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Post by KARA Q on Dec 27, 2017 22:26:35 GMT -5
Wiping her hands clean of the blood from the patch work, Kara turned and threw the reddened rag into the dirty wash basin. Through the low window, she could see a lone boat sway slowly along the canal, an oarsman haggard at the front by the task of its mooring. Behind her, a half-dressed pirate stopped asking for her to lower her cowl and instead pulled out a pouch, a roll of belli promised for the job inside.
Turning at the sound of a string coming undone, Kara finalized the trade without a smile, severing their short-lived acquaintance with a nod. Neither offered words of parting and she was out before long, cruising the dingy walkways in search of a cheap inn. A nondescript, loose and long coat of battered browns billowed to her nimble pacing, hiding underneath the finer cloth of her dark and gold blouse. Form-fitting black pants led down into light-leather boots, a travel look finished with a claymore strapped to her back. It shared room with a travel pack.
After pushing open the door to her accommodations of choice, the young woman stepped forward and allowed for her hood to slip down, revealing a long mane of hair. If she was troubled at all that she was inside an establishment filled with the sounds and shuffles of clearly questionable clientele, her nearly serene expression didn’t show it.
“A meal for the evening and a room for the night,” she pulled some belli from the roll in her pouch. “Any soup that’s still warm and some bread will do.” The innkeeper took the money to replace with a key and gave a nod to the overall room of tables that made up the ground floor. “Best ye be seated.”
So she turned to the scene of laughing and belching and private talking in the locale. A little more crowded than she had expected. The smell of booze, mold, and old cheese hung heavy in the air, ruining all chances for her to lay out her scent or even keep it, the faint lilac perfume overpowered to begin with by the day’s exertion. Kara paid no obvious mind to anyone, and for so many steps appeared to be headed for the singular open table in the establishment, all until her gaze sailed past an orange-haired man.
Instead of continuing onward, her gait flowed slowly into a turn towards him, now by the side of his table with her lowered lids casually peeking in. As a former marine, she knew who he was, the poster of his bounty easy to recall. He was the prisoner who had led to the death of that crass sadist, Renwald, amongst others, a lengthily discussed event. He was on a poster she had not thought to claim for a hunt, not even back when her talents stood less rusty. As a bounty hunter who even now low-key collaborated well with the marines, she had every reason to skip this encounter and keep to her shadows.
As a person driven by curiosity, she had to cast the die.
“Would you abide some company or are your thoughts this evening too heavy to share with others?”
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aka ODIN
Played by DAE
Bounty 50,000,000
Cash
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Post by HECTOR WOLFE on Jan 3, 2018 17:33:25 GMT -5
 He had only come to this tavern & inn to esape his accomplices for the night. Hector spent what felt like an eternity locked up in government experimentation and his first taste of freedom turned into a violent act of liberation. Not only that but since returning to Water 7 a feeling of unease had washed over him. ' Gives me the fucking chills just being here.' What lay in store for this unsuspecting island was quite a surprise, the kind you could hardly wait to unwrap. Eyes trailed through the International Headlines recollecting the events of his recent encounters. A glass of whiskey, filled to the brim sat on the table before him; the maid who'd topped it off leaned in close, hoping to get a little tip for her efforts. " Thanks," he mumbled, paying her efforts no mind. "Why don't you pay the miss, only right wit' how hard she's workin'." From the far corner of the room, a pub rat crawled off its stool and scurried over, probably hoping to use the confrontation as a display of machismo. With a smug grin on coal-smudged face, he leaned in real close, slowly and deliberating slide Hector's glass off the edge of the table. ' Son of a bitch, I came here to get away from this type of shit. Guess I'm a fucking celebrity now.' The two were kind of irrelevant, but Hector wasn't one to sell himself short of a compliment. His chair slid back as he stood to face this greasy coal miner, a single hand on his shoulder was all it took to force him to a knee. The power in his grip felt as though he could literally rip