A pleasant prance in the wonderful meadow.

Mission Stuff:

Skeletons and monsters? Ghouls and ghosts? Not Kyo's first impression of this place, but he seemed to have a record for ending in this dammed forest on a number of occasions. He ran his hand through his hair attending to an itch that had bothered him.

A tick of something to come mayhaps?

Nothing to bother the brain over he summarized. What was to come seemed to come no matter what he planned or plotted. Perhaps that was what made life so mysterious and interesting? He swiped his blade at some foliage, and watched a bit of the brush clear away.

"I love the forest just like any other guy, but would it be too much to ask for a well walked path for once? I'm getting tired of having to slice through this kind of thing every other time I enter a forest..."

Pushing into the brush he gazed ahead. It was... of course dark. Such a thick part of the woods would not grace him with the beams of light that typically sliced away through the tree tops to give him little beacons as guides. He wished bread crumbs were more effective at creating a path back to where one game. It was the path marking game all over again then. He needed to come up with a trick to not get lost. Just knowing north wasn't good enough in places like this... especially when you are investigating something like he was looking into...

If there really is something hunting people out there... I need to find a way to not make my path so evident. Who knows if I will be able to just glide out of this situation... and if I bail I won't be able to figure out what happened.

He would have to sort it out later. He had no real plan to find his way out... that was crap. If he got 100% he could find his way north. Or climb out of the forest by going up, but that was a last resort.

"I would get a spooky package this close to such a dreadful season. When will I get a the invitation to... I don't know. A nice trot through a meadow?"

The spooky forest, why was it that Mei so often managed to visit here? Granted it had been a little while, a few days at best since she had last been here, but seriously it was getting strange. Now there was a rumor of a haunting about in the woods, it would make sense since it is called the spooky forest, but really now it was haunting Mei by sending her a package to her front door step, maybe it was from the Vulcans she had defeated earlier, or maybe some kid was just playing pranks on her, who knew. That's exactly why Mei had come to this forest in the first place, to try and solve the problem that she was facing, the mystery of who had sent her this package, but instead of some kid pranking her, or some criminal trying to kill her, it was someone she hadn't seen in a long while. It looked like Kyojitsu.

She spotted him while skulking around through the forest, and was about to try and say hi, but then she remembered all that had happened since their last meeting, he probably wouldn't even know who she was anyway, which meant that it would make everything so awkward, but maybe she could try and play all of this off as something else? Yes it was perfect, she had a great idea on how to make all of this become smooth sailing.

Approaching from behind a few tree's Mei put her hands within her pockets and smiled a little bit.

"You get a package too? I mean unless you like to hike through woods that are supposedly now haunted. The names Hecate, nice to meet you stranger."

Nailed it.

A momentary wince of pain shot through Kyojitsu as he stared into the forest before him. The swaying leaves and bramble hid something behind the nature of this forest that he had not forgotten in his last visit. He felt his eye lighting up with a incandescent glowing red circle that seemed to seer and burn its away around his iris. In that moment the forest appeared to begin to crack and light up. Tiny red fissures forming across the landscape and marking out the land. The cracks to him were unique almost like a stained glass mosaic, but just as he was going to take in his options his concentration waned as he heard a voice behind him. He spun on his heels perhaps too fast. His eye still had that daunting red ring. He covered his eye acting like he had something in it.

"Ooof darn pollen..."

He opened his eye and felt everything go back into focus, no longer marred by fissure like red lines, his gaze was was greeted by a stranger garbed in what appeared to be almost formal military attire.

Nice hat.

He realized she must have been speaking to him... Not another soul just hanging out in abandoned and haunted forests. He looked at his cloak for a moment, remembering the tape recorder that sat inside one of his blade holsters.

"A box I did receive. Here I had thought that my invitation was exclusive... Kyojitsu, Kyojitsu Ametsuchi. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

A sting of familiarity pained him, as if he had forgotten something or someone of importance... No matter. Bigger things were at hand at this time, and he had little time to pay concern for what he might have forgotten. Turning towards the forest he gazed out, deciding not to call upon that strange power.

"I'm going in there personally. I can't stand not knowing what happened... Even if I do have a feeling I know exactly what I will find. I welcome the company though. Hecate was it?"

