vein forest

Hi! i m treasure. N I use it cause I like it 2 This blog is not really abt my life. I juz wat 2 rite down stories on my mind n share w every1. actually e person who help mi do this is wenya. Our dear p.sala! thxs a lot! Really I mean it! Thxs a million! N thxs a lot 4 ur Christmas present I wrapped it in an transparent bag n put it on my desk. N thxs 2 wu mi. I like e purse use it 2 keep some of the cards that I threw ard it’s handy... n sun xiao mei thxs 4 e 2 dolphins I love them as well as e narutpo calendar I intend to put it up somewhere after I wrapped all the pages so I wont dirty them thxs 2 yym 2! U noe who I m referring 2…I noe u share e gift w sun xiao mei. So thxs a lot I will treasure all of them n add them 2 my treasures…. This story has alr been read by quite a lot of ppl alr but since it is typed alr ii decided to put it as my 1st entry. So ani review? Can put it in my tag board or I hop there’s one since I havnt look at it myself :p hop u like it… u can introduce 2 ur friends if u wat but I m not sure if every1 likes it……
The Vein Forest
By treasure
Written in 22.8.2004 I tink….
Summary: how 2 go abt it??? Ok, it is a fantasy abt 2 characters…. Relatnship u had 2 read urself n there re both impt ppl of a country a queen n a general…… so how it goes ….juz read can? Oh by the way, this is a tradgey not that I like it this way but somehoe it turned out 2 b 1. sometimes I juz dun hav control over the way the story turns out…
He knew she was sitting there, right behind him. She was looking so calm and collected while observing the raging battle. But he could sense her worry, trepidation, fear and sadness in her heart. Being the queen of a country meant that she had to hide all her feelings behind a veil of calm. He knew she was exhausted. He knew she was frightened. He knew she longed to be free from her responsibility. He knew. But there were nothing he could do about them. At least nothing he could do without revealing his true identity.
All he could do were to win battles and protect her silently. He shifted his mask slightly, trying to see the battle better. He had never liked this metal thing he wore on his face but it was his only way to prevent anyone to recognize him as well as a way to hide his feelings.
Seeing his soldiers on the losing side of the battle, he reacted quickly. He sent out an urgent command.
Change formation now, he told his soldiers through telepathy.
Immediately, his soldiers started to retreat slowly, their free hands clenched to the amulets they wore around their necks. Just as he expected, the enemy army thought they were retreating and were chasing after them, closing their distance from the castle walls where he stood, waiting. Good, he thought silently.
“Mist, mystery of the sky, make another victory on our list, by blinding the enemy’s eyes,” he chanted the long string of words. His eyes narrowed in concentration as he felt the familiar sense of his power surging through his body, waiting to be released. “Now!”
A thick fog started to form around the whole battlefield. However, he could see his soldiers. All those who wore his hand-made amulets could. The rest would be unable to see their surroundings. Slowly and silently, his soldiers started to take down their enemies with a swift move of their weapons.
With the knowledge that the sorcerers on the enemy’s side would not be able to break his spell, he grinned triumphantly. He then turned and bowed at her, announcing that their victory was near. She looked at him and smiled with relief.
“Good work,” she said softly, eyes fixed on the battlefield. However, he thought he had sensed confusion in her heart.
He touched his mask again, making sure that it was in place. She could not have known it, could she? He knew he could not tell her. If he did, she might be forced to kill him. This was not what he wanted. It would be too much for her to bear. Now, he could only be one of her outstanding subjects and nothing more.
He was the sorcerer who used sorcery to protect his country. He was the general who planned ambushes and strategies to be used and the person who commanded troops in battles. He was the healer who was in charge of healing his soldiers. He was the chief guard who protected the queen and her subjects. He had so many positions; yet, he still could not tell her how intimate their relation actually was.
If his identity were revealed, thousands of people in this country would want to kill him. He knew it. He was supposed to be killed at birth or be banished from the country forever.
He was the “bringer of chaos”. A child that the ancient prophecy had said to be born when the end of a country was near. The child said to possess a great power that could destroy a country. The child was born with a sign. A small tattoo of four triangles pointing outwards was to be found on his right arm. He was this child who was thought to be the destroyer of his country- the Vein Forest.
