¤¤¤,,,,,¤¤ ,,¤,¤¤,¤¤¤
,,¤,,,,¤,, ,¤¤¤,¤¤,,,
,¤¤,,,¤¤,¤ ¤,,¤¤,¤,,,
¤,¤,,¤,¤¤, ¤,¤,¤¤¤,,,
¤¤¤,¤¤¤,¤¤ ¤¤¤¤,,¤,,¤
,,¤¤,,¤¤,¤ WINDS ESKER ,,,¤,¤¤,¤,
,¤,¤,¤,¤¤¤ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ,,¤¤¤,¤¤¤,
¤¤¤¤¤¤¤,,, ,¤,,¤¤,,¤,
,,,,,,¤,,¤ THERE WAS THIS PLACE THAT FOR TWO YEARS ¤¤,¤,¤,¤¤¤
,,,,,¤¤,¤¤ I COULDN'T GO TO. REGARDLESS HOW MUCH ,¤¤¤¤¤¤,,¤
,,,,¤,¤¤,¤ DISCUSSED WITH OTHERS, OR POINTED OUT ¤,,,,,¤,¤¤
,,,¤¤¤,¤¤¤ ON MAPS, I COULD NOT THINK OF IT WHEN ¤,,,,¤¤¤,¤
,,¤,,¤¤,,, ALONE. I WOULD OFTEN TRAVEL PAST THE ¤,,,¤,,¤¤¤
,¤¤,¤,¤,,¤ FORK, WHERE A RIGHT TURN WOULD SURELY ¤,,¤¤,¤,,¤
¤,¤¤¤¤¤,¤¤ TAKE ME THERE, BUT EVEN THEN, SOMETHING ¤,¤,¤¤¤,¤¤
¤¤,,,,¤¤,¤ KEPT ME AWAY. ¤¤¤¤,,¤¤,,
,¤,,,¤,¤¤, ,,,¤,¤,¤,¤
¤¤,,¤¤¤,¤, WHEN I FINALLY GOT THERE, AFTER SOME ,,¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
,¤,¤,,¤¤¤¤ HEAVY SUBCONSCIOUS BATTLE I MUST ,¤,,,,,,,,
¤¤¤¤,¤,,,¤ ASSUME, THE PLACE WAS SURREAL. AN ¤¤,,,,,,,,
,,,¤¤¤,,¤, ESKER, LIKE A NEEDLE-THIN RIFT OUT IN ,¤,,,,,,,¤
,,¤,,¤,¤¤¤ THE LAKE, BUT TEN METERS HIGH AND ¤¤,,,,,,¤¤
,¤¤,¤¤¤,,¤ ADORNED IN BIRCH, WILLOW, BRACKEN, AND ,¤,,,,,¤,¤
¤,¤¤,,¤,¤¤ BLUEBERRIES. ¤¤,,,,¤¤¤¤
¤¤,¤,¤¤¤,, ,¤,,,¤,,,,
,¤¤¤¤,,¤,¤ WALKING ATOP THAT SPINE, I CAME TO ¤¤,,¤¤,,,¤
¤,,,¤,¤¤¤¤ NOTICE THE VIEW TO EITHER SIDE. THERE ,¤,¤,¤,,¤¤
¤,,¤¤¤,,,¤ SHOULD BE SHORES, OF COURSE, BUT I ¤¤¤¤¤¤,¤,,
¤,¤,,¤,,¤, DIDN'T RECOGNIZE THEM. FIRST OFF, THEY ,,,,,¤¤¤,¤
¤¤¤,¤¤,¤¤, WERE MUCH TOO CLOSE, AS THE LAKE SHOULD ,,,,¤,,¤¤,
,,¤¤,¤¤,¤¤ STRETCH FOR A HUNDRED METERS MORE ON ,,,¤¤,¤,¤¤
,¤,¤¤,¤¤,, BOTH SIDES. BUT NOW I FELT I COULD ,,¤,¤¤¤¤,¤
¤¤¤,¤¤,¤,¤ ALMOST REACH OUT AND TOUCH THEM. AND ,¤¤¤,,,¤¤¤
,,¤¤,¤¤¤¤¤ THEN, WHEN I REALIZED WHICH SHORES THEY ¤,,¤,,¤,,,
,¤,¤¤,,,,¤ WERE, I HAD TO STOP. ¤,¤¤,¤¤,,,
¤¤¤,¤,,,¤¤ ¤¤,¤¤,¤,,,
,,¤¤¤,,¤,, THEY WERE OF THE RIGHT LAKE. BUT THIS ,¤¤,¤¤¤,,¤
,¤,,¤,¤¤,, LAKE IS LARGE, FRACTURED, AND ¤,¤¤,,¤,¤¤
¤¤,¤¤¤,¤,, BIPARTITE. LIKE A PAIR OF LUNGS CARVED ¤¤,¤,¤¤¤,¤
,¤¤,,¤¤¤,¤ INTO THE GRANITE, AND WITH NO LESS THAN ,¤¤¤¤,,¤¤,
¤,¤,¤,,¤¤, FIVE COMMUNITIES ANCHORED AT VARIOUS ¤,,,¤,¤,¤,
¤¤¤¤¤,¤,¤, POINTS. AND SO, STUDYING THESE ¤,,¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
,,,,¤¤¤¤¤¤ IMPOSSIBLY CLOSE SHORES, I SLOWLY ¤,¤,,,,,,,
,,,¤,,,,,¤ UNDERSTOOD THEM AS BELONGING MANY MILES ¤¤¤,,,,,,,
