Bulk was never early for school before Skull got sick, but with Skull unable to attend classes, there was no reason for him to be late anymore.

To keep Skull off his mind, Bulk had decided to come into the school through a side door and lift weights until the bell rang. He didn't expect to see Malcolm in the weight room walking on the treadmill in workout clothes with hands holding a book in front of him.

"What do you want, Bulk?" Malcolm snapped as he spotted Bulk near the door. "I'm busy here."

Bulk looked surprised at Malcolm's sharp tone of voice, but before he could reply, Rocky and a tired looking Adam came into the weight room in their workout clothes. They both smiled at Malcolm, but he paid no attention to them and continued reading. Adam and Rocky exchanged a concerned look.

"Hey, Malcolm, can we join you?" Adam asked in a kind voice. "We want to work out a bit."

Suddenly, a lean young man dressed in dark purple and white sweats, shoes, and a fancy silk t-shirt strutted into the weight room and immediately glared at Malcolm, "Get off of my treadmill, freak," he hissed as he stalked over to the treadmill. "This has been MY treadmill ever since the first day…"

"You can use it when I'm done," Malcolm replied, not taking his eyes off the book. "I have to learn this."

The boy suddenly looked angry and grabbed the book out of Malcolm's hands, "It's a piano book!" he said in an amused voice as he waved it around. "I didn't know you had feather fingers on top of a feather brains, Malcolm! You're such a skinny geek and now you need to get off my treadmill!"

"Give that book back please" Malcolm said in a tense voice as he quickly pressed the stop button.

The boy cackled and threw the book into the corner of the room, "The name's Shawn and now that I've got your attention, I want to fight you," Shawn replied nastily. "I read in the paper last summer that you were a champion fighter and I saw your little demo with Rocky DeSantos last fall. Let's go at it!"

"No thanks," Malcolm replied as he got off the treadmill. "You can have the treadmill now, Shawn."

As Malcolm moved towards his book, Shawn grabbed his arm, "Come on!" Shawn whined. "Fight me!"

Malcolm suddenly froze and gave Shawn a death glare, "I suggest you let go of my arm now," he hissed.

Shawn hooted, let go of Malcolm's arm, and promptly lunged at Malcolm, tackling him to the ground.

"Gasket darling, what does the telescope show?" Archerina asked as she came into the throne room after shutting Queen Machina and Prince Sprocket up in the Mechno-Dungeon. "I'm very curious."

Prince Gasket chuckled as he continued to look through the telescope at the Earth, "It seems that my father's hostage, Doctor Oliver, has a nephew who nobody had any idea about," he replied in a gleeful voice. "That nephew looks like a goody two shoes and could also possibly be a Zeo Power Ranger."

"Should we send the Cogs to capture that nephew?" Archerina asked in an amused voice.

Prince Gasket was silent for a few moments, "No, that would create too much of a disorganized ruckus," he replied as he stepped away from the telescope. "I think we ought to organize some sort of event that will bring all those Rangers and their disgusting friends together and then we go after that nephew!"

An alarm suddenly went off and Gasket turned back to the telescope, "Oh ho!" he crowed. "A fight!"

Archerina quickly joined Gasket at the telescope, unaware that Klank had managed to escape from the cell with the help of Orbus and was now en route to Earth to try and get help to fight Gasket's rule.

A colorful poster caught Tommy's eye as he opened the side door to the school and he was intrigued about what exactly a 'Mystery Night' was; it talked about how people who wanted to participate could sign up to dress up fancy, meet at an old mansion at the edge of town, and solve a horrific murder for a small fee.

"Tommy, if you look at every poster on the doors and walls, you'll be late for your first class," Tommy suddenly heard the gentle, amused voice of his uncle say. "You can close the door now. I'm inside."

Tommy looked away from the poster and saw that his Uncle Frank was now standing inside the school on his crutches with his trenchcoat over one shoulder, leaving his khakis, cast, dress shoe, and his white collared shirt uncovered with the arrowhead, which was no longer holding the gem, around his neck.

