Tales of the Uncompleted - #1: The Mortan-Murdacs

Hello! Welcome to my new series, "Tales of the Uncompleted"!

Occasionally, I'll create a new Sim family or legacy, and then, unfortunately, and for various reasons, never really do anything with them. However, in most cases, a few screenshots and pictures from gameplay are still somewhere on my computer.

Therefore, this series will highlight a few of my creations whose stories were abandoned, broken off, or simply forgotten on the way - allowing them to finally have their moment in the spotlight.

This first installment presents a "Sims 3" creation: the Mortan-Murdacs...


Audric Mortan-Murdac was a sorcerer in the Medieval era, whose unnatural abilities included being able to summon items, to travel through time, and to resurrect the dead. . With his flame-red hair, ghostly-pale skin, fang-like teeth and claw-like fingernails, several people believed that he was the son of a demon. When it was discovered that Audric meddled in the "dark arts", he rapidly fell out of favour with the townspeople, and was exiled. Forced out of his home, Audric took shelter in a small shack deep in the forest.

At the age of 35, Audric travelled back to Ancient Egypt - arriving shortly after the death and mummification of one "Princess Meryetamun", who had died in her thirtieth year. After hearing mourners discuss the Princess' great beauty and loving heart, as well as her strong devotion to the gods Anubis and Osiris, Audric decided to break into Meryetamun's tomb, resurrect her, and bring her back with him to his woodland abode - to act as a companion and friend to him following his lonely exile from society. 

He was successful in this plan, and Meryetamun indeed prove to be a wonderful companion for Audric. In fact, as the weeks and months went by, the sorcerer and the princess fell in love, and married one another in a private ritual. 

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery - Chapter Twelve: Something to Remember Her By

It was 4am, and Yuri couldn't sleep. 

In fact, he hadn't slept for several nights. Instead, he'd sat up for hours at his kitchen table, stuffing himself with bizarre concoctions of comfort food. Tonight's dish was the warped combination of mashed potato, jellybeans, and butterscotch sauce.

It had been weeks since he'd last seen Crystal. She had disappeared from his life the morning that he woke up in bed alone. Yuri had called her, e-mailed her, gone to The Comet Club night after night looking for her... but it was no use. It was as if she'd vanished off the face of the Earth.

Yuri was heartbroken. Whilst he had never been a model employee, he was now completely unable to focus on anything at work. He didn't go out with his friends anymore, or tell jokes, or even smile. He had transformed into a completely different man.

There was just one person Yuri wanted to talk to... but he couldn't. He had hurt him too much. After everything he'd said to him, everything he'd done... Yuri couldn't bear to face him again. He was too ashamed of his actions. And yet, this was the one person who might be clever enough to help him - to track down Crystal.

Yuri really needed his big brother.

No. No - it was out of the question. Michael would never forgive him. He would simply say that he'd had this coming... that he'd brought it on himself. At work, Yuri sat staring at the closed door of Michael's office, desperately trying to find the courage to go inside... but he never could. As far as Yuri could see, he had made his bed, and now he had to lie in it.

And so, here he was - alone in the kitchen of a house that seemed so much bigger now that he was the only occupant. His unusual midnight feast complete, he scuttled to the fridge, poured himself a glass of milk, and chugged it greedily. It was his third glass of the night. It was funny - as a child, he'd never liked milk, but lately, he'd developed something of a taste for it.

Suddenly, Yuri gasped as a crippling pain shot through his stomach. The glass tumbled from his now-open hand, smashing into shards on the cold tiled floor.

As Yuri gasped for breath, the pain slowly subsided, and after a minute or two, he was once again able to stand at his full height. 

"All this stress must be getting to me," Yuri thought. "Perhaps I'm getting an ulcer, or something."

After he'd quickly swept up the glass shards with a dustpan and brush, Yuri returned to his bedroom, lay down on his bed, and tried to sleep. He was already miserable, ashamed and alone... he didn't want to add "ill" to that list.

It was no use. He simply couldn't rest. Instead, he pulled the sheets up over his head, and cried.

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery - Chapter Eleven: Discussion, Eviction, Affection

Michael and Yuri might not have been like two peas in a pod, but at the end of the day, there were still brothers, and they cared for one another. Michael, deeply upset by his brother's anger towards him, tried to distract himself in his usual fashion: by throwing himself head-first into his work. He stayed late at the station each evening, working overtime, and spent his days off in the library, doing even more research.

