Book 2: The Pirate's Curse

Chapter 1: Sequin Land

Sequin Land. The world of Shantae The Half-Genie Hero. A world where mythical creatures come to life. Genies, Mermaids, Zombies, Golems, Orcs and other kinds of monsters roam free throughout the world. However, this world will soon be erased by the Distortions caused by a mysterious group called, the Neo Time Jackers, in their conquest for the ultimate paradise. But, our heroes will answer the call and will always be there to stop their conquest. As of now, Akira Naotora, Kallen Kaslana and Yae Sakura have arrived at Sequin Land to seal away the Distortion and save this world from extinction. What kind of adventures await for these three heroes?


Scarecrow Fields

"Take this!" Kallen Kaslana yelled as she fired her guns onto several living scarecrows. She then rushed forward before performing an upside down spinning high jump and fired more bullets onto several more scarecrows before landing safely.

Yae Sakura was surrounded by more scarecrows as they are about to throw rotten pumpkin bombs at her. The scarecrows began to throw the pumpkin bombs at Sakura, but just before the bombs hit her, she quickly drew her katana and sliced everything in her path in lightspeed without moving forward. After that, she slowly sheathed back her katana as the scarecrows and the bombs were sliced to pieces until there is nothing left and without a single explosion on her.

As for Akira Naotora, who is now transformed into Cure Starlight, she unleashed several yellow energy balls at the approaching scarecrows. The attacks completely destroyed the scarecrows untill there is none left. The three heroes regrouped after all is said and done. "Phew... Feel better now, Kallen?" Cure Starlight asked.

"Yeah, a LOT better after what you and Einstein told me and Sakura about what happened in my old world after my death." Kallen replied as she holstered her pistols back into her hips. Before the heroes arrived at Sequin Land, Akira and Einstein explained to Kallen inside the Zi-O Liner earlier about what happened in Kallen's old world after she died. Otto Apocalypse using Kallen's DNA to create clones, including his daughter, Theresa Apocalypse; his crazy plan to awaken the Herrscher of the Void to bring Kallen back from the dead by using a clone of her descendant named Kiana Kaslana and pretty much nearly destroyed the world and killed some of Kiana's friends in the process. "If I ever get a chance to go back to my old world, Otto's in a LOT of trouble...!" Kallen finished as she gritted her teeth after that reminder.

"Calm yourself, Kallen. You'll get that chance in time. But for now, we have a mission to complete, so you need to focus on that first." Sakura reminded her, which made Kallen calm down a bit after her outburst and took a few deep breaths.

"Maybe telling you about what happened in your old world earlier might be a bad idea." Starlight remarked to Kallen.

"And it was supposed to be peaceful when me and Kallen are living in the Stigmata Dimension of my village. Until that Dimension Quake happened." Sakura sighed.

"Yeah, but I'm glad we're still together, Sakura." Kallen replied back with a smile. "And I'm sorry. But you're right, the mission comes first."

"If we're going to find a way to go back to your old world, it's gonna take some time to find its location instead of being lost in the Sands of Time. The Zi-O Liner will eventually run out of fuel before we can even find it." Starlight stated to Kallen. "That, and we need to become stronger and find more allies before we can take the fight to Otto and Schicksal."

"We'll eventually have to fight the Neo Time Jackers as well. We don't know how strong or clever they are yet." Sakura added.

"Then we have a lot of work to do." Kallen said as she punched her open palm with her fist. "Once we've become stronger and gained more allies, we'll show Otto, Schicksal and the Neo Time Jackers what we're made of!" She declared with a confident grin.

"That's the spirit, Kallen!" Starlight smiled at Kallen's confidence.

"And I'll be right behind the both of you." Sakura nodded and smiled. "So where do we go now?"

"If we keep going straight, it should lead us to the Sequin Land Palace." Starlight informed as she pointed her finger north. "Though we have to get past Tangle Forest first."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Kallen declared as she quickly ran ahead.

"Hey, wait for us!" Starlight yelled as she and Sakura ran after Kallen until they caught up with her.

"So anyway, could you tell us more about this world, Akira?" Kallen asked her while everyone is still running.

"Call me Starlight when I'm in this form, Kallen." Starlight replied back. "But anyway, Sequin Land is home to many mythical creatures and monsters. Mermaids, golems and zombies for example. And this world has its own heroine. Her name is Shantae, a half-genie."

