###@£%/«.. ..«/%£@###
##@£%†/«.. ..«/†%£@##
###@£†/«.. ..«/†£@###
##@£%†/«.. ..«/†%£@##
###£%†/«.. ..«/†%£###
@%%%//.... ......////////////////////////////...... ....//%%%@
#@@£%†/«.. ../ 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..... .«. .....«†%%£
£†«....... ......////////////////////////////...... .......«†£
##@£%†/«.. ..«/†%£@##
##@£%†/«.. ..«/†%£@##
#@%/«..... .....«/%@#
##@£%†/«.. ..«/†%£@##
@£%%/..... ...../%%£@