WOLFSBANE ARTICLE 05: 'RESIDENCE'

"Sorry, no tours. We used to offer them, but everybody kept getting on the bad side of the wildlife, and the really unlucky ones got on the bad side of the shrubbery." ~ Tala 'Eclipse' Takashima, when asked by a Mercenary if she could be shown around the Doorway Layer.





HOME SWEET HOME

- The Bosses are firm believers that all shady organizations need a personal abode of some sort. In their opinion, only the truly terrifying monsters have a lair; not only does it broadcast a dreadful presence and create safe haven to amass wealth within, it also tends to attract a bounty of 'goodie-two-shoes' that soon take on the role of lunch. This ideology may be a tad cliche, but the Bosses are all for making what's predictable and making it work for them in an unpredictable way. Especially when it comes to a place to call their own.

- As with the rest of their treasures, the Bosses are somewhat reserved when it comes to showing them off. This time, though, it is not a practical need to keep valuable secrets hidden that is the reason for withholding data on the Wolfsbane Turfs. The Bosses happen to have a great respect for privacy, not just for themselves and all who work for them. As such, they have taken steps to ensure that their territories are immune to any surveillance. There will always be those who claim to know confidential things about the Turfs, but it's a fact that such specimens are making empty boasts, and they don't always know it. Regardless, while the Bosses are sincerely concerned with what directly belongs to them, they are considerably more slack towards that which they did not truly create. That's not to say they don't have an interest in such places; they do, but their agenda isn't so much to 'manage' as it is to 'establish' their presences within them, and that can be for a plethora of reasons.

- Given the number of possible areas the Bosses can inflict an occupancy on, there is not enough data storage anywhere that can hold a list of their initial ventures, much less they secondary ones. However, they have made mention of one asset:

- Something about a 'Firstgate'.





BASE OF OPERATIONS

- More specifically, they called it Firstgate-Earth. It has gone by several other titles, like the Network's Tortuga and THRESHOLDS-35, the latter of which is an acronym for something unknown. How it's connected to other THRESHOLDS, how it's linked to greater venues like Network FOOTHOLDS, HOUSEHOLDS, STRONGHOLDS and BEHOLDS, and how it and its aforementioned superiors are related to the Wolfsbane Turfs themselves is also unknown. Even if they are not 'part' of the Network itself, the Bosses prefer not to get too chatty about them. What's known is how it got its attached title, as well as a few other details.

- Firstgate-Earth is a THRESHOLDS formed out of a Target Zone that a particular Solar System is located in. Target Zones themselves could be anything. They could be a universe, or they could have no documented parameters outside Wolfsbane. They could be so vast that not even Beyond-Omniscient Beings and their many 'variants' can figured out just where they begin, where they are situated, or where they might end. Target Zones could be even places that don't exist, cannot be fathomed or perceived, outside of Existence, or are beyond the imagining of the loftiest minds. That being said, Wolfsbane has made no effort to conceal their efforts concerning the third planet from that System's Sun. At least, to those who aren't its inhabitants. All life within the Earth watched over by THRESHOLDS-35 is unaware of the Network. That Earth itself appears to be a normal one, dominated by a normal human civilization that has gotten a good grasp on modernity.

- Appearances, of course, can be deceiving.

- Great power emanates from the center of the planet, and it has not gone unnoticed by the rest of the surrounding universe's denizens. Even as humanity blissfully minds its own business, alien fleets and dangerous entities bear down on the tiny blue world from every direction. Wolfsbane has had to rely on an extremely downsized detachment of troops to defend the Earth in order to avoid attracting the attention of the human populace, or producing any collateral damage, but they have managed to prevent catastrophes from within and without. The question that remains is what might Wolfsbane be planning for this Earth. Regrettably, that is a tale for another day.

