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With This Ring (Young Justice SI) (Thread Fourteen)

Reader mode
Duquette7 said:
Doesn't seem to, I downloaded the app, downloaded the story from the site, and it just shows the threadmarked pages, which is about 1/18 of the story, or less, god this thing is big.

Oh well, the html version of the story seems to be kept mostly up to date, it's missing the last seven months, so I hope it gets updated again soon, but that is still the vast majority of the story, and I was mostly looking for a way to reread this magnificently huge sucker on my kindle, it's better for my eyes, and my back.
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I've run into that problem before. AFAIK, the extension can't use an index post or just do everything, which would make things a lot easier.

There's another extension called EpubSplit, if you ever get the whole thing (or some other long fic) downloaded.

If you do use it, don't make my mistake. You don't have to manually select each individual chapter you want to include. Click on the first one, then Shift+Click on the last one, and it'll automatically select all the ones in between. You can also select additional individual chapters with Ctrl+Click, without deselecting any previously selected chapters.

Usefully, this also works on the main Calibre screen, where you select books.

Also, funny story. Calibre used to take forever to read my phone, which was irritating. Then I switched from the USB 2 port to the USB 3, and now it finishes in about a minute.

I spent most of a decade rolling my eyes when all I had to do was plug it in on the other side of my laptop.
 
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I like this chapter a lot. Drusa has interesting kinds of character development potential to me.

Rebu said:
AFAIK, the extension can't use an index post or just do everything, which would make things a lot easier.
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Um, actually, it can use an index post, with some caveats. See: https://github.com/JimmXinu/FanFicFare/wiki/BaseXenForoForumAdapters
If the index post contains only links to posts on the same forum as it's located, it will work like a charm. If it links to multiple posts on multiple forums, it will only download the posts on the forum the index post is on, so you'll have to do the other forum's chapters separately. So for this story, if you were doing it that way you'd have to do it in four chunks, I think - Thread 11's index post, Thread 12's (or the first post on Thread 13, which is probably the better idea since there's some overlap otherwise), the second post on Thread 13, because Mr Zoat kindly split the index posts at the episode where the new thread started (Rampage, Ep 72), and then the index of Thread 14. Of course, you could also just download the threadmarked posts on 12, 13, and 14 and only use the index post for 11 since that's the only one that pre-dates threadmarks, and that way you avoid downloading both the Story Only and 'in thread' versions of the first chapters of each episode. You can manually remove them after, but this is less work.
 
I think the problem with Oh El space adventures is "I don't know all these other guys and so I don't care about them"

At least with Grayven we had Blackfire and Starfire.
 
Mr Zoat said:
"It's something I can't do at all."
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I feel like I'm being really dense or something, but I just can't figure out what exactly "it" is here. I tried reading the end of the previous chapter again, but it didn't help me.

Can someone help me out?
 
Counterpunched (part 14)
  • Threadmarks
    • 18th January 2013
    22:35 GMT

    "Here."

    Agnie looks up from the power relay she's working on as I hold out the flask… Palming a spice wafer to her at the same time. She doesn't look at it as she takes it from me and conceals it in her equipment harness. Not a bad try at hiding the motion, and given how direct most Citizens are that's probably good enough.

    Turns out that food that isn't blood porridge is hard currency in the Citizenry. As long as no one important spots it. My boyfriend once told me that forcing people into a collective doesn't work because they won't become part of the culture and eventually the people who are would be the minority. The Citizenry is fairly open about how they handle that: the rulers are the ones strong enough to kill anyone who complains.

    It's almost refreshingly honest.

    Agnie takes a drink. It's just water, but working in this heat means that we're having to be careful about water intake. The Reach decided that heating up the hull will reduce our ability to fight back, and what's left of the ship isn't designed to regulate heat well enough to cope.

    "How goes the important repairs?"

    The boom tube system, she means. One of the problems of a culture that rewards the warrior ethos above everything else is that other skills get left by the wayside. Most citizens can handle basic maintenance, but for everything else there are… Deals. Pacts where a woman who can read a circuit diagram trades her skills for protection. With the understanding that she's mostly going to be using those skills for the ones protecting her. Major refits are done by temporarily enslaving a technically advanced species and working them to death, not by the Citizens.

    Which is biting us in the ass right now.

