@GraceyManor Good luck, Tiffany. Ryan already has a fiancee.
Thanks a lot Tiffany. I hope Ryan fires you.
Well, there is always the crooked politician option. Ryan finds dirt on Tiffany and gets her arrested so she can't bother him. Somehow, I don't see Ryan doing that though.
@Nikkei_Simmer Great update! Now on to the River and Haruo update.
Wow, River does look beautiful. Don't tell Haruo I said that though, or he may do to me what he did to Jared.
That song has been the graduation song for too many years to count, lol. I think it's funny how the names listed in the game are Sims versions of the game developers.
Hooking each others lines would have been funny though.
Do NOT bring Mayumi back, please don't.
Who are they going to kill? I think the Watcher can deal with those two, lol
I was interested in this story from the beginning, but now I'm really interested.
@Tamijo Sounds like the house got a bit bigger.
I'm glad they revived their band.
You're welcome.
Well, in the newest update, she doesn't have homework anymore.
She'll be alright, lol
He's working on it. His LTW is 10 girlfriends though so who knows how long they'll be together.
I can tell you who it was if you want me to, lol. Just don't hurt the man.
It's Bob Newbie.
I'm interested to see if they get a new student.
I hope you got long lifespans, because I'm afraid Greg will die.
Glad to see Greg got the town named after him.
@Emily4331 Great job on the Sims, she sure is a beauty.
@DivaDoodle Geez, Teddy, just use the stairs if you are scared.
Teddy doesn't want him, Cherie.
Great update!
@emorrill Yeah, and now she is done with school so she doesn't have to make the face anymore.
You're welcome.
emorrill true but his face had that little I’m flattered smirk so from her view it looked flirty
^I guess I can understand. And with him being a man in power it might be hard for her to imagine if he'd be just faithful to her... Guess I didn't think that deep on it earlier.
Well, all I can say to Ryan is: "Run after her ya dope!"
Here's a fun country song to go along with that, just cause...you know me.
@Brandontaylor Quinton looks pretty good as an Elder. (None of us are happy about getting older... )
Daisy aged up well and still looks just as pretty as she was as a teen. (Oh I see you did that on purpose. )
Yeah, and now she is done with school so she doesn't have to make the face anymore.
^Right on! 👍
@Nikkei_Simmer Oh. Who was he in Pirates of the Caribbean? I love that movie. I need to watch it again...
He died? Gosh that is unfortunate.
*Waves to the round* Just saying "Hello!"
I'm not doing that hot at the moment. Nothing really serious though, just the state of mind. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy your time, and I left my "awesomes" at your posts.
_________________________________________________________________
Gwen Stout (basically Bebe Hart), the involuntary ex-wife of Lucas, decided it would be nice to become a Landgraab in the second half of her life. With the kids out of the house, she married Malcolm, who is already an elder. Let's hope for the best for them.
Not sure what Malcolm's sole heir thinks of this (his son with Justine Keaton), but hey, what's life without a little drama.
@emorrill about the PM - it's just more brumbies. I don't know where my old horse paintings are from my teens. I know I gave one to a cousin and it coincidentally looked so much like her own real life horse she thought I'd done a portrait of her horse for her. I didn't let on I just made it up. I never got to see her horse. I do still have some of my paintings done from old photos of pioneers using horse, or bullock, teams to farm with. And I have some horse photos I took recently so I might still do more paintings from those photos one day.
@DivaDoodle Reading the names Anya and Vlad made me think of something silly to add to my comments. Hi, kids, welcome to my new show where I type your sims's names in Cyrillic (Specifically, Kazakh Cyrillic) because I'm trying to learn the alphabet. The goal is, obviously, to spell them correctly without having to look at any notes or anything. Let's get started!
*clears throat*
Anya - Аня
Vlad - Влад
Admittedly, I got Anya wrong the first try. Until I remembered that "я" makes a "ya" sound and not just a "yuh". Got Vlad correct, first try, though.
Let us continue out studies,
Adan - Адан (easy peasy)
Teddy - Тедди
Cherie (assuming it's pronounced "Share-ee") - Шерри (Okay, 100% forgot which letter made a "sh" sound, but that's what this is all about. Now I will never forget! It's just how my brain functions )
Alfie - Алфи (same with the "fuh" sound )
(Anya girllll you don't steal your sister's man! "Lord help the sister that comes between me and my man" as the song says. )
Wikerman (assuming it's pronounced Wickerman and not wike-er-man ) - Ұикерман but I'm not 100% sure on that one.
Faelie - Фейли
Willomina - Ұиломина I don't like the sound "wuh"
Danny - Данни (I love how I have the letter "и" down because it's in my name twice. Эмили, in case you were curious )
Victor - Виктор
Max - Макс
Quigley (oh no oh god oh no) - Құигли? Ima go with Құигли.
Fern - Ферн
(Well those two aren't shy. Lemme just woohoo in front of the whole neighborhood. )
Thank you for the well wishes. Unfortunately, chronic, severe depression is just a mainstay in my life. It has only gotten worse these last few years as now it's mixed with grief. Yayyyy It has been a little better recently, though, in the grief department. I have my family to thank a lot for that.
Aww I appreciate it! I love making sims. Valentyna is a perfect candidate for my studies ahem ahem listen, I'm going to take this a step further and type a Kazakh sentence. Wish me luck... Мен сүю Валентина
@Brandontaylor It really is omega freezing in Illinois right now. Truly no better indicator that the Earth is messed up than not really having a true Winter, then having several below freezing days, and then to the temperature shooting up to like 40 something some random day. During the pandemic, we've been been having our groceries delivered so I had to go shovel snow to help out our poor delivery person (don't worry, they also got a very generous tip) and my walkway isn't long, so it didn't take me too long. But even with gloves on, my fingers were burning they were so cold. And I couldn't have been out there more than maybe 5 minutes.
Thank you for your comments
@Turjan Take care of yourself I'm here if you ever need to talk.
Quinton had to work until 1 in the morning so he was riding his motorcycle home early.
Today was Christian's turn to cook breakfast. Since no one knows anything other than pancakes and waffles, he choose pancakes. Like Christopher Steel Jones, Christian has the same likes.
Now that she is an adult, Daisy talked with Dwight about her career goals.
The family was late getting up so graduation forced the family to leave their breakfast. Luckily, graduation went off with a hitch and Daisy will get her a job.
Daisy went to talk with the proprietor about getting a job as a singer. The proprietor thought she'd make a great addition to his group of performers and gave her the job. She decided to call herself "Flower Power" on stage. However, she also thought about how much she hates art.
The sink broke in the kitchen so while Christian fixed it, Daisy absorbed the puddles.
Ariana had gotten invited to a party so she brought Daisy with her. Daisy decided to perform a song and make her debut, but no one really paid attention to her.
And then it happened. Daisy met a Riverview townie named Hal Breckenridge and they had hearts for each other. Now I'm not sure she'll choose him, but he's first choice for the time being.
@Emily4331 I don't know how in the blazes I missed tagging you in my last comment post. I feel so bad.
But I wanted to tell you how beautiful Valentyna is and you did such a splendid job on her wardrobe.
I'm sorry to hear your depression is rearing its ugly head again. {{{{Hugs}}}} I'm so glad to hear you have a great support system with your family.
Mine comes and goes, and like you I've come to terms with the fact that it's chronic and always something I'll be dealing with in my life. It's my ultimate trial (well, next to being overweight) and it's something I refuse to let bring me down! We grow stronger because of it and it helps us empathize with others who are dealing with it as well; so we can be their anchor when they're in the pit and vice versa. 🤗 If you ever feel like you need someone to vent to about it, I'm just a PM away.
While I was taking pictures for my story, I unintentionally paused the game at just the right moment and caught the Sunflower giving the most cheeky smile!
@Turjan Take care of yourself I'm here if you ever need to talk.
Thanks, I really appreciate the offer. I hope you are doing better, and of course you can also always talk if you feel like it .
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After the divorce of his parents, Alfred Hatch stayed with his father and grew up in that shack of his, while his brother Gordon went with his mother Maricela. She never made an attempt to stay in touch, so she was a stranger to him. This day, Alfred saw his mother at the gym, and he took heart and tried to start a conversation with her.
https://i.postimg.cc/CxWZwb0Y/Screenshot-68.jpg
Sammie: I wish my guy was here to, so I could hit him!
Linda: What did go wrong between you two?
Sammie: There was another girl, and I asked him about her.
You know you're in trouble when the word "just" comes before friends.
Melanie: that's how most of my relationships ended to.
Melanie flips on the karoke machine, feeling it was the right moment.
Sammie: One night I was talking a walk along the river.When
I saw him together with a..
Melanie: young girl.
Sammie: And the look that he gave her made me shiver...cause he
Melanie: Always used to look at her that way...
Sammie: and I thought, maybe I should walk right up to her and say.
Melanie: Uhuh, its the game they like to play.
Both: Look into their angel eyes...one look and you're hypnotized.
You'll think your in paradise and one day you will find out, they wear a diguise.
Don't look deep into their angel eyes.
Sammie: Its terribly important to remember...
Melanie: Just what terrible people some guys are!
Both: Keep thinking about their angel eyes...
Linda: Sometimes when I'm lonely, I sit and think about him, and it hurts
to remember all the good times.
Linda: when I thought I could never live without him and I wonder
does it have to be the same? Everytime, when I see him, will it bring
back all the pain? How could I forget that name....
Sammie: I have a crazy idea...let's get our group back together
Melanie: Linda and the dynamos! Come on Chiquitita!
Linda: Well, why not?!
I know I gave one to a cousin and it coincidentally looked so much like her own real life horse she thought I'd done a portrait of her horse for her. I didn't let on I just made it up. I never got to see her horse.
^That's kinda cool!
@Brandontaylor Congrats to Daisy graduating and landing herself in a band! "Flower Power" I love it!
Ooooh, she and Hal huh?
Sammie: Oh look at you, Linda! You brought back your dynamo hair
Linda: Of course I did! wouldn't be me without it...
Melanie: Your natural red hair is so pretty, but so is this!
Linda: Aww.Thanks!
Ryan and the agents managed to find Linda's home but unfortunately she
wasn't there.
Agent Peter: She has to come back eventually, if it were I, I would
wait here.
Ryan: maybe I'll do that.
Linda: Ryan? What are you doing here?
Ryan: Linda....what did you do to your lovely red hair?
Linda: Dyed like I had it in my group...now excuse me.
Ryan: Linda, wait, we need to talk.
Linda: Save it Ryan.I have plans tonight.
Ryan: With whom?
Linda: That's not really your concern is it?
Ryan: ...Linda...I guess not, seeing how you dumped me.
but...please five minutes, that's all I want.
Sammie: Sorry, Ryan.....just give her some space.
Ryan: I just want to talk to her...
Melanie: We know...but she needs to cool down a bit...
Sammie: There's one way to get to Linda....sappy music...we're
taking her out tonight...let me leave you with that thought.
Ryan: Thanks girls, appreciate the support.
Sammie: Just an FYI, we believe you when you said you didn't
do anything.
Ryan: Thanks..
Edit: I didn't notice until I was doing my next update screenshots that Ryan lost his facial hair...
I didn't remove it.XD No wonder he looked different lol.
113 The Watcher Watches: Max & Faelie Pregnancy resumed!
Watcher is so happy to get back to Max and Faelie and their precious household! I hope I'm not speaking too soon, as my game loads! That was a bit much, even for me, it was like watching the 'Bonobo Show', at the Fire Station.
Now Alfie is taken out of that mix, by having a GF. He has someone who loves him and speaks hearts to him all the time.
~~~
Cherie says she needs to go home at midnight! Is she Cinderella? She casts a loving look, through the walls, to sleeping Alfie, as she leaves.
