The Borealis District in the North is where many of the most wealthy of citizens call home. Houses familiar to some are found here. Compared to the chaos of Central District, the Borealis district is much more disciplined and calm. For those living here, multiple roads exist lead to the other districts, except for Australis District. Many of the mansions that litter Capital City exist here. Elara trots into the Suburbs and takes in the sights. It's a little overwhelming, like the ritziest part of any town but massive. Lots of large mansions and expensive houses line the cobblestone streets, different luxury stores and restaurants also exist, definitely not friendly to those without money. Elara has a bit of disdain on her face as she speaks, "Eugh, what a pain this is."
Violet, who’s following behind shakes her head at the eyesore, “Seems very flashy. To each their own but damn.”
While walking down the road from them they see a large fancy white pillared building with a sign out front in fancy lettering, "Borealis Adventurers' Guild. EST 2019"
"Ah that might be it. Where's the electronic music?" Elara wonders aloud, much to the confusion of the preppy people walking around with small poodles on leashes.
“Maybe this place is different?” Violet says as she walks up to the entrance.
They walk further towards the Guild when they get stopped by a bouncer outside. They're a rather large male wearing a classy business suit and polished black shoes. His gruff almost British voice and protective no-nonsense demeanor makes him feel much larger than anyone else in the vicinity. "Can I help you?" he asks.
Violet speaks, “We are here to check out the guild. Is there a problem?”
He glares at the two then shakes his head, "Quite. Only those with a membership card or an appointment with a member may step inside. After the Murders at the Central District Adventurer's Guild, we cannot be too careful with accepting…” He focuses his attention on Elara, “riff-raff." He coughs.
Elara scoffs, "bitch! Riff raff? I come from the Nightshade family! How dare you talk to me like that." She’s fuming mad, cracking her knuckles in front of the bouncer.
The bouncer turns his entire attention towards Elara, looking rather disgusted, "You say that like that means anything. Rules are rules. Unless you have an appointment with a specific member, no entry. No if's and's or but's." He blocks the entrance.
“We are here to see Apollo.” Violet says with disgust in her voice.
The bouncer presses a button near his ear and speaks into a microphone on his collar. Then, after a couple minutes, he turns to Violet, "Apollo. Very well. He is prepared. Only you may come in however. Is this acceptable?"
Elara rolls her eyes, "yeah that's fine. I don't need to see y'all's ritzy ass club."
“I guess that’s fine.” Violet then looks to Elara “Be safe alright? I’ll be out in a few moments.”
Elara takes a deep breath then nods. "I guess I'll look around the plaza then. If you need anything, you know how to contact me. Stay safe Vi." They then leave the premises..
The bouncer steps aside. In front of Violet is a rather fancy gold-plated entrance with a scarlet red carpet underneath. A glass paned door automatically opens to classical music and a very white lobby. Violet walks inside looking around in awe of the shine and glimmer the place presents itself with. Violet then focuses, making her way to find Apollo
A familiar looking man wearing a pinstriped suit is sitting on of the couches in the main lobby while quietly sipping a martini. His black and red layered hair stands out against many of the others, as most patrons of this Adventurer’s Guild have very ordinary hair styles, conservative at best. Recognizing his appointment is here, Apollo holds out a hand to shake, "ah, it's you. I did not know if you would take my offer seriously."
Violet shakes his hand, “Of course I would take it seriously. Why would I not?”
"Good point. Shall we have our meeting?" Apollo gets up from his place and starts heading to a room nearby. He beckons Violet to follow. Apollo leads Violet into a private office. On a nameplate on the door, it says,
Maximillian Solaire - Caretaker & Founder
Adventurers Guilds United - Capital City
The office is rather simple. A desk, a computer, a few comfortable looking seats, and lots of framed photos on the walls, most of Apollo and others he seemingly traveled with. On the wall behind him, a certificate of some kind showcases an award he received for his book, Legends of the Creatures of Legend, It seems to be some kind of award only gotten in Capital City. Apollo heads behind his desk as a fresh pot of coffee is being brewed nearby. If you like the smell of coffee, it smells heavenly, though perhaps a bit strong.
"Ah, take a seat my dear erm... I don't think I caught your name previously?" he smiles towards Violet.
“Names Violet. Pleasured to meet you.”
"Right, Violet. I will remember this." Apollo's demeanor seems friendly. "So did you have any questions for me before we get into our chat?"
Violet shakes her head with a smile, “I will save my questions for now. I hope that what you have to say will answer them.”
Apollo nods with a soft smile, "Of course, I hope so as well. So allow me to start with a bit of background on who I am.” He clears his throat and stands up.
“My name is Maximillian Solaire, age 26. When I was much younger, I had an experience that changed the way I look at this world. I was walking around the forest, just wanting to get away from the stressors of life. Schooling was not going well. And I felt everything freeze around me. I saw a bird flying but it was stopped in mid-air. I didn't understand how this happened, but I told people about it. Of course, I was a child, so they thought I made it all up. I returned to that forest days later to look for that effect once more, but of course, it didn't happen."
As Max speaks, he walks the width of his office from side to side. His speech almost seems to be theater-like, as if he’s rehearsed it before and is now acting.