A new suspect had been named: one Max Stapleton. Initial investigations hadn't produced enough evidence to convict him of any of the thefts, but the police remained determined that Stapleton was involved. One of Michael's main tasks now was to monitor Stapleton, and possibly catch him in the act.

As Michael spent yet another day in the library, his head buried in a tome detailing the city's previous gang activities, he heard a familiar voice calling to him.

"Hello, Michael! What are you doing here?"

A familiar warm feeling seized Michael's heart. He slammed the book shut, and looked up into the face of Megumi Hasekura.

"Hello, Megumi," he replied. "It is nice to see you. I am just doing some extra research for the case."

Suddenly, Michael yawned loudly, and started to shift his shoulders around. Megumi suppressed a giggle.

"It must be boring you," she said jokingly.

"Oh, no, not at all, "Michael told her. "In fact, I fear I may have overdone it as of late. I am quite tired."

"Well," Megumi said, "we could have a quick game of chess, if you fancy a little break?"

Michael smiled.

"Thank you," he answered. "That would be most enjoyable."

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery - Chapter Ten: A Family Dinner

Michael was making dinner when Yuri got home. However, he hadn't anticipated that his brother would be bringing his date back with him. Therefore, he was quite surprised when he saw a young lady walk in through the door, followed by a familiar blond-haired figure.

"Ah! Mike, you're home!" Yuri said cheerfully. 

"Of course," Michael replied flatly. "You know that I do not go out very often."

"Whatever," Yuri answered. "I'm glad you're home, anyway. I'd like you to meet someone. This is Crystal - my new girlfriend. She'll be dining with us tonight."

"'Girlfriend'?" Michael thought to himself. "Dear Plumbob, the man works fast."

Crystal stepped forward, reaching out to shake Michael's hand.

"Hello, Michael," she said brightly. "It's nice to meet you. Yuri's told me so much about you."

Michael shook Crystal's hand, as he was expected to do, but he had begun to feel very... uneasy. There was something... odd about her. Something that made Michael's senses go on alert, as if something bad was about to happen. In fact, it was the exact same feeling he got whenever he was questioning -

No. No - surely not! Yuri was foolish, yes, but he knew better than to associate with criminals. Perhaps he was just nervous about meeting his brother's new acquaintance... the feeling would almost certainly pass in a minute or two.

"What's cooking?" Yuri asked, bringing Michael sharply back from his thoughts.

"Oh... pasta," he replied. "Penne bolognese."

"Michael speaks Italian, you know," Yuri said to Crystal, before turning back to his brother and saying, "Sounds great. I hope you made enough for three!"

As Yuri and Crystal took their seats at the table, Michael turned his attention back to the now-bubbling pasta sauce, desperately trying to suppress the uneasy feeling that was quickly growing stronger.

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery - Chapter Nine: Lovers and Neighbours

The next day, at noon precisely, Yuri was stood outside the art gallery, anxiously checking his watch. He clutched a single red rose in one hand. Crystal was nowhere to be seen.

"She must just be running late," Yuri told himself. "She can't have stood me up. I mean, she couldn't. She wouldn't. Would she?"

He needn't have worried. A few minutes after twelve, Crystal came sprinting down the street, desperately trying to catch her breath by the time she reached Yuri at the gallery entrance.

"Sorry... bus late... ran here.. sorry..." she explained between gasps.

Yuri waved his hand dismissively, but politely.

"It's OK," he replied reassuringly. "I'm just glad that you're here."

He reached out his hand, offering Crystal the rose. Smiling, she took it from him carefully, touched by the gesture, and grateful for the gift.

"Thank you," she said, now full recovered. "I just adore red roses!"

Yuri offered her the crook of his arm in a mock-gentlemanly fashion. Laughing, Crystal slipped her arm through Yuri's, and allowed him to lead her into the gallery.

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery: Chapter Eight - Crystal & The Crime Wave

TEN YEARS LATER

Detective Michael Lee Harker paced up and down the Investigations Room, examining the case board closely. 

Over the last few weeks, a string of thefts had taken place all over the city. The whole affair was rather mysterious: no signs of forced entry at any of the crime scenes, no-one injured or physically harmed in any way... but still, items had been going missing left, right and centre. Clearly, the police were dealing with a criminal mastermind - but fortunately, they had a mastermind of their own working on the case.

