DAY TWENTY FOUR

(Who Builds a Fire Pit in a Tomb!?)

GRETA

Greta had a sneaking suspicion when she woke up today, that it just wasn't going to be her day. Untangling herself from Youssef, she went and caught a shower and some breakfast. She wondered how her chickens were doing. It was nice to be away for a bit, but now she was missing it. Greta wondered how she would bring Youssef back, or even if she could. Maybe that catalogue would have something in it.

Sighing as she cleaned up her dishes, she watched Youssef get up, and head for the men's showers. Still not quite believing he was her husband, (Married!) she smiled, now she could do that old hags request without fail.

When Youssef had eaten, she asked him about coming with her to the market. He agreed with a smile and a kiss of her hand. They set out together for the market place.

Once they arrived there, Greta explained to Youssef what it was she was going to be doing. All he did was hug her, and wish her luck. He said he would be waiting for her in the bookstore, and to come get him when she was done. Smiling at the thought of completing her task, and spending the rest of the day with him, made her rush out to find three locals to talk to.

Man, this was harder than it looked. Every time she went to talk to someone, they rushed off. Finally giving up on lunch, and most of her faith in people, Greta decided to be smart. She stood in thought for a moment, and then came up with the idea to talk to the vendors, even if she had to buy something from them to do it.

It took a lot of haggling, not to mention time, but by nightfall she had done it. Smiling a little wearily, she went to get Youssef. Where did he go? When she reached the bookstore, he wasn't there. Did he leave without her? Surely, he wouldn't have. He wasn't that type of guy. She was a good judge of character, and he was great guy, that's why she knew he was the one. Running out of the stall a little frantically, she was about to run back to the camp to look for him, when she saw him at the food stall.

A little of breathy from running, she slowed her pace a few feet from him, and walked up hugging him from behind. She felt him jump a little, and then turn. He was holding out a large plate of food. He told her he had been about to go looking for her. Was she hungry? Of course! Taking his hand, she let him lead her to a table and they shared the food he had bought. He asked how things were going. Giving a little laugh, she told him. The next stop was to tell the little old lady what she had found out, and then go back to camp. He looked a little bored, but she had made him wait all day with nothing to do.

With Youssef following her, she headed to see Inji and tell her what she had found out. She had talked to four people to be on the safe side, but they had all said the same thing. No one was really happy with the company there.

After relaying the news to Inji, the old bat had another request for her! Would it never end!? Sighing a little, she was about to say no, when Youssef took her hand, and said he would get supplies. Touched, Greta nodded, and then told Inji she would.

After Youssef returned with the supplies, They set out for the tomb. Upon arrival a huge slab stood before them. Following the instructions from Inji, Greta examined it, and then finding what she needed, she opened it.

Whew! What was that reek? It smelled like something had died in here. Entering slowly, and allowing her eyes to adjust to the gloom, Greta found herself in a long hallway. Quietly calling out, she made sure Youssef was following her. Feeling a hand slide into hers, she jumped and almost had a heart attack. Youssef, remember him? She said in her head, he's here with you, calm down. Squeezing his hand back, she moved farther down the hallway. Almost to the end, she spotted it. The hole in the wall where her key from Inji would go. Letting go of his hand, Greta took out her key, and pushed it in the slot. There was a click, and a door opened. Turning and smiling at Youssef, she held out her hand. Together they entered into the next room.

It was another long hallway, ending in a small room with a large pool of water. There was nothing else. Telling Youssef to wait for her, she'd be right back, she dived into the well. Ew! Old water was disgustingly slimy. Reaching the bottom, she found nothing. All those days of scuba diving had really come in handy. She shot towards the surface, and emerged from the water. Youssef had been waiting, and seemed relieved when she returned. A little stumped, Greta sat on the edge for a moment and thought. Looking around her, she just couldn't see how to proceed. That's when Youssef complained of the cool breeze coming from the far wall. Going closer Greta realized that it was a bit different from the rest of the walls, just better hidden than the last tomb. Smiling, she pressed against it. She was really starting to get the hang of this.

The next room, they discovered, had another dive well, and a locked door. Otherwise it was empty. While Youssef set about pushing on all the walls, Greta looked at the well, and then dived in. Reaching the bottom, she stretched her arms out, trying to feel for a hole, but there wasn't one. Placing her feet on the bottom, and getting ready to push back up to the surface, she felt something under her foot. Praying it wasn't the remains of one of Inji's past exploration people, Greta reached down to feel what it was. A switch! With a little muscle, she managed to flip it, and then resurfaced. Youssef was staring at the door which was now unlocked. Climbing out, she smiled and called for him to follow her.

Just past the door, and they were in another hallway. Hmmm, at the far end were stairs leading down, and just before them was a switch on the floor with a pair of feet drawn on. Greta went and stood on it while Youssef watched. Suddenly, a piece of wall opened up. Peeking her head through, Greta found herself staring into the very first hall they had come down. Cool! A secret entrance. This was going to be maddening she thought as she took his hand and headed for the stairs.

At the bottom, she found herself in a small entrance way. Growing at the base of the stairs were three plants. She had never seen them, and didn't know what they were, so she decided to leave them alone. Looking ahead, she could see another hallway, but there were three statues blocking her way. What looked like flames were In front of them. What was this place? Maybe if she could somehow tip over one of the statues she could use it like a bridge, and they could run across to safety. Giving the middle one a shove, she didn't tip it over. What she did was push it forward a little bit. As it slid forward, it extinguished some of the flames. Wow! How cool was that!? Pushing it through the fire to clear a path to the other side, she found herself in a small curved hallway. Grinning like an idiot, she gave a little whoop, and kissed Youssef. He smiled back at her, after getting over the small surprise. Taking his hand, and looking all around her, she followed the hallway to its end.

No surprise here, more statues, followed by more flames. Making short work of them, they found themselves in a small hallway, with rubble covering the left side, and what looked like a turn to the right down the right side. Greta decided to try the left first. She made short work of the rubble, only to find a treasure chest underneath. Bonus! She scooped up the contents, and continued on. She could hear Youssef opening the chest again to look, then following her. She came to another rubble pile, this one smaller. As she was clearing it, she watched as Youssef found another switch on the floor with the foot symbol. He gave her one look then stepped on it. A piece of wall broke open just in front of him, beyond it she could see the stairs and the three plants. Good, a short cut. Clearing the last of the rubble away, she found more coins. She scooped them up, and put them in her bag. Just as Youssef came back over, she reached out and took his hand, then headed for the hallway.

By following the right turn, she had found herself in a small concealed chamber with another dive well. Maybe these were bathing chambers? Nah, that one had had a switch. Making Youssef wait for her, she dived in and started searching for a lever. No lever this time, but a hole. It was kind of lit up from down here, by some kind of moss growing around it. If she squinted, she could see an opening on the other side. Returning to the surface, she told Youssef what she had found. Well, they couldn't go back, she explained, so they may as we'll try forward. Together they swam through the tunnel, and then surfaced on the other side.

Boy was it stifling! The room they had entered into was boiling hot. There were several fires raging, and more statues. Taking a small look around, Greta noticed more funny looking patches of walls. Now that she knew what to look for, they were easy to spot. Totally exhausted, and sure Youssef felt the same way, she suggested they set up camp for the night, and start fresh in the morning. Youssef agreed. Snuggling with Youssef, Greta drifted off to sleep in their tent.


YOUSSEF
When he woke up this morning, Greta was gone again. Had she left him behind again? Checking for a note, and not finding one, he left the tent, only to see her washing dishes at the camp sink. Hmm, so she really was tidy, it wasn't just a nervous fluke. Fine by him. Feeling a little stiff from sleeping on the dirt in a tent, he headed for the showers. If only they were co-ed.

He went to get a quick meal and found Greta staring off into space. Deciding to leave her alone with her thoughts for a bit, he finished his breakfast, and was about to take his dishes to the sink when she asked him to come to the market with her. Hmm, this could be a bit disastrous. I mean a lot of the women there knew him, none of them knew he was married. He'd have to be careful, after all he couldn't say no. It would look suspicious.

