##§^^^^~,.                                          .,~^^^^§##
##£#§^^~,.                                          .,~^^§#£##
##£#§^^~,.                                          .,~^^§#£##
££#^^^^~,.                                          .,~^^^^#££
##£#§^^~,.                                          .,~^^§#£##
#£§§^^,,.. ...,,,^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^,,,... ..,,^^§§£#
#§^~...... .,^            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.....            ,~. .....,~^##
££##§^^~,. ...,,,^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^,,,... .,~^^§##££
#^^,,.....                                          .....,,^^#
##£#§^^~,.                                          .,~^^§#£##
##^^^^~...                                          ...~^^^^##
#§^^,,....                                          ....,,^^§#
##§^^^^~,.                                          .,~^^^^§##