Rox
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
World peace? More like world piece.
Posts: 140
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Post by Rox on Nov 24, 2009 15:28:46 GMT -5
"Are we almost to the top yet?" Rox asked. She was just being flippant since she knew they weren't going to the actual top of the mountain. Just sort of up the side. But it was tiring and Rox wasn't in the right shape to be going on long arduous hikes. But she had a good reason.
The guy in front of her.
She met him at the bowling alley where she worked. She was stationed behind the bar this night, which is where she usually was stationed, and he came in for a few drinks. After a few hours and some harmless flirting, he eventually invited her on a hike the next day. And Rox foolishly agreed.
Now she was almost out of breath and her legs were complaining non-stop. And they still had at least three hours before they would make it back to the car! "Hey," Rox said between breaths, "maybe we should check the map or something. You know, to make sure we're still going the right way." It was a thinly veiled ruse to get him to stop and take a break.
Rox plopped herself down on a small boulder and looked out over the edge of the steep hill they were on and took in the view. In Rox's opinion, it was so-so.
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Johnny
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Former Animorph of Arbella
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Post by Johnny on Nov 24, 2009 16:44:00 GMT -5
Justin smiled as Roxanne's complaint reached him. The classic line still made him smile, as did most of what the young woman behind him said. Justin slipped into thinking about how he'd met Rox. It had only been the previous night but they'd hit it off pretty well, or at least Justin thought so. Then he'd slipped in a nonchalant invitation to go hiking, an activity he had already planned and one he thoroughly enjoyed. And she'd accepted! The thought of his luck made him smile. Maybe, if this went great, he could ask her out later on. Maybe Monday... Her voice reeled him back to reality. Another smile flitted across his lips as he listened to Rox imply that she wanted to take a break. He stopped and turned to face her and wiped his forehead with the back of his glove. "Actually I've been up this way a couple of times and we're on track," Justin said but decided he'd save Rox, "but I could use a sandwich or something..." The words dribbled out of his mouth as Rox made a seat for herself. "That works," he commented. Justin swung his heavy-duty backpack off his back and slowly let it slip to the ground, barely stirring up any dust. He nudged it over beside Rox and then sat down on a carefully chosen rock, at a right angle to his fellow climber. It wouldn't be too intimate, but it also wouldn't look like he was avoiding her. He unzipped the backpack and pulled a small cooler-bag from the top of the items in it. He unzipped that and grabbed a sandwich. He really was getting hungry and a little snack wouldn't hurt. "So," he said after a bite, "how do you like the view so far? I bet you can see your house from here."
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Rox
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
World peace? More like world piece.
Posts: 140
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Post by Rox on Nov 25, 2009 22:52:41 GMT -5
Rox shot Justin a sarcastic smile in response to his 'That works' comment. But she was genuinely glad that he decided to stop for sandwiches. Rox wasn't hungry, but she was thirstier than a fish out of water. She grabbed a water bottle that she had hooked onto her belt and took a swig of the slightly cool water within.
"You can't quite see my house from here, but almost," Rox replied, dodging the portion of the question about the view. She wasn't sure if it would be safe to tell him where she lived, being an animorph and all, but she decided if she wasn't allowed to have a normal social life, SPECTER would have made that more clear. "If that group of trees wasn't there you would be able to see the high rise where I live."
"What about you? Where are you from?" Normally Rox didn't care about things like that, but she was currently having trouble coming up with better topics of conversation.
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Johnny
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Former Animorph of Arbella
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Post by Johnny on Dec 1, 2009 16:39:54 GMT -5
"Then I guess I owe you...a rock," Justin said, referring back to his "bet". With his free hand, Justin scrounged around on the ground for a moment before finding a particularly shiny amber rock. He held it out to Rox for a moment before dropping it. Then he quickly swallowed his bite and answered Roxanne's question. "Oh, I don't live in anything near as luxurious as a high-rise. I share an apartment with a friend that’s behind the Barns & Nobles over...there." Justin pointed to the approximate area where the bookstore was located. And that’s when his brain ran out of things to say. The night before, words had come easily to him, like they did every other time. But today, when he was alone except for Rox, he couldn’t think of anything at all. The preliminaries were pretty much done with, and talking about politics and religion were two very big no-nos when trying to get to know someone better, maybe even enough to date… The thought stopped right there. Don’t think like, that, don’t think like that. This is just a friendly hike up a mountain. Nothing more. Even if something were to happen, this is all that will happen. Now that he had gotten hat cleared up, Justin ran a hand through his longish hair. He absently picked at a small tangle as he chewed up some of the last of the sandwich. He swallowed and stood up, saying, “Well, how about we get going? This sun won’t last forever.” He tossed the empty Baggie into a little trash bag he’d brought along and put it back into one of the exterior pockets on his backpack. Well, that takes care of talking, he thought to himself, trying to forget the awkwardness that had suddenly assaulted him. When he was ready, Justin waited for Rox to get ready. “So how are you liking this so far?” he asked, glad that he could finally find something to say.