At the market, Greta explained to him why she was there. Somehow she had gotten herself tangled up with that stupid company, and was doing their dirty work. It made him mad, but he wasn't sure he knew why. After all, what business was it of his what she did. It wasn't like they were really married, sure he liked her company, but what man didn't like the company of a woman? He was just using her to get what he wanted, she was just a different prize than he was used to.

Looking around, he spotted several potential dangers, and to his relief one place of shelter. Wishing her good luck, he told her he would wait for her in the bookstore, then he gave her a hug and left. The bookstore was run by an older woman, who knew he was a dog, but didn't care. She herself was married to a well -thought -of man in the town, but tended to use Youssef for some fun, because her husband was a "useless lump" as she called it.

Feeling a bit peckish, Youssef stretched and decided to go get some dinner. He had spent a pleasant afternoon bantering with his friend. Boy, had she laughed when he told her about his current situation. He thought she was going to die from laughter. Where was Greta? It was night all ready, and she still hadn't come for him. Feeling a bit anxious, he headed for the food vendor, glancing for Greta. He'd give it a better search after he filled up his stomach.

After flirting a bit with the vendor and assuring her he hadn't forgotten her, and that he would visit her soon he promised, he finally got his food. Just as he was about to find a table, someone hugged him from behind, jumping a little he recognized Greta's arms a second later. She was so affectionate, none of the other girls were, unless you gave them something first. She really was different. Snapping out of his thoughts, he quickly glanced up, but the vendor was nowhere to be seen, she must be in the back. Phew! Crisis adverted. Turning he smiled and offered her food, he told her he had just been worried about her not eating, and had gone to get her some food. He watched the smile spread across her face. Now he had no choice, when she nodded, he took her by the hand and led her to a table that was blocked by some vases of plants. Now, no one could see them, and if they did, well, he was just helping some foreign woman for a bit. After all, he couldn't afford to burn bridges here. If things didn't work out as planned with Greta, he might have to come back.

Over dinner, he listened to her prattle on about this work she was doing. Now she needed to go talk to the old woman. Would this day never end? Yes, of course he would go with her. Taking her hand, he let her lead him to the woman's house.

He waited a few steps behind her as she waited for the old woman to answer. Old people sure were slow. Finally the door opened and the old woman stepped out. Oh no! It was Inji! That old busy body, gossiped about every little thing to anyone who was willing to listen (or unable to get away.) After a few minutes, she gave Greta another job. Go to tomb and explore it. Greta was getting mad, and about to say no, when inspiration struck him. Staying partially shrouded in shadows, he reached out and took Greta's hand to catch her attention. He told her he would go back to the market and get supplies for them. He was willing to go with her. He could see Inji trying to get a better look at him, and hoped she didn't. Turning and heading back to the market as fast as he could, he went to get some supplies. After all, if they were in a tomb, they couldn't run into anyone he knew, and they would have some privacy. Things couldn't be better.

By the time he got back with the tent, and other supplies Inji had gone inside. Smiling and taking Greta's hand, they headed for the tomb together. How bad could this be?

The entrance to the tomb was very intimating. How could she want to come to a place like this? Was she crazy!? He didn't know what she did, but the door opened. The smell coming out of the now open door was disgusting! Trying hard not to gag, he watched as Greta went in a little ways. Expecting to hear blood curdling screams and the door to slam shut on her, he was preparing to bolt. Tragically widowed before a week had passed, began to run through his head.

He heard Greta call out to him, well she was still alive. Now he couldn't run away, heaving a sigh and shaking his head, he walked into the tomb. Reaching her, he put his hand in hers and felt her give a start. Good, he wasn't the only one feeling nervous and bit jumpy about this. He smiled a little when he felt her squeeze his hand.

Holding hands they made it to the next room, well more like hallway. He had lived here most of his life looking at this dusty tomb, but never had he imagined anything this intricate was inside. After all, these things were supposed to be from ancient days. At the end of the hall, they came to a well. There was still water in it! How gross was that? You couldn't pay him enough to get into it. So, he was a little shocked when Greta turned to him and told him to wait here. Then she climbed into the well, and disappeared below the surface. Shaking his head and chuckling quietly to himself, he began to wander around the room. She was certainly crazy. Who had he hitched himself too? The minutes began to pass, and he sat by a wall and waited. Finally she resurfaced, but the look on her face wasn't a good one. She sat down on the edge lost in thought. Finally unable to stand the silence anymore, he told her they should look elsewhere, because the breeze from the one wall was really chilly. She looked up at him questioningly, and he pointed to...well make his point. He watched as Greta got up and started looking closely at the wall. What in the world was she doing? It was a wall, an old dirty, cold wall. Smiling, she began pushing against the wall, suddenly the wall moved! Mouth open in astonishment, Youssef watched as another room became visible from what was now a doorway. No way! That was actually kind of cool. Looking at his wife grinning like an idiot, he couldn't help but feel some pride in her.

The next room was more of the same. A well, four walls, but also a door. Checking to make sure it wasn't open, Youssef began to press on the walls, you know just incase they had another opening. He heard a splash and knew Greta was in the well. How she managed to get into those dirty, pits was beyond him. They were probably covered in...well, who knew what. There was a click and a creak, and the door that was behind him began to open. His heart hammering in his chest, he watched the doorway for sounds of movement. Which of course is when Greta surfaced, and he thought he felt his heart stop for a moment. Gods, that was scary. Greta explained as she got out of the well, and then waited for him to join her by the door. Together, they walked through.

Huh. Another hallway. Wait, wait, wait. This one had stairs at the end, and funny coloured stepping stone halfway down the hall. Shrugging, he followed Greta's lead. Did this not bother her? Wasn't she frightened? He almost needed a fresh set of pants. He watched as she stood on the stone. There was a scraping sound, and a piece of the wall opened up. After looking through, Greta took his hand and started heading for the stairs. They were going deeper? Oh boy! He thought sarcastically.

At the bottom was an astounding sight. There was a hallway blocked off by statues and fire. How could fire be burning down here? This place was thousands of years old. Shaking his head a little, he followed Greta as she went to look at some plants. Oh! Now this was interesting. These were flame fruit bushes, they were very rare in Al-Simhara. He could tell from the look on her face that Greta didn't know what they were, but he did. They were worth a small fortune to the right buyer. Looking closer at them as Greta wandered off he could tell, they would be ripe for harvesting soon. Making a mental note of where they were, he turned when he heard Greta grunt followed by a scraping noise. Thinking there was trouble, he tensed to run away from whatever was attacking, when he saw it was just Greta pushing one of the huge statues forward. What was she doing? He watched as the moving statue put out the flames in front of it. Standing in a now clear patch, Greta beckoned him to follow, so he did. Youssef did not want to be left alone down here, and his wife seemed to be the safest place to be; she was fearless. He had a new respect for her.

Okay, another hallway. Rubble at one end? Check. Mysterious corner at the other? Check.  Choices, choices he thought to himself. Greta turned to the left, so he followed. Letting a small sigh out, he started helping her clear away the rubble. There was a dusty old chest underneath which Greta opened and took something out of. What was it? As she headed further down, he opened the chest and looked in. Empty, hmm, what had she grabbed? Wandering further down the hall, he found her moving a smaller pile of rubble, hey look! There was another one of those floor tiles by the dead end. Youssef went and stepped on it, after all Greta had stood on the last one and opened a secret door, maybe this one would too. He had been right. A section of the wall opened up, and beyond was the set of stairs with the flame fruit. Had they just gone in one huge circle? Weird, he turned and started to head back to Greta. She stood up just as he reached her, was that gold coins she was slipping into her bag? How lovely, he'd have to lighten her load of those back in town.

They turned to the right and kept going down a hallway that seemed to curve in on itself. At the end? Another well of course. He watched as Greta disappeared into the water. This sucked. It was cold, creepy, damp, exhausting, and...well, just sucky. He stood when Greta surfaced again and began to excitedly tell him about what she had found. She wanted him to what!? He wanted to scream no at her, and storm out, but figured he would be lost within minutes and die down here alone. Putting on a strained smile, he climbed into the well with her. Ok, maybe this wasn't so bad. At least it wasn't freezing cold. It was kind of warm actually. Why was it warm? Don't tell me she peed in it. That was just gross. Holding his breath like instructed he dived under the water and followed her.

