all animals can scream

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The rocky beach is formed from blocks of igneous rock of varying sizes and shapes. There is a distinct lack of sand along the shore; instead the ground is covered in pebbles and rocks dotted by clumps of seaweed. Some of the larger rock formations hold small tide pools that become distinct whenever the tide goes out. Some of the rocks get extremely slippery when wet, making navigating the beach a difficult task.
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almostinhuman
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all animals can scream

#1

Post by almostinhuman »

((Ingrid Wilde continued from Ursa Major Meltdown))

Her continued searching had borne little fruit so far. The bastards who'd dumped them here had been alarmingly thorough; little of real use had been left behind, aside from what she'd found in the kitchen, and all of it was dubiously useful at best. Perhaps she could double back to the research station, check the areas she hadn't gotten to, but another idea had formed in her head, and she just had to check and make sure.

The "beach" she found herself on was not a pleasant one, rocky and frigid as it was, with a number of large stone formations dotting its shores. More importantly, it lacked the thing she'd hoped to see; boats. She'd been fairly confident coming here that there wouldn't be any such thing left behind, of course. If they were so thorough as to remove all the fucking pens and pencils from this place, they were definitely gonna cover their bases to that level too. But still, a silly little hope had formed in her head that maybe there was some ramshackle vessel they had missed. Seeing she was wrong was a bit of a bummer, even if she was braced for it.

She leaned against the massive rock formation behind her, scanning the shoreline, as if doing so would materialize a boat if she kept at it. Hearing those announcements had maybe heightened her desperation a bit, though she would never admit such a thing out loud. She'd gotten a front-row seat to the fucked up shit some of her classmates were up to, but at least nobody had died in front of her yet. The names confirmed the truth of it, though; the killings had started, and her time to even reach step one of her plan was dwindling.

She sighed, loud and agitated, her hands coming up to cover her face. This detour had been a waste of time she didn't have.
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#2

Post by VoltTurtle »

((Ingrid felt a sudden chill, as though something lurking nearby was listening in.))

The ocean waves crashed against the shoreline near Ingrid, spurred on by a sudden squall. Some distance away, a u-shaped rock formation jut from the gravel beach, the wind howling through its teeth. Its guts were obscured from all sides except for the sea, but within its bowels, there was a stirring, inaudible over the wind and waves.

In the sky above, the sun crept ever higher, casting an ominous shadow across the innards of the outcropping.

Mixed with the odor of brine, there was a hint of metal in the air.
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#3

Post by almostinhuman »

... something was wrong.

The entire time she'd been here so far, Ingrid hadn't gotten a sense of any lurking danger. It'd seemed perfectly remote, like she was completely and utterly alone. Now she wasn't so sure anymore. Now...

Her grip tightened on the frying pan in her left hand. She had no intention of killing anyone here, but that didn't mean she was gonna let someone get the jump on her.

She whirled around and dashed around the rock formation, reaching the entrance to its little u-shaped alcove. She ground to a stop, glaring and pointing her kitchenware armament in the lurker's direction.
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Corbin Azinger
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Jacob Winters
"I'll be back. Once I splatter that motherfucker's brains over the ground. I promise."
A
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Ingrid Wilde
"Well, I'm glad not to be your fuckin' victim, too."
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"This is some grim shit we're in, huh?"
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#4

Post by VoltTurtle »

The wicked glint of the billhook pierced the shadows, pointed back in Ingrid's direction.

"D-Don't," the lurker hissed, her voice small and wavering.

Katelyn skulked in the shade of the outcropping, her attire having changed slightly since her last encounter. She was wearing the windbreaker provided to her by the terrorists, the extra layer keeping her warm and covering up most of the bloodstains she had accumulated. Her hands too, still caked in dried blood, were covered by her mittens, and her weapons had been washed in the snow and wiped down with what remained of Mitch's t-shirt. Only her hood, hat, hair, face, and boots remained visibly blemished by the bloodbath that had been the last 48 hours.

The billhook trembled in the air, the adrenaline-induced jittering in Katelyn's hand threatening to cut the very air asunder. Her foot dug into the gravel, as though she were readying herself to lunge. Meanwhile, her other hand went behind her back, squeezing the handle of the digging bar in a death grip, ready to draw it from the sling. Her knife remained sheathed, tucked in her boot and hidden behind the back of her calf, ready to surprise those who grew too bold. The last thing she wanted was another fight, but she had made sure that she was prepared in the event of the inevitable.

