....~^††§@ @§††^~....
.~~~~†††§§ §§†††~~~~.
.....~†§@@ @@§†~.....
.~~^^†***@ @***†^^~~.
....~^†§§§ §§§†^~....
....~~~††§ 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. #@@§*†^~~.
.~~^†*§@## ##@§*†^~~.
.~~^†*§@@# #@@§*†^~~.
.~^†*§@@## ##@@§*†^~.
.~~^†*@@## ##@@*†^~~.
.~~^†*§@@# #@@§*†^~~.