- The point is that Firstgate-Earth was primarily set up to monitor an Earth of interest, hence the suffix. However, that is not the only purpose of this specific Network THRESHOLDS. Firstgate-Earth has seen a variety of uses, the two most common of which are being employed as a Headquarters for Mercenaries, Minions and Merchants to set forth on various missions, and being a sort of 'Staging Outpost' for incursions into other alternate realities. The twelve CORPS are present, and while they are ordered to operate at much more scaled-down levels, they are still very active, almost constantly sending Operatives somewhere, as ordered by their Bosses.

- Despite being manufactured using non-Wolfsbane ingredients from the Target Zone, Firstgate-Earth is by no means an ordinary place. Whatever the raw materials chosen, the circumstances in effect, or all the building methods taken, Firstgate-Earth is an undeniably remarkable fabrication. Consider that Firstgate-Earth is charted out by Wolfsbane members not with light years but with ACE-Points, a unit of measurement coined from three terms. The 'A' comes from 'Apex-Infinitum Omnicosmos Sub-Type', the 'C' comes from 'Culminant, Excelsior, Omniregion Sub-Type', and the 'E' comes from 'Et Cetera Omnilevel Sub-Type'. It is unknown how exactly those compare would to the definitions of others; the Network has lists upon lists of qualifications before an 'area' in question may become as large as an Et Cetera, or when an Et Cetera becomes an Et Cetera Sub-Cosmos, and so forth.

- While on that note, an 'Et Cetera' is not a definite place, but the systematic lists of such things. Put simply, if one were to start at a 'Regular-Normal-Mundane' Universe, and then proceed to an 'R-N-M' Multiverse, and then proceed towards an 'R-N-M' Omniverse, and go on without stopping, that would be a Sequence of Universes. Include all terms and their consequent sequences, cardinalities, and variants, whether polymorphic or inconceivable, transcendent or descendant, real or arcane, fictional or unimaginable, logical, or illogical, divine or imaginary, cosmic or beyond-cosmic (or even considered 'Ever-Transcendent' by Transcendent Beings themselves), as well as any adjustments, imitations, upgrades, or counterparts made...and that wouldn't even begin to be the start of an 'Et Cetera'.

- In other words, Firstgate-Earth is large.

- Size isn't the only thing that makes it special, though. Firstgate-Earth has a peculiar arrangement, one that looks like an array of sorts if portrayed via a map drawn by the Bosses. Using that map, which is really just a basic representation, the Network's Tortuga appears as three large circles meshed in with many others.

- Wolfsbane calls the three main circles the FRZ, the FST, and the FHD Layers.





PARAMOUNT PALACES

- The FRZ Layer, pronounced 'furs', is the Firstgate-Earth 'Ringleader' Zones. It is the innermost circle of THRESHOLDS-35, and it is the Bosses' personal domiciles. The FRZ Layer is made up of endless 'wonder-themed' mansions, surrounded by equally-endless cities. These bustling 'Metropolises' blend 'outdoors' and 'indoors' to the point where such a distinction becomes moot, and each one is a nonpareil fusion of manufactured, natural and fantastical elements. The Bosses may opt to govern their CORPS from this Layer or make more 'in-person' appearance. The FRZ is also where they do the majority of their education, and the lessons are given via special Manifestations of the Wolfgang members acting as their aides. Vidan, Siegfried and Delmorte will show up most often within the FRZ Layer; the Bosses' presences in Firstgate-Earth are strongest here, meaning it is the most stable realm for repetitive visits from their Manifestations.

- Unlike the FST and the FHD, the FRZ Layer is divided into twelve partitions only, one for each of the Bosses. The names of the palace-cities are hidden for now, but each of them have a style that can be traced back to their respective Boss. Zhao's Capital, for instance, features a 'Great Wall' theme and is made out of precious stones and metals, Scheidel's Capital is has a theme of 'Cathedral' and is constructed entirely out of food, Richard's Capital has the theme of 'Castle' and is made of sleek, futuristic gizmos, and Dante presides over a city with the theme of 'Megatall Tower' trapped inside an eternal stormy night.





