VEINS.

Chapter 1 : End of military training.

Hello, my lovely readers! So, every country and city in this story will be fictional. Please don't get lost when you read about cities and countries you have never heard.
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My name is Travis. I come from a small town called Hunia in country Juna. I have just completed my military training today and am excited to go back home tomorrow. I have an older sister and a mother; my father passed away in the war after being deployed and stationed in Kiaw.

It hasn't been an easy journey; I have had friends fail and leave the training grounds, leaving behind their dreams.

My elder sister and mother got into a small car accident, which led to them needing a blood transfusion and staying at the hospital for a few days. It's been three days since they returned home.

I am worried about their condition and want to personally check on them. My mother tells me not to worry about them, as it was just a minor accident, but how can I not worry? They are my only family.

"Ahhh... finally! We are leaving this place!" a fellow private, Danty, said as he entered the dormitory, causing others to snicker and laugh. He was known as one who received the most punishment from the drill sergeant during our training.

"Private Danty! Report to the training grounds now!" Private Greg said as he entered the dormitory in an imitating voice of our sergeant.

Danty immediately stood straight and alert, causing the other privates and me to laugh at his stature and expression.

"Greg! See if I don't beat you to death today!" Danty shouted as he headed straight for Greg before putting him in a choke hold angrily. Greg was busy laughing his ass off at his misery and suffering.

Although I had some tough times here, I made some good friends; we are basically brothers in arms.

"Travis, whom are you so eager to meet outside? Your girlfriend?" Greg smirked as he asked after the bickering with Danty.

"I don't have a girlfriend, just my sister and mother," I answered with a smile.

"I saw Travis's sister in one of his photos; she is a beauty! Please let me be your brother-in-law, okay?" Danty said as he sat on my bed with pleading eyes, generating chuckles from the others.

"I don't want a brother-in-law like you. Go and pack up your luggage. Aren't you leaving tomorrow?" I said in a light tone.

"Whyyy? I am tall and handsome; I can be said to be a woman killer. Is it because I got punished a lot during training? Don't worry, Drill Sergeant Anders couldn't handle my tough man demeanor; he was simply intimidated by me!" Danty boasted as he stood up straight from my bed while showing off his muscles.

I just shook my head in amusement. 
"It's not all that. How long did you last take a bath?" I asked, which caused another echo of laughter to break through.

Danty slowly folded his arms and placed his fingers on his chin, as though deep in thought about my question. Greg snickered before he informed us that there would be a simple party tonight to celebrate the completion of our training.

At the party, some drill sergeants were present, and there were some other sergeants we hadn't seen during our training.

Sergeant Anders climbed up to the podium to give a simple speech. He congratulated us on reaching the end of the milestone, which others unfortunately didn't complete, told us that we were the best among the best as we were personally trained by him, and hoped that our discipline wouldn't bring shame on him once we went back out into our different communities.

After Sergeant Anders' speech, other drill sergeants and sergeants roughly gave us some encouraging words before everyone gathered together and had beer.

"Private Danty!" Sergeant Anders suddenly called.

"Yes, sir!" Danty hurriedly stood up straight in response to the call. I snickered after remembering his words in the dormitory.

"Why are you so loud at night? Go to Room 8 and get us some other beers," Sergeant Anders ordered. 
"Yes, sir!" Danty answered before running off.

"This boy, he still needs more training..." I heard Sergeant Anders say to the other sergeants as they moved away to the balcony chairs.

"I heard that we will only have at most two weeks at home before being deployed to Kiaw. The war is knocking, and we will have to be stationed there," Greg sighed as he sat beside me.

I had heard of such rumors going around. My country, Juna, has always been at odds with Kiaw for a very long time. We couldn't seem to come to an understanding on anything; many soldiers, like my father, were lost on both sides.

"Man, this time around, I think it's very serious, and other countries might also be involved. I have friends from country Traat; they also heard such rumors going around in their base," Private petter, one of the guys we trained with, said as he joined our conversation.

"Country Traat? Then it's pretty serious," another Private said as he also sat down.

I also pensively thought about the situation. Traat was known as a superpower country all around; if they were also involved, then the issue this time wasn't so simple.

We talked about our time on base, different scandals, and some Privates discussed the women waiting for them at home.

Private petter was expecting a baby back home; he was very excited and expectant about the baby's arrival. The atmosphere was merry and harmonious amidst drinks and stories.

The next day, everyone woke up early, took a bath, arranged their luggage, and got ready to leave the base.

"I will not miss you guys! You can all kick rocks except for my brother-in-law, Travis," Danty said as he hurriedly ran out of the dormitory with his luggage, amidst curses from other Privates.

I just shook my head in desperation. Danty was always causing a scene wherever he went, but everyone knew him and liked his personality on the base. The senior sergeants always called for him to run errands around the camp.

I bade farewell to the other Privates and left.There was a military bus waiting for everyone outside the base, and it would drop us off at the airport. Other military buses would be waiting for us on the other side.

The first thing I did was call my mother. I had talked to her yesterday, and she had told me that she and my sister would personally pick me up from the airport.

"Hello, Travis! Your sister is packing up her flyers. We shall be waiting for you at the airport!" I heard my mother say.

I could only helplessly smile; my sister has always been like this; she loves to do everything in an extra and grand manner.

"Mom, tell Cristy that she doesn't need those flyers; just you being there is enough," I said.

"What do you mean no flyers are allowed? Are you the only Travis at the airport?" Cristy's voice penetrated through the phone.

"Okay, do as you like. I am boarding the bus now," I said.

"Safe travels!" Mom said. The phone call then disconnected.

When I arrived at the airport, I didn't see my mother and Cristy as I expected. I tried calling them, but no one was picking up. My heart immediately dropped. Could they have met with an accident again? I didn't want them to pick me up, but my mother insisted on doing so.

I was left with no other option but to get a taxi and head home. When I arrived, everything was normal. My mother's car was parked outside; it seemed Cristy was still packing flyers. I helplessly shook my head.

Our spare house key was usually kept under the flower pot beside the door, so I got it and opened the house.

When I saw the scene inside, my whole body froze and my heart chilled. I simply couldn't put it into words.It was here that my whole world collapsed and probably stayed that way for a very long time.