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Subject: "GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"     Previous Topic | Next Topic
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Gryphonadmin
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Mar-29-21, 08:31 PM (EDT)
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"GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
 
   The wheels of the Gallian bureaucracy turn, Flandre's plans proceed, and an unexpected visitor brings Remilia news she could never have imagined.

Act IV: "Les Voyages d'une Diable (Sur la Route de la Vie)"

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.


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  Subject     Author     Message Date     ID  
  RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable goldenfire Mar-29-21 1
  RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable Zemyla Mar-29-21 2
     RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable Droken Mar-29-21 3
     RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable Gryphonadmin Mar-30-21 4
         RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable Zemyla Mar-30-21 5
  RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable Gryphonadmin Apr-04-21 6
     RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable Zemyla Apr-04-21 7
     RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable Verbena Apr-04-21 8
         RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable Azlehria Apr-04-21 9
         RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable Gryphonadmin Apr-05-21 12
     RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable Star Ranger4 Apr-04-21 10
  RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable Astynax Apr-05-21 11
     RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable Gryphonadmin Apr-05-21 13
         RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable Peter Eng Apr-05-21 14

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goldenfire
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Mar-29-21, 08:53 PM (EDT)
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1. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #0
 
   Lots of good bits -- the car, the splitting up (we can do more damage that way), the beginning of the road trip.

I love that the end note ties up neatly (with a bow even!) why Gryphon was quite as antsy as he was, to get to Paris...and that the floral scent was Marisa's perfume (which might get a raised eyebrow out of Remilia when they meet and she figures it out).

Everything is connected.

very nice.



==Goldenfire
And who exactly is this diabolical 'they' to which we keep referring? If there's some grand conspiracy going on, the right hand doesn't appear to know what the left is doing. --Raziel (Soul Reaver II)


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Zemyla
Member since Mar-26-08
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Mar-29-21, 09:51 PM (EDT)
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2. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #0
 
   I mean, I expected more violence in the reason for G's abrupt travel, but a cuddle emergency is real. I also expected the visitor to be Patchouli until you mentioned her age. But both of those will come in good time, I assume.

As for what we got: The pre-marriage certificate scene was adorable. I'm proud of Eben for how far he's come. When you mentioned a million, I was briefly wondering if that was dollars.

Oh, so he did get a synchromesh gearbox. Are we supposed to know Ms. Völlmer from anywhere?

I'm glad we got at least a little closure on the 10th of Floreal.

Remilia can still fly even on the new moon. That's useful.

And yeah, I've tended to my girlfriend when she was down and needed cuddles. I wish I could fly over to visit her the way Benjamin did.

All in all, a good story, one which nicely wraps things up for the hopefully brief hiatus. Good luck with your academics!


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Droken
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Mar-29-21, 11:51 PM (EDT)
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3. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #2
 
   I wasn't expecting violence in his need to return, but I also wasn't anticipating quite so wholesome and excellent a reason either. That's peak "significant other" right there, that is.

Seconded on this being another splendid chapter in this series, and also a solid note to end on prior to a break. Best of luck with the Graduate work Gryph!

-Droken

"If at first you don't succeed, bull-
riding is not for you."


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Gryphonadmin
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Mar-30-21, 04:56 AM (EDT)
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4. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #2
 
   >I mean, I expected more violence in the reason for G's abrupt travel,
>but a cuddle emergency is real. I also expected the visitor to be
>Patchouli until you mentioned her age. But both of those will come in
>good time, I assume.

I've got a plan for Patchy, but it has to happen at a specific point in the timeline, and we've got a ways to go before we reach it.

>Oh, so he did get a synchromesh gearbox. Are we supposed to know Ms.
>Völlmer from anywhere?

No, not specifically. Her first name is in honor of the late Sabine Schmitz, the Nürburgring driver, whom some of you may remember from her guest appearances on Top Gear, but she's not based on anyone in particular, and I picked her surname out of the air (probably a stray thought of Doc Vollmer, the doctor who occasionally patches up Archie in the Nero Wolfe novels).

>Remilia can still fly even on the new moon. That's useful.

Yeah, she becomes physically much weaker, heals a lot slower, and tends toward low energy and a certain emotional fragility, but she doesn't become completely powerless. She wouldn't be able to fly as fast or as far, but for the aerial equivalent of just going for a walk, she's fine.

---G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.


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Zemyla
Member since Mar-26-08
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Mar-30-21, 03:00 PM (EDT)
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5. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #4
 
   Also, I just realized that Flan saved Mr. Wentworth on the day before the new moon. That makes it extra badass.


