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It is so helpful that Wint is so loud. Otherwise I wouldn't know where that soldier was.
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Somewhat confounded by the fog, Spec closes his eyes and attempts to embrace his owlish ancestors by using his theoretically excellent hearing to locate the sounds of combat.
He opens his eyes and confidently wings his way over to the tree closest to what he heard.
Huh? Nobody's here? .... I guess sometimes talent skips a generation...
Out of sheer frustration, he snaps off a shot at the nearest noise
non-lethal
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Spec's round face pops into view for a moment "I do find it interesting however, that a philosopher such as yourself trusts only in the proven. Myself I prefer the old adage "Trust but Verify", for all that some require more verification than others.."
A hooded gaze is briefly directed towards Pon.
"But you are absolutely right, we should act as a team until proof to the contrary exists, otherwise we squander advantages without reason."
As a cold blast rips through the fog from the west, just missing him
"There are more of them to the west!! One of them nearly hit me! I think its up in the trees from the angle of the shot"
Edit :
With the cadet in front of him (almost definitely) going down, Prosper spins around to catch the direction Wint's voice is coming from. "In a tree? Uh, I'll try to find them!"
He heads towards Wint, encountering the green azlanti cadet before he finds the deadly tree-sniper. He delivers a low swing of his knife in hopes of taking this one out before he can serve as a spotter for the sniper.
Minos gores the cadet in front of them! Then Rush skewers it with a bone blade! Finally, Dalinar leaps into the water towards all the splashing noises, and slays Pink with a ferocious swipe of his sword!
Wint, Spec and Pon all get turned around by the fog and miss Green, but Prosper comes out of the water and strikes at it.
★ --- ★ --- ★ --- ★
Team Azlant has only one member left!
Once again, underestimating the skittermander's height, Green misses!
★ --- ★ --- ★ --- ★
Round 2 / 3
Active conditions: Fog 20% miss chance within five feet; 50% miss chance further away
Wint
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Azlanti Cadets:
Red [dead]
Yellow [dead]
Pink [dead]
Green [-9]
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Minos
Dalinar (-2)
Spec
Prosper
Pon
Rush
================================
Click. Whirr.
Wint was not about to let the Azlanti escape!
for
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Prosper tries to follow up his earlier (surprisingly successful) slash...
...but is left slicing through wisps of mist. "Oh no Wint! I think they can turn into mist! Watch out, he might be sneaking up behind you right now!"
Still under cover of the mist, Jellik leads you through the last of the woods to Madelon’s Landing. It’s clear this is a route that the botanist has traveled many times as he verifies where you are from rock formations and the notches in trees. His limp slows him down more than the ever-present fog does.
“There’s a back entrance to Aibretta’s junk shop that abuts the woods. In this fog, even the Azlanti will be hard pressed to see us.” As you come upon the back side of the building, it looks like one solid prefab wall, but then Jellik does something with one of the Abadar Corps logos and reveals a concealed panel. He slips through the entrance, and gestures for you to follow. “Hurry inside.”
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Rush takes a hunting rifle along with some ammunition. "Encouragement: Excellent idea. We can save the darts for when we really need them." After that, Rush sniffs the body for any potential nourishment, but realizing that it is just rations he ignores it, discarding the body on the island in the center.
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"Observation: All appears quiet for now. Best we do as they say and hurry inside." LINGSTON advises to Rush, who promptly does.
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After the battle Spec hustles over to Wint and begins apologizing profusely, including but not limited to "Oh gosh Wint, I'm so sorry! Are you ok? I didn't mean to shoot at you, but I was all disoriented and I'm really really bad at this fighting stuff,... {continues in this vein for a bit}... And I really hope you're ok." He looks miserably at the other small creature.
He looks at the others as well "Do we want to just leave the cadets on the bottom of the river? I mean, that armor should hold them down and out of sight right?"
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Spec is tired of playing hide-and-seek in the woods with fanatic children, and so is very ready to go inside.
