We just got back from dinner (it's 9 pm here) and we're leaving for New York tomorrow morning for the rest of the weekend. I don't expect that the rest of the story will take much more than a chapter or two, but I want to write it when I'm not tired. It never comes out quite right when I'm tired. Happy Thanksgiving, Simmers. So glad you could stop by for a visit. p.s. I thought I'd post a couple of more pictures of the above events. Extras. The temple lights up very brightly in a strange way, like a negative, with the lightening bolts. And Cory seems very much amazed at it all.
You need to enter your architecture in some kind of contest, Lynet. It's amazing. I'm still struggling with those stupid round and pointy roofs. Can't get them to behave. Your buildings look real, as do your people. Love the lightning. Great photos. They look futuristic.
I'm too am in awe of your architecture as well as your story and your characters and, well, just everything. I'm so anxious to read the rest of it. I can't wait 'til you get the time to do it!!
I was dreaming, dreaming of thunder and lightening, of flames, of running. Something had happened, something important that I needed to remember. The desperate need to remember was followed immediately by a desperate need for air, and I gasped and opened my eyes. I was lying on my back, breathing hard, my heart racing. I tried to make sense of where I was, tried to remember why I was here. Lightening! Something about lightening. I put a hand up and touched the surface near my face. Why did I think that it should have been rock? It wasnt. It was glass. But I could see the rock on the other side of the glass. Rock walls. I pushed on the glass and it lifted away. I sat up, climbed out of the glass case, and took several deep breaths of the cold, damp air. And then I remembered the abandoned city. I remembered the pods full of skeletons. They surrounded me, the pods and the skeletons. The pod beside me was empty, because I had just climbed out of it. I stood there for a moment, shivering and gasping for air, my chest tight and my head throbbing. Then I noticed my clothes folded on the floor near my feet, and I gathered them up and got dressed. Cory! Where was he? I started searching the pods, one after the other, finding only the dead. There were so many. And each time I looked into a pod and found a grinning skull, I remembered more of what had happened to us, until I remembered it all--the snow, the Medruzz, the sorceress, Hugo, the temples, the fighting, and in the end, the mountain coming down on our heads. Cory! I needed to find him!
When I found him at last, he was just starting to wake up, pushing the lid of his pod open. He looked OK, bruised and sore, but OK. I waited impatiently for him to make sense of his surroundings. Cory, do you know where we are? What happened? Your clothes are there, by your feet. Its cold down here. Get dressed. He nodded slightly and picked up the clothes. By the time hed finished he was more awake, more himself, but he was not happy. I knew that he was remembering everything, as I had. You were right, Andy, he said, looking around us. It was all an illusion. Not entirely, I said. Your face is a mess, covered with bruises. Youve got a terrible scratch along your cheek, and cuts on your lip. Psychosomatic. Ive heard that the mind can do all kinds of stuff to the body, even cause wounds. Or change hair color. Yours has turned black. Did you notice that? It doesnt matter. What matters is that we shared it all, you and I. It went well beyond illusion. Cory sighed and shook his head. What are you trying to do, Andy? You told me it wasnt real. I didnt believe you at first. But it started to look bad for the time machine theory when we ran into the demons, and the wizard. Still, I was willing to accept them all as part of Mearas world, right up until you started throwing lightening bolts. Then I knew you were right. None of it was real. I needed to distract him from the loss of Meara. We cant survive outside wearing only these coveralls. The suits must be around here somewhere. Help me look for them. He did, and we searched everywhere, but the suits were gone.
Cory shrugged, Guess well have to run for it. Run for it? Are you out of your mind? Well freeze to death. Good idea there, Andy. Get yourself all worked up, get your blood boiling. Do that and you might just make it. Then when you get to the lander, grab the spare suits and come back for me. Ill just sit down here and wait for you. Its your idea to run for it. You go get the spares. Ill sit down here. Maybe we should just go upstairs and look out the window. We dont know how long weve been asleep in these pods. Maybe spring is here. And maybe the sun has gone nova. If it has, were not really here talking about it. Were toast. We argued all the way up three levels of stairs, and stopped only when we came face to face with Amathaon, who blocked our way.
Cory backed away and I could hear him breathing hard. It was not from climbing the stairs. I stared at Amathaon. Where are the suits? We need them. Like before, his lips did not open and did not move. His voice was a low sound inside my head, The Rashida Wind is weakened and sleeps now. The air is warm. You have achieved what others failed to achieve, and the mountain sorcerers are destroyed. Return safely to your ship. I thought of all the skeletons buried deep below our feet. Amathaon smiled slightly. Yes, he said. They failed. I glanced over my shoulder at Cory and could see the misery in his eyes. I said to Amathaon. It is a cruel game to play with us, and with those down there who died for it. Brydia thrives now, on the other side of the mountain, safe from the Rashida Wind. He moved his head, and seeing without eyes, he looked at Cory. The woman Meara lived a long life, married to the man Valen, who was a farmer, and father to six children by her. Their descendents are also farmers. Then he stepped away, and I said, Youre nothing like anyone else here. Where did you come from? He answered me as he was leaving, walking down the stairs to the next level, and his voice continued in my head even when I could no longer see him, Before Niichaad and Makhist, there was Ankti, who is the fundamental balance, and we are her temple. The mountain sorcerers became too strong and now they are destroyed. Balance is restored. But beware, Makhist is free to choose another. Go now, and go quickly.
