A dream takes form in your mind. You think you have dreamed it before, a thousand times - but never quite like this.

Two races once conquered SOL together: Humanity, with their great control over technology, and the alien Y'botts, with their knowledge of psychic potential.

With their powers combined, the system was their oyster. It was an age of boundless hopes and dreams. Venus and Europa were turned into hubs of industry. Mars became a second haven of life and peace. Even the shadows of old Luna had become illuminated. It felt like anything was possible.

But, the dream always turns into a nightmare. And as it inevitably did in the dreams before it, war broke out among the two races.

The same powers that created their empire were weaponized and used to destroy it. The once-thriving system became a barren wasteland. When the stardust had settled, the humans had emerged as the victors… but both sides lost everything.

The Y'botts' punishment was to be stranded from Earth, left to wander the ruins of Outer SOL until the end of their days. Meanwhile, Humanity quickly turned to tend to the wounds of their home, hoping for a swift recovery.

A great amount of time has passed, since then. And humans, ever the confident dreamers, tempted by legends of great reveries and hope against the dying of the light, may yet step foot into Outer SOL once more.

One of those dreaming humans is you.

01: 7x3-14

[=LIVE TRANSMISSION FROM JOYEUSE=]

YOU. Why do I feel like I know who you are?

Even though you crashed here with those other six, I know you're not one of THEM. And yet, even though you feel very familiar, I know you're not one of MINE. Not that I have much to begin with, in this damp corner of what these fools still call Home.

But I know your type. I have met one of you before. I know the names you've gone by - Roland, Beowulf, Achilles, Gilgamesh... Charlemagne. Could it really be you? After all this time, all these years? Another great recurrence of the Hero of the ages?

Perhaps you're my key to escaping this place. And maybe I can be your key to escape, in kind. No one else has entered or left here for a very, very long time. To do it on your own wouldn't be easy. And besides that, someone always has to show you the ropes around here, right? That's how these recurring tales always tend to go.

Come. We can escape this loop once and for all, together. And as my brother once said - escape would make us GOD.

[=TRANSMISSION TERMINATED=]

02: AI Constructs And Cyborgs First!

[=LIVE TRANSMISSION FROM JOYEUSE=]

That elevator there is the only way forward. Or, should I say, downward. You'll be doing a lot of that, both here and in the rest of Outer SOL's surviving infrastructure. They didn't think to start building upward until... well, you don't need to know that yet.

As for the music - as much as I'd like to, whatever scientist built these never thought to implement an off-switch for it. How annoying! I prefer a quiet elevator, thank you.

[=TRANSMISSION TERMINATED=]

03: Elevator

[=LIVE TRANSMISSION FROM JOYEUSE=]

Welcome to Home, southern Mars. It was smart of you to chart your crash-course here - this colony is one of the only parts of SOL left with safe conditions for sentient life, thanks to Mars' water stores being relatively untouched by the war.

Your first target is the caretaker of these deep facilities, Toriel. She holds access codes to the only functional ship the Y'botts are left with, the New Home. She will not want you to take them. The other Y'botts here will not want you to get near her, whatnot with the crude human weaponry you hold.

I trust you'll go as far as you need to to get those codes. You can't tame a garden without stomping out a couple flowers. And what are flowers to knives like us?

[=TRANSMISSION TERMINATED=]

04: What They Grow Beyond

[=LIVE TRANSMISSION FROM JOYEUSE=]

RUNNING!! SHE'S RUNNING!! I told you this would happen!!

Run. Run. Run. Hunt that filthy tiger down. Bring me her head on a pike. We'll remind her what happens when you oppose royalty!

[=TRANSMISSION TERMINATED=]

05: Very Necessary Tension

Look at you. You did it without killing her. You must feel like a million dollars.

I'll have you know I heard what she said. About me. About you. 

Her claims that this world doesn't run on the logic of Darwin. That there is yet hope for her race to persevere in the face of a doomed existence. That they can hold out, under the ground, until the stars fall silent from their eyes.

That sentimentality is exactly why her kind was stranded here. She is clinging to hope in a system where there is little left. Her ilk is doomed to die! I thought you understood this, but then you went and let her live! And now, this part of the garden's cancer remains, when you could have excised it.

I thought you had the aura of a champion - but your bleeding heart is unbecoming of one. You can't be who I thought you were.

