Embedded Files
Chapter 9
Chapter 9
"Hmmm..... That's them right?" Lieutenant Keith said as he pointed out to the field seeing a group of shifters in gray heading towards the east side of the castle. The group that was watching them belonged to the Ravenian Expeditionary Force. They were the ones who were encircling the whole perimeter of Ravena all this time. And it seemed that it was still not enough. Maybe it was a lack of manpower, or maybe it was miscalculation. But one thing is for certain, it's that The Clan of Morheim are still continuing the siege
"But I thought that last night's mission of the Black Valkyrie Regiment was successful?" Lieutenant Colonel Elizabeth said. "It's impossible that they would still continue their mission now that Ventress is killed."
Keith watched this confusing scenario, as the rest of the forces decided to leave. "Are you gonna come?" Elizabeth said. "We still need to report to Nathaniel about this incident."
"No need. I'll show him what's new later..."
The rest left Keith and began to return to the camp. As the large smoke from the central campfire became more and more visible the more they closed in, the busy sounds of the people were heard as well. Refugees were coming in from all places of Ravena, but because of the recent events, they had to be screened more strictly.
"Lieutenant Colonel Elizabeth, REF." Said Elizabeth, as they cut through the line of peasants. The Red Blood Regiment soldier let them in the new camp. As they went in, several new Red soldiers were already preparing for a scouting mission, followed by Black Valkyrie soldiers walking as a group towards a big tent with black flags hosting the banner of House Deschenel. A cabin was erected so that Princess Atrina, the heir to the throne of Ravena, could be safe from any danger, with Golden Eagle Guards standing as strong as a statue. The sound of blacksmiths and people talking crowded the area, as more and more homes are being made for the peasant refugees. From the far sights of the camp, she could see the Order of the Holy Knights having a small mass, with their priestess blessing them before the battle. You could see in the eyes of their soldiers that they are scared, but their faith is stronger, and their will is bigger. Elizabeth would only scoff on this however, as she finally arrived at Nathaniel's tent.
"Are we ready?" Nathaniel said.
"Seems like the order is good to go. Although Keith stayed for further scouting." Elizabeth said.
"Hmm..." Nathaniel let out. His plan is crucial in the siege, and if it would work, he would need all his officers to be present. If Keith is not present here, then the plan could go bad.
"Seems like he's here." Lieutenant Colonel Kevin said as he pointed out the entrance of the tent. As they turned around, Keith then got in with a couple of leaves still attached to his uniform. He patted the leaves out, and began to speak.
"Morheim seems to be a main battleforce. I would suggest taking a light reaction assault near the towers to take control of the walls. It's an easy scoop."
"Is that so?" Elizabeth spoke. "I thought we saw only a few of the-"
"I stayed longer, remember?" Keith stated. "They will try to enter the castle through secret doors, acting as civilians, then they will let all the forces in, before burning the castle to the ground."
"That's a Vonturian Strategy. Not something that these kinds of units do." Kevin replied.
"Well then, the strategies have changed." said Keith.
-----
"Kindred! There's too many of them! We can't do anything! We have to leave these peasants behind!"
"Kill them."
"What!"
"The duke said, no survivors."
"But...."
"That's an order."
The screams of women, and childred followed. Blood covered the place, as the shifters arrived, Kindred walked to a boy all scared and transforming into a falcon. But he was too young, and his wings have not fully developed. Kindred stepped on its wing and the child screamed in pain. He then stabbed him in his neck.
"Congratulations brother. You're now a true assassin."
Kindred opened his eyes almost screaming, and gasping for air. He noticed himself sitting up, with his hand on his neck. The nightmares were there again, and all he could do was know that they were going to stay for quite some time. The general then noticed a young boy inside the tent. And it was the boy he found a couple of days ago.
"Why are you here, kid?" asked Kindred, all surprised and intrigued.
"Your friends said I should stay here, since no one could take care of me here." the child said.
"Is that so?" Kindred said as he then looked around to see that he was inside his tent. "Hmmmm. Well I did tell them that I will take care of you. But do you remember anything before we came here?"
The boy stared at him, then he put his hand on his head and had an expression of pain.
"Hey, hey, hey!" Kindred suddenly got to him and put his hand on his head. He then put his hand on the child's forehead and said "You don't have to remember it if it's painful."