I was afraid to look at Cory. Instead, I just walked up the last two flights of steps, and outside. As Amathaon had told us, the cold was gone. A warm breeze moved through my hair. The streets of the abandoned city were alive again, but not with people. They were alive with plants. Trees, shrubs and weeds clogged the passageways. We found our way to the courtyard of columns and stared out into a green valley, thick with trees. Cory smiled for the first time since Id found him, I think I see the lander, he said. But he did not meet my eyes. Something had changed between us. I tried to understand it as we walked through the trees and across an open meadow toward the lander. It could only be because he had lost Meara, and blamed me. He walked nearby, but somehow alone, and not smiling anymore. I had to do something. So I reached out and stopped him several yards away from the lander. Cory, I want toyou didnt have toouch, I bit down on my tongue. Just say it, Andy. We really have to get out of here. Now. I took a deep breath and tried again, You lost something that was very important to you. If there were any way for me to get it back for you, I would. It? Her name is Meara. And thats mighty generous, Andy. Thanks. Ill remember that you feel bad about it. As he moved away, the words came out of my mouth before I could stop them, I love you.
He turned around slowly to face me. “Say that again,” he said. I couldn’t believe what I’d just done. Andy! I told myself. What are you doing? Your knees are shaking. Your hands are shaking. Why did you say that? Do you really love him? It was true. I did, and it was a complete surprise to me. So I told him so again, just to hear myself say it out loud once more. “I love you, Cory. If I could be Meara for you, I would.” He didn‘t say anything for a few minutes, just stared at me. I waited, expecting angry sarcasm. But I knew, at last, what had been confusing me about Cory for so long, and with that understanding came peace. I did not care how he reacted. It didn‘t matter, because yes, I loved him, and now he knew it, and I knew it. “I don’t want you to be Meara,” he said finally, reaching for me and pulling me against him, “because Meara didn‘t know me. She knew only Valen. I couldn’t talk to her about rocks, about planets and their suns, about the world I’d come from. And I couldn‘t argue about anything at all with her. It just made her cry. But it was wonderful the way she looked at me, especially when she said she loved me, just like you did a minute ago.” He kissed me. I held onto him until my knees stopped shaking. But then I pulled back, a little worried about something, and said, “Didn’t you love her?” “What’s this? An argument? I love you, Andy Rose. Always have. Always will. Meara was only an illusion of love. Have we got that settled? Good! Let‘s get off this rock.” THE END
Well, the architecture looks impressive enough in my pictures, I suppose. Thank you. It tends to be awkward for sims to live in, though, because it's designed more for appearances then for use. I struggle alot with the roofing, too. It's why I throw fencing up there. It adds some interest and hides the bad spots. Thanks about the people, too. I try to make them look a little more ordinary and everyday. I mix and match facepaint downloads and other stuff, for instance. I made Hugo's eyes all crinkly with a download. It's fancy, realistic eyeshadow for female sims but it looked truly creepy on his grey skin. It was great. I loved making Cory with a big nose and mouth, and clumsy and irritating and quarrelsome. Don't know if you noticed, but I was always more interested in photographing Cory's face, than doing Andy's. His was just so much more fascinating.
By the way, did Andy and Cory tie up all loose ends? If they left something hanging, I'd be happy to call them up for an explanation. No kidding, this story was a little more complicated than the others. (And for those last six chapters I took about 150 pictures. I showed you only the best ones, of course.) RATS! I just remembered one loose end (could be others.) Why did Cory stab the sorceress? Ok, I'll tell you now, because Andy always meant to ask him. She just forgot, what with the exploding mountain and everything. When Cory fought the Medruzz, the Medruzz told him that the Sorceress Hadrea was his mother, his father being the Rashida Wind. He taunted Cory, telling him that there were many more like him, the Medruzz, born to the sorceress. Cory killed the sorceress because he knew she was a monster like the Medruzz, underneath that beautiful face. Second loose end: Did Hugo blow the mountain up on purpose? Yes. He was born into the sorcerer family but was loyal to Niichaad, all the way to the end. Something of a fanatic, if you will. Sometimes, fanatics are not very nice people, even though they do good deeds.
Oh no! It's over already? *cries* Seriously, it was REALLY GREAT! The writing, the pictures...fantastic. I'll miss Andy and Cory.
They need to have a baby who grows up to have adventures, or possibly have more of their own, though I think they'd be happier on a farm somewhere, don't you? Maybe Errol's new baby will grow up soon ... at any rate, I hope you don't stop writing. I loved it! What an imaginative story. You kept us guessing until the end, and believe me, that's not easy to do ... Brava! I'm sad to see it end, and hope you'll grace us with another story soon.
Thank you, SBW, and 123 and Duzzygirl. It turned out so differently from my original story, which was extremely gloomy and ended with everyone dying when the mountain blew up. Hugo, the fanatic, killed them all in his zeal to destroy the sorcerers. But I couldn't stand to see Andy and Cory get blown up like that. Anyhow, I can't imagine writing anything more fun than this story, or Ironsides (which was way fun.) I haven't gotten Joe and Ania's baby boy past the toddler stage yet. Or even Errol and Kate's baby girl past toddlerhood. I've neglected everyone. It's so embarrassing. I think I'd better just play the game for a month or two.
Hehe that's why my story's been on hiatus...I've just been playing the game. Awesome story! I enjoyed reading every moment!
Wonderful story yet again Lynet. You keep outdoing yourself! Have fun playing the game for a while, but don't keep us waiting for too long!
After such an AWESOME story, You deserve a break Lynet, to just play the game for fun and catch up with your old sim friends...Hopefully not for TOO long, however! Because many of us have now become addicted to your stories!