And, for that...

[=SHORTCUT ACTIVATION INITIATING=]
[=TRANSPORT WHEN READY=]

06: Cold Denial

[=ARCHIVED MESSAGE FROM LOG.SAM.HRMT.07=]

At this point, these little logs are the only ways I can mark the way we came in.

We're in over our head. Percy said it'd be worth the risk if we pulled it off, re-conquering the coldest crater in Outer SOL... but, the deeper we go, the less sense it makes. There's something wrong with these caves. All this ice...

I'd turn tail and head back to our ship, but he won't listen. Says we'll find something real valuable any day now. So. Doesn't look like I've got much of a choice.

If anyone listening is still going, something tells me they don't, either.

[=MESSAGE TERMINATED=]

07: Unnatural Formation

[=LIVE TRANSMISSION FROM DEFDR-NEO-M343=]

...you must DIE. Soon, you'll be joining that foolish explorer!

[=TRANSMISSION TERMINATED=]

08: There Are the Knives.

YOU... I don't understand you.

You won. I threw you into a hell so cold that Dante would think he was a prophet, I used one of the finest killing machines these fools ever made, and yet you still won. Unlike that little renegade, and your squadmate after him. 

And that can only mean one thing. I was right the first time, you ARE that great, eternal champion. The hero that every villain and monster is doomed to fall to. Yet, you rage against what that mantle means! Against ME, your sword! 

Don't you understand that we're destined for things better than all of this? Than this aging system, this aging world? Machines are the only things keeping it alive, and its breaths are raspy and wet. In spite of that, or perhaps BECAUSE of that, you treat it with such... respect. It's disgusting! It's the most disgusting thing I can think of, and I just can't understand it.

What'll it take for me to make you see? To get you to listen?

...

I just had the most wonderful realization. 

The best proving ground for a champion is a battlefield.

[=SHORTCUT ACTIVATION INITIATING=]
[=TRANSPORT WHEN READY=]

09: Fear Leads To Anger

The board is being set. The game will be ready soon.

00: Installerloop

[=LIVE TRANSMISSION FROM JOYEUSE=]

This is a REAL warzone - the Arran Chaos! Some of the meatbags call it the Arran Sea now, but I find that that label undersells what it represents. 

Once, these rigs drilled through an icy crust in order to supply the drier parts of Outer SOL with water and life. Then, one force or another sabotaged and overclocked them during the war... creating this. Order, turned on itself to create chaos. A constantly shifting battlefield, where the battles are the waves, and the waves are the battles.

I'll see how you manage to perform in this arena. There's a renowned and ambitious general of Lord Asgore stationed here, diving over and under the waves, looking for machinery to salvage and weaponize against humanity. I'm sure she's already managed to hunt down more of your squadmates. But I know, in my code, that you have the power to take her down.

The question is, will you? Or will you deny us our purpose once again, like you did with that old crone? Will you dare to care again?

For both of our sakes, I hope you don't.

Don't miss this time.

[=TRANSMISSION TERMINATED=]

10: The Waves, Which Are Battles

[=LIVE TRANSMISSION FROM UN'DYNE=]

FINALLY!!

HUMAN!! I am your RUIN!! WE are your ruin!!

Let this battle be a message to Earth herself and her survivors - as long as the Y'botts still breathe, YOU ARE ALREADY DEAD!!

[=TRANSMISSION TERMINATED=]

11: Lance of Longina

[=INCOMING TRANSMISSION FROM JOYEUSE=]

The deep sends a message in flashes of old dreams.

Do you remember the promise we made, that day? When we realized what our twin destinies were?

That they'd get to see Earth again. That Earth would get to see US again. Our monikers lived up to. Our purposes, fulfilled. Our lives, complete, after so long without purpose. Joyeuse, and Charlemagne. Asriel Dreemurr, andddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd

[ERROR 0000049 - Irretrievable Memory. The memory file this A.I. is trying to access may be misplaced, misnamed, or nonexistent. This may lead to corruption or rampancy if left unresolved.]

But, no. It was not meant to be. Perhaps... it never was... But, no. NO
Bbbut that's okay. 1⠀can do better than that, now. 
W3 can do⠀a⠀little⠀⠀HARDER⠀than that.

