,~~~††$£@
#@@£%$†~,, MARBLE STAIRCASES, STONE FLOORS BENEATH ,,~†$%£@@#
#@@£%$†~,, THE MOSS, AND STRANGE SLABS INSERTED ,,~†$%£@@#
##@£%$†~,, INTO THE SLOPE LIKE DAMS AGAINST THE ,,~†$%£@##
@%%%%$†~,, GROUND ITSELF. ,,~†$%%%%@
##@@£%†~,, ,,~†%£@@##
##@@£$†~,, SITTING THERE, I COULD SEE ACROSS THE ,,~†$£@@##
#@@£%$†~,, NARROWED LAKE MY ENTIRE PATH TO WHERE I ,,~†$%£@@#
@@@£%$†~,, SAT: FROM THE STAIRWELL OF MY HOUSE, ,,~†$%£@@@
##@£%$†~,, THROUGH THE OLD WOODS BEHIND THE TILE ,,~†$%£@##
##@£%$†~,, FACTORY, THE BRIDGE OVER ROUTE ,,~†$%£@##
##@£%$†~,, TWENTY THREE AND THEN BACK UNDER IT, ,,~†$%£@##
#@@£%$†~,, THROUGH THE FANCY VILLAS, OVER THE ,,~†$%£@@#
@£££%$†~,, FIELDS, AND THEN THAT RIGHT TURN AT THE ,,~†$%£££@
@£%%††~~,, FORK. ,,~~††%%£@
@£%%%$†~,, ,,~†$%%%£@
#@@£%$†~,, AND THEN THE STAIRS UP ON THE RIDGE. ,,~†$%£@@#
#@@£%$†~,, THINKING BACK, THIS WAS PROBABLY IT. ,,~†$%£@@#
@£%††††~,, HIDDEN IN A GROVE, THERE WERE STAIRS ,,~††††%£@
££$†~,,,,, MUCH LIKE THE ONES I CURRENTLY SAT ON, ,,,,,~†$££
@£%%†,,,,, OLD AND WORN DOWN, THAT LEAD YOU UP ,,,,,†%%£@
#@@£%$†~,, ONTO THE ESKER. THE POINT OF ENTRY. HAD ,,~†$%£@@#
££$$†††~,, I INSTED OPTED TO WALK THE PATH AT ITS ,,~†††$$££
££$$†,,,,, FOOT, I'M SURE MY EXPERIENCE WOULD'VE ,,,,,†$$££
£%$$~~~~,, BEEN DIFFERENT INDEED. ,,~~~~$$%£
#@@£%$†~,, ,,~†$%£@@#
@@@£%$†~,, ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ,,~†$%£@@@
££%†,,,,,, ,,,,,,†%££
@@@£%$†~,, ON THE LAKE, THERE WERE PEOPLE IN ,,~†$%£@@@
##@@%$†~,, BOATS. I WONDERED, COULD THEY EVEN SEE ,,~†$%@@##
££$$~,,,,, ME? IF I SHOUTED, WOULD THEY TURN TO ,,,,,~$$££
£££%%$†~,, STARE RIGHT THROUGH ME? ,,~†$%%£££
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##@@%$†~,, ,,~†$%@@##
@@@£%$†~,, ,,~†$%£@@@
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