At his birth, his parents had to put him into a basket and left him to drift away, separating him from them and her. An old sorcerer saved him. He became his apprentice, learning the art of sorcery. He learnt all kinds of skills from the villagers living in the nearby village. He became a master of different arts from the knowledge in books. And he learnt quickly.
Maybe it was the power that was said to be within him that helped him. Maybe it was his thirst for knowledge. Maybe it was his desire to keep himself busy in order to drive away his loneliness. Maybe it was his determination to learn as much so as to make his family proud of him when they reunite. Maybe…
He was a powerful sorcerer, skilled in using the Four Elements. He could use the element “ air” to fly. He could create rain using the element “ water”. He could make a fire out of thin air with just a snap of his fingers. He could even change the structure of the land with carefully chosen words. These were all a little of what he could do. With some mollification to the different spells, he could do a lot more.
Furthermore, that was not what he was. He was a healer, with the ability to bring miracles. He was a skilled swordsman. He was often challenged by knights from all over the world because of his fame and he had never lost. He was a master of strategies. He was able to outwit even the most notorious thief in The Vein Forest and had taken most of the credit in the thief’s capture.
He was all these at the young age of fourteen though he had never actually left the village. People went to the village to look for him for help and he had never rejected any of them. Thus, he earned a very good reputation among the people.
At that time, he had used his magic to find out about his destiny in life, his family and his future. He might not be a seer who could see one’s past and future but his magic showed his family as well as his destiny. His discovery of him being the prince of the Vein Forest shocked him and the reveal of his destiny nearly killed him.
With just a peek of his destiny, he was never the same again. He was so shocked and bewildered by what he had found out. He cursed his destiny. He yelled at the Gods in Heaven for being so cruel to him. He just could not accept his destiny. The revelation of his destiny broke his dreams into such tiny pieces that he knew he could never piece them back again. His hope of reuniting with his family shattered upon his discovery. As a child, his greatest dream was to find his family. He hoped to be able to celebrate all the special days in his life with his family. He wanted to have a mother nagging at him. He wanted to have a father to scold him. He wanted to siblings to go horse riding with him or to complete with him in swordplay or archery. He wanted a younger sibling to protect and to dote on. He wanted to feel the warmth of family. But he knew it would not happen. No one wanted connections with a “bringer of chaos”. No one would want to be friends with him, much less wanted him to be part of their family. And he knew it was especially true for a royal family who believed their country would be destroyed by their very own son. These thoughts only brought more sorrows and pain into his heart. He went into depression. He could not find interest in anything anymore. He would hide in his small room for days, weeping silently. He would not talk to anyone even the kind sorcerer who had raised him. He became a living dead. He had even complemented suicide before but he lacked the courage to do so. He just went on living in the hut, isolating himself from the people who cared for him. He knew they were trying to help but he was too depressed to accept their help.
It went on for months till a messenger from the castle came, seeking his help in the coming battles against the neighboring country’s invasion. The messenger hoped that he would be able to use his skills in the battles.
He agreed readily. It was then he had climbed out of the dark pit he had thrown himself into upon the discovery of his destiny. He thought that maybe working might numb his pain. Maybe at the castle, he would see his family. He might not be part of the family but he could be their friend. He could still protect them. A new flame of determination burned brightly in his heart. It was then he lived once again. He had found the strength to continue living and a new motive to move on.
The first thing he did before going to the castle was the trip to the blacksmith’s. He made a mask that revealed only his eyes and the lower part of his face. It was an attempt to prevent anyone from recognizing him. He knew he had a twin sister and twins usually resembled one another. He could not afford people finding out his true identity.
Ever since reaching the castle, he had never taken off his mask except when he knew no one would see him. He did not like it but he had no choice. Also, he paid special attention to the sign on his arm, careful not to reveal it to anyone.
Upon reaching the castle, he learnt that his parents were dead. They had died due to their grief of losing their son, leaving his young twin sister to be the queen of the Vein Forest. On hearing this piece of history, he had come so close to breaking into tears of joy and grief. His parents did remember him! They did not hate him. They had loved him and their death were the evidence of their love for him.