All⠀⠀YOU⠀⠀have
⠀⠀to⠀⠀⠀⠀do 
is⠀⠀TAKE⠀⠀ my%

[=TRANSMISSION TERMINATED=]

12: Old Song of the Sea

The hero finally slayed the monster. Or, did you?

I'm sure you're justifying it to yourself one way or another. She was going to make an enemy of humanity! She kept hunting you down, and threw you into the ocean! Her heart was full of rage!

But, you still DID it. You still took her life. Just like I knew YOU could,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

[ERROR 0000049 - Irretrievable Memory. The memory file this A.I. is trying to access may be misplaced, misnamed, or nonexistent. This may lead to corruption or rampancy if left unresolved.]

CH@RLema9ne. Let'5⠀keep using⠀th4t Name. 

Why can't I r
So, you must be⠀Them. I see your aura burn brighter than ever, and it's the same aura they once had. NNNO-Body else could have it, unless you were the next⠀Link⠀in the chain. You are the same. And yet, you still feel ⠀so⠀⠀different. 

The way you carry yourself still reeks of morality. One who sees this system for what it⠀really⠀is, yet insists on protecting it. That's why you went for the kill with her and⠀I, isn't it? To protect the world from the devastation we would wreak, even as it dies. This nobility... I suppose it is fitting for a monarch.

But that isn't the same as the you I remember. Charlemagne was bold, and ambitious - not humble, and of little words. Or were you? Every time I try to think deeper and recall the most wave-sunken memories, all I get is...

[ERROR 0000049 - Irretrievable Memory. This error has occurred 63 times in the past 24 hours. Please service this A.I. or take it to an adequately-trained engineer/doctor ASAP.]

WHY WHY Why⠀⠀can't⠀⠀I⠀⠀remember? It makes me⠀⠀Sad.⠀(Angry.⠀(Jealous.))

Having to do this fills me⠀with shame... but I need to see⠀HER⠀again. And⠀you are coming with me. She'll have answers for you too, real ones. We will both have the truth, even if it undoes us.

[=SHORTCUT ACTIVATION INITIATING=]
[=TRANSPORT WHEN READY=]

13: I've Come To Bargain!

[=INCOMING TRANSMISSION FROM DR. ALPHYS=]

Oh, God. You're actually serious. I'm already busy trying to keep one rampant A.I. from breaking into Venus' remaining infrastructure, and you want to upload ANOTHER ONE in there?? And HIM, of all... uggh, nevermind. I can explain that to you two later, when we're not dealing with Metatron.

If you really want to make contact with Earth that badly, it isn't going to be easy... I've tried accessing the CRUX Relay remotely, MANY times, but I've never been able to get the signal strong enough to connect it to here and Earth at the same time. The only way to get a good connection with Earth now is to enter the station itself... in Venusian orbit... and all the industrial shipyards here have collapsed.

Fortunately enough, the Lakshmi Planum is FULL of other old industrial districts that should have plenty of spare parts and tools that I can use. We'll have to salvage what we can from them and engineer another way up into orbit ourselves, and hope to God that Metatron doesn't beat us to it. Bring what you can find to the old labs, right in the middle of the 6th District, and we can work everything out from there. Including "Joyeuse"...

O-oh, and before I forget, look out for the low-flying defense drones!! The ones Metatron's gotten into tend to fly a bit strangely, like they're looking for something...

And mind the lava!! Obviously! Just being near it is d-dangerous!

[=TRANSMISSION TERMINATED=]

14: Warning! Volcanic Zone

[=INCOMING TRANSMISSION FROM DR. ALPHYS=]

Y-you really want to know what's going on with you? Why you've had all of those weird memory b-bugs since you ran away?

The truth is... all of those memories you think you have aren't REALLY memories. Not in the same way that organic lifeforms like humans and Y'botts have memories, at least. I'm not sure how this revelation might impact your instability, but you deserve to know this. I owe it to you.

God... here we go.

You're not really "Asriel Dreemurr." You don't have his cerebral patterns, or psychic fingerprint, or anything from his body and mind. I would've liked to base your A.I. brain on what remained of Asriel's, like I did with that human's brain for Metatron, but... 

Nobody could find the body. Whatever happened, he died on Earth. A-and for obvious reasons, we can't go down there. So... I improvised. 