He turned and smiled at the stranger. Something not threatening hopefully. Being in the good graces of a fellow adventurer as one went into a forest like this was much better than getting a knife in the back half way through.

"Hopefully it's all just a hoax, and nothing that important, but you never know with these kinds of things. It's also a pleasure to meet you."

Mei felt bad that she had to lie, well half lie about all of it. She didn't expect to meet this guy again ever, but apparently fate had something else in store for her. perhaps it was a good thing to try and reconnect with a few people she had met before, but frankly Mei was worried. Why would it be her and him that would get those kinds of things sent to them? Mei didn't want to seem paranoid, but all of this was... strange. Still it was good to keep Kyojitsu in the dark a little bit, it would at least allow him to not worry as much about her, or ask too many questions and become a distraction, though in the end Kyojitsu probably wouldn't care too much. Eh, Mei was getting ahead of herself a bit, so she would just let him take the lead right now, perhaps she might take the lead later on, but for now he could be in front.

"if you don't mind, you can take the lead? I can light up the area a bit if it gets too dark, but it might be best to have one watching the back and one watching the front, and you seem more nimble then myself."

Kyo let out a solemn nod of agreement and shuffled his stance a bit, as he recalled the real potential of danger. Now with the appearance of Hecate this seemed to scale a bit more from a senseless prank being played just on him to something more. What was the secret of the tape and box? He took a step towards the forest and unsheathed his blade and whispered a few words of power. His new understandings of his own magic had grown since his adventure with Aku. He felt his hands glow with magic runes for a moment before a power surged from him into his blade. He felt it begin to sag in his hand, and he eased gravity on it to compensate. Density was harder to work with than basic forces. He hardened the blade to the point where he imagined the force behind his swings should do away with any annoying foliage. Lifting it up and swinging this time he felt the bramble sheer away like a workman’s axe coming down on blocks of wood. A few clean swings and the path had opened up to something much less dense and cluttered.

“As you say. I shall go first. I hope this light of yours is bright. I hadn’t had much options. A torch would burn this place quite possibly. I don’t wish harm to the land if I can help it, and a light box wouldn’t be bright enough I think.”

He sheathed his blade at his hip, and released the magic that he had instilled into it. Because he held it directly he reclaimed this energy easily. Different than when he had to do it with daggers, and simply lost the energy of the spell. He glanced forward as he waded into darkness and fog, and took a breath in,

“God I am really tired of spooky ghosts and the undead. Why can’t I fight a pack of monsters like a normal magi?”

The member 'Kyojitsu' has done the following action : Dice Rolls

'Monster Dice' :

Mei didn't wish to brag, but as she held her hand up and caused it to glow, she noticed how it was far better than a flashlight. Sometimes she enjoyed having these powers though most of the time they proved to be a hindrance instead of helpful, right now she was happy that it was a useful power, even if it was in a small way. Ironically she was a good guy with incredibly hostile magic, go figure, but not like she could change what she actually was, not like she could experience something different, well different again. Still it made this place brighter, better to see all of the spooky horrors in the night of course, not like they existed right...

Looking around a bit, Mei noticed a figure off in the distance, it was feint but it was there, then she felt a bit of a bump and a chill ran down her normally hot spine. They might have taken a bad route right now.

"Hey Kyojitsu, you uh, feel or see anything strange about this place, besides all of the darkness and spooky trees?"

I invite Aqutamanananananannanaanan to this thread to fill in for my other friend.

Aku awoke to knocking on his room door, as if someone was trying to break it down. Surprised by the quickened awakening and tangled with his covers, he ended up falling out of his bed. The loud almost dulled noise that came from him hitting the ground reminded him of hitting a tree with a baseball-bat. Well, that was after he collected his thoughts to think about the noise. His gangly body was underdeveloped for how quickly he ended up growing. He was getting stronger but he looked a bit strange for how young he was. Most would think him about sixteen or so.

He moved towards the door grumbling as he did because the knocking didn't stop. It grated at his sanity as he got closer. His sheets slipped down his body and ended up tripping him. He tried really hard not to fall but only made it worse as he skipped closer to the door. He was about five feet from the door when all his momentum came crashing down onto the door. The thick wooden beast that he smashed his forehead into made a loud 'thwak'. The knocking stopped after his head hit it and he sighed in relief but was still in pain.