This mechanic's workshop consists of three interconnected, prefabricated modules, each the size of a shipping container. The central module is open on one side and appears to be a repair bay, although the tool chests, spools of wire, and broken equipment stacked haphazardly around the area imply that the repairs are slow going at best. Storage crates, broken furniture, and scrapped engines litter the yard around the junk shop. A short metal fence surrounds the yard, separating the chaos within from the orderly paths and shrubs of the surrounding colonists' modules.
As you come inside, you hear a woman say, “Jellik, you gotta stop doing this! My house ain’t a thoroughfare that you can break through any time you like! Get your lazy, no-good, cheating ass outta my--” She breaks off as you come in, her jaw wide open. Aibretta’s a big sturdy gal, covered in grease and mechanic coveralls. She eyes the entire group, eyes resting for a second Dalinar then focusing on Pon. “Hells. What trouble have you brought me NOW?” she asks, glaring at Jellik while holding what is clearly a homemade gun pointed right at Pon with a pile of foam in front of the barrel to act as a crude silencer. “I saw you shoot Garik with my own eyes, but I know that Azlanti don’t slum with half-orcs, so I’m giving you this one chance to explain yourself. Make it good.”
Pon gathers the rest of the ammunition as before. He then dumps the other bodies on the island as well.
After two other party members join in, Pon gives a head nod to Dalinar and continues walking.
Pon raises his hands toward his neck in surrender. In a calm and patient voice he says, "Pardon the appearance Ms. Abretta. His 'lazy, no-good, cheating ass' was in trouble and we arrived here to deliver some supplies. We are friends of Cedona's."
"Huh. Azlanti do not stoop to crude diction..." She raises an eyebrow but doesn't lower the gun. "That true, Jellik?"
"It is, Aibretta, and together we killed eight Azlanti on the way here!" Jellik nods, his voice more eager than you've heard it be.
Aibretta eyes you all again warily, then lowers the gun. "Alright. Guests, then." She chews her lip a moment, and then nervously covers her mouth as some pointy teeth show. Standing straighter, she nods to all of you. "Jellik, clear off some furniture for them while they tell us why they're here. And make us a bunch of sandwiches. I have a feelin' this is going to be one of those long stories..."
"Gratitude: Some nourishment would be highly appreciated, as my sensors indicate that Rush's nutrition levels require more protein to maintain an efficient combat prowess. I also assume our comrades will require correct nutrition as well; understandably Rush requires sea-based life forms and Wint will consume anything set before him, from my understanding of Skittermander biology."
Aibretta's eyes light up and a genuine, delighted smile crosses her face. "You're an AI, aren't you? Mind if I take a look? You're far more sophisticated than anything else we got out here." She kneels down on one knee to examine Lingston, fascinated for a moment, before she suddenly remembers her hosting duties.
"Jellik, can you pull out the smoked fish? I got tomatoes in the cooler too that I traded with old Brand." Then she looks to all of you. "So... Friends of Cedona's, huh? How'd you all meet her, and then wind up hauling supplies here?"
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"Introduction: I myself am the LINGSTON health care unit; my protocals require me to monitor the health and stability of the individual I am linked with. My companion, Rush, is the subject in question. I can also modify his adrenal levels to amplify his abilities and skills. His combat prowess is rather adept."
LINGSTON then also explains how Rush was a test subject for viral infections by the Corpse Fleet and explains that Cedona is an ally who may be able to find means to help Rush recover some of his mental prowess, and the meeting with Charlie..
"... Which leads us to here with our comrades. We were onboard the Teakettle when we were assaulted by drone fighters. Our team managed to turn them into scrap metal without any issues. When we discovered the hostile forces on this planet, we made our way to this settlement to provide aid and possibly gleam some valuable information."
Prosper strolls around the junk shop while the rest of the team are getting introduced. Uneasy after having been introduced violently to the Azlanti here, and very much thinking about Jellik's story, he constantly finds himself glancing out at the mist-filled windows.