Michael had already taken in a few suspects - people spotted near the crime scenes around the time of the thefts. He'd tried every questioning method he could think of: the good cop, the bad cop, trying to win them over, threatening them with jail... but the only reply the suspects ever gave to his questions was, "We did what the Commander told us to."

Who this "Commander" was, he was still none the wiser, but something about every suspect he had questioned... unnerved him. Some strange instinct inside him told him there was something not quite right about these people. In time, he'd decided that these feelings must have been brought on the the fact that they were criminals. He was, after all, a man of the law.

As Michael looked over the events timeline and various photos of the robberies, he was interrupted by one of the officers calling to him from the back of the room.

"Hey, bro!" Yuri said. "I'm heading out to the clubs tonight - gonna have a bit of fun. You wanna come with me?"

"No, thank you," Michael replied. "I am busy dealing with this case."

"Oh, come on! One night off won't kill you!"

"I said no."

Yuri sighed.

"Fine. Be a boring old fart. See if I care."

With that, he turned on his heels and walked away.

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery: Chapter Seven - A Tale of Two Brothers

TEN YEARS LATER

"And just what, in the name of Plumbob -"

"Michael! Language!"

" - is that supposed to mean?!"

Gabriel and Katerina both sighed. Hardly a day went by these days where Michael and Yuri didn't yell their heads off at one another. Their two sweet and playful little boys had grown into brash, opinionated teenagers. Now, late one Wednesday evening, they were at it again.

Yuri pulled a mocking face at his elder brother, who glared back at him from his seat on the living room sofa.

"All I'm saying," he replied, "is that you couldn't get a date for the prom even if you tried!"

"Well, who says I want to go to the prom?" Michael hissed. "I have better things to do with my time!"

"Oh, sure - like sit in your room and read books all night."

"Books are still better than some stupid popularity contest!"

"All right, boys! Enough!" Gabriel yelled. "Yuri, it's Michael's choice whether or not he goes to the prom - and clearly, he sees the whole thing quite differently to how you do. Now leave him alone and let him get on with his studies."

Yuri tutted, rolled his eyes, and stormed off to his room, slamming the door behind him - the typical "moody teenager" routine. Michael picked up his book - a tome on astrophysics - and resumed reading... only to be interrupted again when Gabriel sat down beside him.

"What is wrong, Father?" he asked, concerned.

"Nothing's wrong, my son," Gabriel replied, "but... well, are you sure you don't want to go to the prom?  Don't get me wrong, I'm not forcing you to go, but... it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I wouldn't want you to regret not going later on."

Michael smiled.

"Father," he said. "I thank you for your concern, but I am quite sure that I do not wish to attend. Getting a place on the police academy training course is far more important to me, and to do that, I will need good grades on my final exams."

"Michael, darling," Katerina said, "we all know you could pass those exams blindfold. You needn't push yourself so hard. Are you sure that you wouldn't like to take one night off - have a little fun?"

Michael shook his head.

"No, Mother - but thank you. My mind is made up."

The two scientists smiled.

"All right, Michael," Gabriel said. "It's your choice. Now, don't stay up too late studying - you need plenty of rest before school tomorrow."

"I know that, Father - goodnight. Goodnight, Mother."

"Goodnight, Michael."

With that, Michael headed to his own room.

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery: Chapter Six - The Disguise

FIVE YEARS LATER

It was a Saturday night in early September.

Michael and Yuri were playing on their spaceship-shaped jungle gym in the garden. Michael, as usual, was the ship's captain - he was a natural leader, and Yuri, currently manning the ship's laser cannon, was all too happy to follow him. He looked up to his older brother very much, and hoped to be just like him one day.

Tonight, however, Yuri wasn't too focused on their imaginary game. His mind was fixed on something even more exciting.

"I can't wait to start school on Monday!" he told his elder brother. "Daddy says I'll learn lots of new things, and make lots of friends."

"I am quite sure what Father says is true," Michael replied.

Yuri chuckled. Michael's way of speaking had always amused him. For as long as he could remember, Michael had never called his parents "Mummy" and "Daddy", like he did. Instead, he called them "Mother" and Father". It wasn't that he loved them any less - that was just how he spoke. His sentences were always perfect and proper, and he never used words like "didn't" or "couldn't". (What had Daddy called them? "Contracttrions", or something like that.) Michael always said "did not" or "could not". It never occurred to Yuri that most humans would find this unusual - that was just the way Michael was.

