The two brothers were making an unbelievable ruckus as they walked through the forest  The two adolescents were having a heated dispute, but they digressed in topic so often that even the combined mental powers of Albert Einstein, Richard Feynman and Stephen Hawkins could not deduce the topic of their discussion.  They meandered along, paying almost no attention to their five year old Husky.  The dog lumbered along occasionally nuzzling amiably up to it’s master.  It was oblivious to their brotherly squabbling, simply happy to be outside.

The brothers were each roughly 5 and a half feet tall.  This was often a point of taunting between them, as the thirteen year old brother had sprouted like a beanstalk, whereas his elder of 5 years had always been more slight is stature.  They often took walks like this, most of the time to avoid getting in the way when their father returned from his Friday night ‘Miller time’ in a drunken rage.  The coniferous forest was, to them, similar in form and meaning.  It was a constant safe-haven for them, and their walks took place with an almost pious consistency each week.

They were almost dragging the dog along, paying little attention to it as they walk.  They had had the dog for so long that they understood what it was doing without even needing to look at it.  If there was slack on the leash, the dog was walking normally, if there was tension and growling, the dog saw a squirrel.  The combination of their distractedness and their familiarity meant the dog had as close to free rein as one could get while on a leash.

A few minutes into their walk, the felt the dog resisting, then growling.  They started to pull it along, when they heard a yelp.  The more concerned thirteen year old turned back, worried that a raccoon had attacked it..  The dog was big, and could fend for itself, but rabies was a growing concern of late.  He looked back, to find a torn leash, with no dog attached to it.  Too stunned for words, he tapped his brother on the shoulder, his mouth agape.  His brother turned around, and stopped dead in his tracks.  They looked at each other for a moment, then started calling the dog’s name, but both suspected that the time for that was passed.  They turned to sprint up the path when they were knocked backwards by a pulse, accompanied by a pulse of light.

The two brothers awoke to find two humanoids in armor sitting at a control panel.  You are held responsible for the deaths of two humans of age 12 and 17 a year ago this day.  We are returning you to your home planet immediately for a trial.  The carnivorous beast you stole a year ago will be returned to its original owners.  Justice will be implemented.