"Nitey Night, Love"
As the family sleeps, Victor gets a wish for a baby with Oakley! It is their 10th day of their relationship. Isn't that a bit early? owell, I lock it in, 'cause Victor!
Alfie wakes and wants to play chess.
Don't let me disturb you Alfie! lol
The carpools and school bus comes.
Faelie is cute in her paramedic outfit!
I send Victor to work early because he needs to work on handiness! Alfie is already at the top of the skill.
Who the heck are You?
"I'm Farrah Finch, Watcher. I won't be any trouble, I'm already married and have a large family."
ok. you can work here, for now, if you're good.
The firemen group chat, they are all very good friends now. Teddy and Adan are a bit closer than friends. I think if I had 'kiss'= true, in romance, they would be RI. I have it turned off because it leads to over the top drama! lol
Alfie arrives and decides to dance, He is at the top in so many skills, nothing really to work on. I put an easel on the grounds in case he wishes to paint.
Victor continues to work while Alfie runs across the street to chat with Wikerman.
Victor gets promoted to Fire Captain!
New uniform!
Victor catches up on paperwork
And Vlad comes for a chat.
"So tell me about yourself, Victor" Vlad says
"I got married recently" says Victor
"And we live in a lovely spacious home."
Farrah, are you trying to cause trouble? Leave the guys alone!
"I want to slow dance!"
No. dance by yourself!
The alarm rings and Victor responds! I make Alfie go too. Now we have 2 Fire engines, one slow and one fast!
Alfie gets there first, having taken the fast engine. The maid is already doing a great job!
"Good job, Buddy!" says Alfie
Before Victor even gets to the fire , it says he completes the job with and A+, it completes for Alfie as well!
Victor wants to make sure this fire engine is up to par with the fast one!
Farrah get the hearts for Alfie. He talks about work to get her to simmer down.
I thought you said you were going to be Good?
"I want to pretend I'm on a date with Alfie!" says party animal Farrah
Nope! Next you'll want to slow dance with all the guys.
I think your husband is calling you. Bye now!
New Emergency! Victor Jumps and runs to respond, I have to make Alfie go!
It causes a glitch.
I reset and the Emergency starts up again. I hold Victor back to work on the slow engine.
I send Alfie.
Get going Alfie!
"I'm not really feeling it Watcher" Alfie tells me.
LOL
Well you are very good at painting, Do you want to be a painter?
"Yes"
OK go home and sign up and paint!
I send Victor to retrieve the fire engine. it's nice to tag along as he flies!
"I drive like a Boss!'' and he sounds the sirens just for fun!
"How's That!" says Victor
Not so good, dear.
"Yeah, the parking was tight" Victor explains.
I have some faulty alarms, that may have been caused by having 2 fire fighters in a household, so I decide to delete the fire station and put it back on a larger lot. Maybe Victor will be able to park better!
I find Alfie doing Bloom, badly! lol Then after correcting it, having fun. He had signed the papers to work independently as an artist, here at City Hall.
I send him home to paint.
Victor gets a nice visit from Oakley.
Oakley wants to fairy Frolic
Oakley says "Victor I got you something while shopping today."
"Oh baby books!" He is very pleased since he has the wish!
Max and Faelie were fishing at their special favorite place.
"Maxy, My pregnancy is resumed!"
"Oh my lovely wife, now a lovely Mother!"
Quigley and Fern get the parental treatment from Alfie! lol the kids never get a break!
Quigley by passes the closest TV and both stereo's to join Fern upstairs! cute!
Alfie calls Cherie to come over, but she says she is busy.
He sells his paintings.
and gets promoted to Art Gallery Rookie!
Alfie likes that!
YES! Faelie and Max's stats are finally even! They've now achieved the Faithful reputation. I have already given them the Eternally Faithful moodlet some time ago, as I promised to Faelie on her 20th day with Max.
Oakley visits Victor in the shower, and is feeling very playful.
"heyyyy! Did I just hear the baby jingle, Watcher?" Oakley asks
@Emily4331 Wow! I'm impressed! Kazakh Cyrillic looks amazing! And you wrote All the names! that is amazing!
I'm so glad you have family to lean on and help
Did you write '' I Love Valentina '' hope so cuz I Do!
@Brandontaylor thanks for the comments! You are right!
I love the pic of Christian hugging Ruby!
Alfie is the doppelganger of Max that the game put in! he is in my library.
I love when they look right at me! That is a sims 2 thing the interacting with us carried over right?
DO they know they are computer generated beings? I have no clue!!!! If you know something please Tell me!!!
So glad you got Imgur to work!
Yes there always needs to be room for the next gen!
Eeeek change Hals LTW he's a heartbreaker and I think but not positive commitment phobic. once those are fixed he's nice!
@emorrill The game put in Alfie as a doppelganger! He is the sim I was gifted by @AlexaKry, so now I have 2!!!
Yes Cherie wanted Alfie all to herself as soon as she first saw him! love at first sight for that girl!
''Aww, poor Teddy... He's just thinking all the good women are taken and hethen goes for the bad one!""
Although her pretty face doesn't show it, she's absolutely furious.
Her fiancé just called to tell her that while he was fishing that he saw Marigold Racket's houseboat tied up at the pier of the island that they were eyeing to purchase...now River is headed; full head of steam, down to city hall to purchase the property on the island as well as the dock.
Reason: Marigold Racket tried to move onto the island that they were eyeing...trying to slickly do a right of ownership by possession. "Not so fast, you mutt..." River may be good, but she's not above a good old-fashioned screw-job. Purchase of property and an eviction notice "This is our island, get the flark out" to Marigold Racket. Adios b-, checkmate.
Always "River McIrish" ...and maybe some Bebe Hart. ~innocent expression~
Greg Preston’s Diary 4th of March 2726 AD
Someone forgot to set the lid back on the snake terrarium, the venomous krait snake was not in it anymore. We sought for the snake for about an hour, no one wanted to wake up with a snake in the bed. As Pongo did not reach, I was quite sure the snake left the house, just had to wear boots outside for a while.
Terry was the first to notice there was no snake in the terrarium
Jenny Richards Diary 8th of March 2726 AD
Greg was not in the settlement when the caravan arrived today. It was me and Michiko welcoming the two new settlers. Marble Beach and her fiancé Brendon Gentry. They are surprisingly young and look like they got a lot more money than we are used to around here. I hope they intend to use it in a way that may benefit the community. They gave the students a huge basked of apples from their garden in “Ent”, a good start.
Greg Preston’s Diary 10th of March 2726 AD
The caravan brought the fittings and sealings needed for the faucet in the kitchen. Terry was finally able to fix it, after it had leaked all winter.
From Myra Frances letter to her mother, written 11th of March 2726 AD
Dear Mother.
Thanks for the new clothes and makeup you send. The warm boots I got last time have been very nice, it was so cold here last month. In return I will send you a small diamond that Greg found and gave to me, hope you can make a ring or necklace out of it. On the picture I send it is Terry, Charles and myself preparing the shipment with all what we are sending with the caravan including you diamond.
Greg Preston’s Notes for next Ent Council meeting, written 13th of March 2725 AD
We were all very pleased that the new family, brought a Caravan where they could stay, while the builders form “Ent” constructed their new home. There was a bit of worries amongst the elders, how we could be able to house another two adults maybe for several weeks.
Editorial:
Economy after this period.
Greg Preston household: Cash 7.614 – Net Worth 33.779
Jenny Richards household: Cash 8.393 – Net Worth 16.294
Michiko Vaughan household: Cash 1.184 – Net Worth 10.279
The Elders do not yet know the economy of the new household.
The meeting with new settlers was staged, also sending settlers to do consignments was arranged to fill the first shipment. Everything else automatic.
Marble Beach was born in July 2704 (21 years old), She is the daughter of a “Ent” miner who was part of the golden era of “Ent” mining in the 90’s, where many struck gold. Today he runs a jewellery and is part of the small exclusive “Ent” upper class. He was part of the Ent Council but retired when his wife began to have mental issues. Marble is educated in the restaurant business, while also having worked part time at a small bar. Something daddy did not like, but he is quite broadminded accepting her choices.
Brendon Gentry was born in March 2703 (23 years old). He was born and raised in the large militant group that ruled the area of the cost known as “Willapa” by killing, 🐸🐸🐸🐸 and stealing what they could get their hands on. His mother was a concubine of a low-level tripe leader. Brendon was not cut out for this type of life. He left all he knew when he heard about the peaceful mountain community, he came to “Ent” 6 years ago.
comments
@DivaDoodle
Perfect closeup with Anya, very beautiful sim.
hahaha What is that guy doing?
Checking the tower and bells
Like the farther & son scene, great shots.
What is he wearing while playing the piano? his PJ's?
I don’t understand the word PJ’s.
''What we know about mysterious Alfie right after they played with the time, hmm.'' wait what do you mean? This sounds interesting but I am not understanding!
There was a time-machine in the garden – they played with it, not long before Alfie showed up
113
Faelie is cute in her paramedic outfit!
Yes she is
You got two fire-trucks did not know you could have more than one
Alfie makes some high-quality paintings, surprised to read he is just Art Gallery Rookie
@Brandontaylor
Could force feeding Daisy with vegetables, be considered non-voluntary cannibalism.
A lot of times in real life, the cook is the last to eat. Not in the Sims though, usually the cook is the first to eat. So true they got no manners
Ohh my melts me every time I see a picture where Daisy is dropping flowers on the ground, that is just super cute.
Love the Quinton makeover, Perfect mix of who he is and signs of getting a little older. A good bike-ride to work, also a great cure for “getting older” symptoms.
Daisy Guess I am developing Daisyholicaism. HAVE to get a plant sim, but just can’t mix those kind of “characters” into my current storylines. Glad she met Hal he looks right for her. Love when she suck up the puddles.
Bob Newbie dead or alive dead 50.000 Simoleons
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They won’t get a new student (as it is right now) as terry will occupy the last bed. I hope you got long lifespans
Greg will turn 58 in August, with at least 12 episodes a year expect him to live for another 120-200 episodes
@emorrill
Thanks for comments
No honestly none of my sims have actually attempted flirting since Myra did one attempt on John some time ago. Some have “attractive company” and seen a few hearts though. The new sim Brandon and Jenny had hearts. Just to mention a resent one.
That smiling flower
@Turjan: Sad to hear you are feeling low, hope the coming springtime will cheer you up. (assuming you are at the northern hemisphere.
She wasn't interested.
That broke my heart – for WoHo’s sake that was awful.
Good for Ryan the friends believe him, there is hope.
@GraceyManor:
You made a mistake with the first screenshot You know you're in trouble when the word "just" comes before friends.
Nice Linda and the dynamos
It was not only the snake running freely around the settlement, quite often animals have escaped the settlers
Greg Preston’s Notes for next Ent Council meeting, written 13th of March 2725 AD
We were all very pleased that the new family, brought a Caravan where they could stay, while the builders form “Ent” constructed their new home. There was a bit of worries amongst the elders, how we could be able to house another two adults maybe for several weeks.
Just a quick question, @Tamijo, where did you find that "Caravan" CC? That would be perfect for my "homeless" sim save.
Post edited by Nikkei_Simmer on
Always "River McIrish" ...and maybe some Bebe Hart. ~innocent expression~
@Tamijo great pic pf Terry seeing the snake is gone!
lol did the faucet really leak All winter?
Where does that trailer or Caravan come from? it is so cute!
Great update!
PJ's is pajamas/sleepwear David looked like he had only the barest clothing on his lower half, when he was playing the piano.
OH! the time machine! good point! hmm.
The 2nd fire engine just appeared when I clicked to send Victor to the emergency. Before they returned to the fire station, I built a place for the 2nd fire engine, so Victor could have something else to work on. Also you can buy them in BuyDebug with the Ambitions EP.
Alfie came to us already level 10 in painting. He just started the painter job that day.