---

He pulled up the sheet and made sure his lower half wasn't showing before he answered the door. The mail carrier who usually delivered his mail must have been sick today because he didn't recognize this person.

“Mail for an Aqua… tana...” The man tried as hard as he could to pronounce the name correctly but failed at it horribly.

“Aqutanama Raziel Elrich?” Aqutanama said as he helped the courier out and with a nod he handed him a large box. He signed for the box and then gave the man money for the delivery fee. Aku ended up getting another strange package. However, this time the name on it was different. He figured he should inspect the box but felt it would be better to do so after getting some food and shower first. He followed his usual morning routine. Showering after using the toilet. He dressed in his usual attire of dark colors that really helped bring out his eyes.

---

Double checking he found that he had almost forgotten his glasses and hat. Once he gathered those and put them on he put the box under his arm and went downstairs. He went to the 'Kitchen' and placed the box in an area that people knew as 'his.' Once he did that he started cooking and serving meals to everyone who ordered them. He did this for a few hours before he made himself a meal and sat down. Luckily for him he was awoken before the sun even came out.

Once he sat down to eat he pulled out the box and examined the contents within. Every now and again he poked at the food while he read what seemed to be a copy of a book. He could tell because of how quickly the flourishes in the writing and how the book was almost new. He continued to read and didn't really take it all in until he had fully finished with his meal.

Upon reading the letter he his eyes narrowed…

“Again to the spooky forest?” He thought as he noticed that Kyo was leaving the guild and it looked like he got a package that was like his.

“Did Kyo get the same mail?” He thought to himself as he started cleaning up his mess. He figured he would make his cupcakes and see if Kyo still liked them. After a few hours he finally made his way to the damned forest where he lost his friend. He quickly gathered supplies for his trip and thought to bring enough for two people. His bag was a bit bigger than normal but he was alright with the adjustment to it.

---

Soon he found himself in what was known as the Spooky Forest again… He felt as if someone was watching him as soon as he entered the place but shrugged it off and he moved through the place. It took him a grand total of thirty minutes to become lost in this place. It was as if someone was trying to force him to walk in a specific direction. Using his thread as a “bread trail” he moved through the forest. Soon he found himself kneeling down and hugging his knees. He rocked back and forth from the front balls of his feet to the back ones.

“Where is Kyo?” He thought out loud as he sat there rocking. In his silence he noticed someone talking… two people? He stood up and moved towards the sounds and found Kyo. A sly grin crossed his face as they didn't notice him, probably because they were focused on a conversation. He took to the trees like a spider, moving between threads silently following them.

Out of the side of his eye he noticed something else following them that hadn't noticed him yet. At first he wanted to run from the figure but he knew that Kyo and the female didn't know they were being followed. In that instant he sung towards the creature transforming the thread in his right hand into a whip. He left nothing to chance as he attacked. Purposely he went behind the cloaked figure and as he did he wrapped the thread around its neck.

---

“Auguriis!” Aku screamed as terror of the battle took him over. The thread became lit in the darkness and miasma that seemed to cloud this place. Due to his momentum he continued past his target until he cleared another branch. His left hand let go of the now dead thread and clasped onto the whip around the creature's neck. His momentum hit its apex and then he started to fall bringing all of his weight and the person on the other end of his burning noose with him.

It was truly a noose at this point as it lifted the person into the air choking the life out of them, if it wasn't already gone. The rope burned into the tree as he used the other end, wrapped around a root on the ground, to pull him faster to the ground. The figure was moving so fast it was a blur of motion as Aku tugged and pulled it from fifty feet in the air and slamming it into the ground. Dust billowed from the creature but it's hollow eyes still faced in their direction. Aku was about twenty feet away from the two who were talking.

“Kyo!” Aku said as a smile crossed his face, although he didn't face him.

“I brought some cupcakes! Now get over here and earn them!” He yelled still staring at the creature.

---

5 Posts total word Count: 1142
Damage to Strong
D+D damage from enchanted thread to strong. Even though it said that it takes X amount of posts I would like to keep track of damage.

Spell(s) Used and mana cost: 10MP

Auguriis:

HP: 100%
MP: 90%

Kyo watched the mists curl around in a sudden spur, and a kick of wind seemed to make him misstep as he tripped over what could only be a branch... right? He felt the soft soil impact, and cushion his fall. With a moan he put his hands to the ground, and slowly pushed himself to his knees. Letting out several coughs he brushed himself off. Looking back he did not spot whatever he tripped on. He shook his head,

"Great now I'm literally tripping on the air."