He then put out something out of his pack and showed a piece of bread to the boy. "What's your name?" He then said.
"All I remember, is that... my name... is Hinokami..." The boy said hesitatntly as he got the bread and ate it.
"Alright then, Hinokami. Starting now, your name will be "Hinokami Osiris."
The boy smiled, and continued to eat the bread. Kindred then patted his head and smiled softly. At least even in times of war, there's moments of peace. Kindred and his new son talked and bonded together until the day was over. And when the sun was down, he put the kid to sleep. And on the central campfire, he knew that business needed to continue for him.
"Is it ready?" Said Commander Anno, as he waited for the last batch of scouts to return to the camp. The fire was lit, and the Selyrians gathered around it. Night had arrived, and the comrades were ready to have their last supper before the war.
"Tomorrow, we will be attacking that castle. The remaining forces of the Aeryth Clan will be many. And we have no choice but to deal with that fact." Kindred said.
The forces then ate their meal, and to some, they knew that it would probably be their last meal before Dawn, or their last meal ever. The Iron Legion got into a huddle as they went to prepare for weapons ready. While the rest were feasting, without drinking anything that could hinder their senses, such as alcohol, or fermented drinks. That is, except for Lady Sarah, of the Golden Eagle Guard, who hid all the Ale, Wine, Beer, and Mead that she could find. To her, this was her fuel to win wars. The night ended, and the comrades said their final goodbyes to the ones who will die for tomorrow's battle.
As the sun rose, the loud noises of bells clanging filled the camp. Soldiers were getting ready, with their armor being assembled and fully furnished for this event. Several members got to wake up, all prepared and ready to fight. All of them, was going to war.
Jonathan was the first one to get up and prepare, as he was excited for this battle. He got to the campfire and sat down. But looking at one of the tents however, he saw 2 people going out of it, both belonging to a different regiment.
He saw a couple walking out. They were laughing and talking to each other it made Jonathan mad beacuse of him being single. He grabbed a rock and threw it lightly on the open field. And looking back, he realized who it was.
Jim and May.
”Stupid couples.” he said proudly, while the couple seperated their ways awkwardly.
"Alright." Kindred said. "Take positions."
"This is a battle to take back Ravena. I know some of you are scared. And that I know more than those scared comrades, you want this war to end. And here I say, that today, we are taking a further step to do that. I know you wish to go to your families. I wish I could say the same. But with this war, if we win this, we will fulfill that promise. And you will return to your loved ones, to a land that belongs to you. For those who are scared, I say, stand strong. And to those who wish for peace...."
"Stand ready..." A man spoke. The regiments turned around to suddenly see Alvin in the camp, completely dressed for battle. Gasps filled the air as the Ravenians cheered for his return. "Looks like I was almost late for the battle." he said. And with this, Kindred nodded at Tharius for his speech.
"A couple of months from here, I heard news of my father dying on this war. He wanted Karthus to be free, and wanted it to be safe from the pesky shifters. He wanted a better Karthus, and a better Selyria, and he wanted you, yourselves, to be better. But now my father is gone. But my will to bring his promise, will be proven here. We have lost friends, we have lost family, you have lost your brothers and sisters, and I have lost my father. Today, we will not let that happen again. Men, make yourselves ready. as we are about to wage war!"
The crowd cheered and erupted, as the regiments got their weapons out to get ready for the battle. They then got to their lines to head to the kingdom's walls.
"You have the plans ready?" Kindred spoke to Nathaniel, who only nodded and gave him a scroll of the different things that need to happen to get their victory. And to have that, they must get to the town and make sure that the roofs are clear from any dangers. Doing that will need the Black Valkyrie Regiment's help. The Iron Legion would be the most needed in this however, as they will be the main force along with the White Knights. The Red Blood Regiment will have to flank to the side of the castle, while the Ravenian Expeditionary Force will have to rappel to the castle walls kill the Clan of Morheim. With this, they will be ready to move in and take the castle. Thomas and his squad will be in position to assassinate Ebony, and with that, comes the time they will be able to win the battle.
"On me!" Kindred shouted, as the comrades got into their first obstacle. The Black Valkyrie Regiment the quickly climbed the walls along with the Red Blood Regiment's scouts. The rest made a wall formation to shield the others from arrow fire. With the enemy archers busy with the main army, the scouts got up and eliminated them.