"T-Turn around, and w-walk away," she growled, the look in her eyes betraying her fright. "Don't trouble m-me, and I won't tr-trouble you."
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#5

Post by almostinhuman »

Ingrid's eyes opened wide, shock playing over her face.

"You're..."

She was staring down Kitty Graves. She was distinct-looking enough to be instantly recognizable, though even so, under normal circumstances, the girl would barely have blipped on Ingrid's radar. But things were decidedly not normal anymore, and now she was the deadliest person on the island. The girl seemed armed to the teeth, and it wasn't hard to figure how she'd gotten like that. Now she was here, and Ingrid did not trust for a second that was a coincidence. If how busy she seemed to be was any indication, Kitty was a hunter.

She settled back into her usual resting bitch face.

"Am I supposed to buy that?" She lowered the pan, but her grip tightened on it. "You've killed two people already... and now you were skulking around trying to add me to the list, right?"

Ingrid tilted her head, glancing at both of the girl's weapons. She wouldn't be surprised if Kitty had even more than that on her.

"Gonna plant that fucked-up knife in my back, or rush me with that pole you got back there."

She took a single step forward.

"And besides, even if you don't hurt me, you're clearly gonna keep hurting other people, and I can't just stand back and let you. So how about you drop this little armory you're carting around?"
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Corbin Azinger
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Jacob Winters
"I'll be back. Once I splatter that motherfucker's brains over the ground. I promise."
A
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Ingrid Wilde
"Well, I'm glad not to be your fuckin' victim, too."
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"This is some grim shit we're in, huh?"
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#6

Post by VoltTurtle »

No, not this again. Not another hero, risking life and limb for no reason at all, refusing to give Katelyn the benefit of the doubt. She had already massacred enough people for one lifetime, but at this rate it didn't seem like the rivers of blood would stop flowing anytime soon.

"Are you st-stupid?" she hissed. "Do you th-think I am? You'll just g-grab me and h-hold me down and b-beat me and I'll d-die."

Katelyn took a step back, feeling the rocks of the formation graze her back. She was a cornered cat, and Ingrid was pressing her luck. She hadn't attacked yet, unlike Mitch, so maybe she could be talked out of this foolish course of action before it was too late. Though, Katelyn couldn't be entirely sure of that. She didn't know Ingrid all that well, beyond the fact that the other girl was a swimmer, and had the musculature to show for it. That and the massive size difference between them made Katelyn extremely wary of a potential fight, but unfortunately for all she knew, Ingrid might be another bullheaded assailant with too much courage and too little sense.

"You might think I d-deserve it, but you're wr-wrong about me," she pouted. "I don't."

None of them did, really. This wasn't her fault, or any of her peers' fault. The blame solely rested on the shoulders of the game's perpetrators. Except they couldn't take their rage out on the terrorists, so they had to settle for each other. Small as she was, Katelyn looked like an easy target. If she wanted this to stop, she had to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was anything but.

"I didn't want to h-hurt anyone," she whined. "I just want to find my f-friends, but people k-keep attacking me."

Did everyone really find it so easy to believe that she had snapped, and was nothing more than a feral animal? In the ecosystem of the island, she was a predator now to be sure, but she didn't kill needlessly or unprovoked. Unlike a fox attacking a chicken coop and slaughtering all the birds inside despite not needing to, Katelyn stuck to the bare necessities, killing only when necessary. Ingrid, then, should strive to not be a necessary kill.

"S-So j-just," her voice trembled along with her hands, even as she tried to growl and intimidate. "Just l-leave me be, before you e-end up like the r-rest."
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#7

Post by almostinhuman »

Ingrid scowled at her.

"I'm not gonna fuckin' kill you."

She sighed in irritation, lowering her hands - without letting go of the pan.

"But I can't let you run around with a bunch of pointy shit, sticking it in people while I'm busy trying to fix this. So drop them. Now."