@Silverofdreams30 Thank you! That fireman uniform makes everyone look so Fine!
Teddy is a background sim from Riverview, He was in the military, and I just saw him walking around one day. And my sim napped him and married and had twin with him! I don't remember his real name but he's a wonderful funny guy! I love cowards!
Vlad is the repoman from Supernatural.
and Adan was almost a pudding faced guy, that I just barely tweaked but put that nice Glam skin on, and messy sexy hair LOL
It appears that we, Tosh and I, work well as a team in terms of command of the bunker. He never hesitates to consult me as far as what the makeup of the bunker populace should be. I did notice that we had a shortfall in medical and maintenance and instead of taking offence, he is planning to do something about it. On top of that he thanked me for bringing it to his attention; that it would have been a very problematic oversight if it had not been brought to his attention. I can always tell that he's been that way ever since he took command of the United States Navy as Chief of Naval Operations. He puts his ego aside in order to achieve the objective.
I don't think Harm would have been able to do the same when it came down to it. He's the type that always has to be in control of every minutiae of every detail and he's the one that has to come up with it or he isn't happy. That's one of the reasons why I think that the President put Tosh in charge of the bunker and another reason why Tosh is a five-star and Harm is still only a captain. We have to do the necessary things to survive this potential doomsday and Tosh is willing to put his ego on the back-burner for us to be able to do whatever it takes to make sure that we are well-equipped in the bunker.
We'd had a meeting regarding what had been sent down the wire from the Pentagon in terms of what was happening in the locales where our fleets were, US Seventh Fleet was entangled with the Chinese and the Hermit Kingdom was sending out their little boats to harass our ships. Evidently North Korea and the Chinese had gotten closer in relations ever since the relationships between China and the United States had gone south.
Tosh told me that it seemed as though things were on an inexorable slide to the brink of destruction; that from what he could tell; there was no escape. It was the strategist in him that told him that things were not going to go well in the Pacific...and the Russians were just waiting to jump in with both feet. They had always been our adversaries and it was only a matter of time before we and they came to blows.
All of this was frightening...but we, as the de facto bunker command, could not show fear. It would trickle down to the masses and then we woul have a full-on revolt on our hands. It was hard to say how the human psyche would react to the news that their world was to be no more. It was such a horrific concept that not many people would be able to comprehend the true direness of the situation. One's mind just shut down and pretty much failed to parse the data putting one in serious jeopardy since there were things that one had to do in order to survive and if you were frozen in place, how would you have the gumption to be able to do what had to be done. Tosh was a doer - he didn't let the scary stuff make him freeze. He may have been terrified but not a whit showed on his face. And his drive was what kept the rest of the bunker going.
Being one of the few to have ever looked death in the face and given the Reaper the middle finger on a numbered hill in North Korea against overwhelming odds, there were very few things that would make him falter. And I wouldn't know a single one of them. There was a reason why he wore the star-shaped medal with Minerva repulsing Discord. On that no-name numbered hill back in 1994 he made a do or die stand armed with only an M-4 carbine and a sack of grenades daring the North Koreans to charge at him, inflicting more casualties on them than they were able to get wounds on him. Hill 175 would always be a name that rang through the annals of those who had received the Medal of Honor. It was because Tosh had said that whether he lived or died made no difference as long as his fellow men got home safe and sound and that he would do anything in his power to make sure that they had a fighting chance to get home safe to their families. When Harm and I had done the due-diligence investigation on his actions on Hill 175, I had truly found out just exactly what the words above and beyond the call of duty, at the very risk of his own life...meant. It truly reflected actions that gave credit to the United States Naval Service. And somehow...through miraculous circumstance, he'd managed to survive and make it home himself. Not many recipients made it home. Some gave the ultimate sacrifice.
And for me, that was another reason why I was honored to serve with him and work with him hand-in-hand to make sure that we all survived what would be the most horrifying event that we would ever experience.
On the whole, I didn't talk much with the rest of the bunker group but I knew that they were doing their things in order to make their own lives make sense in this impending cataclysm. Ms. Hart was working on the science station as was Kimber.
Poor Harm was trying extremely hard to understand robotics. Considering that he, like Tosh, was a doer rather than a thinker, I'm sure his brain was doing mental calisthenics trying to figure out what a nanite was and trying to create trait-chips was probably one of the more brain-trying things he'd ever tried to do. Even flying an F-14 Tomcat tended to be a direct input task, you shoved your control stick one way and the F-14 reponded to the touch-input. Whereas the Robotics station tended to have its own mind. And every-so-often I could hear Harm cursing as he set off an alarm when a suggested input failed. Well, at least he didn't have the trait-chip or nanite explode on him.
Admiral Gracen and Mrs. River McIrish-Chikamori gravitated towards the arcane and started learning alchemy. This was something completely outside my realm of knowledge. I dealt with ciphers, ledgers, figures and concrete details that pertained to things that were within the realm of every-day matters and the supernatural and arcane tended to raise hairs on the back of my neck. But if they could truly master that, then all the more power to them. Depending on what happened due to the radiation and whatever else twisted the natural, perhaps magic would be what saves the day. Until then bullets would be what solved the existential problems of things being mutated by rads.
Jen and Mac gravitated towards the potion tables trying to find a way for us to be able to increase our skills and give us some leverage. A bit of science; a bit of magic went into the potion tables and again, it confused me since I was more attuned to logic rather than something metaphysical. As much as I was leery about Mac, I was glad that she found something interesting to bide her time rather than the two of us being at odds with each other. I hoped she understood that I no longer held any interest for Harm as he was far too junior an officer for me to ever even consider having a relationship with. Mac was one hundred percent welcome to Harm and that was perfectly fine with me.
I was more interested in a certain former jet-jock.
After all, we work well together.
River's husband on the other hand, was upstairs in the agricultural area fishing. He was busy trying to catch things other than crocodiles, which didn't bode too well when one stuffed them into one's pocket - considering that one could potentially get one's legs gnawed off no matter which gender you were, but especially if you were male, you could end up losing other things as well that one didn't want to lose.
So overall, we were in good shape for whatever the apocalypse could throw at us.
Some more than others.
Conflicts in the Pacific
Things were degenerating in the Pacific as Tosh realized from the reports that he was getting from the Pentagon. Chinese and Russian fleets were patrolling sections of both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans and that had both the Sixth and Seventh Fleets of the US Navy on high alert. Skirmishes were taking place when elements of task forces met. As of current there were no escalations to tactical nuclear weapons but it only took one hot-headed commander to free up "specials" and everything would go to hell in a handbasket.
Of course everything seemed to be business as usual in the bunker with no-one other than the command staff wiser to the outside events that seemed to be precipitating them towards inevitable destruction. Harm was increasing his knowledge base as far as robotics was concerned. After consultation with command staff, Harm knew that his knowledge of robotics would stand them in good stead as far as making a team for post-nuclear reconnaissance of the area and any recordings from the plumbot recon team would allow the bunker occupants to see what threats the environment posed to their health.
The rest of the staff worked at their individual tasks. The science stations, alchemy and potion tables were always manned and Haruo went up and fished so that they all had fresh meat. And as those who worked on their sciences skilled up they could try their hand at cloning the roasts and links so that they would always be able to have fresh meat. If one didn't have meat, they'd be running the risk of health problems down the road with lack of protein.
The Bunker was well-stocked with activities that improved one's skills. The Robotics station was always manned by Harm and the science stations were always being used by those who wanted to increase their science skill to help with cloning experiments. A lot of DNA samples would be useful to be frozen then stored so that they wouldn't be affected by radiation seepage and by manipulation could increase that variance of genetic sequencing to effectively create new genetic lines of individuals.
Phil, on the other hand, was spending his time banging away with hammers on metal scrap trying to see if he could fashion something that was potentially useful. Occasionally though he'd get a bit to adventurous with his creations and they would explode on him leaving him singed and rather worse for wear; but nothing that a shower wouldn't take care of.
And of course, Tosh headed out with the Stryker APC to go get some more meat to stock the freezers with in preparation for the apocalypse.
Kimber joined Phil at the inventing table and Harm continued his research on nanites and trait chips. These would certainly help with the limitations that would be imposed by the fall-out. If their plumbots could go out in the radiation and see what the environment was like bringing back recordings, they would be able to determine the half-life of the radioactive elements that were within the environment. Decontamination of the plumbots would be crucial so that they wouldn't be bringing in trace elements of lethal radiation into the bunker itself.
Everyone had their set tasks to accomplish, but no-one was riding anyone else's back telling them that they had to do that. Everyone had their own sense of urgency for they knew that time was fleeting and that time was of the essence for none of them knew exactly when this whole thing was going to kick-off. And the only people that they could look towards in terms of were Meg and Animal. It was their leadership that was going to guide them through the worst of what was to come.
And all Tosh could do was to continue to stock the freezer with as much meat as he could possibly get down at the grocery store and shuttle back up to the bunker.
With the somber news that the war wasn't going the way that they wanted, dinner the night of the full-moon was subdued.
Tosh and Meg went into Tosh's room and had a good long conversation about what was going on and the reports that he was getting from the Pentagon. He had a good idea of when they would have to lock down and it wasn't going to be far off down the road.
"Task Force 62 got into a tussle with Chinese subs. Meg, we have two destroyers at the bottom of the ocean and the Chinese lost six of their subs. It's not looking good at all, Meg. We don't know who's going to escalate first to tactical specials but all I know is that we're not looking at a good outcome."
Meg nodded in response. She knew that time was running short and the Pentagon was not responding to the requests that they had put in for medical staff. They may be going on their own for the time being. Which meant that they would have to work from within to create medical staffers as necessary to keep the health of the bunker personnel in mind.
It wasn't good news that she had for Tosh, but between the two of them they would improvise and make the best of what they had.
...and it was a sobering look that Tosh gave Meg...as they pondered on the ramifications and a chill ran down Meg's spine as Tosh uttered:
..."May God help us all..."
The Final Battleground
Part One
Meg understood that if the balloon went up, it would mean that they would be short necessary personnel. So her idea of creating medical staff from those already in the bunker carried a lot of weight. For Tosh, that meant that several ideas came to mind. Jen had always had an interest in the medical field with a primary being in psychology. And Bebe Hart despite her artistic bent was also keenly interested in science. So with the two of them, mind and body appeared to be taken care of.
With security in mind, Tosh knew that they needed to have plumbots form a key part of their defence strategy. Not only could they patrol the perimeter during the worst of the radiation; but they were essentially un-killable if not indestructible. Any potential opposition invasion force would be up against a group of plumbots that could potentially decimate large portions of their numbers while sustaining few casualties of their own.
Meg and Tosh usually ended up having their meetings after everyone was asleep since that was about the only quiet time that they could get during the course of the day. The day was filled with other activities of skilling up in the skills necessary in order to survive what was to follow. No-one knew just exactly what would happen. And they all fought down the worrisome thoughts that persisted. They could only do what they could and let the rest take care of itself.
Meg had plenty of ideas in her head that she gave voice to and Tosh listened to them, letting her speak...and offering little input, letting her freestyle think about the ideas and realizing that she thought the best on her feet and letting the ideas move through her mind.
Harm had achieved success with a plumbot and that success story was charging in the charging station downstairs. Artie was the prototype plumbot and had pretty much had every single trait chip that Harm had managed to invent installed in him. Competent Cleaner, AI Angler, Steel Chef, RoBotany...and well, Artie, evidently short for Artificial Intelligence, had an inherent fascination for the conjuring pot. So he spent a lot of his time hanging out making new gemstones for the group to get rich on and eventually had conjured a tiberium.
One of the key ideas that Meg came up with was the fact that they all needed to get younger. Since Jen had managed with the potion table to create a potion that manipulated genes to regain their youth, she suggested that they all drink Young-Again potions to go back to the very start of their Young Adulthood, that way they would have the stamina to effect the change on the environment as they needed post-apocalypse. Tosh thought that was a very good idea and told her so.