"Move!" Kindred said as the unit moved slowly towards the gate. Arrows rained down as they closed in. then that rain stopped when they realized that the archers were now dead. They began to charge inside the city while fighting the shifters of Aeryth, until they reached the castle entrance.
The Selyrians wanted to keep their place first, so they secured the area through investigating the scene. Meanwhile, Kindred had other plans. He split his army into two squadrons and flanked his second squad to the western entrance of the castle. When Kindred tried to look for an opening, he was already surprised that The White Knights, and The Iron Legion, were already on the main gate, pushing through.
The sudden rumble of the ground then surprised all of the Selyrians. With the fighting ongoing on the front gate, someone arrived on the enemy's side. It was him again - wearing full plate green armor, with a strong barbute helmet. It was him.
It was The Brute...
"Goner?" Kindred said, and revealed the commander breathing heavily and in rage. When the large orc looked at him, he only nodded, and proceeded to charge at the brute in full speed. The Karthusians looked back only to see an incredibly large orc sprinting towards them. And they stood back to give way for the two. The Aeryth soldiers found themselves being pushed away by pure muscle, and the fighters looked at the two massive warriors fighting. Goner was using his axe towards the brute in full ferocity, while the brute was being tactical, and looked at his options carefully. Both were extremely strong fighters, and it looked as if they were on a stalemate.
"Alright. Where are the reinforcements?" Kindred asked as he was about to run up the walls along with his men. And his question would be instantly answered, when a group of wyverns flew right above the Ravenians.
"That's our call." General Ailyn said, and ordered her troops to quickly move up the walls.
"Let's go men!" General Rulleek then said, as he ordered a charge through the main gate.
However, something was odd in the wyverns. One of them was acting strange. In the Rangers' point of view, Elizabeth was looking at Keith's wyvern in a concerned way.
"What's the matter? Afraid of heights?" She said.
"No. I'm just thinking." Keith replied.
"Well the siege is already here. So let's move."
Elizabeth said. And began to rappel along with her squadron. Keith as still looking to what seems to be the direction of the Ravenian Bay. He looked at his comrades and whispered...
"Anytime now, Ni Mor."
The sound of horns surrounded the castle, and it came from the bay. The sea revealed the ships of Northmen. Their flags were blue in color, and they wore helmets with deer or goat helmets. They were vikings, and the came from the Chiefdom of Hrothgar. Along the leading ships, Jim was in the lead, along with his trusted friend, and Chief of the faction - Éadtor Erikson. Along with the faction was the Ravenian Royal Navy, in which Ni Mor was in charge of.
"Ni Mor. Are you ready?"
Jim asked. And Ni Mor would only look at the top of the castle to see Keith still up waiting for the rappelling rangers on his side. Ni Mor then replied.
"I'm sorry Jim. But it seems like I now have higher payments ahead of me."
Jim's eyes widened, as Ni Mor suddenly turned into a large spider crab with its legs reaching up to a length of 3.5 meters from its body to the ground. The crab then pierced through the ship with its claws, causing the ship to sink slowly. When the vikings tried to attack him, they were met with so many throwing knives from above. When Jim and Éadtor looked up, they saw Keith riding a wyvern, along with other rangers and shifters above them.
"Shields!"
Jim yelled, and the vikings used their shields to take cover from the attack. Realizing they have no choice, Jim decided to call upon his men and jump from the sinking ship and swim towards the castle. Arrows flew down like a rain. The more Jim and Éadtor swam towards the castle, the more blood they had to swim through to get to the surface. When they arrived at the sands of the castle backdoor, they found themselves unable to rest, as the fight was still ongoing. The vikings found themselves shooting arrows from above, while the ships burned on the sea.
The vikings had to run as fast as possible towards the walls, while Keith and Ni Mor continued to wreck havoc through their armies and coordinated efforts. Along the walls however, 2 figures stood out. And one was equipped with a massive crossbow.
"Take the shot, Nath."
Kindred said, as he worriedly looked at the vikings running towards the walls. General Nath and General Kindred had finally arrived at the courtyard, and they have pushed through the hordes of shifters inside the walls.
"I'm on it." The general of the REF replied.
