Long ago, before the time of man, God had created a world full of animals. These animals lived in peace, and God left them alone to govern themselves in a great place called Thera. In the forest of Thera, there were two unlikely friends: a deer and a wolf. These two friends had been together since childhood and were inseparable. The wolf, Helbum, had always been the quiet type, and usually would only speak when spoken to. However, the deer, Gispos, would always gossip to and about the other animals of the forest.

Over time, all of the animals became fed up with Gispos because she would often exaggerate the truth and tell little white lies about other animals. Helbum was also held accountable because she was Gispos' best friend. One day, all of the animals gathered on the highest mountain and asked the angel Gabriel for permission to speak to God. Gabriel, knowing how busy God was constructing man, deciding to handle the issue himself. The animals told Gabriel of the deer and the wolf that were troubling them.

"That Gispos told all the animals I'm nuts when it comes to gathering food!" claimed an angry squirrel.
"Yea, and she claimed I was sly and untrustworthy!" said a distressed fox.
"She also told everyone that I'm greedy beyond control!" cried a pig.
Gabriel had heard enough.
"And what of the wolf, Helbum?" asked Gabriel. "What has she done?"
"Well," said an owl "she's done nothing we can think of, but she is Gispos' best friend. She must have something to do with those awful rumors!"
The angel Gabriel thought long and hard, stroking his chin all the while.
"Alright!" he said "I have a test. Because you animals are unsure of whom it is spreading these rumors, we'll do this: I'll take the form of a lizard and follow you down to the forest. There, I'll confront Helbum and Gispos; then we shall see who is behind all the vicious rumors."

All of the animals agreed and returned back to their forest. Gabriel, in reptilian form, crawled off to the animals' watering hole where Helbum and Gispos usually frequented.
As Helbum and Gispos were leaning over for a drink, Gabriel emerged.
"I don't like this water." he said with an angry expression on his face. "Mosquitoes lay their eggs in there and the larva swim around. You could very well be drinking the blood of another animal."
Helbum heard what the lizard had said, but paid no attention to his foolishness. Gispos, on the other hand, immediately backed away from the water.

"He's right!" she exclaimed "I must tell the other animals of my brilliant discovery!"
Gispos ran off and dragged Helbum with her. The pair had been running through the forest for an hour but they could find no other animal.
"Gispos" Helbum said "The light of the moon is bright tonight. The other animals are most likely asleep in the caves and trees."

Gispos decided to check back at the watering hole to ask the lizard for help in waking all of the animals up from their slumber. Upon returning to the bank, Gispos saw a rabbit drinking from the watering hole. While still hiding in the bushes with Helbum, she exclaimed:
"Ah ha! That rabbit is drinking blood! I must wake up all of the other animals and tell them!"
Gispos took off at that very moment screaming at the top of her lungs, waking up the entire forest.
"The rabbit is drinking the blood of other animals! Wake up everyone! We cannot trust the rabbit!"
Hearing this, the other animals all woke up and ran with Gispos back to the watering hole. The rabbit was gone by now, but Gispos insisted he had ran off from fear of being caught.
"I saw him right here!" she explained "He killed another rabbit, drank it's blood, and dragged it off into the forest before we got here. I saw it all with my own eyes!"
All the animals of the forest knew it was against God's law to spill the blood of another creature, so they all rushed off to the mountain to tell God. When they arrived, Gabriel answered the door. All the creatures demanded to speak to God because the rabbit had killed another creature. Gabriel demanded to know if there were any witnesses to such a crime.

Gispos stepped forward and said "I saw it all! That rabbit chased a mole out to the river bank, slaughtered it, and then began to drink its blood!"
Gabriel looked astonished and asked "Are you sure you saw this, deer?"
Gispos shook her head in agreement "Yes, I saw it all!"
Gabriel then looked around the crowd of animals "If there is anyone here who saw other-wise, I beg you, please speak. If there are none among you who saw differently, then I must kill the rabbit myself."
Helbum then stepped forward "I saw differently Gabriel. That rabbit did no such deed. That rabbit only quenched its thirst at the riverbank by drinking water. Earlier today, a lizard told Gispos and I that mosquitoes lay their eggs in the water, and that since the mosquito drinks the blood of animals, the eggs do as well. Gispos is exaggerating sir, the rabbit did not spill the blood of another."

Upon hearing this, Gabriel smiled. He said "I knew that all along Helbum, for you see, I was the lizard. There was truth in what I said, but Gispos stretched it so far as to call another animal a murderer. I was also the rabbit that you saw. Helbum, your honesty will be rewarded. I shall give you a voice so beautiful that all the other animals of the forest shall adore it and fall silent whenever you sing to the moon. But Gispos, your wicked tongue has brought shame to many of your brothers and sisters. For this reason I shall take your voice and you shall never speak again!"

This is why the wolf howls at the moon and its voice is idolized by both the other animals and mankind. This is also why the deer never makes a sound except for the faintest murmurs.