"A half-genie?" The others repeated in confusion.

"Basically a half human and half genie. Meaning a human man and a female genie fell in love that their offsprings become a human female with magical powers." Starlight explained. "You girls ever heard of genies before?"

Kallen and Sakura shook their heads in response, which made Cure Starlight sweatdrop. "Oh right, their world didn't have genies." She thought before explaining to them. "Well, genies are mythical creatures that have powerful magical powers and can grant wishes. They mostly look like humans, except for the colors of their skin." Starlight explained.

"How powerful are these genies?" Sakura asked.

"The phenomenal cosmic powerful kind." Starlight answered.

"Wow..." Kallen and Sakura responded with awe at how powerful the genies are.

"But now, most of the genies have returned to their own realm called, the Genie Realm. Leaving behind the half-genies to take care of Sequin Land from the forces of evil. Shantae is one of those half-genies." Starlight explained.

"I see. So this Shantae is not the only half-genie in this world." Sakura pointed out to Starlight who nodded in response.

"So where are the other half-genies anyway?" Kallen asked Starlight.

"Each half-genie is left in charge of one kingdom around Sequin Land. And Shantae is tasked to defend Scuttle Town from evil forces... even though the mayor of said town is one fat and lazy idiot..." Starlight answered as that last part made Kallen and Sakura sweatdrop at how lazy the mayor is.

"I question the mayor's intelligence." Sakura deadpanned.

"And I don't blame you." Starlight replied back.

"That guy really needs to get his ass off and work." Kallen also deadpanned.


Tangle Forest

"Ah, looks like we've arrived at Tangle Forest. Hope your high jumping skills aren't too rusty." Starlight informed her teammates as they arrived at a new location. A large forest with massive trees to climb and nature covering the area.

"Don't worry, we got this." Kallen assured Starlight before jumping on one of the large tree branches. "Kya!" ...Before running into a one-eyed spider as it dropped down from above on a thread of web. She immediately disposed of the insect with one quick shot of her gun before moving ahead.

"Is your friend always this reckless?" Starlight asked Sakura.

"Most of the time." Sakura replied with a sigh. "That's why I have to keep an eye on her. But she does have a good heart of protecting others like I did for my village."

"That's good to know." Starlight smiled back. "Then we'd better keep up!"

"Agreed, but remember to be careful." Sakura nodded back as she and Cure Starlight jumped high onto some tree branches and eliminated more spiders along the way.

As Kallen continued jumping from tree branch to tree branch, she eventually encountered some orcs with bat wings and horned helmets in front of her. "Huh, never met these creatures before, besides the Honkai." Kallen questioned.

"Those are just orcs, Kallen." Starlight answered as she and Sakura dropped down beside her via tree branch. "Except that these kinds of orcs can actually fly."

"Hm? I think I saw some buildings straight ahead." Sakura informed them as she noticed what's at the end of the forest.

"Then we're almost at the palace. Alright girls, let's take down these orcs and move on!" Starlight declared as she created an energy sword with her hands after rotating the dial on her PreBrace on her left wrist.

"Got it!" The others replied as they prepared their weapons against orcs which noticed the group and began charging towards them.

Cure Starlight performed a few slash strikes onto several orcs before unleashing a large ground shockwave that decimated a large group of them. Kallen shot down another group of orcs while dodging their attacks from their claws. One orc was about to attack Kallen from behind, but she quickly dodged and countered with a backflip kick that sent the orc flying, unloading more bullets onto the orc while falling and finishing off with one more roundhouse kick that sent the orc crashing to a large tree. Yae Sakura performed several quick katana strikes onto the last group of orcs as she left behind marks on them called the Sakura Brand. After that, she sheathed her katana back before rushing forward in a flash step and delivered a katana strike onto the marked orcs in one strike. And once the katana is sheathed back again, the orcs were immediately struck down. That technique is called the Blade Back. Once all of the orcs are taken out, the heroes regrouped and ran towards the location of the palace at the end of the forest straight ahead.

"Good job, girls. Looks like you both haven't lost your touch after all." Starlight praised her teammates while running.

"Me and Kallen were dealing with Honkai and other monsters while protecting the village, so we need to keep our skills sharp." Sakura answered as everyone put away their weapons.

