Strangetown: chapter 26.5 (Truth)

[strangetomato]

Warnings: None.



Chapter 26.5

Truth



Detective Jack Luxel lifted a book from the shelf.




After his meeting with their client that morning, he had poured through the files again, leading him to what appeared to be another dead end. It was frustrating, but he was not content to give up.

There was one detail that had caught his attention: a reference to alien abduction in the genealogy of one of the suspects. It was something that he was already quite familiar with, but one could never be too well read on the subject.




The records on alien abductions told an interesting story. The increased frequency of these occurances pointed to a growing urgency on the part of the aliens.

It was as if they were racing against time.

The records mentioned his own grandfather's abduction, in Riverblossom Hills. He had moved to Sim City shortly after it had happened, and Jack had been born there too. Jack's own family tree revealed just how linked he was to this story. He was a part of that whole thing, as much as it weighed on him at times. He was marked by it.

There had been very few abductions in Pleasantview in recent memory, but there had been a number of them, and that was significant. There had been some sightings, here and there, but not nearly as many as in that little town on the Road to Nowhere. West of there, through the desert.

Strangetown... was that where his answer lay hidden?




As he worked, he was joined by his partner, Zelda. Knowing that Jack did not like to be disturbed while he was in the middle of something, she quietly selected a volume of her own, and joined him in his research.

Hours passed.




"C'mon, Jack. That's enough for now, don't you think?" Zelda rose to her feet.

"But I'm so close to a breakthrough. I can feel it."

"Suit yourself, then. I'm going to make us a lunch."

"Okay."

When he didn't move, she sighed, but smiled. That was how he was. When Jack put his mind to something, there was no way to pull him from it until he achieved his goal.




He would not rest until he discovered the truth about Bella Goth.








A/N: Thank you to pixelcurious and jessicus for the wonderful sims.

 

Comments

[simgarooop.livejournal.com]

Oh, the plot thickens! I knew it was just a matter of time before the whole Bella Goth connection made an impact in this story! Since you began the Pleasantview crossover, I was eager to see how you'd handle it.

Those are neat sims! I wonder what will Jack discover?!

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

You knew it was coming sooner or later, right? ;) It's too good to pass up, and it very much a part of the story of the town.

I really like those sims. I've had my eye on them for a while now, and I think they make an interesting team (though they are a little similar in colouring - oh well, it happens). It was my desire to finally add them to the game that lead to me posting this little bridge chapter.

Jack has a connection, but he's not seeing how it's relevant yet.

[redqueenofevil.livejournal.com]

*rubs hands together* I KNEW it was going to feature Bella, as soon as I saw the name Pleasantview.

Delightful! I can't wait for more.

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Well, Bella has been poking into some scenes here and there with Pascal, so it was only a matter of time (and timing, for this story) before her story is more fully revealed. I've had something planned since the beginning, and it has developed a little more as I went along. I hope it all works out and makes sense...

Thank you. This will enter the story again fairly soon, I think.

[cindyanne1.livejournal.com]

Oooo... Bella and aliens! I always knew there had to be some kind of connection with that!

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Well, the Maxis back story did leave certain clues... ;) They seem to suggest that it had something to do with alien abduction, but why did she end up in Strangetown instead of being returned to Pleasantview? That's the question that needs to be answered here.

[swhedonberry.livejournal.com]

That's a wicked sweet teaser. I can't wait to see how Bella Goth plays into the story.

Also, I don't know if I mentioned it before, but I really enjoy the new banner!!

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I was dying to reveal a little more of the Bella storyline. I have my take on it pretty well worked out now, I think, and I can still improvise some of the details as I go. It's such an interesting little mystery built into the game.

Thank you. I'm happy to hear that. :)

[treesahquiche.livejournal.com]

This is probably going to be the shallowest comment you've ever gotten, and I'm very sorry:

Zelda is adorable. Adorableadorableadorable.

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Zelda is just ridiculously cute. She has such a unique look too.

You can find her in her natural habitat here:

Afterland

It's a great read.

[aledstrange.livejournal.com]

wow!! awesome!!!
I'm dying to see how you'll connect Bella in the story now!

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I just might slip a little more Bella into the next chapter... just maybe, though. Erin already bullied her way in there, but there might be room for some more of Bella in the first half. I have some ideas.

[dothesmustle.livejournal.com]

Oooooooh! We're learning more about Bella. She hasn't had a big of a plot yet, other than her sessions with Pascal. I'm going to love to see what your interpretation on the whole Bella craze is!