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Gryphonadmin
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Apr-04-21, 00:58 AM (EDT)
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6. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #0
 
   Hm. Pretty quiet. Did I mess up the RSS push? Wouldn't be the first time...

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.


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Zemyla
Member since Mar-26-08
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Apr-04-21, 06:25 AM (EDT)
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7. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #6
 
   >Hm. Pretty quiet. Did I mess up the RSS push? Wouldn't be the first
>time...

As someone with an RSS reader, you did not.


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Verbena
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Apr-04-21, 10:52 AM (EDT)
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8. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #6
 
   Hey, it's Easter weekend, some people may be busy.

Me, I've always got something going on, which is part of why I don't comment on every thread. Rest assured, though, that even if I don't comment on everything, I check the New Releases page all the time, any time I visit the site. Not every day, but close!

As for the story itself, I do have a few observations.

I think the side story with Wentworth and the car was sweet, and I'm glad to have read it, but I think I'm also glad it seems to have run its course. I've been rereading SotS 1 and I was reminded of how long the Mac side story ended up being; I'm glad to see closure.

Ironically, I was glad to see Remilia angry! Civilized or not, not everyone is perfect and especially with that kind of history weighing her down. While Mme Serreau's story was a bit of a stretch, narratively speaking, I recognize and agree with the plot point it's designed to create.

Was Sakuya's Lens shown before and I just missed it? Or is this the first time we see it?

I find myself almost hoping Flandre -does- end up running into a Neuroi again, but I have a feeling even if that happens, we will read about it after Remilia and Sakuya are in Ribeauville. One way or another, I'm looking forward to the reaction the 501st (or whoever!) have to their abilities.

Lastly, the final scene is really sweet too! Not the first person to mention that, I believe, and I'm sure I won't be the last.

That all said, I'm looking forward to the continuation!

And I've said this before, but thanks again for doing these, Gryphon. I mean, I could (and do) read actual paid-for books, but I still find myself always coming back here for my Eyrie Productions fix. Nothing quite compares.

------
Authors of our fates
Orchestrate our fall from grace
Poorest players on the stage
Our defiance drives us straight to the edge


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Azlehria
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Apr-04-21, 05:42 PM (EDT)
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9. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #8
 
   >Was Sakuya's Lens shown before and I just missed it? Or is this the
>first time we see it?

It was first mentioned in Book 1, Act VII and Sakuya shows it to Meiling in Book 2, Act III, but I believe this is the first time any description has been shared with the audience.


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Gryphonadmin
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Apr-05-21, 04:00 AM (EDT)
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12. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #8
 
   >I think the side story with Wentworth and the car was sweet, and I'm
>glad to have read it, but I think I'm also glad it seems to have run
>its course.

It may not be the last time we hear from young Wentworth, but if we do see him again, it won't be for a while.

>I've been rereading SotS 1 and I was reminded of how long
>the Mac side story ended up being; I'm glad to see closure.

Most of the issues with pacing and tangents in the early Symphonies came from the fact that we had a larger crew in those days, and I've always been bad at saying no to people's ideas for subplots and side characters. (To be fair, no worse at it than saying no to my own.) Everything went in, and as a result, everything tended to go on a bit.

>Ironically, I was glad to see Remilia angry! Civilized or not, not
>everyone is perfect and especially with that kind of history weighing
>her down.

Indeed. It was also bad timing, and I don't think it's too unfair to say that Mme. Serreau could have set the stage a bit better. But then, she was under a lot of stress as well.

>Was Sakuya's Lens shown before and I just missed it? Or is this the
>first time we see it?

It's come up a couple of times, although this is the first time we've seen her use it (though it's implied that she did in Sea Trials, to let G know that the business with the government was turning out favorably before he had a chance to see it in the newspaper).

>One way or
>another, I'm looking forward to the reaction the 501st (or whoever!)
>have to their abilities.

I'm looking forward to doing that bit, as well. Remi's brief visit to Saint-Ulrich is one of my favorite bits of GG2, in terms of how much fun it was to come up with.

>And I've said this before, but thanks again for doing these, Gryphon.
>I mean, I could (and do) read actual paid-for books, but I still find
>myself always coming back here for my Eyrie Productions fix. Nothing
>quite compares.

Thanks! I sometimes find myself, in dark corners of the day, wondering why I'm still doing this after all these years, and, well, "people are still enjoying it" is not quite all of it, but it's a big part.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.


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Star Ranger4
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10. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #6
 
   >Hm. Pretty quiet. Did I mess up the RSS push? Wouldn't be the first
>time...
>
I wouldn't know, as I get my intel in another fashion...