"So...who do you think should try it?" Meg asked him.
Tosh shrugged his shoulders. He was of mixed emotions about this. Being young again had its appeal, no doubt. But he'd been single for a very long time at this point. And wondering if he'd still be single for a long time yet again, had him wondering if becoming young again was worth it. Meg noted his skepticism...
"You seem a bit worried about the whole idea of becoming younger...Tosh, what is it?" Tosh looked at her and she faced him square on...
"I've always thought that there was no redo button in life, Meg..." Tosh told her, "It's always been a one-off, you don't get any second chances. Now with Jen finding this potion, we have multiple chances to get things right or get a redo over if we mess things up royally." He paused to look at her again, "I wonder just what that's going to do to our idea of caring about how we behave in the end."
Meg looked at him with a knowing expression, "I see your point...but there is one thing that I've always wondered...I've always put my career ahead of everything. And I resigned myself to never having a family because my Navy career was of primary importance. Serving our country and the fact that I was getting older. As our body ages, we start having higher risk of birth defects and thus I had figured that I had tossed my ability to have a family out the window. Now I have that chance again. And I don't want to toss the idea of having a family out the window if I have that chance again." She raised an eyebrow with a meaningful look aimed in Tosh's direction.
"...so...what do you say we take the Young Again potion together and see what it does?" Meg asked.
Tosh shrugged his shoulders and quipped, "Well...it couldn't hurt...I've always wanted to see if I could go back to running sixteen miles a day..." Meg snickered; she knew that Tosh hated running at the best of times.
So, pulling out their Young-Again potions that were given to them by CMCYN Jennifer Coates, "Down the hatch..." Tosh said as he upended the potion and guzzled it, as did Meg. "I don't feel any different..." he stated just before the transformation hit him. It was a tingling sensation that started through every blood vessel in his body and down his entire body from the top of his head to the very extremities.
As the transformation effects subsided, Meg leaned in close, her perfume tantalizing Tosh, making him very amenable to Meg's closeness. "I don't see any more crow's feet..." Meg murmured softly as she leaned in to inspect his face.
"You look as beautiful as ever..." Tosh replied...looking at her with an expression of awe.
Meg gave him a grin, "Awww, you always say that to all the girls you meet." she teased him.
"Only one girl in mind this time around..." was his response.
...and they leaned into each other's embrace as their lips met in a passionate kiss. "I..." Tosh stammered.
"You know how long I've been waiting for this..." Meg whispered softly.
...then it was clothes tossed aside and ardent passion for the next two hours as the both of them took things to the next level and beyond.
And morning found them sitting in the love-seat in the common area of their bunker sitting enjoying each other's closeness in the wake of their amorous machinations.
"That young again potion...um...really worked..." Tosh said off-handed, his mind on the memories that he and Meg had just created.
"It certainly did..." Meg returned playfully. "I never knew you had it in you..." she teased him gently.
"Maybe...another round later?" she continued.
Tosh's silent nod of agreement caused the corners of Meg's lips to curl in a smile as she leaned in again for their lips to meet in a kiss.
"Meg...you know I'm going to want more than just play-time." Tosh said meaningfully, "I'm at a stage where I don't want play...I want a meaningful relationship..." Tosh just barely restrained himself from saying age...they had just taken Young Again potions so age wasn't even a factor here.
Meg felt a welling of emotion in her as she realized just what Tosh was saying to her. "...you mean...?" her statement had a questioning tone to it.
Tosh nodded.
"Because...that's what I want too..." Meg said softly and that was that. They both realized that they were willing to take the next step in a future that would mean a life together; whatever that life would hold.
The Final Battlefield
Part Two
For Harm, taking the "Young Again" potion was an invigorating prospect. For nine years, Mac and he had run around each other trying to feel each other out and see if pursuing a relationship was worth the effort for the nine years they had wasted. Then they had wasted yet another nine years of their life trying to make their time-schedules fit in order to get married, which ultimately was a doomed affair.
...so ultimately, Harm had come to the conclusion that there were many prospective members of the female human species that he could potentially be partners with in the romantic sense of the word. And frankly that made more sense than pursuing one Sarah Mackenzie who appeared that she wasn't sure of what she wanted in life. After all, if there was a Young Again potion, why not experience everything of what life had to offer?
After all, wasn't that what life was all about: the joy of the experiences? If you wanted to do something that took a younger man's physical energy to accomplish, just drink a Young Again potion and have the stamina to do whatever was required, whether it was moving fridges by oneself or building a house with a couple of friends. No more did time put a time-limit of one's abilities. He could do anything he wanted in life; have several go-arounds if he wanted. Nothing was out of his limit.
Harm revelled in the new found feeling of his youth yet again. He felt physically the same as if he was back to being a plebe in his freshman year at the Naval Academy. He felt that physically good. The aches and pains of ejections, of his ramp-strike were gone...and he felt better than he had felt for a long time. No more physical wear and tear on his body that he'd earned in fifty plus years of living. In short he felt his youth again and that felt good.
Then he saw his old RAG instructor who had taken his Young Again potion. Bulging muscles and back to being a young buck but with all the mental experience of his 62 years of life and 40 years of Naval Service coming to bear in a young 20 year old frame. Animal still carried himself like an fleet admiral. It would take a lot to take that out of him. "Good morning, sir." Harm stated as he looked over at Tosh.
"Morning, Captain, I see you took your young-again potion that Coates created." Tosh grinned at him.
Harm grinned, "Yes, sir, I did."
"Makes you feel young again, doesn't it?" Tosh grinned shrugging his shoulders, the bulging pectoral muscles could be seen under his Hornets Suck; Fly Tomcats t-shirt which served to 🐸🐸🐸🐸 off Hornet drivers off all the time (which was the main reason why he wore it.
"Feel like I could take up a F-14 and go one vs unknowns with an adversary squadron for a coupla hours." Animal grinned as he shot down one hand with the other in an imitation of what fighter pilots did when they recounted a great dogfight they had where they'd gotten the better of some other hapless schmuck.
"No doubt, sir." Harm replied. He felt the same way.
It was at about that point that Harm noticed Meg had come out of the women's washroom just barely dressed in a tie-dyed nightie. His eyes widened as he ogled her. Meg just raised one eyebrow as if to tell him to keep it "in his pants". "Hi Meg..." Harm grinned at her.
"Hiya Harm." her tone seemed preoccupied and she barely gave him a cursory inspection. After all, she was a higher-ranking officer and one of the command.
...and the perfunctory look that she gave Harm versus the tender, knowing look that she gave Animal told Harm that he wasn't even on Meg's radar. Her eyes were all on Animal.
...and Harm realized just how enamored Meg was of Animal when she raised a hand to stroke Animal's cheek...whispering softly, "Good morning..." to him. And that spoke volumes that Animal and Meg had during the night gotten to know each other far more than he knew. Which was even more apparent when Meg lip-locked Animal, right in front of Harm, himself.
Yes, folks, Meg was out of Harm's league and as a vice-admiral had more in common with Animal than she had with Harm and Harm knew it all too well. It didn't mean that it didn't sting though, considering that at one point, Meg had been a Lieutenant JG and his legal investigation partner when Harm, himself, was a Lieutenant Commander. But he'd fumbled and he'd fumbled badly and now Meg Austin, Vice Admiral, United States Navy outranked him and she had bigger fish to fry or...well...do things with that were best left out of polite company.
But losing the ability to have a relationship with Meg wasn't so bad when one considered the other options in the bunker.
Captain Kimber Benton, naval aviator, USN was a viable alternative to Colonel Sarah Mackenzie, if all things considered, she would give him the time of day. She'd been Animal's wingman throughout the years flying combat missions over Bosnia and the Baltics. And she was hard-nosed with a Navy Cross to boot, a much higher decoration than his Silver Star.
But the tantalizing picture of one VADM Megan Renee Austin never seemed to go away and teased him...endlessly...torturously...knowing that his former investigative partner was sleeping with his former Reserve Air Group F-14 instructor.
The rest of it, he didn't want to torture himself with...though his mind kept trying to do things that made him want to douse his entire brain with bleach.
But all the tomfoolery came to a halt late that afternoon when Tosh received a phone call, direct from the Pentagon. Four words from the Secretary of Defense that would scare the living daylights out of anyone who knew what they meant: "Lock down; Pinnacle Imminent..." Tosh's reply was four words back. "Aye, sir. Message Received."
It was at that point that Tosh knew that he needed to get everybody to the lowest part of the bunker and lock down so that they would be safe. Atlas, Franz and Scooter were also home resting and it was just a quick job of getting them down the steps to safety.
250 miles south of Ya'an
Somewhere in China
0235ZULU
The DF-12B missiles were launched in a major attack against airfields in Japan in a diversionary attack to make sure that the US's attention was diverted. If all of the forces were diverted, they wouldn't be able to absorb any new information as the constant battle traffic would be jamming the satellite com-links. Then as the battle waged on; in the evening then China would launch its missiles at the US Mainland with others aimed towards neighboring countries.
When the American fleets were thus engaged, the Russians and the Chinese would launch their missiles in concert; thus overwhelming the ABM missile defenses that the United States had. The entire US mainland would be covered in nuclear explosions making the entire area uninhabitable for the near future.
The Russian and Chinese generals had ascertained that a nuclear strike just as the populace was going to work would be the best way to get as many casualties as possible. This was known as the doctrine of attrition. A devastating strike on a city center that killed as many people as possible; a side-effect being the demoralization of the populace and thus an invasion could be instigated to bring the populace under heel.
Catching the US air defences unawares was key to this. This was the primary reason behind the Russians and Chinese developing hypersonic inter-continental ballistic missiles such as the RS-28 Sarmat (SATAN-2). They had targeted their RS-28 loaded with multiple 800kt warheads with two of the 10 warheads targeted on Sunset Valley. One to destroy the airbase, the other to knock out the city-hall.
No-one outside the bunker knew and even the ones inside the bunker didn't even know of the hideous doom that would descend from the heavens that morning. It all started off with everyone getting up in the morning and preparing for work. After all, it was a work-week and people had to earn money to live.
Everyone in the bunker remained inside the bunker at the lowest level because they didn't know what to expect...and they were correct to do so. Tosh had on the stereo tuned to a news channel to make sure that he knew what was going on when they heard the Emergency Action Message coming over the airwaves. Most everyone on the outside was unsure of what was going on and went about their business as if nothing was going on. Beau decided that he was going to have a barbecue and Nancy Landgraab decided that she would sit down outside the grocery store. And of course Gobias Koffi had to sit down outside the bookstore. The Clavells went to the library...it would be the last things that they would ever do.
The first warhead detonated at 0943hrs at its target over CFB Gnome thirty-six minutes after launch.
If anyone had any sight left after the detonation of the second warhead directly over the cupola of the city hall...their retinas seared to a crisp; before being flashburned by the fireball and having their eyeballs melted into goo running out of their empty eye-sockets, they would have seen the fireball and mushroom cloud rising from the first detonation of the nuclear weapon over CFB Gnome.
Paint bubbled and blistered, skin melted off the bones as meat seared and charred and then vaporized. If any structure was strong enough to remain standing after the blast wave, the only thing that would be left would be a human sized shadow burned permanently into the wall.
As the mushroom clouds rose into the air, there was no-one left alive to see the fiery plumes that topped out thousands of feet into the air...raising their mantle of death and destruction over what used to be a fair and thriving city.
...and the firestorms that raged went unabated as there was no one to put them out. The skies blackened with soot from the out of control fires.
The only thing that the occupants of the bunker could do was hope and pray that they would survive to see the remainder of what was left of their world.