Trying to settle himself, he heads back to Aibretta. He extends a hand "Hi there! Prosper's the name, nice to meet ya. Uh, you really don't have to get us any food or anything. We heard about how bad the Azlanti have been treating people. I'd guess your food options are getting worse?"
He looks a bit embarrassed, but he honestly doesn't want to place a burden on this woman who's already been suffering. When LINGSTON announces their purpose, he adds "What we were hoping to do was meet up with Cedona. I uh, was hoping to apologize to her for something. In person. And see her again?" He blushes.
"But we also had a bunch of supplies for you folks here! And now that we've seen all this craziness with Azlanti... well, we're pretty OK in a fight. Maybe we can help send them, uh, packing."
Pon lowers his hands when the gun is lowered and remains silent while the others explain the situation.
"Hello there. My name is Wint. Nice to meet you. Perhaps I should help with the sandwiches?"
Without waiting for a reply Wint heads into the kitchen and pretty much shoos Jellik out of the kitchen so that he can see what is there.
In quite short order, he manages to make a selection of finger food, sandwiches, snacks and some remarkably good drinks. Nothing alcoholic, of course, as even he realizes this isn't the time for that
(Take 10 on Profession Housekeeper for a 19)
As Wint comes in with his selection, Aibretta raises another eyebrow. "My.... You're handy, aren't you? This is... really, really nice." She eats with appreciation and appetite, enjoying every bite before she turns to Prosper. "We're doing okay on some foods. The zucchini, turnips and the bitter greens are things the Azlanti turned their noses up at, so we still got plenty of that. Same with the preserved fish. Every last pig is gone, though. And we had to turn over all the fruit preserves and the honey from the hives Yako had. We can't get at any of our protein bars, stored grains, or cooking oils, except with a ration permit -- and that's often denied. The 'flour' from this bread comes from wild tubers that Jellik found. They make an passable flour if you don't mind flat bread. What we have for food is... monotonous. A bigger problem is they've been rationing water. Fortunately, some of us still have rain barrels of some sort, and they haven't messed with those yet because they're messy."
"About Cedona..." She takes a deep breath and looks to Prosper with concern. "You should know the Azlanti arrested her, Madelon and a couple of others who had been near that ship. We haven't seen her since she went into that garrison of theirs." Then she cocks her head. "It's none of my business, but... What did you do that you came all this way to apologize for? You're so young."
She waits for Prosper's answer, and then turns to Dalinar, meeting the solarian's gaze "How serious are you about helping us? And... I gotta ask. Have we met? You look familiar, but I can't place you."
Pon cannot help but stifle a chuckle at her last question to Dalinar.
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Spec startles .. HARD .. when the Azlanti trooper appears from behind him, nearly taking flight before recalling that it is likely not an enemy strolling up to speak with him.
"OH MY!! .... Ahem, Greetings Fr.., Al.., Pon? Mmm, yes that should not be a problem. 'Halt' is 'पड़ाव', and "Yes Sir' is 'जी श्रीमान', and..... {the professor lectures on for several minutes in this fashion}. There, that should be sufficient for the current moment."
He fiddles with his comm unit for a bit "Excuse me for a minute while I try and get this infernal contraption to do what I want it to do.....aha! I've made a basic phrasebook with some common entries that you and the others may find useful for reference. I'll send it to your comms in a bit.
Is that what you needed?"
Spec looks at Aibretta for a moment and wonders if she has actually escaped the attentions of the xenophobic troopers thus far, or if she is just too useful (temporarily) as a mechanic.
Oh no, what if these rebels don't like seeing anyone remotely affiliated with the Empire? (judging by Pon's reception, that is a safe bet!)
He decides to make himself dark and scarce. He emerges only to clear the dishes from the table.
Oh, it is only proper for guests to clean up... ... don't mind me
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LINGSTON speaks up at this time.