Another step forward.
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Corbin Azinger
"I did everything I was supposed to, and it landed me here."
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Jacob Winters
"I'll be back. Once I splatter that motherfucker's brains over the ground. I promise."
A
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Ingrid Wilde
"Well, I'm glad not to be your fuckin' victim, too."
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"This is some grim shit we're in, huh?"
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#8

Post by VoltTurtle »

Katelyn took a long, slow breath. Ingrid was closing in like a crushing weight on her chest, threatening to suffocate her. She had been warned, and made her choice, so now it was Katelyn's turn to make her own.

"A-And," she stuttered, beginning to grow misty eyed. "If I d-don't... then what?"

She took up a more defensive position with the billhook, like a batter stepping up to the plate. Her legs tensed, boots digging into the gravel for leverage. Even if Ingrid was telling the truth about her intentions, she was still clearly gearing up for a fight, and Katelyn had seen first hand how one accidental head injury could spell the end. Finishing her opponent quickly would be ideal, but Ingrid wasn't distracted enough to get blinded and gutted with one clean blow like Mitch. Going for it anyway would leave Katelyn much too exposed to the much larger girl, so she needed to try something else.

"Are you gonna k-kill me then?"

In truth, the answer didn't matter, and Katelyn wasn't looking for it. Talking was just a distraction while she sought a way out of this mess. Ingrid was open on her left—the side that didn't have the frying pan—and her bag hung off of her shoulder on the same side. She was wearing a cumbersome, thick coat that would be hard to cut through, but would presumably impede her movements. There was enough free space on the same side for Katelyn to get by and not be in arm's reach. Putting it all together, if she managed to clip Ingrid's bag and run for it, the distraction might be enough to let her get away, but she would only have one chance to get it right.

"I g-guess," she sniffled, her whole body coiling up like a spring, "you are just like the r-rest, after a-a-al-"

Katelyn cut herself off and lunged forward mid-stutter, not giving Ingrid a single moment to prepare. Like a cat pouncing on its prey, Katelyn had caught the bag with the billhook before Ingrid could react, slicing it open and spilling its contents with one clean swipe. Katelyn wasted no time afterwards, gunning past Ingrid as fast as her legs would carry her. She fumbled with her grip on the digging bar as she ran, trying to pull it free from the sling, hyperventilating in a panic.

Please just go away, she pleaded without speaking.
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#9

Post by almostinhuman »

One second, Kitty was whimpering about Ingrid's supposed intent to kill her; the next, she was bolting straight past her, but not before digging that weird curved blade of hers into Ingrid's bag, sending much of its contents to the ground.

"Sh-shit!"

The girl was off like lightning. Ingrid probably should have simply let her go, should have taken the girl not stabbing her as a lucky break, should have returned to the task she was already immensely behind schedule on. But if Kitty ran off now, still carting around a bunch of pointy implements, it was almost certain she'd be using them. Ingrid could stop her, here and now, save whoever her next victim might be; the idea of letting Kitty go only for her to kill again left a dreadful taste in her mouth. She needed to disarm her, even if it meant roughing her up a bit first.

Ingrid dropped the bag, spilling even more of its innards in the process. She quickly unzipped and ditched the restrictive canvas jacket. She was gonna need to be unencumbered if she hoped to catch the little runaway.

Then she, too, was off. Kitty was surprisingly fast, but Ingrid was faster. It didn't take long for her to overtake and pass her, swinging the pan at the other girl's face as she did.
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Corbin Azinger
"I did everything I was supposed to, and it landed me here."
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Jacob Winters
"I'll be back. Once I splatter that motherfucker's brains over the ground. I promise."
A
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Ingrid Wilde
"Well, I'm glad not to be your fuckin' victim, too."
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"This is some grim shit we're in, huh?"
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#10

Post by VoltTurtle »

Katelyn yelped as the pan came flying in, instinctively bringing the billhook up to block the attack. The force of impact ripped the blade out of her hands, sending it flying several feet away before it embedded itself in the gravel. Her nerves were lit up like a Christmas tree, and her blood boiled at the thought of not remaining confined to her veins.

"I knew it!" she squealed, all her worst fears about how this could go validated, and all of Ingrid's lies exposed for what they were.

She dodged back from another swing coming in, hastily dropping her own bag and freeing the digging bar from the sling. Gripping it like a vice with both hands, she poked it in Ingrid's direction, feinting a few stabs at the other girl's chest like she was an ancient hunter fending off a bear. Ingrid backed just outside of Katelyn's reach, using the pan to shield her chest as Katelyn reared back, but that presented an opening.

