"What's all that noise about?" I asked her. "That's just Hector beating the tar out of someone. OK, good. I see the other guy is on the ground and doesn't move anymore. Hey! Hector!" she shouted. "Give me a hand!" They each grabbed an arm and yanked me upright. For a moment the world spun. Then it stopped spinning and merely roared. And the air was filled with soot, stinking of more than burning wood. Other things burned, too. This isn't heaven at all, I thought. This is... "Errol!" Kate yelled in my ear. "We gotta move away from here. I think that stone wall is about to fall." I heard a man scream in pain and jerked my head around but Hector and Kate were pulling me away from the crumbling wall. Even so, I saw the end of the sword fight behind us. Wish I hadn't. The sight reminded me of my leg and I tried to get a look at it because I couldn't tell I had one. It was completely numb. So OK, yup, still there. I'm thinking it must be the belt around my thigh is maybe tied too tight. If I don't loosen it soon my leg will just shrivel up and drop off. Something like that. Heard guys talking about it once, a long time ago. There was a lull in the noise. Not because the fighting had stopped. No, it had just moved away, through the gaps, into the courtyard. There were no longer any men up on the walls dropping big rocks and flaming pitch on the heads of those below. They left for the same reason we were leaving. More of that old stone wall was coming down in great clouds of grit and dust. But it was only the dust that hit our backs, nothing bigger. We slowed down and stopped. I panted for air, pressing my sleeve to my face. The sleeve was as bad as the air. One of Joe's men appeared suddenly and grabbed at Hector's arm. "Joe sent me," he yelled. "He wants you to climb the walls to the tower. Like you did before, he tells me." Hector tried to see the tower through the smoke, the flames, the dust. "What's in the tower?" he said. "The Queen. The Queen is trapped up there." She wasn't supposed to be at Vassily. She was supposed to be safe in the mountains. But somehow she had heard about Dominic and had come to sit with her dying son. How had she found out? Well, I guess Etienne is to blame for that. Etienne and the love he could not stay away from.
I'm closing up at work right now. Just wrote this in the last half hour. Still working on pictures, though, at home.
It didnt matter how careful Hector had been to hide his trail after taking the Queen and Princess to their hideout. It didnt matter that the mountain farms appeared abandoned. The men who lived up here knew what Hector had done. But they loved their Queen, and her secret was safe from King Dominic, from Aubert, and from Duke Hagen. Her secret was not safe from Etienne the bandit. Thats because he had a number of friends living in the mountains. Some had come down to join Joe. They knew that the bandit loved his Queen and hated Aubert and Duke Hagen, too. But more than he loved his Queen, Etienne loved Yvette. So his friends told him where to find her. While the siege of Vassily dragged on, while Joe took men away to rescue a woman caught by Hagen, Etienne thought of Yvette. It occurred to him that he could get to the hideout and back again within a day. He wanted to tell Yvette about the promised farm. He wanted to do something he had never considered before. He wanted to see if Yvette would marry him and live on his farm. Etienne saw Marek digging tunnels under the Vassily walls and knew it would take a lot of time. So he climbed on his horse and raced for the Queens mountain cabin. Etienne is a simple man. It never occurred to him that Queen Alka would not stay hidden on the mountain where she and Yvette were safe, no matter how many of her sons might be dying. Hed had a mother of his own once. Hed had plenty of lovers, too. So he figured he knew about women. Some maybe, but not Alka. She rode back with him, sitting behind him on the horse, her small arms around his waist, giving him plenty of advice about taking care of a farm. She also told him that a Princess like Yvette is accustomed to an easy life with servants and many nice things. Yvette, she told him, although beautiful, would be a very poor companion for a hardworking man like himself. He didnt believe it, of course. When there was danger of being discovered by scouting parties, Alka got off the horse and sent Etienne on his way. She walked the rest of the way to Vassily, and right through the lines of soldiers, chin up, expecting them to make way for their Queen. And they did, because they always had. Also, Hagen wasnt there yet. Nor Joe. The only thing Marek cared about was digging the tunnels. Aubert took her directly to see Dominic. And what a sad sight that must have been for any mothers eyes. She sat in a chair next to him, sometimes touching his hand but mostly just looking at his face. She wasnt there long before the fever and infection finally killed him. Then, since the fighting around the walls was getting worse, and because the sun had set, Aubert had the Queen escorted to the tower, insisting it was the safest place in Vassily. Actually, he just wanted her out of sight of the soldiers. There was no predicting what she might do.
Another couple of pictures: 1) A better picture of Yvette. 2) Aubert imagining that he has won, now that he was the Queen, and Dominic is dead.
