Part 2: A Couple of Principles

The living room at the twins' house also happened to be the dining room. Facing the pine
rectangular dining table four modest chairs made out of the same wood were organized around both
opposite sides of the table. In the middle of it, a rather extravagant chromium-plated bowl was
placed, empty of anything other than two apples. These that had been recently harvested from the
trees that had only started fruiting, an as such they were still immature, green and rather sour. In
fact, they would probably be more like tasteless if you dared to have a bite, but Nature and Time
soon would do their bidding and have them mature eventually. After all, the sweetest things in life
take the motherly care of Earth and the mystery and wisdom of the elderly Time to become that
way, don't they?
Decorating the pine table, a circle shaped lace with a white rural motif was displayed
under the metallic bowl. It was now being folded in quarters and being replaced by a white towel
with an alike pattern as the twins were helping their mum place the table. She was now wearing an
apron on top of her beige dress and there were letters knitted on it.
Their mum worked as the owner of the local bakery, and her apple pies were said to be the
best out of the whole New World, where such delights were a rarity. Occasionally, travellers would
come by just to taste them - “These are the best pies I ever had the chance to taste in this sorry life”
and “Jeebus, this tastes good beyond belief” were among the many comments that had left
Cassandra content with the fact that such a simple recipe could bring out a greater, precious smile in
the face of people. Her devoted love of cooking was incommensurable, and the white apron she was
wearing was plain, except for the words knitted on it that read “Cooking is a passion, but to create is
a gift.” She was probably the best cooker in town, and that was enough reason for the twins to brag
around about her. Sometimes, they would crow about her cuisine right in front of her, and that
always brought out a blush and a sudden smile to her face.
They both loved to see their mum smile, and such a pretty smile it was! But nothing but a
mere small ornament of the gracious beauty of Cassandra. Her oval shaped face culminated in a
pointy, little and humble chin. A little above, lips as red as roses and wine were peacefully shut as
usual, in a calm semblance that along with her motherly brown eyes was characteristic of her.
Amidst her stunning face, a narrow and smoothly rounded nose could have been nothing but
sculpted by divine talent, as the sun coming through the square shaped windows depicted an intense
shine due to the reflection of the rays in the silky skin that covered it and the rest of her body. Both
her children had earned her serene nose and her small yet delicate chin. She had light brown straight
hair swiftly tied around a dark brown ribbon in a homely ponytail, with a few reddish strands
standing out, highlighted by the sun. Small ears added the final touch in her look of tranquillity. Her
body was lean, and she was standing in brown leather shoes as she gazed happily at her two little
darlings lay the table. Around her, the living slash dining room was far from opulent, yet cosy in its
simplicity. A small granite fireplace was a few steps ahead and a brown rug was placed in front of it.
In turn, this rug was surrounded by a couch, also brown, and by a traditional rocking chair, where
the boys' mother would knit or fall asleep during the more tedious nights. Alongside the couch, a
small table had a radio along with a few books placed on it. They had no television, as they could
do well without it, since they had never acquired one, because the TV Broadcast was not able to
reach the village guarded by protective mountains, until recently, when antennas were built on top
of them to help amplify the radio waves and somehow ruin the horizon a little bit. Filthy metal kind
of perturbed the natural harmony found in the lonely, yet happy town. Either way, the radio was
perfectly fine by itself, according to father, as TV stations had only recently been installed in the
New World, and they probably broadcasted boring shows and poor news bulletins, and, as such, the
family settled on not purchasing a television. No one in the house really complained, since they all
had their own hobbies to be occupied with, anyway. The floor was surfaced with pine wood planks,
and the windows had white and beige stripped curtains adorning the scenario diffused by the glass.