"…Doctor Oliver, please report to Mr. Caplan's office immediately," a voice suddenly boomed out of the small circular intercom that was just above Dr. Oliver's office doorway. "Doctor Oliver, please report…"

A loud crash and equally loud chanting suddenly filled the hallway, "FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT!" several voices roared enthusiastically, prompting Dr. Oliver and Tommy to move as fast as they were able towards the source of the noise. As they turned the corner, they saw a large crowd of students gathered in a circle in the student foyer including Jason, Katherine, Adam, Rocky, Tanya, and a shocked Bulk.

There was a loud shout and suddenly footsteps could be heard coming down the hallway, "…THAT IS ENOUGH FROM BOTH OF YOU!" Mr. Caplan's angry voice suddenly echoed down the quiet hallway.

The crowd immediately scattered, revealing an angry Shawn and a beat-up looking Malcolm wrestling on the floor with scratches and bruises on their bodies and rips on their clothes, "SHAWN AND MALCOLM, STOP THAT FIGHTING THIS INSTANT!" Mr. Caplan yelled angrily as he approached the two.

Malcolm suddenly stopped and pushed Shawn off of him. Even though he was breathing really hard and looked as if he needed medical attention, he quickly got to his feet and bolted off down the hallway.

"What happened?" Tommy asked before he could stop himself. "Malcolm doesn't usually fight."

Adam sighed and held out Malcolm's piano book, "Malcolm was walking on the treadmill and reading this when Shawn came in and started bothering him," he explained, handing the book to Tommy.

"That's no excuse for fighting in the school hallways!" Mr. Caplan cut in angrily as he glared at Jason out of spite. "Please inform your cousin that I will be informing your parents of this fight and that he has detention after school as well! Doctor Oliver, I want to speak with you in my office privately please."

Dr. Oliver sighed and took his satchel from Tommy, "You kids had better get ready for class," he said in a worried voice. "Jason, why don't you go talk to Malcolm? Let Malcolm know I want to talk to him."

Jason nodded and was silent as Dr. Oliver followed Mr. Caplan down the hallway, "Here, let me help you," Tanya said in a gentle voice as she offered her hand to Shawn. "Malcolm got mad over a book?"

As Jason walked off in the direction that Malcolm had gone, Shawn took Tanya's hand and allowed her to help him stand up, "Why don't I walk you to your locker and you can tell me what happened?" Tanya suggested, not sure if the fight had really been Shawn's fault like Malcolm had said. "My name's Tanya."

"Adam and I just said what happened," Rocky interrupted. "Adam and I saw the fight ourselves."

Tanya narrowed her eyes at Adam and then returned her gaze to Shawn. Rocky rolled his eyes as Tanya and Shawn moved off down the hallway towards the lockers, but Kat sighed and looked really worried.

"Why is Malcolm acting so angry today?" Katherine asked in a worried voice. "He's usually really calm."

Tommy sighed and shrugged, "Maybe he's nervous about Valentine's Day," he replied. "On my way into school this morning, I saw a poster advertising a murder mystery night that's gonna be on Valentine's Day and all the proceeds from registration fees will go to fixing up the Angel Grove Shelter."

Katherine smiled, "I should ask Malcolm if he wants to be my date for that," she suggested happily. "It might cheer him up to have plans on Valentine's Day."

"Pukey little power brats!" Rita hissed as she turned away from her 'magic globe' in disgust. "I should disrupt their little Valentine's Day Party with my own chaos! Unfortunately, I can't make a monster without Finster's lab and that's in my castle! I can't get my castle back without the help of my son!"

Zedd groaned from the rock he had chosen to use as a bed, "Oh, give it a rest," he grunted tiredly.

Rita was silent for a moment and then looked back at the globe, "Perhaps I can send Kimberly and Billy to infiltrate the little party and get Malcolm alone!" she said gleefully. "After I have Malcolm as a prisoner, I can send Goldar and Scorpina to get Zedison and bring him back for reprogramming!"

Screams filled the chamber and Rita could hear gleeful laughter, "Will you two stop torturing the prisoners and get in here now?!" she yelled angrily. "I need you to go and spy on my Zedison!"

"It seems we have a common goal," Klank stated as he suddenly appeared before Rita. "I am Klank."

Rita glared at Klank, "As much as I hate the Machine Empire right now, I want to get my Zedison back from those pesky Power Rangers!" she hissed. "Ivan Ooze robbed him of his eyesight and his magic!"

"Well, Prince Gasket wants tae Zeo Ranger Five, otherwise known as Tommy Oliver," Klank stated in a firm Scottish accent as he stood before Rita. "Tommy's uncle has access to power that is needed."

