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Post by Vapovile on Sept 13, 2020 2:20:26 GMT
Emma's eyes lit up at the suggestion of a road trip. "Hell yeah! Let's go to California or something, they actually have hot beaches there! It's not a frozen wasteland like up here!" She exclaimed, standing up excitedly. Emma had lived in Canada all her life, so the prospect of going to another country was exciting! "We just gotta wait for this all to blow over, and we can get you all the freedom you want down there! Though uh, it can't be alcohol. Those weird Americans think it's great to make people wait until 21. That's so strange, right?!" She laughed at the absurdity.
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"...wha..." Kelsey's eyes grew wide with shock. How could she have been so careless?! She willed her body to stab downward, but the numbness had already spread and stopped her. Her heart rate and breathing were now slowed, Kelsey beginning to panic on the inside. The reassurance that it was non-lethal provided no comfort, as Kelsey had no reason to believe that it was true. Glancing toward the door, the guard decided to use the last of her body's energy to do at least something good.
A small jet of water formed in front of Kelsey's head, and shot out toward the door, crashing against it with a loud noise that reverberated throughout the hallway. If Kelsey could move her face, she would be smirking right now. Panic spread through her body once more as her legs finally gave out, the guard toppling over and spear clattering against the ground nearby. Hopefully they got the message...
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Post by HungryHunter on Sept 16, 2020 18:02:48 GMT
The fake Kasumi’s face didn’t change when Kelsey’s attack slammed into the door. Without any hint of anger, she kicked Kelsey in the face as she fell, knocking her against the wall. Silently, she walked past, drawing a key just like Kasumi’s.
“Oh hell yeah! Let’s get tans!” Kasumi yelled just before the door shook with a great slam. She yelped and reeled backwards, waving her arms to stop herself from falling over backwards. “What the hell was that!? Kelsey fall down or something?” She slid off the bed and paused. “...Kelsey? You okay?” She didn’t want to approach the door. It was a relief when it began to open. A guard’s key would only work when held by themselves, so it couldn’t be anything but Kelsey coming in to explain the situation. Then it swung open and she was face to face with herself. She only had a moment to stare in confusion before a ball on the end of a chain slammed into her stomach, leaving her gasping for air. The other end of the weapon was whipped around for Emma, a scythe coming right for her leg.
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Post by Vapovile on Sept 20, 2020 1:49:49 GMT
The sound of the water hitting the door made Emma practically jump a foot into the air out of her seat, fists ready to intercept any kind of an attack. "No way that was someone falling over, that door's magically enhanced! That's like, me punching the door with most of my strength level!" Emma said with her eyes wide. When the door opened, she tilted her head with confusion. "...what?"
She didn't get her answer though, as the ball came crashing against Kasumi's stomach. "HEY!" Emma yelled out. She immediately knew something had gone terribly wrong with Kelsey. Glaring at the intruder, Emma utilized her boxing reflexes and sidestepped out of the way of the attack, summoning a small golden bird that made a light pink aura around her body, making her faster than before.
"Get the HELL out of here!" Emma yelled, running toward the intruder and faking a left hook, turning it into a right punch right for her kidneys.
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Post by HungryHunter on Sept 21, 2020 2:23:01 GMT
The false Kasumi didn’t turn her attention to Emma, just flicking the ball up to smash the real Kasumi in the chin. The target was kept out of the fight a moment more, and she turned her attention to Emma. She was right in her face in an instant, throwing a punch. Fake Kasumi moved a hand to parry it, but it never reached her. She realized she was fooled when it should have been too late to do anything about it. Her eyes flared red and she seemed to teleport, too close for Emma’s fist and raising her hand to slap her with her ring hand, striking with the needle.
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Post by Vapovile on Sept 29, 2020 6:15:58 GMT
The sheer speed at which the woman dodged Emma's blow made the fighter's eyes grow wide with shock. "How did you..." Having been caught completely off guard, Emma tried to twist her body and avoid the slap, but the needle managed to dig across her skin. Despite the numbing pain shooting through her body, Emma's eyes flared.
