<b><span style="text-decoration: underline">Mess Hall - Arthur</span></b><br/><br/>There was something about places like this, Arthur mused, where all that collective difficulty and trails lead to greater generosity and goodwill than anywhere else. A sort of team spirit 'You and I are both having tough times, so let's do our best together!' that made people easily extend a helping hand or other limb to aid those having a rougher time than themselves. It always warmed his heart, and brought warm laughter forth from his chest. The exchange between the three before had him covering his mouth to try and not offend him with his chuckling.<span style="color: Blue"> "Well!"</span>He said, after composing himself a little.<span style="color: Blue">"I doubt we really should go that far, Debbie, was it right? Certainly not a first date thing, but I'll keep in mind you enjoy such things."</span>He winked teasingly at the catgirl.<br/><br/><span style="color: Blue">"In either case, thank you for the offer, Nesea, looks like Aura's willing to try too, and if there's something I can trust to take care of anyone new, it's you."</span>He smiled warmly to reinforce his words.<span style="color: Blue">"I'd rather not have Aura get into trouble because she ends up going somewhere dangerous while sleepwalking. She's not too used to other transhumans yet, Nesea, but I trust you'll help her with that too." </span>He got up, placing a comforting hand on Aura's shoulder.<span style="color: Blue">"Oh, and Aura, if anything else comes up feel free to talk to me. About your sleepwalking troubles or anything else, I'm always willing to listen. Sorry I can't offer too much advise though, maybe ask Meguri? If it's something to do with your heritage that fox might have a better idea."</span>He offered parting nods to Nesea and Debbie.<span style="color: Blue">"I'll go arrange the bedding change now. Nesea, Debbie, Aura, talk to you later."</span><br/><br/><span style="text-decoration: underline"><b><br/>
Mess Hall - Michael</b></span><br/><br/><span style="color: Silver">"Morgan..."</span>The owl possessed girl nervously tugged on the vampiress's shoulder, trying to get her friend to leave Michael alone, it was all to clear that his appearance discomforted Twitch. Morgan however, was all too eager to answer the lizard-like man's curiousity, and it's not like Twitch could match her friend's strength and pull her away.<span style="color: Red">"I don't do any hunting! I dance! At club Minxx! Didn't always work there, I was in accounting back when I was still human after all!"</span>The vampiress laughed, the sound of a babbling brook, as if all her worries and suffering didn't exist.<span style="color: Red">"I don't need to hunt, working and dancing for Mr. Wolfe, I get paid less than I used to as a human, but he gives me blood bags. Official stores don't have blood this good. It makes... my head full of stars, and my body feels light as a feather. I'm always... sad, lost and hurt, except at times like now, after eating." </span><br/><br/>Perhaps dwelling on her troubles makes her feel them, because Morgan's giddy excitement fades a little, leaving behind a contemplative smile while Twitch nervously waits for the vampiress to finish her whimsy.<span style="color: Red">"You... look a little sad, lost and hurt yourself... Or... is that just me?"</span><br/><br/><b><span style="text-decoration: underline"><br/>
Rift lab</span></b><br/><br/>Meguri purred a wordless thanks to Whisper as the Cheshire cat deposited of a steaming mug of thick black coffee on her desk. Murring, she sat there in her chair, letting herself slowly wake up from her sluggedness with the thick coffee and the excited sounds of Skippy ruffling through charts and data. Takara's quip brought a bit of a smile to the kitsune's lips, and grinned as she replied.<i>"Coffee is a human tradition you know, it helps separate reality from dream. Wouldn't that make it essential for our jobs here? And it's not my fault our coffee machine is a hand me down from the kitchen."</i>There was always mountains of data, recordings and measurements to be processed at the lab. Looking for patterns and causality. It was far from fun work, but it was paying off.<br/><br/>At this point, they could predict when and where a rift a might appear several days and weeks in advance, and could occasionally guess at it's strength. The accuracy of their predictions was also getting better. Meguri had even made a list of possible rift types and strength.<br/><br/><div style="text-align: center">
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<div class="SpoilerTarget bbCodeSpoilerText"><b>Rift Type</b><br/>
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Type A: The Tear</span><br/>
In certain places, the barrier between reality and fantasy gets so thin that something powerful from fantasy manages to push through, tearing through the barrier into reality, hence this rift's name. Every transhuman not born in reality arrived through a tear in the barrier. Thousands if not millions of these tears occurred during Kohoutek's passing.<br/>
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When something comes through a tear, it's still part of fantasy. Remnants of the barrier cling to them like cobweb, and the barrier cannot mend and heal until either the creature is killed. Other creatures might arrive through the tear, but only the original and likely most powerful creature needs to be slain, those other creatures simply get dragged back into fantasy when the one holding the tear open gets killed.<br/>