I just didn't reply because the few thoughts I had (including the Wait... a lens??? Oh, wait she had it when she first showed up) had already been covered or might be covered by not investigating too closely


Of COURSE you wernt expecting it!
No One expects the FANNISH INQUISITION!
RCW# 86


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Astynax
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Apr-05-21, 01:50 AM (EDT)
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11. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #0
 
   LAST EDITED ON Apr-05-21 AT 10:31 AM (EDT)
 
>"Messages have been arriving at the desk downstairs for us since the morning
>editions hit the street. Most from well-wishers," she went on, holding up the
>letter she was holding and then putting it down on the smaller pile. Then she
>picked up the telegram from the top of the larger one, perused it, narrowed her
>eyes slightly, and dropped it into the fire, adding dryly, "Some not."
>

Remilia clearly knows how to deal with haters and trolls.
Though now that I type that, I expect she also knows how to deal with actual trolls as well as figurative ones.

>Meiling was surprised, and a little amused, but mostly puzzled in her turn to
>see Sakuya's eyes go wide, a blush rising in her cheeks, as she read the
>letter. Then, lowering the paper to look past it at Remilia, the maid gasped,
>"M-m'lady, I don't... how?"
>

I'm fairly certain the number of times in her adult life Sakuya has been fumbling for words can be counted on one hand. Possibly one clumsy shop teacher's hand.

>Remilia shrugged with affected casualness. "I asked nicely."
>

Heh, we all know this is precisely what she did, but this sort of reply could have a very different interpretation to an unknowing observer. Makes me recall the mob inspired SDM artwork and contemplate Remilia making offers people can't refuse.

>Remilia suppressed a shiver. "Be very careful if you go by boat. You know our
>kind doesn't handle rivers very well."
>If you only knew, big sister, Flandre thought, but all she said out loud was,
>"I will, don't worry. Anyway, Meiling won't let anything happen."
>

Under the circumstances, I'd say Flandre handled that river about as well as any vampire, probably better than most in fact. I expect Remilia would get a bit... dramatic if she heard the whole story though.

>Behind them came a pair of young women who must have been the servants Flandre
>had said were more than servants—the grey-haired girl he'd upbraided about the
>elevator, and a strapping, broad-shouldered redhead he was profoundly glad
>hadn't been the member of the household to catch him at it.
>

This generates two thoughts. First, that he has no way of knowing the relationship between Meiling and Sakuya and so he'd have no way to realize that his relief might be a bit understated. Second, that in a full, no holds barred throw down Meiling might actually be the least dangerous lady in the household.

>The bodywork was two-colored, black at the rear and a deep blood red in front,
>the dividing line partway down the front doors rendered with an artistic curve.
>

This might just be the most on-the-nose color scheme for a vampire's car I've seen in recent memory. Someone should give the car a little bat hood ornament for good measure. ;)

>The vampire stared hard at her for a moment, then snapped, "Why tell me this?
>Why seek me out, on the very night of my liberation from that atrocity, and
>claim kinship with one of its perpetrators?" Leaning forward slightly, not
>raising her voice but freighting it with as much quiet wrath as it could carry,
>she went on, "To throw it in my face? Your great-grandmother helped to
>slaughter my parents, half of our household, and one of the family's oldest
>friends—condemned me and my sister to decades of solitude and sorrow—then lived
>to a fine old age surrounded by her own happy family. Is that it?"
>

This sequence definitely made me wince a bit. Not because it was poorly done, just in sympathy for pretty much everyone involved. It was fairly obvious observing from the outside that Mme. Serreau took no pride in this story and didn't intend it as any sort of boast, but it was also obvious that Remilia had clearly reached the end of her considerable patience for the day (for reasons both obvious here and made obvious later.)
Another example, Gryph, of how good you are at making me want to hug fictional characters.

>She smiled a little mischievously. "I'll never hear the end of it of we end up
>tangling with the Neuroi and Sis finds out."
>

I had to chuckle that Flandre is more concerned with Remilia scolding her than actually fighting a Neuroi. It makes sense, her first encounter with one she ate the thing because it had annoyed her, but it's still a bit funny to see her priorities here.


-={(Astynax)}=-
"Sometimes fanfic is a love letter to canon, sometimes it's a polite disagreement, and sometimes it's 95 things canon did wrong nailed to a door."


Spellcheck is useless with names, and I am too dependent on it as a feature these days.


