,,#,#,,,#, ##,##,,###
#,####,,## ,,##,#,#,,
###,,,#,#, ,,#,#####,
#,,#,,#### #,###,,,,#
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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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