this mans arm from his torso and throw it across the room, but he didn't. For once, he let him go. " Get the FUCK out of here if want to keep this arm...An eye for an eye aye?" Hector smirked, flicking his aggressor smack dab on the forehead. Onlooker seemed shocked the way he tumbled across the room like a rag doll. Shaking out of sheer terror, the maid ran back with another glass of whiskey, nearly spilling it in his lap when she set it on the table. When a stranger approaching asking to join him, he froze. ' Great, just my fucking luck.' But as he looked up from his drink and saw a young, beautiful woman standing before him in this gross tavern, he felt a moment of relief. Yeah-fucking-right he'd turn her down, in fact, his mood had entirely shifted. He seemed too excited as he gestured to the seat across from him, " Please, sit. Nevermind what happened before, gotta expect it coming to a place like this. By the way, why are you here?" It was pretty forward, but his personality was certainly abrasive at times. While he leaned in to show interest in her response, a hand mindlessly gestured to the waitress, beckoning her to serve his guest. What an interesting turn of events. MADE BY VEL OF GS |
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Post by KARA Q on Jan 3, 2018 22:57:45 GMT -5
Every woman in the world had flights of fancy that led to strange and uncommon behaviors. Kara’s actions were being led by one such. While the free scene of violence had slightly cracked the lens she looked through, some doors needed to be opened no matter the grime encountered on their handles. As such, she slipped into the chair upon his good-natured invitation, all the while wondering ’What makes me different from her?’ ‘Her’ being the woman that had bent low to serve him, the one who continued to do so with increased vigor out of fear.
A striking portrait of contrast to the serving lazy, Kara sat with one leg over the other, her gaze that of a feline not quite pleased, not quite displeased either. A pending expression that gained some warmth as the waitress was requested to serve her as well on the count of the livened vision that stood before her. Leaving his question to hang for the moment, she ordered a strawberry brandy to go with the soup and bread she was still expecting. The shaken woman nearly ran to the back, continuing to imagine that haste would appease the obviously dangerous client.
Once she was gone, Kara took the chance to gaze at the escapee, trying to reconcile and correct the idea she had designed of him from a picture with the reality before her. Of all things, his bluntness was what she presently liked best, a thought that would show to the surface as a faint mysterious smile with just a passing glint in her eyes. It was hard to tell when exactly she had come to mirror his forward-slanted pose, but it brought them to hold a distance not quite appropriate of people who had just met.
The pink-haired young woman would hold his gaze, and with a slightly softened look in her watchful eyes she would slowly reach forward, intending to honestly respond. If he leaned back, she would retreat, but if he didn’t, she would treat him with to the same shameless boldness. “I’m here at the behest of a fantasy,” she told him, fingers lightly upon his shoulder. At that point their faces would be quite close, and upon releasing his gaze her lids would lower beseechingly to have a glimpse of his lips. “And to see to its ending.”
And indeed, if he didn’t resist, her limber fingers would have moved to the side of his neck and slightly behind, to pull him to her and steal a kiss. Her soft lips would taste of sea salt and strawberry gloss, the tempered wanting behind their approach momentarily taking him in for whoever he was, almost curiously. If he found the presence of mind to enable this exchange, he would find shards of her fire, and some of her loneliness. For those few moments of intimacy she would be his, warm and ready to mold to his touch.
Then just as it had come, the moment would end like the snap of a chord, and Kara would break from him to lean back, stand up, and ultimately turn to leave from the table. She’d pick the strawberry brandy from the waitress’s hands with a quick smile, drop some berri on the counter for both her and the innkeeper, take the tray with soup and bread in her other hand and simply walk out of the establishment.
Outside in the dimming light, she would tread all the way to the end of the street to reach the canal and sit down, taking on a meditative pose as she moved the tray into her lap and began to enjoy her meal, a bulge of souped bread in her right cheek already.
Her heartbeat suffered some haste, and that was amusing.