"Guess these orcs don't stand a chance against us." Kallen smirked.

"Wait till we explore the rest of Sequin Land, there are monsters that are more tougher than the ones we encountered earlier." Starlight smirked back as the group left the forest.


Sequin Land Palace

"Well, here we are at last. Sequin Land Palace." Starlight announced as they finally arrived at their destination. The group saw large arabian-like palace in front of them, including some people walking outside the palace.

"So that's the palace of this world. It's big, but not as big and tall as the one back at Sakura's village." Kallen commented.

"That would be the Celestial Castle." Sakura added. "But this palace is indeed amazing."

"It really is." Starlight agreed. "Come on, it's time we visit the palace."

The others agreed as the group continue onward until they reach the palace main gate. However, they saw someone else waiting outside of the gate. It was a young girl wearing a mostly black and white nun robe and wearing a black veil on her head. She's also holstering a large cross weapon on her back. That large cross made Starlight and Kallen's eyes widen in shock as they both recognized it from before.

"Wait... that large cross... is that the Oath of Judah?!" Kallen exclaimed in shock as she recognized that weapon.

"Not only that... I can think of one person who can use a cross like that...!" Starlight added while also in shock.

"I wish I could open the door for you, but again, I can't find the royal key to open the door." The palace royal guard said from inside the gate.

"How could you lose the only way in and out of the palace?!" The young girl complained.

"Yeah, I know. Being careless and forgetful can be a real pain in the butt. Sorry but without the royal key, we're pretty much stuck here until the Sultana returns."

"Ugh... and you people are supposed to be the palace royal guards." The girl sighed in disappointment. "Now what am I going to do?"

"Um, excuse me!" Starlight called out to the young girl. "You wouldn't happen to be Theresa Apocalypse, are you?"

The girl gasped in shock when she heard that name. She slowly turned around and noticed the group who wanted to speak to her. The young girl revealed to have short white hair that reached her shoulders, blue eyes and is wearing a gold pendant that has an eye on it. "H-How do you know my name?" She questioned them while confirming her name to be Theresa. "Wait..." When Theresa noticed Kallen, she gasped in shock at a familiar face. "It can't be...! Kallen?! Is that you?!"

"You know who I am?" Kallen questioned back.

"W-Well, I saw records of who you are back at Schicksal! I thought you died from the Honkai attack!" Theresa exclaimed.

"I did." Kallen confirmed. "But my soul and spirit ended up at the Stigmata Dimension, where I met Yae Sakura." She gestured her hand to her long pink haired friend with the fox ears beside her. "We were living peacefully together in a village until something happened to us."

"The Dimensional Quakes." Starlight added. "That quake sent them to my world, but they were being controlled and turned into monsters. The Neo Time Jackers are the ones responsible for all of this."

"I see... so that's what happened. The Neo Time Jackers, huh...?" Theresa understood as she placed her hand on her chin. "But from the looks of it, you were able to free them."

"Correct." Starlight nodded back. "Thanks to the powers of the Pretty Cures, I was able to free them. Pretty Cures are basically magical girls that have the power to purify and repel evil beings. They can also fight well in melee combat."

"Okay then. So are there more of these Pretty Cures besides you, miss..."

"Just call me Akira Naotora. But when I'm transformed, it's Cure Starlight." Starlight informed Theresa. "And yes, there are a LOT more Pretty Cures where they came from. And there's no way in heck I'm listing them all."

"Hehe, that's alright." Theresa giggled in response before offering a handshake. "Still, thanks for saving Kallen and Sakura. I hope we can get along."

"Likewise." Starlight smiled back and accepted the handshake. "Does this mean I get to call you Teri Teri?" She gave Theresa a teasing smirk.

"H-How did you know that nickname?! Also, only I get to call myself Teri Teri!" Theresa stuttered, exclaimed and comically pouted after letting go of the handshake. Everyone laughed at Theresa's childish nature, even though she's a principal at an elite valkyrie school. But she'll always care for her students, way better than her father.

"Ok ok, I'll just call you Theresa then." Starlight replied back after everyone stopped laughing. "So anyway, when did the Dimension Quake occur in your world?"

"Well... it happened when me and some of my students were having a beach party." Theresa answered.

"A... beach party?" Kallen and Sakura tilted their heads in confusion.

