....-~^$%£ £%$^~-....
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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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