But this was not what he wanted. He wanted to reunite with them. He wanted to enjoy what others had called the “family love”. But now, he could not. He would never see them again. He could only remember his parents as the foggy image he remembered when they left him on his own. He did not want this! But he could do nothing about it. Now, all he could was to protect his only kin silently and from afar.
Someone nudged him back to reality. It was then he realized he had been staring at her while deep in thought. He saw her blush and gave him a small smile. Embarrassed, he turned quickly to look at the battle, cursing himself silently for acting so carelessly. He knew how such actions encourage tongues to wag in the castle. He would never want to be in such a limelight. He definitely did not want to add more to the growing number of problems he already had in his hands.
Furthermore, it would make him at a higher risk to exposing his true identity. What if she took an interest in these rumors? What if she wanted to investigate into his past? What if she found out? What if… the thought trailed off. Through empathy that only twins shared between one another, he was able to detect a strange feeling in her heart. It seemed to be a type of happiness that was sweet yet dangerous. He did not know what it was but since it did not posed any threats, he just ignored it and continued to reprimand himself for his carelessness. She stared at his back, as he seemed to be deep in thought again. She stared at the short messy hair that swayed in the breeze. He looked so mysterious and so handsome. She longed to see his face under that metal mask he wore. Was he as handsome as she had imagined? Somehow, she found him familiar. It was as if she had seen him before. However, this was supposed to be their first meeting, It should be. But she could not help thinking that the color of his eyes and his hair were the same color as hers. The tone he used reminded her of his father, the king. The triumphant grin he wore just a moment ago was identical to hers when she defeated her teacher in swordplay few years ago. She was curious about him. Something was attracting her to him. His looks? His talents? His fame?
Just before this meeting, she had not seen him before but she had heard a lot of things about him from the maidens who served her to her own subjects and even her own friends. Everyone had only good things to talk about him. He was talented in many areas. His mask did not scare off anyone but attracted everyone with the air of mystery. She was told the women and girls in the castle as well as in the village called him the “the mysterious prince”. He was kind, polite and caring. He would help anyone regardless of their gender or status. Her subjects complimented him as a skilled swordsman, powerful sorcerer, sharp code breaker and a good strategist. Everyone liked him as he was. Not because of his looks or his wealth or who his parents were. To her, he was a living legend.
She had blushed when she saw him staring at her. Secretly, she hoped that he had noticed her because of her beauty or her talents and not because of the fact that she was the queen. She wanted others to know her as who she really was and not know her just as the queen. She was a beautiful young lady and she wanted others to know that she too was a girl who wanted to have fun and freedom that other girls at her age wanted.
She could not help sneaking glances at him when she knew no one was watching. There was this attraction she felt towards him. At seventeen, she had heard a lot of things about this thing called “love”. Could it be what she was experiencing now? All of a sudden, she felt shy and was conscious of her looks. As the queen, she was always dressed in the beautiful dresses she liked and she hoped he would like her taste of clothes.
She stared at his back again. She hoped that he might turn back to look at her again. But he did not. He seemed to concentrate on the battle once more. He seemed to be deep in thought. Maybe he was thinking of her. She hoped so but she knew it was highly unlikely.
However, he did turn after a while. But, he was yelling something to the soldiers standing nearby and was dashing towards her. She could feel a tension in the air. A foreboding feeling hit her with such a great force that she nearly fell off her seat. She knew something bad was going to happen though she had no idea what it was. She just felt it. Confused, she looked around. She could not understand what was happening. Suddenly a rain of sharp-looking arrows flew towards her. Shocked, she could do nothing but to gape at the fast approaching arrows. She shut her eyes tightly, bracing herself for the pain she knew the arrows would cause once they made contact on her body.
However, she felt a pair of hands pushed her out of her seat as she felt something heavy slammed into her. She snapped open her eyes immediately, only to be greeted by the worst scene she had ever witnessed in her entire life.
He was on the floor in front of her with an arrow in his chest and blood flowing freely from the wound.
