Morning arrived with pale light filtering through his window. Cel’s door opened onto the corridor just as another door down the hall did the same.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwotDuo50Wv
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Lior emerged, wheat-blond hair sticking up at odd angles, still rubbing sleep from his eyes. He looked up and his expression shifted immediately - first recognition, then shock so complete it stopped him mid-motion.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGrOCGCaYcS
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“Cel?” His voice cracked. “What—your throat—“76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ31sExGlclp
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Cel’s hand moved automatically to his throat. His fingers found the thin line of dried blood he’d completely forgotten about. The cut wasn’t deep, but it had bled enough during the night to leave a visible mark.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC5fZMbVGAG
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‘Shit.’76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR2VgtIGyIG
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“It’s nothing,” he said quickly. 76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAkgedbAlav
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“Nothing?” Lior crossed the distance between them in three quick strides, eyes wide with something close to panic. “You’re bleeding! Did you—were you trying to—“76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHD8eXpKAay
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The implication hit a moment before Lior’s voice broke completely on the unfinished question.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrIqm6rB5AV
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“No.” Cel raised both hands, palms out. “No, it’s not what it looks like. I wasn’t—“76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO9WvGLmdLP
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“Then what happened?” Lior’s sky-blue eyes searched his face desperately. 76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQtBFwtkgkA
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The truth was impossible to tell. A lie was needed.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCbVpIwaxas
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“I was testing something,” Cel said. The words came out awkward, stilted. “With my artifact. Wanted to see how sharp the edge was.”76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgp4wIrFTnT
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Silence stretched for two full heartbeats.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡizYnJAlDlc
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Then Lior’s expression cycled through confusion, disbelief, and arrived at something that might have been horror.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCAHUZUa9DZ
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“On your throat?!”76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0WZw61UnnN
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The question came out half-shout, loud enough that a door down the hall opened. Someone peered out, saw them, and quickly retreated back inside.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡetA23JbdqZ
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“I just—“ Cel scrambled for something to make this seem reasonable. “It seemed like the best way to—“76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMM5SgaC28e
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“The best way?” Lior stared at him like he’d announced plans to jump off the Academy’s tallest tower. “You put a blade to your own throat to test if it was sharp?”76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5frSSgtfYQ
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When phrased like that, it sounded even worse than Cel had thought.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW0bz3vQ6dE
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“It was controlled,” he tried. “I knew what I was doing.”76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9pJzWiEjHK
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“Controlled.” Lior’s voice had gone flat. “Right. Very controlled. That’s why you’re bleeding.”76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxSy5W7k21L
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Cel opened his mouth. Closed it again. No explanation was going to salvage this.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡysJsWHmf5e
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“Look,” he said finally. “I’m fine. It’s barely a scratch. And I learned what I needed to know about the blade’s edge, so—“76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAkcFF1dLzR
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“You’re insane.” Lior shook his head slowly. “Completely insane.”76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWB9GmFlVJs
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He reached out and grabbed Cel’s shoulder - not aggressively, just a grip that suggested he needed something solid to hold onto while processing what he’d just heard.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJWcHLP8dOE
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“Promise me you won’t do that again.”76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeGsVsOrPRF
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“I promise I won’t test my artifact’s sharpness on my own throat again.”76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk5A5okOuVg
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Lior studied him for a long moment, clearly trying to determine if that answer was sufficient. Then he sighed, releasing Cel’s shoulder.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkLsqe7W3Es
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“We should get to conditioning,” he muttered. “Before you find some other creative way to kill yourself.”76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhHYHGl9CqH
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They walked to the training grounds together, Lior occasionally glancing at him with lingering concern. Cel kept his expression neutral, relieved the conversation had ended but acutely aware that his reputation for rational decision-making had taken quite some damage.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm4Ua8i4Avu
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The day passed without incident. Dawn conditioning proceeded as it always did - bodies moving through drills, Instructor Calder’s voice cutting across the yard with corrections. Theoretical classes filled the morning with information Cel already knew. Combat training in the afternoon tested basic techniques against partners who couldn’t push him far enough to reveal anything.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNzcAHsyE4H
