Lambdon's Dragon

In the olden days of dragons, a young boy lived inwas caused by the ugly worm he had caught in
the Northumberland region of Northern England.the river many years before. Courageously,
This lazy lad enjoyed fishing in the river. One day,Lambdon vowed that he would rid the castle of
he had caught several fine fish for his supper andthis ghastly guest and restore peace to his
one very unpleasant looking worm. On his wayhomeland.
home in the afternoon, Lambdon was admiring hisBut Lambdon had a plan. He went straight away
catch and tossed the inedible serpent creatureto the armorer and arranged for a new suit of
down the village well. He continued on home andarmor. This new suit of armor was studded all
thought no more about it.about with blades and spikes sticking out like a
The years passed, as they always do. Thehedgehog's coat. And it was in this new suit of
serpent-dragon grew in the bottom of the villagearmor that Lambdon strode out to face the
well. Lambdon grew, too, and to everyone'sdragon, his sword gleaming in the early morning
delight, he grew out of his indolent ways.sun.
Lambdon grew into a fine young man and, as allThe dragon was furious that there was no milk
fine young men did in those days, he went toand turned his full wrath upon the knight who
fight in the Crusades. All the while, the monsterconfronted him in the castle yard. Lambdon struck
continued to grow in the bottom of the well.at the monster's head with his sword, but the
One day, the fiend emerged from the well andwily and wicked worm wound his tail around the
slithered back to the river. There it grew largerknight's legs, then around his chest, and intent on
and larger and became the terror of thesqueezing the life out of the valiant warrior.
countryside, feasting on any luckless creaturesThe serpent dragon squeezed and squeezed,
that crossed its path. The dragon ravagedwrapping its long coils tighter and tighter around
through the village and finally made its way tothe knight. But the harder the dragon constricted
Lambdon Hall. With the instructions from the chiefaround Lambdon, the more the spikes began to
steward, the household was prepared. The largesttear into the monster's flesh. The spikes sank
feed trough was set in the castle yard and filleddeeper and deeper and the blood gushed forth. In
to the brim with milk. The dragon drank everypain and anger, the dragon bellowed its rage and
drop of the milk and slithered away satisfied, onlycoiled tighter around Lambdon until ultimately it
to return the next day. The trough was filledhad torn itself to pieces on the blades and spikes
every day and, if the serpent was not satiatedin the armor.
with enough milk, the creature would tear treesAs the dying dragon's grasp weakened, Lambdon
from the ground and go rampaging through thechopped off the creature's head with one strong
region, devouring any living being it encountered,blow from his sword. All the servants in the castle
creating mayhem and spreading fear among theran out into the yard and began snatching up the
residents.pieces of the dreaded dragon that had terrorized
In this way, the castle was visited daily by thethem for so many years. With Lambdon leading
dragon and the countryside continued to sufferthe way, the bits and pieces of the dragon's flesh
for many years until Lambdon returned from thewere carried down to the rushing river and
Crusades. Horrified, he recognized immediatelytossed into the strongest part of the current,
that the devastation throughout the countrysidewhere they were swept away forever.