    I smile at her. "Why do you think I'm down here?"

    Agnie slumps as she closes the cap on the water bottle, then sets it aside.

    "Do you think that we are bait? Is the Commander going to circle around and attack the ships encircling us?"

    "That's a bit hopeful." I shrug nonchalantly. "We might be a distraction, if that's any help."

    "It isn't."

    I'm not senior enough to be allowed on the bridge, so I've got no idea what went wrong with this raid. If I had to guess, I'd say that the Reach got lucky with some sort of gravity weapon, then lucky that the navigator was asleep at her station. Given the way her head was spread all over her station when I checked in with command, she probably did something.

    Or maybe not. With commanding officers like ours…

    "How are you doing?"

    She reaches into the power relay and pulls a lever. There's a quiet hum as the magnetic fields engage.

    "I'm not exactly rushing."

    The other issue with conscripting people after killing everyone they know and love is that no one is motivated to work all that hard. But if she's going to reduce my chance of survival when she's doing it, then I need to straighten her out.

    "This isn't powering atmospheric controls in the captain's washroom. We do actually need this if the plan command are working on is going to work."

    "Boarding a Reach ship, capturing it and escaping using their drive?" She doesn't look hopeful. "A fools errand, for those seeking a swift death."

    "You have a better idea?"

    "She could actually repair the portal-maker."

    I make a show of thinking that over for a few moments.

    "I.. don't think she could."

    "Then she could stand aside while those of us who might be able to repair it try, without killing us."

    Most people would have shouted that last part. But Agnie is far too beaten down to do something like that.

    I try smiling at her. "Do you have any ideas that could actually happen, or are we just waiting to die?"

    "If the Reach wanted to kill us, they would just have fired. I assume that they're going to board the ship and then turn us into thralls."

    "Maybe. So what do you think they're waiting for?"

    "Perhaps they want us to eat each other."

    "Are we allowed to do that? I'm new."

    "The strong survive."

    "Okay, but, those who are strong will survive, or those who survive will have demonstrated their strength?"

    "I doubt that I would be stronger as a Reach thrall than I am now." She laboriously rises to her feet. "I still have seven power relays to reassemble. Perhaps the Reach will board us before I am done and save me the effort."

    I follow her down the corridor as she heads towards her next task.

    "Do you want them to make you a thrall? They might just kill you."

    "Either would be fine. The first time I ate the porridge…"

    "It's an acquired taste."

    Honestly, it doesn't taste like anything special. I've had worse soup before. I only eat the wafers as well because I'm not convinced that it has the right nutrients for me to stay healthy.

    "I've eaten many times, and each time a little of my soul dies. I would rather not remember. If the Reach make me a thrall, I won't care. That will do just as well."

    "If the Captain was occupied with the Reach, do you think you could repair the boom tube-?"

    "Hiding, Agnie?"

    Three burly Citizens in full armour bar our way. They're armed with bracer blasters and long knives and they're looking for a fight because they can't cope with the implication that they weren't good enough.

    I knew they were there, of course. Most Citizens aren't all that subtle, though that does make me wonder if the sabotage wasn't in the ship's systems but in the crew manifest; an entirely predictable result of putting this many unstable personalities together in one place.

    "I'm trying to work, Dulcya. Do you want-?"

    Dulcya steps into me, with the intent of shoving the fresh meat aside and get to Agnie for… Whatever. I doubt that she has anything approaching an actual plan. Agnie would probably end up dead, and then they'd go to the Captain and boast of their success.

    That doesn't happen.

    I step to the side, half-turn as I draw my sword and slice, the x-ionised blade passing neatly through Dulcya's upper right arm. Blood spurts as I duck her reflexive punch and slice through her right thigh, sending her crashing to the ground. A slightly awkward stab through her forehead and that's the end for her.

    I make eye contact with the other two. They didn't think this through, clearly. Citizenry rules on infighting aren't all that clear, but they were just part of a 'dealing with intrapsychic conflict' squad rather than an actual team. I've proven my strength and since I've chosen to defend Agnie, that's my right. Instead of a fight I get a pair of cautious and respectful nods as they back away.

    I flick the blood off my blade and sheath it as Agnie comes forward to remove Dulcya's equipment.

    "You might as well have left them. I'm not going to be able to repair the ship enough to matter, and Dulcya would at least have been another fighter."

