| "The solution is quite clear;" pronounced Sir Michael the White Knight, as he drained his goblet of wine in the community hall. "We need to offer up one more virgin to the beast. When the dragon approaches, I will slay it before it can devour the poor maiden; thus freeing your entire township from the ravages of the evil wyrm." The mayor and his councillors exchanged furtive glances. "But surely, my lord, it cannot be that simple?" the mayor responded, a note of worry in his voice. "how can even so mighty a knight as yourself hope to slay the beast singlehandedly, without further injury to my people? The beast is huge, and you are but one man..." Sir Michael stood up, proclaiming loudly "I, Sir Michael the White, am the purest of all this land's knights. Named for the Lord's Warrior, uncorrupted I stand, ready to fight evil in all its forms - No devil-spawn can stand before my righteous wrath!" The mayor reached up to him, begging him to sit again "My lord, none doubt your prowess, I assure you!" he said placatingly. "But, even if it goes as you say, there is another - slight problem..." He dropped his eyes, and his councillors suddenly developed a keen interest in the ceiling, their fingernails, anything but the knight before them. Sir Michael took his seat, leaned closer to the mayor and waited... Under his steely gaze, the mayor squirmed for a few seconds before whispering "well, there is the matter of.... Well you see, it seemed a good idea to ..." His shoulders deflated as he whispered "Good sir, the unfortunate truth is that you will find no virgins in the township!" The knight leapt to his feet, drew his mighty blade, and said coldly "That is quite the accusation, man! On what do you base such a damning claim?" The mayor looked frantically at his councillors, waved for a refill for Sir Michael's goblet from his 'special stock', then said softly "Look, the dragon always seemed interested in virgin adults... It turned up its nose at children and er, consummated, adults... We reasoned that if there were no virgins, the wyrm might move on to more fruitful habitats..." Sir Michael leaned closer still, took a long draught of his replenished wine, and whispered "Do you mean that in all this township, no adult is pure?" "Aye, save for yourself, my lord, there is not a virgin to be found in these parts. For several seasons now, we have made the deflowering ceremony an integral part of our children's assumption of adult roles..." Distracted only slightly by the strange taste of his wine, Sir Michael commented wryly, "How terrible for you, I'm sure! Except that it didn't work, did it?" "Unfortunately, my lord, no, it didn't... Recently, the dragon has become even more angry, and has caused more destruction and carnage. We simply must either placate it - or kill it..." "I'll - do - what I can" said Sir Michael. Where had this dizziness come from? The room started to spin as he lowered his head to his hands... "Yes, my lord, we know you will" the mayor smiled. "And we will remember you forever for it."
He mulled over the mayor's final words, and then felt an even greater chill as he heard the unmistakable sound of something huge slithering over the rocks nearby...
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