"Interruption: I am afraid that regardless of the situation here, we must continue with attempting to rescue Cedona. Without her, Rush's condition will never improve and he will be forced to live the rest of his days with a severely damaged mental state."
"Cooperative: The fact that helping her helps all of you at the same time means that Rush and myself are obligated to be of assistance."
"Determination: I will not abandon my friends at this time, even if an empire stands in the way."
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“Huh. Maybe you’re right. We might have run into each other at Absalom Station sometime.” She studies Dalinar a bit dubiously, and then shrugs. “The Azlanti don't know it, but a few of us have been coordinating a resistance to their occupation. I've been in charge of that. We don't have all the pieces we need yet, but with you on our side, perhaps we do. If Jellik’s right that together you took out eight of them... That’s by my estimation at least a quarter of their number -- but my guess is that you had caught ‘em with their shorts down this time.”
“We won’t always have that advantage, so let’s catch ‘em before they know they’re getting hunted, eh?” She grins. “The first step is to weaken the Azlanti. A few targeted strikes around town can reduce their numbers, weaken their defenses, or both. In between, you're welcome to hide out here. After that, a direct attack on the garrison can flush the Azlanti out and free our prisoners. We're not equipped for that, but it looks like you might be. The rest of us will round up any survivors, disarm them, and take back our settlement.”
"Now... I have some ideas about how we could start to winnow down their forces, if you’d like to hear them." She clears out a table, and lays down an old map of the settlement that’s she’s labeled and points at different areas as she talks.
“After those are done... Let’s look to assaulting the Garrison itself. What do you think?” She yawns. "It's really late. Why don't you discuss how you want to do these while Jellik and I set up beds for you? Then you can get started in the morning, or whenever."
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Minos gathers any of the remaining rifles and loads himself down though knowing it is a short trip to the settlement at first. Upon entering he stoops a bit to get in, but otherwise seems to move easily around the scattered junk. As if it all seems to be in the right place and he has always known it was there.
However he notices something in the pile and then pats his own coat. Not finding what he needs he takes out the six unclaimed rifles, places them to the side, and then proceeds to root though his satchel. Pulling out something that looks like a twisted piece of slag, he fiddles a bit and attaches it to one of the half assembled pieces of equipment. He then flips the switch and what appears to device glows softly. He then starts to contemplate the rest of the pile when LINGSTONS's booming voice brings his attention back to his companions.
"I am sorry, I missed introductions. But I am Minos." Summing up what he can see. "Well Freen is still alive, so I assume we have caught you up. But I think we can help friend of Cedona."
Listening to the options. "Taking out the patrol is most likely a good start. Though maybe start small with the storehouse. It is also on the way to the Cemetery. Then the Moisture collector. That should keep them distracted along that flank of the settlement. Leave the Hobgars till we are ready to strike the center"
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"I have to get me one of these!!!"
As the little droid works along side him, Wint is both impressed and pleased
"Hello my friend. My name is Wint. It is a VERY great pleasure to meet you. You are very, very good at what you're doing and MOST helpful. Thank you for all of your help, it is much appreciated. If you wanted to I'd love it if you'd join us when we leave this place. Only if you want to, of course."
"Uh, did I miss one? We fought 3 Azlant out of town and one patrol of 4. Isn't that only 7? Do I have my math wrong? I could have sworn that 3 + 4 was 7. Yes, my calculator shows that 3+4 is seven! Maybe I should correct them? No, that would be rude."
"Of course we must rescue Cedona. And, yes, the colony too. These Azlant are like the Vesk. Bad men."
"I think that we should release the Hogbars first. That will cause a LOT of mayhem and, under cover of all of that noise, we can THEN take out the others. With any luck, they'll even blame the Hogbars for some of the deaths."
"But I'm sure some of you know a lot more about this sort of thing than I do"
After Aibretta exits with Jellik, Pon looks over to Prosper with a minority confused expression, "So, you can change form or something, right? Why do you not disguise yourself as Azlanti?"