Just as he was losing the ability to hold his breath any longer, his head broke the surface. Boiling! He could already feel his hair starting to dry. Heaving himself over the edge of the well, he saw a room filled with fires and statues. Great they were in the devil's playroom. Tired ,he wondered what Greta would do now. To his surprise ,she suggested they set up camp. He nodded, he was bone weary and just wanted to sleep. She must be feeling worse, but you wouldn't know it. Smiling a little as he setup the tent, he had to admire her determination and will power. She was certainly something else.

Snuggling with her in the tent after a small meal of hard, dried rations, he wondered if they would make it out of here. If someone had asked him where he'd be in his life, he certainly wouldn't have answered in some dusty old tomb. Well, his plan had kind of back -fired, but he was learning a lot, especially about his new wife. That wasn't so bad he thought as he drifted off to sleep.

DAY TWENTY THREE

                                                 (Things are not Always as They Seem)

GRETA

Waking up earlier than Youssef, Greta lay there smiling to herself. It all felt like a fairy tale. Slipping out of the tent quietly, she used the camp facilities and decided to eat breakfast. He was so adorable when he slept, she just couldn't bring herself to wake him. Sitting at the table, and smiling to herself like an idiot, her mind kept wandering back to Mr. Moussa and his request (practically a command actually,) to find his subordinate and do as they command. Why was she thinking of this? Sighing at how stupid she was being, she quickly scrawled out a note. She left it in the tent for Youssef to find when he woke up, then she went to find this Inji Ameen. She was hating herself all ready.

Knocking on the door of the house she had been directed to, Greta was surprised to find a little old lady answer. Feeling foolish for expecting some huge bear of a man with impossible requests, she laughed a little to herself, plastered a smile on her face and introduced herself. After all, how bad could it be? She probably just wanted some company for awhile, that wasn't so bad was it?

Stupid, old battle-axe! Boy, could looks be deceiving! That wasn't a woman, that was a demon in disguise! After introducing herself, all vestiges of niceness disappeared off that woman's face. A few insults about Greta's capabilities later, and she was ordered to go off and hunt down turquoise in the country side. What did she look like, Greta wondered to herself, an errand boy? Some under-paid, over worked lackey!? Well, she wasn't! Which got her wondering why she was searching through some bushes for some stupid gem, instead of giving that woman the tongue lashing of her life.

Several hours, and many, many complaints later. Greta brought the deceptive old hag her turquoise. Giving her a thank you, and then smiling evilly, she ordered Greta to talk to three locals about this company to which she and Mr. Moussaka belonged.Giving a sigh, Greta nodded. It was probably easier just to do it, and get it over with. Besides she didn't want Youssef to think his new wife was a quitter. Now what would be the easiest way to do this?

One quick ride later, she found herself in the market place. Inji had said she had to talk to locals, she didn't say she couldn't enjoy her time doing it and get a little shopping done at the same time. Greta hit a few of the shops, and bought some books, and also discovered a small shop that sold metals and gems for cheap. Half of these she had never heard of back home. Well this could be interesting, so she snatched them up. Now, on to business. Zeroing in on one of the merchants, she struck up a conversation. Trading gossip, and talking about her time in the tombs, she eventually got around to asking for the info Inji had wanted.

Listening to the complaints about the company's behaviour of late, Greta felt exhaustion kicking in. Heading back to camp and Youssef, she couldn't figure out why they were doing all that digging. Why bother? What were they after? Hmm...

YOUSSEF

Feeling blissfully lethargic, Youssef rolled over to cuddle his new wife. Grinning he went to wrap his arms around her, and found himself hugging air. Huh? Opening his eyes a bit, he discovered he was alone in the tent. Hmm, she seemed to be an early riser. Well, that could work out in his favour. He knew she had been an easy mark from the first time he had met her, and what an innocent! Staring at him with those puppy eyes from day one. He had played along, and humoured her, at first just for entertainment, but as he talked to her that first day and got to know her, something changed. He had to have her.

Shaking his head from the silly thoughts in it, he wondered what went wrong. Let's face it, he never planned on settling down. His goal was to seduce as many women as possible in this town and live like a king with them all loving him to the point of supporting him. Greta was just going to be a little icing on the cake. How many times did one run into the opportunity to fleece a foreigner, and have little fun with her, then get her to leave? Not often. So, what went wrong? After she had left that first day, he was sure he  had her hooked, and he was right. It was a little worrisome the next day when she hadn't shown up, after all he was hungry and wasn't going to wait forever. Plus, his house was a bit of a sty. Did she think he hadn't noticed the way she kept trying to to "discreetly" clean his house when he wasn't looking? He wasn't an idiot. Oh yes, he had lucked out this time. Feeling slightly annoyed at her inconsiderate nature for not showing up immediately today, he grumbled a little and went to find one of his regular local girls. She would probably be good for at least a meal today.

When Greta hadn't shown up right away the next morning, he felt some of his self confidence start to ebb away. Maybe he wasn't as good as he thought. Maybe she wasn't so easy after all. Sighing, he was about to set out for one of the local girls again when there was a knock at his door. Peeping out the window to see who it was, he smiled. Nah, he still had it.

Greta had come in smiling, and acting coy. He, of course ,had welcomed her and set about making her feel welcome and as at home as he could. That's when things went wrong for him. He spent hours listening to her prattle on about one stupid thing after another, but somehow watching her talk about it, gesturing wildly, and talking so animatedly, he actually began to enjoy it and listen. Her whole face lit up as she talked about figuring things out, and she laughed at herself about some of her mistakes (that was kind of cute.) What was wrong with him? Just as he was coming to his senses, and about to politely ask her to leave, she stunned him by getting flirty. He could tell by the look on her face, she thought she was being subtle about it, but she was about a subtle as sledgehammer. It was kind of attractive in a weird way. Now, we were getting somewhere. Flirting back, he waited to see if he would be getting what he wanted. It looked like it. Excited by the prospect of a pleasurable night, he started getting a little too caught up in what was happening. When she told him she wanted him to wait for her, he readily agreed. Not that he would, but if it would speed things along, why not say it? By the time she figured out it was a lie, he would be long gone. Things just got worse from there. She had proposed, and being too caught up, he had said yes. Crap! Now what? Well, he could fix things later. She'd never know right? Right. Grimacing a little, he felt a little twinge of guilt. Then things really took a turn.

Sensing he was losing her, he moved away and went to his room. In a small box on his dresser sat a box with all his mothers old jewellery in it. He opened it up, and selected one of her favourite rings. His father had given it to his mother shortly after they were married, as a symbol of his commitment to love her forever. His father had died in a freak sandstorm when he was two. He had gotten turned around, and barely able to see had stumbled too close to a small lake of water. It turns out that lake was home to a group of crocodiles. All they had found were a few scraps of clothing and a finger. He hadn't been old enough to understand at the time, but his mother made sure he never forgot. She told him stories everyday, sometimes what felt like all day. She had passed away a few years ago, soon after he had become an adult.

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he couldn't understand why he was thinking of such things now. Not when Greta was out there about to bolt. Squeezing the ring in his hand, he walked back out and slipped the ring on her finger. What was he doing!? She looked so happy, he smiled. She had a nice smile, and he felt a bit of a flutter when she did. This was all for tonight right? Smiling, he embraced her, and held her, loving the feeling of her in his arms. Oh crap! What was happening? This wasn't happening right? RIGHT!?

Smiling to himself as he lay in the tent, he couldn't help but chuckle a little about the night before. Oh man, he had been right about it being a pleasurable night, and he was so sunk. Oh well, he could start over when they went back to her town. He could be discreet if needed. There were probably a lot of young women in need of a man to take care of there, even a married one. Sighing, he sat up and saw the paper fluttering down off of him. Curious he grabbed it, and began to read.

So that's where she was. Well, there was probably no use in sitting around this camp all day. He would be leaving soon, might as well make a few visits before he left. Besides it would give him a chance to work on his discretion skills a bit. Getting up, he headed to use the facilities.

Heading into the market place, he spotted one of his usual girls. She wasn't quite the beauty Greta was, heck most of his girls were, but she was passable. Plus she could cook better than most of his other girls, hmmm, he wondered what Greta's cooking was like? Snap out of it! Giving his face a bit of a slap,he moved forward. Some harmless flirting later, and he was at her house enjoying a wonderfully home-cooked meal. She really was the best cook. He smiled at her as she kept moving closer inch by inch. Yes, here it came, the part where his real skill showed though, this is what kept them coming back to take care of him. It's not like he wasn't having fun, and not giving something back in return.