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Rox
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
World peace? More like world piece.
Posts: 140
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Post by Rox on Dec 3, 2009 3:10:22 GMT -5
"How am I liking this so far?" Rox shrugged as she stood up slowly. She was in no hurry to get moving again. "It's okay, I guess. I'm not sure if I'm really built for it though." Rox didn't like admitting to a weakness, but she figured it was overwhelmingly obvious already anyway. Besides, she technically didn't admit to anything. Only suggested the possibility.
"Lead the way. I'll try and keep up." Rox didn't make it ten feet before she stopped again. "Hey, look up there." Rox pointed to a small herd of bighorn sheep that were just a little ways up the slope. They reminded her of Hope, seeing as how she had a bighorn sheep morph. "Cool," she said under her breath.
However, the coolness quickly faded as one of the animals dislodged a rock that started rolling toward them. One rock wouldn't do much to them, except that rock dislodged more rocks as it rolled down the hill and suddenly there was a whole mess of small boulders coming right at them. It was a mini avalanche, and her and Justin were caught in the middle of it!
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Johnny
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Former Animorph of Arbella
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Post by Johnny on Dec 19, 2009 13:04:18 GMT -5
"Yeah right, I'll bet that you climbed Mt. Everest in your previous life," Justin said with a laugh. He decided to slow down a bit, because she did look like she couldn't move along as fast as he could. But then again, he did this sort of thing several times a year. Within seconds, Justin heard Rox's boots refrain from chomping on the ground. He turned around in time to follow the direction she was pointing. Bighorns, that was cool. "Nifty. Good eye, Rox!" Justin smiled in the general direction of the bighorns and pulled out his cell phone. He was planning on capturing them all on video. That was until he noticed the problem that was heading their way. "ROX! Get behind something!" he yelled, the importance of obeying evident in his voice. He himself tried running back down the path to head for flat land or shelter of some sort. The rumbling and crashing of all the rocks filled the air, creating a cacaphony that was almsot deafening. Then, he was right beside Rox. Right as the rocks reached them. As the pebbles and boulders knocked his feet out from under him, Justin through himself over Rox, wrapping her in a bear hug to try to limit as much damage to her as he could. His cell phone was long gone, but that was the least of Justin's worries. Right now there were lives at stake.
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Rox
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
World peace? More like world piece.
Posts: 140
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Post by Rox on Dec 21, 2009 3:15:53 GMT -5
Rox screamed involuntarily and a rock hit her leg. Hard. It easily knocked her off balance and she grabbed onto Justin's clothes to try and steady herself. Unfortunately she still managed to slide out of his bear hug and started sliding down the slope. "Justin!" She thought maybe she ended up pulling him with her, but wasn't sure because she hit her head when she landed and stars filled her vision.
She got pummeled by falling rocks as she slid down the slope, and got scraped up by boulders and shrubs that she hit on the way down. The next thing she knew, Rox was airborne. She fell for what felt like forever, although in reality it probably wasn't more than ten feet. But she landed hard between the cliff face and a large boulder.
The last thing she remembered before blacking out from the pain of her many cuts and broken bones was a great big stone landing on her pelvis and pinning her in place.
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Johnny
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Former Animorph of Arbella
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Posts: 225
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Post by Johnny on Dec 23, 2009 16:56:37 GMT -5
In the relentless wave of rocks barreling around them, Justin lost his grip on Rox. He fell away from her as he slid and scraped down the side of the mountain. He desperately grabbed at the ground, frantically searching for for holds of any sort, anything to slow himself down. Rocks jabbed and slashed his hands and arms, tearing through his gloves right before the stones broke away and began tumbling down the mountain as well. Then gravity yanked him off the mountain as Justin slipped off an edge. He began screaming for help, but the only sound that came from his throat was like a horse coughing due to the dust and grime filling his mouth. Then he landed on a boulder or something, and bounced off, pain streaking through his body. He twisted his body in order to get in a better position to minimize danger to himself. He landed on the ground again and the his breath forced itself out of his lungs. Gasping for precious oxygen, Justin could only feebly snatch at a ledge as he fell down a small hole. He landed with a wet-sounding CRACK that was almost loud enough for him to see. His leg felt like it was on fire and his head collided with a rock. Justin's world swam and blackened, even as some rocks fell on him and boulders partially covered his trap.
