I Met The Devil’s Child

Blurb

“It lies in wait by the footpath, drawing passers-by to their deaths. Yet here I was, holding this beautiful creature in my arms and I was still alive!”

Story

We squatted there in the cover of some tall shrubbery, bare feet in the dark, amidst the chirping of insects and the crowing of the night witches. Somewhere farther in the dark, one of the witches hooted, and I squeezed my brother’s hands. They were rough, weathered by farm work.

Mama had told us that at midnight, the village witches turned into crows and owls, and they would sing their dirges in the evil forest. Whenever she told this story, I and Ali would quiver under the ankara sheets, frightened to our toes—but Ali was no longer frightened. He was squatting still in the dark next to me, and I could hear his low breathing despite the annoying hum of mosquitoes.

I knew they should not have sent him away to read the white man’s book. Ever since he returned from the city, he had been different; daring the local customs and questioning the village tradition. It frightened me, I could barely recognize my brother.

Another witch began hooting above us, and I squeezed Ali’s hand. “Shhh,” Ali hushed, using his free hand to press deep into my shoulder. A mosquito hummed near my ear, and I smacked myself, immediately regretting the sting.

“Shhh!” Ali frowned at me. It was dark but a bit of moonlight revealed the angry lines on his face. The canopy of branches above us had shut out the night sky and most of the moon’s stare. The air was still but cold, and silvery moonlight filtered in through spots where the greenery gave way, illuminating the great hollow Iroko tree a few feet from where we hid. The chief called it the staff of the gods. Its lean length rose high and past the canopy of the lesser trees, and its peak could be seen all the way from Umoba hill, a huge red mound on the outskirts of the village.

My heart stopped when I realized where my brother had brought me—the ancestral grounds. Custom Laws forbade anyone from coming close to this forest, or even close to the ancestral grounds. The alarm to run went off in my head but my brother grabbed my hand, as if reading my thoughts.

“When will you man up?” he snickered. He had brought me here to see the Devil’s Child; a fearsome creature that had plagued our lands for ages. My mother said that it cried like an infant to draw pity from even the hardest of hearts, reeling passers-by to their deaths. And here we were, squatting a few feet from its nest.

“SHHH. Listen. It has awoken,” Ali grinned and I remained still, priming my ears to get a whiff of what he was sensing.

All I could hear was the chirping and hooting…

Until—CRACK!

A twig snapped! Somewhere near The Great Staff, a branch swayed and the leaves rustled.

My bladder sighed in my groin as I shivered in fear. I looked at my brother. He had one finger raised to his lips. We both remained silent for the next five minutes…and then he moved, gesturing with his hands that I should follow immediately. I hesitated, eyeing our surroundings. He had already gone ahead and was just a few yards away from the tree. I decided I was going to hang back and watch him instead.

He stopped by the base of The Great Staff and stooped over its roots—this was desecration! Mama would lie me down bare in the dirt and flog me senseless with her raffia cane if she heard about this. I knew she would not punish my elder brother because he was now a Man, but I on the other hand was a different matter. 

Papa was away to other villages with his local wares, and he would not be home till a fortnight. If he knew what we had done, he would make me lie in his Ataro pepper all day. I should run! I should get away!

But what if the demon devoured Ali? What would I tell Mama and Papa?

I was busy nibbling at my nails when Ali’s shout disrupted my thoughts.

“Come and see!” he laughed into the night like a maniac.

I squinted until I could make out his form. He was holding something in his hands and started moving towards me.

“Come and see the devil’s child,” he giggled as he approached me. He stopped in the beam of moonlight coming from a break in the canopy above, marvelling at what he had in his hands.

I summed up courage and crept out of our hiding place to meet him. He lowered his hands so I could see as I bent to peer at it—it was beautiful…

Its large brown eyes and small pink nose stared up at me.

“No, it can’t be.” I whispered.

“Touch it, Obi.” Ali urged, and I did.

Its fur felt woolly and plush. A smile started from the corners of my mouth; the fear of before had disappeared.

“Hold it, Obi. It cannot kill you,” Ali urged, putting the small creature in my hands. It felt so small and frail, like a yarn ball. I giggled nervously.

“No, it can’t be. Mama says it cries like a child,” I said to Ali in doubt.

Then a shrill cry tore the night, making me jump back in fright. The sound came from The Great Staff behind us, and It sounded like the yelp of a small child.

“LOOK!” Ali pointed to a bough on a nearby tree and I quickly saw it too.

It was the same creature but bigger, and its big eyes were staring at us.

I was speechless. I would have sworn that cry had come from a child, but it had come from a small, big-eyed monkey. This was the creature my people called the Devil’s Child. It had been rumoured to draw people to their deaths since the days of my forefathers, but here I was, holding it in my arms—and I was still alive!

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Author’s note on ‘I Met The Devil’s Child’

The Devil’s Child is based on a small primate commonly called the `Bush Baby` but also known as the “Galago”. They are agile leapers that live in Africa, south of the Sahara. They prefer dry woodland regions and the savannah, and they can see excellently in the dark owing to their large eyes. Their hind limbs and long tails give them balance while their fur can range from a silvery grey to dark brown. Also, their big ears help them hunt insects at night.

So how did this cute cuddly creature become the epitome of evil portrayed in the African setting? Nobody knows. Folklore and Tales by Midnight depict them as horrid monsters that lie in wait crying like a human child, drawing passers-by to their doom.

African children sent off to boarding schools in the Western Region, especially Nigeria are familiar with the heart-rending tales of the bush baby and its tactics to steal souls. I would know because I went to boarding school myself and suffered sleepless nights because of these tales.

It wasn’t until I did my own research that I found out more about Bushbabies. This cute animal does not eat human beings, they are actually seasonal animals with a mixed diet: They eat shrubs, nectar, honey and insects. They could also eat smaller rodents…but that’s not convincing enough to label them hideous monsters!

They are said to have fiery eyes in folklore and rumours and this turns out to be wrong. Their eye colour varies from a shade of dark brown to Yellow, which can be scary to see at night.

Overall, they are cuddly and timid creatures that can almost never be seen in the day, and they make beautiful pets too.

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