    "Without discipline she would be useless. And I plan on both of us surviving."

    Agnie shakes her head. "You're an optimist, Cheshire. But… Thank you."
     
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  • Threadmarks
    • Mr Zoat said:
    Agnie shakes her head. "You're an optimist, Cheshire. But… Thank you."
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    This is a very welcome surprise. Since Jade has infiltrated the Citizenry, I have a few questions:
    Has Jade actually eaten the porridge? If yes, how will she process that later, if at all?

    Does she know about the fact that the leader of the Citizenry is an Amazon? If so, I want her to be the one to ask Diana about it, because Paul probably never will.

    How long has she been undercover with the Citizenry?
     
    Well, ain't that something. How and when did she infiltrate the Citizenry? And what's the exfiltration strategy, exactly? Because right now they seem to be adrift deep in Reach territory and unless Cheshire has other infiltration companions to scheme and execute a plan together, she's all alone deep in enemy territory, twice over!
     
    Mr Zoat said:
    18th January 2013
    22:35 GMT

    "Here."

    Agnie looks up from the power relay she's working on as I hold out the flask… Palming a spice wafer to her at the same time. She doesn't look at it as she takes it from me and conceals it in her equipment harness. Not a bad try at hiding the motion, and given how direct most Citizens are that's probably good enough.
    Click to expand...
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    Ah, a couple of Citizenry personnel today? This will be an interesting viewpoint. Presumably not a couple of ladies that have drunk the kool-aid, though. I suspect being in their heads wouldn't be much fun. :confused:

    Turns out that food that isn't blood porridge is hard currency in the Citizenry. As long as no one important spots it. My boyfriend once told me that forcing people into a collective doesn't work because they won't become part of the culture and eventually the people who are would be the minority. The Citizenry is fairly open about how they handle that: the rulers are the ones strong enough to kill anyone who complains.

    It's almost refreshingly honest.
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    Heh. Your boyfriend sounds like a smart fellow.

    Agnie takes a drink. It's just water, but working in this heat means that we're having to be careful about water intake. The Reach decided that heating up the hull will reduce our ability to fight back, and what's left of the ship isn't designed to regulate heat well enough to cope.

    "How goes the important repairs?"
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    That's honestly a pretty clever and effective way of messing with a crippled but still resisting enemy vessel in space. After all, heat is one of the biggest risks in a space-going environment.

    The boom tube system, she means. One of the problems of a culture that rewards the warrior ethos above everything else is that other skills get left by the wayside. Most citizens can handle basic maintenance, but for everything else there are… Deals. Pacts where a woman who can read a circuit diagram trades her skills for protection. With the understanding that she's mostly going to be using those skills for the ones protecting her. Major refits are done by temporarily enslaving a technically advanced species and working them to death, not by the Citizens.
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    Rather short-sighted of their leaders. But given who that is, I'm not surprised.

    Which is biting us in the ass right now.

    I smile at her. "Why do you think I'm down here?"
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    That bad, huh?

    Agnie slumps as she closes the cap on the water bottle, then sets it aside.

    "Do you think that we are bait? Is the Commander going to circle around and attach the ships encircling us?"
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    I don't think Astarte would bother with that level of strategic cleverness. If a full-frontal assault didn't work, she would just call a retreat...

    "That's a bit hopeful." I shrug nonchalantly. "We might be a distraction, if that's any help."

    "It isn't."
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    Well... In the sense of your distraction being 'We don't have to run faster then them...'

    I'm not senior enough to be allowed on the bridge, so I've got no idea what went wrong with this raid. If I had to guess, I'd say that the Reach got lucky with some sort of gravity weapon, then lucky that the navigator was asleep at her station. Given the way her head was spread all over her station when I checked in with command, she probably did something.

    Or maybe not. With commanding officers like ours…
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    Yeah, since I doubt this culture would tolerate classic tropes like exploding consoles...

    "How are you doing?"

    She reaches into the power relay and pulls a lever. There's a quiet hum as the magnetic fields engage.
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    Looks like she's done... Which isn't necessarily good, because now their bosses will be expecting something else to get fixed...

    "I'm not exactly rushing."

    The other issue with conscripting people after killing everyone they know and love is that no one is motivated to work all that hard. But if she's going to reduce my chance of survival when she's doing it, then I need to straighten her out.
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    And that's how they get you to fall in line. Peer pressure is a potent behavioural conditioning tool.

