A Heartbreaking Death and an Interesting Norn Illness

Every Norn death is a bit of a sad and traumatic experience, yet the death of Leira was one of the most heartbreaking events I witnessed in Creatures. I knew she was getting quite old, and headed over to find her in the garden with Skuld. I tried to convince her to eat, but Leira seemed quite lost. Skuld decided to try to help with a single slap: Leira immediately fell to the soil and whimpered for the last time. I was shocked, yet poor Skuld seemed so confused and frightened. It was not her fault: Only coincidence.

At 10 hours and 40 minutes old, Leira had been the eldest Norn in Albia by a long shot. Unaware of the tragedy in the garden, Mevik tried to brighten the mood with one of his neverending smiles. He had made his way to the beehives, and seemed content to hang out nearby. I had no complaints: He certainly needed a little time away from the females if the population was going to stay under control! I still could not believe how happy Mevik was.

Ure had even braved the underground tunnel and cart to visit the settlement. What a wonderful little adventurer! Although the Santa Norns seem a bit too seasonal to keep in the game all the time, I still find that they add some character to the gene pool. I would also always be reminded of Nordis, for she was the only original Santa Norn in my world. Surely, Ure would have made her proud. He was not as content as Mevik, yet I noticed how independent he could be. He sought out food on his own, took regular naps, and found ways to entertain himself. As I watched him with a loving eye, I thought he seemed a little mischievous, as if he had a secret.

Sure enough, Ure had a secret: Another egg on the way, courtesy of Nordmela! She ran away from her valiant suitor almost immediately, although Ure seemed to miss her once she headed off. It was a blessing in disguise, though. Shortly after finding the beehives, Nordmela came down with a nasty illness. Pregnant Norns and illnesses can be a dangerous situation. Yet Nordmela surprised me by constantly eating honey directly from the hives: What a genius way to get constant nutrition!

Nordmela was unlucky in the sense that she contracted an antigen with a very slow reacting antibody. On top of that, she found herself coughing and feeling terrible in general. Strangely enough, I found that two of the unknown toxins were in her system at exactly the same levels. Never before had I seen antigens, nor unknown toxins, follow the exact same path. It just goes to show how unpredictable illnesses can be in Creatures 1! With my experiences, I still panic whenever I notice a sick Norn. It could be as simple as an ingested weed, or as serious as a highly contagious, lethal infection. Nordmela did suffer through a decreased life force when she left the beehives, yet she avoided the danger for most of her pregnancy. There were some tense moments, though, and I watched her like a hawk to make sure she didn’t get any worse.

Pettvika and Oppeid joined the beehive party in no time. I was all set to hatch the next egg, when Pettvika found herself with her own egg on the way. Mevik, after advancing into the elder life stage, stole the thunder from Oppeid: I was almost sure the Purple Mountain Norn was the father! Alas, not this time.

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