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The wooden hull of the boat made a

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soft, hollow thump against the pier,

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the only sound breaking the vast silence of

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the Norwegian night.

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Astrid pulled her wool coat tighter,

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her breath pluming in the freezing air as

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she cast off the mooring rope.

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Out on the water, the world narrowed to

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deep indigo shadows and towering walls of stone.

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She rowed with slow, deliberate strokes,

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letting the current guide her deeper into the

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fjord.

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To her left and right, massive cliffs rose

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straight out of the icy, dark waters.

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Their detailed rock faces scarred by ancient glaciers

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and dusted with fresh snow.

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Chinese letter, Chinese letter, Chinese letter, Chinese letter.

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The sheer scale of the landscape made her

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feel wonderfully small,

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swallowed up by a tranquil, majestic atmosphere that

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felt almost sacred.

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The water was so still it mirrored the

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jagged peaks,

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creating a dizzying illusion of paddling through an

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endless abyss of starry night sky.

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Then the darkness above began to shift.

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A pale, ethereal green light bled across the

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stars,

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faint at first, like a ghost sighing across

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the heavens.

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Astrid stopped rowing, letting the oars rest in

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the rollox as she tilted her head back.

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Slowly, the northern lights began to dance,

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unfurling ribbons of emerald and violet that

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shimmered silently against the deep cosmic expanse.

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Bathed in the ghostly glow, the towering fjord

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seemed to awaken,

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guarding the sleeping earth in a timeless, quiet

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wonder.