... [ WEE LITTLE TYKES -- THE BOOK OF THE BLACK SHIPS ]

Not much is known about Sirrus and Achenar's youth. They are mentioned at the end of The Book of Atrus, being cute little kids and running around on Myst playing, but that's pretty much it. The nixed comic series was going let us in on all these little secrets, but the mistakes (like the switching of the brothers and so on) caused it to be canned. There was also talk of a book being written about these two, possibly letting us know how they became so corrupt and such, but I believe that has been put on the backburner for now. We can get little clues and hints from the journals in Myst, but the most we know is the fact that something went horribly wrong with them.

... [ REBELLIOUS WHIPPERSNAPPING MENS -- MYST ]

It's all their show to steal at first because the boys act as the villains in this game. Even though they're trapped in books the whole time, they still have done a considerable amount of damage that you, the player, has to deal with. You speak to both of them through their prison books and then enter a number of their bedrooms on different ages -- all while trying to piece together which one did all the damage. In the end, you sort of find out and realize it's both if you do the right thing (or the wrong, even XD) and Atrus destroys both linking books, presumably trapping the boys in their respective prison ages forever.

Basically, after helping their mother get kidnapped and their father trapped in D'ni, Sirrus and Achenar found two books. A red one and a blue one -- traps laid by their father. And of course, being the silly boys they were, they were curious enough to inspect them -- because you know, they seemed to be new ages to toy with and take over. Sirrus was trapped in the red book, in Spire, a cold lonely age -- while his brother, Achenar, took the blue book and ended up in Haven, a seemingly lush jungle age with oodles of creatures to keep him company. Atrus, after you release him, destroys the linking books -- and you, at the end of Myst, think that it's all you'll see of the boys. Luckily, that's not true. ;D

... [ TRAPPED & THUMB-TWIDDLING -- MYST III: EXILE ]

They're not in this game (except for a picture of them on Atrus' desk) but are mentioned quite a bit, as the main villain, Saavedro, was wronged by them in the past. So of course, he's out for revenge. And just because they're still trapped in prison ages doesn't mean they can't wreak havoc somehow. It seems to be their speciality. :D In Myst III: Exile, Saavedro is after you and Atrus, mainly trying to pay Atrus back for what his sons did to his life. They destroyed his home age, Narayan, and then trapped him on the age that their father had written for them long ago, J'nanin. That age was meant to be where the boys learned the Art of Writing. Obviously, they used the age for different purposes.

J'nanin seemed to be a "hub" age -- a place to begin from. And solving puzzles, you, in the game, would gain access to three more ages. More ages which were supposed to be used to teach Sirrus and Achenar certain things. Amateria, the learning age of dynamic forces; Edanna, the learning age of nature; and finally Voltaic, the learning age of energy. Another age, Saavedro's home age of Narayan, was also a lesson age. It was to teach the boys that a balanced system would basically spawn and stimulate civilization. For more information on the ages and the functions they taught, you can check here.

You find evidence throughout the game that the brothers grew greedy, just like evidence you find from the first game of the series. There are murals of the boys painted in places that show them spreading their vast craziness "knowledge" to the people (who look quite emo in these murals), you hear things from Saavedro -- and even though he seems a little coo-coo for squee-puffs -- you know it's probably true because of the things you knew about them in Myst.

... [ THE RETURN & THE END -- MYST IV: REVELATION ]

They're back! What we thought could never happened -- definitely has happened, and the boys return for a triumphant bout of crazy before both being killed (D:). In the end, we learn Sirrus was always the worse of the two. Manipulative, scheming, snarky -- and quite awesome, I might add. But both die, one redeemed and one shunned. Sirrus was the one who was responsible for the kidnapping of Yeesha, their little sister, while Achenar tried to stop it.

Flashback to the past. Serenia, an age written by the boys mother, Catherine, is home to a flower that is capable of capturing people memories and preserving them after someone has passed on. It was on this age that Sirrus and Achenar agreed on a truce and decided to capture their father, Atrus, and steal his memories. That way, they could learn the art of writing, without having to go through the lessons. However, this plan was never moved into action because of arguments between the two. They entered their respective prison ages, where they were for twenty years -- Atrus, Catherine and Yeesha occasionally visiting through special linking chambers they could link to.

Jump ahead to Revelation.

Since their little sister, Yeesha, would be learning what they wanted to know -- they decided to do to her what they intended for Atrus so many years earlier. But what you, the player, ultimately find out is that Sirrus was the sole kidnapper and the one with the plan to transfer his mind into her body -- tricking his father into teaching him the Art of Writing. Achenar had only followed to try and save her. This is where we know that his twenty years of exile had reformed him, while Sirrus' had not -- he had only become more greedy, angry and bitter.

So you, the player, destroy Sirrus' mind in the end, freeing Yeesha and you witness the loss of Achenar; who sacrificed himself by breaking open the gas chamber which held the giant flower. A move which ensured that you would succeed and Yeesha would be safe. He died of gas poisoning, but was obviously the better of the two at the end of their story.

Something you wouldn't expect from the guy with the rotting skulls and torture devices in his rooms in Myst, eh? XD