Always "River McIrish" ...and maybe some Bebe Hart. ~innocent expression~
Comments
Thanks a lot Tiffany. I hope Ryan fires you.
Well, there is always the crooked politician option. Ryan finds dirt on Tiffany and gets her arrested so she can't bother him. Somehow, I don't see Ryan doing that though.
@Nikkei_Simmer Great update! Now on to the River and Haruo update.
Wow, River does look beautiful. Don't tell Haruo I said that though, or he may do to me what he did to Jared.
That song has been the graduation song for too many years to count, lol. I think it's funny how the names listed in the game are Sims versions of the game developers.
Hooking each others lines would have been funny though.
Do NOT bring Mayumi back, please don't.
Who are they going to kill? I think the Watcher can deal with those two, lol
I was interested in this story from the beginning, but now I'm really interested.
@Tamijo Sounds like the house got a bit bigger.
I'm glad they revived their band.
You're welcome.
Well, in the newest update, she doesn't have homework anymore.
She'll be alright, lol
He's working on it. His LTW is 10 girlfriends though so who knows how long they'll be together.
I can tell you who it was if you want me to, lol. Just don't hurt the man.
I hope you got long lifespans, because I'm afraid Greg will die.
Glad to see Greg got the town named after him.
@Emily4331 Great job on the Sims, she sure is a beauty.
@DivaDoodle Geez, Teddy, just use the stairs if you are scared.
Teddy doesn't want him, Cherie.
Great update!
@emorrill Yeah, and now she is done with school so she doesn't have to make the face anymore.
You're welcome.
Well, all I can say to Ryan is: "Run after her ya dope!"
Here's a fun country song to go along with that, just cause...you know me.
@Brandontaylor Quinton looks pretty good as an Elder. (None of us are happy about getting older... )
Daisy aged up well and still looks just as pretty as she was as a teen. (Oh I see you did that on purpose. ) ^Right on! 👍
@Nikkei_Simmer Oh. Who was he in Pirates of the Caribbean? I love that movie. I need to watch it again...
He died? Gosh that is unfortunate.
...Yup.
Always "River McIrish" ...and maybe some Bebe Hart. ~innocent expression~
I'm not doing that hot at the moment. Nothing really serious though, just the state of mind. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy your time, and I left my "awesomes" at your posts.
_________________________________________________________________
Gwen Stout (basically Bebe Hart), the involuntary ex-wife of Lucas, decided it would be nice to become a Landgraab in the second half of her life. With the kids out of the house, she married Malcolm, who is already an elder. Let's hope for the best for them.
Not sure what Malcolm's sole heir thinks of this (his son with Justine Keaton), but hey, what's life without a little drama.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuW44b3uCMtCSaq4gwC8EZg
*clears throat*
Anya - Аня
Vlad - Влад
Admittedly, I got Anya wrong the first try. Until I remembered that "я" makes a "ya" sound and not just a "yuh". Got Vlad correct, first try, though.
Let us continue out studies,
Adan - Адан (easy peasy)
Teddy - Тедди
Cherie (assuming it's pronounced "Share-ee") - Шерри (Okay, 100% forgot which letter made a "sh" sound, but that's what this is all about. Now I will never forget! It's just how my brain functions )
Alfie - Алфи (same with the "fuh" sound )
(Anya girllll you don't steal your sister's man! "Lord help the sister that comes between me and my man" as the song says. )
Wikerman (assuming it's pronounced Wickerman and not wike-er-man ) - Ұикерман but I'm not 100% sure on that one.
Faelie - Фейли
Willomina - Ұиломина I don't like the sound "wuh"
Danny - Данни (I love how I have the letter "и" down because it's in my name twice. Эмили, in case you were curious )
Victor - Виктор
Max - Макс
Quigley (oh no oh god oh no) - Құигли? Ima go with Құигли.
Fern - Ферн
(Well those two aren't shy. Lemme just woohoo in front of the whole neighborhood. )
Thank you for the well wishes. Unfortunately, chronic, severe depression is just a mainstay in my life. It has only gotten worse these last few years as now it's mixed with grief. Yayyyy It has been a little better recently, though, in the grief department. I have my family to thank a lot for that.
Aww I appreciate it! I love making sims. Valentyna is a perfect candidate for my studies ahem ahem listen, I'm going to take this a step further and type a Kazakh sentence. Wish me luck... Мен сүю Валентина
@Brandontaylor It really is omega freezing in Illinois right now. Truly no better indicator that the Earth is messed up than not really having a true Winter, then having several below freezing days, and then to the temperature shooting up to like 40 something some random day. During the pandemic, we've been been having our groceries delivered so I had to go shovel snow to help out our poor delivery person (don't worry, they also got a very generous tip) and my walkway isn't long, so it didn't take me too long. But even with gloves on, my fingers were burning they were so cold. And I couldn't have been out there more than maybe 5 minutes.
Thank you for your comments
@Turjan Take care of yourself I'm here if you ever need to talk.
Quinton had to work until 1 in the morning so he was riding his motorcycle home early.
Today was Christian's turn to cook breakfast. Since no one knows anything other than pancakes and waffles, he choose pancakes. Like Christopher Steel Jones, Christian has the same likes.
Now that she is an adult, Daisy talked with Dwight about her career goals.
The family was late getting up so graduation forced the family to leave their breakfast. Luckily, graduation went off with a hitch and Daisy will get her a job.
Daisy went to talk with the proprietor about getting a job as a singer. The proprietor thought she'd make a great addition to his group of performers and gave her the job. She decided to call herself "Flower Power" on stage. However, she also thought about how much she hates art.
The sink broke in the kitchen so while Christian fixed it, Daisy absorbed the puddles.
Ariana had gotten invited to a party so she brought Daisy with her. Daisy decided to perform a song and make her debut, but no one really paid attention to her.
And then it happened. Daisy met a Riverview townie named Hal Breckenridge and they had hearts for each other. Now I'm not sure she'll choose him, but he's first choice for the time being.
But I wanted to tell you how beautiful Valentyna is and you did such a splendid job on her wardrobe.
I'm sorry to hear your depression is rearing its ugly head again. {{{{Hugs}}}} I'm so glad to hear you have a great support system with your family.
Mine comes and goes, and like you I've come to terms with the fact that it's chronic and always something I'll be dealing with in my life. It's my ultimate trial (well, next to being overweight) and it's something I refuse to let bring me down! We grow stronger because of it and it helps us empathize with others who are dealing with it as well; so we can be their anchor when they're in the pit and vice versa. 🤗 If you ever feel like you need someone to vent to about it, I'm just a PM away.
That Cyrillic text is cool!
Isn't it adorable?
_______________________________________________________________________________
After the divorce of his parents, Alfred Hatch stayed with his father and grew up in that shack of his, while his brother Gordon went with his mother Maricela. She never made an attempt to stay in touch, so she was a stranger to him. This day, Alfred saw his mother at the gym, and he took heart and tried to start a conversation with her.
She wasn't interested.
Sammie: I wish my guy was here to, so I could hit him!
Linda: What did go wrong between you two?
Sammie: There was another girl, and I asked him about her.
You know you're in trouble when the word "just" comes before friends.
Melanie: that's how most of my relationships ended to.
Melanie flips on the karoke machine, feeling it was the right moment.
Sammie: One night I was talking a walk along the river.When
I saw him together with a..
Melanie: young girl.
Sammie: And the look that he gave her made me shiver...cause he
Melanie: Always used to look at her that way...
Sammie: and I thought, maybe I should walk right up to her and say.
Melanie: Uhuh, its the game they like to play.
Both: Look into their angel eyes...one look and you're hypnotized.
You'll think your in paradise and one day you will find out, they wear a diguise.
Don't look deep into their angel eyes.
Sammie: Its terribly important to remember...
Melanie: Just what terrible people some guys are!
Both: Keep thinking about their angel eyes...
Linda: Sometimes when I'm lonely, I sit and think about him, and it hurts
to remember all the good times.
Linda: when I thought I could never live without him and I wonder
does it have to be the same? Everytime, when I see him, will it bring
back all the pain? How could I forget that name....
Sammie: I have a crazy idea...let's get our group back together
Melanie: Linda and the dynamos! Come on Chiquitita!
Linda: Well, why not?!
https://graceymanorsims3.tumblr.com/
I finally completed the Surrounded By Family Aspiration for the first time in years with the birthday of Grace Marie Covington! She's gorgeous!
Here's a little cuteness with grandma Mollie and Austin
HillyPlays
P.A.C.E- Positive Attitude Changes Everything
@Turjan ^You know, true that! 👍
Poor Alfred.
@Karritz ^That's kinda cool!
@Brandontaylor Congrats to Daisy graduating and landing herself in a band! "Flower Power" I love it!
Ooooh, she and Hal huh?
HillyPlays
P.A.C.E- Positive Attitude Changes Everything
Sammie: Oh look at you, Linda! You brought back your dynamo hair
Linda: Of course I did! wouldn't be me without it...
Melanie: Your natural red hair is so pretty, but so is this!
Linda: Aww.Thanks!
Ryan and the agents managed to find Linda's home but unfortunately she
wasn't there.
Agent Peter: She has to come back eventually, if it were I, I would
wait here.
Ryan: maybe I'll do that.
Linda: Ryan? What are you doing here?
Ryan: Linda....what did you do to your lovely red hair?
Linda: Dyed like I had it in my group...now excuse me.
Ryan: Linda, wait, we need to talk.
Linda: Save it Ryan.I have plans tonight.
Ryan: With whom?
Linda: That's not really your concern is it?
Ryan: ...Linda...I guess not, seeing how you dumped me.
but...please five minutes, that's all I want.
Sammie: Sorry, Ryan.....just give her some space.
Ryan: I just want to talk to her...
Melanie: We know...but she needs to cool down a bit...
Sammie: There's one way to get to Linda....sappy music...we're
taking her out tonight...let me leave you with that thought.
Ryan: Thanks girls, appreciate the support.
Sammie: Just an FYI, we believe you when you said you didn't
do anything.
Ryan: Thanks..
Edit: I didn't notice until I was doing my next update screenshots that Ryan lost his facial hair...
I didn't remove it.XD No wonder he looked different lol.
https://graceymanorsims3.tumblr.com/
Watcher is so happy to get back to Max and Faelie and their precious household! I hope I'm not speaking too soon, as my game loads! That was a bit much, even for me, it was like watching the 'Bonobo Show', at the Fire Station.
Now Alfie is taken out of that mix, by having a GF. He has someone who loves him and speaks hearts to him all the time.
~~~
Cherie says she needs to go home at midnight! Is she Cinderella? She casts a loving look, through the walls, to sleeping Alfie, as she leaves.
"Nitey Night, Love"
As the family sleeps, Victor gets a wish for a baby with Oakley! It is their 10th day of their relationship. Isn't that a bit early? owell, I lock it in, 'cause Victor!
Alfie wakes and wants to play chess.
Don't let me disturb you Alfie! lol
The carpools and school bus comes.
Faelie is cute in her paramedic outfit!
I send Victor to work early because he needs to work on handiness! Alfie is already at the top of the skill.
Who the heck are You?
"I'm Farrah Finch, Watcher. I won't be any trouble, I'm already married and have a large family."
ok. you can work here, for now, if you're good.
The firemen group chat, they are all very good friends now. Teddy and Adan are a bit closer than friends. I think if I had 'kiss'= true, in romance, they would be RI. I have it turned off because it leads to over the top drama! lol
Alfie arrives and decides to dance, He is at the top in so many skills, nothing really to work on. I put an easel on the grounds in case he wishes to paint.
Victor continues to work while Alfie runs across the street to chat with Wikerman.
Victor gets promoted to Fire Captain!
New uniform!
Victor catches up on paperwork
And Vlad comes for a chat.
"So tell me about yourself, Victor" Vlad says
"I got married recently" says Victor
"And we live in a lovely spacious home."