He heard crunching of foot steps near, and flicked his hands to his waist grasping a knife there. He looked around, and suddenly he was alone. With a pause of hesitation he spoke softly at first,

"Mei?... Mei where are you?"

He stood to his feet and looked around, the mists and miasma was so thick he was having trouble discerning where he was suddenly. He took a few steps around to just gauge his area.

"Mei? Mei can you hear me?!"

This was troubling to say the least, he was just speaking with her moments ago. People did not just Vanish like that. He heard a yell in the distance, and moved in its direction with a sudden sense of urgency. His hand unsheathing a knife as he moved.

It was then he hard someone shout cupcakes.

He watched as a blazing light lit the scene before him. It was Aqu, who seemed to have roped up some kind of figure in the darkness, and was now hanging it inside a flaming ensnarement. What was Aqu doing here? Had he seen Mei? Kyo's mind raced searching for answers, however he realized the situation called for action rather than questioning. He flicked his hands infusing magic into his daggers, and watched them fly at high speeds towards the hanging target.

However when the blades should be striking true, instead Kyo's attack was met with futility as they passed through the target, and it bursted into a cloud of smoke. With a scoff he moved for his next dagger, but found that it was not there, and instead saw it floating before him.

"That's not good."

The dagger began to swing out at him, as well as several other knifes, it appeared as though they had come unbound from his body. He started to back pedal dodging the assault. Finally his left hand had found a blade that was not misplaced, and he paired a swing from one of the knifes, and looked at the now 3 floating daggers that confronted him.

"Why is it always ghosts? Why am I constantly haunted it seems."

He ducked one slash, bending at the knees, and then rising with a quick uppercut from his left hand his knife met air. He scoffed as another blade from from the side, he stepped with a quick hop to the side dodging it and watching it cut where he had been moments earlier. He found his footing, and prepped himself for the attacks.

"Good to see you Aqu, though I am starting to think one of us is haunted."

Aku stood looking at the cloaked apparition and backed up to Kyo. As he was a dagger zipped by him and hit the figure. Its form displaced becoming more like the fog in the area than anything real. He finally found some footing when he looked up to see the creature struggling against his noose. The rope itself started slithering around the creature and grasped onto it. The only reason his rope didn't pass through it was because of the magic Aku had put into The Thread of Fate.

“I'm sure it is probably me, seeing as I'm cursed already. Why not add haunted to my list as well. Looks great on the resume.” Aku joked as he fell to his knees and started to vomit up some small bits of water. His off hand held the Thread of Fate while his other one slammed into the ground.

'This isn't the best time for this to act up.' He thought to himself as he got to his feet. His body swayed a little as the apparition tried to pull him or the rope out of his hands. He tumbled around to keep hold of the thread and as he did a jar of cooking fat fell from his backpack.

---

Word count: 209
Post 2 vs Strong monster

---

He made the thread entwine around his arm and over his back, it did the same thing down his other arm. He pulled on the rope and the apparition came with it. His thread was over his fist as he pummeled it in its haunted eyes.

“You think to terrify me!?” He yelled as he got heated and continued to pummel it with his fists. He was only focused on the one creature. He moved it against a tree with each punch. Eventually he had it pinned against the tree and continued to punch but its head bounced through the tree with every hit. His thread started to wrap around the tree and created a barrier around it. Each hit came faster as the creatures head bounced off of the thread on the tree and his fists. The thread between him and the tree had a bit of slack but the other parts attached to the creature and tree were tight.

---

Word Count: 160
D+D Rank Damage
Post 3 Vs Strong Monster
Status: Enchant Over

---

He could feel each hit as his fist collided with the creature he was fighting until his magic started to die. His fist passed through the creatures head. Possibly because these were not corporeal creatures. He could feel his magics wane within his Thread of Fate and noted that the fire wasn't burning the tree and flickering out. It was only suppose to damage with he targeted. Unfortunately, he knew the magic was fading so he backed up and severed the connection to the thread that held the creature. He was going to get as much distance between him and it as he could before it was free again.