A bookcase was next to one of these windows and numerous cooking and political science books
were placed inside it. The occasional book with subject on astronomy sprouted in the middle of the
others. These mostly belonged to Leon, who had ever since a young age shown interest on the
mysteries beyond this planet. Stars and exotic planets appealed to him so that he had his parents
purchase him a telescope for his ninth birthday so that he could observe what before seemed like
just sparkling dots in the sky at the naked eye. In order to wash off the simplicity of the living room
and the plain boredom of white walls lined with a mop board (which was also made out of pine),
multiple family photos were displayed around. Family photos that for the most part included only
the four of them, but that were still happy ones whatsoever – at least they had a smile and
satisfaction inscribed in its pixels. Only a few of these pictures actually had other relatives in them,
and these lacked the presence of the twins, who were born in the New World and as such had never
seen the rest of their family that was left behind in the Old World when Cassandra and Oliver Dante
decided to cross the seas in search for a better life.
Many other bold or merely hopeful adventurers had ventured into trying to find a better
life as well, but in reality, few were those who actually had success in getting one. Life was harsh in
the New Lands, the so called Land of Freedom, a place that according to the tales spreading in the
taverns and pubs of the so called Old World was bountiful, fertile and full of harvest and precious
metals such as gold, silver and even platinum! It was also said that Petroleum and Natural Gas was
abundant enough to ensure energetic efficiency and large plots of green grass and wonderful
alternative horizons awaited. Long story short – the perfect world to live in, every young man and
woman's dream.
All too good, though. It was just too perfect. The tales were not fake, don't get the wrong
idea, it's just... They were slightly outdated.
Twenty years had passed since the discovery of the new continent and its naming by its
discoverers in the year 2000. These resources had eventually been extracted to the point of
exhaustion by the rough, persistent and efficient machines employed by “money hungry principle
lacking merchants” as Oliver named them. And if that was not enough, they were literally making
slaves out of the modest workers who had arrived with their families in search of that perfect life
they had heard about whilst having a drink at the always full pubs in the Old World. Wasting them
to the point of exhaustion; after making them work for about eighteen hours straight, they would
send their poor employees back home with a miserable wage that was just barely enough to feed a
small house of two adults and two children for an entire week, let alone for a whole month.
To top it off, the ever so nice and pleasant merchants ended up exporting all the valuable
goods to the other side of the Barrier Ocean, meaning the New Lands were now left abandoned in a
way. The Argentium Empire had just stopped caring as soon as they found that these lands, which
their Emperor happened to rule, had lost their prosperity and incoming value. Travellers that had
emigrated to them were now on their own account, now that the Empire had little or no interest in
them at all. Some of them, the wealthiest ones, had managed to return in the occasional cargo trans-
ocean ships that still passed by. The others, most of them, were left in ruin. With no decent paying
jobs to be had, most depended on the harvests gathered from the parcels of fertile land that existed
copiously in the province of Greenlands. Of course, there were still those foolish moony ones who
still insisted in travelling to the New Lands, despite all the warnings saying that they were to do so
at their own risk; but overall, the population was starting to gradually realise that the past stories
that seemed to come right out of a very generous dream were actually just... dreams. Eventually, the
amount of migrations decreased little by little, and the only care that the Empire exerted upon the
New World was to keep it under their dominion and to ensure that no revolutions wishing to claim
their enormous power were successful there. Valuable or not, these lands were still an important
symbol of power and hegemony to the Empire, who also dominated about half of the Old World -
half of two continents, and still expanding through their authoritarian and nationalist policy of
conquest.
“A bunch of dirty handed fascists, that's what they are.” that's what Oliver kept telling his
children, despite the fact that he himself was employed by the state as the ruler of the province. He
and Cassandra had gone to the New Continent twenty years ago, when the Council elected Oliver
Dante, renowned deputy of the parliament, to be the Regedor of the province of Greenlands, which
occupied the westernmost sector of the continent and extended from just about the middle of the
western shore, limited by the Vasto Ocean, to the mountain range at the east. Forest surrounded the
northern and southern boundaries. The small village he happened to now live in had the name of
Prada and it was located at the east part of the province. He exerted the little power he had over the
territory from there, in his small, modest, but peaceful house – he was not a man given to
extravagance, all he wanted was a calm place to live in, far from the ravaging war that was felt all
over the world. The war for conquest was one of the reasons that made him decide to take up the
offer of the post in the province, along with the fact that his libertarian secret ideals would probably
slip off his restless mouth sooner or later and that was something that the Emperor would certainly
not tolerate. Thereby, it was simply better to just get away, far away. One of the still standing
benefits in the New World was the fact that regardless of it not being a free land, it was a place
where you could at least speak freely, albeit technically not being able to do so in any land under
Argentian rule. He ruled his province, and that sort of made him immune to freedom of speech
regulations. But long efforts would it take to ensure that precious freedom for other inhabitants.