"Basically a day of rest and relaxation during the summer, alongside having food and drinks under the warm sunshine." Theresa described.

"Ah, okay."

"Right, you never had those before in your lives." Theresa sweatdropped at Kallen and Sakura. "Anyway moving on, we were about to end the party and return back to St. Freya Academy, until the Dimension Quake happened."

"So it happened to you too, huh?" Starlight guessed in a serious tone.

"Yeah, along with the rest of my students." Theresa confirmed with a nod. "And the moment I woke up, I ended up in the Royal Sewers down below this palace. Good thing I still have Judah with me to fend off those one-eyed snakes."

"I see... first one-eyed spiders and now one-eyed snakes. Is there any other creatures that also have one eye?" Kallen complained and sighed.

"There's one-eyed spiders here?" Theresa raised an eyebrow.

"Yup, back in Tangle Forest where we came in." Kallen replied while pointing her thumb behind to said forest.

"...This world is weird..." Theresa remarked.

"Well this IS Sequin Land, after all. So expect to see more weird stuff later on." Starlight replied to Theresa. "So, did you manage to escape the sewers by yourself?"

"Actually, I had a little help from a kind-hearted female." Theresa answered. "She had olive/tan-skin with blue eyes, and a long growing purple hair tied back into a ponytail, and said ponytail was also her weapon which was used like a whip. She was also wearing a red belly dancer outfit with a bra, harem pants and shoes along with some gold jewellery on her wrists, her tiara and her earrings. Her name is Shantae, I think."

Everyone's eyes widen at the familiar name. "Shantae? The half-genie guardian of Scuttle Town?!" Sakura exclaimed.

"Wait, you three have heard about her before?" Theresa questioned the group.

"Well, it was mostly Starlight that explained to us who she was. Only she has knowledge of this world." Sakura answered.

"So what was Shantae doing there in the Royal Sewers?" Starlight asked Theresa.

"She said that she was looking for Flesh Pops for her friend, Bolo. Ugh... I don't even wanna think about what those Flesh Pops look like after seeing them for myself." Theresa answered, while also trying hard not puke at the mention of those... Flesh Pops.

"Flesh Pops?" Kallen and Sakura repeated in confusion.

"For the sake of your eyes and your stomachs, you don't wanna know." Starlight and Theresa immediately replied to them.

"Anyway after that, me and Shantae parted ways as I wanted to visit the Royal Palace to ask for help for where I am and to find out where my students are." Theresa explained.

"And then you met us." Starlight finished. "I'm just glad you're okay. Don't worry, Theresa, we'll help you find your students."

"Thank you, all of you." Theresa smiled at the group with gratitude. "Though, I never thought I'd get to fight alongside the legendary Kallen Kaslana."

"Consider this an honor then." Kallen smiled back at Theresa.

"Wish I could say the same about your descendant, Kiana." Theresa sighed in disappointment. "She may be an excellent fighter, but she can be lazy at times."

"Kiana's one of your students?" Kallen questioned Theresa with surprise.

"Ah, Theresa! What are you doing here? I thought you left to look for your students!"

Everyone turned towards the one speaking and knows Theresa. The group was shocked at who they are about to meet. It was none other that the Guardian of Scuttle Town and the half-genie hero herself, Shantae.

"Oh, Shantae! I was just trying to visit the palace to ask for help in finding my students." Theresa answered before sighing. "But that one idiot guard from inside the palace lost the only way in and out of the gate. He really needs to get a spare key, just in case."

"The Royal Gate Key? You mean this thing?" Shantae took out said key from inside her pocket.

"You found it?! Where?!"

"Well, it was Bolo who found it and gave it to me after I delivered the Flesh Pops." Shantae answered Theresa. "He said that he found it in his mouth an hour ago after some idiot dropped it."

"..." The group refused to comment on how the key was lost and found. This world can be very weird and stupid at times.

"Um... was it something I said?" Shantae tilted her head in confusion.

"O-Oh, no! It was nothing! Nothing at all!" Theresa replied while shaking her head and waving off Shantae's answer. "At least you got the key, so what's done is done." She finished, with the rest of her group nodding.

"O-kay then..." Shantae replied before she noticed the newcomers. "Are those friends of yours?"

"Yup, they are." Theresa confirmed with a nod and gestured to her friends. "This is Cure Starlight, Kallen Kaslana and Yae Sakura."

