It rained that night in thick sheets, just like it had that night. Great drops of water pounded on the roof of a small cottage in the forest. A boy stared vigilantly out the window, watching for someone to come. Waiting for that man to appear from the rain and take away what little he had left. Orchid sat on the window sill, rocking back and forth, hugging his arms close to him. He caressed his fingers against the hard chains fused to the skin of his arms. The chains were cold to the touch, and were offset by the warmth of his skin.
* * *
The Great Gaea Tree grew deep in a valley in the mountains. A village of witches lived there away from the large cities of the world where they could live in peace and commune with nature under the protection of their provider, the Gaea Tree. But for a long time, the peace had not lasted. Wars raged throughout the world, and rulers determined to win would seek out the inhabitants of the village and force them to use their magic to make weapons for them. Eventually the wars stopped, the village could live in peace again, and they swore to never use their powers to create another weapon.
So the witches could again live in peace with the Gaea Tree. They loved the Gaea Tree not only because it provided them with food, water, and shelter, but also because in each generation the Tree would give birth to a child. This child possessed magic stronger than any other, and would leave the village in times of crisis. When the child was born, the village would celebrate and take them in as their own. But the last child that was born had died in the wars, and the village had long been without a leader. It had been ten years since the battling had stopped, and the Gaea Tree would soon give birth to a new child.
* * *
Roan was born two years before the fighting had stopped. He spent most of his life learning how to grow plants from his mother and how to forge steel from his father. Roan’s father was greatly respected for his blacksmith skills, not just by the villages, but also by the rest of the world for his ability to create devastating weapons. But the wars had stopped and now he only used his skills to make tools. Roan’s father was respected so much that the village had decided that he was the best candidate to raise the Gaea
Tree’s child. So when the day came for the child to be born, Roan was bubbling with excitement to meet his new brother or sister. He spent that night awake in his bed imagining what his new sibling would be like, and wondering if they’d like him.
Roan got up the next morning, got dressed, and ate breakfast with his parents. Then, together they walked to the Gaea Tree. All the villagers sat around the northern side of the tree, waiting. Roan and his parents sat closest to the tree. Roan had always admired the tree as far back as he could remember, and he always felt insignificant at the sheer size of it. The Gaea Tree was so wide that you couldn’t see half the village when you looked at it, and its trunk spiraled high above the ground, past the clouds. Its roots slithered in and out of the ground like grand brown serpents, and often added to the foundations of the houses. Roan could only see a few branches before they disappeared into the sky, except for one that was only a story or two off the ground. This branch was thicker than the roots, and extended closer to the ground. The branch was covered in leaves that spread out like wings and ended in a flower’s bulb.
The day dragged on and nothing happened until the sun came directly over their heads. All of a sudden, stems burst from the tree and the surrounding ground. The stems gradually bloomed into beautiful flowers of every color. The villagers gasped in awe at all the colors. Roan’s father leaned his head towards him.
“Those are all orchids,” he said calmly, his eyes full of pride and wonder. “The child’s name is Orchid.”
The crowd fell silent as Roan saw something move above his head. The bulb grew outwards and bloomed into a festival of colors. The bulb fully expanded into a flower, and Roan noticed a peach colored seed at its center. The seed fell to the ground, and he could now see that was a person.
The boy sat up, and looked at the crowd, not sure of what to make of it. Roan was surprised by the new child. He had been expecting a baby, but this boy was not much smaller than him, and already had short black hair growing from his head. The crowd and the boy sat in silence for a minute, only interrupted by the occasional whispers, until Roan finally stood up. He picked the nearest flower, a blue orchid, and walked towards the boy. He sat upright with his hands on his knees. The first thing Roan noticed about the boy was his ghostly pale skin. The second was his large innocent eyes that were an unusually bright shade of blue. The boy looked up at him with a blank expression on his face.
“I’m your brother, Roan.” He finally said, placing a hand on his chest. “Your name is Orchid.” He handed the flower to his new brother. Orchid took the flower hesitantly and stared down at it for a moment. Roan’s father appeared beside him and draped a blanket around Orchid’s shoulders.
“I think its time to go,” He said.
Roan grabbed Orchid’s hand and helped him to his feet. Orchid took one step before his legs gave out beneath him. Roan’s father caught Orchid before he hit the ground, picked him up, and they both walked back to the house.
