"Did you hear that?" The young child looked across the dark room towards were his older brother was, lying on his bed. "Yes, it's father calling us, I think." Both children stood up from their rickety wooden beds. "Let's go down to their room and see what is happening," suggested the older one enthusiastically.
They both nodded in unison, though they could barely see each other do it. It was very dark in the room, and the glass window wasn't bringing in much light. It was a moonless night outside, only the stars shone in the dark.
Both children put on their thin, leathery slippers, then they headed on towards the door. The younger brother tripped on the way, he wasn't comfortable with this night walk they were doing. "Take care, brother." The older boy turned the well-oiled but rusted knob of their room's door, which swung open without producing any sound.
They stepped out into the hallway, the shaggy wool carpet underfoot rubbed the soles of their slippers, and the darkness ahead was only penetrated by the faint glow of lamplight from their parents' room.
The hallway was quite cramped. It fitted in a shoe drawer which sat next to a dresser which sat next to a thick mirror hung on the wall. The brothers walked in unbroken silence, each trying to catch any sliver of conversation from the lit room, but there was none. Soon they were in front of the slightly ajar door, waiting. "Come in children, and close the door behind you." The smooth but powerful voice of their father echoed throughout the hallway. The children loved their father will all their hearts, but sometimes he could be scary and grave whenever he wished to. Thankfully he wasn't this night!
They both stepped into the room silently, looking around for their parents' whereabouts. "Mommy, Daddy!" The younger child saw them first, reclining on the worn but still comfortable duster sofa that lay in the far end of the basically furnished room. There was the bed on the other side of the room, stuck right in the corner of it.
The thing was large, but the mattress seemed worn and in need of repairs. Beside it was a small wooden dresser which had an old fashioned lamp on it and minute mirror that was foggy at the edges.
Both children hadn't been allowed inside the room much, so this was a very thrilling occurrence to them. The younger child noticed how some cracks were starting to appear along the corners of the roof, but he quickly shrugged the thought and returned his focus to his parents. The older child also came forward, delighted in seeing his parents. The mother stood up from where she was sitting and scooped up the younger child, cuddling him closely, while the father took in the younger one in a tight hug, then sat him on his lap and started ruffling his flowing dark brown hair.
"Daddy, Mommy, why did you call us?" The younger child looked keenly at both his parents, uncertainty in his eyes. The father spoke, "Son, there is something very important I need to tell you, a story, a very essential one for you to hear." Both children listened intendedly to their father, then the younger one burst out saying, "Daddy, what does essentially mean?" He pronounced the word wrong while trying to say it. The father let out a kindly laugh then replied, "it means that what I'm about to tell you is important, so listen carefully, alright?" The younger one nodded his head, making his curly brown hair tumble around. Then the father began.
"What I'm about to tell you is all true, this all happened alright? So, Earth, our home, our planet. So much has happened to it, so much of it has changed. So much had gone and so much lost. Listen carefully, darlings, for this is a tale everyone should know. This is the tale of how we came to be, how we endured and survived." The children looked at their father's face with wonder. They had been called from their room at a time when they should be asleep, and that was unlike their parents. "Daddy, what is happening?" Asked the younger one, giving his father a quizzical look. "I'm about to tell you something very important, son. You will listen carefully, ok." He said it in a more serious and commanding voice than the children were ever used to. "Ok, daddy. Please continue."
The older one was very anxious about this tale, but curiosity got the best of him. Excitement and impatience shone in his eyes, and the Mother seemed to notice this, for she gave him a kindly, warm smile. "Focus, alright. Long ago, our planet was different, very different. There were still people living on it like now, but they lived in a way contrary to our own."
The younger child looked at his father, confusion plain on his face. "Daddy, what does contrary mean?" The Father gave a warm smile then replied, "it means differently, Ascalon. Now listen and stop interrupting. So, as I was saying, the people who lived long ago lived differently. They had cities a hundred time the size of our cities. They had machines that made their lives very easy, science that evolved rapidly, always updating their word. But they went too far, my dears. They made weapons, large engines that can destroy entire buildings with one shot. Bombs that turn whole continents into rubble. And that is the tragedy of what happened." The children looked at their father eagerly, bidding him to continue. "These ancient people, they blew themselves and the whole planet up.
Everything died in the blast wave that consumed the Earth, all the animals, the plants, the crops. Even the insects didn't survive. Then came the radiation, that turned the land into desert and changed anything that had survived. We call it mutation. The only humans to survive were the smart ones, the ones who sent themselves high up in the sky, and watched as their homes burned from huge silver ships that circled the planet." The younger child, Ascalon, hid his face with his palms, peeping through them. "Don't worry, son. It's a story, it can't harm you, even though it already did." He said it in a hushed voice, too low for the young one to hear, but the Mother noticed it though. The young one slowly withdrew his hands then boded the father to continue with a shaky nod.