QUALITY QUARTERS

- The FST Layer, pronounced 'fist', is the Firstgate-Earth 'Superiority' Territories. It is the middle circle, dwelt in by all Officials, Officers, and Operatives making up the detachment of CORPS within THRESHOLDS-35. It is also the main operating station of Firstgate-Earth. Where the FRZ Layer can be equated to a CEO's room at the top of a skyscraper, and the FHD Layer would be a lobby, the FST Layer is the numerous offices making up the rest of the building: the majority of all the work happens here.

- This Layer is made up of an unending lattice of rooms, and those can range from laboratories to cafeterias. Such chambers are not bound to a size range. The lowest of all employees may be stuck with tiny cubicles, while the ones higher up on the food chain sip tea in lounges that could hold their own Omniverse Myriads. Furniture is the most valuable commodity on this Layer; promotions can be just as prized as a new table.

- There are no partitions in this Layer. It is a single, uninterrupted chunk, but there are four Room Classifications revealed so far:

- Leisure Spaces: These rooms can range from Game Arcades to Sports Centers, from Shopping Malls to Gourmet Restaurants, from Movie Theaters to Relaxation Spas, to even Wildlife Zoos and Amusement Parks. These Rooms are used mostly for recreational purposes. Wolfsbane Operatives are not above entertainment, or being pampered, for that matter. Every so often, the Bosses will throw Layer-wide carnivals that last for days, boosting morale, distributing goods and reducing stress.

- Utility Spaces: These rooms can range from Public Laundromats to Supply Closets, from Locker Storage to Waste Disposal, from Render Farms to Transport Nexuses, to even Power Plants and Libraries. These Rooms are needed to keep the place running smoothly. They are fully automated, leaving Operatives free to concentrate on their main duties. Utility Spaces are managed by the Escargot CORPS, but it's mostly to make sure their automated features are functioning properly.

- Personnel Spaces: These rooms can range from Master Bedrooms to Luxury Kitchens and Pantries, from Customized Closets to Private Studies, from Vehicle Garages to Layer Balconies, to even Pet Kennels and Chapels. These Rooms are the homes of Operatives, and are their personal areas. As one can guess, the better the Operative, the better their house will be. Some Personal Spaces will even connect directly with the other Layers, providing spectacular views of the FRZ and FHD Layers.

- Work Spaces: These rooms can range from Research Facilities to Factory Complexes, from Hospital Zones to Gear Armories, from Help Desks to Security Booths, to even School Campuses. These Rooms are where business matters are conducted. Operatives perform their duties here while the Bosses keep tabs on everyone's progress. One's performance here determines how well their access to the other Spaces will be, aside their status on the Network's food chain.





SUNDRY SECTORS

- The FHD Layer, pronounced 'fade', is the Firstgate-Earth 'Horizonless' Domains. It is the outermost circle, and has a rather unique purpose. While the comparison of being the 'ground floor' of THRESHOLDS-35 still applies, it is the circle that is expanded before the others. Whenever Firstgate-Earth has to be enlarged, the FHD Layer must first be grown, and only then do the FST and FRZ Layers follow suit.

- The FHD is comprised completely of outdoor environments, and each one goes on forever. In contrast to the purely-indoor FST Layer, and the mixture of outdoor and indoor at the FRZ Layer, the FHD Layer is 'natural'. Each environment is specific, and is called a Sector. There are sites where the FHD and FST Layers intersect, and Sector Towns will occur there, but those are not a frequent occurrence. Towns will also take on an appearance related to their respective Sector. For example, Towns in Oceanic Sectors will be underwater or float freely on the surface of never-ending waves. An added caveat: the Bosses have made it so that no accidental repetitions occur in their Sectors. When speaking on any scale above googolplex, quantum physics dictates that 'doppelgangers' will exist in a given space. This is because there are only so many possible quantum states that can occupy a certain area. The Bosses have done away with this limitation, and as illogical and impossible as that may sound, it is in their nature to trample upon whatever science says can or cannot happen.