As she came closer, squeezing up for a kiss, he could feel himself pulling back a little. Wait! This wasn't right, what was wrong with him? He leaned forward, and gave her a kiss, wrapping his arms around her. She didn't feel anything like Greta. Oh no! No, no, no, no! Ah, man! Suddenly standing upright, so that she face - planted into the floor he darted out the door offering quick apologies.

Walking down a lane towards the camp, he sighed. Great! Now he was in a pickle. What was wrong with him? Why was he doing this? It was to get to a bigger pool of women right? That was right, right? Then why couldn't he keep Greta's face out of his mind? Suddenly, he burst into laughter like a mad man. Sunk! He was sunk. Sitting down in the shade of a tree, he laughed until he cried.

Gazing up after awhile, he noticed that it was almost night. He got up, dusted himself off and turned to head for camp. He noticed a garden in the yard of this house. I wonder if she can cook, he thought. Quietly, and quick as he dared, he crept into the garden and began to pick it clean. He had to hurry. Food was scarce in the desert, and gardens like these were closely guarded by their owners. Smiling he worked quickly and efficiently, then headed for camp. He could have a career as thief, he was so good he thought to himself.

Back at camp he looked for Greta, but couldn't find her anywhere. Surely, She was ok. Sitting down by the fire pit, he absent-mindedly poked at it. Soon, he saw her walk into the camp, looking tired and dirty. When she looked up and saw him, she smiled and it lit up her face. She really did have a beautiful smile. He couldn't help but grin at her in answer. Walking over to her, he asked how her day went. Seriously, what did he care? Strangely enough, he found himself listening to her talk. Then she asked about his. Feeling happy that she asked, but guilty about his actions today, he gave her a vague answer. Then he  took her by the hand and led her to a tent. Smiling as he watched her get in, he soon followed. Ah! This is how it was supposed to feel, just right.

A Note From the Author

 

 

So, the unthinkable happened to me about 3 weeks ago. I lost my challenge game. Poof up in smoke! I have no idea where it went or why? Maybe it was the bad writing, maybe it could see where I was taking it and it didn't like it. Who knows, Charles the Evil chicken could have deleted when I wasn't looking because I didn't give him enough time on the front lines of the story.

 

 

The Point is, it's gone. I, however, in a very smart move for me (this almost never occurs when I want it to) had saved upto 50 blog posts where I was writing them. So, I've gone back and started a game with the same character, and followed my previous blog posts up until this point. Now the next blog post will have some names changed because obviously I couldn't draw the same random characters to fill some of the posts.

 

 

On a side note, I have pictures that I've been practicing taking in game. They're not great, probably not even good, but they are there. So, I will be going back to previous posts and trying to widgy them in there. Hope you enjoy.

DAY TWENTY TWO
(Romance is for Those Who Believe it Exist)

After waking up, and discovering that it hadn't all been a dream (nightmare or not, she couldn't tell,) Greta set out determined to find Youssef. After showering, eating, and let's face it, just getting out of the darn tent, half of the day was already gone.

Feeling sore, and punished to the max, Greta went and knocked on Youssef's door. Hoping that he was home, she felt relieved when he finally answered it. Inviting her inside with a smile, Greta eagerly followed.

They talked for hours about everything, and nothing. The more they talked, the more Greta started feeling like she was going to miss out on something special in her life when she left. Staying for dinner, and a few drinks after, she decided to test the waters and see how Youssef felt.

Flirting a little bit, she could tell he was interested. Oh goody! Continuing her flirtatious assault, she finally confessed her feelings. Wait! Wasn't it supposed to be the other way around? Feeling a bit embarrassed, she was more than pleasantly surprised when he asked her to look at him, and then kissed her. He kissed her! Greta felt like her heart was about to explode from happiness. Oh, now how was she going to leave? Feeling like a bit of an idiot, and slightly disappointed in herself, she told Youssef how she felt. Smiling he said he felt the same way. Feeling like a sad, and extremely happy idiot, Greta blurted the first thing that popped into her head.

Will you be mine forever and wait? Did she really just say that? Man, she sounded like all those air - headed heroines in the novels she used to read in Bridgeport. She had been so disgusted with them for simpering like fools over men, and now she had turned into one. The world was ending. He must think she was a foreign idiot. Great! She heard him give a chuckle and then hug her and say yes. OMG! Hugging him back, she told him she didn't want to let him go. He said he felt the same way. Laughing as she said it, she said marry me. To her surprise, he gave a little jump for joy and said yes. Did she just hear that right? Totally  stunned as he walked away, she started to feel a little nervous. Then he came back with a ring. Saying it was his mother's, and giving a small embarrassed excuse that it was all he had, he slipped the ring on her finger and vowing to love her, he gave her a kiss.

Laughing like an idiot, she took him back to her camp. Amused at the tent, Youssef entered into it, and beckoned Greta inside. Oh, bliss! Greta had never  known such happiness.

Day Twenty One

(Just because you used to play in dirt, doesn't mean you still have to)

 

So, waking up in a desert was mildly disconcerting. Greta started checking out her surroundings. She was in some kind of a camp, and there was a board "for intrepid adventurers." You can get jobs here? Well, why not? Picking one, she decided to set out to talk to a Mr. Moussa.

 

On her way, Greta's heart almost stopped. The most beautiful sight she had ever seen came walking out of his house. Greta's heart started pounding, she wasn't sure what to do when he came over and started talking to her.

 

It turns out his name was Youssef Nagi, but she just barely managed to catch it after the third time he said it. It was easy talking to him, but she had a hard time concentrating on any one thing, which also seemed to amuse him. God, he was blindingly stunning! The more she talked to him, the more she realized he was just a friendly soul. After another hour, she left with the promise to come back and talk another day, and that was one promise she intended to keep.

 

Making a wrong turn (which was easy to do in these twisting, turning streets, ) Greta ended up in  what she later learned was the market place. Taking a look at what was for sale, she made some purchases. Then she continued on to Mr. Moussa's.

 

A TOMB!? Did she hear him right? He wanted her to go into a tomb and find some papers. Why would anyone stuff papers in a tomb full of dead people? Well, alright. She wanted a new experience right? Might as well try, as long as she got to meet Mr. Handsome again what was there to lose? She had better meet him again, or else she was going to be haunting someone for eternity.

 

Heading to the location they had discussed (someone needs to work on their direction giving skills,) she went down the stairs imagining an ancient trap or a mummy devouring her. Stop it Greta! Stupid imagination! It was going to kill her before she could get started. Well, this wasn't so bad. It was well lit, and although a little musty smelling, quite comfy. Spotting something glittering on the ground, she went to check it out. Coins! A huge pile of coins. While picking them up, she looked around and spotted a treasure chest. Hmmm, well why not? He had said she could keep what she found as long as she gave him the papers.

 

A key? What was she supposed to do with this? Greta stood up, clutching the key in confusion. Honestly, this was weird. Sighing, she leaned against the wall, and found an indent in it. Wiping it off, there was a missing space in the shape of her key. Aha! Putting the key in the hole, she heard a snapping and creaking sound. Turning to see if she was about to die, she discovered one of the doors was now opened slightly. She entered, crossing her fingers that the papers would be on the other side.

 

Of course not. What there was was a nasty, creepy looking statue. Actually, it kind of reminded her of her Uncle Albert. It was the long pointy nose and the wing-tip hair she supposed. Um, ok now what? She had played enough Zelda to know that sometimes statues came to life and bounced you death. Ugh, death by Uncle Albert would just suck, at least this statue didn't have his bad breath. Walking closer, she kept her eyes on it. Almost all the way to the statue, Greta stepped forward and the floor sank a little bit. She froze in shock as she heard the same sound as before and saw another door opening. Alright! The papers had to be through there. Moving forward towards the door, she paled as the door slammed shut in front of her. What was happening? Turning in confusion, her heart pounding, she looked for the danger. Ok, the statue was right where she left it. Good, she had been about to scream from sheer terror. Calming her heart down, she slowly walked back to the statue. Stepping on the spot from before, she heard the door open, turning and getting ready to dash she moved her foot off the ground and the door slammed shut. Oh! It must be a switch! Testing her theory a couple of times, she wondered how to make it stay. Her eyes wandered over to Uncle Albert. Hmm, does it move? Greta walked up to Uncle Albert and pushed. Yes! It moved, giggling a little bit she had to admit finally getting to push Uncle Albert around would be good for a change. Now we're getting somewhere, pushing Uncle Albert over to the switch (chuckling the whole way,) she heard the door open. Smiling, she headed for the open door.