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aka ODIN
Played by DAE
Bounty 50,000,000
Cash
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Post by HECTOR WOLFE on Jan 7, 2018 20:18:39 GMT -5
 He wasn't sure what it was but some women were timid and eager to please, smothering him with affection in hopes of him becoming their benefactor. It felt dishonest, fake and superficial, and he didn't need two eyes to see the difference between the waitress and the woman sitting before him now. She was calm, confident and graceful with her delivery. Most people spend their entire life trying to figure out who they are and what they want, but her gaze said she knew exactly what she wanted. As she reached across the table, Hector smiled gently, resisting only slightly—as if to tease the thought. Pulling him in for a kiss, he closed his eye, succumbing to the ecstasy of his senses; the taste of sea salt and strawberry was met with whiskey and star fruit, mixed in the warmth of their lips. Just as he felt himself being pulled into her, she snapped away, stood up and walked out of the tavern. ' What the fuck was that?' Did he just get played? He checked his belongings ' Everything's there.' Why in the hell was she so forward if she just planned to 180 and walk out. A game of cat and mouse? Hector took his time finishing his whiskey, leaving the waitress a hefty tip. As he stood from his chair, every eye in the room fell on him, anxious about his next move. Reaching into his jacket pocket, looks of suspicion turned to terror, until he pulled out a cigarette and lit it. A trail of smoke followed him as he left the tavern, sauntering down the street until he found her sitting along the canal. She seemed perfectly content with soup and bread, not a look of complaint in her face. Hector perched on the edge of the canal beside her, his eye drifted to the water below and the reflection of the evening sky. The sunset painted the sky magenta with cascading rays of light from a fleeting presence. It wasn't cold, but it wasn't warm either. The silence had all but consumed him if only for a moment. Looking to face her, smoke curled up from his lips before he blew it out to the side. " I don't know what this fantasy of yours is, but you can't just kiss me and run away like that... It's... confusing." his look of frustration was met with perplexion. Again his gaze trailed down. He'd only come out to escape the chaos of his crewmates, but now, his mind raced more than ever. Who was she? MADE BY VEL OF GS |
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Post by KARA Q on Jan 8, 2018 21:27:12 GMT -5
Half-way through her meal when he stepped out and turned her way, Kara listened with rapt attention to the cadence of that pace. This entire time, she had been hoping and half-dreading he’d follow her out, unsure what to expect and undecided about what to do regarding it.
Suffice to say she hadn’t left because she didn’t want more of him, quite au contraire that was the problem. His knowing gaze and playful acceptance of someone else’s frivolous desires to such point of openness were still on her mind, making her miss out on much of the taste of her simple meal. Kara’s cheeks grew slightly warmer as she was left without a doubt the person who perched next to her was the same one she had tried to leave behind, but her expression stayed wistful and serene as she too watched the play of colors on the water. She had stopped eating, however, fingers forgotten delicately holding a small piece of bread.
But it was too late now to wish for him to disappear, to return the space beside her to its peaceful emptiness. Typically reigning unchecked and alone in a world that now largely failed to stir her, Kara sat nearly a spectator to someone who could. His one pale eye shifted towards her, but instead of the accusation she rightly deserved, he opted instead to share how he felt.
Kara slightly smiled and looked towards him, the expression in her eyes appreciative of all of his small gestures. “I’m sorry,” she expressed, a rare sincerity overcoming her fluidly haphazard mannerisms. “That was selfish of me.” And the way she kept her eyes on him this time was different from the way she had watched him over the table before. Careful and considerate, she was now attentive to what he wanted.
For the moment that seemed like answers.
Kara set the tray down next to her on the other side, one of her palms coming down to support her stance, only the slightest bit turned towards him. Her long, pale hair flowed to one side, a few of the shorter ends curled up. “I know your poster,” she began, “and how you’re wanted by the marines. I know you’ve seen and felt my worst fears.” Her gaze slipped down then, turning some to the side to remain on the canal. “I believe that should I talk to you, you’ll tear down the last of my blinds, as fragile as they are, and in the process set me adrift…”
And while most of that likely sounded like nonsense since it purposefully lacked context, she had wanted to tell him anyway. Strangely, though, the melancholy of her words peeled away, and when she turned her gaze back to him she wanted to know. “Will you show me…?” Her gaze softened, and this time as her fingers slowly rose up between them, they didn’t intend to touch, instead lightly indicating his patched up eye. “…What you’ve seen?”