- As there are too many places within the FHD layer to list, the Bosses have each chosen from among their favorites to present. The names of these wilderness kingdoms have been replaced with that of precious stones, but that is only because the alternative is an incoherent block of numbers, letters and symbols that form the Sector's real title. There may be innumerable copies, variations and upgrades of a single Sector, so the Bosses aren't stuck with just one kind of landscape. Mountainous Sectors, for example, can range from volcanic to alpine.

- The Diamond Sector: A realm of skies. It is a firmament crowded with fluffy, flowing vapors in eternal daylight, and it is also Damien's favorite place to spar. Sighting him here with another Boss or two is common, and they will light up the place with spectacular shows of aerial skill. Its vast, open spaces are also great testing grounds for prototypes of vessels and projectile-based weaponry not meant for outer space. Towns in this Sector are usually borne on immense clusters of balloons. Weather shifts can happen, and those may last for years on end, but they will be isolated incidents, unlike instances where the entire Sector itself is a single hurricane or blizzard.

- The Ruby Sector: A realm of canyons. Arguably the one of the more breathtaking of the twelve revealed Sectors. The Ruby Sector takes form of a titanic ravine, carved into the ground by a river that stretches on without end. The depth and width of the space in between the cliffs of this landscape may range from a few kilometers to many light years, and each craggy face of rock seems to have a personality of its own. The sparse vegetation compliments the hues of rust and brown, while at at the bottom of the Sector a river continues to grind into the bedrock. Towns within this Sector are castles perched on top of the canyon walls. The sky is a permanent red sunset.

- The Emerald Sector: A realm of jungles. Unlike the forests of the FHD Layer, the weather in the Emerald Sector remains the same: warm and wet. Torrential rain frequently unloads buckets upon buckets of water upon the thick greenery. Innumerable species dwell here, but plants are the dominant feature, sometimes literally. While there are lovely flowers, the mightiest trees in all of the twelve revealed Sectors, and symbiotic moss and vines everywhere, there are many places where carnivorous flora have taken root. The Emerald Sector is a treasure trove of herbal assets, whether it be for sustenance or medicine. Towns here take form bridge-linked treehouses.

- The Onyx Sector: A realm of caves. It is surprisingly hard to feel claustrophobic in this grid caverns and tunnels. While it is true that tight squeezes can happen, the good majority of the Onyx Sector is made up of jaw-dropping expanses. There is no surface to reach. As with all the other sceneries in the FHD Layer, the caves have no end to them. But as gloomy they might seem to be, these deep spaces are beautiful, and this becomes more evident in the mining-rich parts of the Onyx Sector, where Towns are located. There, upside-down 'cities' hang like stalactites from the ceiling, overlooking fields of glowing crystals, each one more priceless and useful than the last.

- The Quartz Sector: A realm of rivers. A counterpart of Island Sectors, where the ratio of land to water heavily favors the latter, the Quartz Sector is made of rivers ever cascading towards a non-existent ocean. Some are narrow and rapid, some are wide and calm, some are dry. A quiet babbling stream could instantly link up to a thundering deluge. There are no lakes, regardless of how the land may shift. Waterfalls may occur at random spots but they are not the core feature of the Quartz Sector. Wildlife is plenteous, though the majority of it is constantly on the move. Towns in this Sector are stone dams that draw (never-used) hydroelectric power from select rivers.

- The Jasper Sector: A realm of savannas. In Masserian's opinion, it is not as boring as grassland plains or as crowded as the woodlands, although it certainly possess traits from the two. While largely flat, there are many places where small, rolling hills give the Jasper Sector a lot personality. Sparsely-placed trees dot the landscape, along with the a cluster of bushes here and there. Mostly dry and hot, it is a rugged and picturesque scene where green has been tinted with accents of gold. Large, genetically-enhanced herds roam the Sector, hounded by groups of predators. Towns appear as straw villages; as stampedes are not a rarity by far, they have to be portable.

