Warning: I can't be specific because it would be a huge spoiler, but know that the second half of this chapter is quite tough. Let's say it's not the kind of chapter I would read when I'm already sad for other reasons, so to speak.
From Sirio's diary
Time passes quickly, and the atmosphere at home is as peaceful as it rarely happened in the past.
Techna: Hey, are you still painting?
Sirio: Yes. I haven't been able to draw much inspiration from the art gallery the other day, but if I continue painting everything that comes to my mind, sooner than later I should get some new ideas, right?
Sometimes I also try to find inspiration by playing my violin, even if in this small isolated town in the middle of the desert it can be so difficult to find new stimulating ideas…
Techna: You managed to reach that note this time, the frequency clearly was the right one!
Sirio: (ironic) Are you surprised?
Since no one seems to be willing to buy my paintings, I've also started doing some digital graphics work. I still think real brushes are something else entirely, the colours go so flat on a screen, but work is work.
Techna: It matches the parameter of a cute creature. But what species does it correspond to?
Sirio: C'mon, isn't it clear? It's a talking tiger cub for a video game, you see?
Techna: Uhm, talking tiger cubs are still missing from my database…
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Toq is taking his role of "sage elder" very seriously, and the more time passes the more often he comes to me for expressing his advice. He knows everything I think for most of the day, and so he inevitably is the person who knows best my doubts, and he doesn't seem willing to ignore them either.
Toq: I have the strong impression you are starting to feel limited by New Sixam, is it not?
Sirio: Uhm, maybe yes. I'm not that sure, actually.
Toq: Moving into a new environment is often challenging, every other day may appear to be putting you under examination. But, in any case, it is an experience that allows you to learn a lot about yourself, as well as open your mind to new customs and traditions. I really think such an experience could help you find your way, in short.
Sirio: (thoughtful) Uhm… Okay, I'll think about it.
Yes, the idea of leaving had already crossed my mind several times… But where could I go? Any country outside of New Sixam seemed so different and backward, not to mention all the rules making it so difficult for us to stay in there…
Their art was so much richer than ours, but does this really make all the other difficulties I should face worthy?
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On the other hand, if there's anyone in the house who seems to have clear ideas, that is Halley. She finished high school recently, and has already packed her bags to go to reach the college with Sophia. The more time passes, the more I envy them for the clarity with which they see their future.
Venus: Good luck, Halley!
Steve: And don't study too much, try to have some fun every now and then!
Halley: C'mon, I'm not that nerd!
Halley: I'll visit you very soon, I promise!
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But the inexorable passing of time clearly has also other consequences. By now you have surely noticed it too, dear diary, noticed that mom, Toq, aunt Venus and uncle Steve are all quite old I mean. I clearly perceive their energy decreasing day by day.
We all know what this means, of course they know it too, and we are doing everything possible to spend as much time as possible out of their last years together and happy.
Cassy: That's unbelievable, we really didn't tell you yet about when uncle Steve was abducted?
Sirio: Um, just a few pieces here and there… For example, I've never understood why did your crew start to abduct random people with an old spaceship, you know Toq?
Toq: The answer is much more reasonable than people usually expect. Basically…
They're all getting a little nostalgic, so now I hear their stories of the old days every day now, the ones they wouldn't tell me the details of when I still was a kid. They really had a busy life, much more than I thought!
Recently I also see Toq spending whole afternoons with uncle Steve at the woodworking table. Apparently, they both enjoy disassembling and reassembling everything that comes to hand, and still have a lot of suggestions to share with each other. Tehcna seems to be the one who is benefiting the most from their collaboration, I would also say.
Steve: This battery Toq found at the old shop where he used to work seems the best possible, pure lithium! So, do you feel the difference?
Techna: Analysis in progress…
Steve: …
Techna: Battery capacity increased by 450%, maximum power output increased by 523%! Wow, this is so powerful!
Steve: Great!
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From Cassy's diary
I have to admit that now that we're all retired, we have so much more free time on our hands.
Cassy: Are you sure?
Steve: Yes, this time I paid attention to everything!
Cassy: Well...
Cassy: What about the bishop over here then?
Steve: Always the same story...
We also have the time for going out for lunch together, it's actually a quite nice novelty.
Venus: We should take a trip, what do you think? We could walk up the mountain for a few hours, and then…
Steve: Well, you're still very energetic, but for me it's not that easy to walk long distances anymore. Let alone uphill paths...
Toq: Same.
Venus: Cassy, at least you would come, right?