,,¤¤,,,,¤, AWAY. ,,¤,,,,,,,
,¤,¤,,,¤¤¤ ,¤¤,,,,,,,
¤¤¤¤,,¤,,, I EXAMINED THE RIDGE, THE TREELINE ¤,¤,,,,,,,
,,,¤,¤¤,,¤ ABOVE. WAS THIS WHAT YOU SAW OPPOSITE, ¤¤¤,,,,,,¤
,,¤¤¤,¤,¤¤ FROM THOSE OTHER SHORES? I COULDN'T ,,¤,,,,,¤¤
,¤,,¤¤¤¤,, REMEMBER. ,¤¤,,,,¤,¤
¤¤,¤,,,¤,¤ ¤,¤,,,¤¤¤¤
,¤¤¤,,¤¤¤¤ CARRYING FORWARD, ON THE VERY TIP OF ¤¤¤,,¤,,,,
¤,,¤,¤,,,¤ THE ESKER, I FOUND THE RUINS OF SOME ,,¤,¤¤,,,,
¤,¤¤¤¤,,¤¤ OLD BUILDING. THERE WERE OVERGROWN ,¤¤¤,¤,,,¤
¤¤,,,¤,¤,, MARBLE STAIRCASES, STONE FLOORS BENEATH ¤,,¤¤¤,,¤,
,¤,,¤¤¤¤,¤ THE MOSS, AND STRANGE SLABS INSERTED ¤,¤,,¤,¤¤¤
¤¤,¤,,,¤¤, INTO THE SLOPE LIKE DAMS AGAINST THE ¤¤¤,¤¤¤,,¤
,¤¤¤,,¤,¤¤ GROUND ITSELF. ,,¤¤,,¤,¤,
¤,,¤,¤¤¤,¤ ,¤,¤,¤¤¤¤,
¤,¤¤¤,,¤¤, SITTING THERE, I COULD SEE ACROSS THE ¤¤¤¤¤,,,¤¤
¤¤,,¤,¤,¤, NARROWED LAKE MY ENTIRE PATH TO WHERE I ,,,,¤,,¤,,
,¤,¤¤¤¤¤¤, SAT: FROM THE STAIRWELL OF MY HOUSE, ,,,¤¤,¤¤,¤
¤¤¤,,,,,¤¤ THROUGH THE OLD WOODS BEHIND THE TILE ,,¤,¤¤,¤¤¤
,,¤,,,,¤,, FACTORY, THE BRIDGE OVER ROUTE ,¤¤¤,¤¤,,,
,¤¤,,,¤¤,¤ TWENTY THREE AND THEN BACK UNDER IT, ¤,,¤¤,¤,,,
¤,¤,,¤,¤¤, THROUGH THE FANCY VILLAS, OVER THE ¤,¤,¤¤¤,,,
¤¤¤,¤¤¤,¤¤ FIELDS, AND THEN THAT RIGHT TURN AT THE ¤¤¤¤,,¤,,¤
,,¤¤,,¤¤,¤ FORK. ,,,¤,¤¤,¤,
,¤,¤,¤,¤¤¤ ,,¤¤¤,¤¤¤,
¤¤¤¤¤¤¤,,, AND THEN THE STAIRS UP ON THE RIDGE. ,¤,,¤¤,,¤,
,,,,,,¤,,¤ THINKING BACK, THIS WAS PROBABLY IT. ¤¤,¤,¤,¤¤¤
,,,,,¤¤,¤¤ HIDDEN IN A GROVE, THERE WERE STAIRS ,¤¤¤¤¤¤,,¤
,,,,¤,¤¤,¤ MUCH LIKE THE ONES I CURRENTLY SAT ON, ¤,,,,,¤,¤¤
,,,¤¤¤,¤¤¤ OLD AND WORN DOWN, THAT LEAD YOU UP ¤,,,,¤¤¤,¤
,,¤,,¤¤,,, ONTO THE ESKER. THE POINT OF ENTRY. HAD ¤,,,¤,,¤¤¤
,¤¤,¤,¤,,¤ I INSTED OPTED TO WALK THE PATH AT ITS ¤,,¤¤,¤,,¤
¤,¤¤¤¤¤,¤¤ FOOT, I'M SURE MY EXPERIENCE WOULD'VE ¤,¤,¤¤¤,¤¤
¤¤,,,,¤¤,¤ BEEN DIFFERENT INDEED. ¤¤¤¤,,¤¤,,
,¤,,,¤,¤¤, ,,,¤,¤,¤,¤
¤¤,,¤¤¤,¤, ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ,,¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
,¤,¤,,¤¤¤¤ ,¤,,,,,,,,
¤¤¤¤,¤,,,¤ ON THE LAKE, THERE WERE PEOPLE IN ¤¤,,,,,,,,
,,,¤¤¤,,¤, BOATS. I WONDERED, COULD THEY EVEN SEE ,¤,,,,,,,¤
,,¤,,¤,¤¤¤ ME? IF I SHOUTED, WOULD THEY TURN TO ¤¤,,,,,,¤¤
,¤¤,¤¤¤,,¤ STARE RIGHT THROUGH ME? ,¤,,,,,¤,¤
¤,¤¤,,¤,¤¤ ¤¤,,,,¤¤¤¤
¤¤,¤,¤¤¤,, ,¤,,,¤,,,,
,¤¤¤¤,,¤,¤ ¤¤,,¤¤,,,¤
¤,,,¤,¤¤¤¤ ,¤,¤,¤,,¤¤
¤,,¤¤¤,,,¤ ¤¤¤¤¤¤,¤,,