Chapter Seven | Island Spirits Welcome page | Chapter Nine
Nork was determined to finish his aspiration, so his stay back at the village was a short one. Before Utel could even protest, Nork had packed up and was heading back out on another long journey. This time, he was headed to a mysterious forest glade that supposedly had some other rare fish he was looking for.
After communing with the tree spirit (yeah, I know it sounds weird, but that's apparently the only way to get there per the legends.) - which seemed receptive to his approach, Nork was rewarded with a gaping hole in the base of this massive tree. Tentatively, Nork stepped inside... and after a few wrong turns, he came out into the light of a mysterious meadow.
Nork got straight to work. There were fish to catch. He didn't forget Utel, though.. and he spent some time hunting down new plants to bring home to her, as well.
Luckily, the fish at this meadow were far easier to catch and he was back home in far less time, for which Utel was immensely grateful. Three children and caring for the massive garden kept her very busy.
Nork was apparently still not done, however... and in a futile attempt to take some of the child care burden off of Utel - took Saazul with him on his next journey. It backfired, though, because it left Utel with two babies and no helper (which he certainly heard all about when he and Saazul finally returned from their week-end excursion.)
Saazul proved to be a quick study when it came to fishing, though. Nork beamed in pride as she caught fish after fish.. and it quickly became a competition to see who could land the biggest catches. (Nork, inevitably won, but it certainly hadn't been easy!)
The even found some more berries for Utel on their way back, although it didn't stop the tirade of words at "stealing" her helper away for three days when they got home.
With this in mind, and only a few more legendary fish to find, Nork left Saazul home for his next trip. This time, he was headed back to the desert cave.
He took some time to marvel at the light-bringing crystals in the cave. He wondered briefly if there was a way to pry some of them loose and bring them home to make up being gone so much to Utel.. but he had no idea how one would do such a thing.
He settled in, expecting a long trip again, but somehow (miraculously) he caught the fish he was searching for quickly. The feeling of accomplishment made the whole trip ultimately worth it, and he walked with an extra swagger on his way back to the village.
While showing off his fish around the village, he ran into a beauty he hadn't noticed around before.
Her name was Kalamainu’u Iona, and she had a mysterious air about her... but not so mysterious that she was immune to Nork's considerable charms.
Having fulfilled his aspiration, Nork had plenty of bragging material, and she was an easy target, apparently.
Before too long, the two of them retired to a more "private" location. With a cheeky grin, Nork cleaned himself up and headed back towards the homestead.
Back at home, Utel was still unbelievably busy. On top of just caring for the kids and the garden (which had become a staple of the whole villages' diet), she was teaching young Gnaar and Nirraa as much as she could.
And - speaking of Nirraa, she had finally learned to toddle around the camp, and was keen to learn the language and tribal customs. There was always something that needed doing around the camp, and Nork returning home early this night was immensely helpful. He fed the cowplant, cleaned up his youngest daughter, and tidied up around the homestead, ignoring that this was "womens' work".
Then, just before bed, he surprised Utel with his gift of exotic plants... and the knowledge that Nork's travelling days were finally over. Utel was certainly grateful to hear that, and - with all the children in bed - Nork was quick to take advantage of her good mood. Perhaps he could get another son.....
Chapter Seven | Island Spirits Welcome page | Chapter Nine
