To Raise a Deva
“To those who seek greater power, know that actions are paid in kind.”
“The Spirit of the Forest, the Great Deva rests under the trees lining the outer edge of Greenguard. We, Viola the Vile, Russel the Riotous, and Allen the Allustrious, have ruled those lands for time time..immem..immorium (??) forget it, just look at the map directions on the back of the journal.” - Allen.
“If you are besought by enemies who wish you harm, wracked by a feebleness of the body, and a deep emptiness of the soul, find him. Find the Deva. Follow our instructions and rouse him from the cold soil.” - Russel.
“With twine, bind and bend sticks of elm into arms, legs, and a head. To let rest, stake to trees all over the woods. To wake and be freed, gather these friends together. Sticks off the forest floor are easiest but the Deva loves chicken bones freshly picked clean after dinner, and suckles on them. Make the dolls exactly the way I wrote. If they’re not put together right, that means they’ll look scary to him and get stomped on. So fussy, that one.” - Viola.
“Russel crafted these dolls to ward his enemies away from our forest. They’re annoyances with nothing better to do than hunt us for sport. Russel’s keepers cackle and ask what they’re supposed to do about those thugs at school beating him black and blue. He should’ve asked for help from us. His hands craft fine dolls for the Forest’s Spirit, and the imbeciles get stomped into paste.” - Allen.
“The Forest’s Spirit loves offerings of foreign delicacies. Dazzling in flavours, colours - and chewy. He’ll get up faster if you gift him some chews. I discovered this after he stomped on the thugs stalking me to the woods. He tried to eat the remains but stopped when we all started screaming. Then, he walked over and ate some of the treats I stole from my Keeper’s meals. Watch out, he gives wet kisses as a thank you.” - Russel.
“I am called Viola the Vile in honour of my knowledge of fear. Allen shrieks at the sight of spiders, and the Forest’s Spirit would wake to chase him alongside me. The majestic beast is very attentive to us, the great mages of these woods, as he will be to your cries. A noble took interest in Allen’s strength, and was willing to pay his keepers’ handsomely for him. They chased Allen into the forest, where the Forest heard him screaming. In no time at all, his keepers were gobbled up. We were shocked at first, but over time, Allen became healthier and his nightmares subsided.” - Viola.
“A wolf bit the Forest’s Spirit and we waited for it to be smushed, but it was given many pats instead. Those little teeth are toothpicks to him, so we lured the rest of the pack here. Gather animals together to help wake him. Through the relationship is strange and one-sided. It makes me worried that the Deva would be easily tricked by ne’er do wells. But — Both the wolf pack and the Forest’s Spirit were happy. When we returned after a few days, the dogs were still eating and their fur changed colour. If the Forest Spirit keeps letting them live like that, they won’t need their long legs anymore.” - Russel.
“Banana slugs are better than candy gummies. Take sewing needles and pierce their sides to have him wake. The sludge that spews out gives joy and wonderment to the Forest’s Spirit. He gallops out, wanting to play and mash them. I realised later that such a thing must be painful to living creatures, slugs or not. My keepers were not interested in my schooling; they only cared about how much work I could do. No one was there to tell me that the needles were cruel. By then, it was too late. We had taught the Forest’s Spirit this kind of joy. Years from now, will there still be banana slugs for the Spirit to play with? Will they grow up and change like we will? Who will feed the Forest’s Spirit then? Who will run to his side when he howls in the night? Who will teach him wrong from right?” - Allen.
“I am Russel the Riotous, known for the might of my fury. I reduced the birch to mulch with my ax, practicing to fight the monsters at school. The sweet smell of the sap attracted the Forest’s Spirit’s curious gaze. Gather sap to wake him, as I did. He might put his chin on your shoulder to see what you’re doing. It snapped me out of my bout of rage. With the sap, I glued together dolls for the Forest’s Spirit. It made me realise that I preferred crafting totems over fighting.” - Russel.
“The three of us used to journey to the forest separately, unaware of the other’s existence. Misery does love company, and ours clicked immediately. Then, we first met the Forest’s Spirit whilst stirring a witch’s brew in a pit. It emerged from the soil and joined in on adding to our metal pot cauldron. He drank it and was merry. Mix a foul brew to get his attention. It doesn’t matter what you put in. The colours and smells fascinate the Deva. If I were to theorise… The Forest’s Spirit was born long ago, in human years. I think, with the way he throws tantrums and is easily pleased with little trinkets, that he is young for his species. I want to say, fifty years. That’s an incredibly long time!” - Viola.
“I spelled illustrious like that because I wanted it in my name, and I’ll earn it in the future. If we get one. The warring Kings might drag the Forest’s Spirit into their mess. If conflicts get too close, we’ll use a seal to hide him. When children are gathered, he’ll wake again. All of us used to practice drawing magic circles, and the Deva would watch and try to copy with his hooves. The symbols and circles are for show. My Keepers won’t let me go to school so I improvised. The Forest’s Spirit responds to the noise from drawing the symbols in rough, dried soil. The first set is a promise that we’ll come back. The second is to wake him.” - Allen.
“I had Keepers as did Russel and Allen. They are buried at the mouth of these woods. To wake the Forest’s Spirit, the final step needed is to unearth the bones of its greatest enemies. Allen and Russel’s Keepers kept them for future wealth. Mine used my head to hit with plates and bowls. But, in exchange for our small gifts, the Forest’s Spirit unleashed his might and freed us from our Keepers. The Kingdom too has a Keeper of horrid character, who steps on the backs of the weak to indulge in rich pleasures. I wonder, will the Kingdom be a kinder place if it were to be liberated? A man and his entourage passing through promised that would be so. Were that to be true, will there be less people like us?” - Viola.
“Oh now we’ve made a great mess of things. The disorder of the steps and ingredients, however, will matter little. Complete all of the steps and you will achieve the heart of the spell with ease. This is Russel inking down the words of the three great mages under the warm shade of the Deva. He is a massive beast of incredible power, a guardian to those who complete our spell, and an excitable spirit that latches himself to your shadow like a tick. Raise him from the dirt, and do take care. Of him and yourselves. This is a wish from the great mages of the past, to the saplings born under a brighter moon.” “And to our loyal Deva - When you wake next, I hope it is to a crowd of smiles. Perhaps it’ll be us, maybe we’ll be wrinkly. Inevitably, it’ll be to a new set of eyes. Action are paid back in kind, you taught us that. Knowing you’ll treat them the same way as us, we march forward with no regrets.” - Viola, Russel, and Allen.