"Ascalon is scared, Ascalon is scared!" The older child teased his brother. The tension suddenly broke and everyone erupted in laughter. The young child put on his bravest face and said, "I'm not scared, see." Both parents laughed together, the Mother said, "stop teasing your brother, Cal, it's not nice. Please continue, honey." The father turned to his wife, an affectionate smile on his face. His face then turned serious again as he resumed.
"So yeah, these wise humans who sent themselves into space, they stayed there for a long time. But then they ran low on food and water, so they were forced to come down and return to their dead home. These people are our ancestors, they built the cities we know today.
"They made families and had kids, just like you two. But it wasn't a happy life. Food was hard to grow, water was scarce, and good land was always sought after. People divided into factions, led by great men. They fought each other for land, money, and water. This continued for a very long time, but then came the hero king, who miraculously united all the lands and all the peoples into one nation, like they were supposed to be. He was the greatest king of all, and his children would build up our world and make it better. They protected the lands from the threats in the south."
Ascalon looked at his father questioningly, "what threat, daddy, there is only sand in the south." The father looked grimly at his younger son. "There are things, Ascalon, other people, different from us in every way. They tried to invade the land and kill everyone, but the great king of the time was able to stop them in a very large battle. Now back to the point, sonny."
Suddenly, a large booming noise came from right outside the house. The Father stood up attentively, so did the Mother behind him. Both children sat on the couch, scared and confused. "Honey, stay with the kids, I'll go check this out." The Father wore his most frightening and stern face yet. He went outside the room fast, taking long strides as he went. Then the door was opened and slammed shut with a force that bent it a little.
The whole family crowded around the foggy window above the bed, all trying to see what's going on out there. The young child saw a large figure with a lamp walking towards the water pump. That thing was huge, almost twelve feet tall it was, it would hum and puff and groan throughout the day when it was pumping water into the irrigation ditches.
But now it was silent as a tomb. The shadowed figure with the lamp was getting closer to the pump, then he almost slipped on the muddy earth underfoot. Quickly steadying himself, he took something out of his pockets, then continued towards the pump.
At this point, the Father showed up, holding a lamp of his own, and shouting in the direction of the figure. Mother started trembling horribly, but the older child held her shaky hands firmly, giving her a reassuring squeeze.
The figure pointed the thing in his hands towards Father, shouting in his own gruff and violent voice. The standoff continued for about a minute longer before Father took a step towards the figure. The shouting grew louder and more alarming. Then Mother slid of the bed and went out of the room. The children were too scared to follow, so they stayed watching the window, faces glued to it's cold surface.
Suddenly, Father dashed at the figure, throwing his lamp at him at the same time. There was a scream as the lamp struck the figure point blank and erupted in flames. But the figure quickly responded with falling to the ground, pointing at Father, then …
Another loud explosion filled the air, and Father fell face first into the mud, unmoving. Tears welled into the younger boy's eyes, the older one trying to keep a calm look for his brother's sake, but failing hard at it.
Mother came rushing out of the house a second later. The figure had already doused the flames by rolling in the mud, now he stood facing Mother who was running towards the corpse. Shrieking erupted from her, then the wind picked up and blew at the night dress she was wearing.
The figure took no notice of her until she jumped on his back, biting and scratching at his face. The younger child could stand it no longer; he ran out of the room with the protesting shouts of his brother behind him. The boy rushed down the short flight of stairs and burst out into the yard were his Mother was being battered by the figure.
The young child ran blindly towards the shed unnoticed by the figure who was busy hammering his Mother. Screams of pain and agony filled the night air.
Cal, the older child had followed his younger brother outside, leaving the house's safety. "HEY YOU, LEAVE MOMMY ALONE!" He shouted at the shadowed figure defiantly. He couldn't stop himself but he erupted into tears at that moment.
The figure, who looked like a man, turned to the older child and said in his rough voice, "so you're the runt huh, watch this runt, I'm gonna blow you Mamma's brains out!" He pointed his arms towards Mother and fired. Cal fell to the ground, no longer able to keep up any of the courageous act.
"LEAVE MY BROTHER ALONE YOU MURDERER!" The younger child emerged from the shed suddenly, holding something black in his hands. He out stretched his hands and pointed at the figure. "LEAVE NOW, GET OUT!" The figure just turned towards the younger brother, but before he could do or say anything, a loud explosion filled the air for the third time tonight.
Then another and another! Cal noticed how he was suddenly splashed with something wet and sticky.
The younger child stepped towards the figure, who was now writhing in the ground, and literally stood over him. "GO TO HELL!" he shouted.
Another explosion filled the air. This one would be the last, promised the young child to himself. As the acrid smelling smoke cleared, he saw a sight that he would never ever forget the rest of his life.
He had done it; he had killed him.
But at what price. "What have I done. MOMMY, DADDY. WAKE UP. PLEASE!" The older brother stepped over to him and embraced his tightly, "they're in a better place now, Ascalon. You saved us ! "
Then they both started crying, with the wind howling around them.