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Yeah, as you can probably tell, I've had plans for the Bella mystery storyline from the beginning, and I've dropped a couple of (way too subtle) hints along the way. Pascal is on one side of it, and the detectives that Mortimer hired are on the other side. I am taking some liberties with timelines there, so Mortimer hasn't died yet at this point in the story, but that's coming soon.

Likewise, PT No. 9 has an extended lifespan in my story, and that's because he's an alien (I'm just deciding that Mortimer was slightly younger than he was at the game's beginning. I want him to die at the appropriate moment.)

[jessicus.livejournal.com]

What an unexpected twist. Must go back and re-read chapters with Bella, heh! Zelda looks awesome with the maxis skintone.

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

I should probably re-read those too, just to make sure I'm not contradicting myself somewhere in my plans. Trying to make all of the disparate parts into a halfways coherent story can be a challenge. It's a fun challenge, though. I wonder if it will all fall into place eventually? (If not, I'm sure it will still be fun to work with what I have.)

Zelda looks great anyway, so it was fun to make her over in the style of this story. I'm glad you liked the results. I wasn't sure how you'd feel about her in the Maxis skin, but I think it works. I gave her some pale Lyran eyes that matched the colour of the eyes you use on her pretty well.

I'm thinking of keeping her last name from Afterland, if that's okay with you. (If not, I can change it.)

[80sfiend.livejournal.com]

Ooooh. Very interesting. I like Jack..he's a hottie! ;P And he's part alien?? :D Nice.

Also wanted to mention I like the new banner. :)

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Jack is technically 1/4 alien in my version of him, so he's mostly sim. Sims with normal skin and alien eyes usually are. He's very cute, isn't he?

Thank you. :) It's nice to have a change there.

[muslemura.livejournal.com]

Tasty teaser :)

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Mmmm. I love cooking up a fresh batch of teasers. :P I was just dying to post something story-related.

[showercapfrog.livejournal.com]

Ack! So teased now!

Also, I am so frustrated that you seem to have seen into my head, taken my story idea and made it good with your writing :P I hate all you people with your psychic knowledge of my half-formed ideas!

At first I thought Jack was Frances...but I guess it's because they're both hot men with similar hairstyles.

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Were you planning to write something about Bella too? You should still go for it! There is (way) more than one way to tell a story. I'm sure you'll put your own twist on it, even if we're working with a similar concept. I know what you mean about someone seeming to steal a brain cell from you, though... it's eerie at times.

I'm following what I've gathered as the likely answer to the "what happened to Bella" question, given the clues and facts left in Pleasantview, but I've added some extra details to make the connection to Strangetown a little more concrete. You'll see. Bella got herself caught up in the middle of some very bad news. She's lucky she can't remember anything.

It's probably Jack's pale skin and black hair. It's the same colouring that the Worthingtons have. They're both hot, I agree.

[soniabigcheese.livejournal.com]

First of all, congrats on getting hitched.
Oohhh, I've been following this story all along and simply love it. I've lurked for ages now, but just couldn't resist posting a comment.
Hmm, the mystery that is Bella. Wonder what intrigues you'll come up with, with this new twist on the abduction rumours.

Keep up the good work, I'm seriously hooked.

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Thank you. :) We tied that knot and tied it good.

Nice to meet you. *waves* It's great to hear from a lurker. I'm happy to hear that you've been following and enjoying it. Thanks for reading!

I've always loved the Bella mystery. So many fans of Sims 1 were pissed about it (and it was a pretty nasty blow to original fans, in some ways), but they created such great potential for a story there. Like many of the sim mysteries (such as Olive, the Grim Reaper, and Nervous), there are many ways to interpret it.

[madame-ugly.livejournal.com]

Sweet X-Files feel to this. I have a soft spot for X-Files (ok, mostly David Duchovny, but I digress).

And you're getting to the conspiracy (for lack of a better word) side of the story, too. Does this bode well for more tales from the peripheral characters? *gives puppy eyes*

(and how much do you love pixel's sims? she's my go to girl for aliens)

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was thinking The X-Files there too, after I had written it. I almost titled it "Truth (yes, it really is out there somewhere)." I'm a Duchovny fan too... I think I've mentioned it before. *swoons* He falls squarely into my type.

