.......... ..........
,......... .........,
~,........ ........,~
;~,....... .......,~;
=;~,...... ......,~;=
#=;~,..... ...,,,;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;,,,... .....,~;=#
¶#=;~,.... .,; 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..... ,~. ..........
.......... ...,,,;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;,,,... ..........
.......... ..........
,......... .........,
~,........ ........,~
;~,....... .......,~;
=;~,...... ......,~;=