Rita looked amused, "What would you want with a simpleton like Tommy when Malcolm's power is beyond this world?!" she hissed in an amused voice. "With Malcolm's power, I can capture Mark Hillard and force him to remember his rightful place as Prince Zedison. The Rangers can then be destroyed."

"Anythin to get that crazy Gasket out of power," Klank stated worriedly. "Who is Mark Hillard, though?"

Rita rolled her eyes, groaned, and turned away from him, "I have a headache," she groaned softly.

Soft sniffling greeted Jason as he entered the bathroom and saw that Malcolm was nowhere to be seen.

"Malcolm?" Jason asked in a concerned voice as he heard another sniffle. "Malcolm, are you in here?"

There was another sniffle, footsteps, and a small click, "I'll come to class in a minute, Jason," Malcolm replied in a soft voice, leading Jason to suspect that Malcolm was crying. "Go on ahead, okay?"

"Okay," Jason replied as he took a few steps, opened and closed the door to make it sound like he left.

The stall door opened and a red-faced Malcolm came out with fresh tears on his face, "Jason, I thought you left?" he asked, suddenly spotting Jason near the sink. "I just need a little time alone right now."

"Mister Caplan gave you detention after school," Jason replied softly. "What's going on with you?"

Malcolm sighed, "My birthday's on Valentine's Day and it's the first year that my parents won't be here to celebrate it with me," he replied softly. "Don't tell Uncle Thomas, but I picked music appreciation as one of my electives this semester and I found one of my dad's old music books in your garage over Christmas when I was trying to see if there were extra shelves for my things. I've always loved piano."

"My dad wouldn't be mad at you for that," Jason replied softly. "He'll be upset about the fight, though."

Malcolm nodded and looked down at the sink, "It's not like me to get aggressive," he replied in a voice full of deep shame and regret. "I just figured when I stopped having nightmares, I was all better."

"You stopped seeing Doctor Oliver too soon, I think," Jason commented. "You're still grieving."

Another tear slipped out of Malcolm's eye, "It's not normal," he hissed. "I can't be still grieving."

"It's been less than a year, man," Jason replied softly. "I still grieve over my little sister sometimes."

Malcolm looked up at Jason in shock, "That was your demon on Phaedos, wasn't it?" he asked.

Jason nodded and sighed, "Maybe after detention's over, you could try and catch Doctor Oliver at his office about some more counseling?" he gently suggested. "I'll smooth things out with our parents."

"Okay," Malcolm replied with a sigh. "We should probably get to class before the bell."

Even though he knew Malcolm still wasn't okay, Jason nodded, "I think Adam's got your music book, by the way," he stated as the two left the bathroom. "He picked it up while you and Shawn were fighting."

"Malcolm, are you okay?" Katherine asked as she and Mark suddenly came down the hallway. "Mark and I just got to school when Rocky and Adam told us that you had been in a fight with another boy."

Malcolm sighed, "Jason, I'm gonna go get my books and go to class," he said, avoiding Kat's gaze.

"Is Malcolm okay?" Katherine asked, gazing at Jason as Malcolm walked off down the hallway alone.

Mark was silent as Katherine and Jason talked; over the past several days, he had been suffering strange nightmares of a man in a silver ninja suit and a man in a black Power Ranger suit fighting in an arena with a foggy floor that resembled a dungeon. A woman with a spiky head had been taunting them.

"Mark, are you all right?" Katherine asked, suddenly realizing that Mark had gone very quiet.

Jason looked at Mark in concern, "I'm all right, Kat and Jason," Mark replied softly. "Just a bit tired."

"David and Tanya came earlier than we did this morning and Mark forgot to set his clock," Katherine explained as she gently ruffled Mark's hair. "Mark, why don't we get your books and then go to class?"

Jason bit his lip as Katherine and Mark walked away; what was happening to their little group of friends? It seemed like reality was draining everyone.

"…I really don't know what to tell you," Dr. Oliver stated as he shifted his casted leg forward while sitting in the visitor's chair in Mr. Caplan's office. "I saw Laura around the house after school and whenever I asked her how her day was, she said it was fine and then went off to do something while I rested."