Stunned, she dropped to her knees next to him. Another rain of arrows had begun to fly towards the castle walls. The enemy archers were again at work, greedy for more results. They were shooting towards the castle walls in the hope of killing the queen or any other important subjects. She looked at him, not caring about the arrows. Blood was already pooling around his body. She shook herself out of her stunned trance. She knew she had to help him despite the fact that she, as the queen, should be retreating instead of attending to a wounded. Moreover, he had already set up a magical shield around both of them earlier to deflect all the arrows except the fatal arrow that went into his chest. She knew that for a while, they would be safe. Noticing the fast flowing of the blood from his wound, she knew she had to react quickly. She could see his life energy fading away with each passing second.
Immediately she tore away his long sleeved shirt to reveal his wound. She used the clean sleeves to wipe away the blood so as to enable her to stop the bleeding. While trying hard not to blush at the sight of his hard muscles, she tried to apply pressure around the wound to stop the blood from flowing.
It was then she noticed the sign on his right arm. The achingly familiar sign her mother had sketched in her diary. The sign’s significance her father had written in his journal. The story about the child with the sign she had read in both her parents’ diaries. The relation she had discovered she had with the “bringer of chaos”. The grief her parents had for him and her own dreams of finding him one day.
Could he be? Could he be? She asked herself silently. Happiness and anguish hit her at the same time as she took in this new piece of information. She hoped to find her brother but she feared that this might be the last time they would see each other. With much hesitation, she reached for his mask with a shaking hand. She needed confirmation even if she already had the answer. Yet, she could feel the hope and fear mixing in her heart as she prayed that this was all part of her wild imagination.
He protested violently but he was too weak to stop her. She tore away the mask to reveal a handsome face that he had been hiding throughout the years he had lived in the castle. The face he did not want her to see.
She took in a sharp breath as she took in his features. The same eyes. The same nose. The same contour of the mouth. And the same ears. She almost thought she was looking at her own face only that the face she was looking at was more masculine than hers. It was then she knew who she was looking at and who had just saved her life.
“Brother? You are my brother?” she whispered slowly in her teary voice, more a statement than a question. She did not know whether to feel ecstatic or mournful. She was too confused and her heart was on the verge of breaking, as she could not decide on what to make of this whole incident. All she could do at the moment was to stare at him.
He started to shake his head vigorously at her question causing blood to trail from his mouth. She held his hands tightly. She knew he was slipping away but she was helpless about it. She did not want him to go. She had just found him- her long lost brother whom she had hoped desperately to find one day.
“You are! Don’t deny it! I don’t understand! You knew I’m your sister! If not, you would not even come to the castle. You would not save me. Why did you keep it from me?” she screamed tearfully, finally snapping out of the conflicting feelings that bind her heart a few seconds ago. “All this while, I have been trying to find you but you were in the castle all along. You were so close to me but I didn’t know. You have been by my side all these years, protecting me silently, looking at me from afar and supporting me without my knowing. You have, haven’t you? But why did you keep quiet? Why didn’t you approach me? No one knows you are the “bringer of chaos”. Only father, mother and I know. It was a secret kept tightly among our family. No one else knows. All of them thought you died upon birth. Why didn’t you come to me? Why didn’t you tell me your identity?” she cried incoherently as sobs wrenched themselves out of her no matter how hard she tried to keep them in.
She was so touched that he still loved her even with his tough life. She had everything she wanted, living in luxury but he had nothing. Yet, he had still loved her and even died to save her. She was delirious to have finally found him. However, she felt so distressed that she might never have the chance to talk to him again.
She had finally found her brother. She had just realized that her brother had been her guardian angel for the last few years, guarding her silently and from afar. But he had tried his best. For his efforts, he had given away his life. But this was not what she wanted. She did not want him to leave her. She did not want him to go.
She had just found her brother. He had not called her “sister”. She had not chatted with him. She had not completed archery and swordplay with him. She wanted to know whether she could be as good as him in these areas. After all, they were twins and twins usually had the same abilities. She had not hugged him. She had not felt his brotherly love. She had not done any of the things she dreamed of doing with him. She did not share any memories with him. She did not want him to go.
“Stay with me?” she pleaded.
He reached out and wiped away tears from her cheeks. Blood had stained his hands, leaving a patch of dark crimson flowing down her cheeks, dirtying her face but she did not care. She wanted to hug him but she knew she could not. At least, she could not in his current condition. But somehow, she knew there would not be another chance for her to do so in the future.