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Rox
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
World peace? More like world piece.
Posts: 140
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Post by Rox on Dec 26, 2009 17:26:05 GMT -5
Rox wasn't sure how long she was out. It could have been ten seconds or ten days for all she knew. Well, probably not ten days. But the one thing she did know was that she was in pain. Excruciating, unbearable pain.
She barely had room to move her head and could only move her left arm, so she had to check over her body mostly through the sense of touch. The sense that hurt the most to use.
Well, she was stuck, that much was obvious. The enormous hunk of rock that was shattering her pelvis made sure of that. She could wiggle the toes of one foot, but the condition of the other was a mystery to her. One of her arms felt scraped up pretty badly, but mostly still usable. To bad it was pinned underneath her. The other arm was fine too, but the wrist attached to it was broken and the hand a mangled mess. She would probably never be able to use it again.
Rox almost laughed at the thought, since she would never be able to get out of this crack anyway, but a sharp pain in her stomach and nose stopped her. Her nose was broken and a pointed rock was jabbing her in the side. She couldn't be sure if it broke the skin or not, but it was a hazard to her health either way.
"Well this sucks," Rox coughed. How was she supposed to get that rock off of her? She couldn't wait for a rescue party, and she didn't even know if Justin survived the avalanche. He could be in worse shape than she was.
Then it hit her, plain as day. Morph, you bozo. The thought almost made her laugh again. How had she missed such an obvious solution? Probably because her mind didn't automatically jump toward superpowers as a way to solve all her problems. Especially when she wasn't thinking all that clearly.
But what should I morph? Fish and Shark were automatically out. Her bear morph was probably strong enough to move the boulder on top of her, but there wasn't nearly enough space in the crack she had fallen into. That just left the pelican and dove as her options. Unfortunately, it looked as if the same boulder that was pinning her was also being held up by her. So if she morphed, there was a good chance that it would shift and possibly crush her. If she were a fragile bird, that is.
"Well, you gotta try something." Rox was about to concentrate on her dove morph, hoping the smaller size would reduce the chances of her getting crushed, when she noticed something wiggle out of the corner of her eye. On the bottom of one of the rocks that had fallen off the cliff with her, there was some caked-on dirt that was coming loose. And between the dirt and the rock she spotted a little grey bug trying to squish itself into the limited shadows.
"Pillbug," Rox whispered matter of factly. As much as she despised the idea of turning into a creepy crawly critter, she realized it may be her best chance at survival. When she morphed, if the boulder shifted, then hopefully she could still sneak into the cracks between the rocks below. Something a dove couldn't do. Now all she had to do was acquire it.
Rox reached over her head with her free arm, wincing as her bloody pulp of a hand came into view. With a very determined amount of concentration, she studied her hand and touched the hiding bug. She expected it to try and scurry away, but the acquiring trance must have worked even on simple animals like this one. As soon as she was sure she acquired it, Rox concentrated on morphing.
The first change, much to Rox's relief, was the appearance of armor-like skin. It formed awkwardly in the tight space, but it formed, and that was Rox's main concern. Even so, she was starting to get a little short of breath for a bit until the shrinking began. Then there suddenly seemed to be plenty of space. Rox would have tried to get out of there right then and there, except her arms were exceedingly short by that point and her eyes all but disappeared. There was an awkward moment when her lungs effectively evaporated and she suddenly found herself breathing through gills of some sort. As more legs sprouted from her body and the transformation was complete, Rox felt a great rumbling. The boulder above must have fallen.
But Rox couldn't have cared less. She was in a cool dark spot. She could have sat there for days as long as she had a bit of rotting wood to munch on. Mmmm, rotting wood. The thought drove Rox to go exploring for some. Maybe deeper into the rocks.
As she crawled between the cracks, something clicked in her mind. <<What are you doing? Get ahold of yourself,>> she said to herself. The bug's instincts had gotten the better of her. But now that Rox was in control of herself again, she started crawling up instead of down. Not that it was easy to tell which way that was.