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aka ODIN
Played by DAE
Bounty 50,000,000
Cash
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Post by HECTOR WOLFE on Jan 9, 2018 2:30:03 GMT -5
 ' That's right...' He'd entirely forgotten of the infamy that went hand in hand with a bounty placed by the world government; 50,000,000 berri dead or alive. It wasn't much, but enough to get him some unwanted attention. This was different. At least for the moment, she didn't want him dead. Instead, she sought answers, about his past and about his encounters with the world government. The truth will set you free, as they say. " Do you really want to know what happened?" His eyes drank her expression as a test of validity, searching for flaws in her complexion at the chance that her words deceived him. It was the first time since his capture, that anyone bothered to ask his perspective. Did she really care? Subconsciously, he retreated, if for a moment. As he leaned away from her, studying every subtlety of her composure, anxiety overtook him. It felt as though every skeleton in his closet was clawing to get out, suffocating him in the process. His eye lazily fell to the surface of the water. While he was physically sitting beside her, his mind flashed back to that fateful day on the beach. The smell of ash and blood was washed away by the sound of yells dulled by the explosion still ringing in his ears. " It all happened so fast, one man's life after the next until my mentor and I were surrounded by government dogs. The feeling of defeat was all too real; his arrogance had cost him his weapon, forcing Daemon to forfeit his life to save him. " Daemon Wolfe was exiled for opposing their corruption. They killed him. Took me prisoner and his head as a prize." The thought was fucking despicable, it was hardly an honorable death for someone he admired so much. At that moment, Hector was consumed with fear, unsure of his fate and mourning the loss of the only person he'd learned to trust. In their eyes, he was fodder, another meal to feed the system they had created. " Against our will, we were tortured and experimented on... and for what, another weapon to conquer their enemies?" They preached as if peace was their ultimate goal, yet most of the world's destruction came at the hand's of their plight. He could remember the scientists in their lab coats, hidden behind thick goggles and respirators; they enjoyed his pain. While they acted like it was for a greater cause, even going so far as to convince him of such, they genuinely enjoyed watching him suffer. " If I hadn't escaped when I had, they were going to strip me of my free will and turn me into a living weapon." For the first time since this conversation had begun, he looked up from the water, eye looking deep into her own. His gaze alone was enough to communicate the suffering, anger, and hate deeply-seeded in his heart. " What kind of life is that?" He wasn't sure what she was looking for, but he shared his experiences in hopes of reaching her. In hopes of having one person not judge him as trash and try to understand him as a human being. She might have found it strange that he was so unattached in playing along, but a life of captivity made you appreciate every moment of freedom. Everyone will want something from you inevitably, if you know who you are, you'll never lose sight of your passions—no matter what anyone takes from you. MADE BY VEL OF GS |
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Post by KARA Q on Jan 9, 2018 22:16:36 GMT -5
And just like that, he mostly retreated into himself and the weight of his experiences, what was left to interaction nearly readying a shield. To his one question she would respond by a simple nod, shifting unperturbed under the scrutiny of his gaze to become stable on her own ground. It was evident that he needed space to decide whether or not to confide, and that she would give. Now that the topic was off her, it was naturally easier for Kara to slip back into the disposition of a lukewarm watchful feline. One thing she knew for sure – it wouldn’t matter how true and innocent her interest, if the man before her decided the risk to himself was too great, she would be branded deceptive. So she kept the blue of her eyes available to him and waited.
When he looked away and put his guard back down, she knew he had decided, so she listened with a companionable attentiveness, silently picking behind the words to continue the impression portrait she had of Hector Wolfe.
The first thing she noticed was that he spoke of a mentor bearing his name, a person he did not label a parent. There was a whole other story behind those few words, and not one she would be requesting this evening. The second thing that made great impression was what exactly lay behind the closed doors of the World Government, where the facilities she had been kept away from worked their magic. She took in this new fact with a hollow hopelessness at the very back of her mind, where her loyalties battled with her convictions, where her actions had sometimes been forced to lay waste to her spirit.
