In earlier days the dragon had been content to take an occasional animal from the meadow, leaving the land's inhabitants relatively unaffected. Oh, there was the poor fool who had wandered too close to the monster, thinking it might be amusing to get a better look. And there was the brave, but, some would say foolish, shepherd who had tried to defend his sheep. There were those who claimed that The Great Serpent had carried both fool and shepherd off to his lair, while others insisted that both had been cooked by a blast of the monster's fiery breath and eaten on the spot. Whatever their fate, fool and shepherd were never seen or heard from again.

As the years passed the dragon's appetite seemed to grow. Soon the dragon was taking so many sheep and cattle that the kingdom begin to feel the loss. After a time, many shepherds and herdsmen gave up trying to raise animals altogether and turned their hand to growing fruits and vegetables instead.

Naturally, a dragon had no interest in fruits and vegetables. With the flocks and herds depleted his travels widened, and, in time, the neighboring village of Briar began to feel his bite.

You might wonder why such pillaging was allowed to continue. Where were the dragon slayers of the land? The kings and princes and their knights in shining armor who should have been protecting the country from such dangers? It is a sorry truth that in those days there were no men of renown, though there were those who claimed the title - boasting of their mighty swordsmenship and pronouncing themselves to be fierce defenders of the land. You could spy such a one riding through the countryside now and again, astride a stately, high stepping horse. Though his body was clothed in bright armor, and he carried a long sword or lance in his hand, the sad fact of the matter was that such men were all show, and little or no action. And, of course, as is always the case in such matters, there came a time when action was called for. When the dragon did something so villainous, so diabolical, that his existence could no longer be ignored.