- The Calcedony Sector: A realm of webs. The weirdest of the twelve presented Sectors, this realm is an empty void except for the myriad of silken grids woven across the expanse. The webs themselves appear to have been made by different species of spiders. There are many kinds, from those that bear a striking resemblance to the grand masterpieces woven by earthling Orb Spiders, to the fuzzy dens of the Trap Door Spiders. The silken threads here can be so thin that they become invisible, or so thick that their circumference has yet to be measured. They all glow in the dark. Sector Towns are entangled within larger webs, wrapped up in cocoons of silver like trapped bugs.

- The Tourmaline Sector: A realm of deserts. Probably the worst of the unveiled Sectors to be stranded in. All the others offer one or more methods for a quick, relatively painless death. Being stuck out here means slowly drying out; hallucinations, taste of sand in mouth, merciless heat are also part of the package. Sandstorms may roll in with surprising speeds and disappear just as quickly. Once every now and then there is an oasis or a rock formation, yet this realm remains as mostly gargantuan sand dunes. Life does exist, but it prefers to stay buried in the sands or around the oases, wherever those are found. Towns are cloth tents huddled around groups of immense pyramids.

- The Garnet Sector: A realm of lava. Lee Northorn's chosen hangout is an ever-shifting wasteland of glowing red slag, poisonous fumes, and suffocating temperatures. Sometimes, the molten rock will clump up together and cool off, creating jagged islands in the slow-moving lake of fire. These unfriendly masses of blackened stone are not always permanent; they have been known to sink back in the scalding soup from where they came from, without warning. Surprisingly, there is life. Spiny, worm-like creatures swim in the lava, and their many species hunt each other for food. Sector Towns take form of jagged obsidian towers that rise from the burning depths.

- The Amethyst Sector: A realm of flesh. Where the Calcedony Sector is arcane, the Amethyst Sector is just plain creepy. It's still very beautiful in its own way, but an entire realm designed to be the innards of some alien creature has got to be the work of the more quirky Bosses. The entire Sector pulses; organs, tissues and entrails form part of a 'body' equipped with bright, violet bioluminescence. Operatives have charted out all sorts of biological systems, ranging from digestive, to nervous, to circulatory. Life, that is not directly part of the Sector itself, is parasitic. Towns are specialized tumors, and each one can be cut off in order to be grafted or grown elsewhere.

- The Peridot Sector: A realm of forests. Four seasons exist the majority of these Sector types, as opposed to the jungles. The trees here, while different, are no less as enormous as as those of the Emerald Sector. This mirrors the ecosystem of the Earth that THRESHOLDS-35 currently watches over; sequoias and redwoods are among the largest trees, and they are not usually the denizens of jungles. Regardless, the Peridot Sector undergoes changes with each season, and each one lasts for a year as opposed to a few months. The wildlife resembles that of Earth's own, 'enhanced' by Wolfsbane. Towns are wooden cabins grouped together in forest clearings.

- The Sapphire Sector: A realm of seas. From among the twelve presented by the Bosses, this one is easily the most abundant in life. Unlike barren, bottomless oceans found all over the FHD, or domains that are purely underwater, the Sapphire Sector is shallow enough for sunlight to reach its floor. Whole ecosystems exist here, supported by corral and vegetation; everything from plankton to apex predators are present and thriving. Aside being a great vacationing spot, this Sector is an inexhaustible source of food (or other marine resources like giant pearls) and it is a prime testing-zone for Wolfsbane's navy. Towns usually take form of lavish Venice-like ports.





