Chapterhouse

I checked the time as I left the Corpus. If the work shift ended when I expected, the streets would start getting crowded in the next hour. I really needed to get over to the Chapterhouse before then. If one drunk sim guy was an incident, I could really do to not get into a crowd. I hated wearing my badge out, but if they were so against outsiders I just might need to. There was no purple in my limited wardrobe to blend in. And I didn’t have the tech to alter dye patterns. That might be a cheap solution to my troubles.

A little investigation into the town probably would do me good. What was their stance on outsiders? Generally everyone hated them as a gut reaction if prompted with the question. Though I did wonder if that many gave it a deeper thought than that. The reality was that I can’t imagine any of them had even seen an outsider to actually know what they’re really like.

However, I believed that some towns had a greater institutionalized rejection of outsiders due to historical events. It’s not without reason that people hated them. The ones that caused the current state of the world were from the broad group of “outsiders”. But I’m not sure anyone even remembers what they did.

It’s honestly hard to find much on the time from before the Collapse, especially around the event. Sort of a problem storing data when the electronic infrastructure completely broke. Though there were some that believed that the Basilica had it buried away. But if that were true, why would they be hiding it from the world.

Conspiracy theories, the lot of it.

I needed to focus on something a little more productive than fanciful notions of governmental cover ups. Like where I wanted to visit first tomorrow. I had free time until something came up. What the Courier recommended seemed like a good start.

When I get to the Chapterhouse I can plug into the network to get some map data. Then I could see what this town had to offer. My heart jumped a little at the thought. I tried to hide my smile as I walked.

B popped back up to my shoulder when a few blocks put the Coulen’s building behind us. He sat keeping steady balance turning about as the people passed by. It wasn’t as bad as before, but I think he still felt paranoid.

“Mind your manners.” He nodded back to me with a bit of a chirp.

Looking around at the intersection, I tried to get my orientation. It should be nearby, but it did vary. I had hoped just walking around the campus would give me eyes on the Chapterhouse. And there weren't any signs at ground level to give me direction. That was strange.

I made it down two more blocks still as lost and confused. The thought of asking for directions came to me when B poked my cheek. He seemed to be pointing to the sky.

Like before I immediately saw the artificial sun, but he wouldn’t have me just looking at that. It was then I realized with more observation that the sky’s cartography aesthetic went further than I realized. Marked along a web of lines connecting between different points of interest I followed it to something in Latin, “Chapterhouse”. It became an island on the sky drawn map. Tracking it against other points in the sky I finally got my orientation. “That’s different…oddly analog.” There was a charm to it, almost nostalgic.

At least I wasn’t lost anymore. I pointed myself in the correct direction and pondered the sky. Was it designed that way for visitors? But as I experienced, they either didn’t get many or didn’t like them. So why something that wouldn’t be that useful for the locals? I guess it could just be aesthetics, but I kinda didn’t want to drop it just on that.

The reality was that I wouldn’t be getting any answer for it. Or not one very easily. Not even sure anyone gets taught these things. They had more important things to focus on. But someone at the Basilica might know.

The map in the sky didn’t really give me distance. So I didn’t really know how far I was going. When I came across the Chapterhouse after only about five minutes I couldn’t help but feel a little embarrassed and miffed. Doing circles around the campus and I probably could have stumbled across it.

I was right in my thinking that it had to be nearby. The Basilica too could be seen down a block. All very much in walking distance of the Corpus as one would expect. It was logical given their sources.

I gave B a pet on the head. “You’ve recharged enough, B. Head back inside until I’m checked in. I’ll gauge how they feel about pets.” He nodded and scrambled down into my jacket. Most people didn’t even give me a look in the town. A pet monkey was a little exotic, even if the age we lived in I’d seen far stranger things.

From the outside, the Chapterhouse looked fairly well maintained. There were elements that looked in disrepair, probably non-critical ones. Rust said that they were very old. It must have been one of the longer standing Houses. Unlike the Basilica, they were a far newer establishment, even if they still predated the Collapse.

They served a different purpose back then from what I’ve been told. Aside from Basilica records and maybe some Corpus oligarch, there probably wasn’t anyone that could give a good answer. But the House had greater importance now for someone like me.

Home.

I stepped through its doors, a late Deco Neo-Roman design. The exterior and threshold all made it want to remind you of where it came from, even if they had split from them years ago. Grand and opulent with bold columns and large blocks for construction. Though knowing more contemporary designs, it was likely a facade.

Inside, it looked far more like what I expected to find, a hotel. While it certainly was more than that and any House owner would bristle if told that, that was their primary function. It had warm polished mahogany floors and trim with cream walls. A simpler inviting appearance to the strutting exterior.

As a Courier, no town would be your home anymore. Your job was always to move. And you stayed only until the next contract. It made having any roots impossible and quitting a complicated endeavor. Most couldn’t imagine such a life. So we were highly valued.

At the counter, a woman, maybe ten years older than me, stood with a pleasant business smile. Her light hazel hair tied up in a bun and lightly detailed with a couple braids. She had a strong presence from just standing, like dealing with unusual characters was a practiced experience for her. Still she looked inviting, even if I felt she could flip me on my ass if the need rose.

“Good afternoon, sir!”

I gave her a polite wave as I approached and placed my hand on the counter. It gave a warm blue light around my hand quickly displaying a holographic window in front of her. “What’s your recommendation?”

“Oh I’m sorry miss!” Out of awkwardness, she turned down to fix her blouse, which didn’t need adjusting.

“No harm.” I smiled and looked to the screen to let her move past her embarrassment. Certainly won’t be the last time that mistake happens.

“Let’s see, Miss Lacerius. Do you happen to know how long you’ll be in town?”

“Unfortunately no, like usual I’m between contracts. It’ll depend on if some emergency pops up.”

She nodded with understanding. It did happen that we might have scheduled bookings or some unique contract, but that was certainly less common. She definitely was used to us just having to be out with little notice. “We got five rooms free. Do you have any preferences?”

“Something with a view would be great!”

“That would be room six.”

“Works for me. Anything I should know about?”

The woman paused on the question. She looked to be reflecting on what she did regularly. “Maintenance times are between 9 and 7, though if an emergency happens you can reach us through the network or use the Basilica. After 6 you’ll need to use your chip to get in. And there’s Monday and Friday visitations.” I caught the depiction of Sol with an open book over top hanging from the wall next to her, very faithful.

Most of that seemed as expected. Monday and Friday, I guess they’re more into the Basilica. Not the most unusual thing, though probably explained a little bit of the outsider issue. The teachings of the Basilica were very specific and this region of Europe was more orthodox. I’d need to look into it a little more.

“Good to know!”

“It’s on the third floor and first door you see.”

“Thanks!”