"Go away!"

Katelyn plunged the point downwards, aiming for Ingrid's feet, and the tip found purchase in the bottom of Ingrid's shin, Katelyn feeling the distinct clunk of a blade colliding with bone. She wasted no time ripping it back out as Ingrid let out a cry of anguish, and used the brief distraction to thrust the blade towards her real target: Ingrid's throat.
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#11

Post by almostinhuman »

"Kitty-"

She'd gotten the knife out of Kitty's hands, but that was only step one. Kitty wasted no time pointing that huge stick Ingrid's way, jabbing it like she was warding off a bear.

"-I'm not-"

Ingrid raised the pan in defense, though it made for an awkward shield. She waved it forward, trying to deflect the spike coming her way.

"-trying to-"

Without any warning, Kitty plunged the fucking thing straight into Ingrid's ankle. The sound of it hitting bone would be chilling if not for the agony it wrought.

"F-FUCK!"

She nearly doubled over from the excrutiating feeling of metal-against-bone. But the other girl wasn't done, tearing the point out and immediately trying to impale her again. Ingrid only barely managed to sidestep the blow.

She'd known Kitty was dangerous, but clearly she'd underestimated her. Soon, though, Kitty would find she'd made the same mistake.

"Stop..."

The pan fell from Ingrid's grip, and both hands swiftly grabbed the bar before Kitty could pull it away.

"you fucking..."

She yanked the bar back, taking the girl with it and making it scatter away across the rocky ground.

"cunt!"

With Kitty in reach and her left hand free, Ingrid slammed her fist into the other girl's jaw.
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Corbin Azinger
"I did everything I was supposed to, and it landed me here."
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Jacob Winters
"I'll be back. Once I splatter that motherfucker's brains over the ground. I promise."
A
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
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Ingrid Wilde
"Well, I'm glad not to be your fuckin' victim, too."
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Kiera Hayes
"This is some grim shit we're in, huh?"
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#12

Post by VoltTurtle »

White-hot pain exploded in Katelyn's jaw, the blow sending her body reeling back, and her mind deep into the past.

--

The year was 2016, a few months before her parents died, and her life was changed forever. Some days prior, her family had just moved into a new apartment a few streets away from where they originally lived. It was the first time Katelyn had ever moved to a new place, and had everything she thought she knew pulled out from under her. Katelyn was at home with Ashlyn, their parents out of the house at the moment, and her sister was holding her arms in a death grip. Ashlyn was yelling at her, and both of them were crying.

"Stop being so weird!" Ashlyn screamed. "It's not that big of a deal!"

"Yes it is!" Katelyn screeched back. "I-It is! You don't u-understand! I don't l-like it!
Everything is d-different!"

Her toys weren't lined up how she liked them to be anymore. Her bed wasn't in the same room, and she didn't feel safe sleeping at night. Her window was on the wrong wall, and her curtains no longer matched the paint. The handle on the kitchen fridge didn't fit her hands anymore. Mr. Kitty wouldn't stop hiding under the couch, similarly upset by the sudden upheaval. In hindsight, Ashlyn was right, and she had adjusted fine, but in the moment it was like everything was upside down. And nobody in her family understood.

"Calm down!" Ashlyn pleaded. "Nothing has actually changed!"

"Let GO of me!" Katelyn whined, thrashing and digging her claws into her sister's arms.

"Stop freaking out and I will!" Ashlyn replied, man-handling Katelyn with her greater size and strength.

"No!" Katelyn yelped. "No no no no!"

"Would you-" Ashlyn started to say.

Katelyn started screaming as loud as she could, shrieking as though she were being murdered.

"Stop!" Ashlyn demanded. "Someone will hear! Stop it! Stop!"

Then, when Katelyn didn't stop, Ashlyn reared back, and with a vicious growl, slammed her fist right into Katelyn's face, sending her tumbling to the ground.

The immediate aftermath was silent, both of them crying and breathing fast.

"You h-hit me," Katelyn slurred, blood leaking out of her nose.

Ashlyn didn't respond.

"Y-You
hit m-me," she repeated, curling in on herself on the floor.