When Rox reached a border between shadow and light, the critter's instincts fought especially hard. Apparently pillbugs and sunlight didn't mix well. But Rox pressed onward. For what felt like an eternity, she crawled over mountains of solid stone, hills of pebbles, and forests of gravel. Finally, when Rox was sure she was far enough away from where she started, Rox demorphed.
Standing on the mountainside in nothing but her bra and underwear, Rox looked around to get her bearings. She was about five feet from where her clothes were half covered by rocks. She went over and pulled them out, loosing half a pant leg in the process. As soon as she had her tattered clothes back on, Rox set out to look for Justin.
"Justin! Justin!" Maybe he was still okay. Maybe...
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Johnny
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Former Animorph of Arbella
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Post by Johnny on Jan 6, 2010 10:26:31 GMT -5
((Couldn't resist XD)) A tongue flicked out. Scents and molecules fell on it, inputting sensory data into the serpent's brain. No prey. The California Mountain Kingsnake moved forward, effortlessly sliding its coils over rock and dirt. After a period of time that was unimportant, the snake stopped, flicking its tongue out again. Scents fell on it again. Twig, beetle, grass, rock, mouse, and...something? The something was with the mouse. Curiosity got the better of the milksnake and it slithered forward again until it came to a hole. With another flick of its tongue, the serpent glided down into the hole, following the scent trail of its prey. After only moving a foot or so, the snake realized it wasn’t just a hole. It was more like a gap between rocks. But it made no difference to the flexible kingsnake. It slipped and slid over and down rocks until it had detected a large amount of warmth. The heat was much easier to see down there because the rocks were cooling off, a result of being in the shade for some time. The snake dropped, detecting a few scent molecules of the mouse. It landed on a surface unlike one it had been on before. It was warm yet not-hard. It moved, causing the snake to coil up. A hiss emanated from its mouth, a warning to the ground and moving thing. Soon, the kingsnake moved back to the thing, exploring it. It moved down to the smaller portion of the thing, the part that was offset from the rest of it. Then, the thing under it emitted a strange but loud noise and it began moving. Assuming the worst, the snake entered its defensive mode, exuding a foul-smelling chemical. It swiftly slithered off into the rocks and boulders around it, fleeing the creature. A faint tickling sensation brought Justin from his state of unconsciousness. With his mind still cloudy, Justin assumed it was his friend. Then he realized that something was on his face. Something like a rope, warm, and WAS MOVING! With a hoarse yell that turned into a dry cough, Justin tried to get the snake off his face, but his hands were bound. But the snake moved off, but without leaving behind a rather nasty smell. Thoughts raced through Justin’s mind, but he tried forgetting them. None of them mattered now except to get away. Already in the few seconds of being awake, Justin had discovered that he couldn’t move his legs or his right arm. His limbs and extremities were asleep or numb, but he found out that he could move his left hand, just not much as he seemed to be encased in…rocks? Hadn’t he been doing something on a mountain before all of this? Justin couldn’t seem to remember. And if he knew any way to get out of his tomb, he couldn’t remember either. His only hope was that a person he vaguely had an idea of, whom he’d been climbing with, was close enough to help him. “Help,” he groaned, not being able to make many sounds with dust and grime caking his throat and mouth. “Help!” he tried a little louder, hoping that someone was out there.
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Rox
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
World peace? More like world piece.
Posts: 140
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Post by Rox on Jan 7, 2010 4:26:21 GMT -5
It wasn't long before Rox heard a reply, although it wasn't in the form she was expecting. She heard a yell and some coughing coming from nearby, but she couldn't pinpoint exactly where it was coming from. She stayed quiet for a moment to try and figure it out and soon heard more noise.
"Help. Help!" she could hear Justin's voice say faintly. Rox's face pointed itself in the direction the sound was coming from and she carefully made her way in that direction. It was slow going, however, due to all of the fresh new loose rocks from the mini avalanche. "I'm coming, Justin. Just hold on." She was just glad that he was still alive.
Eventually Rox reached a partially covered hole that she probably would have never noticed if she hadn't been looking for it. She could make out a few human features inside. "Justin, you okay? We gotta get you out of there!"
Rox began shoving rocks out of the way, the ones she could budge anyway, in an effort to free her hiking partner from his rocky prison. "You should call 911 if you can. I left my phone in the car." Rox was trying to sound calm and collected, but she was on the verge of freaking out on the inside. What were you supposed to do in a situation like this?
