The Magical Forest

In a small house, inside a village beside a forest, the three twins lived: Rima, Raad, Amir. Rima was an energetic and adventurer girl; however, Raad was known for his intelligence and Amir with his agility and flexibility.

One day, the three twins and their parents went to the forest searching for withered trees to cut them. Suddenly, an unknown voice was heard behind them. The father stand against it trying to protect his wife and children and light a flame and directed it to the voice that leads to the appearance of the lion's face in front of them. 

"Run quickly and don't turn around!" the father shout.

The children start to run with their mother as fast as they can. The minutes runs as hours, and when the father's voice wasn't heard any more and the roar become loader, the mother sat on her knees and said: "Raad, run with your sibling away and return to the village quickly! And don't turn around!"

Raad didn't understand his mother's words, but he hold his siblings' hands and run away. After hours of running, the twins stopped and looked around to realize that they were lost.

Raad, tired: we..we lost him..

Amir, desperately: and become orphans!

Raad looked to his brother that was crying while Rima's crying voice become loader. Raad wasn't able to do anything except looking down desperately.

Suddenly, an unknown voice spoke: "When the night comes with the dead moon, and the stars are jailed, when the voices rise, and the love ones disappear, when the death becomes the king of the world, a golden flame will shine. Then, you must know…the light didn't die yet.

If despair conquered you, and hope died, if you were owned by fear, and courage disappeared, go towards the golden flame. But you should know… if you had a dark heart, you won't be saved from despair and fear anymore."

"What was that?" Rema asked while wiping her tears.

"As if it's a poem…" Amir replied.

"Let's go!" Raad said.

"To where?" Rema asked. "If we continue we will lost again!"

"I know. But what the mestery voice said a while ago, remember me of a story our dad told me once…" Raad replied.

"A story?" Amir asked. "Do you mean the magical tree story?"

"The story said that this forest was named long ago with the magical forest." Rima said. "It has the ability to distinguish between the pure hearted people and the dark hearted people. Whose dark hearted won't be able to go out of the forest and will be stuck in it forever till their death."

"But it just myths." Amir said. "Do you really believe it!?"

"We're lost and we don't have any option only to believe right now." Raad said.

"I wonder why it was called the magical forest." Rema wondered. 

"The only way to know is to continue our way." Raad said.

Like that, the twins woke to the mystery. Every time they walk more, they went deeper in the forest. The place become darker and scarier and scary strange voices were in everywhere. Rima held her brother' hands, that held their other hands too, and continue very close to each other, looking around them in fear.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa" A voice was heard and was flowed by the children's shouting. They started running quickly with their eyes close from fear. After minutes, Raad opened his eyes to realize he lost his siblings.

"Amir! Rema! Where are you!?" he started shouting. "Amir!!Rema!!" 

He sat under one of the highest trees and started thinking between himself.

"This is the worst day ever! First my parents were died, then I and siblings lost in the forest, and now I lost my siblings! What should I do?"

He looked up to the high tree and think: "if my dad was here, he would say that we shouldn't cut this tree because it still give ripe fruits. My mother would pick its fruits and wash it in the house and distribute it to the villagers."

Raad stand without thinking and started climbing the tress. It was so high and the lemon's scent was smelt from it. When he reached the top, he put his hand on his face because of the light intensity and looked around himself. The trees was like crystals under the sun shine and the blue sky extended all around him and the birds were chirp with its beautiful voice.

"What a wonderful place! I can see the village!" Raad said. "Amir!! Rema!! If you can hear me, please reply to me!"

He didn't find any reply but he saw a golden flame shining near of him in the opposite way to the village. He went down and went toward the flame. He was running and go into many things that he didn't know what was. When he arrived to the flame he was surprised. He found his siblings fainted on the ground. Moreover they were in front of the village.

"I am sure that I went away from the village!" Raad said surprised. "I was running towards the flame and went away from the village!"

"R..Raad??" Rema awaked. "What had happened?? Where are we?"

"We get out of the forest! Just like the mystery voice told us!" Raad replied.

"Really!?" Amir asked.

The twins looked to each other's happily but their happiness went away when they looked towards the forest. The forest was burning and the golden flame was fading away slowly. They heard the mystery voice saying: "Please, help me!"

Raad closed his eyes and rubbed them then looked towards the forest again, but nothing was happening.

Twenty years went from that accident. Now, some men from the city come to suggest something to the village elder person.

"We will opened schools and hospitals and develop infrastructure of the village." The man said. "All what we need is your agreement to burn the forest that is around your village so we can start our work!"

"We don't want schools. We have the most beautiful one and the finest." The elder village said. "We don't need hospitals, we have the best ones. And if you said what about universities, our children go outside the village and return to develop it. In short, we don't want your offer."

"What school and hospital are you talking about?" The man asked surprisingly.

"Go and asked the villagers and you will know." The village elder replied.

The man went out confused. In the way, he saw a teacher holding books was going inside the elder village's house.

"Mister, where is the school you teach in??" The man asked.

"Do you see that forest?? Go inside and walk some centimeters and you will reach it." The teacher replied.

"Isn't it dangerous to teach kids in the forest where the wild animals!?" The man asked.

"Yes, it was." The teacher replied. "Not anymore. It's not a normal forest."

"What do you mean!?" the man asked.

"When the night comes with the dead moon, and the stars are jailed, when the voices rise, and the love ones disappear, when the death becomes the king of the world, a golden flame will shine. Then, you must know…the light didn't die yet." The teacher replied.

The teacher leaved the man confused and went inside the elder village's house. The man continue his way and he found a nurse going out from one of the houses.

"Excuse me, madam." The man said. "Where is the hospital you work in?"

"You have to go inside the forest…" The nurse replied.

"Isn't it dangerous to heal patients there!?" the man said interrupting the nurse.

 "Yes, it was." The nurse replied. "Not anymore. It's not a normal forest."

"What!?" The man said surprisingly.

"If despair conquered you, and hope died, if you were owned by fear, and courage disappeared, go towards the golden flame. But you should know… if you had a dark heart, you won't be saved from despair and fear anymore." The nurse said.

"What is the story of that forest!?" The man asked.

"Oh, it's just a story that I and my siblings, the elder village Raad and the teacher Amir, lived once become orphans…" Rema replied.