Tangle in the Dark - Kassidor

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that.“I am, there’s a cesspool back that way, it’s all toolstorage along here.”They were passing many narrow and dark openingsbetween the rough blocks of these basement walls. Avacouldn’t see anything at all in them. Suddenly they wereplunged into blackness.“Shit!” Yellelle said, one of the few words Ava knew inMinoan. She didn’t need to say that the lamp had gone out.“Here hold this,” she said in Kassidorian and passed Ava thelamp by feel. It was blacker than the velvet on an Elvispainting, there was no pixel of light anywhere. She could tellYellelle was getting her flint and striker out by feel. “I nevershould have let you talk me into this.”‘This’ was sneaking her out of the temple and Knossosand back to modern times. She was giving up what little she’dearned, and taking only one change of clothes and a name tag,but she was running from the law, and there were sure to besoldiers sent after them. They were going to have to trust to acaptain Yellelle knew and it sounded like his boat was littlemore than a canoe.It took her three strikes to get the lamp lit.“We have to be more careful with this,” Ava said, “Itwould be nice if there was a glass bowl on this.”“In a thousand years there will be, but remember, yourmortal ancestors at this time were living in caves and fightingbears with spears.”458
“Yeah, and we were just about back to that when I left themortal realm, but this isn’t the mortal realm either. What canthey do to us if they catch us?”“Hog tie us and drag us back,” Yellelle said. She had thestriker back in her bag and was leading the way forwardagain. “Now don’t make me lose count.”The passage was getting narrower and looking more like acave. The floor was dirt and very uneven with boulderssticking out of it. They passed a cut thru an older wall, thensqueezed thru a narrow passage into an even narrowerpassageway.“Oh good, there’s the ladder,” Yellelle said. It was nothingbut some sticks tied together and went up at least two floors.Ava did not like the way it swayed. “Wait til I get off thisbefore you get on it,” Yellelle said without needing to.There was enough light for Ava to see that her knuckleswere white when she got to the top of that ladder. There was anarrow window that overlooked the roofs of some stalls onthe market square below.“I’m pretty sure that roof will hold us,” Yellelle said, “butit’s going to be slippery.” It was tile. “We should be able toclimb down off the back of that onto those chicken crates,”she pointed out the window.Ava could barely squeeze her head in there to see them inthe first grey of dawn. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”“This time I’m not,” Yellelle and began worming her waybackwards thru the window til she was hanging from the459
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TangleInTheDark
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Tangle in the DarkThe Christial sta
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He was left with the home and the l
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Engineering wouldn’t approve of h
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with one of the most important offi
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first detected, left alone once the
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without other souls, it is essentia
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didn’t retrieve.” Alan had made
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may not be under direct control, bu
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“The church is one,” Ava sighed
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transfer in the galaxy is happening
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here the rest of the time. It’s a
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hung out on Afternoonday and partie
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her official one were as unlike as
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Alan, said, “yes I know,” as he
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11:13am Tue. Jan 17, 2384“It’s
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out in a Trenst crowd and would eve
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of them. Prices are higher in the R
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this.“Oh you’re right!” she s
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special but she sported a major pai
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I’d guess she’s still at her of
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He really hoped it wasn’t Ava who
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He wanted to ask her what language
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gone to the off-duty lounge, he kne
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-Hi,It will probably be a long time
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to have repressions needing to be f
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“I’m not going to have her desc
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think, don’t you think?” she as
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central location, right next to the
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such short notice but you didn’t
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"She wouldn't tell me, ma'am.""She
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screen was modeled to look like a m
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"I found a dinner club that I thoug
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understanding how those signals act
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“You ought’a come down to the p
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with cherubs this evening. It had b
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he was not a natural chef and had t
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varied over time. There were quantu
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close to you. Even at that, you’v
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“I don’t know of anyone who’s
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awhile. Alan didn’t want to say a
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Erectus.”“In more ways than one
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“It’s all about whatever she le
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theory and simulation structure. Li
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He noticed her cup was full again a
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"Thom and Elmore?""Elmore and Alfre
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10:47pm Tue. Apr. 10, 2384Alan was
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As he walked thru the rows to the e
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did."That rang about as true as a l
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employ, opening a new back door was
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generator it took her only a little
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These cherubs are often regarded as
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shortly," it said and left the room
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"You mean what other universes?" Al
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skills to remove an encapsulation i
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2:07pm Fri. Apr. 20, 2384Once the c
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ack into here. Not only that, but a
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out of the lab, both labs."Obviousl
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"Wait Alan," Vic said, looking up f
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9:21pm Sun. Apr. 22, 2384Alan waite
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with her disappearance?From what he
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about it. Even though he was suppos
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you, there is an enemy agent aboard
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"Then I'll never see you," she teas
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“I'm surprised to hear you say th
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do anything about it. We could pass
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"I've heard that too, but we are un
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impious outside. She was one of the
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occurring condensates but they had
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esearch if it was actually done man
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“Alan is here,” she said calmly
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could. He finally looked up at her.
