.^**@£@@##                                          ##@@£@**^.
..^**@£@@#                                          #@@£@**^..
...^**@£@@                                          @@£@**^...
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...^**@£@@                                          @@£@**^...
..^**@£@@# in  the  endless   winter  day,  on  the #@@£@**^..
.^**@£@@## crystal white plains... we  trudge along ##@@£@**^.
..^**@£@@#  the train tracks... themselves slowly   #@@£@**^..
...^**@£@@ snowed over,  in the  still hours  since @@£@**^...
....^**@£@          the last supply train.          @£@**^....
...^**@£@@                                          @@£@**^...
..^**@£@@#     bell-like sounds of the blinding     #@@£@**^..
.^**@£@@## ground. rifles  attached  to  our wrist, ##@@£@**^.
..^**@£@@# sharing  in  our bloodstream. my  husky, #@@£@**^..
...^**@£@@      my warm-coffee-in-cold-snow...      @@£@**^...
....^**@£@                                          @£@**^....
...^**@£@@ the  first  five  shots  you  can  spend @@£@**^...
..^**@£@@# indiscriminately, they hurt but  deal no #@@£@**^..
.^**@£@@## long  time  damage  to  the shooter. the ##@@£@**^.
..^**@£@@# next five  you  must  spend wisely, they #@@£@**^..
...^**@£@@ will take days  to  heal. the final five @@£@**^...
....^**@£@ you   must    not    spend    at    all. @£@**^....
...^**@£@@                                          @@£@**^...
..^**@£@@# weeks earlier,  in the weak autumn dawn, #@@£@**^..
.^**@£@@## in  the  blue-gray  fog... something  is ##@@£@**^.
..^**@£@@# burning  with   a  deep  crimson  flame, #@@£@**^..
...^**@£@@       untameable by water or wind.       @@£@**^...
....^**@£@                                          @£@**^....
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