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Through it all, Hestia occupied her usual position. She took notes during lectures. Participated in drills with her typical precision. Never looked at him. Never acknowledged him.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWNCmh4ez0g
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It was almost worse than confrontation.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQMgf0v96t7
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By the time afternoon classes concluded, tension had settled in Cel’s shoulders like a physical weight. He needed to move. To do something other than sit and wait for Esrin to either confirm or deny his story.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgoiK4bQw3a
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The Reckoning’s hideout waited.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwoE6YAU0nL
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Esrin had told him to arrive at sunset two days hence. Today was that day.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDJRxRXpbpL
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Cel left the Academy grounds through the main gate, nodding to the guard who’d come to recognize him over the past months. The city sprawled before him - broad streets branching in every direction, buildings pressed close enough that their upper floors nearly touched.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2pWmYdHXpH
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He moved through crowds with practiced ease, tracking landmarks from memory. The fountain with the cracked basin. The bakery that always smelled like burned bread. The corner where street performers gathered each evening.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2hm3rtHVqQ
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His mind turned to what waited at the end of this walk.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3SEtZsODWt
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Death’s Friendliest Face.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBUmj5F3jsp
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Wrath’s Only Daughter.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP3pYdLPpdb
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Two members of the Reckoning assigned to train him. Two people he’d met only once, during that initial gathering when they’d voted on whether to let him live or kill him immediately.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo0Ek4fZVdB
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Death’s Friendliest Face had voted for him joining. He remembered that much. Still, the contradiction of his codename was unsettling - what kind of person earned a name that paired death with friendliness? Someone who killed with a smile? Someone who made dying seem pleasant?76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnrJKOPz6nA
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He didn’t know. Couldn’t know until he met them properly.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyBaGabkeUv
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Wrath’s Only Daughter was clearer in his memory. She’d voted for his death without hesitation. Her hostility had been palpable even though it was their first meeting. Training under someone who’d wanted him dead seemed like an efficient way to end up dead, just delayed.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ60PL04rPrt
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But Esrin had made the assignment. An opportunity to grow stronger. Refusing wasn’t an option.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn29zo9AQK0
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The bar came into view as he rounded a familiar corner.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs4HOHHEakq
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It looked exactly as it had that first night - weathered wood, grimy windows, a door that hung slightly crooked on its hinges. The kind of place that was abandoned long ago.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvghjfzdA1s
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Cel approached and reached for the handle.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKVzZYZAoim
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Locked.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbBBDnIPr1a
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He pulled harder. The door didn’t budge, resistance firm under his grip.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmop8c630z3
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Cel  stepped back, frowning. Had he missed a specific time requirement or something?76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2RCHez3e0a
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He grabbed the handle again.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOCKuOJ0Dmu
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Only this time... he really pulled.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡooMW17eu2L
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The door flew open with enough force that he stumbled backward a step.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2YzLopJsE8
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Not locked. Just stuck.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhdU0mPTN0M
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Heat crawled up his neck as he glanced around to see if anyone had witnessed that display. The street remained mercifully empty.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxUAhdqoFxT
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He stepped inside.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOEz9XRLCkl
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The interior matched his memory - cramped space, handful of tables, bar running along one wall. Just dim light filtering through boarded windows and the smell of old wood and older alcohol.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjbN8eRhBIY
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Cel moved deeper into the room, scanning for anything that might indicate where to go next. A hidden door. A symbol. Some sign that this place connected to the Reckoning’s void-dimension manor.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdzWWDMBxhO
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Nothing.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFBvGJcmmwz
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He stopped in the center of the room, precisely where he and Esrin had emerged from the rift that first time. The floor looked like floor. The air felt like air. Reality seemed entirely intact.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ68J8hN26Pi
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What was he supposed to do now?76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeLZFvq16VA
