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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. ^~. .&.&.&.&..
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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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