Farrah, are you trying to cause trouble? Leave the guys alone!
"I want to slow dance!"
No. dance by yourself!
The alarm rings and Victor responds! I make Alfie go too. Now we have 2 Fire engines, one slow and one fast!
Alfie gets there first, having taken the fast engine. The maid is already doing a great job!
"Good job, Buddy!" says Alfie
Before Victor even gets to the fire , it says he completes the job with and A+, it completes for Alfie as well!
Victor wants to make sure this fire engine is up to par with the fast one!
Farrah get the hearts for Alfie. He talks about work to get her to simmer down.
I thought you said you were going to be Good?
"I want to pretend I'm on a date with Alfie!" says party animal Farrah
Nope! Next you'll want to slow dance with all the guys.
I think your husband is calling you. Bye now!
New Emergency! Victor Jumps and runs to respond, I have to make Alfie go!
It causes a glitch.
I reset and the Emergency starts up again. I hold Victor back to work on the slow engine.
I send Alfie.
Get going Alfie!
"I'm not really feeling it Watcher" Alfie tells me.
LOL
Well you are very good at painting, Do you want to be a painter?
"Yes"
OK go home and sign up and paint!
I send Victor to retrieve the fire engine. it's nice to tag along as he flies!
"I drive like a Boss!'' and he sounds the sirens just for fun!
"How's That!" says Victor
Not so good, dear.
"Yeah, the parking was tight" Victor explains.
I have some faulty alarms, that may have been caused by having 2 fire fighters in a household, so I decide to delete the fire station and put it back on a larger lot. Maybe Victor will be able to park better!
I find Alfie doing Bloom, badly! lol Then after correcting it, having fun. He had signed the papers to work independently as an artist, here at City Hall.
I send him home to paint.
Victor gets a nice visit from Oakley.
Oakley wants to fairy Frolic
Oakley says "Victor I got you something while shopping today."
"Oh baby books!" He is very pleased since he has the wish!
Max and Faelie were fishing at their special favorite place.
"Maxy, My pregnancy is resumed!"
"Oh my lovely wife, now a lovely Mother!"
Quigley and Fern get the parental treatment from Alfie! lol the kids never get a break!
Quigley by passes the closest TV and both stereo's to join Fern upstairs! cute!
Alfie calls Cherie to come over, but she says she is busy.
He sells his paintings.
and gets promoted to Art Gallery Rookie!
Alfie likes that!
YES! Faelie and Max's stats are finally even! They've now achieved the Faithful reputation. I have already given them the Eternally Faithful moodlet some time ago, as I promised to Faelie on her 20th day with Max.
Oakley visits Victor in the shower, and is feeling very playful.
"heyyyy! Did I just hear the baby jingle, Watcher?" Oakley asks
]/spoiler]
.
@Emily4331 Wow! I'm impressed! Kazakh Cyrillic looks amazing! And you wrote All the names! that is amazing!
I'm so glad you have family to lean on and help
Did you write '' I Love Valentina '' hope so cuz I Do!
@Brandontaylor thanks for the comments! You are right!
I love the pic of Christian hugging Ruby!
Alfie is the doppelganger of Max that the game put in! he is in my library.
I love when they look right at me! That is a sims 2 thing the interacting with us carried over right?
DO they know they are computer generated beings? I have no clue!!!! If you know something please Tell me!!!
So glad you got Imgur to work!
Yes there always needs to be room for the next gen!
Eeeek change Hals LTW he's a heartbreaker and I think but not positive commitment phobic. once those are fixed he's nice!
@emorrill The game put in Alfie as a doppelganger! He is the sim I was gifted by @AlexaKry, so now I have 2!!!
Yes Cherie wanted Alfie all to herself as soon as she first saw him! love at first sight for that girl!
''Aww, poor Teddy... He's just thinking all the good women are taken and he then goes for the bad one!""
Oh that song! toooo cute!!!! TY
There is actually a song that says her first and last name! She is French so has a French name. lol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fjufjv4rH0s&feature=emb_logo
I love that we all have different interest too! people are just so interesting and wonderful!
@HillyBeth I liked his grad pic! he's a keeper for sure! The grandson is so cute!
Congrats on the surrounded by family! Yes Grace Marie Covington is gorgeous! I love her lips!
Hi @Turjan *waves* I hate when we get the not so hot state of mind! and this weather doesn't help, I'm ready for spring Now!
Cute pic of Mal and Gwen!
poor Alfred hatch! dang she is mean to walk away!
@GraceyManor that pic of the water is amazing!
.
Although her pretty face doesn't show it, she's absolutely furious.
Her fiancé just called to tell her that while he was fishing that he saw Marigold Racket's houseboat tied up at the pier of the island that they were eyeing to purchase...now River is headed; full head of steam, down to city hall to purchase the property on the island as well as the dock.
Reason: Marigold Racket tried to move onto the island that they were eyeing...trying to slickly do a right of ownership by possession. "Not so fast, you mutt..." River may be good, but she's not above a good old-fashioned screw-job. Purchase of property and an eviction notice "This is our island, get the flark out" to Marigold Racket. Adios b-, checkmate.
Always "River McIrish" ...and maybe some Bebe Hart. ~innocent expression~
Greg Preston’s Diary 4th of March 2726 AD
Someone forgot to set the lid back on the snake terrarium, the venomous krait snake was not in it anymore. We sought for the snake for about an hour, no one wanted to wake up with a snake in the bed. As Pongo did not reach, I was quite sure the snake left the house, just had to wear boots outside for a while.
Terry was the first to notice there was no snake in the terrarium
Jenny Richards Diary 8th of March 2726 AD
Greg was not in the settlement when the caravan arrived today. It was me and Michiko welcoming the two new settlers. Marble Beach and her fiancé Brendon Gentry. They are surprisingly young and look like they got a lot more money than we are used to around here. I hope they intend to use it in a way that may benefit the community. They gave the students a huge basked of apples from their garden in “Ent”, a good start.
Greg Preston’s Diary 10th of March 2726 AD
The caravan brought the fittings and sealings needed for the faucet in the kitchen. Terry was finally able to fix it, after it had leaked all winter.
From Myra Frances letter to her mother, written 11th of March 2726 AD
Dear Mother.
Thanks for the new clothes and makeup you send. The warm boots I got last time have been very nice, it was so cold here last month. In return I will send you a small diamond that Greg found and gave to me, hope you can make a ring or necklace out of it. On the picture I send it is Terry, Charles and myself preparing the shipment with all what we are sending with the caravan including you diamond.
Greg Preston’s Notes for next Ent Council meeting, written 13th of March 2725 AD
We were all very pleased that the new family, brought a Caravan where they could stay, while the builders form “Ent” constructed their new home. There was a bit of worries amongst the elders, how we could be able to house another two adults maybe for several weeks.
Editorial:
Greg Preston household: Cash 7.614 – Net Worth 33.779
Jenny Richards household: Cash 8.393 – Net Worth 16.294
Michiko Vaughan household: Cash 1.184 – Net Worth 10.279
The Elders do not yet know the economy of the new household.
The meeting with new settlers was staged, also sending settlers to do consignments was arranged to fill the first shipment. Everything else automatic.
Marble Beach was born in July 2704 (21 years old), She is the daughter of a “Ent” miner who was part of the golden era of “Ent” mining in the 90’s, where many struck gold. Today he runs a jewellery and is part of the small exclusive “Ent” upper class. He was part of the Ent Council but retired when his wife began to have mental issues. Marble is educated in the restaurant business, while also having worked part time at a small bar. Something daddy did not like, but he is quite broadminded accepting her choices.
Brendon Gentry was born in March 2703 (23 years old). He was born and raised in the large militant group that ruled the area of the cost known as “Willapa” by killing, 🐸🐸🐸🐸 and stealing what they could get their hands on. His mother was a concubine of a low-level tripe leader. Brendon was not cut out for this type of life. He left all he knew when he heard about the peaceful mountain community, he came to “Ent” 6 years ago.
comments
@DivaDoodle
Perfect closeup with Anya, very beautiful sim.
hahaha What is that guy doing?
Checking the tower and bells
Like the farther & son scene, great shots.
What is he wearing while playing the piano? his PJ's?
I don’t understand the word PJ’s.
''What we know about mysterious Alfie right after they played with the time, hmm.'' wait what do you mean? This sounds interesting but I am not understanding!
There was a time-machine in the garden – they played with it, not long before Alfie showed up
113
Faelie is cute in her paramedic outfit!
Yes she is
You got two fire-trucks did not know you could have more than one
Alfie makes some high-quality paintings, surprised to read he is just Art Gallery Rookie
@Nikkei_Simmer: Like the Wolf/Dog
@Brandontaylor
Could force feeding Daisy with vegetables, be considered non-voluntary cannibalism.
A lot of times in real life, the cook is the last to eat. Not in the Sims though, usually the cook is the first to eat. So true they got no manners
Ohh my melts me every time I see a picture where Daisy is dropping flowers on the ground, that is just super cute.
Love the Quinton makeover, Perfect mix of who he is and signs of getting a little older. A good bike-ride to work, also a great cure for “getting older” symptoms.
Daisy Guess I am developing Daisyholicaism. HAVE to get a plant sim, but just can’t mix those kind of “characters” into my current storylines. Glad she met Hal he looks right for her. Love when she suck up the puddles.
Bob Newbie dead or alive dead 50.000 Simoleons
---
They won’t get a new student (as it is right now) as terry will occupy the last bed.
I hope you got long lifespans
Greg will turn 58 in August, with at least 12 episodes a year expect him to live for another 120-200 episodes
@emorrill
Thanks for comments
No honestly none of my sims have actually attempted flirting since Myra did one attempt on John some time ago. Some have “attractive company” and seen a few hearts though. The new sim Brandon and Jenny had hearts. Just to mention a resent one.
That smiling flower
@Turjan: Sad to hear you are feeling low, hope the coming springtime will cheer you up. (assuming you are at the northern hemisphere.
She wasn't interested.
That broke my heart – for WoHo’s sake that was awful.
Good for Ryan the friends believe him, there is hope.
@GraceyManor:
You made a mistake with the first screenshot
You know you're in trouble when the word "just" comes before friends.
Nice
Linda and the dynamos
It was not only the snake running freely around the settlement, quite often animals have escaped the settlers
@Emily4331
Hey friend, great job on that sim
but you are the queen of cc hehe.
@emorrill
It is nice to not control all the sims yes, I let them roam around
doing what they like to do.
@Turjan
That is a lovely photo.
I hope you will feel better soon.
@Brandontaylor
Nice updates.
@DivaDoodle
OMG, those firemen are all so handsome.
loved the recent updates.
@Brandontaylor - Yeah...he looks kinda ill to me too. Might not want to let him get too close...
...to brains... Gotta be careful in this "pandemic".
Just a quick question, @Tamijo, where did you find that "Caravan" CC? That would be perfect for my "homeless" sim save.
Always "River McIrish" ...and maybe some Bebe Hart. ~innocent expression~
@Tamijo great pic pf Terry seeing the snake is gone!
lol did the faucet really leak All winter?
Where does that trailer or Caravan come from? it is so cute!
Great update!
PJ's is pajamas/sleepwear David looked like he had only the barest clothing on his lower half, when he was playing the piano.
OH! the time machine! good point! hmm.
The 2nd fire engine just appeared when I clicked to send Victor to the emergency. Before they returned to the fire station, I built a place for the 2nd fire engine, so Victor could have something else to work on. Also you can buy them in BuyDebug with the Ambitions EP.
Alfie came to us already level 10 in painting. He just started the painter job that day.
@Silverofdreams30 Thank you! That fireman uniform makes everyone look so Fine!
