Act One: Materia Prima - Chapter 11

The man followed Falsk and Hrain to the north. Initially, it seemed as if the green would sprawl out forever. Calming. Always the same. He wondered what he wanted to find. In the mountains. Among the talking stones. Was it something he lost? Or did it belong to Hrain? Or Falsk?

Suddenly, something new came into view. Something unexpected. A coach bus. It just stood there. On one of the hills. Yellow. Swirling blue lines on the side. And a big red logo above. Stylized lettering. He could not read it.

“What is the bus doing here? Is that a good sign?”

“Yes, yes, that’s the first stop. We should look inside and find the tour guide! It will lead us to the mountains.”

Falsk was excited. And obviously very proud of the quick success. Hrain on the other hand looked as confused as him. However. She boarded the bus. Together with Falsk. The smaller girl pulled her along. He followed again. Entered the bus.

“Were do we look? What does the guide look like?”

The girls had split up. Falsk was already at the back of the bus. The bus looked rather old. On what timescale? His. But when? A lifetime ago. Hrain searched the driver's cab.

“I don’t know and it seems like Falsk doesn’t either. But a little puzzle is exactly what I feel like right now.”

Dark red faux leather seats. Padded headrests. Hard plastic armrests. Dark gray. Far too little legroom. Vinyl safety flooring. Turquoise with gray dots. Impressive in its ugliness. And discomfort. All in all.

He decided to examine the luggage racks above the seats. The girls would not be able to reach them. Skillful division of labor. On first glance they looked empty. He probed every corner. Every nook and cranny.

The first five compartments held no secrets. He was just about to start on the sixth. Falsk rushed forward toward him. Waved a brochure in her left hand.

“Found it! Found it! Ha, as always, good old Falsk saves the day!”

Hrain joined them excitedly. Tried to take a closer look at the guide. To no avail. The lucky finder was still fiddling around too much with the travel guide in her grasp.

“So, what do we do now? Where do we go next? Will there be more riddles? I need to know!”

“Yes, I think so. Next, we will have to find the roadside diner. Let's go outside and have a better look.”

They exited the bus. Falsk sat down with the leaflet. Studied it. Hrain stood behind her and leaned on her shoulders. He also moved a little closer. Tried to have a look at the clues. Looked like smudged scribbles. To him. To Hrain too. Falsk looked like she intently read what was written.

“Yes, of course. We definitely need to move in that direction.”

The little girl looked up. Jumped up. Pointed in a direction. He could no longer tell whether it was north or south. East or west. Whatever. Just push on. Hrain seemed delighted. They had come one step closer to the mountains. She took Falsk by the hand once again.

“Come on, let’s go!”

The two excited girls ran off. A few steps. Then they slowed down again. He quickly caught up. Long strides. Hrain started to hum a melody. Falsk joined in. It seemed familiar. Strangely motivating. He dismissed the thought. Leave the memories behind. Go with their flow. Push on.

He noticed that the surroundings had become somewhat barren. Less flowers. Patchy grass. The ground clearly visible in between. Gravel everywhere. Boulders too. He looked up again and saw a building. The roadside dinner. Of course.

Corrugated sheet metal. Large windows with blinds. Above a green line painted on the metal. Then red checkered patterns. Another green line. The roof only slightly sloped. Topped with a third green line. The large neon logo was unmistakable. He could not decipher it.

There was no parking lot. It just stood there. Somewhere in nowhere. The girls were already at the door. A sign with red lettering hung in the window. As illegible as the logo. They entered together. Hrain squeezed Falsks' hand.

“What are we looking for this time? I bet I'll be the one to find it this time.”

“We need the navigation device. It should be lying around on one of the tables. To charge it. I think.”

The diner had a slight retro charm to it. The floor tiled. Chessboard pattern. A long counter. Light gray. Bar stools galore. Round and red. With a single metal base. Padded benches by the windows. In pairs. As red as the bar stools. Each one with an upside-down triangle on it. Crossed by a horizontal line. Light gray. Separated by small black plastic tables.

He did not see a device on any of the tables. They were all empty. In fact. This did not prevent Falsk and Hrain from continuing their search. The second riddle. Was it really a riddle? No.

It did not took long before Falsk came running back with something. Again. Of course. She had found the device. It looked rather old. Like the coach. He did not want to determine the age at all.

“And once again, the smartest is also the fastest, of course!”

“Let us take a seat.”

They sat down. Falsk right beside him. She turned the device on. Hrain approached.

“I'm starting to get the feeling that this game is rigged from the start. But whatever. Where do we go next? Are there many places left?”

Falsk was still busy. She tapped on various buttons. The display a mystery to him.

“No, no, we're almost there. Next is the parking lot. From there, it's a short walk.”

Hrain smiled. Somewhat amused. Falsk busily pottering about. The older girl looked back at him. Still smiling. But different. He smiled back.

“It's strange. But although I remember the mountains, I don't remember the bus, the diner, or the parking lot.”

“Perhaps your route to the house was different from the one we are taking now.”

“Hm, it must be.”

Falsk cheered. Got up. Ran toward the door. They followed. Exited the diner. The little rascal gazed into the distance.

“That's where the journey takes us!”

She started running. This time without Hrain. The two picked up their pace to keep up with Falsk. Suddenly gray jagged edges blocked out the horizon. Like they had always been there. Waiting for them. The Mountains. Looming toward the sky.