"Do NOT think I'm done yet!" She yelled, twisting her body and using the quickly-numbing left hand to try and backhand the false Kasumi across the neck, hoping to damage the attacker's spine. At this point, Emma was just running off adrenaline before the poison made its way to the rest of her body.
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Post by HungryHunter on Sept 30, 2020 5:58:21 GMT
“You are done.” The false Kasumi said, raising her arms. Emma was still fast, but already the poison was slowing her down. Her punch was parried, arm caught and pushed away. Her enemy didn’t attack again, just walking past and letting the poison take hold. She had a more important target. Kasumi, the real one, had only just enough time to blink the stars out of her eyes after taking a steel weight to the chin. She didn’t have a chance. The ice she threw blindly was limited, restrained to avoid hurting her friend. It was sidestepped easily, her foe too slippery to be caught by such a small move. A knee met her gut and made her double over.
In one move, the ring was scraped over her cheek and the chain wrapped around her neck. The fake stood behind her target, throttling her until she was still, asphyxiation and the venom in her veins taking their collective toll. Finally, she relaxed. A sigh of relief left her lips as she knelt, pulling a bottle from her backpack. Everything had gone according to plan, or at least close enough. No fight over ten seconds. Right in her wheelhouse. She put the bottle, a simple thermos any student might carry, to Kasumi’s lips and poured a thin blue liquid down her throat. It took a moment for the effects to take place, but then Kasumi began to shrink. It was an uneven process, coming in spurts and plateaus, but within seconds, she was no larger than a Barbie doll. The fake noted as she unscrewed the top that her clothes shrunk with her. That really was the good stuff, eh? She stuffed her tiny captive into the bottle and screwed the lid back on to walk out, casual as could be.
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Post by Vapovile on Oct 8, 2020 21:19:21 GMT
Slowly, Kelsey’s eyes began to feel less heavy, opening just a crack to let in the bright lights of the room she now lay in. Judging by the ceiling, this wasn’t the hallway that she had been attacked in. She tried to jerk her body upward, but no response was given by her nervous system. After a few seconds, the water mage was about to move her head to the side, now seeing that she was laying on top of a bed in the school’s infirmary wing, with a man dressed in a white coat capturing a strange liquid that was now seeping out of the wound she was given.
“Hey, don’t try to get up. Your system is still pretty messed up.” A voice came from her side. When she managed to turn her head, she would see him as a blur, Hammond, a fellow member of the guard. “It’ll be a sec before you can talk.”
Kelsey’s eyes widened, trying to speak but her mouth not moving. It did seem like the poison was being removed, allowing Kelsey to speak now. “Hammond! What’s the situation right now?!” She practically yelled at the detective. “You’ve been out for about 40 minutes. We checked in when you didn’t do your regular call and found the scene of the crime, so the HWIC has a perimeter around town. Nobody’s been allowed to drive out and only a few people have even tried. They’ve got clairvoyants and super-sensers on the roads, so they’re not missing anybody. But… they haven’t seen anybody suspicious. No Akiyamas, nobody who isn’t local. So I wanted to get your story.” His head was down, eyes focused on his notepad. Normally he would console his friend, make sure she was alright. But for now, it was business.
A feeling of self-hatred washed over Kelsey like acid. “There was a fake Kasumi! She tried to get into the room, but I tried to stop her. But then she struck me with this poison, and I…” Hatred burned in Kelsey’s eyes, realizing she failed at the one job assigned to her. Watch a door.
“A fake Kasumi?” Hammond asked. “As in a shapeshifter? A disguise?”
“I...I think it was a disguise! I didn’t sense any illusion magic coming from her, so they’re probably either a shapeshifter or good at disguises!” Kelsey answered, now able to move her hands slightly.
