Deity Name: Raven

Pantheon: Native American (West Coast/Haida)

Current Alias: Johnathan Blackfeather

Apparent Age: 33

PB: Orlando Bloom

Occupation: (Per UTR) Professional Poker Player Chris 'Jesus' Ferguson

Player: Colleen

The Legend

Long ago, in a time before the Haida people came to be, there existed Raven, a great bird-god, the creator of the world. He was a giant, as black as night, with huge wings and keen hearing and eyesight. He was responsible for finding the sun, scattering its light around the earth, and making sure it was never dark again.

Once it was light enough for Raven to see, he realized there was nothing but water left from the Great Flood. This made Raven sad. So, he created islands, trees, and mountains. He thought the land and ocean looked lonely and created wolves, deer, eagles, salmon, and whales to fill the empty space.

But Raven was a restless god, and he quickly became bored with the things he had created. Something -- or someone -- was still missing. One day, he was so bored that he let out a mighty sigh that shook everything in sight.

To his surprise and delight, muffled voices answered his call.

Raven realized that he had landed on a half-buried clamshell and exclaimed, "Clamshells don't have voices! This is no ordinary clamshell!"

Luckily for the creatures inside, Raven was not hungry. He had just eaten a huge meal at a nearby waterfall, so he was less interested in eating the creatures than in finding out who squirmed inside. He pulled and pulled at the clamshell with his strong talons, until it opened just enough for the creatures to see out. Much to the Raven's disappointment, the creatures took one look at him standing high above them and the big world around them and scurried back into the clam as fast as they could.

Their fear made Raven angry. They should want to play in his world, he thought, not hide from it. The sight of the creatures made Raven want, more than ever, to have them share in his creations. He would trick them into coming out of the shell if it was the last thing he did. To fool them, Raven used one of his two voices. His loudest voice, the "tok-tok," would only scare the creatures even more. But his other voice, his kinder, sweeter voice, the "cr-r-ruck, cr-r-ruck," he knew would tempt the new creatures to come out and play. As he suspected, hearing the gentle "cr-r-ruck, cr-r-ruck," the curious creatures popped their heads out one by one. Raven kept calling and coaxing until they were out completely.

The creatures were unlike anything he had ever seen before. Raven named them first people of earth. He thought the new people were wonderful. They frolicked in the sand along the coastal shores, danced in the wind and rain, and even played tricks on each other that Raven had taught them. At times, they beat Raven at his own games. These things made Raven most happy. But Raven's happiness only lasted a short time. He realized that there were only males in this first generation of people. He searched, but not a female creature could be found. The males were beautiful, with brown skin, black hair, and strong bodies, but it was not enough to have just males around. Raven needed womenfolk to make his world complete.

"I'll fix this problem," Raven promised. He picked up the male creatures with his mighty wings and lifted them to his back. Raven flew to a beach in the north where he knew he would find the ancient sea creatures, the chitons (KI-tens), who could help him. When Raven found the chitons, he put them together with the males from the clam. They married and bore the next generations of humans, the New Humans, the very first Haida that included both males and females. Raven was very proud of what he accomplished.

Raven loved the New Humans. They were smart and beautiful, and as strong as the surf and sea creatures that had borne them. He loved how they challenged him, kept him busy and amused. He was impressed by the New Humans, how they created great lives for themselves, built gigantic cedar homes, erected tall totem poles to tell their families' histories, and made great carvings to record the triumphs of their spirits. There would never be a greater people in Raven's eyes. And as long as people believed in him, Raven would be there to help them survive forever.

The Man

As promised, Raven was bound to his land, as long as there were people to believe in him. At first he was content to live among them as his bird-form, offering favors and games to his humans when they would seek him out. Before long, though, people became less interested in their animal brothers, in their land, and more interested in each other. Being a vain God, Raven decided to learn to look and walk as a man, so that they might still pay him mind, play his games. He has lived under many names, had many professions, but he is still essentially the the same deity. Although, as time went on, and the belief of his people waned, Raven felt himself starting to be trapped into his human body, less able to live the way he was accustomed to, his power diminishing with the faith. He was left to protect what small pieces of land were truly his, what believers he still had. Despite his dwindling power, Raven was still in good spirits; while he loved his humans and appreciated their respect, respect and sacrifices were never too important to him. He enjoyed games and jokes with his people much more, and it was easier now, that few remembered who he was.