OH Sorry...! I never saw this... hang on reading all the posts now!
UPDATE:
Ok..some ideas..not in any particular order..so bear with me..
1) The Conclave & Phalanx - I never got the feeling they were a 'military' operation. I think that the Conclave pretty much a bunch of stuffy old anarchists more concerned about the politics of policing the study and prestige of their wizard school were too involved in the day to day running of the school and social jockeying for possition in their tigh little elite band to be bothered with going out into the world and dealing with magical conundrums or even threats...but they were the people that all the mundanes looked too as a Master Magicians, but no one "really" wanted them to come down from 'ON HIGH' and actually police magic in the world... way too much like giving them control of everything..which I'm sure the Nobility and rich merchants would not really want the Conclave looking into too closely how they use magic to keep, and acquire their wealth. SSo... the Phalanx Teams were organized not as police or a military more of a private magical investigation teams. These Phalanx teams were simply made of of volunteer wizards who attended the magic school willing to devote their time to investigating magical disputes, mysteries or threats. The Phalanx Teams have the sanction of the Conclave to give them a level of authority but it purely a public-relations thing. You see the Conclave does not want the responsibility of doing it themselves unless some real threat presents itself and they 'sanction' the Phalanx teams to say see we are doing something about it investigating your petty mostly unimportant mundane issues if real magic is involved. Also sanctioning the Phalanx teams allows the conclave a scapegoat for when things get screwed up they can blame the Phalanx teams and not accept the responsibility of their complacency in the first place. Also granting their sanction allows them the freedom of micro-managing and demanding results without taking up their personal time and efforts on away form the research and magical studies that interest them. So the Conclave gets to have its cake and eat it too!
So that really means that YES the Phalanx teams are basically Teen Titan's groups that petition for sanction by the Conclave and the Conclave puts on a veneer of "How Important and Dedicated" applicants need to be ..tested and screened before Conclave sanction as a Phalanx Team...all to hide the fact THEY don't want to lift a finger to do any of that ~ 'in the field' work away from far more important things; like their internal jockeying for who is the most powerful wizard on the conclave.
Now THIS may not be true.. but its the impression I've been left with about the Conclave and their Phalanx teams.
2) Moby - I think there are many reasons why Moby lost it and ranted at Suspiria.
One ~ one of her close contacts on the Phalanx team killed herself and responsible or not.. Moby blamed Suspiria for it when she learned that Suspiira's powers were enough to alter reality.
Two ~ The Phalanx ARE NOT professional anythings! They are as far as I can tell volunteer spellcasters who get sanction from the conclave to investigate and handle magical disputes, mysteries or threats...trusting that their individual magical powers are sufficient to handle the situation...but none of them are formally trained as combat spellcasters the Conclave does not have a military branch.. that is not how they run the magical school. Its basically a liberal arts college with spellcasting as a focus for those with the talent to 'discover' their gifts. So it's perfectly reasonable that Phalanx members are not really trained in dealing with stressful emotions or moral conundrums beyond controlling their magical abilities.. and have no law enforcement regimen to fall back on...they are not a law enforcement organization and certainly NOT a military!
Three ~ Oh yeah.. it would be Sooo EASY to blame Suspiria for Moby trying to basically rape Crest 'she was altering reality and made me do it'... but honestly.. I'm not entirely buying that. I think the answer is simpler... Moby is a Hottie.. she knows it, she sees it in the reactions men and women have to her.. she has NEVER been rejected. The simple fact is she saw something in Crest.. his nobility, his intelligence, his forthrightness.. his faith that things can be better tomorrow.. his tenderness; Moby saw that he really cared and that his heart was motivated by love ~ not selfish personal interest. Crest did not see Moby as a object to be used for his own satisfaction nor anyone else and that REALLY touched her heart... deeper and more profoundly than she realized or was willing to admit ~ Even to herself!! But Moby is damaged.. she has issues... and rejection is NOT something she was emotionally or even potentially mentally prepared to accept! Yeah.. everyone was acting strange so perhaps a little push and her own personal desires and low self-esteem nudged her into doing something she would not normally think she was capable of...especially when it is easier to assume that people are as shallow as she is.. and has not been proven wrong in her opinion upon how men usually treat her. Remember she also is a wizard and magic is a warping of reality by the qualia ~ most people can only warp reality in limited or very focused ways.. self-delusion can be a powerful distraction even for non-magically talented people..look at Bern's father. So maybe it all comes down to the fact that Moby really likes what she sees in Crest and was frustrated that finding a man with his admirable qualities forces her to question her assumptions about men in-general and even about herself something she Really does not want to do and psychologically she wanted Crest to be just like all the other men so she did not have to question her paradigm of reality, question her nihilistic views. People can be very good at fooling themselves and being forced to look in the mirror long and hard at yourself is some times unbearable. I think she went a little crazy briefly..perhaps Suspiria's powers made the situation more possible.. but I think the emotions were indeed all hers. Moby's value system of her self-worth in relation to what she Thinks she needs to feel alive, maybe some small distraction from the lingering daily sadness and loneliness she claims to feel ARE VERY Skewed! She's unhappy and lonely and does not know what to do about it but the THINKS mindless Sex is a way to distract her from that emptiness she feels. She claims not to believe in love..but honestly I think TRUE love is just what she is longing for! Many times what people want or think they want is not what they need or really want..they delude themselves not understanding what THEY personally need to really be happy or possibly not even knowing that they are unhappy. As I said Moby has ...issues.
I feel sorry for her.. not pity.. but truly feel sorry for her sadness and loneliness...
Four ~ she ranted at Suspiria... because with all the things Moby had been inspired to do with Crest.. throwing herself at him and then trying to take from him what she thinks she desires and needs by force ~ because of how skewed her value system and self-esteem are.. she sees Crest as this wonder {a person who truly loves someone}.. and its something SHE wants deep inside..someone who loves her with such truth and fidelity. Suspiria angers her because she feels Suspiria is cheating making Crest ~ this wondrous guy, who if not for Suspiria might actually be with her! Moby says she does not believe in love, but she does not realize that is what she wants, she does not feel worthy of it and so she seeks to reinforce her disbelief in love by proving to herself that all men are the same... only good for a roll in bar and then gone, THAT WAY she does not have to look into the mirror and she her own shallowness..cause "everybody's the same anyways."
So these are my points of view.. they are not necessarily the truth..but they seem likely to me.