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Gryphonadmin
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Apr-05-21, 04:22 AM (EDT)
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13. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #11
 
   LAST EDITED ON Apr-05-21 AT 08:32 AM (EDT)
 
>Remilia clearly knows how to deal with haters and trolls.
>Though now that I type that, I expect she also knows how to deal with
>actual trolls as well as figurative ones.

The only significant difference is whether "kill it with fire" is meant metaphorically or literally.

>I'm fairly certain the number of times in her adult life Sakuya has
>been fumbling for words can be counted on one hand. Possibly one
>clumsy shop teacher's hand.

And most of them have been Remilia's fault! Except for the one that was Meiling's.

>Heh, we all know this is precisely what she did, but this sort of
>reply could have a very different interpretation to an unknowing
>observer. Makes me recall the mob inspired SDM artwork and contemplate
>Remilia making offers people can't refuse.

"I understand. You found paradise in Gallia. You had a good trade, you made a good living. The witches protected you. You didn't need a friend like me. Now you come and you say 'Countess Scarlet, give me justice.' But you don't ask with respect. You don't offer friendship. You don't even think to call me Diable Écarlate. You come into my house on the day my little sister is to be married and you ask me to do murder for money."

>Under the circumstances, I'd say Flandre handled that river about as
>well as any vampire, probably better than most in fact. I expect
>Remilia would get a bit... dramatic if she heard the whole story
>though.

Probably just a little, yes. I mean, she'd be proud as hell, but also mortified.

>This generates two thoughts. First, that he has no way of knowing the
>relationship between Meiling and Sakuya and so he'd have no way to
>realize that his relief might be a bit understated. Second, that in a
>full, no holds barred throw down Meiling might actually be the least
>dangerous lady in the household.

The first is undoubtedly true; the second, debatable. I mean, it's a stock trope in Embodiment of Scarlet Devil fan works, because she's only the stage-3 boss, which means that in gameplay terms she's far weaker than the characters she's ostensibly protecting--which makes it unclear why they have her in the first place, and that in turn leads to a lot of fan interpretations where Remilia keeps her around as a joke, or owes her a favor for some long-ago service, or just lets her hang around out of pity.

I don't buy into that, but at the same time, I do have to acknowledge that, even if she's not the weakest inhabitant of our Scarlet Devil Mansion, she is probably the least lethal. After living so long for blood revenge and then choosing to do without it when the moment came, she's the most reluctant of the four to escalate to lethal force if the situation calls for it. Not that she absolutely won't, but she'll try harder to avoid it than the others. (That makes Remi, Flan, and Sakuya sound kind of bloodthirsty (as it were) by comparison, but I hope you see what I mean.)

>This might just be the most on-the-nose color scheme for a vampire's
>car I've seen in recent memory. Someone should give the car a little
>bat hood ornament for good measure. ;)

The Duesenberg 8-cylinder badge is an eagle:

I could see some particularly skillful artisan crafting a subtle replacement for it, under the puckish supervision of, say, Flan.

>This sequence definitely made me wince a bit. Not because it was
>poorly done, just in sympathy for pretty much everyone involved. It
>was fairly obvious observing from the outside that Mme. Serreau took
>no pride in this story and didn't intend it as any sort of boast, but
>it was also obvious that Remilia had clearly reached the end of her
>considerable patience for the day (for reasons both obvious here and
>made obvious later.)

Mm, she'll probably feel bad about it later, once her head is clearer. Actually, you can see she kind of felt bad about it at the time, but was too preoccupied to show it other than by asking Sakuya to make sure Mme. Serreau got home all right.

>I had to chuckle that Falndre is more concerned with Remilia scolding
>her than actually fighting a Neuroi. It makes sense, her first
>encounter with one she ate the thing because it had annoyed
>her, but it's still a bit funny to see her priorities here.

Hell, she wants a chance to fight another Neuroi. Preferably a series of them! But in a more formal setting, when Remilia has had more time to accustom herself to the idea. :)

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.


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Peter Eng
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Apr-05-21, 08:07 AM (EDT)
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14. "RE: GG3/IV: Les Voyages d'une Diable"
In response to message #13
 
   >
>(That makes Remi, Flan, and Sakuya sound kind of bloodthirsty by
>comparison, but I hope you see what I mean.)
>

If I'm following correctly, on a scale from "Never kill" to "ankle-deep in corpses," Meiling is somewhere around "Really don't want to," Sakuya and Remilia are probably in the general area of, "Don't want to, but I'll make exceptions," and Flan might go as far as, "Whatever's convenient when the fur is flying," but she's a work in progress.

Peter Eng
--
Flandre as she was would probably be, "Whatever amuses me."


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