“How come he can’t walk?” Roan asked his father.
“He’s only been alive for a few minutes,” his father answered. Roan looked at his feet, a little disappointed. “Don’t worry. He’ll catch on soon.”
* * *
That night, the village exploded into festivity. They held a great feast in Orchid’s honor with all kinds of rare foods. Afterwards, they created a big bonfire next to the Gaea Tree, and danced and sang and laughed deep into the night. Roan bit into a turkey leg and watches the witches sing until he noticed Orchid was gone. He searched for them among the crowd, until he saw movement in the shadows.
He found Orchid back at his birthplace, and was surprised to see him walking with uneasy steps. Orchid picked a flower from the ground and turned to Roan. He pointed at the flower.
“Orchid,” He said, and then pointed to himself. He then pointed to Roan and said “Roan.”
Roan smiled.
* * *
Orchid and Roan sat outside their home on a warm afternoon. Roan picked a see from a pouch and dug a hole in the ground with his fingers. He put the seed into the hole and placed his hands on the ground. His hands started to glow as a stem shot from the ground. The stem grew three feet, branches expanding in all directions. The plant stopped growing when Roan took his hands from the dirt.
“You try,” Roan said, as he tossed Orchid a seed. Orchid did the same as his brother. His hands glowed and the stem grew taller than Roan’s, and had dark red berries on the branches. Roan got to his feet and picked one of the berries.
“What are Cogin berries used for?” Roan asked.
“They’re juices can heal burn wounds and cuts, right?” Orchid said.
“Yeah, but do you remember the most important part?” Orchid shook his head. Roan threw the berry at Orchid’s feet. The berry let out a loud bang and a bright flash of light that made Orchid jump. Orchid rubbed his eyes in a vain attempt to make the spots disappear.
“They can be used to blind an enemy, and when full grown, they can explode.”
“Right,” Orchid said as the spots faded away. Roan’s father appeared from the side of the house
“Come here, boys. I have something to show you,” he said, and vanished just as suddenly as he came. Roan picked up the pouch and they both followed.
“Orchid, I have a gift for you,” their father said as he handed him a broom. The broom was as tall as he was, and sleekly curved in several places with two dents carved in a couple feet apart.
“Thanks…” Orchid replied sarcastically.
“Try it out before you thank me.” He grabbed the broom and placed it on the ground. “You see those dents in the wood? Put your feet in them.” Orchid did as he was told, and the broom rose a few feet of the ground.
“Whoa!” Orchid shouted, trying to gain his balance. Then the broom shot off, leaving Orchid rolling and the ground, and disappeared past the trees. Roan’s father held out his hand, and the broom shot from the forest to him like a boomerang. “It’ll take practice, but you’ll be able to ride it someday,” he said as he helped Orchid off the ground.
“Let me try it.” Roan said. The boys spent the rest of that day taking turns and smashing their heads on the dirt.
* * *
Years passed, and over time the boys grew, not only in height and power, but closer as brothers. They lived those years in peace, until that man came to visit. The boys were sitting at the table easting lunch with their mother when a loud knock echoed through the house. The father answered the door. A tall man walked in uninvited. He had long dark brown hair and piercing eyes like a falcon searching for prey, A dark green cloak plunged to the ground, hiding his legs.
“Its been awhile, Alistair,” The man said. Their father’s widened in terror.
“What are you doing here?”
“I want a new sword. And I want you to make it.”
“I’ve retired from making weapons, you know that.”
“The thing about me is, Alistair. I always get what I want.” He took a few steps into the house and glared at Orchid and Roan. “Are those your boys?” He said menacingly.
Roan’s mother pulled the two of them out of their seats and walked them to the door. “Go into the woods and play for a few hours, okay?”
“What’s going on?” Roan asked.
“Is Dad going to be okay?” Orchid asked.
“Go now,” She said as calmly as she could, pushing them out the door. ”Roan, take care of your brother.” And with that, she shut the door. Roan hesitated for a minute, then marched towards the forest.
“Grab your broom. Hurry!” Roan yelled behind him. Orchid strapped his broom to his back, and dashed after his brother.
“What’s going on?” Orchid asked as they reached the woods.
“What are those berries used for>” Roan asked, pointing to a bush with green berries in the distance.