Mr. Caplan sighed, "I don't blame you, but where on earth could she have been going during the day instead of coming to school for the past few days?" he asked. "Laura's been a model student thus far."

"I told the Lee Scotts that Laura could only visit Ashley after school, so she couldn't have gone there," Dr. Oliver replied in a concerned voice. "If Laura was sick, she should have told me or Ms. Appleby."

Mr. Caplan harrumphed, "About you and Ms. Appleby, Doctor Oliver," he stated. "Remember…"

"Yes, I know," Dr. Oliver replied softly. "Any in-school association is to remain strictly professional, including the lunches we share in the staff room."

Mr. Caplan nodded, "Whatever you two do after hours is your business, however," he commented in a slightly reassuring tone. "Anyway, back to Miss Hammond. I am very concerned about her welfare."

"I'll talk to my nephews and see if they can go looking for her after school today," Dr. Oliver replied in a reassuring voice even though he had no idea where to start looking. "Have you told the Lee Scotts?"

Shaking his head, Mr. Caplan picked up the receiver, "I will mention it when I phone them about the fight that Malcolm was in and after I explain about his detention today, I will mention that Laura's not been to school and to keep an eye out for her," he replied. "Did you want to run detention today?"

"Yes, that will give me a chance to keep an eye on Malcolm," Dr. Oliver replied as he slowly used his crutches to pull himself into a standing position. "Anyway, I'll get out of your way. See you later."

Mr. Caplan nodded and Dr. Oliver silently hobbled out of the office, not stopping until he got back into the safety of his counseling office at the far end of the school. He sat down at his desk and quickly opened the drawer where he kept a small communicator that Alpha had given him long ago.

Ignoring sudden pain in his leg, Dr. Oliver took the device out and sent a small message to Zordon that Laura had suddenly disappeared and that he was concerned that King Mondo might have hurt her.

Meanwhile, in the canyons just outside of Angel Grove, Laura quickly extinguished the fire that she had made the night before to keep warm and to also ward off danger. Once there was enough dirt and rocks covering it, she stood up and rolled up the sleeping bag she had 'borrowed' from Tommy's room; she carefully tied it to the top of the survival backpack she had taken from her home back in Los Angeles.

"…I can't believe Rita's making us live in an underground cave!" Laura suddenly heard from nearby.

Frowning, Laura put her pack on and slowly made her way out of the small grove where she had been living since she had run away. She immediately saw Squatt, Babboo, and Finster walking through a bigger canyon towards a small, very eerie looking cave that had a spiderweb net over the front of it.

"…SQUATT, BABBOO, FINSTER!" Rita's very angry voice filtered out of the cave. "I NEED YOU NOW!"

Rita's back? Laura thought worriedly, too focused on the scene before her to notice that Billy, who had been sent out by Rita to spy on her after discovering her presence in the nearby area days ago.

"Laura?" Billy asked in as innocently as possible as he tapped on her shoulder. "Laura Hammond?"

Quickly recognizing Billy's voice, Laura quickly turned around, "Billy, what are you doing here?" she asked in an anxious voice, wondering if someone had sent Billy to look for her. "You look tired."

"I am actually doing some camping out here until I can figure out what to do with my life," Billy replied, wanting to look and sound as innocent as possible. "Would you care to go on a hike with me?"

Laura suddenly saw that Billy's eyes were glowing a faint red, but was too late to stop him from grabbing her arm and pulling her close, "Empress Rita will enjoy seeing you again," he hissed as they vanished.

A moment later, Laura found herself face to face with Rita, Goldar, and Scorpina in a cold cave, "Well, well, well," Rita chanted in an amused voice. "Laura Hammond; the nosy little Yellow Ninja Ranger!"

Laura remained silent and Rita cackled and waved her wand, causing Kimberly to immediately appear.

"I want you and Billy to tear this little Powerless Ranger apart!" Rita cackled as Billy hurried into the chamber and joined Rita, Kimberly, Goldar, and Scorpina. "Then I'll send the pieces back to Zordon!"

Laura backed up and suddenly felt Goldar's arms wrap around her, "Going somewhere my dear?" he asked in an amused voice as he sank his claws into her arms. "You can't defeat us as you are now!"

Kimberly stepped forward and Goldar pushed Laura into her, "You little goody-two-shoes," Kimberly snarled as she forced Laura into an empty area of the cavern. "Once I defeat you in battle, there will be nothing to stop Tommy from welcoming me back into his life. He thinks he has to protect you."