    "This isn't powering atmospheric controls is the captain's washroom. We do actually need this if the plan command are working on is going to work."

    "Boarding a Reach ship, capturing it and escaping using their drive?" She doesn't look hopeful. "A fools errand, for those seeking a swift death."
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    But it's better than sitting on their thumbs waiting to boil in their own skin.

    "You have a better idea?"

    "She could actually repair the portal-maker."
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    I'm guessing it's not 'user-servicable'...

    I make a show of thinking that over for a few moments.

    "I.. don't think she could."
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    After all, that would mean Grayven's people training untested subordinates in their technology.

    "Then she could stand aside while those of us who might be able to repair it try, without killing us."

    Most people would have shouted that last part. But Agnie is far too beaten down to do something like that.
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    And sound would carry pretty far in a spaceship... A closed environment like that...

    I try smiling at her. "Do you have any ideas that could actually happen, or are we just waiting to die?"

    "If the Reach wanted to kill us, they would just have fired. I assume that they're going to board the ship and then turn us into thralls."
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    Those who survive the assault, anyway.

    "Maybe. So what do you think they're waiting for?"

    "Perhaps they want us to eat each other."
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    ...I mean, you guys already do. Though I suspect you mean as 'long pork' rather than the 'corpse starch' sludge they usually eat.

    "Are we allowed to do that? I'm new."

    "The strong survive."
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    And the weak become dinner...

    "Okay, but, those who are strong will survive, or those who survive will have demonstrated their strength?"

    "I doubt that I would be stronger as a Reach thrall than I am now." She laboriously rises to her feet. "I still have seven power relays to reassemble. Perhaps the Reach will board us before I am done and save me the effort."
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    Boy, she's really given up, hasn't she?

    I follow her down the corridor as she heads towards her next task.

    "Do you want them to make you a thrall? They might just kill you."
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    Either way, she'd be past caring...

    "Either would be fine. The first time I ate the porridge…"

    "It's an acquired taste."
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    ...They bother to flavour it? :rolleyes: I suspect that would be seen as unnecessary 'softness'.

    Honestly, it doesn't taste like anything special. I've had worse soup before. I only eat the wafers as well because I'm not convinced that it has the right nutrients for me to stay healthy.

    "I've eaten many times, and each time a little of my soul dies. I would rather not remember. If the Reach make me a thrall, I won't care. That will do just as well."
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    I hope that sort of attitude isn't common aboard the Citizenry ships. There's beaten down, and then there's... This.

    "If the Captain was occupied with the Reach, do you think you could repair the boom tube-?"

    "Hiding, Agnie?"
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    ...Oh, great. Bullies.

    Three burly Citizens in full armour bar our way. They're armed with bracer blasters and long knives and they're looking for a fight because they can't cope with the implication that they weren't good enough.

    I knew they were there, of course. Most Citizens aren't all that subtle, though that does make me wonder if the sabotage wasn't in the ship's systems but in the crew manifest; an entirely predictable result of putting this many unstable personalities together in one place.
    Click to expand...
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    Honestly, I'm amazed they haven't started fighting amongst themselves in order to 'claim the captain's seat' and blast their way free.

    "I'm trying to work, Dulcya. Do you want-?"

    Dulcya steps into me, with the intent of shoving the fresh meat aside and get to Agnie for… Whatever. I doubt that she has anything approaching an actual plan. Agnie would probably end up dead, and then they'd go to the Captain and boast of their success.
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    I have the feeling it's not going to go that well for them...

    That doesn't happen.

    I step to the side, half-turn as I draw my sword and slice, the x-ionised blade passing neatly through Dulcya's upper right arm. Blood spurts as I duck her reflexive punch and slice through her right thigh, sending her crashing to the ground. A slightly awkward stab through her forehead and that's the end for her.
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    ...Huh. I doubt anyone aboard this ship could have gotten a hold of the weapons OL left behind on the flagship, so...

    I make eye contact with the other two. They didn't think this through, clearly. Citizenry rules on infighting aren't all that clear, but they were just part of a 'dealing with intrapsychic conflict' squad rather than an actual team. I've proven my strength and since I've chosen to defend Agnie, that's my right. Instead of a fight I get a pair of cautious and respectful nods as they back away.