"Nice to meet you." They greeted with a bow.

"Likewise. I'm Shantae, the half-genie hero and Guardian of Scuttle Town." She greeted back before she sighed sadly. "Well, I used to be one till I lost my genie powers and got revoked from my guardian duties."

"You what?!" Everyone exclaimed at Shantae's answer. What in the world happened to her lately?

Cure Starlight however, began to realise what timeline they are in thanks to her video game knowledge back in her world. "I see... So we're at the beginning of Shantae's third adventure... The Pirate's Curse." She thought.

"How did this happen...?" Theresa questioned Shantae.

"Well first off, my magic was stolen by my arch-enemy, Risky Boots." Shantae explained. "She then used my genie magic to unleash an evil version of myself. I managed to defeat her, but doing so made me lose all of my genie magic, so I'm basically a normal human now."

"I see... so this Risky Boots was the reason why you can't use magic anymore." Sakura stated with a frown. "Now what do you mean by your guardian duties being revoked?"

"It happened recently while I was protecting Scuttle Town from Ammo Baron and his army. It was AFTER the battle that I was told by the royal guards that HE's the new mayor of Scuttle Town. And since I attacked him, my guardian duties have been revoked and I have to attend court later on." Shantae finished before she took out a scroll containing a court summon.

"That can't be right!" Kallen exclaimed in anger. "What happened to the previous mayor? Did he do anything to stop it?"

"Mayor Scuttlebutt sold the deed to the town to Ammo Baron in exchange for some chocolates." Shantae deadpanned as she placed the scroll back into her pocket.

"..." Shantae's answer made everyone facepalm at how stupid the mayor of Scuttle Town can be, on top of being lazy and useless.

"Once again... I question the mayor's intelligence..." Sakura remarked as she grit her teeth in annoyance with a red mark on her forehead.

"And again... I don't blame you for feeling that way." Starlight replied while also feeling the same way.

"After what he did, he DESERVED to get kicked out as mayor." Kallen sighed in disappointment.

"If I were the mayor of Scuttle Town, I would do a WAY better job than that idiot." Theresa commented.

"Anyway, I'd better give this key back to the guard. Please excuse me." Shantae bowed as the group moved aside so that she can talk to the guard.

"Should we come inside with you, Shantae?" Starlight asked.

"No, it's okay. I need to find something at the Royal Library. It won't take long." Shantae replied before heading towards the front gate to speak to the guard. "Excuse me! Are you looking for this?" Shantae asked as she took out the Royal Key from her pocket and showed it to the guard from an open hatch.

"Oh? Could it be? You have the Royal Key! Could you pass it to me through this open hatch on this gate please?" The royal guard asked her.

"Sure thing. Here you go." Shantae replied before giving the key to the guard via open hatch.

"Ahhh... it's a thing of beauty..." The guard spoke with relief. "Now I can finally unlock this... unfasten that... reattach... and... there!" Eventually, the guard was able to open the gate to the Royal Place as everyone heard something unlocked. The gate opened to reveal the royal guard wearing a mostly blue and gold full armour with a purple cloth on his waist. "Sequin Land Palace is once again open to the public! Please, come inside." The guard announced.

"Thank you, sir." Shantae bowed to the guard. "Could you tell me where the Royal Library is?"

"The Royal Library? Just go through the door straight ahead and across the hall." The guard answered.

"Thanks again, sir." Shantae bowed before she turned to the group. "Alright, stay here. I'll be back soon." She then looked forward and went inside the palace.

"Take your time!" Theresa told Shantae as she went inside.

"So, you were the one who was behind that door earlier." The guard noticed Theresa. "I didn't expect a principal to be so... young."

"Heh, I may be young, but I'm quite capable." Theresa proudly stated with a smile and her hands on her hips.

"Uhh... huh..." The guard rolled his eyes away.

"D-Don't ignore me!" Theresa exclaimed in annoyance.

"Don't worry, she really is the principal of our school. But at another country." Starlight assured the guard with a small white lie.

"Is that so?" The guard raised his eyebrow. "Are you some of her students?"

"Actually, we're just teachers from the same school who are also looking for the other students." Kallen answered with a small lie.

"I see... kinda strange for a school to have attires like yours." The guard commented to the group. "Oh well, I'm not gonna complain about the small stuff. I'm just a guard doing my job, after all."