"Kim, please, you should talk to Tommy yourself," Laura said anxiously. "You already tried to kill me."

Rita suddenly looked amused and waved her wand, "Magic wand, so dark and sweet, send Laura back to Angel Grove to die and make Kimberly and Billy strong enough to ambush the Rangers when they're all together!" she yelled angrily as she waved her wand at Kimberly, Billy, and Laura. "BE GONE!"

Detention was quiet, Malcolm thought, as he entered the assigned classroom and saw that Shawn was seated on the counter by the window reading a comic book and listening to music on headphones.

Letting out a sigh, Malcolm took a seat in the desk closest to the door, set his backpack on the floor beside him, and opened it to see what homework he could do while he sat quietly in detention.

For a few minutes, all was quiet and then suddenly, the door opened again and Bulk came into the room with his backpack and he immediately stared at Malcolm. Bulk was still staring at Malcolm speechlessly when Dr. Oliver hobbled into the room with his satchel in hand and took a seat at the front desk.

"Malcolm, could you come up to my desk please?" Dr. Oliver asked gently. "Farkas, please take a seat."

Malcolm quickly stood up and walked up to Dr. Oliver's desk, "Malcolm, I was wondering if you could write an essay about what happened today including why your personality was so unusual?" Dr. Oliver asked in a low voice that neither Shawn nor Bulk could hear. "When it's finished, you can go home."

"Yes sir," Malcolm replied before quickly retreating to his desk and pulling a notebook from his bag.

Dr. Oliver opened his satchel and pulled out a book that Ms. Appleby had bought him while he had spent a full day recuperating in the hospital. He opened it and quietly read while watching Malcolm, Shawn, and Bulk kept themselves busy. There was nearly 45 minutes of quiet before Malcolm stood up.

"I'm finished, sir," Malcolm replied as he carried a small sheaf of papers up to Dr. Oliver's desk and set them down neatly on the desk. "Everything's written to the last detail, sir. May I be dismissed now?"

Dr. Oliver raised an eyebrow, picked up the papers, and skimmed through them, "Very nice, Malcolm," he said in a kind voice as he looked up at the tired teen. "Yes, you're dismissed for the day."

Malcolm nodded, returned to his desk, gathered his things, and silently left the room, seemingly unaware that Dr. Oliver was now reading through the essay with a look of concern on his face.

The hallway was very quiet as Malcolm made his way towards the exit; Jason had cancelled his class for the day to volunteer his time at the hospital and he didn't know where everyone else had gotten to.

Bright sunlight shone down on Malcolm as he stepped outside and he was surprised to see an ambulance parked in front of the school with a skinny looking paramedic leaning against it and the doors of the ambulance wide open. Concerned that someone was hurt, Malcolm walked over to offer help.

"Uncle Thomas?" Malcolm asked, shocked to see that his uncle was sitting in the back of the ambulance.

Thomas ignored the 'uncle' comment and he studied his adopted on carefully, "Are you feeling better than you were last night, Malcolm?" he asked in a cheerful voice. "You went to bed right after supper with a headache and I came in to check on you after I talked to Jason, but you were sound asleep."

"Yeah," Malcolm replied nervously. "I had detention and I'm sure Aunt Helen told you about it already."

Thomas nodded and sighed, "Aggressiveness isn't like you, Malcolm," he replied. "What's wrong?"

"My birthday's on Valentine's Day," Malcolm said in a quiet voice. "My parents aren't here for it."

Unable to stop himself, Malcolm suddenly started to cry and Thomas quickly stood up, "It's all right," he said, gently pulling his adopted son into a warm hug. "I miss your father and mother too; I really do."

Suddenly, the panes of glass in the school doors shattered and a large gust of wind almost knocked Malcolm backwards. There was a loud cackle and Laura suddenly appeared and promptly collapsed to the ground in front of the school unconscious with her bag in her hands. Malcolm let out a loud gasp.

"Isn't that a friend of you and Jason, Malcolm?" Thomas asked as they approached the still Laura.

Malcolm nodded, "That's Laura Hammond," he replied softly. "She seems to be in really bad shape."

Thomas nodded and quickly hurried back to the ambulance, leaving Malcolm to watch over Laura.

