Chapter 3
The Key Ingredients
The time for reproducing had not yet come--Bob knew that for sure. Toby could be useful indeed when the boarding school had whipped him into shape, but for now, Bob's personal disciplines remained lacking. He had much to learn and much to do, and taking the little toilet-clogger out of the equation for a while gave him the room he needed to breathe.
Indeed, time was beginning to trickle away...
"Sire, my aging continues unabated," Justine warned. "But know that the remainder of my days are devoted entirely to your service. Is it time yet for us to propagate the cause of darkness?"
"Patience, love," Bob assured her. "'Our dark machinations continue. Keep to your paintings, and I will keep to my own pursuits."
Life at Hogan's had shifted into a steady routine. Some days were difficult, as when Bob realized he would need to listen to the insufferable ramblings of his coworkers.
"Yes, yes, tarragon
is very interesting, isn't it."
Some, however, were... less troubling.
"My lord, you are singed!" Justine cried.
"Oh, this?" Bob laughed. "This is nothing. Try swimming in the river Phlegethon and then talk to me about a little scrape like this."
"Nevertheless, I insist that we make haste to the shower, that I might wash your smoldering body myself!"
Bob smiled. "I'll allow that."
The fruits of Bob's... unorthodox gardening were beginning to flower. Literally.
"They are beautiful, my lord, and they shall keep you safe from the reaper?" Justine asked.
"Oh, yeah, Graham loves these," Bob said.
"Graham?"
"Yeah, that's his name. Graham Reaper."
The bit of Justine's soul that remained intact performed a full-on facepalm.
A quick trip to the police department at the request of some of Justine's old coworkers gave Bob one final revelation about the nature of Food, the Universe, and Everything...
"...eureka!" he shouted. "I have it! I have mastered the art of Cooking! Go, my dark bride, unto the bookstore, where I might find Dr. Simmons' dark thesis on the matter of Ambrosia!"
But first, Bob celebrated the only way he knew how.
"The hypothetical 'Life Fruit' and 'Death Fish' are needed for this recipe," Bob mused as he pored over the book. "I believe it is in only in the proportion that Dr. Simmons has failed. But I cannot know for sure until I see the ingredients myself."
On the occasion of Bob's birthday, a painting was hung in the living room.
Justine's Brilliant work would serve as a testament to her husband's smoldering good looks even as the taint of time lessened them.
And as Bob fished, it was time.
"The constraints of this mortal form weigh heavily," he sighed. "I must away to the graveyard!"
He threw his line into the waters, baited by the good-for-nothing angelfish, and waited. Beneath the water's surface, grim shadows lurked and twisted.
Suddenly, there came a bite.
"It exists!" Bob laughed. "The Death Fish exists! Just one ingredient remains!"
And so Bob headed home, but not before kibitzing with the locals.
"I miss beds," the ghost said.
"Yeah, they're pretty great," Bob confessed.
The money was continuing to pour in. While Toby became a Teenager enrolled at Le Fromage, Bob continued to work his way up the ranks before finally becoming a Sous Chef. To celebrate, Justine made her way to Hogan's on her husband's behalf, brandishing a stack of bills.
"Minions!" she shouted as she entered, brandishing the money. "Your restaurant is now the property of Bob Dudley!"
"Oh, yeah, Bob's pretty great," Molly French mused, looking up from her spices. "He's gonna be a heck of a boss here at Hogan's."
"SILENCE!" Justine interrupted. "We have rechristened this restaurant! The memory of Hogan falls to ash with this changing nomenclature! Henceforth, you are all employed at...
Hell's Kitchen!"
Molly laughed, her smile not fading for a moment. "Hey, I like it! Got a nice ring to it!"
And so it was that Hell's Kitchen became the sole property of the Dudley family.
Bob celebrated the only way he knew how...
...and, indeed, the time have come.
"The child... the child grows within me!" Justine gasped.
"It will not be long now, my love," Bob said. "I have but one more task for you to complete while we wait for the baby to be born."
"Ice?" she said.
"Ice," Bob repeated. "If our passions are to be eternal, then we must show that even the ice in our home will last forever. You will sculpt my dread form in this medium that I might be preserved forever!"
And so Justine took to the ice quickly, making sculpture after sculpture, her chainsaw tearing into its every slick contour.
Bob's own studies continued as well.
"The final ingredient!" he cackled. "Dr. Simmons, you old fool, you have no idea what your invention has--"
"HRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRNGH!"
"...it's time?" Bob said, looking toward the now screaming Justine.
"HOSPITAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAL!" she roared. "THE HORNS, THEY'RE... AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH."
Three very painful hours later... the next generation had arrived.
"She is beautiful and deadly, like a thunderstorm," Bob sighed. "I see in her eyes not just the spark of Evil, but the spark of Discipline. She is... daddy's little angel of Wrath."
"Yeah, that's lovely, my lord," Justine murmured, "but I'm going to go lie down for the next thousand years or so. Ow. Ow. Ow."
Bob smiled as he took the baby from his wife. She stared back--cold, calculating. Bob swore he could see her grimace up at her father with a contempt that burned like a thousand fires.
"Awwwwwww," Bob cooed.
State of the Dudleys:
Bob Dudley (Generation 1):
Age: Adult
Traits: Evil, Natural Cook, Green Thumb, Angler, Friendly
Lifetime Wish: The Culinary Librarian (complete)
Career: Cooking path (Level 8 - Executive Chef)
SuperMax Skill: Cooking (Level 10 + Menu Maven)
Building: Hogan's Deep-Fried Diner (complete)
Property: None
Lifetime Rewards: Born to Cook (I have more, but the others are going to be the Food Replicator and No Bills Ever)
Best Friends: Justine Dudley, Emma Hatch (Jared Frio, Molly French, and Beau Andrews could be there without a lot of work, and Toby could probably get there easily as well)
Opportunities: The Greatest Food Ever, The All-New Bi-Pedal Dishwashing Machine, Great Greens, Harvesting the Best, Burgers for Sims in Uniform, Uncommonly Good (complete, though I may make the rest of the Omni Plant line Bob's uniques)
Portraits: Young Adult
So Bob needs to own a property and make a few friends--which I'm putting off until he's a bit older since Molly French is an Elder now and I don't know how long she's going to last. Cooking 75 meals to finish off the challenges will be a snap; I just need to sit down and do it. So barring a fire or a space rock, Bob's pretty much all set and should breeze through the end here. And with the Ambrosia ingredients in hand, he's really fulfilled his major purpose in ensuring that he'll be able to make and replicate Ambrosia forever.
One quick question: is it possible to breed fish? I thought I'd read something about it, and it sounds easier than going out during the very inconvenient Death Fish hours.
Wrath Dudley (Generation 2):
Age: Infant
Traits: Evil, Disciplined (Planned: Athletic, Mean-Spirited, either Adventurous or Handy)
(...and that's about it for our adorable lil' firebrand of vengeance. Wrath is going to pursue Martial Arts as her supermax skill and Military as her career track, with Handiness held in reserve in case sparring bugs out (I've got Athletic planned for Greed, which will make sense given his/her obvious career path). I'm vacillating between Physical Perfection, Martial Arts Master, and Become an Astronaut for her LTW; Martial Arts Master makes the most sense and involves the most beating the snot out of people, but the other two go with the career nicely. Thoughts?
Oh, and which of the seven deadly sins do you want to see come into play next generation? I'll leave that one up to you guys.
Up Next: Bringing up Beelzebaby!