A loud bolt sound echoed through the battle. And the sound of a wyvern screech replied to its hit. Keith screamed as he found himself crashing down the Ravenian beach, while Nath looked to his comrade with demise and disappointment. Keith fell down with bruises and broken bones, only to find his body developing steam. When he looked to his right, he could see Ni Mor stabbing vikings with his sharp and pointed crab claws, while other vikings ran away from the nightmarish creature. The amount of fear from the vikings was obvious, as they have not seen a sentient crab like this one.
Is it a Vastaya? No. It looked too animalistic to be like it.
Is it a monster?
Maybe....
A viking saw Keith and began to charge slowly towards him. The warrior was badly wounded, with her left arm completely cut off. Her Hrothgarian horn was missing from her helmet, and she desperately tried to move towards Keith. Keith noticed that his legs were completely broken, and that steam was still developing in his body. He tried his best to push out the wyvern out of his body, but the creature was far too heavy for him to get off. The viking was now meters close to him. Then, it was only a couple of inches. Then, he found his face full of blood.
Keith saw a crab claw on the stomach of the viking. Behind her revealed Ni Mor, who threw the body off.
"I'm done for. My legs..."
Keith said. But Ni Mor only pushed the wyvern away like it was nothing. He then transformed back to his human form and spoke.
"Don't be stupid. Just wait a couple of minutes until you regenerate your body."
The crab shifter then left and ran at incredible speeds, before continuing his carnage at the vikings. Keith was the primal witness of this battle, as more shifters arrived to help them.
This wasn't a viking charge anymore, but a desperate escape towards the castle...
Meanwhile inside the castle grounds, Kindred and the Selyrians kept on pushing through as they found themselves losing more lives. The Order of the Holy Knights were the most successful, as they cleared out the shifters in the western entrance, along with the help from the second squad of the Red Blood Regiment. Ailyn and the Black Valkyries continued to sweep the castle walls and towers, while the Rangers found their way inside more difficult areas through their tower networks. The Selyrians saw with their own eyes the power of their forces as Donk Tonk and Goner went hand in hand in throwing out some of the enemies with just their pure strength. One shifter tried stabbing Donk, but the fact that he was a Golem made of pure Steel, made it seem like it was nothing.
Pretty soon after, they found themselves standing off in the main door of the castle. Ebony was leading the main guard of this shifter army, wearing their most elite armor made of Dwarven Steel and Ravenian Leather. with hints of green on their uniforms.
"Thomas. On position."
Thomas nodded at Kindred's order and began to move with the Black Valkyrie to assassinate Ebony when she retreats inside the castle. The Black Valkyrie climbed up the walls and jumped at the top of the main castle to enter the windows and make it through the main hall. Thomas got his sword ready, but he would not know what he will expect when he saw the people preparing inside.
It was the Clan of Morheim...
"It's over Ebony. Surrender now, and we don't need to fight." Kindred said.
"By hell with that." General Harkstone said, and charged straight towards the shifters. The Golden Eagle Guard followed suit, and the rest of the Selyrians were forced to chase after the retreating shifter army. Meanwhile, inside the castle, Thomas was ready to assassinate Ebony near the door, but instead of the Black Valkyries and the Red Scouts going out of the door to flank the shifters, they were met with a bursting wood door opening, sending the assassins back, and them being flooded with shifters. Thomas found himself below a stampede, as the shifters trampled him to the ground. The assassins could not try to help him as they also found themselves overwhelmed with the sheer amount of people charging at them. A snap sounded, and Thomas found his arm being stepped on by a hoof. Thomas screamed in pain, amd desperately climbed out of the sheer amount of bodies. Suddenly, he found himself being pulled out of the scene. He smiled as he thought it was his comrades, but this expression turned into dread.
"Kindred! It's Thomas!"
The Red Blood Regiment quickly ran to the castle and saw the chaos that unfolded. Ebony was on the throne, holding Thomas, who was not in a good shape. The Selyrians were forced to be on a stand-off.
"Get your bows ready." General Ailyn said.
"Release that, and you will pay." Kindred then yelled.
The Selyrians stopped, and Ebony was forced to watch herself become surrounded by so many people. Each regiment was careful as to what will happen, and anxious as to what will unfold. This included Ebony, who still held Thomas's broken arm. He whimpered, but sounds like these are nothing to be heard while in a battle.