Censorship was active and avidly controlling media sources, like an angry pack of wolves
struggling to mark the imposing boundaries of their territory. Still, Oliver happened to be like a wolf
disguised as a sheep – pardon! – ...like a sheep disguised as a wolf (with hostile fake fangs showing
and everything!) as he kept in possession of some resistance activist magazines, which certainly
would cross the said boundaries case they were found, that is... But they certainly wouldn't, since
they were carefully kept hidden somewhere safe with kid gloves, where no one, including his witty
and curious sons, could ever find them.
Yes, Oliver was a man of principles, but he also happened to have the common sense to
not let his open mind overcome his very careful nature – all his ideals, his thesis, his theories: he
knew them all by heart, from back to front, like the palm of his hand. He took pride in his
rationality and avid argumentation skills which he had acquired after long years of studying the
books in the aforementioned bookcase - he was just waiting to put them to use. It wouldn't take him,
a Political Philosopher with a doctor's degree to know that with all the discontentment that had
befallen among the people of the New World, sooner or later, a coup d'etat would take over the
continent. It'd be only fair. Twenty years of exploitation were already enough, but disabling the
freedom of speech of an entire population and leaving them all to abandon across the ocean?
Outrageous!

Cassandra had gone back to the kitchen to give a last inspection to the roast she had been
cooking for over half an hour, while the twins were... dangerously left alone in the living room.
They were both sitting in the brown couch, wrinkling its surface around the place they sat on. The
two had finished their task of laying the table and, currently, they were left with nothing to do but to
plan their next adventure.
“So Leon, where are we going after lunch?” asked Brennan, who leaned back in the couch
resting his head in the arms he crossed lazily behind it like some kind of pillow.
Leonard was resting his in the arm of the couch, lying horizontally with his legs extended
on top of Brennan's lap, laze also ornamenting his expression. “Meh, mum asked us to go get some
groceries from the store, so we'll start by going there...” He let off a yawn upon finishing the
sentence. He then added “I guess we can go explore that cave we found near the hills after that...
Unless you're too scared?”
 “Shut up, why would I be?” Indignation occupied his amber eyes, replacing the before
seemingly bored look that was given off by his two delicate orbs.
A same pair of fragile orbs was lit by a sudden glee that came from Leon, who was surely
having fun teasing his annoyed brother. “Because the day we found it you were crying like a girl not
to go in when I told you we should inspect it! Sure, you're not scared at all, brother... or shall I say...
sister?”
“You idio-” His sentence was abruptly interrupted by the creaking sound of an opening
door. It came from behind them, so both looked towards the entrance – Brennan turned around and
Leon rose from his lying on the couch position to check on the door.
“You guys are fighting again? Can't you two just sit still and wait for your dear daddy?”
