She was back in the car as it was pulling out of the turnout by the lake. There she was, driving, shrugging off the memories from her last trip, happy to have spent some time by the lake catching up with loved ones, glad she had made it through the most difficult part of her drive, worried about how her weekend would turn out, paranoid as always, but proud of herself for taking this trip. Delia’s blue eyes took in the beauty around her; the trees here were nothing like they were back home. This was real nature, not artificially planted, not plastic like the people. She allowed herself a moment of appreciation before the realization hit her. She had picked up on the pattern; if this was going to go the way the others had, she knew exactly where it would happen. The archway appeared, and Delia braced...

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