The Snake of Greed

Once upon a time,
There was a serpent larger than any other in existence. It grew this way because anything it came across, it would eat.
It started small, with birds, and mice, and creatures of prey. Soon it grew to eat humans, and boulders. Then it grew to eat houses and trees.
And whenever people told it to stop, it would eat them too.
The moon looked down on it, and laughed. "If you keep eating" it said, "then you're going to run out of food." But the snake didn't care. It continued to eat.
Soon it was drinking entire lakes dry.
Soon it swallowed mountains whole.
Soon it devoured the whole world, and there was nothing left to eat.
"Have you finally had your fill?" said the moon. But the snake only reached for the moon with its impossibly long maw. It stretched and stretched. It bent as long as its body could go. But it couldn't reach the moon.
The Snake tried for hundreds of years, and in that time, the rivers came back, new mountains formed, and the people, plants, and animals all returned.
But still the snake reached for the moon, for it was the only thing it hadn't eaten.
And still, the moon hangs in the sky, taunting the snake that could never reach it.

Summary

This is a story about a creature that consumed with abandon but was never satisfied. Often used as a story to remind children to be mindful of their ambitions.

Spread

This story is popular among children in Cuprum, for its a whimsical tale with no real basis, and cements the Moon as a figure that plays a big role in watching over to world.

Variations & Mutation

A popular ending of this tale is to have the snake be caught or killed by the end. But those are a more modern invention when the Mother Sun priests tend to tell it.