"Just remember to have a spare key just in case it gets missing again." Sakura suggested.

"A spare key, huh... You know what, you're right. I'll go talk to the Sultana about it when she gets back." The guard agreed.

"Good, that would definitely save you the trouble. Just don't lose the key again, okay?" Theresa told the guard.

"Sure thing." He replied.

Eventually, the group saw Shantae leaving through the palace gate as she found what she was looking for at the Royal Library.

"Okay, I found what I was looking for." Shantae informed the group before she turned to the guard and bowed. "Thank you for your help, sir."

"No problem. Good luck for finding the rest of the students!" The guard waved goodbye to the group as they left the palace and walked towards the direction of Tangle Forest.

"So, what did you find at the library?" Starlight asked Shantae.

"Just this." Shantae responded by pulling out a map from her pocket. "It's the map of the Forbidden Isles."

"The Forbidden Isles?" The group repeated.

"Remember when I said about Risky Boots being my arch-enemy? She needed this map to prevent the resurrection of The Pirate Master." Shantae explained.

"The Pirate Master?" The group repeated again.

Shantae nodded before explaining after she put away the map into her pocket. "According to Risky, The Pirate Master was one of the greatest threat Sequin Land has ever known a long time ago. It took the combined power of every last Genie to defeat him."

"I see... But from what Risky told you, he's not dead yet, right?" Theresa asked Shantae.

"Yup." She confirmed with a nod. "With the genies gone, the Pirate Master will do whatever it takes to regain the Dark Magic and rise again."

"Dark Magic?" The group repeated.

Shantae brought out a small gold lamp out of her pocket and showed it to the group. "Risky gave me this magic lamp to suck up the Dark Magic."

"Ah, so inside that lamp is the Dark Magic." Sakura observed the lamp Shantae is holding.

"I got the Dark Magic from defeating some of Risky's crewmen, the Tinkerbats." Shantae explained. "The Dark Magic corrupted them and turned them into Cacklebats."

"So by defeating these Cacklebats and sucking up the Dark Magic, you're basically cutting off the Pirate Master's power, right?" Kallen asked Shantae, who confirmed with a nod.

"I see. Is that why you're forming an uneasy alliance with your arch-enemy to stop the Pirate Master?" Starlight guessed.

"You figured it out?!" Shantae gasped at Starlight.

"Well, yeah. Obviously you and Risky don't want the Pirate Master to be revived." Starlight pointed out. "And if he does get revived, Sequin Land is doomed."

"If that's the case, then let us help you." Theresa declared.

"Huh?!" Shantae exclaimed in shock. "All of you wanted to help me out?"

"Of course! We're a lot more capable than we look." Theresa smirked as the group showed Shantae the weapons they have to fight their enemies. "Plus, I might be able to find the rest of my students who might be stranded on The Forbidden Isles."

"We won't let this Pirate Master threaten Sequin Land again." Sakura said.

"And you're gonna need all the help you can get." Kallen added.

"Everyone..." Shantae whispered to the group as she put away her lamp back into her pocket. Ever since Shantae lost her genie powers, she felt useless to anyone. Luckily her friends were there to help and train her to fight without her powers. And now, these group of kind people were willing to risk their lives to help her stop the Pirate Master and save Sequin Land. With that in mind, Shantae thanked the group with a smile. "Thank you... I'll gladly except any help to stop the Pirate Master and save Sequin Land!"

"That's the spirit, Shantae!" Starlight grinned at her answer. "You may have lost your genie powers, but that won't stop you from protecting others!"

"Yeah, you're right!" Shantae smiled back with confidence. "Right then! I'm Ret-2-Go!"

"Ret-2-Go?" The group tilted their heads in confusion, minus Cure Starlight.

"It means Ready to Go in short form." Starlight stated.

"Ohh..."

"Alright everyone, let's move out!" Shantae declared to the group before everyone ran towards Tangle Forest to the location of Scuttle Town.

And so begins a new adventure for our heroes in Sequin Land. Will they be able to stop the Pirate Master from resurrecting? Will Theresa be able to find her missing students stranded in the Forbidden Isles? And will they be able to find and seal away the Distortion on this world? Until then... Only time will tell...


Chapter 1: Sequin Land

END