Their father, Oliver, was at the door, and he was slanting at the frame and observing his
two beloved sons' faces of contempt upon finding out that their daddy had came back home from
his daily boring chores at the town centre's office. By the looks of his delighted expression he had
probably been simply standing there for a few minutes, simply contemplating the two restless
beings without them noticing. He smiled more intensely, and long before he noted, the twins were
already welcoming him back home with a kind hug to his thigh. He looked at the two from above,
only managing to see the reddish brown wild locks that gently covered both their heads. Overall,
the two identical twins took after the looks of their father, with some slight signs of their mother's
heritage – such as the softly curved nose, her divine-like chin and obviously the red streaks that
thoroughly mottled their straight shaggy hair, the latter being inherited from their father. Whether it
was naturally shaggy or just the result of it having just recently dried out in the sun and lacking
combing was not evident, specially because their dad's hair was far from being stubborn, when the
weight of his long golden hair prevented most locks from defying gravity, even more so when it
was tied handsomely in a intellectual ponytail as it happened to be by then. They did, however,
have the same angular long face as their dad's as well as his golden hazel eyes, pale skin, thick but
not bushy eyebrows and gentle curved ears. The hands that happened to be clasping their dad's back
had thin and long fingers. Sort of like the gracious fingers of a pianist, but they couldn't really play
the piano, since they didn't have one at home. Oliver, all the same, could play a few simple songs to
lighten up his mood when he felt bored or got a terrible headache at the office. A piano was there
for no apparent reason. He had never asked anyone to place it there; in fact it had been there even
before he decided to move his working place from home to the town centre, allegedly to increase
the amount of space for paperwork, dossiers and more and more papers and... work! Well, whatever
the reason for the said instrument to be there, it sure proved to help brighten the room's poor
decoration and heavy atmosphere of bureaucracy.
By the looks of Oliver, who was known by just about everyone as being extremely calm
and naturally altruistic, no one could ever be able to tell that he was fed up with having to sign and
read or skip reading papers altogether all the time – he was tired of that life, and were it not for the
fact that it earned a very generous amount of income and that it would be very hard to find a decent
paying job in the decadent lands of the New World, despite his status, he would have probably quit
that job long ago. Only with the help of the convenient piano and, of course, of his loving wife and
kids could he bear the tedium and monotony of his profession, and the welcoming reception he
always got when he stepped through his home's door everyday was a balsam to his worries.
He knelt down to stare at his sons and ran a hand through the hair of both softly. His
golden sandy eyes met the same coloured eyes of the two from behind the lenses attached to the
thick black frame of his glasses. A carefully shaven dark blonde moustache and goatee met at the
height of his small lips. The latter were left angled at the perturbation of a smile.
A muffled sound from either of the twins came from behind his ash brown coloured
leather long coat “Dad, you're back home!”
His large arms released the two lean and still childlike lean bodies that were previously
rubbing against his strong self and he rose up from a kneeling position.
“Hey there fellows, missed me?” he enquired playfully, as he stood up graciously and
crossed his arms in an attempt to act fatherly.
“You bet dad! We were really bored around here without you!” replied an amused
Leonard... or was it Brennan? He could never tell one from the other.
“Oh so you guys were bored, uh?” He grinned at the innocent tedium of his children. “I
don't suppose you'd rather help me sign papers the whole day, or would you?”
“Eww, papers are boring!” said the boy wearing red trunks with an affected expression of
repugnance.
“Daddy, I'll help you sign these evil papers!” said the other, who would be very happy to
help, and his felicitous smile washed away any doubt about that.
Oliver looked at that last boy, whose appearance almost resembled that of an angel
missing an halo. He laughed. “Sorry, mate. I'm afraid they'll only accept my signature. Heck knows
why...”
“You honestly believe they'd let a thicko like you sign these important papers? Seriously
brother.” denoted the usual earthly Leon.
“But... but! I'd help dad!” insisted Brennan, ignoring the harshness of his brother.
“You'd probably just end getting in the way, anyway, as you usually do!”provoked Leon,
once more.
“Is this about your stupid cave?” Brennan retaliated.
“No, it's about your stupid self!” riposted Leon, laughing at his own witty joke.
Sigh. An audible sigh escaped from Oliver, who was assisting at the brotherly quarrel.
“Guys, guys, guys!” he repeated and exclaimed vehemently “Stop fighting!”
Cassandra overheard his husband's comments and hurried quickly from the kitchen to
check what was going on. She halted below the frame of the door that connected the living room to
it, at the direct opposite side of the division. She also sighed at the two infuriated twins, ending up
smiling when she noticed the return of her beloved spouse.
