The Golden Sheep

The Golden Sheep were a creation of Draem's. She made them alone.

My historical writing on the Golden Sheep is lost somewhere in the archives. I should have organized everything, but it never occurred to me I would wind up with so much. A lot of the old texts were handwritten, and with my handwriting that is like trying to read Egyptian Hieroglyphics. Anyway, I never did have much on the Golden Sheep, so I should be able to put most of it here from memory.

They lived on mountain slopes, high enough to dissuade the common curious, but not so high as to be completely exposed. They were large creatures. Most of the things made by the Children of Fire tended that way. On average, they were probably the size of a hefty pony. They foraged, but it is not clear whether that was just something they did, or whether they actually had to eat to survive.

They were extremely shy creatures, making the Phoenix appear gregarious in comparisson. It is not known if that was Draem's intent.

The amazing feature Draem gave them was that they changed color. In the winter they were white, blending in with the snow perfectly. Through Amaris (spring) and into Nelshius (summer) their wool would darken until it was black. Then, in Luvellish (fall), their wool would turn to gold strands. It wasn't just that their color was gold, although it was, but their wool actually became gold. The season for gold was short, though. Around Mid-Harvest (halfway through fall) a new coat of white wool would begin to grow, pushing out the gold strands, which would break off and lay along the mountainsides. The white wool grew quickly, so by the time Fargius (winter) arrived, they were well protected from the cold. This property of camoflage suggests to some that Draem did intend them to be shy.

As to the gold strands, certain bird species, such as eagles, would collect them for nests. The gold was soft and pliable. It also contained Fire, provided by the sheep themselves. The Dwarfs learned of the Golden Sheep and sent expeditions out to harvest the bounty.

Being sheep, the Golden Sheep were virtually defenseless when The Great War erupted. During the breakup of the Original World, the Golden Sheep were mostly destroyed. What few that remained moved higher into the mountains, and became more reclusive than ever. At the time of Book I, no one had seen a Golden Sheep since The Great War.

Point of Interest: In Book I, there is a reference to the golden wool in Sovereign Odelmaar's description. Odelmaar was a proud man and it showed in his manner and dress. His robe was black with gold accents on the sleeves, collar and fringe. He wore a golden belt made of some material that looked like hair but was in fact gold. It had been found on Fire Mountain.