“The people the HWIC has watching the roads should be capable of seeing through it either way…” Hammond mumbled, taking notes. “Damn. Is there another way out of town she could have taken… or is she still hiding here!?” He was up now, scribbling a map down. “So many places to hide…”
The question made Kelsey pause as well. Was there a way out that didn’t use the town roads? Her face darkened when she realized the answer. “...the nature reserve. We have to keep people around there to make sure first years don’t wander in! You have to tell them!” Kelsey ordered, trying to point but her arms not cooperating.
“...you’re right. Thank you! And, uh, yes mam!” Hammond saluted and grabbed his phone, dialing the hotline the HWIC provided him. “Yes, I talked to a witness. We think we know where she went.”
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Post by HungryHunter on Oct 10, 2020 0:35:30 GMT
It was dark here, and getting darker. The depths of the forest blocked out the light of the moon, but she moved easily enough, eyes glowing dimly. Somebody else might have stopped to appreciate it. Pines thicker than a house grew up everywhere around her, fairies and fairy-beasts fluttering between them and scurrying in the bush. Her tracker’s eye caught every path the creatures pushed through the undergrowth, the tiny footprints they left. The lights faded as the fauna of the forest avoided her, and she was alone until she reached the bottom of the hill, where the moon broke through the branches to illuminate a silver lake.
“Anemone-san. Is she… she’s with you, right? She’s fine?” A man stood there, rough-cut green hair flopping over one eye. “Alive and should be recovering movement shortly.” Anemone twisted open her thermos and dumped Kasumi into her palm. “Your poison… does it make her unconscious?” Kichiro asked, staring down at his mouse-sized sister. “No. Just still. She can hear everything. Just can’t move.” Anemone saw the clipper Kichiro held and sighed. “But she feels no pain.” She held Kasumi out, but Kichiro just stood, stiff. “I can do it if you cannot.” Anemone withdrew Kasumi, reaching out her empty hand.
“I… just one finger. A pinky. Left hand, leave her right alone.” Kichiro handed over the clippers, a little pliers-like handle with a curved blade made for the claws of dogs, not the fingers of people. Anemone handled her like a barbie doll, twisting her stiff limbs into position and folding down every finger but the pinky. One snip and a tiny finger fell away, vanishing in the grass around the pond. Anemone wanted to ask why Kichiro was sent if he couldn't handle the job he was given, but there was no point in digging into family matters. “The other half.” She tossed the clipper back and held her hand out.
“Th-the boss wants you to escort me to the airport. You will get paid there.” “That wasn’t the deal. The pay is at the handoff.” “I didn’t, it wasn’t my idea!” Kichiro protested. “You still get paid in full, you just have to wait a little longer!” Anemone glared, her fist clenching just the slightest. Kasumi’s weak lungs let out a pained gasp. But that wasn’t all she heard. Her head tilted and she raised a finger. “Did you hear something?” They weren’t alone.
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Post by Vapovile on Oct 14, 2020 4:17:36 GMT
A deathly silence fell upon the forest when Anemone pointed out a sound. Several long moments passed with nothing happening, only the distant sound of Hidden World creatures going about their lives. Then, all hell broke loose.
Three kunai were thrown from out of the forest, all from different locations. Their speed was equivalent to a bullet as they rocketed through the air, all aimed at Kichiro's torso. The kunai were tipped with a fast-acting venom that would target his nervous system and numb the surrounding area. But that was only the first phase of the attack.
Appearing directly to Anemone's right, a tall figure dressed in a full-body black suit that blended in with the surrounding area silently drew its long black katana, expertly aiming to slice Anemone in half at the waist. Green eyes poked through the eyehole in the suit's mask, looking on at the target with cold murderous intent.