"How are you feeling, Jason?" Helen asked softly as she sat beside Jason, who was laying on a hospital gurney on his chest in a gown with a blanket covering his numbed legs that were now bandaged.

Jason sighed, "I hope Skull's gonna be okay," he replied softly. "Otherwise, I'm gonna feel guilty that I couldn't do more. I just had to do more to help him."

"I'm sure your friend will be fine," Helen replied in the same soft voice as she gently stroked Jason's hair to keep him calm. "You were really brave when the doctor took your marrow; you didn't cry once."

Jason chuckled softly, "Mom, they numbed up my legs before they took the marrow so it wouldn't hurt," he replied in an amused voice. "When this stuff wears off, my legs are gonna be sore for a few days and I'll really have to take it easy on other stuff so I can go to that murder mystery thing."

"Are you thinking of asking someone to go with you since it's on Valentine's Day?" Helen asked softly.

Jason blushed, "Good thing Katherine is looking after Ashley today," he murmured. "They'd tease me."

"Speaking of Ashley, dear, have you seen Laura lately?" Helen asked. "She's not been around for a while and Mister Caplan told both Doctor Oliver and us that Laura's not been to school for a few days either."

Jason shrugged, but before he could comment, he saw his father and his father's paramedic partner enter the hospital rolling a gurney that held an unconscious Laura; she was covered by blankets and had an oxygen mask over her very pale and dirty face. They rushed the gurney down a nearby hallway.

"Mom, that was Laura on that gurney," Jason said in a shocked voice. "I should go see what's up."

Helen sighed as Jason lifted his legs and winced, "They're still a little numb, but I can feel them," Jason said as he maneuvered himself into a sitting position. "I have to see if Laura is okay; I'm really worried…"

"Jason?" Malcolm, who had been outside trying to compose himself before coming in to check on Laura, asked as he suddenly spotted his cousin sitting on the gurney. "I thought you were volunteering…"

Jason sighed, "I volunteered my time to donate some bone marrow to Skull," he replied in a tired voice.

Malcolm looked shocked, but didn't say anything, "Malcolm, what are you doing here?" Jason asked.

"I was talking to Uncle Thomas outside of the school after my detention and suddenly, the glass on the front doors of the school shattered," Malcolm replied in a nervous voice. "There was a loud cackle, a huge gust of wind, and then Laura appeared in front of the school and promptly collapsed."

Helen looked horrified, "Jason, just stay there and I'll go see how Laura is doing myself," she said.

As Helen hurried off, Jason looked at Malcolm expectantly, "The cackling sounded a lot like Rita," Malcolm explained in a low voice. "If Rita's back, we're gonna have to deal with her and the Machine Empire and I don't know if we can with what we have. Do you think Rita had Laura as a prisoner?"

"You'd better go tell Zordon about what happened," Jason whispered. "Maybe we can prepare…"

Malcolm nodded, looked around to make sure nobody was nearby, and quickly teleported away. He wanted to talk to Zordon about personal things anyway.

"You did WHAT, Klank?!" Prince Gasket hissed angrily as the smaller robot trembled before him.

Klank sighed, "I went tae the space witch Rita Repulsa for help in providing a distraction tae the other Rangers so that you can capture Doctor Oliver's nephew, Tommy," he replied. "Tae Rangers are all planning tae be together at that party in a few days and in exchange for Tommy, Rita wants Malcolm because Malcolm's power is the key to reclaiming Prince Zedison to her side."

"If Rita Repulsa and Lord Zedd manage to capture Tommy Oliver during that mystery party, I will of course help them to capture Malcolm by separating him from the other Zeo Rangers," Prince Gasket stated in an authoritative tone. "Where is Rita…?"

There was a loud cackle and Rita suddenly appeared, "I assume you have agreed to my plan?" she asked, grinning when Prince Gasket nodded. "It will be easy for me to get Tommy alone at that party and I trust you have a plan to capture Malcolm?"

"Well, my dear Rita, that is why we are meeting now," Prince Gasket replied smoothly. "We need to finalize our plans."

As Gasket laughed, Rita grinned; after she got what she wanted, she planned to trigger the Machine Empire's destruction with Zedison's help and then turn her attention to decimating the Power Rangers. It had been far too long since she had such fun.

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