 

In the next room were more Uncle Albert's (she could never escape the silly man at family gatherings either,) and with a little looking, another switch. Well, this is easy to deal with. Feeling confident, Greta pushed one of the statues on the switch and started looking around the walls. She heard a click, but no door opened. What? She walked over to the door, but it wouldn't budge. Taking a deep breath, she spun around and started scanning the room. She had heard a click, something had happened. After a few moments, she noticed a new spot on the floor. Walking over, she noticed a drawing of footprints on it. Well, what was there to lose besides her feet? Stepping on it, she heard the door open. Gingerly stepping off, and waiting for the door to close, Greta started sidling toward another statue. However, the door remained open. Letting loose a small sigh of victory, she headed through the door.

 

Greta noticed the treasure chest first. Opening it, she found a few pieces of treasure and sheaf of papers. Yes! This must be what Mr. Moussa had wanted. Scooping them up, she quickly stood, and lost her balance. Reaching her hands out, she braced herself against the wall, and felt it move a little bit. Huh? Standing up, she took a look at the wall; it seemed a bit different from the rest. Giving it a few pushes, Greta discovered a new room. Oh sweet! Wait, isn't this the part in all the movies when a dead mummy came and ate you? With her heart hammering in her chest, Greta entered the little chamber and discovered another chest. Oh, thank the stars! Feeling relieved, and wanting to get out of this creepy place, Greta took what she could and went back.

 

Back in the treasure room, she looked around and noticed another set of stairs. Well, she go forward, or go back. She pondered for a moment, and then chose the stairs. After all, what if she went back, but the rooms snapped shut and locked, and the switches wouldn't work anymore? Giggling a little nervously (stupid Hollywood,) she mounted the stairs. At the top was a door, and to her left was another treasure chest. Directly in front of her was a footswitch. Opening the chest, she seized the treasure, then stood on the switch. Nothing happened. Uh-oh. Feeling a little panicky, she stomped and then jumped on the switch. Finally, the door swung open! Feeling like it was a limited time offer from some sadistic, fun-loving god, she practically ran into the next room.

 

Blinking in confusion for a few moments, she finally realized that she was back in the very first room again. Wait, how'd that happen? Had she really done it? Had she made it all the way through!? Feeling giddy, and triumphant, she jumped for joy, laughing out loud and feeling a bit silly. Well, wasn't she talented. Time to get these papers to Mr. Moussa, and tell him all about it. Oh, and wouldn't this make a good story to tell Youssef? Smiling to herself, Greta ran out of the tomb.

 

Man, that did not go as she had expected. When she had returned the papers to Mr. Moussa, he had smiled and congratulated her, and then told her to meet someone else and do more work. What was she, one of his workers? She didn't think so, he was a fool if he thought she was doing that again! Feeling somewhat put upon, and extremely tired, she got directions back to her camp, had a bite to eat and sank into a blissful slumber in one of the smelly tents on the hard packed ground.

Day Twenty

(Vacations are always nice, it's the traveling that sucks)

 

Waking up to the thunderstorm this morning was actually quite comforting. It helped that she didn't feel sick anymore, and the room not spinning really helped a lot too. Feeling starved after a day of hardly eating, Greta made waffles and scarfed them down, then finished the rest of her routine.

 

Thankful to the rain, because it kept Charles at bay, Greta managed to gather the eggs without incident or injury to her pride. Feeling like wasn't so bad out, she donned her scuba gear and waded into the water...and right back out again! Great googlie mooglies it was cold out! Ripping off her scuba gear, she headed back inside with a quick stop to chat up the chickens.

 

Inside she flipped through the catalogue, more out of boredom than necessity. Finally, she reached the back page. There sure was a lot of stuff crammed in this catalogue. Before looking at the final page, she pondered how they managed to get their hands on all of it, then decided she didn't want to know.

 

Looking down, she saw the greatest sight she had ever seen. They offered vacations! Oh and to three places she'd always wanted to go! It didn't take Greta long to think about it. She placed her request in the mailbox, and started to giggle about the thought of being kidnapped tonight, when all of a sudden she felt a jerking motion as she was lifted off her feet. NOW! THEY WERE DOING IT NOW!? Those were her last thoughts before blacking out.

Day Nineteen

(The punishment)

 

The room swam this morning when Greta opened her eyes. Not because her house was flooding like she first thought, but because she was sick. This must be her punishment for singing off key, and with no rhythm out loud. It was enough to drive her into bed for the rest of the day.

 

Tomorrow would be better, after all, she had nothing to bring up.

Day Eighteen

(Call me Mrs. Scuba!)

 

Greta woke up today feeling a bit depressed. After her morning routine, she checked on the chickens and gathered her eggs. Feeling like it was okay to go down to the cave today, she got into her scuba gear and went all in.

 

Man, the fishing was excellent today! Catching more than her fair share of fish, Greta was about to surface when she spotted her arch enemy. He must have spotted her bulging pack because he charged Greta gnashing his jaws the whole time.

 

Greta had had enough. Giving it everything she had, she charged under the shark, and then shot towards the surface. All this scuba diving must have toned her body because she made it without any injuries this time. Call me Mrs. Scuba! ran, as a theme song, in her head all the way home.

 

Returning, she sold what she could, cut the few gems she had acquired, and had a late dinner and went to bed. The chickens could fend for themselves for once.

Day Seventeen

(Finally we might be getting a clue)

 

Today things were looking up for Greta. The air was warm, and it was a lovely day. Outside, the chickens were happy and giving eggs, and to make it perfect; no neighbours were anywhere on her little island. They could make the most awful sounds imaginable (and she was from Bridgeport, so you knew it was bad when she couldn't stand the noise.)

 

Taking her chances, she donned her scuba gear, and headed for the cave. Several fish were available, but seemed to be in a teasing mood. They darted out of reach each time Greta went to catch one. Hmm, maybe they were catching onto the flipper trick, she'd need a new method soon. Using the cave, she went to the next spot.

 

After harvesting some kelp, Greta went fish hunting. She managed to catch a few, but they were few and far between. Feeling somewhat dejected, she headed home for the day. It wasn't a total loss, she had managed to get a few gems which she cut, and she made her new dishwasher unbreakable.

 

Late that night, she reached out and grabbed a hold of Nessie and Nestor. No one had to know how lonely she felt.

Day Sixteen

(You thought I was kidding about the boring stuff huh? Welcome to Life)

 

Today when Greta got up, she could feel the cold. She did her morning routine like normal and then went to take care of the chickens. Bad eggs again, maybe there were feeling the chill as well? Oh well, she'd have to find a solution to that problem later.

 

Donning her scuba gear, she put one toe in the water and went back downstairs to get dressed. Today was a fishing day, yup definitely a fishing day.

 

It actually wasn't so bad. After hours of fishing, Greta decided to try scuba diving once more. This time she made it to the cave, but maybe she had it right the first time around. The chickens and the fish seemed to feel the same way, they were nowhere to be found. After a disappointing trip, Greta returned home to find some mushrooms she missed on her way out. A little leary after the whole salad incident, she put them away in her fridge anyways. If things didn't perk up soon, it might be time to try island greens again.

 

After making sushi for dinner, she made sure her sink was self cleaning, and then went to bed.

Day Fifteen

(Some people are just completely clueless)

 

Today was a great day. Greta woke up feeling brilliant! Her morning went well. The eggs were collected and the chickens were well fed.

 

Feeling lucky, she went back to the cave and caught several fish. Travelling through the cave, she brought up metals and some gems, and there were more fish on the other side. Just as she was leaving, some sharks showed up, but she was already safe. The small stream of laughter bubbles followed her through the cave and back up to the surface.

