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You meet Keimia's burning spear with your machete. The fight is brief and bloody—you parry a vicious lunge, then shove her back against one of the turning stone cylinders. She screams in pain and drops her burning spear, and you run her through.

"But I thought—" Keimia says.

You kick her into the cylinders, and she vanishes in a flash of blood and steam.

"This is it," Control says. She slides clay tablets into her satchels while other controllers unspool ropes.

"They're rallying for another attack!" Vecla cries as the ophidians regroup. But they don't have time; controllers hurl lines to the walls below, slide down, and lower more lines to the ground.

You grab your line and jump as feathered javelins fly through the air around you. In seconds you're on the ground, running for cover. Ophidians emerge from the gate to pursue you. The fastest snake person grabs your jacket from behind. You turn and punch him in the face and the ophidian goes down, tangling up the others and giving you time to flee. Soon everyone reaches the safety of the jagged rocks.

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