Oliver also took notice of her and denoted so by grinningly waving at her. “Oh, hello
Cassie! Good to see you.” He was rubbing the back of his head, slightly embarrassed at the fight
going off in front of him.
“If this is about that cave, I'll prove to you I can go in it without being scared to death! Let
us go there this exact afternoon!” challenged a determined Brennan, who stared at his brother's eyes
with eager decision.
“Oh I'd pay to see that! You're so easily scared that you even run away from pigeons
walking on the middle of a street!” spoofed his brother, who would not just give up teasing Bren.
“Shut up, that's not true!” retorted an once more indignant Bren. Even the blue of his
trunks seemed more intense and the golden of his eyes more vivid as he struggled to prove his
point. Leon, not inclined to give him the upper hand, returned a scorching blaze of the same hue.
Cassandra stepped in front of the mutual irritated mutual gaze, which ended up switching
peacefully to a puzzled and curious look directed towards their mother.
“Hey guys! Um... Lunch is ready!”
“Yay! Do I smell your special roast?” one of them asked, suddenly forgetting the
argument he was involved in before.
 “Duh, everything mum makes is special!” retorted the other, indirectly flaunting his
mother cooking abilities.
Cassandra flushed at the sweet comment, and before she could reply to the question that
had been placed to her earlier, the twins had quickly dispersed towards the table.
“Wow, how do you get them to do that?” asked Oliver, surprised both at the fact that she
had simultaneously stopped their childish argument and unconsciously started another one, albeit
less lengthy to the contentment of their parents.
She laughed while keeping a contented eye on the two boys “I have no idea, but I wish I
did know!”
She shot two delighted and passionate eyes at her husband as she felt a tender arm
gripping her elegant waist.
“I love you”.
The couple directed themselves to the table to join their sons. Oliver signaled Cassie to sit
down, as he'd go get the roast from inside the oven. She initially hesitated, but an insistent stare
from Oliver told her to stay. He then disappeared in the wooden pine frame of the door.
“So, Leon, did you go get your brother's toy back?” she questioned.
“Yeah, I got it...” he retorted, looking at his brother annoyingly, “Seriously though, he
accidentally sat down right on top of it while I was searching. He's so thick!”
Their mum couldn't help letting out a slight giggle.
“Hmph, whatever.” commented a pestered Brennan.
“It's okay brother, next time we go looking for treasure I know where to look... Below
your boo-tt!” He burst out laughing at his own joke, his mum joined him – her slight giggle had
grown into tearful laughter. “Get it? Boo-tt, Butt, Booty? Treasure? Ahahaha.”
“What's so funny?” a disdainful brown raised to give emphasis to his irritated expression.
Cassandra's tears of hilarity were starting to hold up as she looked to her bothered son
“Sorry Bren, sweetheart, I just couldn't help slipping out a laughter.”
Her moved face was too adorable to resist, and the apathetic mouth in Brennan's face
gave place to an affected smile. “It's okay mum...” His eyes were a tight hug of apologize.
Leon rolled eyes. “What's taking dad so long?” he asked to himself out loud rather than
directing the question towards someone specifically.
Despite that, he still got an answer from his brother “I don't know... you don't think he
light a flint to check on the oven, do you?”
This time, the three burst out laughing, failing to notice a skeptical Oliver right at the door
that connected to the kitchen.
“You guys are having fun, uh?” he affirmed playfully.
“Oliver! Hun, let me help you with that!” exclaimed Cassie, surprised and simultaneously
embarrassed at the fact that her husband had probably heard the joke, albeit his non evident
confirmation. Before she had stood up, however, her husband had already laid the food on the table,
proceeding to sit down.
“Wow, you guys are joining me for lunch? How sympathetic of you!” joked Oliver whilst
emulating a very surprised and flattered gaze directed at no one in special as he looked around.
The three giggled a bit more. A grin sprouted in Oliver's face to follow.