I just checked to see if you had posted, and you had! But who's the pretty blonde woman with the queen and Dominic? Is that Dominic's wife? I'd forgotten about her. Such a great story. They've got to rescue the queen before Aubert does something drastic. Hurry up, Ironsides! And what about Errol's leg? So many questions ...
The blond is Idalina, Dominic's wife. She was the only one who really cared that Dominic had died, crying and collapsing on the floor. Although Alka is Dominic's mother (in the game, too ) they had low relationship points because of almost no contact for a long time. She wasn't much moved by his death. I suppose I was a little surprised. I hadn't paid attention to their relationship. Hmmm. Just realized that the ghost of King Dominic will haunt that castle. I opened Body Shop last night to try to give Errol a leg wound (at least as far as the outfit goes.) Don't know how it looks yet. Haven't opened the game this morning. It may look OK if the only pictures taken are in the dark. (Edit: Added picture after going into the game to take a look. Yup, not so good. I'll not shine any lights on that leg wound.)
Oh, my yes. Tons better. I love Kate as the rescuing angel. She looks like she was born to wear that armor. She always was the tough one in that relationship.
Someone said, and I think it was you, SBW, that it would be nice for Kate to attend Ania and Joe's wedding. And I thought, 'Of course.' Now I HAVE to get Kate to Joe's country. But HOW? She's a townie. And since I was too locked into the idea of using Body Shop Errols & Harcourts, I'd built an entirely new neighborhood for Joe's land. (Didn't occur to me that I could have added a dirt downtown to Strangetown . How dumb is that?) No going back. I can't use SimPE to save my life, so cloning Kate was not an option. So I packaged Errol's Strangetown household to a file and installed it back in the game, in Joe's country. The house crashed but the family survived (made me think of the Wizard of Oz .) Kate to the rescue! I've always wanted her to join Errol on his adventures and now she has. I'm so excited. I've got so much more story to tell now.
Hector didnt even look back. He ran into the courtyard, smack into a fight. I was impressed by the strength of his arm, the one he punched clean through the guys shield. Hectors armor was the best. Kate said, How did you get here? Horses? Yup. Mine ran off. That way, I think. Lets go find him. When Hector gets the Queen down from the tower shes going to need to leave fast, at least as fast as a horse can move. Kate put her arm around my waist. And you can go with her, she said. Not without you, Kate. Just hold on. Get those feet moving. Ill move one of them. Cant feel the other one. We stumbled for a ways over the ground, along the old wall, until Kate said, I think I see a horse hiding in the bushes over there. Wait here. I leaned against the wall and watched her disappear into the shrubbery, leaving me alone with a powerful urge to close my eyes and sleep. Not a good place to sleep, I told myself. Plenty of time for sleep later on. Make sure Kate comes with you. Shes looking a little too wild in the eye, like she wants to kill someone. No guns here, like she trained with at the police academy. Just swords. Not the same as guns. I rubbed at my face and shook my head. My thoughts were jumping all over the place, unconnected and crazy. My insides ached. I was extremely thirsty. Then I realized my eyes were closed and forced them open, and found myself staring at the wet, snorting nose of a horse. Hurry, Errol. Get aboard. Its a long ways from the ground to the back of a horse. It took Kate, one of Joes men, and my good leg, to get me up there. And once I was secure in the saddle I leaned along the animals neck and whispered in his ear that hed better follow orders or Id barf up dinner all over his mane. I wasnt feeling very good.
On the back of the horse I discovered I could see Hector climbing the tower. I could also see the Queen. And fire. Sparks from the fires that had been started around the lower castle walls had jumped up and found fuel somewhere in the material of the tower. Hector reached the top and gathered up the Queen in his arms, but he couldnt carry her back down the walls. He had to find another way. The two of them disappeared for a long time. Too long, it seemed to me, when they suddenly appeared through a door two stories down, a door that opened onto the walls, and soldiers. Hector was in a fight again. I started worrying about his power supply. How long had he been going? How long could he last? He had used up so much energy already tonight and it was a long time before sunrise. My horse was moving. Kate was pulling on the reins, forcing him around toward the gates where she expected Hector and the Queen. And there she was. Without Hector. He was apparently busy running interference to allow her escape. A few soldiers got past him, but with Kates help, the Queen got up behind me. I looked around and yelled out, Kate! Ill see you later, Lover. Take care of the Queen. She smacked the backside of the horse with the flat of her sword, then turned and ran through the gate, gone in an instant. The soldiers ignored her because they wanted us. Too late. Still stinging from Kates sword, the horse took off so fast he almost left me and the Queen in the road. Alka said, That leg looks bad, Errol. Youre certainly not fit to do anyone any good so dont look back. If you turn your head the horse will turn his head because he knows what youre thinking and we dont want him to turn. We have to get out of sight. Over the rise, Errol, over that rise. Then well take a look at your leg and make sure it doesnt go all gangrene on you. She beat her hand on the horses butt a couple of times to emphasize her words. The horse moved faster, taking me further away from the castle and from Kate.
