...~~==$## ##$==~~...
.~~†$#¶@## ##@¶#$†~~.
....~==†#¶ ¶#†==~....
.....~†††# #†††~.....
.~~===$### ###$===~~.
.....~=†$# .~ ~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ ~. #$†=~.....
.~~=†$#¶@@ NICK WILDE IS A RED FOX AND A CONMAN. @@¶#$†=~~.
....~~††## .~ ~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ ~. ##††~~....
.~~=†$##¶¶ ¶¶##$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶¶@ HE'S NOT ABOVE PETTY CRIME, BUT HE @¶¶#$†=~~.
...~~~==$# KNOWS THAT IF HE PUTS IN A BIT OF WORK, #$==~~~...
...~==†$¶¶ HE WILL FIND MUCH MORE LUCRATIVE ¶¶$†==~...
.~~=†$#¶@# REWARDS. #@¶#$†=~~.
.~=†$#¶@## ##@¶#$†=~.
.~~=†$#¶@# AND THUS HE'S CURRENTLY WORKING #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# ALONGSIDE HATSUNE MIKU FOR A COMPANY #@¶#$†=~~.
..~~~~~†$¶ THAT MAKES SYNTHETIC MEAL REPLACEMENTS. ¶$†~~~~~..
.....~=†$¶ HE'S GOT A VAGUE OUTLINE OF A PLAN, TO ¶$†=~.....
.~~=†$#¶¶@ SCATTER WITH SOME PRODUCT, OR EVEN @¶¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# BETTER, SOME FORMULA? THESE THINGS ARE #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# WORTH A LOT TO A COMPETITOR. #@¶#$†=~~.
.....~=$#¶ ¶#$=~.....
.~~=†$#¶@# HE'S BEEN LUCKY; THE PLACE IS #@¶#$†=~~.
.......~†# SURPRISINGLY UNGUARDED. ONCE HE'S GOT #†~.......
.~~=†$#¶## HIS PAWS ON SOMETHING WORTHWHILE, IT'LL ##¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# BE EASY TO JUST WALTZ OUT. UNTIL THEN, #@¶#$†=~~.
....~~~†#@ KEEP DOING THE WORK... @#†~~~....
.....~=$$# #$$=~.....
.~~=†$#¶@# COME TO THINK OF IT, THE PLACE IS #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶## ALMOST EERILY EMPTY. THERE ARE FEW ##¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†#¶@## COWORKERS. (IN FACT THE COMPANY IS ##@¶#†=~~.
....~~~†## AI-RUN AND ONLY A FEW KEY ROLES ARE ##†~~~....
.~~=†$#¶## FILLED BY ACTUAL PEOPLE. ##¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@@ @@¶#$†=~~.
.....~=$## NONE OF THE EMPLOYEES KNOW THIS.) ##$=~.....
.~~=†$#¶@@ @@¶#$†=~~.
....~~=†$# ~~~ ~~~ #$†=~~....
...~~==$#¶ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ¶#$==~~...
.~~=†$#¶@# ~~~ ~~~ #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$$$#@ @#$$$†=~~.
...~==$$#¶ NICK AND MIKU ARE BOTH STATIONED IN ¶#$$==~...
.~~=†$#¶@# EARLY PROCESSING, HOUSED IN A STATE OF #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=††††#¶ THE ART FACTORY CLOSE TO THE DOCKS. ¶#††††=~~.
.~~=†$#¶## THEY CREATE THE EARLY BUILDING BLOCKS ##¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$¶@## THAT ARE LATER COMBINED INTO THE MEALS ##@¶$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# THAT'S SOLD TO CUSTOMERS. #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@@ @@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$¶@## THE BASES ARE MOSTLY SLUDGES ##@¶$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# OR PASTES, SUCH AS: #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†††$$# #$$†††=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@@ =~ PLANT MATTER @@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# =~ BLOOD COLONY #@¶#$†=~~.
.....~=†## (MADE WITH A TYPE OF BACTERIA) ##†=~.....
.~~=†$#¶@# =~ WILD FLESH #@¶#$†=~~.
....~=$#¶¶ (FREE ROAMING ANIMALS) ¶¶#$=~....
.~~=†$#¶¶@ =~ ORGANS @¶¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶¶@ (TAKEN FROM A LIVING HUMAN THAT @¶¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# IS WILLING TO SELL) #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=††$##@ =~ MINERALS @##$††=~~.
.~~=†$$$$¶ =~ BLOOD COLONY TWO ¶$$$$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# =~ INSECTS #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# (WHICH ARE MAINLY USED FOR THEIR #@¶#$†=~~.
......~=†# BRAIN, WHICH IS USED TO EXTRACT #†=~......
....~~†††# RECEPTORS THAT DETECT PHEROMONES) #†††~~....
.....~==$¶ ¶$==~.....
.~~=†$#¶@# ~~~ ~~~ #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@@ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ @@¶#$†=~~.
....~~==$# ~~~ ~~~ #$==~~....
.....~~~†# #†~~~.....
.....~†#¶@ MIKU IS IN CHARGE OF THE BLOOD @¶#†~.....
.~~=†$#¶@# COLONIES. THERE'S LARGE VATS OF THE #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# ORIGINAL CULTURE WHICH IS FED BLOOD #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶## MEAL, BONE MEAL, WHAT DOESN'T QUALIFY ##¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@@ TO GO IN THE "WILD FLESH" PASTE, AND @@¶#$†=~~.
.....~=††# SOME PROCESSING CHEMICALS. ALL THESE #††=~.....
.~~=†$#¶@@ INGREDIENTS HAVE AN EFFECT ON THE BLOOD @@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶## WHICH IN TURN AFFECTS MIKU. ##¶#$†=~~.
.~~=††††$¶ ¶$††††=~~.
...~~~††#¶ THERE IS A LARGE TANK BEHIND THE ¶#††~~~...
.~~=†$$#¶@ FACTORY THAT CONTAINS A VAST NUMBER OF @¶#$$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶## AUXILLIARY BLOOD COLONIES. MIKU WATCHES ##¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# OVER THESE AS WELL. THEIR PURPOSE IS #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# UNCLEAR. #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~~~†$$¶¶ ¶¶$$†~~~~.
.~~=†$#¶## THE FACTORY IS SURROUNDED BY THE BLOOD ##¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# MEAL FARMS. THERE IS A CONSTANT #@¶#$†=~~.
....~~=†#@ EXCHANGE OF BLOOD AND BLOOD MEAL. THIS @#†=~~....
.~~=†#¶@## PROVIDES TWO OF THE MAJOR MATERIALS FOR ##@¶#†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# BOTH THE COLONIES AND MIKU. #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@@ ~~~ ~~~ @@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# ~~~ ~~~ #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~=†$#¶@# #@¶#$†=~~.
.~~~~~~†#@ NICK IS UNCOMFORTABLE AROUND @#†~~~~~~.
....~==$## THE "WILD FLESH" VATS. ##$==~....
.~~=†$#¶@# #@¶#$†=~~.
....~=$$¶¶ ¶¶$$=~....
...~~††$#¶ ¶#$††~~...
.~~=†$#¶@# #@¶#$†=~~.
.....~†$## ##$†~.....