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Johnny
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Post by Johnny on Jan 12, 2010 13:00:41 GMT -5
How long had it been since he cried out? Two seconds, two hours, two days? Time was blurring together for Justin. Then, right when his eyes were about to close, he heard the most wondrous sound in the world. "Rox? That you? Thank God!" he choked out. Relief flooded him. Another groan came from the pile of rocks laying on Justin. "I can't call. Phone's broke. I can't move." Not to mention the pain he could feel in his leg. Soon, he could feel rocks being pulled off an arm. "Thanks," he gasped. A lot of fresh air could reach him, now that the mini-mountain on him was began chipped away. He coughed again and managed to sit up, helping push rocks and stones off him. After much time had, passed, Justin was able to drag himself out of his prison. But that was about all he could do. He sucked in his breathe to stifle a scream as blood began circulating through his legs and arm. Then he could feel his left leg. And it HURT! Justin looked over it, automatically going back to the extensive safety classes and first aid that he’d done over the years. It was at least sprained, he knew for sure. There was a very large chance that it was fractured or broken even. “Rox, can you find the back pack?” Justin said between gasps. “My leg might be broken.” He tried to control his voice, so Rox wouldn’t know the exact state he was in. But there was a first aid kit in the pack and with Rox’s, help there was a chance they could make it off the mountain.
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Rox
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
World peace? More like world piece.
Posts: 140
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Post by Rox on Jan 14, 2010 6:40:43 GMT -5
"Yeah, I'll get your backpack. Just hold on a sec. Oh, and try not to hurt yourself more. You look pretty well beaten up." Rox hurried off to search for the guy's gear.
It didn't take long to find, luckily. It was caught on a shrub halfway up the mini cliff the two of them had fallen off of. With a few carefully tossed rocks, Rox was able to get it down. "I got it!" she announced, then hurried back over to where Justin was.
"Hope you know what you're doing, because I won't be much help. But if you need some assistance, I can try." Despite having spent years in a hospital, Rox didn't know a whole lot about medical stuff.
"You don't think I should go ahead for help, do you?" Rox could fly away, get help, and be back within the hour. But of course Justin wouldn't know that. She wasn't sure how she could explain such a speedy rescue anyway.
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Johnny
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Post by Johnny on Jan 18, 2010 13:24:26 GMT -5
"Thanks," Justin said as he tore through the pack and found the first aid kit. He began to get to work, setting his leg and treating it as best he could. It wasn't anything perfect, but hopefully it would work until he could get medical help. Now that his immediate probelm was addressed, Justin looked at Rox. "Ah, no. With things like that landslide altering the paths and stuff, it would probably be a bit too dangerous for a newbie like you. Besides, I'll need your help to walk." Although now that he was looking at her, he noticed something. "Are you hurt or anything?" The fall they (or at least he) had taken banged him up pretty bad but Rox looked like she had just taken a stroll down a path. He didn't see anything on her like he expected, like cuts, scratches, and bruises everywhere, if not worse. But then again, most girls he knew always managed to look perfect, although that was never something he would've associated with Rox, just from their short acquaintance. Although, Rox's clothes were less than perfect-looking... Suspicion flared up in the back of his mnd but Justin dismissed it. He was probably just being paranoid. After all, what are the odds of sometihng like that here?
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Rox
Experienced
Animorph of Arbella
World peace? More like world piece.
Posts: 140
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Post by Rox on Jan 21, 2010 17:58:46 GMT -5
Rox didn't appreciate being called a newbie and being told that something was too dangerous for her (if he only knew) but from Justin's perspective, she knew he was right. She couldn't just run off and leave him here. Rox slumped her shoulders slightly and didn't argue the point any further.
But her body tightened up again when Justin asked about her injuries. She looked over her own body and found not a scratch. Which completely clashed with the appearance of her torn up clothing. "I guess I'm just really lucky to not have broken anything... But I bet I'll have a lot of nasty bruises before too long." Hopefully he would buy it. Maybe later she would actually have to give herself a few bruises to throw off suspicion.
What are you thinking Rox? she thought to herself. It's not like he's out to get you or anything. Don't go hurting yourself just because someone might be a bit superstitious.
Rox shook her head clear. "Anyway, we should probably start heading back if we are going to make it before nightfall. Right?" Rox moved closer to help support Justin if he required any help.
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