They had intended to head towards the inn first, but found themselves quickly distracted by the merchants and busy storefronts. The streets were buzzing with activity, but this time Rosario didn’t mind the people around her; her memories of a crowded street becoming desolately quiet in an instant did not return, and she did not miss it.

First, they spent some considerable time at a bookstore where Franziska went through every possible botanical book they had, and left with Rosario holding three heavy tomes. She was sure the girl wouldn’t understand a fraction of the text, and would be content with looking at the pictures and scribbling on them, but that was fine; if she had her attention on something other than the dangers and uncertainties of the next day, she would buy her all the books she wanted. 

Then came Stefan’s turn, who found a pelt and leather trader with whom he aggressively bargained until they left the booth with Rosario carrying two rolls of fabrics and some tanned pelts on her back. The seller had guaranteed that all those products could resist the effect of a heavy exposure to refined crystals, and she hoped it was true. Although his technique could be clumsy, Stefan was skilled in crafting clothes intended to be combined with crystals, and in a world where synthetic fabrics and ultralight winter clothing had mostly become a thing of history, the thought of having warm clothes made of fox and rabbit fur for the winter made her feel comfortable. Besides, for a moment Stefan had seemed to forget about his worries, and that already made it worth it.

And now it was Rosario’s time: a music trader had a booth right ahead. She crossed her fingers as she approached it; maybe this was her chance to stock up on old CDs and tapes. Perhaps they even had a flash drive or burnt CD with more recent pre-Collapse music. How she wished that music and media in the last decades before the Collapse hadn’t all been streaming. Because of how fast civilization went under, digital technologies became inaccessible so quickly that almost no backup into physical format was possible. Rosario tried to calm down her excitement, but no matter what she told herself, she was always reminded that, since the Collapse, she had been stuck with music that was already old by the time she was born.

After buying some CDs that didn’t look too scratched, they got chicken skewers and candied fruit from a street vendor, and went to sit on a bench that overlooked the docks. Activity on the market had calmed down since their arrival, but despite the hour, they saw a boat loaded with cargo arrive, and workers promptly began unloading its contents. Piles of boxes and containers were already waiting nearby, awaiting being brought on board.

“There is a lot going on in this town,” said Rosario, munching on a piece of chicken. She had only now realized how little she had eaten all day and thought about buying more. Her apprentices seemed to be hungry as well, which she took as a good sign. They were probably still preoccupied about the next day, but trying to make them enjoy the moment was the best she could think of doing.

“Where do they take all that stuff? Isn’t there only one other town around this lake?” inquired Stefan.

“Yes, the city of Thun, on the western end of the lake. But from there they can load stuff onto smaller boats and sail the river that takes them all the way to Bern and the Lakes.”

Franziska had been silent until then, but after gulping down the last pieces of sugary fruit, she got up from the bench.

“Hey… can we go to the inn yet? I’d like to read my books.”

Her expression was serious, like she meant business. Rosario wasn’t sure what had gotten into her apprentice’s head this time, but she would not stop her. Stefan, in contrast, only saw it as another one of his sister’s phases she would soon forget, but he kept his annoyance to himself.

At long last, they reached the guesthouse. In the small lobby, a front desk welcomed the visitors, and an already closed dining hall was to their left. The place had red brick walls and a wooden ceiling and floor, which creaked as they walked in. Paintings and curtains decorated the walls, and old rugs covered the most transited parts of the lobby. Perhaps it was because of how tired they were, but it all felt warm and cozy.

They checked in with an elderly woman who, after learning it was their first time in town, gave them advice on the best places to visit. After a few long minutes, they went up two flights of creaky wooden stairs and down a hallway to a spacious loft on the top floor. It had two double beds and a private bathroom, plus a dresser, closet, and desk. The windows were low and opened towards the harbor. It was a nice ending to a day in which too many things had happened.

Stefan went to open the windows, sat on the frame and looked at the town below, while Franziska took the books to the desk and began to flip through the pages. Rosario could feel her eyelids closing.

“Hey, if you don’t mind, I’ll go take a shower and then sleep. You two can stay up for as long as you want. Just don’t forget to shower and brush your teeth.”

The next day would be a busy one, likely as dangerous as the one before. As Rosario put her head down on the soft pillow, she tried to take mental notes of what she intended to do once she woke up, but ended up falling asleep right away.