Cassy: Uhm, actually it doesn't seem easy for me either, you know? But we could go to the park downtown instead, it's not that bad after all...
Venus: Um…
Venus still seems to have a lot of energy, but the same can't be said about the rest of us. When I was younger I promised myself I would never start to behave like a boring old lady, but now the idea of sitting quietly all day reading in peace and playing chess seems so appealing…
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Toq is the eldest among us. Up until now, no one ever cared much about this information, but as time passes this becomes more and more a source for worries. He has also started talking to an imaginary cat who, according to him, would live here with us. This can't be a good sign…
Toq: Oh, so it is you who is thinking about catching squirrels!
Nacho: Meow!
Toq: Cassiopeia… There is no reason to sadden already now, do not you agree?
Cassy: I know, but on the other hand it's so hard not to think about it… Aren't you afraid of what awaits us?
I don't think people often talk about this kind of subject so openly. But Toq sees most of the thoughts passing through my head, and I always end up saying everything else out loud anyway, so it always ends up like this.
Toq: I think I would miss you, just like you would miss me.
Cassy: It makes me so sad just thinking about it…
Toq: And, just like you are thinking, I find the unknown awaiting us a bit frightening. But it cannot be avoided either, can it?
Yes, it's scary, a lot. But, at least, I don't think any of us, looking back on our past, have any real regrets about our lives.
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The end can be so inexorable, sometimes.
A few months later, in the middle of spring, Toq suddenly left us.
And then it was Steve, just a few months later, right at the beginning of summer.
And even Sirio, Techna or Halley, don't seem to fare much better than we do.
After so much sadness, you could think that our family had to pass enough struggles for a good while already, isn't it? Well, I'm afraid that this wasn't quite the case, because…
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From Venus' diary
I don't think I've ever felt so empty in my life, in the space of a few months so many important people passed away together, how could I get over it?
Caught up in nostalgia, I grabbed one of dad's old books. He had given one to me and one to Cassy, he said never to lose them because he had put all of himself into writing them.
Cassy: Hey, is that one of dad's books? I haven't thought about them in ages, they were beautifully written!
Venus: …
Cassy: Even if, thinking about it, I'm pretty sure I've never read the one about me... It's this one, isn't it?
Cassy: Ah, look at this line, I could definitively have said that for real!
Cassy: What an ending! For sure dad had a lot of creativ...
Cassy: (surprised) Wait, what... !?
Cassy: Wow, what a strange dream… But… (worried) Venus, did something happen?
Venus: What else, I'm also getting dementia now? It really sounds like you, you know Cassy?
Cassy: Who else am I supposed to look like? But are you sure you're okay?
We've spent days and days at the doctor's and at the hospitals trying to figure out what could have happened, but no one seems to have the faintest idea. I know it doesn't make any sense, but I'm sure it was dad's book, I saw it! This must have been his last gift, that beautiful Book of Life.
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§HermioneSims's corner
As a general suggestion, I would say everyone to avoid playing a legacy where a lot of sims are of about the same age, because then they will reach the end of the elder life stage all together like in this case :/
And I also want to add some explanation to the last scene in this chapter, this really required a long planning to be put in place...
I actually don't know whether every TS4 player knows about the book of life of not, I found out about it quite late for example. In either case, it does exactly what you see at the end of this chapter, it can resuscitate the sim to which the book itself is bonded.
I decided to make Luke write two said books at the end of the last generation and to bond each to one of his daughters, because they were about to start some quite dangerous activities (travelling space with missiles, robotics etc...) and I wanted a plan B in case either of them died in an accident. I wasn't 100% sure it would have worked also in the case of "death for old age", but apparently it does.
In the last photos I had to change some rooms because apparently that book is a bit buggy, and it only works if the sims are in a completely isolated room from which they can't reach a library. Weird stuff, but at least it seems to have worked!
If you're wondering why Venus is still doing so well instead, it's because she has the "active" trait (which ensures her quite a lot of extra days in this last life stage). Since the resurrection with the Book of Life also resets the advancement of the sim age, essentially now Cassy and Venus still have a rather similar number of days of life remaining, actually.
A minute's silence instead for Toq and Steve, who are really gone for good ;(
This chapter is hard and this is really the worst part about playing a proper legacy. :( RIP Toq and Steve. I am so happy Luke wrote those Books of Life! It's a bit much to lose so many Sims so close together. I wonder what Sirio will decide to do in the future. I thought he may move, but now he still has his mother.
ReplyDeleteI'm also always happy to see Nacho. It's funny they think Nacho's imaginary. Nacho's been around so long no one alive remembers.