"That said, something else did. So mind you, this was in the middle of summer, so it gets rather hot out here. The forest, however, was completely frozen. Ice was on the trees, snow falling, it was freezing out there. And then I saw it, standing on its hind legs... it had to be 10-15 feet tall, a polar bear. It had a snow white coat and it bared its fangs at me. Instead of attacking, from its mouth a freezing cold wind erupted from it, turning the forest floor into an ice skating rink. It was the damnedest thing I've ever seen, but I knew I stumbled onto something amazing. Again, I tried to tell everyone I could about it, but they didn't believe me, calling it pure balderdash." He sighs and looks forlorn. He then continues, his eyes shifting and a crazed smile beginning to sneak into his otherwise prim appearance, "And thus I began to research! I know these things exist! These.. creatures... of LEGEND!! I went back to the forest, even spending much of my early adulthood there, just hoping... BEGGING for them to show me more.” His fists clench. “But they never appeared for me. MONTHS OF MY LIFE, wasted. But I refused to quit. As we were still relatively early on into the Magical Renaissance, I knew something needed to be done. I began to search for those interested in exploring the otherwise mostly undocumented forest, our Outskirts. But of course... no one took me seriously, why the hell should they? I'm just... one person." He speaks with an intense passion, though perhaps this passion could be mistaken with mania.
"And thus I got the idea to write. To write a book about my research. It... was a failure. Years of my life, wasted. My facts and theory... completely destroyed. No one wanted to read a book about scientific fact. But then I had an idea." He pauses for dramatic effect. "Mythology. Take my research, spin it a bit to appeal to young adults! It's PERFECT! It's the best wayyyyyyyy to get this so called 'balderdash' to the general public! All of the research I've spent much of my life collecting, in a fun easier to read novel. And it sold. It sold. People were reading my work! People believed it. They believed me. They lauded my work, I was a Capital City Bestseller for months on end, especially for young adults! But something still felt awful about it. They lauded it as fiction. It's real, THEY'RE ALL REAL! WHY DON'T THEY BELIEVE ME!!" He slams his fist onto his desk, knocking over a few picture frames he had on the desk.
Violet is taken aback by Apollo's anger, but feels he is just struggling for anyone to believe him... just like herself. "I feel the same way in some aspects. People seem to not believe me when I talk about these creatures, at least in way that they see it as not fiction... some more then others."
Violet walks over to Apollo, putting a hand on his shoulder "But I believe you, I have seen them too."
Apollo stays with his fist on the desk for a few moments for dramatic effect, then he turns to Violet, "thank you. I'm glad I'm not going insane! I'll show them! I even got Solaire to assist me in finding them! They made me an ADMIN the moment I came by. I'm barely even related to them! I was once married to one of the other ADMINs but it lasted a short while, but the Solaire last name stuck."
"Which ADMIN if you don't mind me asking?" Violet looks curious
Feeling comfortable around Violet, he responds with, "Her ADMIN name is Flora. If there's anyone out there as passionate as I am about Creatures of Legend, it's her." On the wall, a couple framed photos of Apollo and Flora holding hands can be seen.
"Well she seems lovely." Violet takes a seat back in her chair. "Now how does... 00 come into play?"
Apollo takes a moment to recollect himself, "ah, right of course. Creature of Legend dash zero zero, Error - The World Glitches. It is one that I have only experienced once in my life. Have you ever noticed how certain things in this world just... break? A disappearing doorway, or the freezing of time. Or perhaps a chill down your spine while places just... load. That... is the World Glitch. I may have only experienced it once, but Flora has more experience with it." Violet will also notice the room has a lot of oddly shaped padding, especially on the door. It looks vaguely like soundproofing.
Violet nods in approval, “I have noticed it many times… I’m unsure what it might mean. Do you have an idea?”
"Unfortunately, my knowledge on the subject is extremely limited. It is why I never wrote about CoL - 00 in my book." He sighs deflatedly, "but it is nice to know that we're not alone. The three of us are solely aware of its existence. Curses! Flora seemed to believe that something about the very makeup of this World is incorrect. That it isn't normal. But no matter what, absolutely no one believed her."
“I have to agree with Flora. The world should not glitch out and error like it does. It’s very unnatural. Is there anyway I can get in contact with Flora?”
Apollo nods, "Yes of course. Perhaps you two can figure out something else about our World. Is there... anything else I can assist you with?" Apollo gives Violet a business card. It has Solaire's logo on it with a name on it.
SOLAIRE ENTERPRISES - ADMIN FLORA
HEAD ADMIN OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
As well as her phone number.
"Nothing that I can think of right now." Violet thinks for a moment before she summons a piece of paper and a pencil and writes down her number and hands it to Apollo. "Here. Take this. Just know you have someone that believes you. Us weirdos gotta stick together." Violet smiles
"Oh and take mine as well, if you ever have questions about the Creatures of Legend, please feel free to ask. I want to help."
His business card is similar to Flora's, except it has a slightly different title:
SOLAIRE ENTERPRISES - ADMIN APOLLO
HEAD ADMIN OF ADVERTISING, SOCIAL MEDIA, AND MARKET RESEARCH
it also has a phone number.
Violet gets up from her seat and turns to leave the office. “Thank you Apollo. It’s been a pleasure meeting with you. I hope we can see each other again in the future.”
"Of course, I hope you have a pleasant day, Violet!" Apollo goes to open the door out. "Feel free to explore the Guild as you wish, I gave the bouncers your name, so please come and go whenever you want." Violet nods as she heads out of the guild, taking off into the air with her wings, flying up around Capital City. On seeing nothing new happening, she returns home.