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Post by HungryHunter on Oct 16, 2020 2:51:17 GMT
Anemone saw them before she heard them, this time. The kunai were thrown with such speed that the sound followed them, arriving after she knocked them away with another flash of her red eyes. “What the fuck!?” Kichiro yelled, realizing after the fact what had happened. “We’re under-” Anemone stopped talking when a figure seemingly appeared from nowhere. She could barely get her scythe’s chain in the path of the blade, and the force threw her into the lake. She came up sputtering, brain sorting through her options. She didn’t have to yell at Kichiro again. He was breathing a sickly green fog that would break out open, weeping sores on the stranger’s skin where it touched. Anemone looked at Kasumi, still paralyzed in her hand, now weakly shifting as it began to wear off. “Hope you can float.” Anemone said, dropping her in the water. With a mix of ki and raw speed, she was able to haul herself out on top of the water and ran across, swinging her scythe to catch the assailant’s ribcage if she dodged away from the diseased cloud.
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Post by Vapovile on Oct 18, 2020 0:33:41 GMT
A dark glare descended down Sarah's face when she saw all the kunai deflected, and the assailant able to block her surprise strike. Could someone really be that fast, or was there something else at work here? Fortunately for Sarah, she had read the file of the main yakuza that Kasumi's family where members of, so she was well aware of Kichiro's powers. It was part of the reason she wore a full-body stealth suit made specifically made to help resist magic.
Taking a step to the right, Sarah wound up on the other side of Kichiro, opposite the direction the wind was blowing. She twirled a tiny poison-tipped needle between her fingers and released it midair, winding her feet back to kick it directly into Kichiro's back along with her normal kick, aiming to knock him several meters into the woods. If the needle entered his body, it would begin spreading the same poison she had coated her kunai with, this time applied more directly. The ninja then turned her attention to the approaching assassin.
Sarah expertly brought her katana up to block the scythe, stepping forward to try and grab Anemone's shirt and pull her into a judo throw down to the ground. If she succeeded, Sarah would flash her red eyes and slash Anemone's head off with a downward swipe of her blade.
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Post by HungryHunter on Oct 23, 2020 0:53:03 GMT
Kichiro wasn’t nearly fast enough to evade the kick, leaving his back stinging more than it should have as he was hurtled through the undergrowth. The poison was being fought by his poisoned blood, but he still really didn’t want to get up. Let the assassin handle it. Anemone tried her best to do so when she found herself alone. When Sarah grabbed her shirt, she threw out a palm strike, trying to pierce that bodysuit with her needle ring. She wasn’t sure it it pierced the fabric before she was grappled and thrown down hard. Breathless, she rolled before Sarah even swung, bringing up her scythe again to prevent decapitation. The handle splintered where it was stuck, precarious now in its ability to stop another strike.
She squeezed the chain and the ball on the other end became a second scythe, and she switched hands to keep the fresh one in her good hand. What did that woman just do with her eyes? It couldn't be what Anemone thought it was. Backing up, she managed to get enough air into her lungs to speak, fighting past her pounding heart. “Your rescue… is drowning!” She pointed at the lake, where a tiny Kasumi struggled to stay afloat. She let Sarah look and confirm before springing at her. Her eyes flared red, the brightest they had gone that night. Her scythes swiped out in a blur, trying to rip her apart from every angle. If that idiot Akiyama was alive, she was going to charge him extra for nearly getting her killed, atop making her kill an HWIC officer!
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Post by Vapovile on Oct 24, 2020 19:28:47 GMT
The needle was too short to pierce completely through Sarah's thick bodysuit and the layers beneath, allowing Sarah to strike her blade against the scythe once more. Despite Sarah using her own red-eyed ability to strike at a speed that was far quicker than most could handle...this woman seemed to increase at the same speed to hold up her handle. Come to think of it, she did appear to be Japanese as well. Before Sarah could think further on it, Anemone pointed out that Kasumi was drowning.
Glancing over at the lake, Sarah flashed her red eyes once more to see that there was slight movement coming from the water's surface, with a human-shaped thermal silhouette. However, Sarah knew this was a cheap distraction tactic. Flashing her own eyes red once more, Sarah's suspicions were confirmed when she saw the state of Anemone's. She was part of her old clan. A glare formed in Sarah's eyes as she brought her sword up to parry the scythe, keeping the momentum as Anemone began to slash from more angles. The sound of metal clashing run out across the forest, but few could determine how fast each blow was landing. Sarah saw one main issue partway in the clash; the scythe was more agile up close than her sword. Several shallow cuts formed as Sarah dodged Anemone's slashes and countered with her own.
