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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. ^~/ ¨¨^~/^§§@#
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#@§§^/~^¨¨ ~^/ WE WERE GRATEFUL FOR ITS ~/^ ¨¨^~/^§§@#
@§§^/~^¨¨¨ ~/^ PRESENCE, AND HONORED IT THE /~^ ¨¨¨^~/^§§@
§§^/~^¨¨¨¨ /~^ ONLY WAY WE KNEW HOW: BY /^~ ¨¨¨¨^~/^§§
§^/~^¨¨¨¨¨ ¨^~ BREAKING IN. ^~¨ ¨¨¨¨¨^~/^§
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#@§§^/~^¨¨ ¨~/ 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. ^/¨ ¨¨¨^~/^§§@
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#@§§^/~^¨¨ ¨¨¨^^^////////////////////////////^^^¨¨¨ ¨¨^~/^§§@#
@§§^/~^¨¨¨ ¨^/ 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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