 

Back at home, she fed the chickens again and sold her findings. It was a good day. Greta still felt like something was missing though, but what?

Day Fourteen

(It's starting to feel a lot like...)

 

When Greta woke up this morning, it was still raining, not as hard as yesterday though. After her morning routine, she decided she couldn't put off going out any more. Winter was coming soon, and the water was already getting to the point where it was too cold to go in for long.

 

Heading outside, she fed the chickens and collected the eggs, things were already looking up, no bad eggs today. No flowers either, so it was kind of disappointing, but still looking like a decent day.

 

In the water Greta caught several fish, including a small shark (Ha! Take that!) After catching her fill and harvesting some kelp (who knew it had been here the whole time,) Greta returned to the boat. She talked to the chickens for a bit, and sent the metal she had found off to be smelted. Tired, she made some sushi with the fish she had caught, and went to bed.

 

It was hard to fall asleep that night. She had gotten used to life here, and the chickens were nice, but she wished she had someone else to talk to.

Day Thirteen

(You thought it only lasted for one day? Silly, it's the Thirteenth)

 

It must just be the day. Today when Greta got up, there was a huge thunderstorm happening. Scuba diving and snorkeling would have to be put off for the day. After morning routine, she set about the house cleaning it. Honestly, how it go so dirty was beyond her. Maybe she has more late night visitors than she thought.

 

Thinking about her cleaning issues, Greta set about learning on how to make things self-cleaning, and she did it! It was a slow process, but her shower and her toilet (two of the three main offenders) were turned into self-cleaning units. Next would be that pesky sink.

 

Not holding out hope after morning collection (3 bad eggs,) Greta went up to collect the eggs again. Yup, the same as the morning. Maybe it has to do with the weather changes. It felt like autumn now, it was cooler, and not many people were out (thank goodness,) but there were more flowers. It might not be a bad trade off. Today there were three Maui bean seeds. Not even remotely interested, Greta put them up for sale.

 

Totally exhausted from doing nothing all day, Greta made dinner and went to bed.

Day Twelve

(If it wasn't for bad luck...)

 

Greta couldn't believe it when she woke up this morning. One of the neighbours was in her bathroom! As soon as she got up, he took off. This was not going to be a good day, she could tell already. Breakfast was great, but then the toilet plugged, and the sink broke. Time to go to the catalogue. She ordered a new toilet and sink along with a dishwasher and a new table and chairs. Then Greta headed to check on the chickens.

 

Gross! Her first bad egg. Oh man that was rotten, literally. Sighing as she passed the crowd of neighbours to get to the water, Greta headed for the cave again. Why couldn't they do whatever it is they were doing on their own island?

 

Down at the cave, she felt her luck was really changing. She caught several fish before noticing the sharks closing in. Greta swam like mad for the cave, but didn't quite make it. After the attack, she surfaced and headed for home. It wasn't a great haul, but there were fish and a ruby. It would have to do.

 

At home Greta started looking for hobby-type things in the catalogue, but nothing caught her eye. Instead she tinkered for a bit with her stove trying to see how it worked, when it hit her. She wouldn't need to spend so much time cleaning if she cold make her stuff self-cleaning. A plan in mind for the future, Greta made herself some dinner and went to bed.

 

Tomorrow would be better, she just knew it.

Day Eleven

(Let the daily monotony begin)

 

 

Feeling great about the way things are going, Greta's morning routine seemed to go faster than normal. After a good breakfast of waffles (not burnt this time,) it was time to hit the water.

 

Back out at the cave, Greta nabbed a few fish before her old buddies the sharks showed up. Today, they must have given up on her though, because after the second time she peed her pants they left. Maybe they just don't like warm water. Feeling pleased with herself, Greta decided to catch some fish. There weren't many out today, maybe they didn't like warm water either. Oh well, there's always tomorrow.

 

Returning home, Greta noticed some more neighbours as she'd come to think of them lately. Shaking her head she went to check on the chickens. After gathering the eggs, and telling the chickens about her day (she could swear Charles was grinning and laughing at her,) she  went inside and made a nice autumn salad and then to bed.

Day Ten

 

 

For the first time in forever, Greta woke up feeling excited about just getting up. The new bed was amazing! So warm and comfy, she almost didn't want to get out. Oh and the shower, it was like heaven! Not quite sure how whoever put it in did it, but she had hot water. Hot water, imagine it! Feeling like a million bucks, and gauging her bumps and scratches as not that bad, she headed out to explore that cave.

 

The chickens seemed fine, Charles was his usual nasty self. Even that couldn't ruin her day now. Greta gathered the eggs, and headed towards the beach. She couldn't believe the sight that awaited her. A single flower was growing just up from the sand. It was so beautiful, Greta smelled it and remembered trips to the park with her mother. Gosh, that felt like a lifetime ago. Greta picked the flower and stuck it in her bag. Then headed out to the water.

 

She made it back down to the cave, and lucky her, no sharks. Greta looked all around her, before heading into the cave. In the darkness, she thought she could see something moving. Putting it out of her mind, she forged ahead. This cave seemed to go on forever! Finally, spying some light, she shot ahead and exited out in a completely new spot, and what a spot it was. There was another treasure chest, and plethora of fish to catch.

 

After looting the chest, Greta set about catching as many fish as she could. Finally exhausted after chasing down so much yummy food, Greta decided to just float for a moment. That's when she noticed the shark from yesterday, and this time he had brought a friend. Feeling her wet suit get warm suddenly, she quickly ducked down into the cave and headed back the way she had come. Well, what she hoped was the way she had come.

 

Exiting the cave, she was happy that she recognized these seaweed patches, and dirt, or was it sand? Who cares! She loved it either way. Deciding not to press her luck, she started for the surface. Almost at the top, something swimming below caught her eye. Oh no! Was it the shark? Had it followed her? Wasn't it too big to fit in the cave? Wait, what was that? Nah, it couldn't be. Greta shook her head and laughed, those only existed in fairy tales. She could have sworn it smiled and waved at her though.

 

Back at the ranch, I mean island, Greta noticed something red between all the brambles. It was another flower. This time her favorite one, a cosmos. Oh, how absolutely lovely! She picked it and Stuffed it, along with everything else she wanted into her mailbox. Going downstairs she put her new fridge and stove to good use. She could get used to cooking her own meals.

 

Incredibly tired, and wanting to snuggle down in her covers, Greta headed for bed.

Day Nine

 (Here there be sharks!)

 

Totally the best day ever! Greta woke up determined to make that raccoon stop laughing at her! Only when she woke up, there was no raccoon, no bunnies, and the walls were fine. Oh gosh! What had she eaten? Maybe no more salad until she learned a bit more about the plants on the island first.

 

Feeling very sheepish, Greta got ready for her day. Upstairs, she quickly gathered eggs, and fed the chickens. As she was heading out into the ocean, she remembered the glinty spot she had seen yesterday. Heading towards the spot, she dived down to see if she could figure it out. Boy! Was she surprised.

 

Who knew all this existed under the water? Maybe her Alien theory was right. Maybe they came and left a bunch of junk behind. Giggling, she thought about all the times her grandfather Henrik had told her one man's trash was another man's treasure. She remembered her mom always retorting with, that just makes you a garbage picker, and then the two of them would argue until the cows came home. Wow, she hadn't thought about her family in awhile. What she wouldn't give to have her mom set her up with some weird, cheesy-smelling guy again.

 

Lost in memories, and feeling nostalgic for the good old days, Greta was awakened when a large fish swam past her. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she decided to explore; it was no good living in the past, she needed to survive now. You know, so she could go home someday.

 

Watching the fish swim for awhile, she decided to catch it. Finally after the slippery sucker had gotten away four times, she managed to wrangle it into her bag. Hitting it with her flipper had helped, but only a little bit. Looking around, Greta spotted the glint again. Following it she found a cave, and... A TREASURE BOX!

 

Now this was more like it! Greta found thousands of dollars inside, along with a gem, and a painting in a waterproof covering. Oh yeah! Now things could happen. Getting ready to take a look in the cave, she spotted another fish swimming near by. Mm, dinner. Just as Greta managed to catch the fish (starting with the flipper clobbering- ok, may it helped more than a little- things went more smoothly, and faster,) she noticed a large shadow surrounding her.

