Wyvern

393 AC - An ominous crackling, then a deafening boom… The sound of the lightning is even more terrifying than usual. Where are my Woollybacks? I run to the ridge as the clouds rumble. There they are, soaked and trembling, huddled together at the top of a tiny hill. It's going to be tricky to get them down from there… I look up at the sky and gulp. Since the transhumance started, the weather has never gotten this bad this quickly before. I need to find shelter for them, and fast. Puff is bleating non-stop, urging the other sheep to get moving and follow him. I wipe away the rain trickling down my face and look for somewhere to shelter…

Crack. Boom. I see it appear in the bright flash of the lightning, like a bird of prey. It's huge, with enormous wings I can almost see through, and its back bristles with protruding spikes. And then it starts to swoop down towards my little woolly friends! I sprint towards them to tell them to run, but with the wind, rain and chaos, they don't hear me. Suddenly, Puff leaps in, swinging his horns from right to left. He moves as if to charge and stares at the dragon defiantly, without fear. The rain lashes down around us, and I need to squint to see what's going on. In a moment of clarity, I suddenly understand. I realize he's buying time so I can lead the flock to the sheep-pen.

A wyvern, also known as a guivre in heraldry, is a magical mythical creature from European folklore. It is depicted as a bipedal dragon, or sometimes as a winged serpent. Wyverns often guard treasure or block the way for knights errant.

KAURI