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If left alone, the barrier will slowly mend, but the creature from fantasy will become part of reality. Since it doesn't look possible for the barrier to be torn from reality to fantasy, that means the creature's stuck here. <br/>
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<span style="text-decoration: underline">Type B: The Fade</span><br/>
Not as common as tears, fade rifts occur when the barrier get so weak it fades (hence the name) completely from one spot. The end result is reality and fantasy mix together, becoming both and neither. Fade rifts are incredibly dangerous, as they might leave permanent changes to reality even when dispersed and reality and fantasy is separated once more. Not only that, but unlike tears, fade rifts will NEVER mend if left alone, and will only grow, slowly corrupting the area around them.<br/>
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This means that fade rifts have to be dealt with as quickly as possible, or they could endanger huge areas. Already, it's said huge patches of the Earth have been consumed by fade rifts so large that they can only be slowed down from growing further, not undone entirely. It's hard to find proof of this, the United Governments aren't fond of anyone claiming doomsday. Once can only imagine the damage fade rifts cause in space, where's there's no one to deal with them. In fact, one theory suggests that black holes might in fact be fade rifts.<br/>
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Rift Strength</b><br/>
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Strength 0</span><br/>
Apocalypse, world-ending, a rift the result of the entire barrier failing. If a rift of this strength ever occurs, it would be the end of everything as we know it.<br/>
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Strength 1</span><br/>
World-spanning rift, might potentially cause the end of civilisation. Kohoutek's passing caused a strength 1 rift, and it forever changed the world, and lead to billions of deaths. Nobody knows if one of these might occur again, but it does, it's not going to be pretty.<br/>
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Strength 2</span><br/>
Region-spanning. A rift of this strength is expected to cause thousands and perhaps millions of deaths, and might wipe whole areas off the map.<br/>
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<span style="text-decoration: underline">Strength 3</span><br/>
City-spanning, or a large area. Thousands of deaths expected, hundreds certain. The last strength 3 rift was years ago, and it destroyed most of the neighbouring city of Glyph. Several incredibly powerful transhumans were involved in fighting the rift and one of them still died. Almost every rift hunter team Meguri had at the time was also wiped out. No one at the lab but Meguri still knows about that day, and she refuses to talk about it.<br/>
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<span style="text-decoration: underline">Strength 4</span><br/>
Large rift. Almost certain to lose one or more rift hunters to the dangers of the rift. Fade rifts at their weakest are at least strength four. They occur several times a year.<br/>
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<span style="text-decoration: underline">Strength 5</span><br/>
The weakest and most common type of rift. Nine times out of ten it's a strength five rift that needs dealing with. Can cause quite a bit of damage of civilian loss of life, but if cautious no rift hunters should lose their lives.<br/>
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</div></div><br/>It was a slow morning, but trouble showed up that point, heralded only by Meguri roughly jerking her chair backwards and standing straight, glaring full o hatred and anger at the entrance, where now stood a familiar figure. EVERYONE in Downtown Avalon knew Jonathan Wolfe, and everyone in the lab knew how much Meguri hated the tall, man in his suit that couldn't shake of the aura of wolf. Flanked by two of his bouncers, including Stump, Wolfe calmly greeted the kitsune while wandering over.<b>"Meguri, my girl, it's been a while."</b>He spoke, a sticky smirk on his lips as he spied Meguri's sole tail poofing up in an attempt to look bigger.<br/><i><br/>
"I told you not to come here!"</i>Meguri whined impotently, powerless to stop the man. Stopping in front of Meguri's desk, he reached out and faux-affectionally touched her cheek.<b>"Now, don't be rude to your guests, kleines mädchen. I just came to talk and have a look."</b>The kitsune winced and wrenched her shut eyes at Wolfe's touch, already cowering. As much as she hated the man, she feared him more. Meguri had her share of secrets, and Wolfe knew more of them than any others, rendering her and the rest of the rift lab powerless against him in fear that he might expose what he knows. Wolfe grinned, and turned his smirk towards Takara, leaving Meguri trembling in hate and fear at his touch.<b>"So, Takara I believe your name is. I'm not sure if we've met. I'm Mr Wolfe, owner of the Club Minxx establishment. Have you visited yet?"</b><div class="messageTextEndMarker"> </div>