    I flick the blood off my blade and sheath it as Agnie comes forward to remove Dulcya's equipment.
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    Typical bullies, really. Spooked and cowed into retreating. Though I suspect that tales will be spreading of her blade.

    "You might as well have left them. I'm not going to be able to repair the ship enough to matter, and Dulcya would at least have been another fighter."

    "Without discipline she would be useless. And I plan on both of us surviving."
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    Gal-pals! I expect some Citizens develop that level of friendship, whether through shared hardship or mutual respect for fighting skills... Or just flexing at each other.

    Agnie shakes her head. "You're an optimist, Cheshire. But… Thank you."
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    ...Oh. Oh... Well, no wonder Colos isn't worried.

    Looks like there's a cat amongst the pigeons. A Cheshire Cat, if you will. :D Well, this definitely qualifies as deep cover, doesn't it? I bet getting her in place was a risky endeavour. Especially since she had to fight well enough to get collected, but not so well she stood out... I hope Zartok knows about this, or his little plan taking shape could interrupt some long-term operations...
     
    Chojin Patriarch said:
    Heh. Your boyfriend sounds like a smart fellow.
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    He has his moments.

    When he's not being an idiot.

    Chojin Patriarch said:
    Boy, she's really given up, hasn't she?
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    If you somehow manage to maintain happiness on a Citizenry ship then you're either new, incredibly positive or are a very, very sick person.

    Chojin Patriarch said:
    They bother to flavour it? :rolleyes:
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    I think it was a figure of speech.

    Chojin Patriarch said:
    I hope that sort of attitude isn't common aboard the Citizenry ships. There's beaten down, and then there's... This
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    I'd actually prefer if it was more common, since as I said, the happier you are the more crazy you are.

    Chojin Patriarch said:
    Oh, great. Bullies.
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    I think they're just standard Citizens.

    Chojin Patriarch said:
    Honestly, I'm amazed they haven't started fighting amongst themselves in order to 'claim the captain's seat' and blast their way free.
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    Maybe Astarte's god powers are keeping them more cooperative.
     
    I have no idea why I initially thought this story was from Jade's perspective. Especially since I was also thinking she was in Darkstar mode, for some reason.
     
    Rebu said:
    I have no idea why I initially thought this story was from Jade's perspective. Especially since I was also thinking she was in Darkstar mode, for some reason.
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    The mention of a boyfriend may have had something to do with it.

    We saw that it was concerning the Citizenry and I don't think they'd have such relationships, and Jade is the only character even tangentially involved in this thing, fighting the Reach, that we know has a boyfriend.
     
    Ngamer11 said:
    This is a very welcome surprise. Since Jade has infiltrated the Citizenry, I have a few questions:
    Has Jade actually eaten the porridge? If yes, how will she process that later, if at all?
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    It sounds like yes, and she probably won't have issues with it. The only reason cannibalism (aka eating other humans) is taboo is due to the severe and functionally unavoidable biological downsides. On top of that she isn't directly eating people, instead eating a creature that ate both the people and wildlife of a world (none of which were humans). I can't speak for how it will actually play out, but it being a non-issue is a distinct possibility.
     
    Vaermina said:
    I mean, there's no way you kill her off, even though that would be a great story beat at this point with how little her and LePaul actually interaction.
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    It really would. Might also make Paul confront the alienness of his thinking again, in a different way than Superman caused. Knowing he SHOULD be upset that she died, but realizing he hasn't even thought about her in days or weeks? Wondering if that meant they weren't just in a "normal" soldier-at-war relationship, but were in what would be for normal humans a relationship that was already quietly broken up? Maybe using that as motivation to finally make things official with the spiderqueen (sorry, couldn't help myself, OLxSpiderqueen OTP).
     
    monochromaticPrism said:
    It sounds like yes, and she probably won't have issues with it. The only reason cannibalism (aka eating other humans) is taboo is due to the severe and functionally unavoidable biological downsides. On top of that she isn't directly eating people, instead eating a creature that ate both the people and wildlife of a world (none of which were humans). I can't speak for how it will actually play out, but it being a non-issue is a distinct possibility.
    Click to expand...
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    Jade may also be more adept at not thinking about some horrible things she does, since her life had her perfect that skill.
     
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