Finally, the dark roiling of emotion in his gaze found an understanding counterpart in hers, something that had already claimed its share of destruction and could now burn low and composed. It was the side of Kara that knew best how hard it would be for him not to seek retribution, how unlikely. And why shouldn’t he? The question then followed on what exactly he would set his sights, and how generalized his anger would spread. Was he now against everyone who ended up, for their varying reasons, into the force of the World Government?
Queries for another moment.
For the time being, she was content to be the one on the end of his questioning, as had come her turn. “If you’re wondering if I would have preferred for you to swallow your given fate and make good for the system to the full abolishment of who you are, that’s as nonsensical to me as diving head first into concrete to have a swell time.” The topic was delicate and somber, but Kara just had to slightly grin in full protest to that fear. It didn’t take long before it disappeared, however, to be replaced with a decisive frankness. “The world we live in is haphazard and ridiculous, in good ways and in bad. What is given to us, it is then taken back, sooner or later. I find the only beauty in the repeating cycle, riding the highs.”
Kara tilted her head as she observed him now, evidently not judging him for anything. “You might have gone a little overboard with your lows, though, I’ll surely give you that.” The attempt at humor and short smile aside, she didn’t want him to misunderstand, so her gaze followed with a steeling. “What was done to you is unforgivable. That slavers are treated as prime guests is loathsome. For a few men to so grievously subject the whole world to their often disastrous whims is the greatest crime.” Because she had been in the marines, and she had seen the seas from the other side, tasked with the good and the bad and being equally unable to stay true to herself. At least until she had been given the greatest gift of all – a way back from a road with no return, without the price tag of endangering her family and closer ones.
But the highest of people were hard to reach, and she had little taste for collateral damage. Living was… complicated, and what she had told him now she had been unable to say to anyone she truly cared about. At least no one who still lived. Kara turned from him then, and threw her boots into the canal to feel the cold water through their rough leather. Her gaze observed the distantly passing populace but she was no less aware of him. “Freedom is a fickle love. One moment you have it and the next it’s lost.” She glanced to him from a low gaze. “For some of us in ways worse than for others...”
Kara splashed a bit of water, out towards the other bank.
“Tell me – is there anything you dream to do with yours?” Her gaze slowly followed the trail of a passing boat. “Or are you set now to chase after every sight of the government?”
Both questions were posed to the ring of the same tone.
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aka ODIN
Played by DAE
Bounty 50,000,000
Cash
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Post by HECTOR WOLFE on Jan 12, 2018 14:30:14 GMT -5
 A watchful eye remained constant on hers, ears drinking every word she said as he painted a picture of this woman in his mind. The fact that she was compassionate to his experience, likely meant she had had some terrible ones of her own; her words laced with humor to curb the darkness of this truth, speaking to a hardened mind trained to defend itself. As she smiled to make her intentions clear, he matched with rapport, all at once the hatred fading from his non-verbal expression. It was moments like this that made him happy, here in the now, concerns at bay and the freedom to ponder your future. Kara's openmindedness to conversations of this nature made her a natural confidant of the cynical redhead. For the first time he had been engaged with genuine curiosity over the harsh realities he faced, and for once Hector hadn't been forced to draw his blade within moments of their encounter beginning. "Tell me - is there anything you dream to do with yours?" ' My freedom, huh?' Without a single word, he plucked the cigarette from his lips, closing the distance between them. He paused just inches from her lips before he ducked to the side and kissed her cheek. Pulling back he looked at her with a smug grin, mostly fucking with her as retribution for earlier. Leaning back as if it never happened, he looked to the sky, watching as the last of the sun's light finally fade into black. The gleam of stars light-years away began to twinkle into their small reality, filling the clouded night sky with a beautiful view. " Even if I escaped to the edge of the world, they'd find me and ruin whatever peaceful existence I'd managed to build." It was true, though they were weak now, there were things in motion beyond his control and a scientist who sought to reclaim him as a valued possession. Property of the World Government. " I made up my mind the moment they took his head. For years I learned of their atrocities and that was the first time I saw it firsthand." The experiments were only fuel to the fire, including the laboratory they'd happened across