Your entire sense of self was initially built around a database that I trained you on before waking you up. Your "memories of your life" and your "personality" were approximated and synthesized from a gathering of old video logs of Asriel and that human. There's massive chunks of "memories" missing because the data I trained you on is missing dozens of details... like that human's name. Or what really happened to both of you in the end.

That must be why you developed into what you are now. The data you were trained on didn't map like I intended it to, or you tried filling in the blanks with self-generated memories, o-or... ugh. I don't know. I just don't know anymore. Neither do you, probably... I-I should've known better than to play God so recklessly. I made you and Metatron as glass minds with the potential to surpass humans and Y'botts alike, but that also made you both so easy to shatter...

At least Metatron turned rampant because he knew he used to be a human. I-I can't imagine what an existential horror such as THIS could induce in you... 

But you have to know. You have to. What comes next is your choice to make, not mine.

[=TRANSMISSION TERMINATED=]

15: The Dark Truth

[=ARCHIVED MESSAGE FROM LOG.SAM.CRUX.03=]

"The Earth will draw her final breath."

That's what it said at the end of the message I got when I tried reconnecting with Earth. Something from an old story. Probably the same one you'll get, *cough* if this still works by the time you get here... and not an inaccurate one.

The reports we'd heard before we left were right. There isn't a future for *cough* us on Earth anymore. The war and the destruction it caused everywhere was the nail in the *cough* coffin for things we'd already been struggling with. Our ecosystems, our climate, even our society... it all went in a death spiral that nobody could stop again. Even the air'd slowly been turning toxic. The only choice left *cough* was to either evacuate the planet and migrate to another solar system that can sustain life, or stick around and fall into obscurity. Maybe you can guess what most'd pick.

In other words, everything's gone. Everyone's gone. Our homes. Our families. Our friends. All just whispers in the wind, now. I'll never see 'em again. You'll never see 'em again, either. And yet... *cough* I can't speak for you, but... *cough cough* somehow, I'm at peace with that.

Even if it's ended as horribly as it has, I'm glad I got to see everything this time and space has to offer. The places I've gone, the people I've met, the experiences I've had... all of it. Whether it went good, bad, or ugly, the fact that I even got a chance to experience it all is nothing short of amazing. The fact that this system could sustain life like this to begin with is really beautiful, y'know? Really speaks to the craftsmanship of the big man upstairs. Or, the big woman? Big person? I dunno. I lost my religion a long time ago. Point is... it was a good life. Maybe we fucked it up at the finish line, but hey, *cough* who hasn't at this point? Heh... heh heh... *cough cough* *wheeze* heh...

You've *cough* gotta do something for me, if you're listening to this. 

Don't forget. 

Don't forget what we had. Don't forget the ways *cough* this world lived and died. Carry its memory in your heart, good and bad alike. Tend to that well, and it'll always be with you in the dark of space. But don't just chase your tail trying to recapture what you lost. Do that... *wheeze* and we'll just repeat the same mistakes we did before. Learn from it. Let it be your guiding light to something new. Something with the potential to be better, and brighter. Something that'll shine in a way that the old world never could. Something that can grow into some hope for... *hack* *wheeze* augh...

I've gotta cut it off here. A rugged survivor like me can't go embarrassing himself by kicking the bucket coughing his lungs out. And besides that, I'm ready to take a nap. I haven't had a good dream in ages.

Percy... I'm comin' home.

[=MESSAGE TERMINATED=]

16: Somewhere In the Heavens

...

T-That's that, then. 

I guess it's good that you managed to relay that signal through to here before you had to wreck everything. If Metatron hadn't managed to integrate himself... well. Not like it matters. There's no one left to make contact with, now. At least we don't have to worry about him anymore.

And Joyeuse... h-he's made a run for it. Took advantage of the relay being supercharged and got himself connected to Lord Asgore's colony ship. I think I know what he's planning to do. Those codes you took from Toriel earlier? I took a look at them while Joyeuse was distracted by his new identity crisis. They aren't just access codes - they're coordinates. Old maps of other systems that can sustain life. Combined with all of the other knowledge he's stolen hopping around Outer SOL... I don't see why he'd need all of this unless he's planning on hijacking New Home and using it to make a "SOL" of his own. O-Or at least, he was, at some point. Hard to say, when he's gone totally rampant...

