Shit lots to dig into here.
Grime gremlin: Yeah this was not as well thought out as it should have been. Admittedly my mind just kinda thought up the leaving sludge behind part and just didn't think it through. There are SEVERAL spots that if you are a janitor or are at all familiar with the equipment then you know some scenes wouldn't work or they would have some flaws. Surprised someone caught something like that from the supernatural side and not the mundane side. The idea that they are in fact doing important work here kinda slipped my mind in that yeah the thematic dissonance is there. I see that now. I could maybe make the case that IRL sanitation jobs DO infact stop societal collapse as true. If you worked in sanitation to any degree you quickly see how FUCKY it all is. Just how much trash/waste a single person makes in one day is incredible. Regardless of fighting gods or just keeping things tidy the jobs are meaningful.
Cultural differences: One of our team members is Aussie! Wanted to throw in some things for fun. Wanted to add in milk bar too, and some of the photos show Australian traffic. Just wanted some fun. The red wolf thing is just referencing the species from North Carolina. It's an endangered species. Thought it was fun. The indigenous undertones legit escaped me. Wanted a wolf breed. Picked red wolves.
Trains: Another good one. Damn. You're right. Could have smoothed that out a bit. I think I wanted my cake and eat it to there. The confusion as to the usage of that as a dog whistle versus just unknowingly repeating shit (as some white bois do) could be added.
Theme: Its true everyone did their part to progress the MC ideologically. Zane was the one doing the tangible work of inviting MC and making space for him to exist. He might not have the theory down like others do, but he lives the values. He was the one initiating things. That is where I think Zane fits into the Light angle and My Wolf angle.
Thank you for the constructive criticism. It was a challenge building something this large and yet keeping it this small. Always happy to see books length comments. Love engagement like this! Happy trails.