.-=†§¤####                                          ####¤§†=-.
.-=†††§@@@                                          @@@§†††=-.
.-=†§¤@###                                          ###@¤§†=-.
....--†§@#                                          #@§†--....
.-=†§¤@###                                          ###@¤§†=-.
.-=†§¤@### ...---††††††††††††††††††††††††††††---... ###@¤§†=-.
.....==§¤@ .-†            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.....             -=. @§†††-....
.-=†§¤@### ...---††††††††††††††††††††††††††††---... ###@¤§†=-.
.-=†§¤@###                                          ###@¤§†=-.
....-=§¤@#                                          #@¤§=-....
.-=†§¤@@@#                                          #@@@¤§†=-.
.-=†§¤@###                                          ###@¤§†=-.
......=§¤@                                          @¤§=......