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it is?" he said, "I think you are d
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signals, the signals were simply th
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Kuiper Belt they all stared in horr
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will be sucking vacuum for fifteen
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"Yes, by all means," he said. "If t
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noticed if it wasn’t for her lack
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extreme cherubs before and hadn’t
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"No; God," she said, with an implie
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thru the lab coat. “I popped in t
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Alan's world. He never saw his face
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cheating and tried to get me to che
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at the space. He always liked churc
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"Neglecting my carnal duties to my
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There was a long pause, finally Tho
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far as appearance. He actually thou
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need to understand your signals for
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continue his analysis, so he update
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asked."You wouldn't have wanted to
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guy on a flute that sounded like a
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"I'm glad you're with me this time.
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using the cherubs? She was either l
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knew that you were done forgiving m
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critics. Thom wasn't paying attenti
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"I'm going to try.""How?""That's my
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fusion in either drive could slag t
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apparatus and technique, as well as
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didn't let that distract him. He di
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things; one, whatever is making the
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to him," Warren said."I think Thom
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that he knew, but after his private
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"I loved her, I still do," Thom cam
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of Engineering and not know enough
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sure we'll find a corresponding tra
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Major Imogene Tengine he had known
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full once again. He looked away fro
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paths hadn’t crossed recently.Bef
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largest information transfer in the
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Maybe this was good. If he reported
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they had been close. At one point h
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Yellelle from the hints she gave hi
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from entanglement in their own vero
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We've discovered physical proof of
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"Somebody has to, it's not the hard
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personification.”“We’re worri
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equipment. He double checked all th
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lightspeed would not be exceeded wa
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1:14pm. Mon. Apr. 23, 2384All he co
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from the countryside will re-people
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great to see you back safe...” he
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do it, mainly because he wanted to
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Book III.The Captain's War9:51am Mo
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his public space. As captain of the
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now that I know she was there, I ca
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Ava slapped her forehead, went back
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Because his mother had been a senat
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need. He set his hormones to only t
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tangler beam, something within a fe
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"Sure, Ava, this is just a few of u
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Finally Heymon burst into the meeti
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way that said the subject was close
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looked at his virtual paperwork aga
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pious crewman and can carry out his
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anywhere in the galaxy used this co
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neglect anything."Glayet and Heymon
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"Why?" Heymon asked again."To scare
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"They were not listed," Heymon resp
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at full thrust.""Pink Dawn can't ho
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interface has been reconfigured. Av
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about Ava. Other humans were merely
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processors housed in a tin shed. Th
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to the mission, but she’s somethi
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pets, and they ran many levels of s
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screen, “is the Curitiba and that
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8:07am Mon. Mar. 5, 2384Kelvin had
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years.”So far peace was holding a
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never noticed a copy of Ava there.
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may not feel the need to be as dili
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“Yes sir,” Elmore said with a g
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There was an inclusion in a plain-p
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along the way and wiped that out.We
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mother’s handwriting.He pinged Av
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universe. His universe is the unive
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the crew, no one would ever questio
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every self-aware being in this univ
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her today. She was one of the ones
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not just into our perception?”“
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substrate. He understood the eighty
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8:47pm Wed. Mar. 28, 2384Kelvin sat
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“My benefits would have covered h
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“I think Yellelle has more to do
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now but she is still here. I didn
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“Set the hearing on her separatio
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had become the center of Gordon’s
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hear about your divorce.”“The s