"...I don't know how you have this power, but it's clearly not been as long as me!" Sarah finally spoke to Anemone, taking a step to teleport a few feet directly above Anemone, twisting her body twice in the air to build up momentum in her attempt to slash her sword straight down Anemone's body to slice it cleanly in half. The prolonged use of her powers was beginning to tax the ninja, the blood vessels in her eyes beginning to strain.
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Post by HungryHunter on Oct 24, 2020 22:17:32 GMT
With two short blades versus Sarah’s one long, Anemone was winning. At this close range, she was able to land glancing blows and ragged cuts all over Sarah’s body, and it was just a matter of time before she wore her down enough to finish this. Despite her ensuing victory, her mind was on something else. Sarah’s eyes blazed like hers. Anemone knew nothing of the circumstances of her birth, and normally she didn’t give a damn, but today she was forced to care. How was this woman connected to her? She couldn’t keep that thought out of her mouth as she dove in for the kill.
Then Sarah vanished. Anemone’s eyes flickered in all directions and finally upwards. A silver blade flashed down and she had no time to move. She just raised her scythes in a crossed pattern, hoping that where one couldn’t survive, the other could. Wood splintered. A scythe’s head bounced off her head, then another off her shoulder as they fell to the ground. Blood trickled down her fact and tickled the back of her neck. Sarah’s blade had been slowed, turning a lethal injury into a merely horrific one. Her scalp was split, Sarah’s sword resting in a groove in her skull. All of this was processed in an instant, before a half-delirious Anemone threw her useless chains at Sarah and ran, scrambling for her life into the woods, counting on Sarah’s need to save a drowning civilian to buy her enough time to escape.
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Post by Vapovile on Oct 25, 2020 17:54:58 GMT
The sword managed to slice straight through scythe, embedding itself into the top of Anemone's skull. The young assassin then threw her chains at Sarah, harmlessly bouncing off as she ran off into the woods. She briefly considered giving chase, but the mission's objective was the recover Kasumi alive. Teleporting several meters toward the lake, Sarah pinpointed the struggling Kasumi and scooped her out of the water. "It's ok, the HWIC has this location under control now." She stated to the tiny person. So this was how the assassin managed to smuggle the young Akiyama out of the school, despite the guard's attention.
Glancing down, Sarah noticed that Kasumi was missing a pinky finger. Her forehead descended into a frown, Sarah knowing well how the yakuza operate when crossed. Glancing around the area, Sarah knew it was probably fruitless to look for the limb laying on the ground, as it would have lost all body heat by this point and an animal might have already gotten to it. "Hang on, we'll be out of here in just a minute." She reassured, about to take off toward the forest exit...when she remembered there was a fourth person in this clearing tonight.
Stepping up to Kichiro's body, Sarah grabbed him by the back of the shirt and hoisted him up. "You're under arrest for kidnapping, Akiyama. You'd better hope your parents want you back enough to set you free, the HWIC prison isn't a nice place to be."
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Post by HungryHunter on Oct 26, 2020 2:33:00 GMT
Kasumi gasped when she was pulled from the water, setting off a cacophony of hacks and coughs. She tried to speak, but between her smaller size and the coughs that shook her body, she was incapable of it. All that came out were pathetic little peeps and gasps. Her eyes filled with tears. It wasn’t just the pain, now. It was humiliation. She wasn’t able to do anything, just a prop in her family’s game. She cradled her hand and wept. Anemone had lied when she said the poison numbed pain. She felt everything. But it didn’t compare to what she felt when she saw Kichiro.
