#,###,,,,#                                          ,,,#,##,,#
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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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