The thread he left behind no longer held the creature and it looked somewhat dazed after the onslaught of getting its head bounced back and forth from the tree. Aku moved over to Kyo and placed a Thread of the Thread of Fate on him.

“Interioris Ignis!” He yelled as a calm focus came over his friend. As he looked back at the hooded figure it wailed and vanished as if the damage he did ended it.

“Well, that is one down. Now we have these to handle.” He spoke to Kyo as he pulled the main Thread of Fate from inside the small bundle he had left. Slowly it grew over him like a harness.

---

Word Count: 225
Post Four VS Strong Creature
Strong Creature Down

Spell(s) Used and mana cost: 10MP

Interioris Ignis:

HP: 100%
MP: 80%

Focus... no matter if their dead, they're like any other foe. Corporeal or not, their weapons are real.

Kyo raised his dagger in time to block another swing from his left, and the parry bounced the dagger from its hand letting the blade's hilt find itself into Kyo's his right hand. He was back peddling, and it was not his favorite strategy. Considering these things had already tripped him once, it was likely that he could be tripped again by the strange beings. One of them, now disarmed, was essentially invisible. He could in theory see them parting the miasma ever so slightly with their movements, and this was his only basic indication of their movements. This coupled with the missing Mei put him on edge, and threatened to tempt him to slip into the thrill, but it would do him no good here. Raw force wasn't the key to beating an enemy he couldn't discern.

---

159 Words
[1/3] Versus the weak, and Normal monsters.

---

He felt his footing slip for a moment, as he stepped on something behind him. With a stumble he dodged another knife attack from the right, and raised his knife as he fell backwards catching the blade of an attack on his left. He pushed against this force, and hoped that whatever was fighting him felt the force, as he watched the knife "stumble" back. With a twist he planted his feet back on the ground, and glanced seeing what made him slip. It was a mason jar, filled with a viscous grayish fluid. After a moments thought he considered Aku most have dropped it. Putting his thoughts together he suddenly became aware of the tactical advantage of the jar. Purposeful or not, Aku had given Kyo a weapon to fight with. He slid under a knife attack, his knees slick with the wet mud, and jammed his knifes through the glass of the jar, and with a shattering noise the sticky fluid coated his daggers. Pulling a lighter from his waist he was suddenly thankful he smoked at one point. Lighting it he touched it to his daggers which became blazing with flames. At the same time a touch came to his shoulder, and warm feeling flooded his body, banishing away worry, and even the string of the few cuts he had received.

Now, it's a fair fight you bastards. He said

---

233 Words
[2/3]

---

Now filled with DETERMINATION he moved into action knowing the daggers would only burn for so long with the impromptu strategy. Moving up on the unarmed assailant, now visible due to the smoke coming from the burning jar and leaves that it sat in, he ducked a swing, and moved his daggers in a swift horizontal stab towards what he could only assume was the lower abdomen. A armor crushing move he learned awhile back, it's goal to aim for weak joints on breast plates. He felt the satisfying feeling of contact as he pushed into what he could only assume was ghost flesh. He kept moving his arms, increasing the weight of his strike by altering density, and making it hit like a moving truck. The monster dislodged from his stab, crashing into a nearby tree.

He felt his eyes inherint ability activate, as he watched another dagger coming at him from his right. Red lines rippled across the earth, and he saw the attack pattern coming at him.

Duck left, swipe up.

He did exactly that, moving down, and to the left the dagger moved over his head missing the strands of his hair. He then threw and upward swing similar to a boxer uppercut. His dagger, still edged with fire and his magic, gashed upwards through the creature, he felt it split bones, flesh, and go right through the creatures jaw.

The last creature, seeing it's own spiritual partners be felled so swiftly dropped the dagger and began to run. Kyo looked towards it, and tried to analyze by the shifting mists its running pattern. Lifting up his dagger he focused his aim... carefully watching the red lines... with a strong, gravity pushed toss it flew towards the creature like a bullet, with a bone crushing crunch he saw it split through where the creatures skull should be before embedding into a tree several inches, and quickly extinguishing the flames around the dagger. Tossing the remaining dagger into the wet soil, it sake a few inches extinguishing the flame as well. Lifting up his sleeve and wiping a bit of sweat from his brow he looked towards Aku.

Smart play with the jar there. You think incredibly fast mid combat.