 

Shark! When Greta had looked up, her worst nightmare had come true. Just when she found a way to make things a bit easier, she was going to be someone else's dinner. Wait, all those shark week shows, what did they say? Stay calm, no blood, swim very slowly. Moving, so that it barely felt like she was, Greta started heading up and away from the shark. The cave could wait for another day.

 

Just when she thought she was about to get away, the shark turned on her. Forget slow! Greta started swimming like her life depended on it, because it did. But it was no use, the shark quickly caught up, and Greta looked like a juicy meal. looking at her impending demise coming towards her, she felt all the rage, frustration, sadness, and tears welling up inside. Letting out a scream like a wounded buffalo on the war path (which disappointingly, no one could hear because it was underwater with no one around; and because it came out in a series of bubbles,) Greta decided to give the shark a thrashing.

 

Thankful to be on the shore of her lonely island (it had been a close call,) Greta started for home to tend her wounds. Wow, thank goodness some of those salad greens had still been in her bag. After being wounded, she had meant to grab one of the fish and let out for a distraction so she could get away; instead she threw a handful of salad greens. It had been a close call, but the shark took the illusion producing greens worse than she had (she hoped.) Whatever the shark was going through, it looked awful! She almost felt sorry for it, watching it swim away in circles, biting at nothing.

 

Inside her house, she opened the catalogue, and placed an order for a better bed, a better shower, a counter, and a stove. Jackpot! Feeling lucky, she headed outside and decided to try her luck at fishing again.

 

Man, she was on a roll today! More jellyfish, and a tuna! She had had no idea that tuna came outside of a can, but there they were! They were kind of ugly, maybe she shouldn't eat them. Stuffing everything into her mailbox to sell (this thing must be magical, there was never-ending space in it,) she headed downstairs. Blinking in confusion, she noticed the things she had ordered had arrived. How were they doing it!? She had been by the entrance the whole time. Creeped out, but happy, Greta ran to her new bed and flopped down. She'd finally be able to cook real food! Hopefully, her kitchen wouldn't burn down, it was brand new after all.

Day Eight

(Strange Salads)

 

Waking up this morning, Greta noticed a new machine in her house. Wondering what it was, she went to look at it and discovered it was the gem cutting machine she had ordered. Gasping in shock, she wondered when it had been brought in! She hadn't heard anyone come in, surely she would have noticed. Oh no! Was she drooling when they came in!? How unattractive, wait... Why did she care? Smiling, she did her morning routine and went to go outside.

 

After checking on the chickens, and gathering the eggs, Greta waded out into the water. She decided to start in another spot. She managed to collect three shells before it started to storm. Thinking she had better start heading in before she started doing the dead man's float for the rest of her life, she noticed something glinting far below her. Making a mental note to check it out tomorrow, she carried on her way finding more gems, shells, and another space rock.

 

One foot on shore, and the storm stopped. Really!? Ugh, oh well there was always tomorrow. Checking on the chickens one last time, she found more eggs. Poor things, they must have had the eggs scared right out of them. Even that evil chicken (which Greta had decided to name Charles,) wasn't making much noise. Teasing him a little bit and knowing that she'd pay for it when he was feeling better, she headed downstairs to play with her new toy.

 

It was AMAZING! So, easy to use. Talk about a breeze! She cut all the gems she had found over the last few days and sent them to be sold. Inside, Greta decided to make herself a green salad with a few of the plant leaves she had found scattered on the island.

 

Feeling full, and satisfied with her ingenuity, Greta started heading to bed. Funny, she didn't remember the walls melting and dipping in like that before. Where did all the ugly pink bunnies come from? Why was there a raccoon laughing at her!? Stupid raccoon! She'd show it today! Lunging for it, Greta fell flat on her face, and into a deep slumber. Her last thought was: Please let me wake up, I still have to teach that raccoon a lesson.

Day Seven

(First Order)

 

After getting up this morning and getting ready to head out, Greta grabbed her bag and found it was heavy. Looking inside, she discovered a few gems she had forgotten about collecting. Putting them aside, she hefted her stuff outside, and noticed some stuff along the beach. A white mushroom,  and a grape seed. She knew it was a grape seed, because her friend owned a vineyard back in Bridgeport; this seed didn't look so good though. Still, Greta wondered if she could plant it and make it grow. It was worth a try anyways. Greta set out into the ocean to see what she could find today.

 

Wow! Was today fruitful or what? Not only did she find several more gems, she found shells up the wazoo! She also found a mate to her toy Loch Ness doll Nessie; she'd call this one Nester. Giggling at her idea of a bad joke, she went to check on the chickens. Still good, no new eggs. Alright, inside it was.

 

Having a dinner of cold canned soup, and dreaming about hot, cooked-to-order steak and frites, Greta thumbed through the catalogue. It was there that she discovered a gem cutting machine. Just what she needed! After all, with how she was finding all these gems, it could quickly become too expensive to have them sent away and cut. Placing an order, she went back to flipping through the catalogue. Who knew what other amazing things she could find.

 

Satisfied with her day, she settled down for the night.

Day Six

(The Great Chicken Debate)

 

Waking up feeling totally refreshed, thanks to being lulled to sleep by that thunderstorm last night, Greta grinned to herself. Not long ago, she remembered being terrified of the thunderstorms out here. Yup, life was pretty good right now. After a quick breakfast and a shower, she went upstairs.

 

Checking on the mailbox, she chuckled. Either it had escaped or she had sold it. Considering she could see the money, it had been the latter; too bad. Giggling a little, Greta walked over to where the chickens were, still alive and kicking, and with eggs! Oh yeah! This was a win-win. Collecting the eggs, she put them away properly, and went to hit the water.

 

Hey! There was another seed, snatching it up, she tucked it into her bag for inspection later. There were things to find out there.

 

Ok, so a little creeped out, Greta returned to the shore. Now, she was convinced that Aliens had either crash-landed here, or were once living in this ocean. She had found two more space rocks, and a bunch of shells. Going back to her boat, she wondered if she would meet an Alien someday.

 

Checking for eggs and finding none, Greta had her first run in with the mean chicken. Normally it shied away from her, but today it must have been feeling braver. At first trying to coax it down, then arguing with it, Greta decided she'd lost her mind. Looking again, Greta decided that chicken was mean, because it was actually a rooster. Yeah, she thought, I'd be mean too if I was so girly looking people thought I was a chicken. Pausing mid-step, she decided that didn't quite sound right. Could chickens be feminine looking? Shrugging, she went inside for some dinner, and then sleep.

Day Five

 

 

Looking back on it, Greta realized today had been topsy-turvy, but in a good way. First, she woke up and had breakfast and a shower. She must be acclimatizing to her surroundings better because the ice cold shower didn't seem that cold today. Going outside, it was a beautiful summer day again. Just as she was passing her mailbox, she noticed something in it. How strange, upon opening it she couldn't believe her eyes! A bill? Seriously!? A bill! Out here in the middle of nowhere, for services rendered. I guess even lost at sea they try and stick it to you.

 

Paying the $17 bill, Greta mutter to herself under breath on her way to the beach. Just as she was stepping onto the sand, she noticed something small moving near the edge of the water. Freezing, Greta watched for a moment. Her heart racing, she hoped it wasn't a land-walking jellyfish coming to get her for catching its cousin. Suddenly, it ran into a patch of sunlight. It was some sort of lizard. Squealing with delight, Greta took off after it.

 

Laughing to herself as she held onto the lizard she had finally managed to catch, Greta couldn't remember having so much fun in what felt like forever. She decided to name him Samuel and keep him around for company (things with the raccoon didn't seem to be working out.) Decision made, she started to take Samuel home and look for a box to keep him in. Maybe there would be something in that catalogue. $17 ha! Rip off artists.

 

A few minutes later, her thoughts interrupted, Greta nearly dropped Samuel in shock. He had bit her! Well, that wasn't going to fly, she had enough of that from that stupid raccoon! Stuffing Samuel into the mailbox, she decided to sell him. Feeling slightly guilty, but determined, Greta went back to the ocean and started snorkeling. Greta found another space rock again. Hmmm, did a spaceship crash around here or something? Giggling to herself about what a wacky day she was having, she almost missed a shell. Grabbing it at the last minute she headed home.