"I agree with Minos. The storehouse also might hold some valuable resources for the rest of this plan. I wouldn't mind a silencer or a flash suppressor. Also a jammer wouldn't hurt."
"It's none of my business, but... What did you do that you came all this way to apologize for? You're so young."
Prosper looks down at his feet, uncomfortable. "I think... I think I scared her the last time we met in person. It's a little embarrassing to share exactly how it happened."
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Prosper perks up when Aibretta mentions how the party could help to liberate the town. He listens in as she explains the missions, but ends up eyeing the others deferentially by the end as they lay down really professional sounding plans.
"I like Minos' plan too. Though I'm in for whatever gives us an opening to get Cedona out of that garrison. I don't know about you guys, but I'm worried that if they start getting attacked around town, they might lash out by hurting their captives."
When Pon asks about transforming into an Azlanti human, Prosper looks at him with open confusion before snapping his fingers. "Ohhhhh, like a spy disguise! Well, I could! But I'm not going to do that now and make Jellik all confused again. Right Jellik?"
Prosper looks around and realizes that Jellik went downstairs through a trap door in the floor to help Aibretta set up beds for all of you. When he walks over to check, he can hear the muffled sounds of two people trying to have a fight at low volume and not always succeeding.
"Dammit, when are you going to forgive me?"
"How about never? You promised to love and to cherish, and you let me down, making eyes at Rosie--"
"She's dead and gone--"
"Does that make it right? I broke up with my best friend over this, and now she's dead and I can't ever, ever --"
Aibretta's voice breaks off, and then a few minutes later continues. "We may be working together now, but... Don't even think this is over, Jellik."Throughout this, there are the sounds of furniture being moved and slammed into place, as if both people working on it are too angry to do it gracefully.
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"Nice! I think they're going to make up in no time!" He pokes a thumb towards the stairs down.
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Spec splutters " My boy, I would never..." he glances down and realizes that there were indeed Azlanti characters in the phrasebook. "Hrmmph.." Tapping away rapidly, the professor replaces the translations with transliterations into Common, and continues rather lamely "..ur...aallow it to go out like that..."
He deflates slightly, then mutters "Thanks Pon"
Spec comes forward and hops up to look at the map. "Minos, I do believe you have struck upon quite an efficient solution! We can loop clockwise around the exterior and either remain undetected, or continually draw resources away from the garrison. Then we can loose the Hobgars to distract the remaining defenders from our own central push! Right?"
He looks around at the others rather nervously "Umm, and that way if things ever go bad we can rereat into the trees?
I-I-I-I seem to be remembering that girrilla... gorilla... ah! Guerilla Warfare is all about being strong where the enemy is weak, and not being where they are strong at all.... does that sound right?"
"Aahh ... Do you think they're alright down there? Is it normal for humans to have non-domestic-yet-co-located disputes at times like this?"
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Minos begins to count the rifles then is distracted by the conversation below. He then makes a interesting look at Pon and Dalinar. Resuming his previous train of thought. "We have 8 rifles. So we have taken down 8 of their complement. I recall that there were 30 total in the garrison. So that leaves 22. So far is looks like the typical patrol is 4, so neutralizing the cemetery and moisture collector should put us about half way there."
Not seeing their host back up yet. "Although we can have the locals armed, best keep them in reserve and not in danger."
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"I think this is a domestic argument that hasn't ended yet Professor."
Dalinar tries to force everyone back into planning, the argument downstairs was none of their business. "I'm pretty certain we only fought seven of them. How did we end up with eight rifles? It doesn't really matter, the numbers are close enough. Have we decided to hit the store house and then the patrol for sure?"
Wint very carefully does NOT listen in on the conversation downstairs. As far as he is concerned, what happens in the basement stays in the basement. People are entitled to their privacy.