He held out his hand to grasp the other lads hand, in a manly hand clasp.

---

373 Word count.
[3/3] Weak monsters timed out, normal monsters slain.

Aku was a little pressed for time, as he exerted too much psychical endurance during the battle. The smaller fit he had before was nothing compared to the coughing and choking he was now going through. Once again he fell to his knees and started to choke on the water created by his curse. As far as he knew the water never helped him in any way, save for when he needed something to drink.

He coughed for what seemed an eternity, but was really about five minutes. He was thankful that he was where he was because if he was in an area without grass he would be in a muddy pit. Once he finished he noted that most of the specters were gone. Kyo was moving up to him and he assumed that he was the one who finished the creatures. When he complimented leaving his jar behind, Aku's head moved to the side a little as if he didn't fully understand.

Word Count: 164

---

Then it registered to him, as if a light went on in his mind. It was mostly the curse and its after effects that left him a bit slower. He shook his head a little breaking away the fog in his mind.

“Right, however, I didn't plan that.” He admitted as he looked up to Kyo, who held out a hand to help him up. He lifted his hand and grasped Kyo's so that he could stand.

“Thanks for the help there.” He mentioned as he started to help Kyo gather their belongings and what remained of his jar. He let out a small sigh as he noted it was broken beyond anything he wanted to keep. Still he gathered the broken pieces of the jar and placed them carefully into a pouch. Slowly he surveyed the area for anymore small pieces just to make sure no wildlife would be harmed. Once he was finished he looked at Kyo and smiled.

Word Count: 161

---

“There, now no little creatures will hurt themselves on the glass.” He informed Kyo, with a smile, however, he didn't realize that there were no little creatures to hurt themselves on the glass. He moved up to Kyo and started to lead them out of the strange forest that they were in.

“I made sure to leave small traces of my thread so that I could find my way out.” He informed Kyo as he followed a path picking up small portions of thread. Aqutanama moved his hand over them and added them to the smaller thread that he still held. The path was really twisty and seemed to have no real direction. After about an hour they found themselves outside of the Miasma within the spooky forest.

“Lets get some distance from this place before we talk.” Aku suggested as they moved over a stream. Luckily enough there was a small bridge that spanned it. Once on the other side the gloom of the place they left behind was truly gone.

Word Count: 168

---

“Now that we can breathe again, I think we should stop and eat something.” He informed Kyo as he spun off his backpack. Once he did that he opened the biggest compartment on it. Inside was the baked goods that he had made for Kyo and anyone else who wanted them. He handed some of the cupcakes over to Kyo and figured that he would be hungry.

“If I remember correctly you enjoyed the last sweets I made.” Aku reminded him as he sat down and looked at the sky. It was getting late in the day but there was still probably a few hours of light left. As they sat and ate the food he recalled something when he was following Kyo.

“Hey Kyo...” Aku started as he looked over to his friend.

“I recall someone following you. Looked like a girl or something.” He mentioned as he looked at Kyo.

“Now that I think about it I think they went off running the way I came. Although I'm not sure as that place seemed to play with my senses.” Aku questioned as he looked at Kyo.

Word Count: 188

---

He looked at Kyo and knew that his friend would probably want to go back in for his friend. However, he looked at the cupcakes and then to the forest.

“We could always set up a Job for someone to go find them if they aren't at the guild.” Aku informed Kyo as he looked at his friend. He didn't want to leave, however, at his current state he wasn't really at one-hundred percent. He ended up exhausting most of his Magic and was really tired. His eyes were a bit saggy as he almost nodded off. He snapped awake just to make sure that he didn't pass out in the wilds.

“As I said before I believe we should head back. I'm sure they are fine.” He tried to reassure Kyo as he packed up his belongings and stood up. He was towering for his age and people usually didn't realize how tall he was. This was because he always seemed to be hunched over and walked at oddly. This made him seem about a food shorter that he actually was. He would help Kyo up if he accepted the invitation and would lead them back to the guild.

If Kyo informed him they were heading the incorrect direction he would take the advise. This was because Aku wasn't really that great at directions. If Kyo wanted to lead or started to Aku would follow behind his friend. Once the arrived at the guild they would both look and question about Kyo's friend and find that they were seen not too long before them.
Word Count: 265

---

End Status
Spells Used: 2
HP: 90%
MP: 80%

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