I have plans to bring hints at the "conspiracy" (you're right, it's not quite a conspiracy at all, but I won't give more detail than that) into the next chapter or two.

The peripheral characters will be featured in very small doses, but I will digress from the main story a little. I'm thinking about side stories that will crop up here and there, but nothing too elaborate (unless I get really inspired - then I might do a little short story on the side). They'll remain pretty peripheral, since the playing field is pretty crowded as it is. Some of those who I would consider the secondary characters (the older generation) will get more play in the upcoming chapters too.

Stop trying to sidetrack me! *snicker* I really want to move the MAIN characters forward. At this rate, it will take me 20 years to write this story.

Pixel has some great sims, but I have a soft spot for Jack above all of them. He's very special to Pixel, and I can see why. Those alien eyes were made just for him - what's not to love?

[hannahspring.livejournal.com]

Did you know that Bella Goth was actually trying to escape from Strangetown? Well, she did try, at least in the Playstation Portable version of The Sims 2.

And also, she married Mortimer for money! And lived in a house full of ghosts (that's why she wanted to leave).

(I hope I didn't say now some ridiculously basic information - I still didn't have time to read all your posts/chapters. *blushes*)

Anyway, getting that popcorn ready for the next chapters! :)

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

That's interesting. Have you played that game? I've read a walkthrough and plot synopsis for the console Sims 2 game, and I've used parts of it as inspiration, but it's really bleak, and really takes the game backstory in a different direction from the PC game. It breaks with some of the things that are considered "canon" in the original game. For one thing, Maxis released an interview with Bella on the official site that clearly states that she was abducted (instead of wanting to leave Pleasantview), and it says that she lost all of her memories. That's consistent with the townie version of Bella in Strangetown.

Anyway... while someone could easily use the console game as a basis for a story, I prefer the original game as a starting point. It's more open and retains more of the mystery. I do like the plot of that console game, though. It's great food for thought. There's a bit of that version of Vidcund in my Vidcund.

I'm so excited to do the next chapters too. I have some writing ready to go, but I haven't started on the images yet, so it's going to take a while. I think my Sept. prediction will end up being pretty accurate.

[pixelcurious.livejournal.com]

Oh, this is so cool! I'm grinning all over my face.

I love how you show Jack with his back to us at first, then the profiles, and finally the closeup of his eye, so you can see just how he was marked by the events he's investigating. That's a striking image, too, with the bouquet behind him. I'm wondering if there's flower symbolism here, like you use with Phi. (ETA: Oh, of course! Red is Bella's color.)

My curiosity is piqued about his client and suspects, as well, not to mention how this will tie in with what Johnny has been asked to do for the aliens...

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad you liked it. ^_^ What you said about Jack earlier made me smile, because I was already seeing this sort of strong, steady, and heroic character in him.

I can always count on you to pick up on some of the visual things like that. I did want to slowly reveal the alien side of him (then I ruined the effect by showing the last shot in the teaser image, but it made such a cool title shot that I couldn't resist).

You're right about the red being Bella's colour, and flowers also relate back to the aliens, but I mostly just liked that arrangement as a dramatic visual. I chose the posters for a specific reason too. ;)

I already mentioned in a comment above that the client is Mortimer. His days are numbered, but he's still alive. Maybe I should have held on to that fact to reveal later, but there you go...

[smjoshsims.livejournal.com]

I knew he looked familiar, and then I saw pixel's icon! :)

I am really looking forward to see where this is going- everyone loves a good Bella mystery. I want to see how it's going to play into the other characters lives' as well... :)

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

He looks so cute in that icon. :) I could just eat him up.

I agree. What would Sims 2 be without the Bella mystery? It's great. You can be sure that this will relate to a number of other characters too. Oh, I shouldn't say anything more, or I'll start it give it away...

[meetme2theriver.livejournal.com]

Oooh, very cool. I'm tired and don't have much intelligent to say, just that I really like this, want to see more, and that I too found that last closeup of the eye to be rather brilliant.

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Thank you. I'm thinking of adding a little more of this piece of the plot to the next chapter. If all goes well, I should get some time to work on that over the weekend.

[a-gates.livejournal.com]

Awesome!!

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Thanks. :)

[indigoleo.livejournal.com]

*walks to the front with bowl in hand*
Please sir, can I have some more?

[strange-tomato.livejournal.com]

Heheh. All in good time...

[pnkpnthr334.livejournal.com]

Poor plottiness added to the crazy twisted plot!!!