"That sounds like a wonderful plan to me. We should do it now before the others are missed and the Azlant go on high alert"
Listening to the options. "Taking out the patrol is most likely a good start. Though maybe start small with the storehouse. It is also on the way to the Cemetery. Then the Moisture collector. That should keep them distracted along that flank of the settlement. Leave the Hobgars till we are ready to strike the center"
"Strategical: I can agree with the assessment that investigating the Storehouse would be a wise decision. There is the possibility of better armaments involved with that."
"[B]The 8th one was the one Jellik took out before we found him [b]"
Pon nods at Wint, "I agree with Wint. If we wait too long, our element of surprise will be lessened. It is important to note that our movement doesn't have to involve tromping around and kicking in doors. With this fog, stealthy, strategic movements can allow us to hit them where they are weak and avoid their strengths. If the storehouse has a battalion of troops, maybe we'll leave it alone for now. Also, scouting things out is not a terrible plan to help us strategize better." He then looks over to Prosper, "Plus, if we can get him to disguise as an Azlanti as well, the two of us, and maybe even Dalinar could take the place of the roaming patrol, so as to keep things fairly normalized. And, maybe even have an opportunity to spy on the Azlanti while we're at it."
Once your discussions are over, Aibretta pops up the ladder of the trap door. "Time to find your bunks, boys.” The ladder leads down to a natural cave that has been retrofitted with lights, bunks and blankets and a heating unit and some prefab padding on the floor. "We found this cave after I set up the junk shop, and I built it up as a storm shelter. Then the Azlanti came, and I guess it's my safe house." Jellik’s already settled on one of the eight bunks down here, and looks none too happy about it. He’s got his arms crossed as she slumps on his bunk, frowning. Meanwhile, Aibretta continues. ”It’s not the fanciest, but it’s warm and dry, and there’s plenty of space.”
Before she leaves, she touches Pon on the shoulder. "So... The one cadet whose face you wear. The one that shot Garik. Is he dead?" When Pon nods, she relaxes. “One less face to haunt my dreams, then. G’night.”
★ --- ★ --- ★ --- ★
The next morning, after Wint makes an amazing breakfast with the help of his new friend in the kitchen, you set off for the storehouse. Before you leave, Aibretta says to Dalinar, “You be careful, okay? Ruby, Salchik, Garik -- the ones that the Azlantis shot -- they were all halfsies like--” she breaks off for a moment. “Er, like you. Okay, so Ruby was a half-elf, but it wasn’t just that they protested, you know. It’s that they were mixed. So... don’t get shot. Please.” Then she turns abruptly back to her welding.
There’s a bit of mist this morning, but it’s not as thick as it was yesterday. The settlement's storage building consists of four prefabricated corrugated metal modules welded together to make a single enormous warehouse. Two doors lead into the storehouse: a closed door marked “Office” and a wider door that hangs open. Inside the open space are several storage racks and an interior module emblazoned with the massive symbol of a golden key.
Inside the door that is hanging open, you can see a single Aeon cadet standing guard. He’s examining his rifle, and seems to be slouching against the wall.
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Dalinar tries not to look at Aibretta in a knowing way. If she chose to hide her ancestry who was he to judge? One of the few good things about his former home was that a citizen's race made no difference to anyone and he sometimes forgets that isn't the case everywhere else. "I will do my best. Thank you again for allowing us to impose on you here. We will return soon with good news." I hope.
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Dalinar looks at Pon and Prosper, "You two could walk over there and see if that guard will let you by." He then adds to everyone else, "I do not know if that will work though, maybe they aren't expecting anyone. We could also let someone try to sneak in another way to check for hostiles inside. Or we could just go with a frontal assault. Any thoughts or other ideas?"
"I can try and sneak in if you want. Or one of you fake Azlant can go in disguise. Either is ok with me"
"We can do both. Wint, can you see if there is a back entrance? If there is, you all can come in that way. Professor, can you be in my ear telling me how to say Azlanti responses?"
Once everyone is ready, Pon will walk in with rifle in his hand. He doesn't say anything, he just cocks his head at the guard slightly.