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8:01am Fri. Apr. 19, 2384He had lef
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she’s your direct report, the nex
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also been wiping his ass longer in
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already knew and was only pretendin
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and keying in commands. He kept his
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He knew this imaging did not illumi
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perfect. It would be as it was when
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O'Connor outranked him and he knew
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she was the one who had Ava encapsu
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"So, to answer your question,” sh
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"How did they know?""The dimensions
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long before they went any further i
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from spewing, and she was into orga
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"I'm still divorcing him," Ava said
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ears on the ground with access to a
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Glayet dropped off the line, but as
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Book IV.Survival of the Species9:21
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eally had to look into how Alan got
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anything for a time. Though Alan's
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ecause it was only a redecoration o
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certainly never detect the entangle
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the captain go flying off because o
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She knew about Heymon’s mortal li
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open shirts. Alan’s universe had
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perspiring. All of the soldiers eye
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and door frames. She was lead into
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if that was what he was, said somet
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computer banks after she was killed
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calamari chowder with plenty of pot
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used were much more stable and the
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Their hosts were maybe in their fif
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urst into riotous laughter. He was
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social parts and she decided she wa
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probably obscene, while the rest of
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med panel. She could not understand
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shambles. The captain had probably
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with Alan's world were also apparen
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The soldiers made comments that mad
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that was entangled with one of the
Page 412 and 413: shorter and even darker than the pe
Page 414 and 415: ecreation of the ancient Minoan civ
Page 416 and 417: washed themselves, and stood in the
Page 418 and 419: people since her encapsulation that
Page 420 and 421: up much from the class that seemed
Page 422 and 423: “You’re not proposing time trav
Page 424 and 425: "Pppp, you know you don't believe t
Page 426 and 427: “You put safeguards on that subst
Page 428 and 429: She thought of asking if they were
Page 430 and 431: sufficient privilege to get me out
Page 432 and 433: window behind them. Koruki herself
Page 434 and 435: “So this was made here? I ask bec
Page 436 and 437: knowledge of our civilization in yo
Page 438 and 439: fact that Ietana had been relocated
Page 440 and 441: that and the change of clothes was
Page 442 and 443: they wanted. It was a lot of oil an
Page 444 and 445: loincloths.“The judges, they’ll
Page 446 and 447: sweets.The woodwork was bold but no
Page 448 and 449: e sweating in there. Together they
Page 450 and 451: music of Kassidor Yakhan. The fact
Page 452 and 453: chest and shoulders.The bull steppe
Page 454 and 455: on, and a few would do a somersault
Page 456 and 457: One was supposed to have enough cur
Page 458 and 459: of fertility.Before he was done usi
Page 460 and 461: pleasantly warm.“I’ve had encou
Page 464 and 465: windowsill. “Woah, that’s a lon
Page 466 and 467: “Walk into town?”“Yes.”“I
Page 468 and 469: the kitchen and put shutters for th
Page 470 and 471: it, much more crudely done than it
Page 472 and 473: “We are back in the echo of 1648b
Page 474 and 475: substantial homes along shady plaza
Page 476 and 477: “Officially Atlantis is just the
Page 478 and 479: America, it had failed ninety nine
Page 480 and 481: we’re not far from the Holy Land,
Page 482 and 483: history the modern day Atlantis loo
Page 484 and 485: the Las Vegas of Europe.The car was
Page 486 and 487: the waterfront out of the reach of
Page 488 and 489: "She always enjoyed her work as a t
Page 490 and 491: important men, and it was all conne
Page 492 and 493: The three of them sat along one sid
Page 494 and 495: mortals of the time. Just like Alan
Page 496 and 497: started on the story of making Ava
Page 498 and 499: waited for the meeting to start, as
Page 500 and 501: “So that would indicate that her
Page 502 and 503: our operative who has visited the e
Page 504 and 505: data here to make a very accurate d
Page 506 and 507: “...would feel more comfortable,
Page 508 and 509: all be living in enforced three-d r
Page 510 and 511: she could fill some of that void bu
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completely relaxed.”“I don’t
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filter felt sort of like a grating
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across that atom at the speed of li
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“Because he can,” she said. “
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Ava wondered why there was still a
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endering engines it calls. Somewher
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“What’s that?” Ava asked.“T
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here eighty four days.”That meant
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“I can’t tell you more because
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into three sections, lifted it away
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calms me down.”The woman looked a
Page 534 and 535:
It took an amazingly long time with
Page 536 and 537:
The men gawked openly, except for o
Page 538 and 539:
“We know nothing of Yellelle.”
Page 540 and 541:
the captain got the letter from his
Page 542 and 543:
should give up her courses. He took
Page 544 and 545:
1:27pm. Mon. Apr. 23, 2384Her first
Page 546 and 547:
Sol’s space. “We might actually
Page 548 and 549:
phone on him. She found that the in
Page 550 and 551:
pulling them off and letting his pa
Page 552 and 553:
completely in his hands and we have
Page 554 and 555:
giving a consulting contractor, suc
Page 556 and 557:
making of the entangled copy. “Th
Page 558 and 559:
there.”6:57am. Thus. May 7, 2384S
Page 560 and 561:
Planck frequency,” Darryl said,
Page 562 and 563:
started.“Quadrillion,” she corr
Page 564 and 565:
now believe I was in the condensate
Page 566 and 567:
data says,” He looked to Arthur q
Page 568 and 569:
sincere in his faith as any saint.
Page 570 and 571:
“It may have to deal with silicon
Page 572 and 573:
could get to the all-afterlife rend
Page 574 and 575:
ack in ‘84. If Ava knew, she neve
Page 576 and 577:
Alan was friends with Roy Hallard,
Page 578 and 579:
“You’re a simulation,” Alan t
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