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He extended his hand slowly, fingers spreading as if he might touch something invisible. His palm met only empty space. No resistance. No tingle of energy. Just air moving past his skin.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGQuihx4OS0
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“Open,” he said quietly.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOaGa01SnsH
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Nothing happened.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBEzVIF9Hwy
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“To the Reckoning.”76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlS3INMzcDr
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Still nothing. He felt ridiculous, standing alone in an empty bar speaking to nothing.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUDeYO2Eclq
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Maybe there was a phrase. Something specific that activated whatever mechanism Esrin had used. But she hadn’t told him any words. Just said to come here at sunset.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpxhKdS2LIJ
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He tried again, cycling through possibilities. “Show me the way.” “Grant me passage.” “I seek the Reckoning.”76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtjazqxx3p4
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Each attempt landed in silence.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMBX0fuDHLY
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Frustration built in his chest. 76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS2SAAfGVMb
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Then a thought occurred.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG4fqG1emgM
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He’d summoned Silent Moon thousands of times by now. The motion was instinctive - not words but intent. A reaching inside himself, a calling forth of something that existed in a space adjacent to reality until he needed it.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaEDkmNBwUd
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What if it worked the same way?76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxDt6Z2r7Wq
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Cel closed his eyes. Breathed. Let his mind settle into that same space he accessed when summoning his blade.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG7blO7dNLG
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But instead of reaching inward for Silent Moon, he reached outward. Toward the space where Esrin had opened her rift. Toward the connection that must exist between this location and the void dimension.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡflsyZySQoT
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He focused on that intent - not demanding, just... requesting. Asking reality to part so he could pass through.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrR7IoafU98
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Something shifted.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuHCclySDOC
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His eyes snapped open.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8oU8lFsw0m
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A vertical slash hung in the air before him - violet light bleeding from its edges, energy crackling across its surface in patterns that hurt to look at directly. Small, perhaps the height of a door. But unmistakably a rift.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmks3xjRunH
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Cel took an involuntary step backward.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5jlCKqudUR
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Reality had just broken open in front of him. Torn itself apart because he’d asked it to.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRwGKoSTEBz
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The rift pulsed, patient and waiting.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOANBpKkIrn
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He studied it carefully, taking in details that his panic had obscured when watching from a distance two nights ago. The violet light wasn’t uniform - darker at the edges, brighter at the center, shifting through shades that had no names in normal spectrum. Energy crackled across its surface in branching patterns, like lightning frozen mid-strike.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfYEjix49DG
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It looked almost exactly like the rift that had opened outside the city walls.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrqJGbFDV85
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Just smaller. Controlled. 76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9QedPGiT55
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But fundamentally the same.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGHHw4gIPR3
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Cel’s breath caught. This wasn’t anything the Empire taught. Rifts meant disaster, not possibility. They were random tears, dangerous openings to be sealed with human lives.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAhGFoMsY3C
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What did it mean that the Reckoning could simply create them on demand to use them for traveling?76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkXyMD40xIX
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Questions for later. If he survived whatever training waited on the other side.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgSMFuNqlx4
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Cel stepped forward slowly, approaching the violet tear. Up close, the energy made his skin prickle. Not painful, just aware. Like standing too close to a fire or too near the edge of a cliff.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPw7Qg0v7dl
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He extended his hand.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK8YmyfP2Dk
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His fingers passed through without resistance. No sensation at all - his hand simply disappeared into the violet light as if it had ceased existing from the wrist forward.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS2VnXBR4TS
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He pulled back. His hand returned, intact and unmarked.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjXbhb5XbEZ
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‘Alright.’76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcWV8BxEJ4i
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One deep breath. Then another.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzeyugy8PvA
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Then he stepped through.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ldRqv2uOx
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