Teddy is a background sim from Riverview, He was in the military, and I just saw him walking around one day. And my sim napped him and married and had twin with him! I don't remember his real name but he's a wonderful funny guy! I love cowards!
Vlad is the repoman from Supernatural.
and Adan was almost a pudding faced guy, that I just barely tweaked but put that nice Glam skin on, and messy sexy hair LOL
.
Chapter Three
Cohesive Efforts
In the words of VADM Megan Renee Austin
It appears that we, Tosh and I, work well as a team in terms of command of the bunker. He never hesitates to consult me as far as what the makeup of the bunker populace should be. I did notice that we had a shortfall in medical and maintenance and instead of taking offence, he is planning to do something about it. On top of that he thanked me for bringing it to his attention; that it would have been a very problematic oversight if it had not been brought to his attention. I can always tell that he's been that way ever since he took command of the United States Navy as Chief of Naval Operations. He puts his ego aside in order to achieve the objective.
I don't think Harm would have been able to do the same when it came down to it. He's the type that always has to be in control of every minutiae of every detail and he's the one that has to come up with it or he isn't happy. That's one of the reasons why I think that the President put Tosh in charge of the bunker and another reason why Tosh is a five-star and Harm is still only a captain. We have to do the necessary things to survive this potential doomsday and Tosh is willing to put his ego on the back-burner for us to be able to do whatever it takes to make sure that we are well-equipped in the bunker.
We'd had a meeting regarding what had been sent down the wire from the Pentagon in terms of what was happening in the locales where our fleets were, US Seventh Fleet was entangled with the Chinese and the Hermit Kingdom was sending out their little boats to harass our ships. Evidently North Korea and the Chinese had gotten closer in relations ever since the relationships between China and the United States had gone south.
Tosh told me that it seemed as though things were on an inexorable slide to the brink of destruction; that from what he could tell; there was no escape. It was the strategist in him that told him that things were not going to go well in the Pacific...and the Russians were just waiting to jump in with both feet. They had always been our adversaries and it was only a matter of time before we and they came to blows.
All of this was frightening...but we, as the de facto bunker command, could not show fear. It would trickle down to the masses and then we woul have a full-on revolt on our hands. It was hard to say how the human psyche would react to the news that their world was to be no more. It was such a horrific concept that not many people would be able to comprehend the true direness of the situation. One's mind just shut down and pretty much failed to parse the data putting one in serious jeopardy since there were things that one had to do in order to survive and if you were frozen in place, how would you have the gumption to be able to do what had to be done. Tosh was a doer - he didn't let the scary stuff make him freeze. He may have been terrified but not a whit showed on his face. And his drive was what kept the rest of the bunker going.
Being one of the few to have ever looked death in the face and given the Reaper the middle finger on a numbered hill in North Korea against overwhelming odds, there were very few things that would make him falter. And I wouldn't know a single one of them. There was a reason why he wore the star-shaped medal with Minerva repulsing Discord. On that no-name numbered hill back in 1994 he made a do or die stand armed with only an M-4 carbine and a sack of grenades daring the North Koreans to charge at him, inflicting more casualties on them than they were able to get wounds on him. Hill 175 would always be a name that rang through the annals of those who had received the Medal of Honor. It was because Tosh had said that whether he lived or died made no difference as long as his fellow men got home safe and sound and that he would do anything in his power to make sure that they had a fighting chance to get home safe to their families. When Harm and I had done the due-diligence investigation on his actions on Hill 175, I had truly found out just exactly what the words above and beyond the call of duty, at the very risk of his own life...meant. It truly reflected actions that gave credit to the United States Naval Service. And somehow...through miraculous circumstance, he'd managed to survive and make it home himself. Not many recipients made it home. Some gave the ultimate sacrifice.
And for me, that was another reason why I was honored to serve with him and work with him hand-in-hand to make sure that we all survived what would be the most horrifying event that we would ever experience.
On the whole, I didn't talk much with the rest of the bunker group but I knew that they were doing their things in order to make their own lives make sense in this impending cataclysm. Ms. Hart was working on the science station as was Kimber.
Poor Harm was trying extremely hard to understand robotics. Considering that he, like Tosh, was a doer rather than a thinker, I'm sure his brain was doing mental calisthenics trying to figure out what a nanite was and trying to create trait-chips was probably one of the more brain-trying things he'd ever tried to do. Even flying an F-14 Tomcat tended to be a direct input task, you shoved your control stick one way and the F-14 reponded to the touch-input. Whereas the Robotics station tended to have its own mind. And every-so-often I could hear Harm cursing as he set off an alarm when a suggested input failed. Well, at least he didn't have the trait-chip or nanite explode on him.
Admiral Gracen and Mrs. River McIrish-Chikamori gravitated towards the arcane and started learning alchemy. This was something completely outside my realm of knowledge. I dealt with ciphers, ledgers, figures and concrete details that pertained to things that were within the realm of every-day matters and the supernatural and arcane tended to raise hairs on the back of my neck. But if they could truly master that, then all the more power to them. Depending on what happened due to the radiation and whatever else twisted the natural, perhaps magic would be what saves the day. Until then bullets would be what solved the existential problems of things being mutated by rads.
Jen and Mac gravitated towards the potion tables trying to find a way for us to be able to increase our skills and give us some leverage. A bit of science; a bit of magic went into the potion tables and again, it confused me since I was more attuned to logic rather than something metaphysical. As much as I was leery about Mac, I was glad that she found something interesting to bide her time rather than the two of us being at odds with each other. I hoped she understood that I no longer held any interest for Harm as he was far too junior an officer for me to ever even consider having a relationship with. Mac was one hundred percent welcome to Harm and that was perfectly fine with me.
I was more interested in a certain former jet-jock.
After all, we work well together.
River's husband on the other hand, was upstairs in the agricultural area fishing. He was busy trying to catch things other than crocodiles, which didn't bode too well when one stuffed them into one's pocket - considering that one could potentially get one's legs gnawed off no matter which gender you were, but especially if you were male, you could end up losing other things as well that one didn't want to lose.
So overall, we were in good shape for whatever the apocalypse could throw at us.
Some more than others.
Conflicts in the Pacific
Things were degenerating in the Pacific as Tosh realized from the reports that he was getting from the Pentagon. Chinese and Russian fleets were patrolling sections of both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans and that had both the Sixth and Seventh Fleets of the US Navy on high alert. Skirmishes were taking place when elements of task forces met. As of current there were no escalations to tactical nuclear weapons but it only took one hot-headed commander to free up "specials" and everything would go to hell in a handbasket.
Of course everything seemed to be business as usual in the bunker with no-one other than the command staff wiser to the outside events that seemed to be precipitating them towards inevitable destruction. Harm was increasing his knowledge base as far as robotics was concerned. After consultation with command staff, Harm knew that his knowledge of robotics would stand them in good stead as far as making a team for post-nuclear reconnaissance of the area and any recordings from the plumbot recon team would allow the bunker occupants to see what threats the environment posed to their health.
The rest of the staff worked at their individual tasks. The science stations, alchemy and potion tables were always manned and Haruo went up and fished so that they all had fresh meat. And as those who worked on their sciences skilled up they could try their hand at cloning the roasts and links so that they would always be able to have fresh meat. If one didn't have meat, they'd be running the risk of health problems down the road with lack of protein.
The Bunker was well-stocked with activities that improved one's skills. The Robotics station was always manned by Harm and the science stations were always being used by those who wanted to increase their science skill to help with cloning experiments. A lot of DNA samples would be useful to be frozen then stored so that they wouldn't be affected by radiation seepage and by manipulation could increase that variance of genetic sequencing to effectively create new genetic lines of individuals.
Phil, on the other hand, was spending his time banging away with hammers on metal scrap trying to see if he could fashion something that was potentially useful. Occasionally though he'd get a bit to adventurous with his creations and they would explode on him leaving him singed and rather worse for wear; but nothing that a shower wouldn't take care of.
And of course, Tosh headed out with the Stryker APC to go get some more meat to stock the freezers with in preparation for the apocalypse.
Kimber joined Phil at the inventing table and Harm continued his research on nanites and trait chips. These would certainly help with the limitations that would be imposed by the fall-out. If their plumbots could go out in the radiation and see what the environment was like bringing back recordings, they would be able to determine the half-life of the radioactive elements that were within the environment. Decontamination of the plumbots would be crucial so that they wouldn't be bringing in trace elements of lethal radiation into the bunker itself.
Everyone had their set tasks to accomplish, but no-one was riding anyone else's back telling them that they had to do that. Everyone had their own sense of urgency for they knew that time was fleeting and that time was of the essence for none of them knew exactly when this whole thing was going to kick-off. And the only people that they could look towards in terms of were Meg and Animal. It was their leadership that was going to guide them through the worst of what was to come.
And all Tosh could do was to continue to stock the freezer with as much meat as he could possibly get down at the grocery store and shuttle back up to the bunker.
With the somber news that the war wasn't going the way that they wanted, dinner the night of the full-moon was subdued.
Tosh and Meg went into Tosh's room and had a good long conversation about what was going on and the reports that he was getting from the Pentagon. He had a good idea of when they would have to lock down and it wasn't going to be far off down the road.
"Task Force 62 got into a tussle with Chinese subs. Meg, we have two destroyers at the bottom of the ocean and the Chinese lost six of their subs. It's not looking good at all, Meg. We don't know who's going to escalate first to tactical specials but all I know is that we're not looking at a good outcome."
Meg nodded in response. She knew that time was running short and the Pentagon was not responding to the requests that they had put in for medical staff. They may be going on their own for the time being. Which meant that they would have to work from within to create medical staffers as necessary to keep the health of the bunker personnel in mind.
It wasn't good news that she had for Tosh, but between the two of them they would improvise and make the best of what they had.
...and it was a sobering look that Tosh gave Meg...as they pondered on the ramifications and a chill ran down Meg's spine as Tosh uttered:
..."May God help us all..."
The Final Battleground
Part One
Meg understood that if the balloon went up, it would mean that they would be short necessary personnel. So her idea of creating medical staff from those already in the bunker carried a lot of weight. For Tosh, that meant that several ideas came to mind. Jen had always had an interest in the medical field with a primary being in psychology. And Bebe Hart despite her artistic bent was also keenly interested in science. So with the two of them, mind and body appeared to be taken care of.
With security in mind, Tosh knew that they needed to have plumbots form a key part of their defence strategy. Not only could they patrol the perimeter during the worst of the radiation; but they were essentially un-killable if not indestructible. Any potential opposition invasion force would be up against a group of plumbots that could potentially decimate large portions of their numbers while sustaining few casualties of their own.
Meg and Tosh usually ended up having their meetings after everyone was asleep since that was about the only quiet time that they could get during the course of the day. The day was filled with other activities of skilling up in the skills necessary in order to survive what was to follow. No-one knew just exactly what would happen. And they all fought down the worrisome thoughts that persisted. They could only do what they could and let the rest take care of itself.
Meg had plenty of ideas in her head that she gave voice to and Tosh listened to them, letting her speak...and offering little input, letting her freestyle think about the ideas and realizing that she thought the best on her feet and letting the ideas move through her mind.
Harm had achieved success with a plumbot and that success story was charging in the charging station downstairs. Artie was the prototype plumbot and had pretty much had every single trait chip that Harm had managed to invent installed in him. Competent Cleaner, AI Angler, Steel Chef, RoBotany...and well, Artie, evidently short for Artificial Intelligence, had an inherent fascination for the conjuring pot. So he spent a lot of his time hanging out making new gemstones for the group to get rich on and eventually had conjured a tiberium.
One of the key ideas that Meg came up with was the fact that they all needed to get younger. Since Jen had managed with the potion table to create a potion that manipulated genes to regain their youth, she suggested that they all drink Young-Again potions to go back to the very start of their Young Adulthood, that way they would have the stamina to effect the change on the environment as they needed post-apocalypse. Tosh thought that was a very good idea and told her so.
