.......... ..........
.......... ..........
:......... .........:
~:........ ........:~
;~:....... .......:~;
$;~:...... ...:::;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;:::... ......:~;$
¤$;~:..... .:; The Spire ~;. .....:~;$¤
&¤$;~:.... ~;:~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~;~: ....:~;$¤&
#&¤$;~:... ;~: Once Upon A Time, There Was A ;:~ ...:~;$¤
##&¤$;~:.. ;:~ Benevolent Spire, Towering Well :;~ ..:~;$¤#
###&¤$;~:. :;~ Above Our Tallest Trees. It Was :~; .:~;$¤##
##&¤$;~:.. :~; Clad In White Scales, And Shaped ~:; ..:~;$¤#
#&¤$;~:... ~:; Liked A Mushroom. ~;: ...:~;$¤
&¤$;~:.... ~;: We Loved It Dearly. ;~: ....:~;$¤&
¤$;~:..... ;~:~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~;:~ .....:~;$¤
$;~:...... ;:~ It Predated Us By Many Years, :;~ ......:~;$
;~:....... :;~ 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..... :~. ..........
.......... ...:::;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;:::... ..........
.......... ..........
.......... ..........
:......... .........:
~:........ ........:~
;~:....... .......:~;