In that moment, Katelyn had felt a lot of emotions all at once. Pain, betrayal, despair, powerlessness, and more than anything else, anger. She didn't matter, and her sister didn't care about her. The whole world was topsy-turvy and Ashlyn was punishing her for being upset about it. If only her sister had listened, and been gentle, everything could have been different.

Katelyn wanted to do many things in response to the attack. She wanted to scream, to hide, to tell her sister how much she hated her. In the end, she didn't do anything, instead curling into a pathetic little ball, burying her face in her hands and knees and sobbing like a woman in mourning, all while Ashlyn tried to apologize and begged her to get up.

There were many actions she could have taken, and many thoughts she wanted to act upon. Only there was one thing that Katelyn wanted to do more than anything else. She wanted-


--

-to make her pay.

Katelyn ripped the knife from its sheathe in her boot, letting out an inhuman screech as she lunged with reckless abandon at Ingrid, slamming into the other girl's chest and bringing them down into the gravel below. Katelyn wildly trashed her limbs and blade in Ingrid's direction, slicing skin and spilling blood. No considerations were spared for strategy or safety, her movements merely the incoherent, emotional flailing of a bullied child lashing out.

"YOU HIT ME!" she roared. "YOU CHASED ME! YOU HIT ME!"
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#13

Post by almostinhuman »

Things had gone very, very wrong.

One second Kitty is disarmed, reeling and seeming ready to give up. The next she's got Ingrid pinned to the ground, slashing at her and screaming like a wild animal. The knife's movements were erratic and frenzied, sometimes whiffing entirely and sometimes leaving painful cuts across Ingrid's arms. If she didn't stop her now, Kitty might kill her.

Ingrid grabbed the girl's knife arm by the wrist, pushing it back and crushing it in an iron grip. Kitty was surprisingly strong, but Ingrid was just a little bit stronger.

"St-stop..." she muttered, glaring Kitty dead in the eye. "D-Drop it..."
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Corbin Azinger
"I did everything I was supposed to, and it landed me here."
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Jacob Winters
"I'll be back. Once I splatter that motherfucker's brains over the ground. I promise."
A
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Ingrid Wilde
"Well, I'm glad not to be your fuckin' victim, too."
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Kiera Hayes
"This is some grim shit we're in, huh?"
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#14

Post by VoltTurtle »

Katelyn yelped. Ingrid's crushing grasp felt like pins and needles digging into her wrist, her very bones shuddering from the sheer force. Her grip on the knife loosened, but her rage and adrenaline kept it locked in her hand. Dominated by instinct and low on options as she was, she did what came to mind.

Her teeth clamped down on Ingrid's fingers, sinking into the other girl's flesh. Katelyn had tasted blood many times in her life, but all of it was her own. For the first time, she tasted the blood of a person other than herself. The flavor disgusted her, and she wanted to vomit.

She reached out with her free hand, blindly clawing at Ingrid's face, her thumb finding purchase in Ingrid's eye. She couldn't bear another moment of this nightmare. It had to end, one way or another.
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#15

Post by almostinhuman »

As Kitty's grip on the knife seemed to waver, the other girl dug her teeth into Ingrid's hand. Ingrid's slapped Kitty across the face with her other hand, though her wrist was too injured to manage a proper punch. Unfortunately, this wasn't enough to get Kitty off of her; soon, the other girl would lash out in turn, scratching at Ingrid's face and running her thumb across the surface of Ingrid's eye.

"AH!"

She screamed as the strength went out of arms, and her grip on Kitty crumbled.

"F-FUCK!!"

One of her hands batted Kitty's away and covered the eye, while her other arm shielded her face.

"S-Stop."

She was utterly at Kitty's mercy now, reduced to cowering beneath her and pitifully begging for her to relent. Dignity had fucking flown right out the window; shit had hit the fan too bad for pride to get in the way.

"Stop stop stop stop stop..."
[+] V8
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Corbin Azinger
"I did everything I was supposed to, and it landed me here."
1 2 3 4 5
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Jacob Winters
"I'll be back. Once I splatter that motherfucker's brains over the ground. I promise."
A
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
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Ingrid Wilde
"Well, I'm glad not to be your fuckin' victim, too."
1 2 3 4
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Kiera Hayes
"This is some grim shit we're in, huh?"
1 2 3
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