 

Quite the sight awaited her on the shore. Along with some broken boards and other garbage that had washed up, there was a familiar sound: Cluck! Cluck! Greta turned her head trying to locate the sound. How in the world did a couple of chickens end up here? After getting over her astonishment, she chased and caught them. Looking through the debris, she built a crude shelter for them and shoved them in it. She'd give the animals another try. She could use the company. Oh! The eggs, chickens laid eggs! Real, normal food! Yes, she could use these chickens; besides if they pecked her, they could be eaten or used as fish bait.

 

Feeling lucky, and quite pleased with herself, Greta went downstairs to bed. Yup, today had been quite the day. Oh wait! The lizard, was it ok? Was it still alive? Giggling a little evilly, Greta decided she'd check on it in the morning.

Day Four

 

 

Today was going to be a great day! Greta was absolutely sure of it when she woke up. She had some bread and jam, and then hit the shower. Going up to the surface, she discovered the sun was shining, the air crisp and clean, and it was warm. No more freezing for Greta today!

 

After checking her mailbox (she'd been using the mailbox system,) she headed out into the water. After a few hours, Greta was starting to feel slightly discouraged again. Nothing! That's when she spotted it.  Something small and a bit darker than the shadows surrounding it. Going a bit deeper she reached it, and discovered she had found a rock unlike anything she had ever seen. It was cool to the touch and just a bit on the mysterious side. Greta had heard of these things, they were space rocks. Some were worthless, while others were worth a fortune. She put in in the mailbox to sell. After all, what good would a space rock do her here?

 

Going inside, Great wasn't feeling all that hungry and talking to herself didn't feel all that appealing. So, she decided to fish. Going back outside, Greta fished for a few hours and caught more anchovies just as she was about to call it quits, her line tugged more sharply than it ever had before. With some patience, a lot of struggling, and a few curses, Greta managed to pull her catch out of the water. She had caught a jellyfish. Wait! She had caught a jellyfish! Her dismay turning to delight, she did a bit of a happy dance in congratulation to herself. This meant she was getting better right?

 

Feeling quite pleased with herself, Greta sold the jellyfish and put her freshly caught anchovies in the fridge. She tucked herself into bed. Yes, life was getting good.

Day Three

(They can't all be winners)

 

She couldn't believe it! After finally relaxing and deciding to face her future head on, She had woken up late. She quickly hopped out of bed and ate a cold breakfast of cereal. A short freezing cold shower later, she was washing her dishes when the water started spurting out of  the sink! After trying to fix the leak (all the while, water gushing into her face and soaking her,) Greta wasn't sure why she had showered in the first place. Going upstairs, she put on a brave face and hopped into the water to snorkel for a bit.

 

After unsuccessfully finding anything useful, Greta decided to come home. She found more strange people, as well as the raccoon and two deer. After trying to pet the raccoon again today, Greta could hear a slight difference in the tone of the growls. Yes! She was finally starting to break it, no him, down.

 

Freezing cold from being outside in the water until night time, Greta went back to her home, and went to bed. Surely, tomorrow will be better.

Day Two

 

 

Upon waking up, Greta realized that he pep-talk she had given herself last night really did help. So, she gave herself another one this morning. Using the shower (which miracle of miracles) seemed to work adequately enough, she took a cold but much needed shower. Another small breakfast of found cereal and she was out the door. On the island, she found a seed. Hmmm, this could come in handy. Maybe more things would wash ashore in time, like another person or some more furniture! Keeping hope in her heart, Greta decided to go snorkeling again. This time around she only found one shell, and a really creepy gnome-like doll. The water was really murky and too hard to see clearly in, but she guessed that was from he huge storm that happened last night.

 

 

Feeling a bit dejected she returned home. That's funny, it'd only been one day but she had come to think of it as her home. When she arrived, there were two people on her island! They looked really weird and kept taking turns making poofing noises. She decided to leave them alone. They must be from another island, but if that's what they were like over there, then they could stay over there.

 

That's when Greta noticed the fish jumping in the water again. Deciding that her humiliating failure the before wasn't going to happen again, Greta tried fishing. She caught 7 fish! They were really tiny anchovies, but still! Feeling totally happy with herself she took them downstairs to cook and eat. On the way, she remember that didn't have a stove or know how to cook. Her enthusiasm curbed, she now had a new goal...maybe.

 

Spying a wild raccoon, she decided to stop and talk to it for awhile (because talking to yourself after awhile just leads to arguing.) After being bit a couple of times, Greta decided to leave the animal alone. After all, they were going to be living together for awhile, there was no need to rush.

 

After just getting on the ship, she noticed a new mailbox and a catalogue. Pelican News Delivery? It buys and sells stuff!? Now this might be interesting. No need to call, just place an order for buying or selling in the mailbox. Right, what mailbox? Looking beside her, she noticed the new shiny mailbox. Oh, this will make things much easier. Thinking deeply, she continued downstairs.

 

After a dinner of green salad, she got back into her sleeping bag (now thankfully dry,) and went to sleep. Thing were starting to look up, maybe this life won't be so sad.

Day One

(Nifty title huh?)

 

Greta Coe washed up on the shore of an island all alone. She knew when she had boarded that party boat for her mothers birthday party that something was going to go wrong. She just figured it would be another one her mothers "set-up" attempts.So when she wished the boat would sink, she hadn't really been serious.

 

Now, what she going to do? All the survival training she had done as a child in the girl scouts kicked in. She waded out into the water to see if anything had floated in with her. At least a piece of the boat had come with her, so she had shelter. She managed to salvage a table and two cheap chair from the boat as well as a really soggy sleeping bag. She almost managed to find a small bench to sit on. Luckily, the piece of boat she had found came equipped with a small shower, sink, and toilet.

 

Now she would need food and some natural materials to make living comfy. So she put all those swimming lessons she whined about as a child to good use. She went snorkeling. She managed to find two gems in the water which she promptly began to turn into something usable. Next she found two shells and a toy Loch Ness. At least she'd have something cuddle with.

 

Realizing she didn't know how to cook, she quickly came to realization that fishing might be useless at this point, but she tried it anyway. Not catching a thing, Greta still felt as though she learned something that would help her anyway.

 

Inside she managed to find a small box of cereal that somehow survived the trek intact. So a cold meal of cereal later and she was feeling down about her first day surviving by herself. Looking into a small scrap of glass she had salvaged, she gave herself a pep-talk for tomorrow. Getting into her still slightly soggy sleeping bag, she slowly drifted of to sleep dreaming of living in her small box like apartment in Bridgeport.

 



A Word From the Writer

 

 

This is my very first challenge. It also happens to be my very first blog. So, I hope you'll have some patience with it (and me.) I guess I should start this off by telling you, I've played this game, and all the previous ones for years. I'm just socially awkward when it comes to chatrooms and player boards.

 

I started this blog and challenge, at the recommendation of a good friend BMIT04. Like I said before, I'm not really one for these types of things, but I have to admit it is fun. Let's get down to basics.

 

 

1. You're stranded on a deserted island
2. You can talk to no one that shows up
3. You have to survive 5 generations on this little island
4. You can vacation 3 times (twice to the same area,) or go to uni twice to find a mate.
5. No travelling to the future
6. No one can leave except for rule 4, unless they die
7. All traits must be randomized after first couple (that's going to be a lot of fun!)

So, I think I'm sticking pretty close to those (let me know if I stray off the path.) I should say that anyone who's played these games before knows you need a lot of imagination to make a blog about a challenge like this work. Otherwise it's going to put you to sleep fairly quickly. I've been told I have a great imagination, it's just twisted. So, I hope you'll come along for the ride, but take things with a small grain of salt as well (there will be some holes in the story, just try not to think to hard about them. Sometimes you need to take a leap of faith for a story.)

 

There will be no pictures associated with my blog. It's not that I think it wouldn't be a good idea, but there's 3 main reasons why this will be happening.

 

1. I'd rather leave it up to your imagination what you see when you read. It's like reading a really good novel, and having it turn into a movie. You're watching it and you're like why did they pick them for the role? That's not what I had in my head.
2. I really suck at capturing pictures in game. (I'm working on it though.)
3. I wouldn't know how to add them to save the human race. Sorry guys...

 

Anyways, I hope you enjoy it, and let me know what you think.