"So...who do you think should try it?" Meg asked him.
Tosh shrugged his shoulders. He was of mixed emotions about this. Being young again had its appeal, no doubt. But he'd been single for a very long time at this point. And wondering if he'd still be single for a long time yet again, had him wondering if becoming young again was worth it. Meg noted his skepticism...
"You seem a bit worried about the whole idea of becoming younger...Tosh, what is it?" Tosh looked at her and she faced him square on...
"I've always thought that there was no redo button in life, Meg..." Tosh told her, "It's always been a one-off, you don't get any second chances. Now with Jen finding this potion, we have multiple chances to get things right or get a redo over if we mess things up royally." He paused to look at her again, "I wonder just what that's going to do to our idea of caring about how we behave in the end."
Meg looked at him with a knowing expression, "I see your point...but there is one thing that I've always wondered...I've always put my career ahead of everything. And I resigned myself to never having a family because my Navy career was of primary importance. Serving our country and the fact that I was getting older. As our body ages, we start having higher risk of birth defects and thus I had figured that I had tossed my ability to have a family out the window. Now I have that chance again. And I don't want to toss the idea of having a family out the window if I have that chance again." She raised an eyebrow with a meaningful look aimed in Tosh's direction.
"...so...what do you say we take the Young Again potion together and see what it does?" Meg asked.
Tosh shrugged his shoulders and quipped, "Well...it couldn't hurt...I've always wanted to see if I could go back to running sixteen miles a day..." Meg snickered; she knew that Tosh hated running at the best of times.
So, pulling out their Young-Again potions that were given to them by CMCYN Jennifer Coates, "Down the hatch..." Tosh said as he upended the potion and guzzled it, as did Meg. "I don't feel any different..." he stated just before the transformation hit him. It was a tingling sensation that started through every blood vessel in his body and down his entire body from the top of his head to the very extremities.
As the transformation effects subsided, Meg leaned in close, her perfume tantalizing Tosh, making him very amenable to Meg's closeness. "I don't see any more crow's feet..." Meg murmured softly as she leaned in to inspect his face.
"You look as beautiful as ever..." Tosh replied...looking at her with an expression of awe.
Meg gave him a grin, "Awww, you always say that to all the girls you meet." she teased him.
"Only one girl in mind this time around..." was his response.
...and they leaned into each other's embrace as their lips met in a passionate kiss. "I..." Tosh stammered.
"You know how long I've been waiting for this..." Meg whispered softly.
...then it was clothes tossed aside and ardent passion for the next two hours as the both of them took things to the next level and beyond.
And morning found them sitting in the love-seat in the common area of their bunker sitting enjoying each other's closeness in the wake of their amorous machinations.
"That young again potion...um...really worked..." Tosh said off-handed, his mind on the memories that he and Meg had just created.
"It certainly did..." Meg returned playfully. "I never knew you had it in you..." she teased him gently.
"Maybe...another round later?" she continued.
Tosh's silent nod of agreement caused the corners of Meg's lips to curl in a smile as she leaned in again for their lips to meet in a kiss.
"Meg...you know I'm going to want more than just play-time." Tosh said meaningfully, "I'm at a stage where I don't want play...I want a meaningful relationship..." Tosh just barely restrained himself from saying age...they had just taken Young Again potions so age wasn't even a factor here.
Meg felt a welling of emotion in her as she realized just what Tosh was saying to her. "...you mean...?" her statement had a questioning tone to it.
Tosh nodded.
"Because...that's what I want too..." Meg said softly and that was that. They both realized that they were willing to take the next step in a future that would mean a life together; whatever that life would hold.
The Final Battlefield
Part Two
For Harm, taking the "Young Again" potion was an invigorating prospect. For nine years, Mac and he had run around each other trying to feel each other out and see if pursuing a relationship was worth the effort for the nine years they had wasted. Then they had wasted yet another nine years of their life trying to make their time-schedules fit in order to get married, which ultimately was a doomed affair.
...so ultimately, Harm had come to the conclusion that there were many prospective members of the female human species that he could potentially be partners with in the romantic sense of the word. And frankly that made more sense than pursuing one Sarah Mackenzie who appeared that she wasn't sure of what she wanted in life. After all, if there was a Young Again potion, why not experience everything of what life had to offer?
After all, wasn't that what life was all about: the joy of the experiences? If you wanted to do something that took a younger man's physical energy to accomplish, just drink a Young Again potion and have the stamina to do whatever was required, whether it was moving fridges by oneself or building a house with a couple of friends. No more did time put a time-limit of one's abilities. He could do anything he wanted in life; have several go-arounds if he wanted. Nothing was out of his limit.
Harm revelled in the new found feeling of his youth yet again. He felt physically the same as if he was back to being a plebe in his freshman year at the Naval Academy. He felt that physically good. The aches and pains of ejections, of his ramp-strike were gone...and he felt better than he had felt for a long time. No more physical wear and tear on his body that he'd earned in fifty plus years of living. In short he felt his youth again and that felt good.
Then he saw his old RAG instructor who had taken his Young Again potion. Bulging muscles and back to being a young buck but with all the mental experience of his 62 years of life and 40 years of Naval Service coming to bear in a young 20 year old frame. Animal still carried himself like an fleet admiral. It would take a lot to take that out of him. "Good morning, sir." Harm stated as he looked over at Tosh.
"Morning, Captain, I see you took your young-again potion that Coates created." Tosh grinned at him.
Harm grinned, "Yes, sir, I did."
"Makes you feel young again, doesn't it?" Tosh grinned shrugging his shoulders, the bulging pectoral muscles could be seen under his Hornets Suck; Fly Tomcats t-shirt which served to 🐸🐸🐸🐸 off Hornet drivers off all the time (which was the main reason why he wore it.
"Feel like I could take up a F-14 and go one vs unknowns with an adversary squadron for a coupla hours." Animal grinned as he shot down one hand with the other in an imitation of what fighter pilots did when they recounted a great dogfight they had where they'd gotten the better of some other hapless schmuck.
"No doubt, sir." Harm replied. He felt the same way.
It was at about that point that Harm noticed Meg had come out of the women's washroom just barely dressed in a tie-dyed nightie. His eyes widened as he ogled her. Meg just raised one eyebrow as if to tell him to keep it "in his pants". "Hi Meg..." Harm grinned at her.
"Hiya Harm." her tone seemed preoccupied and she barely gave him a cursory inspection. After all, she was a higher-ranking officer and one of the command.
...and the perfunctory look that she gave Harm versus the tender, knowing look that she gave Animal told Harm that he wasn't even on Meg's radar. Her eyes were all on Animal.
...and Harm realized just how enamored Meg was of Animal when she raised a hand to stroke Animal's cheek...whispering softly, "Good morning..." to him. And that spoke volumes that Animal and Meg had during the night gotten to know each other far more than he knew. Which was even more apparent when Meg lip-locked Animal, right in front of Harm, himself.
Yes, folks, Meg was out of Harm's league and as a vice-admiral had more in common with Animal than she had with Harm and Harm knew it all too well. It didn't mean that it didn't sting though, considering that at one point, Meg had been a Lieutenant JG and his legal investigation partner when Harm, himself, was a Lieutenant Commander. But he'd fumbled and he'd fumbled badly and now Meg Austin, Vice Admiral, United States Navy outranked him and she had bigger fish to fry or...well...do things with that were best left out of polite company.
But losing the ability to have a relationship with Meg wasn't so bad when one considered the other options in the bunker.
Captain Kimber Benton, naval aviator, USN was a viable alternative to Colonel Sarah Mackenzie, if all things considered, she would give him the time of day. She'd been Animal's wingman throughout the years flying combat missions over Bosnia and the Baltics. And she was hard-nosed with a Navy Cross to boot, a much higher decoration than his Silver Star.
But the tantalizing picture of one VADM Megan Renee Austin never seemed to go away and teased him...endlessly...torturously...knowing that his former investigative partner was sleeping with his former Reserve Air Group F-14 instructor.
The rest of it, he didn't want to torture himself with...though his mind kept trying to do things that made him want to douse his entire brain with bleach.
But all the tomfoolery came to a halt late that afternoon when Tosh received a phone call, direct from the Pentagon. Four words from the Secretary of Defense that would scare the living daylights out of anyone who knew what they meant: "Lock down; Pinnacle Imminent..." Tosh's reply was four words back. "Aye, sir. Message Received."
It was at that point that Tosh knew that he needed to get everybody to the lowest part of the bunker and lock down so that they would be safe. Atlas, Franz and Scooter were also home resting and it was just a quick job of getting them down the steps to safety.
250 miles south of Ya'an
Somewhere in China
0235ZULU
The DF-12B missiles were launched in a major attack against airfields in Japan in a diversionary attack to make sure that the US's attention was diverted. If all of the forces were diverted, they wouldn't be able to absorb any new information as the constant battle traffic would be jamming the satellite com-links. Then as the battle waged on; in the evening then China would launch its missiles at the US Mainland with others aimed towards neighboring countries.
When the American fleets were thus engaged, the Russians and the Chinese would launch their missiles in concert; thus overwhelming the ABM missile defenses that the United States had. The entire US mainland would be covered in nuclear explosions making the entire area uninhabitable for the near future.
The Russian and Chinese generals had ascertained that a nuclear strike just as the populace was going to work would be the best way to get as many casualties as possible. This was known as the doctrine of attrition. A devastating strike on a city center that killed as many people as possible; a side-effect being the demoralization of the populace and thus an invasion could be instigated to bring the populace under heel.
Catching the US air defences unawares was key to this. This was the primary reason behind the Russians and Chinese developing hypersonic inter-continental ballistic missiles such as the RS-28 Sarmat (SATAN-2). They had targeted their RS-28 loaded with multiple 800kt warheads with two of the 10 warheads targeted on Sunset Valley. One to destroy the airbase, the other to knock out the city-hall.
No-one outside the bunker knew and even the ones inside the bunker didn't even know of the hideous doom that would descend from the heavens that morning. It all started off with everyone getting up in the morning and preparing for work. After all, it was a work-week and people had to earn money to live.
Everyone in the bunker remained inside the bunker at the lowest level because they didn't know what to expect...and they were correct to do so. Tosh had on the stereo tuned to a news channel to make sure that he knew what was going on when they heard the Emergency Action Message coming over the airwaves. Most everyone on the outside was unsure of what was going on and went about their business as if nothing was going on. Beau decided that he was going to have a barbecue and Nancy Landgraab decided that she would sit down outside the grocery store. And of course Gobias Koffi had to sit down outside the bookstore. The Clavells went to the library...it would be the last things that they would ever do.
The first warhead detonated at 0943hrs at its target over CFB Gnome thirty-six minutes after launch.
If anyone had any sight left after the detonation of the second warhead directly over the cupola of the city hall...their retinas seared to a crisp; before being flashburned by the fireball and having their eyeballs melted into goo running out of their empty eye-sockets, they would have seen the fireball and mushroom cloud rising from the first detonation of the nuclear weapon over CFB Gnome.
Paint bubbled and blistered, skin melted off the bones as meat seared and charred and then vaporized. If any structure was strong enough to remain standing after the blast wave, the only thing that would be left would be a human sized shadow burned permanently into the wall.
As the mushroom clouds rose into the air, there was no-one left alive to see the fiery plumes that topped out thousands of feet into the air...raising their mantle of death and destruction over what used to be a fair and thriving city.
...and the firestorms that raged went unabated as there was no one to put them out. The skies blackened with soot from the out of control fires.
The only thing that the occupants of the bunker could do was hope and pray that they would survive to see the remainder of what was left of their world.
Always "River McIrish" ...and maybe some Bebe Hart. ~innocent expression~
Anywho feeling under weather today.Side effects of the nasty virus kicking in ::(
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