....^***$@                                          @$***^....
.^«*†††$$#                                          #$$†††*«^.
......^*$@                                          @$*^......
.....^*$@@                                          @@$*^.....
....«*†@@#                                          #@@†*«....
.^«*†$@###      .^ ««««««« ««««««« ««««««« ^.       ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@### nick wilde  is a red fox  and  a conman. ###@$†*«^.
......«†@#      .^ ««««««« ««««««« ««««««« ^.       #@†«......
.^«*†$$$$@                                          @$$$$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###    he's not above petty crime, but he    ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@### knows that if he puts in a bit of work,  ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###     he will find much more lucrative     ###@$†*«^.
.^««***††@                 rewards.                 @††***««^.
.^^««†††@@                                          @@†††««^^.
.^«*†$@###      and thus he's currently working     ###@$†*«^.
.^*†$@####   alongside hatsune miku for a company   ####@$†*^.
.^«*†@####  that makes synthetic meal replacements. ####@†*«^.
....^««†@@  he's got a vague outline of a plan, to  @@†««^....
.^«*†$@###    scatter with some product, or even    ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###  better, some formula? these things are  ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†@####       worth a lot to a competitor.       ####@†*«^.
......^«†@                                          @†«^......
.^«*†$@###      he's been lucky; the place is       ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###  surprisingly unguarded. once he's got   ###@$†*«^.
...«*††$@@  his paws on something worthwhile, it'll @@$††*«...
..^^**††$#  be easy to just waltz out. until then,  #$††**^^..
....^«†@##          keep doing the work...          ##@†«^....
......^*$#                                          #$*^......
.^^^«*†$@@    come to think of it, the place is     @@$†*«^^^.
....«*†@##    almost eerily empty. there are few    ##@†*«....
.^«*†$@###    coworkers. (in fact the company is    ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###   ai-run and only a few key roles are    ###@$†*«^.
.....^*$##         filled by actual people.         ##$*^.....
.^«*†$@###                                          ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###     none of the employees know this.)    ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###                                          ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†††$##                 ««« «««                  ##$†††*«^.
.^«***†$$@               ««« ««« «««                @$$†***«^.
.^^«*†$$##                  ««« «««                 ##$$†*«^^.
....^**$##                                          ##$**^....
.^«*†$@###   nick and miku are both stationed in    ###@$†*«^.
....«††$@#  early processing, housed in a state of  #@$††«....
.^«*$@####    the art factory close to the docks.   ####@$*«^.
.....«*$@@  they create the early building blocks   @@$*«.....
.^«*†$@###  that are later combined into the meals  ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###         that's sold to customers.        ###@$†*«^.
.^^«*††$$#                                          #$$††*«^^.
......«††@       the bases are mostly sludges       @††«......
.^«*†††$@#            or pastes, such as:           #@$†††*«^.
.^«*†$@###                                          ###@$†*«^.
....^«†$##  *« plant matter                         ##$†«^....
.^«*†$$$##  *« 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  #$$$*^....
.^«*†$@###   over these as well. their purpose is   ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###                 unclear.                 ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###                                          ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###  the factory is surrounded by the blood  ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###     meal farms. there is a constant      ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@@##  exchange of blood and blood meal. this  ##@@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###  provides two of the major materials for ###@$†*«^.
.^«***†$@@       both the colonies and miku.        @@$†***«^.
.^«*†$@###                                          ###@$†*«^.
....^^*$##                 ««« «««                  ##$*^^....
..^^««*†@#                ««« ««« «««               #@†*««^^..
.^«*†$@###                  ««« «««                 ###@$†*«^.
....«†$@@#                                          #@@$†«....
.^«*†$@###       nick is uncomfortable around       ###@$†*«^.
......«††@          the "wild flesh" vats.          @††«......
.^«*†$@###                                          ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###                                          ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###                                          ###@$†*«^.
.^«*†$$$##                                          ##$$$†*«^.
.^«*†$@###                                          ###@$†*«^.