Joe was looking for Hagen. But he found Aubert, who had begun to suspect he might lose Vassily. He would die first. For Joe, everything he had put out of his mind about his time as Aubert's prisoner returned with his rage, and he called Aubert's name, and raised his sword. Aubert smiled, and raised his own sword. Maybe he hadn't lost, after all... He was wrong.
I escaped with Alka, not looking back, knowing that our capture would make things worse for those we'd left behind. But if anything happened to Kate...well, I didn't know what I'd do because it wasn't going to happen. It wasn't possible.
See? I go away for two days and look what happens. Kate of Arc. You better not get yourself killed, girl. Errol needs you. Joe is such a hero. Sigh.
I didnt know what Kate was doing back there. I didnt know why she hadnt come with me. Thered been something in her face. Reminded me of a time before we married when she was still in the police force and events in her day on the streets had got her all riled up and angry. After days like that a date with Kate was kind of a challenge. I mean the wooing part. She could be pretty intense. But when I finally got her attentionWhoa! What a night! I smiled, remembering all that. Alka was punching me in the kidneys. Pull up, Errol. Pay attention! Theres a path through the bushes here. See it! Thats right. Youve got it. She reached around me and grabbed one of the reins and snapped it, urging the horse further off the road. We broke through into a clear spot surrounded by weeds and the smell of rotting vegetables. Alka slid off the horse to the ground. I got my good foot loose of the stirrup and on the strength of my arms alone managed to get off without breaking every bone in my body. Even so, I ended up flat on my back. I stayed there, staring up at the stars. They were hazy. Do you smell smoke? I said. Yes. The castles on fire. Too bad. Looked like a nice one. Oh, it will survive. Its burned before. Listen, Errol, Im going to do some repair work on this leg of yours. No, no, dont sit up. Stay there. I sat up anyway, Exactly how are you going to do that, Alka? She handed me a small metal can with a screw top. It was a very nice little can with pictures painted on it. She smiled and said. Have a drink. I never turn down a free drink. I was real thirsty, anyway. I unscrewed the top and took a big swallow. Then about coughed up a lung. Yikes, I said. Thats good stuff. She took the can away from me and sipped some herself. You bet, she said. Now lie down, Dear, because I have some stitching to do. It seems that when a Queen travels she is always prepared for any emergency and carries with her everything she might need, including a needle and thread. I took the can out of her hand and swallowed more of the good stuff. Even so, it wasnt so good that I dont remember every single stitch.
Viola went grocery shopping again. She bought an extra loaf of bread and put it in the freezer. She bought an extra carton of eggs. She looked up recipes on the internet, wrote them down, and bought a turkey and pork chops and fish and noodles and spices. She carefully arranged the cupboards, lining up the canned soup and the boxes of cornflakes. She cleaned the refrigerator. Straightened the towels. Adjusted the bedspreads until every corner was exactly right. She went to work at the restaurant, waiting tables, chatting with the customers. She didnt go on any dates. Not this week, she told her friends. Im a little under the weather, thats all, she assured them. Then each evening she climbed to the tiny attic room, looked at the urn once more, and tried to convince herself it was OK to open it. I wonder, she thought, if there are diamonds in it. Or sapphires, or rubies. Maybe theres only a big old wad of simoleons done up in string. Wouldnt be worth much. The urns not big enough. But she didnt open it. At the end of the same week that Kate left, Viola came home from work to an empty house again. Viola liked company, liked to have people around. Im lonely, she thought. Thats why I cant stop thinking of that wretched urn. I should call Edith and invite her over. She picked up the phone but put it down without calling. Viola, she told herself, youre obsessed, and youre being completely foolish. You should just open it and get on with your life. What would Daddy have stored in such a thing, claiming it was me? Maybe theres absolutely nothing in that old urn. Of course! Thats it! Theres nothing in it. He was a crazy old man who liked bad jokes. Viola was now full of resolve. But she took her time. She hadnt eaten at work so now she fixed herself a salad and ate it slowly. Then she smoothed her hair, straightened her jacket, and went upstairs to get the urn. Daddy, she said out loud to the silent house, Im done with your stupid pride and your stupid jokes and all the trouble youve caused me and Errol all these years, even from the grave! Its over! Done! Whatever that urn is all about cant do any of us any harm!
Just including a picture of the outside of the House of Fallen Trees (if that was the name). Green, of course, because Errol likes green. Kate spent a lot of money on renovations. Notice the dormers? One of them is the attic room where Viola hid the urn.
Wow, it looks almost homey. I haven't wanted to play it because it seems like a game hog, and none of my sims can afford it anyway. But it seems like a cool house.
