Impish Asia

Impish Asia

         Once upon a time there was a forest imp named Asia. She had light brown hair and skin and expressive hazel eyes. She was sleeping in the branches of her mother tree when she woke up hungry. Very hungry, her stomach seemed about to implode upon itself. But she had no payment to give to the wood goddess for the food she only needed every six months.
         She traveled into the center of her home forest, Drei’s Wood. There she met Meielaine, the wood goddess and daughter of the largest, oldest oak in the forest. When Meielaine asked what it was she needed, she regretted it right away. Asia replied to her, “Food for me?” Now Asia, as it is important to understand, had the most annoying voice of all the imps of the world. Trust me, it was terrible. Her voice was loud and high-pitched, and shrill as a crow’s caw.
         “Asia, I understand you have no food. But you have no money, no exchangeable items with which to pay. Go to Mt. Furnacci, the blazing volcano in the north. Fetch me a ruby from the base of that mountain and you shall have your food.” Asia nodded, then pranced off onto the plains on her way to Mt. Furnacci.
         Upon her arrival, she was astounded to see the thousands of rubies spread about the volcano’s base. Like the rolling sea of gems, the blackened bones of humans dumb enough to steal a ruby or two lay strewn about. Since she was a forest imp, she had to be especially careful. After all, she was in the home of her anti-element. As she reached for a large, prismatic ruby, there was a loud cracking sound and a flash. Then, before Asia stood Excema, the fire goddess.
         “Who are you that would dare steal my gems? Have you not seen my victims’ charred bones and flesh among the beauties? Or are you just stupid?” But then she recognized the little imp cowering before her. “Oh--! Dear Lord, what are YOU doing here?!” The goddess shrank away, but when Asia was about to explain herself Excema interrupted. “NO! Never mind. Listen, you can have a ruby if you go east to the Lake Safvir and get me a sapphire, okay? Wait, don’t answer that, just do it, please…”
         And so, without a word, Asia took off, bound for Lake Safvir. She wasn’t exactly welcome when she got there. She was just about to retrieve the sapphire from the white sand on the bank when out of the lake sprung Anye, the water goddess. “Stay your hands from my treasures! You foul fool, whose name escapes me, what makes you worthy of my—oh—dear—what do YOU want?!” Asia opened her mouth to answer, but Anye silenced her by pouring water into her maw. “Forget it! You can have a sapphire if you get me an emerald from your mother goddess Meielaine.” With that, Anye rose a small tidal wave and flushed Asia away onto the plains.
         As Asia was washed away, all that could be heard was her shrill voice crying “Foooood fooor meeeeee….”
         When she came back home to Drei’s Wood, she was tired and starving. She made her way to the center tree and approached Meielaine with tears in her eyes. “Goodness child, what is wrong? Why have you returned without the ruby for which I asked?” In a flood of tears, Asia explained every excruciating detail of why she was unable to get the gem Meielaine wanted. “I see. Do not cry, my dear, I have an idea. In exchange for the emerald you need to obtain a sapphire which you need to get the ruby, I will have your voice. Have we a deal?” Asia agreed, knowing that nobody ever gave her a chance to use her voice anyway.
         Without her voice, Asia took the emerald to Lake Safvir. Anye accepted it—then attempted to flush Asia away without giving her the sapphire. Asia was going to call for her mother, but she now had no voice. But Asia had another trick up her sleeve. As a forest imp, she had power over the grass and trees in the area. She forced the roots of the nearest oak to coil around her ankles and waited for the flood to end. Then she commanded a weed near the bank to capture the sapphire, then pass it down to its brother and sister weeds towards her. Anye tried to whip the jewel back to the bank, but at the last possible second an oak root shot from the ground to grab it. The root gave the gem to Asia and she took off running, the water-slicked grass allowing her to move faster across the plains.
         And then she was back at Mt. Furnacci, holding out the sapphire as she approached. Excema, with another crack and flash, appeared before her, accepting the gem. When asked why she was soaked, Asia could only open her mouth and release air. With a sigh of relief, Excema dried her off…then tried to send her off. As Asia reached forward to grab the ruby, a pillar of fire shot from the ground beneath it. Asia cried out silently and jumped back. Excema laughed and started raising fire pillars randomly around the field. It seemed like a hopeless battle, fire against wood, but she still had a snare for this goddess. She started picking up rubies and launching them at the goddess. The goddess, weaving to avoid the gems, accidentally wandered into a fire pillar. With a crack and a flash, she had vanished.
         Ruby in hand, Asia wandered back to Drei’s Wood. She presented the ruby to Meielaine, who asked her why she was burned around her hands and feet. Asia was granted her voice long enough to explain the treachery of her aunts. Furious, Meielaine punished Anye by draining her lake, then ordered her to deliver judgment unto Excema. Anye punished Excema with heavy rainfall, which caused the flaming depths of the mountain to become cold and damp. Mt. Furnacci and Lake Safvir were no more. And in honor (as well as apology) of Asia, a festival was held every six months from then on for all her troubles when running errands for those who should have been kind to her on her journey. The goddesses were all required to award Asia with a gem each festival, and so the story ends happily. For Asia, anyway.

The End