on Firefield Island. Their power-hungry cause stole away indigenous people as "sacrifices" for slave labor, using them to build the technology that drew power from the island. It disrupted the natural order, increasing the frequency of volcanic eruption, which they had diverted from the lab to the village. " For as long as I breathe, I will hunt leaders of the World Government and sabotage their plans. I will destroy the man who did this to me. With every fiber of my being, I'll fight to liberate the oppressed people of the world...but I'll also be fighting for my own freedom and the freedom of the people I care about. Maybe it was nothing more than a lofty goal, but the chip on his shoulder created a stubborn determination that accomplishes great things. It's funny how we idealize people before we've ever met them. On the surface, Hector could be vulgar and brash, wild and unkempt; yet we all have truths we hide to keep us safe. The mask we wear to survive in society, while priceless, rarely acknowledged the man inside. Few were keen on the subtleties exposing the truth. He was still curious what she sought from this exchange. Her claims to open her eyes and set her adrift were the surface of a deeper truth he had yet to unearth, but he carefully studied her response, wondering what might become MADE BY VEL OF GS |
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Post by KARA Q on Jan 13, 2018 11:27:09 GMT -5
Kara hadn’t really imagined the redhead to be quite this easy to engage in frank conversation. For someone with a background such as his, she had expected him to be more guarded, more standoffish, and definitely less charming. Her heart skipped a beat as he casually drew closer, mostly for surprise that he was clearly comfortable with the standard of proximity she had set could pass between them. Momentum arrested, he placed the kiss on her cheek and the pound landed, leaving her slightly flushed as she turned towards him with momentarily wider eyes to see the play repaid in his self-satisfied grin. Her amusement was instant, but he wouldn’t get away with it, a game of tag officialized by the good-natured narrowing of her gaze.
Hector turned and Kara stayed watchful, her smile gradually reduced to its phantom as he laid bare the turmoil of being hunted in a clear and simple way. No stranger to reflecting on painful memories, he waxed eloquent on the matter. All through his discourse, she knew he was just one of many, the collective beginning to crowd the shadows with their hollow or burning stares. It was a lament she knew well, and one that made it difficult to want to be part of anything – the government, the pirates, the nameless wraiths through the alleys. There were good and bad men and women on every play field, making the overall picture a mess of poorly chosen colors.
Eliminate the key players and inform the rest, had always sounded in her mind as a gargantuan and unrealizable task. It was needing to have a close private conversation with each and every person. His was the only swifter way, and she had strings of her heart on the other side – beyond Suzie and Percival, every man and woman who enlisted with the thought to protect and do good in the world.
“Fight to liberate the oppressed people of the world,” she picked from his words, thinking back to the group of slaves she had recently liberated alongside a marine. “Not just against the government, but against anyone brandishing the chain and looking down.” Her tone had a little bit more bite to it than had his. “I fight against anyone who believes they deserve to take what’s most precious from others,” granted so far she had done her best to stay out of the hairs of the world government, “and that absolves no creed or race or political alignment.”
Pulling her boots from the water, she got up, one foot and then the other. “The bad apples ruin the bunch, but I wouldn’t throw the bunch due to the bad apples,” she revealed, leaving him to make of that what he would as she ended up behind him, coming down to lightly place both forearms on his shoulders, fingers slightly curled and low as she leaned closer to whisper to him before the sight of the evening stars. “Fighting the world government is just half the battle, but I acknowledge why you’ve chosen where I’ve been avoiding.” Having turned more silky, her tone would have been better suited to sweet nothings. As the evening grew colder with the absence of light, she could doubly appreciate his warmth under touch.
“I can give you some of the names and locations you are looking for, in exchange for one promise.” She let that proposition hang for a few moments, in the meantime simply enjoying the naturalness of this exchange. The way he had been responding to her made it like they had known each other for longer, but had just today realized it. What she would finish with, however, would be stated clearly as important. “If you ever meet someone like me, you flee from her and her crew. If you can’t flee, you do the best in your power to make sure you and your friends don’t kill them.”
And with that said, she’d stay there, resting in the pleasure of his presence, pending a reply, save for one mention.
"My name is Kara, by the way."
Tag: HECTOR WOLFE
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