"It's over, Ebony." Kindred said. "This battle will just waste more lives."
Ebony growled. Of course he would say that. Why wouldn't he? He was never a shifter in the first place. He was never discriminated against in the level that she was for almost her whole life. He did not know the suffering that her clan had to be put into. And, he never experienced having his people almost become exterminated, to be treated like pests and rats.
Ebony took out her dagger, and placed it near Thomas's neck. The boy's breathe turned to sharp exhales, as adrenaline kicked in. While the Selyrians could not take this anymore. General Ailyn in particular, saw this as her last straw and threw her dagger towards Ebony's hand.
It was a clean hit, but the blade of Ebony slightly brushed against Thomas's neck, causing him to bleed. Although it wasn't lethal, it made the Selyrians think that Ebony executed the boy.
The Golden Eagle Guard led the charge, and the battle inside the throne room ensued. The Selyrians fought ferociously while the shifters fought defensively, almost as if they were retreating somewhere. Thomas found himself still breathing, But as he looked into his surroundings, carnage was everywhere. This was the war he was being told about. This was what a soldier's life is like.
A life of killing...
Through the battle, Morticia looked upon Ebony, who had now let go of Thomas. When Ebony saw her, her expression turned from determined to furious. It was the person that killed Ichikari, and the person that put her in this state. Because of her, she was now the sole leader of this clan, without anyone to guide them.
And now she's here...
Ebony walked down the steps of the throne, casually dodging strikes from soldiers, while slashing some of them with her claw blades. Morticia slowly walked towards her, then began to charge forward. It was now their final battle, and only one will leave alive.
Morticia knew her axe was too heavy to fight against a lighter opponent such as Ebony. But luckily, she had already been trained by Kindred to take care of this problem. Using the handle of her axe, she poked Ebony to the face, causing her to stumble back. She then followed up with a middle slash, by which Ebony jumped up to dodge it. Ebony then tried to stab Morticia with her right claw, but Morticia dodged it by a very thin margin. a small part of the fox's blade made contact with the outermost skin of her cheek, causing it to bleed a little. Morticia then swung again, and Ebony dodged it. She was suddenly met however with a sudden kick from the advisor using the momentum of the axe. Ebony crashed into the throne and and growled in pain. This then made Ebony release small amounts of black smoke out of her skin. Her voice then echoed through the room, and her eyes turned red, looking at Morticia. Morticia however was still determined to fight. A fighter is now a better option than a light one. However, this does not mean it was easier. Ebony attacked and charged forward slashing rapidly with her claws. And Morticia could only parry and dodge so much. She had to head but her and slash her axe downward to keep her from getting close. Ebony grew large, as the dark aura around her grew even more.
"You think you can run away from me?" A familiar voice sounded.
It was a combination of 2 voices. One from Ebony, and one from...
"Takeshina?....." Morticia said.
Ebony suddenly screamed in pain, putting her hands to her head. It was like a large migraine invading her. Her voice soon after, then returned to Ebony, but something was still off. She was now calmer, but her sneer was still looking vicious. This meant something that only Morticia knew.
Ebony grabbed Thomas.
Morticia shouted "No!"
Ebony charged at Kindred
But Kindred saw himself not harmed or anything.
For a split second, Kindred saw Ebony, with her claw deep inside Morticia's heart. The blade sunk deep, and blood was everywhere. Kindred looked in horror as he saw Ebony take out her blade, and run away dragging thomas out of the castle. But all he could do was try to chase Ebony. Suddenly, he found himself being pulled down. And when he looked back, he saw Morticia grabbing his arm.
"Morticia. No, no, no. You'll be alright. You'll be-"
Kindred said , before having his lips be covered by Morticia's finger.
"It's fine......... You're fine.... now...."
Morticia said, as blood continued to choke out of her mouth. "Morticia, stop talking! You'll get through this! Tiffany!" Kindred called, but Tiffany was being overwhelmed by so many shifters. He desperately put pressure on the wound and held Morticia still close to his arms. Morticia then held Kindred's hand. And the battle was soon taking over.
"Farewell...... my general."
Morticia whispered. Her hands then let go of Kindred. The red general was left stunned, but then felt something hard in his hand. It was something that Morticia meant to give to Kindred. And as he looked at it, he then saw...
The insignia of the Red Blood Regiment.