The parents then proceeded to serve their children and themselves, and everyone had
started eating. The roast looked delicious and finely seasoned with the exotic spices and dressing of
the New World – almost like a true work of art, its artist Cassandra – golden potatoes embedded in
the aromatic sauce that involved the meat shone brightly at the light beams that spurt out from the
windows to liven up the room and the angelic features of the devilish twins.
“Mm, this stuff's delicious!” pointed out Brennan, eating the delicacy avariciously.
“Thanks, sweetheart, but shouldn't you be eating a bit more calmly? I mean, look at your
brother...” Cassandra pointed at Leon, who seemed to be enjoying the food slowly, unlike his
sibling, but still enjoying it altogether.
He shrugged with indifference and kept eating.
“So, guys, what are you doing later on?” inquired Oliver.
“Oh, I don't know still, dad, we'll decide later. You still have to work this afternoon?”
asked Leon.
“Yeah, I do... So boring.” he let out a yawn unconsciously, only to return to the subject as
it ceased. “Anyway, did I hear you guys mention something about a cave earlier?”
Leon gloat and turned to the accomplice that was his brother “Yeah, we were planning to
go there, but I dunno if my cowardly brother has the guts to go there with me.” He slanted a
provocative glee at him. “Poor Bren, is he afraid of the dark?!”
Cassandra prompted to react to the incitement directed at her other son “Leonard...”
“Shut up! I told you I'd go already. We're going there after the errands we have to attend
to, period.” he retorted as he lift raspingly from his chair, avid confidence taking over his semblance
as he stood vehemently grasping obstinate fists.
“You mustn't!” their dad almost overthrew the chair behind him as he and his worries rose
from it.
“Huh? Why not, dad?” asked Leon, confusion depicted on the two youngsters' semblance.
“That place is deemed off limits by the state, for some reason. There's some undergoing
investigation going down there, and that could mean nothing but trouble. It's forbidden and I want
you guys off there, okay?” admonished Oliver, fearing for his children.
“What a drag...” commented a disappointed, sighing Leon.
“Okay father...” added Brennan. He and his juvenile innocence did not dare question his
father's advice.
“What the heck are they investigating, anyway?” Leon queried persistently, as father
sighed back into the comfort of his seat. Like anything that involved the state, it could be nothing
but mystery, which only left him in more awe.
“I wouldn't know for sure. You know the state always claims secrecy when it comes to
these matters... I have however heard some whispering voices telling me it's all about the remains of
some extinguished civilization that lived here years ago, long before we had arrived here...”
explained their dad, whose enthusiastic storytelling voice abruptly switched to a contemplative and
intrigued tone at this last sentence. He then appended, “You boys know that this new land was
apparently desert of any humanity when the first exploration solar-galleys started their
reconnoitring mission here, right?”
“What? And they've been hiding that from us? No way, how lame!” called out Leon,
indignant.
A concerned and affected palm lightly touched Oliver's knee, which was hidden below the
table “Hun, I think you shouldn't say anything else. You know how they are! They won't hesitate to visit the cave, especially if you
keep telling them all these stories!” whispered a reproving Cassandra.
Oliver seemed to agree with his wife's point of view, and quickly prompted to wrinkle his
forehead with a dissuading frown “Well, just you two stay away from there, okay?”
Brennan hastened to nod again in conformity “Okay dad!” This same abidance regarded
his father as a very wise authority; an unquestionable one. Oliver was wise and inspiring – two
qualities expected from a charismatic leader and father – and this was not only perceived by his son,
but also by his colleagues and friends. Almost everyone in the village deemed Oliver Dante as “a
renowned man”, “someone who can truly bring peace to our lives, unlike that wretched
government!” and as “a very sapient man, who knows what's best for each one”.
...and his sons were no different in their opinions towards their father. As much as Leon's
defying and adamant nature seldom seemed to neglect such regards.
“Meh. Okay, dad...” and, boy, that tedious meh was surely defying: Oliver sighed.
Cassandra worried. Brennan raised an innocuous uplifting brow.
Stay away from there, okay?

(To be Continued on Part 3)