The only one in the family who was nice to her. The one who listened to her rambling about her day, what she had tried cooking that evening, what sports player she was crushing on. She knew that he was pressured into this, that it was either kidnapping her or severe punishment. But the betrayal still cut deep, right to her core. “My parents will want to have me shivved sooner than they’ll want me back.” Kichiro sniffed and half-smiled. “I’m glad I failed… and I’m glad I don’t have to go home just yet.” His own tears flowed as he offered his hands for Sarah to cuff.
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Post by Vapovile on Jan 24, 2022 11:54:20 GMT
Ghosts of Gateway Past "I think that just about wraps us up..." Iris said to the class, glancing at the clock. Today was evidently one of Iris's more depressed days, for she wore a large open black business coat over her pink pajamas with tiny flamingos dotted around. The room of first years all began to shuffle toward the door. "Don't forget class, please write an essay on the key accomplishments of house leader Schwarzweiss, and her impact on Gateway's founding. I'll be in my office after school for 2 hours if you need assistance...or wants to play checkers." She trailed off. Shoving a notebook into his bag, Aiden zipped his backpack up and swung it over his shoulder in a motion he thought looked cool. He wore a black t-shirt with some band logo on the front, and a pair of black jeans. His short red hair spiked upward as he exited, meeting a short brown-haired girl in the hallway. "Hey, loser." She greeted, waving. Aiden smirked. "Waiting for a loser? Guess joke's on you, loser." Aiden fired back. Both smirked at each other and began walking down the hallway together. "Uuuuuugh...we have to write that dumb essay on Weiss? I'm not even part of that house!" Aiden complained. Scarlet rolled her eyes. "Suck it up, we had to do the other 4 too. Got any ideas?" She asked. Aiden let out a sigh...then glanced out the window. "...hang on a minute..." he said, jogging toward it. He peered out into the courtyard, seeing the cemetery barely visible through the trees. A grin spread across Aiden's face. "Scarlet, we need to find Lucy." The fire mage said ominously.
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Post by HungryHunter on Jan 25, 2022 4:17:16 GMT
“Omlaik kain vos kaino. Veigo kain hon vera. Omlaik Kain…” Lucy chanted, hovering a few feet off the ground. Red candles marked the borders of a pentagram before her, a growing darkness within. Slowly, something was taking shape, sinews of light wrapping around bones of shadow to form a body. It was nearly complete, looming to the ceiling, a haunting laugh echoing in the room, when somebody knocked on her door. The chant faltered and the being immediately collapsed into nothing. “No no no dammit! I was so close!” Lucy fell to the ground and stomped over to the door. “This had better be important!” She scowled at whoever’s face she saw when the door opened.
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Post by Vapovile on Jan 25, 2022 4:47:59 GMT
By the sound of the yelling, Scarlet knew something was going on in there. She let out a sigh and looked straight ahead as the door flew open, revealing a furious Lucy before her. Scarlet gave a single half-hearted wave.
"Yo. If you got a minute, we have a pretty poggers idea if you haven't done that report on Weiss yet." Scarlet leaned against the door frame, giving a confident grin. "We'd like you to raise Schwarzeiss's ghost from the cemetery outside, so we can chat with her a little. Then impress professor Kurome with this deep knowledge we spent SO much time researching for her class. What do ya say, wanna raise some dead guys?" Scarlet asked, motioning with her head toward the hall. Aiden was sitting in the Ikkuma commons area, not able to get into the girl's dorm tower unless someone from there invited him up, so it was fortunate Scarlet could go up alone.
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Post by HungryHunter on Jan 25, 2022 5:35:25 GMT
Lucy sighed when Scarlet didn’t even ask what she was up to. It was so cool, and they didn’t care. What they were asking about definitely wasn’t important. “Yeah, hearing a lot about how much this’ll be good for you two. But I’ve got a really important spirit of my own I’m trying to summon and you don’t seem to be offering me anything that they won’t so…” Lucy let the sentence hang in silence. Scarlet better have something decent to offer, or she was leaving empty-handed.
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