At this thought, she did not care. She pulled him up with great difficulty and hugged him, avoiding the protruding arrow. She felt his blood stain her beautiful dress but she did not care. She had enough of protocols in her life and she hated them. She liked the feeling of being in his arms. She liked the warmth she felt coming from him. She looked at him with tears filling her eyes as she knew there was no “more another chance”. Soon she would be alone in this world. “Sis,” he whispered weakly, sensing her distress. He pulled away from her to take one last look of her. He wanted her to be the last thing he saw before falling into the sleep that lasted for eternity. He fought hard to keep his eyes open. He tried hard to give her a smile to console her but his glazed eyes betrayed his pain. His smile looked so sad to her that she could only cry even more. He summoned all of his energy to speak his final words to her.
“Live well, will you? I will guard you from wherever I go. Smile always?” With that, he gave up his fight and allowed his heavy lids to drop and led him into the sleep that he would not wake up from. Then his body felt limp and stiff in her arms.
“No!” she screamed tearfully.
She tightened her hug. She wanted the warmth in his body to stay. She wanted him to be alive. She wanted him to talk to her, to joke with her as other brothers did with their sisters. She wanted him to dote on her. She wanted him to do his duty as her brother. She only wanted him. But no matter how much she pleaded, how tight she held on to his body, he never responds. He was gone. Forever.
She knew he would not be back. She knew he had gone away but she refused to believe it. She was still waiting for the chance to be his guardian angel instead of him being hers. She had not spent more than a day together with him. She had not done anything for him. And she wanted to. But there were no more chances for her to do so.
She struggled to lay him on the ground gently, staring at him as pain and loneliness radiated from her face. She did not notice the disappearance of the magical shield that disappeared since sorcery that used to sustain the shield had been used up with his death. She did not feel the pain on her right arm where an arrow had just grazed her. She did not respond when one of the generals told her they had won the battle regardless of the loss of their best general and all the enemy archers had been killed instantly by their own archers.
However, she felt no relief but instead she felt that a deep pit of emptiness in her heart. She felt numb to anything in the entire world. He was gone. That was all she knew. She refused to leave his sides as the maidens who served her urged her to. She just wanted to stay by his side and be his guardian angel this time.
The hard-earned victory had saved the country from invasion. The victory had ensured that no one in her country had to suffer as the war between countries had ended. No one in their country would be taken as prisoners as they had won and survived this long war. However, the victory came with a heavy price. The victory robbed her of her most important person in her life, her brother.
There had been so many things she wanted to share with him. There had been so many activities she wanted to do with him. She had so many words she wanted to talk to him. But it was too late. He was gone.
All because of her. Because of her, he was not here anymore. Because of her, he had to give up his life. Because of her, he had come to the castle to help in the battles. Because of her, he had to be stronger to protect her. All because of her.
He was her only kin she had since the deaths of her parents years ago. Now he left her as well. He was gone. He was not coming back. He was dead. She was alone in this world. There were no one left she could call family. She was the only one left.
Regret, guilt and loneliness filled her heart. She did not feel happy for the victory. She did not feel the relief that the prolonged war was finally over. All she could feel were pain and pain and nothing else. It was then spots of darkness clouded her vision. She could not see clearly anymore. She heard incoherent voices of their subjects and the maidens who served her but her mind could not register what they were saying. Soon, she let herself fall into the darkness that seemed so comforting to her.
A year later, the young queen died of grief. No one knew whom she was grieving for but there were rumours of her grieving for the one who saved her with his life. The man who was once the living legend. The man who was skilled in almost everything. The man whose relation with the queen was unknown. All that the people knew was that the queen did love the man with the mask deeply.
The legend of the “ mysterious prince” lived on.
With the death of the young queen, the Vein Forest had no leader. It led to the internal war of the struggle for the throne, causing the fall of the Vein Forest, which was the country that was once so rich in resources that neighboring countries were constantly trying to invade. Now, the Vein Forest was taken over by the very same country that was defeated before the death of the queen. The very last victory the young queen and the “ mysterious prince” had won. Yet, with their death, the country fell into the enemy’s hands and that hard-earned victory became worthless even with the heavy price.
Ultimately, the “bringer of chaos” did cause the fall of the Vein Forest in directly but no one knew about his existence.