Both boys were fully aware that Michael was an alien. Gabriel and Katerina had decided that it was better for them to know from the beginning, rather than having to deal with problems and questions later on. The fact he was not human really did not bother Michael too much - his parents were still his parents, his brother was still his brother, and he was part of a family whom he loved, and who loved him.

Furthermore, being aware of his alien heritage helped Michael understand why he found certain parts of the household's behaviour strange. For example, when Father found something easy, he called it a "piece of cake". That made no sense to Michael at all. Tasks were not cake. Cake was spongy, fluffy and edible. Tasks, generally speaking, were not. If the task involved cake, then maybe the phrase would be plausible, but they did not. Therefore, the phrase was not accurate. Still, that was what Father said.

Humans also liked to spend a long time discussing the weather. Why was that? Weather was just a description of the atmosphere and climate at that present moment - it held no special meaning or importance. Yet, humans could make an entire conservation out of it. How very bizarre!

That said, being an alien on Earth did have some setbacks. The brothers could only play out together at night, when the darkness hid Michael from the world's prying eyes. Even then, their mother or father would watch them carefully though the window. The family had never been able to go on holiday, or to the beach, or even go shopping together. The limitations also meant Michael could not share his brother's excitement at this present moment. After all - he had never been to school. Instead, he'd been privately tutored by his parents at home.

Yuri didn't realise this.

"So, big brother..." he asked Michael, "what's school like?"

"I cannot tell you," Michael replied, matter-of-factly. "I have never been."

"Never been?" Yuri cried, shocked, "Why not? Don't you get in trouble if you don't go?"

"Most children do, but I do not," Michael said. "Mother and Father will not permit me to go to school. They give me all the lessons I require."

"So... you've never been in a school assembly?" Yuri asked. "Or had milk at playtime? Or played Tig in the playground?"

"No, brother - I have not."

This saddened Yuri greatly.

"But... but that's not fair!" he wailed. "You're really smart, Michael! You'd be top of the class and get loads of stickers! And I'd bet you have lots of friends, too!"

Michael froze. Not being able to go to school had never bothered him before, but now... with Yuri going... it did suddenly seem unfair. Why should he be treated differently to his younger brother?

In a flash, Michael had climbed off the the jungle gym, and was heading into the house. Yuri watched him go, confused.

"Hey! Don't you wanna play anymore?" he called.

"Of course I do," Michael told him, reassuringly. "But I must speak with Father first."

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery: Chapter Five - Michael's First Deduction

"Baby brother," two-year-old Michael said, pointing to his Earth mother's large baby bump. He couldn't say very much yet, but those two words had been leaving his mouth a lot recently.

Both of his parents started to laugh.

"No, sweetie," Katerina told him, gently. "Baby sister. The doctor said I'm having a little girl, remember?"

Michael shook his head.

"Baby brother," he insisted, then he toddled away to his toy box.

Katerina sighed as her husband approached her.

"Poor boy," she whispered. "I do hope he's not too disappointed when little Anja arrives." The name was one she had chosen herself - she wanted her new daughter to be proud of her Russian heritage.

Still chuckling, Gabriel embraced his wife, gently kissing her cheek.

"He'll love her all the same," he told her. "Michael's such a smart, sensible boy already - he's going to be a great big brother. And who knows? Maybe one day, he will get his wish."

Katerina smiled, as Gabriel gently placed his hands on her bump.

"Let's see how we manage with two first," she replied.

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery: Chapter Four - The Birth of a Detective

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, OW!!! Sweet Plumbob, when will this be over?!"

In his private hospital room, Gabriel waddled up and down in agony, clutching his stomach. How much longer was this going to take? Upon discovering he was pregnant, the thought of giving birth had terrified him, but now, he just wanted to have the baby and be done with all this.

Katerina watched him from beside the bed.

"Not long now, my darling," she said. "They just have to get the birthing suite ready."

"Well, they need to do it faster! I can't wait much longer!"

Gabriel was sure hours had passed by the time a porter appeared at the door, saying those magical words - "They're ready for you, Mr. Lee Harker."

"Thank you," Katerina replied. "I'll take him down."