“They’re Crytonberries. They’re poisonous. Why?”
“Why are they poisonous?”
“You never answered me. What’s-“
“Why are they poisonous?” Roan asked again, more firmly.
“They’re cores are acidic. They’ll burn your mouth if you eat them. You never-“
“What do Roulinshrooms do?” Roan asked. They continued on like this for miles, deeper into the forest until Orchid couldn’t walk anymore. They rested on a dead tree until night came, when they were shaken by a loud bang coming from the path leading to the village. A wave of grey smoke rose into the night sky, hovering forebodingly around the full moon. Orchid stood up and reached for his broom.
“Where are you going?” Roan asked.
“If you won’t tell me what’s happening, I’m going to find out.”
“I’m not letting you go.” Roan grabbed Orchid’s arm. Orchid quickly knocked it away.
“You can’t stop me! What if mom and dad are hurt?”
“What if you get hurt?!” Roan yelled. Orchid hesitated for a moment, staring at the ground.
“I don’t care.” Orchid said as he stepped onto his broom.
“Hang on,” Roan said. He walked over to a Corgin bush and waved a hand in front of it. Two berries swelled in size. Roan picked them and handed them to Orchid. “Use these if you get in any trouble.” Orchid nodded, then shot off towards the village.. He shifted his weight to speed up, as he swerved, narrowly missing a few trees. In the short time it took him to reach the village, rain had begun to hammer against his head. But the heavy rain wasn’t enough to put out the flames that blazed across the village. Large men in green jackets ran throughout the village, burning down houses, and waving their swords in rage and delight.
Orchid swerved past the men, down an alley, and slammed his broom into the chest of one of his men. Orchid and the man flew forwards, landing on top of each other. The man knocked Orchid off, stood up and withdrew a sword from his side. Orchid closed his eyes, and threw the two berries at the man. His chest erupted into a geyser of flames as he fell to the ground.
Orchid dashed as fast as he could to his house. He could see the lights were on. When he got closer, he could see his parents laying on the floor, unmoving and covered in a blanket of blood. Orchid froze in fear as he watched the man with the piercing eyes tear apart his home. The man finished his rampage and headed for the door.
Orchid grabbed a nearby shovel, held it high over his head and charged the man as he left the house. The man withdrew his sword and slashed with monstrous speed. The next thing Orchid saw were his arms lying on the ground, lifeless. Blood flowed from the wounds in waterfalls. He too fell to the ground, his shoulders oozing blood. In those moments, he wanted to scream, but no sound would come. He tried to hug his arms tightly to his chest, but felt nothing. Rain pouring down from the sky, mixed in with blood and tears.
The last thing Orchid saw was the man staring down at him with his remorseless, falcon-like eyes. And then his eyes closed.
* * *
Hours passed until Roan found his fallen brother. His face was a mess of tears.
“I won’t let you die,” he said to himself.
* * *
Orchid dreamed. He dreamed of slaying dragons, and living the life of a rich prince. He dreamed of sailing with pirates, and exploring lost ruins. The only constant in his dreams was the sound of metal banging on metal off into the distance.
* * *
Orchid awoke days later in his bed. He gasped and sat up, trying to remember what happened. His room was more or less intact, though still covered in black scorch marks. He pulled the covers off, and got out of bed when he remembered what happened. His arms had been chopped off, but he looked down, and they felt normal. Stronger, even. He flexed his fingers in front of him, then he hugged himself tight, laughing. He immediately noticed a sliver glint on his palm. Thick chains embedded in his skin ran up both of his arms, and down his fingers. They were connected by rings of silver around his wrists, fingers, elbows, and the base of his shoulders. Roan eventually came in, carrying a plate of toast on it. He placed it on the dresser and sat next to him. His eyes were filled with sorrow.
“What happened to me?” Orchid asked.
“I found you, bleeding to death with your arms cut off.” Roan said. “I used dad’s blacksmith shot to make those for you.”
“Mom! Dad! Are they-“
“Dead. Along with most of the village.” Roan dripped deep tears. He grabbed Orchid and held him tight. “I’m so sorry, Orchid! I promised to protect you!” He said between sobs. Orchid hugged him back, eyes full of determination.
“And I promise you I’m going to use these arms to rip that man’s heart out.”
Elijah Frost Community Member 
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