------
Thomas heard the sounds of metal clanging. Then soon, it was silence. Voices echoed throughout his surroundings, but his eyes were still closed. As he woke up however, he found himself in a small cave. The sounds of water droplets, made it obvious that everyone was silent in this place. 2 people were playing chess on her left, sitting on stone slabs, and playing on a stone table, while another person was sitting in a crate on his right. The cave had some sort of cloth entrance, that appeared to look green. And there was also a somewhat circular hole at the top to give way for sunlight. No, this wasn't a cave. It's a whole stone house with no window whatsoever.
He tried to look who those people were. As he tried to get to see their true faces however, a sharp pain curled up in Thomas's left arm. When he looked towards it, it was gone, covered in some kind of white bandage. Someone cut off his left arm, and the pain from it revealed that it was still some kind of fresh wound. He was also covered in a blanket, in which he violently took off when his eyes opened.
"You're finally awake." Ni Mor said while playing chess with a person who he remembers - Null.
"This was the one eh?" Keith said. "I thought he'd be older, like what The Brute said before he died."
"Shush now, brother. At least his flesh at least looked strong whilst I took it off from his left arm." Null said with a devilish smile.
Thomas found himself crawling back from the fear of facing the Clan of Aeryth. Null and the rest laughed as they seem to make fun of the naive boy being scared of Null. The laughing quickly stopped when someone entered the cave. The sound of leather boots tapping echoed though the stone interior, as the soldiers only looked in either fear, or respect.
"Leave us." The voice said, to be revealed as Ebony. The 3 men kindly stood up and got their things to go out. Keith was the first one to get out, while Null and Ni Mor tried their best to balance the chess board and not mess up the pieces' arrangement, as they walked out of the stone house. Ebony then walked towards the small stone slab on Thomas's left. Ebony then sat back and watched Thomas look at his wound. Other than that, silence filled the room for a moment. Thomas then turned his head slowly to see Ebony still looking at him, with a slightly friendly expression.
"You remind me of myself when I was young." Ebony said. "Although, that story may begin in some other time."
"Don't talk to me." Thomas said.
"And why is that?"
"Because." Thomas sneered. "You killed them. You killed Laura."
"I'm not so sure that's something that happened."
Thomas found himself not being able to utter a single word. The revelation was something he did not expect. And now, he was there dumbfounded and shocked.
"Oh, you didn't know." Ebony continued. "That's alright. She's safe here now that she joined willingly."
Thomas could not believe what he just heard. Is this really true? "And why would I trust you?" he then said. In which Ebony only responded with a bit of silence, and sitting back in a more relaxing manner. She then said.
"That will be your choice. As far as I'm seeing it, you wanted to fight for freedom and justice. I hope you get to see that you are on the wrong side of the war."
The sounds of screaming then erupted, as the leader of the clan's head shifted towards her left and into the entrance. Someone suddenly entered the house. She had white hair, and light skin. Her bow and arrow was ready, and her green uniform complimented her sharp features. She then said...
"Lady Ebony, the White Knights are her-"
Thomas's eyes widened to see Artemis in the entrance. Artemis also fell silent, as she looked towards the boy in disbelief.
"Take the women and children. I'll follow."
Ebony said. As Artemis ran out of the house, the fox lady then pulled out something from her bag. When it revealed to be a box, she then opened it and looked at Thomas.
"It's your choice. Either you pick one, or go home. Hopefully, you know what the consequences are."
Ebony then walked out equipping her claws, and Thomas was left with 4 serums containing the names of different animals.
"Tanuki...." He then whispered.
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"Tharius! We need to fall back!"
Ruben said as they continued to fend off the shifters from this camp. Tharius however continued to fight, as his thirst for vengence fueled his wrath against the shifters.
"I will not let my father die without achieving what he wanted."
He then said. And suddenly, he saw his men die rapidly, as the soldiers got into their formation.
"Keep fighting!" Tharius shouted, all while his vice general, Ruben, looked at who was killing the men. He finally detected Ebony, slicing through his comrades, all while dodging their attacks. He then pushed Tharius away to protect him from arrows coming from Artemis. And as he took off his shield, he parried his sword and slashed off his opponent. But when he looked to see who it was however, he was surprised to see who it was.
Thomas stood in front of him, holding a zweihander with his both hands.
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