The porter nodded and walked away.

"Come on, then," Katerina chuckled. "Time for you to go and have this baby."

Gabriel smiled at her, but after a few moments, his expression grew graver. He reached out and grabbed Katerina's hand.

"Honey..." he said nervously, "you... you'll stay with me, won't you? During the birth?"

Katerina cupped his hand tightly with hers, and kissed his cheek.

"Of course I will, my love. Besides, I want to meet the little one just as much as you do!"

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery: Chapter Three - The Marvellous Malady of Gabriel

In the weeks following Gabriel's extraordinary, extra-terrestrial experience, Katerina noticed that her new boyfriend's behaviour had taken a rather bizarre turn. To begin with, there was a rather radical change in his diet. Gabriel had never been fond of dairy products: he even took his coffee black. Now, however, Katerina often caught him in the kitchen, even in the early hours of the morning, guzzling down glass after glass of milk.

"I thought you didn't like milk?" she once said, after catching him in the middle of one of his late night fridge raids.

"What? Don't be silly!" came the amused reply. "Milk's really good for you. Calcium, you know. Good for the bones, and all that."

"Then why didn't you ever drink it before?"

"Hmm... I don't know. I've just... developed a bit of a taste for it lately, I guess."

"Oh, well," Katerina replied, deciding to let the matter slide for now. "Look, I'm getting some cocoa and then I'm going back to bed. Do you want anything?"

"I'll have some cocoa too. Wait, actually, don't bother with the cocoa powder - I'll have it without."

"So... just hot milk, then?"

"Please."

Katerina sighed.

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery: Chapter Two - "The Incident"

Despite all the joy living with Katerina brought him, Gabriel still struggled to hold his head high at work. Tales of his late-night lookouts were quickly spreading around the laboratory... and he was becoming a laughing stock.  Out of all of his colleagues, only Katerina seemed willing to support him.

"You must ignore them, Gabe," she told him one evening after dinner. "They are just jealous of your drive - of your ambition."

Gabriel was touched by her kindness, but also felt embarrassed on her behalf. After all, they now lived together. He was worried that his associates would soon mock her as they did him, and she had done nothing to deserve it.

"If... if you want me to stop..." he said, "for your sake..."

Katerina shook her head firmly.

"No, my friend. If your dream is to discover aliens, then that is the goal you must work towards - and I will always support you."

Gabriel smiled. He had been truly blessed by Plumbob to find a friend like Katerina. Motivated by her words, he didn't reduce his efforts, but rather increased them substantially. Following a few trips to scrapyards and junk sites, he began work on his biggest project yet: his own personal rocket ship. If that didn't help him discover aliens, he didn't know what would.

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery: Chapter One - Gabriel & Katerina

Monday, 3am.Gabriel Lee Harker had been locked away in his personal observatory for just over six hours, gazing at galaxies and scanning for spacecraft - his body fulled by high-sugar candy and espresso coffees. As the town's foremost "UFOlogist", it was his duty to ensure any alien activity occurring above or within Willow Creek was accurately recorded and documented,  True, he'd had the job for two years, and had yet to see anything out of the ordinary, but he wasn't going to let a little thing like that cause him to leave his post.By the time 5am rolled around, every star was still exactly where it should be, and he hadn't seen any flying saucers, cups, or dishware of any kind. Realising that he had to get ready for work by 9, and with his coffee pot drained to the dregs, he reluctantly decided to go and get some sleep.It had been another disappointing, alien-free night.Still - he lived in hope.

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery - Story Introduction

Way back when, when I began playing The Sims 2, one of the first families I created was the Lee Harkers. The founder, Gabriel, was a scientist, as was his wife, Katerina. Thanks to Gabriel's keen interest in astronomy, the couple's first child was a tad more... mysterious... than most.

Michael Lee Harker, Intergalactic Sim of Mystery: Chapter Index

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NOMINEE - Best Non-Challenge Story (any game)

Not since the days of Sherlock Holmes has there been a detective as intelligent as Michael Lee Harker. He solves mysteries with ease... but the greatest mystery is that of his own origin. Born to a scientist under the strangest of circumstances, Michael hides a massive secret from the rest of the world.  

This story begins before his birth, and follows his life up to his efforts to stop a crime wave in his adult years. But could his career and his bizarre heritage soon be connected? 
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