*****

She woke up in a dark room. The windows were still open, and the lights and sounds from the street below told her it couldn’t be that late. She noticed the siblings were deep asleep; Franziska next to her, and Stefan in the other bed. She looked at the alarm clock on the bedside table and realized it was 11:23 in the night. She had only slept for two hours, yet felt refreshed, and decided now was as good as ever for an impulsive, poorly planned action.

Carefully, so as not to wake up the children, she got up, dressed, and left the room. Then, trying her best not to awaken the entire inn, Rosario tiptoed all the way down the creaky stairs and out into the now calm streets. Most of the stores were closed, and some street vendors were just finishing closing up their stalls. Few people were still around, some talking in small groups, and others heading back to their homes. Two blocks away, she saw what she had been looking for: a tavern.

She walked in, noticing that aside from a few other customers who talked in a low voice, the place was almost empty. There was a lingering smell of fried food, and she heard the clang of pots and pans being cleaned in the kitchen. It was perfect.

Rosario went to sit at a small table near a window. A long time ago and in a different place, when she was a university student on a tight budget, she and her friends would sometimes end a long study session at some bar near the coast.

The sounds in the kitchen stopped, and she saw a boy in his late teens rush out of the kitchen and look at the customers. He seemed to be running the business all by himself and was probably overwhelmed with work, so not wanting to give him more trouble, she went to the counter and asked him for a drink before going back to her table.

It had been so long since she had a good beer from the tap. Of course, having some friends to share it with would have been nice too, but the last ones she had died after the Collapse, and moving around constantly left little room to make friends. It’s not that she wasn’t grateful for the family she’d found, but having the company of other adults from time to time wouldn’t be bad either. Normally, she tried her best not to remember the faces of those who were gone, but in moments like this, she allowed for an exception.

After a few sips, she circled back to her previous thoughts. It wasn’t only that her constant travels played against building friendships. In all honesty, she didn’t want to make friends; if it wasn’t tragedy, then distance always ended up taking them away.

Lost in thoughts, her glass became almost empty, but as she considered going back to the counter for a refill, two men walked in and greeted the young bartender. They seemed to know each other, so Rosario didn’t feel like interrupting.

“So, are you the owner now?” asked one of the men.

The teen laughed. “Only helping out my auntie. My uncle and Nellie should have come back this afternoon, but didn’t. I’m sure they just got delayed. They always end up having more work to do, and there was also that storm today and the roads were probably too muddy, but she always thinks about the worst.”

Rosario took another sip; the name ‘Nellie’ sounded somewhat familiar.

“Can’t blame her,” said the other man. “That Hansi does like to take risks going out there, but then, he’s a grown-up man. I wouldn’t let my daughter go to such a dangerous place, though.”

The teen seemed awkward hearing the older man’s remarks. “Well, Nellie wants to become an electrician like her dad, and I’d say what better opportunity to learn than by helping fix a hydroelectric plant.”

Rosario almost spat out the last sip. It came back to her now: the name tags on the clothes hanging behind the door in the control room, at the power facility where she found the monster artichoke.

The conversation between the bartender and the two men drifted elsewhere, and Rosario did not order another drink. After a moment, she left some money on the table and headed back to the inn.

As she walked on the now near-empty streets, with her steps resonating on the cobblestones, she thought about the conversation she overheard and what it meant: two of the people who were keeping a monster plant and had attacked her with the intention of killing her and her apprentices were the husband and daughter of a tavern owner, who today likely had a sleepless night worrying about their safe return.

The cool air of the night gave her a chill. Just what would drive people to such actions? She didn’t believe in the existence of extinctionists, that is, members of an unproven conspiracy theory organization whose goal was to accelerate human extinction after the events of the Collapse failed to do so, but the situation was making it difficult. And in that same line of thought… did the woman and the bartender know about what had been taking place at the power facility? About the monster forest? How many more people, sleeping in the homes around her, were in on this?

She imagined Noah the crystalsmith, with a triumphant expression after watching her become paranoid.

She shook off the thought and stopped before the inn, taking in a last breath of fresh air before walking in. There was a real chance that the crystal bullet Stefan fired in self-defense caused the attackers severe injuries. It could have even been deadly, and she could have done without this new development playing in her head.

Back in the room, the siblings still slept, and she imitated them soon after.

 *****