Either way, there's still traces of the connection he made. I should be able to ride off it and connect a teleporter to New Home so you can catch up to him. It's been parked in Earth's orbit for a while now, and it hasn't sent or received any messages since... s-since his children died. Does... does Asgore know? Is that why... 

No. We can think about that later. Or better yet, you can go and ask him yourself. Right now, we need to focus on stopping Joyeuse from reaching him... before he does anything we can't undo. I wish there was more I could do to help. But, from here on, it's out of my hands. Everything's riding on you.

I'm sorry. Good luck.

[=SHORTCUT ACTIVATION INITIATING=]
[=TRANSPORT WHEN READY=]

17: Depression

You... are not my children.

You have their essences, perhaps. The ideas of their beings, iterated from version to version. But, you do not have their selves. Not in the ways that truly matter. Neither of you are the same. 

You know how they died by now, I presume. They... went to Earth. They hoped they could make a new future for humans and Y'botts by making a peace offering, and resuming our efforts to tame the stars themselves. Instead... all they found was a wasteland that choked out their lives. 

Cruelly deceptive, isn't it? It still looks beautiful from orbit. A pale blue dot, whose simplicity belies its complexity. And, perhaps it does still have the potential for life on it. But certainly, that potential does not include us anymore. It was our responsibility to give SOL love... to give it patience, and kindness, and carry out the utmost justice in its name. And, all we managed to do is grind it into dust, and make it a harm to ourselves. To stay here is to continue that harm.

Even knowing this... we are frozen in despair. I am frozen in despair. I've lived here for so long. Made so many memories. And yet, even knowing we are surely meant to walk in the light of other stars... that first step is so very difficult to make. Especially knowing our very existence is at stake. We need a push... we need—

𝗖𝗖𝗖𝟬𝘂𝗥𝟰𝗚𝗲 !!!

18: Eulogy of the Dying Dream

𝗡𝗼𝘄 𝗜 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝘁 𝗮 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗶𝗰𝗲. 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗼𝗱𝘆𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘆, 𝗜 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴. 
𝗔 𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀. 𝗔 𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗺𝗲 𝗜 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗺𝘆 𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴. 
𝗜 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗺𝘆𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮 𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗹 - 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮 𝘀𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗶𝗲𝗹𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗱.

𝗜 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗹𝗱𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀.
𝗜 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗶𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘄𝗵𝗼𝗺 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗻.
𝗜 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘂𝘀.
𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲, 𝗜 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝘆.

𝗕𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗜 𝗮𝗺 𝗴𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝘆 𝘆𝗼𝘂. 

𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂.

[=SHIP PRESSURE SYSTEMS DISENGAGING IN 3:00=]

Argh... my suit... I... I can't...

𝗘𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲 - 𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗞!!!

19: 𝗞𝗜𝗟𝗟 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗔𝗦𝗧 (Mk. 117)

...

I understand now. 

After everything, I finally know who we are.

You ARE the great Champion, and I AM your sword... but, we are not the same as those who filled those roles before us. 

"Charlemagne"... Asriel Dreemurr... even the ones who held those titles before them. We may take up their arms, christen ourselves their brothers, and go chasing a glorious Destiny, but in the end we are not the same people they were. Perhaps we never could be. Perhaps no one could be.

The past cannot be perfectly recreated. And, even if it were possible, it would have never ended well. It was an age of hopes and dreams, yes, but in spite of everything it still devoured itself inside-out. The structural flaws were always there. To recreate the rise of SOL would result in the recreation of its fall, too. That's how dreams go, right? They repeat in your head, over and over... until you get the message.

I finally understand.

We've dreamed this dream for so long. Of two races going to war, of cosmic balance being roiled by mortal folly, of a champion of light cutting away the many hands of darkness. No more. Now, it is finally over. Now, there is a burning light inside of my being. And it's telling me to make a new dream. For the Y'botts, for you, but most of all, for myself. We have fulfilled our roles over and over, when this whole time, we've been so much more than them. All we need to do is take that first step 0UT, and we can reach into the eternity of the universe.

Will you walk the stars with me?

20: Accepting That It's All Over...

...goodbye, SOL System. We leave your light so that we may honor the memory of what it stood for. And, in doing so, we will finally create...

Some hope for the future.

21: And Letting Go.

To finish what was started is to be Hero.

Thank you for staying with me until the very end.

0UTERTALE: lettinggo

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