Sim Life Chronicles

An Unpublished Expose by Mortimer Goth from his Estate

They say money doesn’t buy happiness. But It may buy something far superior in the eyes of the wealthiest families in town: power.

It’s a tale as old as time. Literally speaking. Back when the world was created, only four families existed within the neighborhood. And the fifth remained hidden in a secret realm, only to present himself in the most heartbreaking of times. The Grim Reaper. Grim’s whereabouts were never discovered as he floated from home to home, claiming the lives of those behind the doors.

As the generations passed, many of the families were quietly plucked out of existence. Erased. As if Grim never even visited their homes. Some were forgotten almost instantly, like the Roomies household which never saw the light of day again. Others, disappeared more gradually. My wife’s own family, The Bachelor’s, once seemed like a staple within the worlds. But by the time my Bella became a young adult, her family had disappeared as well.

To this day, she discusses the flurry of foggy memories she has about her long lost brother, Michael, and her parents, Simis and Jocasta. Sometimes, in her darkest of nightmares, she even swears she was once abducted by aliens. When we first married, I tried to no avail to find her relatives but alas, it seemed they were wiped from existence at some point along our universe’s timeline.

For quite some time, I believed the only family Grim hadn’t gotten to was my own. The Goth Family. For whatever reason, Grim has spared us throughout time. Recently though, I discovered another family with origins dating back to the very originals of our universe. For so long, they flew under the radar. But not anymore.

The Landgraab Family. While they were never seen around “Neighborhood 1”, their last name was synonymous throughout the Buy Mode catalogue that showed up at the local residences. Rumors around town even swirled that their last name literally meant, “Grabbing the Land”, a sign that one day, they would appear and attempt to own the entire universe as we know it.

After making this discover, I tried to reach out to Nancy Landgraab for an interview but instead, her husband Geoffrey intercepted the call. He was adamant he had many secrets to tell me about his wife, but that his stories would have to remain anonymous. I reassured him I would never reveal my sources.

While meeting for coffee in Strangerville, Geoffrey sat in a dark black trench coat with his hat tipped over his eyes, and dark shades underneath. “Do you know who I work for?” He asked me.

I shook my head.

“The agency. I’ve been deep undercover for years trying to bring down the Landgraab dynasty.”

I was stunned. Nancy was his wife, after all. I could never imagine doing such a thing to Bella. “Why would you want to bring down your own wife’s family?”

His head darted from side to side before looking directly at me and pulling me close. “Nancy and Grim have an unusually close bond.”

“They’re woohoo buddies?” I said, my eyes doubling in size.

Geoffrey scowled at me. “That’s absurd. Absolutely not. Nancy doesn’t thrive on woohoo. As far as I can tell, she only woohoo’s if there’s a chance to carry on the family name,” his voice rumbled low before he cleared his throat. “Nancy owns the entire criminal ring…The Mob…and she is trying to find a way to destroy and remove every legacy family from existence. She wants a monopoly. She wants to own this entire world.”

I felt my heart race. I’m a legacy family after all. “That can’t be possible. Grim is indifferent to everyone, isn’t he? He won’t just go around reaping sims, right?”

Geoffrey shrugged. “That’s what I’ve been trying to find out. But it’s not easy. Grim is elusive and doesn’t like talking much. He comes to run his business and disappears almost instantly but I’ve seen —“ he paused before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a series of photographs. “These photos.”

As my eyes scanned across each of the photos, I could feel the grey hairs rise on the back of my neck as a shiver cascaded along my spine. Nancy and Grim had known each other for quite some time. There were photos of her as a baby, snuggled tightly in Grim’s arms, as her parents, Chester and Queenie, stood beside him. There was even a faded picture of Admiral Landgraab at Wren’s Fens National Park on Vacation Island, with Grim standing with his arm around him. It’s as if he’d been doing the family’s bidding forever. Were the Landgraabs and the Reapers close friends for generations? Was this an unbreakable bond?

Geoffrey whispered to me. “I know what you’re thinking. That they’re friends. But I’m not sure it’s that simple. They may have something on Grim. Or maybe, Grim is just a lonely Reaper without friends and the Landgraab’s use their friendship with him to get him to do their bidding. I don’t know. But either way, he seems to have no problem helping Nancy clear this town as much as possible. Once upon a time, I tried to save the newest sim to enter this world. Hannah. I begged her to run away with me but she wouldn’t listen. Nancy hasn’t caught on yet but I fear one day when Hannah has grandchildren, Nancy will target her family. She can sense when another legacy family is about to begin.”

I sat back in my chair as my chest clenched. If Nancy was targeting new legacies, I could only imagine what that meant for me. Was I next? As the longest legacy family within the world, it was only a matter of time before she would send someone to take care of me and my family.

As I got up to leave the table and say goodbye to Geoffrey, his plumbob had turned a bright shade of yellow. He stood up, mortified, looking over my shoulder. As I turned around to look towards the door, I saw Nancy staring at us. I was unsure if she had heard the entire conversation. That is, until Geoffrey got up and suddenly started huddling, shielding his head, trying not to be seen. But a moment later, he collapsed onto the floor.

Before I knew what was happening, Grim was floating beside him, taking his body away for good. As I locked eyes with Nancy, she turned to me and said, “Don’t worry, Mortimer. You’re next.” She winked the creepiest wink I’ve ever seen. Moments later, she pulled out her phone and whispered to someone on the other end. “I have someone for you. He’s married and an elder now. He’s a perfect candidate. I’m sure you can do what you do best,” she said.

I don’t know when, and I don’t know how, but in that moment, I knew my time on this planet was quickly coming to an end.