THE NEIGHBORHOOD

- Referring back to the 'map' representing Firstgate-Earth, there is a thin outer circle labelled the Doorway Layer. Contrary to what it might appear to be on paper, the Doorway Layer is not the boundary of THRESHOLDS-35. Rather, it is realm that any Wolfsbane member must traverse before entering the inner circles of Firstgate-Earth. The Doorway Layer, as is the others, is a product created using ingredients from a Target Zone. One of the things that sets it appear from the FRZ, the FST or the FHD, is that the Doorway Layer is small enough to connect with the Target Zone itself. Firstgate-Earth may have been 'born' from the Target Zone, but that doesn't mean the former resided within the latter. Much like the anchor chain of a ship is too big to form a link with a necklace, THRESHOLDS-35 would not attach to the Target Zone so much as it would squash it. The purpose of the Doorway Layer is to bridge Firstgate-Earth with the Target Zone, albeit that isn't its only one.

- The Doorway Layer appears as collection of Existences, as well as 'higher', 'lower', and 'alternate' variants of such. This bunch of Existences may look perfectly normal at times and in certain places, and that wouldn't be too far from the truth. They do have normal multiverses, dimensions and planes. The laws of reality in them are identical to those of the Target Zone. However, there are certain 'attachments' that 'exist outside' of each Existence, ranging from traps to decoys, that can be deployed against anything attempting to 'interact' with them. This means the Doorway Layer does serves as a portal, and it also functions like a sieve. Invaders, interlopers and infiltrators alike never make it past this Layer, but all are free to leave it.

- Every THRESHOLDS also possesses a 'FENS', which stands for 'Fringe Empires: Network States'. These, much like THRESHOLDS themselves, are products 'manufactured' out of the Target Zone. They will be discussed further on a later Article, but their residence will be mentioned here. As the FRZ, FST and FHD Layers are reserved for the Manifestations of Wolfsbane as tailored to the Target Zone, FENS are given the Doorway Layer as their grounds of operation; they are not actually part of the Bosses' Network.

- Now, the FENS are constantly being 'pruned' via frequent War Games. Fringe Empires who fare the worst at the War Games are discarded from the collective FENS, and they are sent outside even the Doorway Layer. These former FENS, confiscated of all their power and assets prior to being turned into refuse, have united to form the SWORDS, and they will have their own document. Despite being utterly detached from the FENS, they still have a very important part to play for the Bosses of the Wolfsbane Syndicate.

- 'Beside' the Doorway Layer is the Target Zone. As touched on earlier, the Target Zone is the reason for the formation of a THRESHOLDS. Whether the more advanced Wolfsbane fabrications, like the FOOTHOLDS and the BEHOLDS are made for a Target Zone of their own is not confirmed, neither are there theories available. All that has been revealed concerning THRESHOLDS-35 is that it was concocted to safeguard a special Earth. What wasn't mentioned earlier was that the Target Zone of Firstgate-Earth seems to have special channels into Non-Target Zones. Just what those are used for remains a mystery, for now.

- The SWORDS use the Target Zone too, but they have own realm to call home. Their borders extend into Non-Target Zones, unlike those of Firstgate-Earth, who are ordered to stay where they are planted.





WOLFSBANE SERIES

ARTICLE 01: rafael-domination.deviantart.c…
ARTICLE 02: rafael-domination.deviantart.c…
ARTICLE 03: rafael-domination.deviantart.c…
ARTICLE 04: rafael-domination.deviantart.c…
ARTICLE 05: YOU ARE HERE
ARTICLE 06: rafael-domination.deviantart.c…
ARTICLE 07: rafael-domination.deviantart.c…
ARTICLE 08: rafael-domination.deviantart.c…
ARTICLE 09: rafael-domination.deviantart.c…
ARTICLE 10: rafael-domination.deviantart.c…

APPENDIX 01: rafael-domination.deviantart.c…
APPENDIX 02: rafael-domination.deviantart.c…
APPENDIX 03: rafael-domination.deviantart.c…
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